#then i considered the timing and realized it would have been entirely plausible for her to watch the show during the pandemic

[majiburger]

i'm neither a Hater or Lover of t*ylor *wift (i mean, i like a few of her songs but don't really care about anything beyond that), but one of my pet conspiracy theories has always been that a lot of her songs are about the amc hit show mad men

[nightcolorz]

Armand surgical malpractice meta (spoilers for TVA)

It’s, at least from what I’ve seen, a pretty popularly agreed upon conception that Armand’s mutation of Claudia b4 her death as described in TVA didn’t actually happen..partly bcus it’s such a drastic and grotesque retcon from her death in interview with the vampire so lots of ppl don’t want to address it as canon, and partly bcus it’s so bizarre and seemingly unprompted in context that it just seems more plausible that Armand would make this up as some sort of twisted shock value rather then actually do it. I used to buy into this theory and never rlly thought about it beyond that, and today for the first time I thought about it deeply and realized. Damn I rlly disagree! I think that Armand 100% canonically chopped Claudia’s head off and sewed it onto an adult body. I believe it happened as told. And I have many reasons !

First and foremost I don’t think that Armand is actually capable of lying so deliberately in this context. Interpreting most tvc narrators as potentially lying to our faces and intentionally twisting events to suit a narrative and a purpose of dictating our perception of them is, I think, accurate and justified, and smth I love about this fandom. Everyone is not to be trusted 100%, especially Louis and Lestat, who are said and implied many times to have completely fabricated some events in the books for the sake of painting a picture. Tvc serve as this over arching plot about multiple conflicting characters manipulating events of their lives to suit a narrative that we as the audience can pick apart and discover the truth within. Very much “this bitch said WHAT about me?? that dumb cunt is always spreading lies smh, it actually happened LIKE THIS” (they r both not telling the full truth). Armand however is very much an outlier here, and it’s part of what makes TVA so unique as a chronicle. It’s a big part of his character throughout the series, in TVA and leading up to TVA, that Armand’s way of thinking is so dysfunctional and his memory is so flawed (bcus of all his trauma) (and neurodivergence) (imo) that he isn’t able to fully conceptualize the events of his life as chronological and meaningful in the way that one would need to do to be able to write a memoir.

He can’t describe events in broad strokes, or wrap his head around a vast emotional impact in a way that is explanatory or intentional. Think of that conversation he has with Daniel in queen of the damned, where he explains that he isn’t capable of telling Daniel what his life in the past “was like” because that’s a concept incomprehensible to him. He only knows what happened, not what it was like, not how it affected him or how it shaped his personhood, what it means etc. It’s a form of dissociation almost. The vampire armand is the first time in Armand’s vampiric life that he self reflects beyond acknowledging events and his emotions in that moment, it’s the first time he attempts to make connections and understand himself in a way that is narrative and structured and not fragmented bits of history and A names. Part of this requires further dissociation. I definitely get the impression that since Armand is being so vulnerable in a way he is so unused to, yet is so significant, he is unable to register while he’s talking that not only David, but millions of people including every vampire in the world, will know what he says. He’s just laying himself completely bare, he’s talking and talking and only once he finishes realizes oh. Oh. everyone’s going to read this huh. It’s so cathartic he doesn’t consider that in the moment. It’s the first time he’s ever been capable of reckoning with his life in a self reflective way, of looking at it and explaining it and reasoning with it, structuring it in order, not fragments, etc, seeing the cause and the impact and touching on an overall conclusion (tho he never entirely gets there). These baby steps are so difficult for him already, and considering this part of his character I really think it’s a stretch to say that Armand would be capable of the thought process in his book of pure venting to go “maybe I should twist the truth here or change this or add this or lie about this so people will think of me this way or so Lestat can see this, etc” TVA is unreliable, more so bcus of how mentally ill armand is and how little he understands his own life and emotions, but not deliberately like iwtv and tvl. Armand even says that the book was for Benji and Sybelle, but it’s so unfiltered and horrific and vent-like that this sounds ridiculous. He doesn’t even have his stated audience in mind while he’s telling his story, let alone his broader audience. The audience was a complete afterthought, a barely registered consequence. So why would he lie about Claudia? How would he be capable?

it’s another common piece of conversation around this part of TVA where we go, Armand discusses how he never would want to tell this to Louis bcus he knows how badly it would hurt him, so why did he describe it so graphically? Well, cause of all I mentioned. It seems pretty clear to me that armand is almost haunted by the affair with Claudia, and he has no way of lying about this, so his descriptions seemed very much to me like a desperate bit of venting. He has never told anyone how horrific it actually was and it’s always been in his mind, so he just lets it all out. Makes sense, but the broader question is, if Armand wasn’t lying…why did he do that at all?? This I think is so interesting.

To understand this I had to think a lot about Armand’s motivations for killing Claudia at all, which is well, simply, revenge against Lestat and claiming of Louis without barriers. If Claudia dies Lestat will be sad and Louis will be mine and mine alone 👍👍 etc. but Claudia’s mutation was not rooted in either of these motivations, which is part of why it’s so shocking. He didn’t do it to hurt Lestat, lestat never found out. It just seems so odd and unprompted. But once I thought more about why Armand hates Lestat, and why he wants to hurt him by killing Claudia, it started to fit into place. Armand’s hatred for Lestat is rooted very much in his twisted resemblance to Marius that he perceives as being very strong and basically mocking. When he first sees Lestat in tvl he’s repulsed by him instantly bcus he sees him as this parody of Marius, this beautiful blonde man in striking red robes who boldly and carelessly defies the laws of vampires established by the children of Satan as if they are meaningless to him, revels in the indulgent world of humans like he belongs there, shamelessly as armand devotes himself to miserable repression. It strikes a nerve for armand, feels very personally offensive to him, like the embodiment of the traits that got Marius’s destroyed r coming back to mock him in his face. And then as he gets to know Lestat more deeply he only hates him more, bcus Lestat is not only bold and careless, but he’s immature and stupid, and he knows nothing. Armand in his horribly traumatized mind set registers Lestat as “like Marius” and takes this to mean “maybe he can save me, maybe he will teach me and free me from this hell, guide me and give me the purpose I need to be given.” But Lestat does not do this, lmfao. He actually destroys any sense of purpose armand had, rips him from his safety net, and when Armand begs for guidance, asks to be allowed to travel alongside Lestat so he can learn to be a person again, Lestat denies him. The only purpose he bothers to give him is the scraps, symbolic of his perverse indulgence that Armand despises, and fucks off. Lestat is grotesquely reminiscent of Marius, in the worst ways. It’s like his presence alone opens Armand’s eyes to how badly Marius has ruined him. He was the sun, the purpose, the guiding light, and then it was ripped away, and there was nothing else without him. Just a void.

So Armand hates Lestat for this very personal mockery of his own plight, and this hatred spirals into unbridled rage when Lestat returns to him and expects Armand to give Lestat the assistance that he denied him. Not only this, but Lestat found Marius, found marius and was granted guidance and love that Marius refused to give Armand after his indoctrination into the children of Satan. And Marius told Lestat to never ever do what he did, never make an Armand, because Armand was a mistake, he was too young to be a vampire, and now he’s a mistake he will never forgive himself for. And with this immense privilege that Armand spent a huge chunk of his life yearning for, guidance from Marius when he was his most lost, Lestat decides to disregard it. He decides that since Marius said it was bad to turn a child as young as Armand, he’d turn a child even younger then Armand, just cuz. He is once again the embodiment of Marius’s sins, the grotesque parody. Marius turned a teenager, Lestat turns a five year old. It’s almost cruel in how mocking it is, almost intentional in how personal. So Claudia is this child, this deliberate mistake made by someone who knew her turning would be harmful to her but was selfish enough not to care, then went on to regret it when he has to reckon with the consequences. Seem familiar? Armand sure thought so. So I imagine that being alone with Claudia, looking this deeply sad reflection of his own agony in the eyes, knowing she is about to die for justice against a warped parody of his Maker, for the sake of punishment for her own existence, I imagine this struck a cord of insanity in Armand’s fucked up mind, caused him to loose his absolute shit for just long enough to go what if I can fix her, what if I can turn this narrative around, give her the remarkable ending I know deep down that she, I , will never be granted. What if I can give her a body that will reflect her mind? What if I can make this abomination into a miracle? No wonder he pulled out the surgical tools 😭 No wonder he was so horrified by his own actions when he came to his senses, no wonder he refused to share this, kept it to himself for so long, until he finally broke and confessed it all in a desperate moment when he was too caught up in the dam breaking to realize he’d be exposing this horrific action to the world.

Armand sees Claudia as a repulsive mistake that should’ve never existed made by Lestat to deliberately mock him up until the surgery, when then for only a moment lost to time ended in blood she is another child who had her life taken from her too soon by an egotistical blonde man who thought he could play god with someone’s life. “They were done for anyway, he was going to starve to death in a brothel, she was going to die as a street orphan, the blood would be a service to them, a chance they never had” But they both know that’s a lie they tell themselves to justify the act of taking a child and molding it into what they please for fun, for pleasure, for companionship, just to see what would happen. Armand sees this for a moment and wants to give her a chance, give them both a chance, wants to see her as an adult, as someone who could have a life. And then of course, we know how that turns out 😭

[aurumacadicus]

Ummm 141 please?

Hmmm warning for serial killer Steve I think.

--

Steve heard something thump to the floor in the living room. Probably Tony's backpack, he figured, tipping his head to the side so he could see how the scratches along the side of his neck were healing. Minor injuries were always the last to heal, after all; his body had been working overtime on the knife wound in his side, but that was finally nothing but pink scar tissue.

He listened to the pounding of Tony's feet toward the bathroom door, considered coming up with a plausible excuse for why he'd dumped his bloody clothes on the living room floor, then decided it didn't matter. Tony knew he was a super soldier, knew that he still went on missions for SHIELD if he thought they had merit. It was just that when he did work for SHIELD, he could go to medical, stop for clean clothes. When he was doing his personal jobs, he didn't have that option.

"Steve?!" Tony exclaimed, throwing the bathroom door open. He was still wearing his coverup clothes, baggy sweatpants and a one of Steve's hoodies. His eyes were wide and frightened as they raked up and down Steve's body.

"Okay," Steve cut in, before Tony really started catastrophizing. "Relax. The blood isn't mine." He turned to face him, resting one hand on the sink and leaning his weight on it to show off his body, show that the only injuries he had were the line of scratches down his neck, the already-fading pink scar. "Calm down."

Tony looked reluctant to believe him, eyes darting up and down Steve's body, just to make sure. He curled a hand around one side of the hoodie pocket, twisting the fabric in his fingers. "It was a lot of blood," he finally managed. He dipped his head and looked up at Steve through his eyelashes, bottom lip caught between his teeth. "More... more blood than I've ever seen before." His eyes finally landed on Steve's hand on the sink, his bruised knuckles and the blood dried in his nail beds, across his fingers. He jerked his gaze back up to Steve, worried all over again. "Steve."

Steve tipped his head, taking a moment to look Tony up and down as well. He looked good in Steve's sweatshirt. But Steve knew, underneath it and the sweatpants, he was wearing nothing more than the thong he performed in. Tony was a brilliant scientist, but he was blackballed from all science and tech industries, even menial jobs, because he refused to make weapons for his former godfather, and every other company was ready to take advantage of him or worse, crush any small company that Tony might try for. So he worked nights at a local strip club, where no one would expect Tony Stark to work, and spent his free time developing and drafting ideas for the day that he would finally, hopefully be able to use them.

"I killed Sunset Bain," Steve finally said.

Tony sucked in a shocked breath, taking a step back. His eyes darted back to Steve's hand and then back up to his face. "...What?"

"It'll make the news," Steve continued, shrugging a little. "They always do."

"They," Tony repeated softly, more air than word.

Steve dipped his head in a short nod. "Yup. Made a list." He glanced down at his hand, remembering how Bain's blood had bubbled up between her lips as she'd gasped for air, how it had dribbled down her chin and onto his hands.

Remembered how she'd finally, frantically formed 'please' with her pale lips, panic rounding her bloodshot eyes, and Steve had told her she should have been begging for Tony's forgiveness instead for her life. Remembered the look of realization in her eyes right before Steve had crushed her throat in his hands, and the light left them entirely.

He wasn't sorry. She'd hurt Tony, left him feeling used and broken-hearted. Hurt him more when she'd used his stolen ideas for her own company. He'd kill her again if he had the chance, only slower.

Just like everyone else on the list Steve had made.

"Justin Hammer," Tony realized, voice faint. "Tiberius."

"Started with that gang that kidnapped you when you were four," Steve answered, meeting his eyes again. "I started small and worked my way up. Do you know why, Tony?"

"I'm sure I don't," Tony whispered.

He probably didn't, Steve figured. Tony didn't have it in him to be truly vengeful. That's why Steve was there, though. He was vengeful enough for the both of them. He leaned in, taking Tony's chin between his fingers, and whispered back, "Stane isn't stupid. He's seeing the pattern. He's beefed up security around himself. He knows I'm coming." He leaned in, pressed a kiss to Tony's trembling lips, then leaned back, making deliberate eye contact with him as he finished, "And I'm going to make him beg for his life."

"Steve," Tony whimpered, eyes wide and frightened, but he allowed Steve to pull him into his arms anyway, and Steve cradled the back of his head and drew him into another kiss.

[sariahsue]

Wherefore Art Thou My(stery) Lady

When a failed attempt to let Chat Noir down easy ends with Ladybug learning his name, she does what any lovesick teenager would do: teases him mercilessly. Ch 1 Ch 2

Chapter Three

Adrien didn't remember falling asleep, but he jumped awake with a jolt, diving for his phone, before realizing with dismay that he'd forgotten to plug it in and it had died overnight. Had he imagined the whole thing? Had Ladybug really texted him and told him she loved him, or had he made that all up?

He fumbled for the plug, begged the startup screen to load faster, and frantically plunged into his messages. There was the final message she sent, as real in the morning as it had been the night before.

My Lady – And for the record, I love you too.

He read it over and over again. She loved him. She'd said so. He hadn't made it up! Ladybug LOVED him! LADYBUG loved him! Ladybug loved HIM! 

And she knew who he was! And she'd actually said yes to him when he asked her out! 

“I can tell from your face that you're not done being lovesick yet.”

“Nope,” Adrien said, staring at the message. He was stretched out on his stomach across the bed, chin propped up in one hand, dopey smile on his face. “This is my permanent state of being now. Get used to it.”

“Are you going to get me some breakfast?”

“No.”

Plagg left him, making gagging sounds the whole way to the cheese stash. 

Nathalie came in to get him for school a short time later, only to find Adrien still fully dressed in yesterday's clothes (not that she realized it) and looking happier than he’d ever been before. In his entire life. 

“Did something good happen?” she asked, hand resting on the doorknob. Her body and her attention were both already halfway out the door.

“Just got a really nice text,” he said, jumping off the bed. “I'll be ready in a moment.”

---

Adrien texted Ladybug several times while he was getting ready and riding to school. No responses. At first, he wondered if she was sleeping in. She had obviously been up just as late as he had, or even later. But when there were only ten minutes left before class started, he began to worry. Had she thought about what she'd said and decided to take it back? Was the prospect of dating her partner just too weird?

“Maybe her phone died,” he muttered to himself as he walked into the building. That was entirely plausible, considering what had happened to his phone. It was cool against his palm compared to the otherwise warm morning. It vibrated suddenly. A new text message.

My Lady – Urrgh. Why do mornings have to happen so early? Adrien – Have you been sleeping this whole time? You're going to be late! My Lady – Why are you so happy in the morning? It's terrible. Mornings are terrible. Why do I stay up so late? Adrien – Because you love spending time with me. Adrien – And thanks for the clue! My Lady – What? Adrien – Not a morning person. I should have guessed that already. I’m going to check the list of tardy students today. My Lady – I’m not going to be on it. So ha.

Who did he know that liked to sleep in? A plan to skip first period to watch the front doors for the late students popped into his mind, but he knew he'd get a call home and quickly scratched it out. 

She was someone from school, who he was probably friends with since she’d had his number, and hated mornings. What else could he piece together about her? He knew her physical description, and that she couldn't be in his class. He had the numbers of all of his classmates, and most of them had already been akumatized anyway. 

The most likely candidates were the other classes in his year, since Ladybug looked to be around his age. He'd start his search there, and then move to the other grades. It shouldn't be too difficult.

He walked all the way to his first class without another text from her. Nino was there, smiling at him smugly. 

“What happened?” Adrien asked him. 

“I got a text from a mutual friend of ours,” he said. “Just a few minutes ago.”

“Who?”

“I'm not allowed to say.” 

Adrien's stomach flipped. Ladybug had talked to Nino? What had she told him?

“She said she'd finally confessed to you. Anonymously.” He put extra emphasis on the last word, and shook his head, like he couldn’t believe she’d do something so crazy.

“Yeah, I got a text like that,” Adrien said, sliding into his seat and trying not to act too excited about it. It had been anonymous, after all. There was no easy way to explain to Nino he already knew it was from the love of his life. “Did she say anything else?”

“Just that I'm not allowed to give you hints. Is she really making you guess who she is?”

“Yeah. I have an idea of where to look.” The yearbook. Easy. If she had last year’s, he knew she would have to be in it.

Nino shot a look up at the table in front of them and looked quickly back. Alya smiled at him and turned around to the front. 

Ms. Bustier pulled open the classroom door just then. “Good morning!” she said, ever cheerful. The class collectively huffed out a quiet “hello” except for Adrien, who instead smiled broadly and waved. Sometimes he felt like the only awake one in their first period classes. Maybe not being a morning person wasn't such a good hint after all. Most of the class was trying to cover their yawns.

“Where's Marinette?” Ms. Bustier asked, counting her students. “Is she late again?”

“I'm here!” Marinette said as she dove through the door. “Sorry. Slept in.”

“Oh yeah? Why?” Alya called, in a tone that clearly said she already knew the answer. Marinette went pink but didn't duck her head. Instead she marched up to her seat, and said, “Good morning, Adrien” without a single stutter as she sat down. He waved to her too, then pretended to focus on the lesson. He was really just staring at the stack of books on the teacher’s desk, not taking in any of the words. 

His phone buzzed in his pocket. When Ms. Bustier turned her back on them to write on the board, he pulled his phone out to read the message. 

My Lady – Figure me out yet? Adrien – No, but I know where to start.

He felt bad. He didn't usually text in class, but this morning, he wasn't the only one. No sooner had he pocketed his phone than Marinette's notification alert went off, informing the whole class that someone had sent her a message. Ms. Bustier whipped around.

“Sorry!” Marinette said. “Sorry! I forgot to put it on silent.”

“Don't let me see it out again.”

“Good thing Bustier is so nice, girl,” he overheard Alya whispering to Marinette a few seconds later. Mendeleiev would have made you read that message out loud. Wouldn't that have been terrible?”

Marinette squeaked, and Alya laughed. 

Adrien barely heard them.

---

It was Wednesday night, and there wasn’t a patrol scheduled, but Adrien was willing to risk wasting his free time for a chance to see his Lady. Even if he didn’t run into her - and there was no reason why he would - it was nice to be out and seen by people. It gave the citizens of Paris a sense of security, a feeling that they were being watched over. (That was what he told Plagg when the kwami had griped at him for waking him up from his nap - oh, and also for using his powers for selfish reasons. Plagg had quit complaining when Adrien offered him double cheese for dinner.)

Chat Noir stopped at the Montparnasse Tower and looked over the city. It was just after dusk. Lights were twinkling on all around him, and from where he was, he could see the sun slipping over the distant horizon.

His cat ears twitched. Soft footsteps landed behind him, about 10 meters away. They crept forward three steps, stopped for a few seconds, then started up again, and he smiled. Ladybug was trying to sneak up again. His heart beat faster, but he pretended he hadn't noticed. 

He debated as she tiptoed closer, trying to decide if he'd turn around unexpectedly and scare her, but he held himself back. She knew who he was this time. There was no telling what she would do. 

Gentle hands reached around his head and covered his eyes. “Guess who,” she said, her breath so close it tickled his ear. Involuntarily, he leaned backward into her. 

“Probably Ladybug,” he said. She was warm and solid, able to hold him up even though he was putting what felt like more than half of his weight on her. She still had his eyes covered.

“I didn't surprise you at all, did I?”

“Sorry.” 

She lifted one hand away to tug on his cat ear, then slipped both hands around his waist, before she suddenly pulled away, leaving him unbalanced, literally and figuratively. 

“I forgot! I should probably explain,” she said quickly. “So last night, I figured out who you are, and I... like you. But I can't tell you who I am. We should probably not date as superheroes either. That's what I should have said first.” She wrung her hands in front of her. The light from the sunset reflected off of her face and made it glow slightly orange, clashing with her suit. 

“What about what you said in the text messages?” he asked, confused and more than a little hurt. From the sound of it, she was reconsidering everything.

“What text message?” She said it so sincerely, eyes wide with innocence, mouth set in a neutral line. She was perfectly non-responsive. Too perfectly. 

“The– the messages you sent me last night and this morning.”

“What are you talking about?” she asked. “I know who you are, but that doesn't mean that I automatically know your phone number.”

The corner of her mouth twitched. And that’s when it clicked. She was doing this on purpose. 

“Oh.” He fixed a frown over his face, which was difficult through the relief that he felt. “I just started talking to someone over text last night. I thought she was you.”

“That's unfortunate. I hope you didn't give away anything important.”

“I... I maybe mentioned that I'm Chat Noir.”

Her surprised reaction was too rehearsed to have been believable, even if he hadn't been expecting it. “You did?! Oh no! What if she tells someone!”

“It's okay, it's okay! Really! I can fix it!”

“How on earth are you going to fix this, Chat? You just admitted it to a complete stranger, and now they could tell anyone!”

“I'll just tell her tomorrow that I'm really Hawk Moth, and then she'll just think I'm crazy.” 

Her actual surprised reaction was very different from the fake one. She didn't shout, and her eyes didn't go wide. Instead, her face scrunched together as she thought about the new information. 

“You're not buying this at all, are you?” she asked.

“You looove me!” he said, drawing toward her. 

“I thought I was giving you a heart attack, and you were just playing along.”

“You’re in looove with me! Say it!” He wrapped his arms around her, and she didn't pull away. SHE DIDN'T PULL AWAY.

“I’m in love with you,” she replied, and the force of hearing her say it in person punched through him. Her slender arms wrapped around his waist again, hugging him back just as fiercely. 

He'd been so lucky lately that he decided to push it just a little further and dropped a kiss on the top of her head. She only hugged him tighter. 

“Once I figured out that you were, well, you, I couldn't believe how obvious it was. You two look so much alike!”

“I thought you said we'd been in the same place at the same time before.” 

“Volpina, but that had been an illusion,” she listed. “Simon Says, though I realized I hadn't actually seen you two together that day after all. The only one I'm still confused about is Gorizilla. How did you pull that off?”

“I had a helmet on hand that Marinette had given me,” he said. “I just gave it to someone who was dressed similarly. That's all.”

“So you could come and help me,” she said. “Smart.”

They stayed wrapped around each other until the sun was almost completely gone. Lights illuminated the darkening streets below them. 

Chat Noir was first to break the silence. “So you know Nino.”

“Here's another hint,” she mumbled into his shoulder. Even through his tough leather suit, he could feel the soft kiss that she placed there. His head started to spin. “I've known Nino for longer than you have.”

“No offense, but that's a terrible hint.” She kissed along his collarbone and he completely lost his train of thought. 

“That hint is terrible because?” she prompted.

“Uh.” There’d been a very good reason. He was sure of it. It was only when she’d rested her chin on his shoulder that he was able to have a coherent thought again and figure it out. “Almost everyone in school has known Nino longer than me.”

“I know him well, not just know about him.” She pulled away so she could frown at him properly. “Don't insult a perfectly good hint.”

“You'll need to give me a better one then.”

“Maybe later.”

“Come on!”

“Why don't you try asking me things?” She put her face back into his shoulder, her hands wandering up and down his back. 

The feeling of holding her was nice, but the feeling of being held by her was exquisite. 

“What did you tell him? He said you texted him this morning.”

“That's not much of a clue,” she said. “I don't know how that's going to help you.”

Truthfully, he was just curious. Nino hadn't given him much of an answer. 

“I told him, and my bestie, as close to the truth as I could. That I'd texted a confession to you, then remembered afterward that we hadn't actually exchanged numbers. I got it from one of our mutual friends.”

“When? Why?” 

“Oh, one of many failed attempts to ask you out ages ago. Super embarrassing.”

One of many? How many? “Do I get to hear that story?”

“Not today!”

“Why tell our friends, though? Nino taunted me about it all day.”

“Oh, good.” She peeked up at him and smiled. “I just thought it would be an easy way to explain later.”

“Explain what?”

She pecked his jaw. “Why I'm suddenly kissing you in public.”

The combined force of her words and her lips against his skin left him dizzy and clinging to her for support. Kissing, and kissing in public, were part of a reality that he fully supported living in. 

“Can I have another hint now, please?” His voice sounded raspy, and he tried to clear his throat.

“Hmm... I live close to you.”

“That's another terrible one.”

“No, it's not! These are all good hints!”

“We're in the same school district,” he said. “Of course we live close to each other. I deserve a better hint.”

Ladybug pulled back and pouted at him, then she stepped away. The vacuum she left behind was cold. “Civilian me has blue eyes.”

“Really? That's it?”

“There's less than eighty years' difference in our ages.”

“Now you're just being mean.”

“I eat food at least once this week.”

“Fine! I'll figure it out without any more hints!” 

“Okay, here's one that probably won't help you either.”

Chat Noir sighed, and she stepped up close to him again, though not as closely as he would have liked. There was still a few inches of space in between them. 

“I've had a gigantic crush on you for a long, long time. I probably wasn't subtle about it, but I don't think you noticed.” Her emphasis on “probably” made it sound more like “definitely.” He was a celebrity, though. He filtered out those types of signals from people daily to keep his sanity.

“If I didn't notice,” he said, “how is that a good hint? I think you should give me one last hint to make up for my shameful inattention to you.” 

Their faces were drifting closer together. He was acutely aware of when it started. She took another step toward him, looking like she wanted to say something more, but when her mouth opened to speak, he glanced away from her eyes and down at her lips. She took the hint and moved in even closer. He hesitated for only a second before lowering his face down to hers, slowly, slowly, until...

“Nope,” Ladybug said, bopping a finger on his nose and breaking the spell. “There's no way you're tricking me into kissing you before you figure it out.”

“You never said that was part of the deal!”

“I'm saying it now. Haha!”

“I was right. You are just being mean.”

“It's for your own good. It'll motivate you to find me faster.”

“Oh,” he said. “I'm very motivated.”

She giggled, then stood up on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. “Actually, I’ve changed my mind already.” 

“I wouldn’t expect anything else from a true temptress like you.” He tilted his head, ready to kiss her back this time.

She put a finger on his lips to stop him. “You can't kiss me,” a kiss on his other cheek, “but I can kiss you,” and another on his nose. 

His lips felt hot where she pressed on them, and when he tried to kiss her fingertip, she pulled away fast, like she’d been burned. 

“Not allowed, Kitten.”

“That shouldn’t count. It was barely a kiss.”

“Do you want to try again?” she asked, smiling widely. “Or should I just go home?” 

“You’re having too much fun with this.” He held his arms stiffly at his sides to signal that he was willing to behave himself. (He had no intention of keeping his hands to himself, though.)

She reached up, lifting herself on her tiptoes to reach his forehead and left a small peck there. “And having fun while kissing you is bad because…?”

“Teasing me is.”

“My poor Chaton,” she crooned. She left the lightest hint of a kiss on his neck, right above the collar of his suit, before dropping back to his shoulder. “Maybe I should just stop?” 

His response was a garbled choke. No, he wanted to say. Never. But he couldn’t force the words out. Not when she was standing so close to him, mouth level with his, mischievous eyes pinning him in place. 

She reached for his hand - he hadn’t even thought to move it yet, he realized vaguely - and pressed a kiss to his knuckles. “See you around?”

Chat Noir collapsed into a puddle as soon as she was gone.

Ch 4

---

Author note: I forgot to update last week, sorry! But you’re getting two this weekend to make up for it!

Tag list: @eclipsesmoonshine14, @alittlewolf2

[meta-squash]

I really wish there had been one more episode between Adrift and Fragments in series 2.

I know Adrift isn't really a favorite episode but it leaves some huge unanswered question and does some really interesting character advancement for Gwen. But because Fragments comes next, nothing gets done with any of that.

One of the unanswered questions is: Do Owen and Tosh know about Flat Holm? I think it's easily plausible both ways.

If they know about it, they also are probably very aware of the limitations of such a facility and also the potential consequences (emotional and security-wise) of letting civilians or family members know about it. I wouldn't be surprised if they were told that Flat Holm was need-to-know. (I wouldn't put it past Jack to tell them separately, so they both think no one else knows.) In any case, if they know about Flat Holm, I think by this time in series 2 they would also be able to gauge what Gwen's reaction would be and how she would try and push the limits of this project, when it's already pretty much as good as it can get, considering the nature of, well, everything.

On the other hand, it makes sense that Ianto knows about Flat Holm if he's doing secretarial duties like expenses and supply runs and things like that, and that it was hidden from everyone else.

And then, if they didn't know about it before, were they told about Flat Holm after? Did Gwen tell them? Or Jack? Or Ianto? I imagine they would react in a more reasonable way than Gwen. Perhaps they'd offer some suggestions for changes but I don't think they'd push much.

The other question is, what's Ianto's motive? And what was Jack's response? We know Ianto pointed Gwen to Flat Holm and we know Jack figures it out, but we don't see them talk about it after. Did Ianto give her clues because he knew she wouldn't stop pushing? Did he give her clues because he thought her knowledge of the facility would be helpful? Was he trying to teach her the exact lesson that she learns in the end? How did Jack react when he got back? What was the conversation between them? It's the first time since Lisa that Ianto deliberately defied Jack and went behind his back about something. That's gotta be a pretty intense blow to their relationship and trust, at least in that it will bring up old wounds.

And the entire episode like I said is some interesting character advancement for Gwen. This is the first time her pushing truly and spectacularly blows up in her face in a way that cannot be fixed at all. For the most part every time she fucks up or goes to far either Jack/the team are able to save the day, or she fumbles it back. This time, the damage is done on a level that she can't undo, and she learns that sometimes you can't do more, that it's better not to know things, that sometimes her actions of "caring" do more harm than good, and learns that there's a lot more to Jack and Ianto and the whole business of running Torchwood than she thought.

I just wish there was one more "regular" episode in between Adrift and Fragments, where we get to see how those realizations might have altered how Gwen saw or functioned in the job, and how Jack and Ianto's relationship might have been affected, and stuff like that.

I mean, I know that's what fanfiction is for, of course, but I'd be so interested to know what the actual showrunners would have done with it. Mainly because the trajectory all the characters were going in in the latter half of series 2 was actually pretty interesting, and then it just screeches to a halt.

[whitehotharlots]

Tara Reade, Christine Blassey Ford, and the bleak limitations of pettiness feminism

For what it’s worth, I found the accusations made by Tara Reade and Christine Blassey Ford both imminently plausible. I’ve never met Joe Biden or Brett Kavanaugh, but I’ve spent more than enough time around entitled white collar pricks to realize that things like non-consensual workplace groping and wacky frat house sex pranks are a part of their worlds. There was nothing about either story that struck me as obviously false or otherwise disqualifying. Both very well may have happened.

But I also believe that there’s a wide chasm between plausibility and proof–especially in criminal matters, and extra especially in regards to the sort of accusations that could result in yearslong jail sentences. Sexual assault cases are notoriously hard to prosecute in their immediacy. If we’re talking about something that happened years or decades earlier, there’s no reasonable way to prove the accusations in a manner that would warrant a formal, judicial response.

By 2020, this belief of mine was considered hopelessly out of date, borderline sacrilegious. The Trump era ushered in a new diligence in regards to how the public was supposed to understand and react to accusations of sexual misconduct: women should be believed, full stop. Accused men should be punished, full stop. The crisis of the moment meant that all the old notions regarding due process and the fixed standards of what is or is not a crime had to be thrown out.

Remember that “Shitty Media Men” list from 2017? God, seems like forever ago. The list was a wholly anonymous Google Docs spreadsheet containing the names of several dozen men in media and a brief description of their alleged crimes. It was written about in glowing terms by publications big and small, heralded as a bold and exciting new chapter of social justice, and the list’s creator–Moria Donegan–was eventually granted status as a star commentator.

Did you read the list? I did. About one in every 15 or so entries contained a very severe accusation–something along the lines of “he raped me in the dumpster behind Arby’s” or “he keeps tricking me into getting stuck in a dryer.” But the vast, vast majority of entries alleged nothing more than minor interpersonal conflict: “he doesn’t respect my work,” “he raised his voice at me one time in 2012,” and other stuff along those lines. One entry really stuck out: the accuser admitted that she had never met the man. “But,” she said, “he must be a creep… just look at the stuff he writes!”

No doubt, at least some of these men were/are grade-A jerks. But the bulk of them appear to have just been disliked by a colleague or acquaintance who felt the need to take advantage of a social justice movement to exact revenge. This is how human interaction works. No one is beloved by everybody; everyone will experience some instances in which they treat others with less courtesy than they probably should; and, well, sometimes two people who are otherwise completely decent despise one another for reasons that are inscrutable to everyone but God.

The malignancy of the Shitty Media Men list is that it caused readers to conceptually associate minor interpersonal conflicts–some of which admittedly did not happen, most others of the sort that would cause no reasonable person to find one party entirely at fault, let alone worthy of expulsion from polite society–with major violations such as rape and assault. This was the new era: every accusation is proof of guilt, and all guilt is of the same severity. It’s too hard to definitively prove that a rape happened, ergo we needed to dismiss the usual evidentiary standards of criminal proceedings in regards to rape. And, also, mildly upsetting a female colleague is now the same thing as rape.

Wonderful stuff. Fantastic stuff.

A year passed. The Notorious RBG ascended to the great rap battle in the sky, and it was up to the dastard President Drumpf to appoint her successor. He settled upon a youth-pastor-cum-jurist who resembled a crude caricature from a late 1800’s anti-Irish political comic. The man had a rap sheet a mile long: lackey to Ken Starr (himself quite the defender of rape), Yalie, anti-abortion, corporate puppet, helped rig the Florida vote in 2000, Federalist Society member, blah blah blah all the horrible shit you expect from a GOP nominee to the Supreme Court.

None of these facts mattered much within the liberal imaginary, however, as they weren’t that far afield from the activities of the sort of justices liberals find inoffensive. No, the #Resistance had an ace up their sleeve: a lady said he had sexually assaulted her 30 years prior, and she was willing to say so in front of congress.

He must have been toast after that, right? Because everyone had spent the last few years hashtagging #BelieveWomen, right? They’re not gonna say they believe women and not believe them, right? It can’t be that this precedent we just set up would only be used to ruin the lives of low-level middle manager type guys who did inconsequential stuff, right? Right?

No. Of course not. Republicans never even pretended to care about that shit.

In the non-conservative press, Blassey Ford was treated as a hero. Her effort was brave, and her failure served to validate the premise upon which it was founded: women are not believed enough, and men can get away with anything.

Another few years passed. Due to a confluence of events of that ranged between skullduggery and outright rigging, the Democratic presidential primary narrowed down to a less-corrupt-than-average politician who was called a “socialist” because he was to the left of Grover Norquist, and a credit card lobbyist who was once accidentally appointed vice president.

The credit card lobbyist should have been considered especially ignominious, considering the degree to which the #BelieveWomen mantra was prevalent on the left. Decades earlier, in a situation quite similar to that faced by Blassey Ford, he led the charge in aggressively dismissing the accusations of a woman who had accused a SCOTUS nominee of sexual misconduct. Surely that was the sort of thing MeToo would not abide, right? Right?

Again, no. The semi-socialist was repeatedly smeared as a racist and sexist for reasons that no one could ever quite articulate. Social media figures openly solicited false allegations of sexual misconduct against him. In spite of being a leftist Jewish man, in spite studies showing that his supporters were actually far less aggressive and hateful than those of Hillary Clinton, he was still the most toxic and evil presence to ever enter into Democrat politics. #BelieveWomen and #MeToo precedents were very effectively invoked: there doesn’t need to be proof, and there doesn’t need even be an accusation. He’s evil because we say he’s evil. His name is on the spreadsheet.

But the guy who got Clarence Thomas onto the Supreme Court? That was regrettable, sure. But it was a youthful transgression! He’s apologized! It doesn’t matter.

Then we got a late-primary curveball: a woman who verifiably worked with Biden claimed he had jammed his hand down her pants. The allegation was decades old and therefore unprovable in a legal sense, and suddenly that was an issue where it hadn’t been just a few months before. The MeToo movement’s purveyors worked to clarify that she was a lying, mentally unstable, and possibly Russian slut.

A year earlier, we were told that due process was a misogynist construct, and that expressing skepticism toward politically opportune allegations was an expression of patriarchy and privilege. Now, faced with allegations that would force them to choose between a semi-leftist or Donald Trump, the progressive vanguard suddenly decided that these old principles of Enlightened Liberalism weren’t so evil after all.

Blassey Ford is about to embark on a book tour, receiving near-unanimous praise (and ample financial compensation) for her bravery. She might not be a household name, but among those who do remember her, she is revered as a hero.

Reade, meanwhile, is a permanent disgrace who had to defect to Russia.

In a sad way, the disparity between how these two women were treated demonstrates the conditions that spawned MeToo: a woman who makes an accusation against an unpopular or hated man will be, at least, believed. She will not suffer negative consequences. She may even be rewarded, even if the man himself isn’t punished. But a woman who goes against a man who is too important, too well-connected? She won’t even get a chance to testify. She’s actually even worse than the abusers. Every aspect of her account and character will be placed under a microscope, and anything she cannot prove with 100% fidelity will be held up as proof of how horrible she is. She’s also on the spreadsheet.

And in an even sadder way, this disparity demonstrates why the MeToo and BelieveWomen stuff was horribly misguided from the start. Removing the structures that allow society to function will not magically result in a more just society manifesting from the wreckage of the old. You might–might–remove some of the most malignant shitheads. But in the process you will ruin the lives of many who are either innocent or marginally guilty, and you will entrench the utter empowerment of those who are, only in some small ways, the lesser evils. There’s no path forward, here. There is no hope here.

[violetdisasterzone]

I just finished rereading the succubus extra, and I'm reminded of some thoughts I had after reading it the first time. The first time I read the novel (including all the extras), I hadn't really been in/around fandom spaces yet, so I was very surprised to learn that people shipped Shen Qingqiu and Liu Qingge. And since this extra is prime source material for that ship (apparently), I want to talk about it. First of all, I really enjoy this chapter. It contains the scene where we find out bingqiu are fated! soulmates! deeply in love! And this is immediately followed by Shen Qingqiu kicking Liu Qingge into a rose pond. It's priceless.

I've seen Madam Meiyin's fortune be interpreted by liushen shippers as describing Liu Qingge rather than Luo Binghe, so let's unpack why that doesn't make sense. The very first thing she says is that his fated one is younger than him - Liu Qingge is (at this point in the novel, prior to the 5 year nap) already around 15 years older than him. If this was connected to the age of his body (i.e., Shen Jiu), however, this one could be plausible; considering Madam Meiyin first sees the broken thread of either Yue Qi or Qiu Haitang, she could very well be referring to Shen Jiu's age. Liu Qingge also doesn't have the "noble blood" Madam Meiyin describes- or if he does, it's never mentioned in canon. Then, of course, we get Liu Qingge adamantly insisting that this mysterious fated one isn't "deeply in love" with Shen Qingqiu. I've seen people say that this is Liu Qingge being tsundere and denying his romantic feelings, but if he was that deep in denial why would he assume that he was the fated one being discussed at all? And finally, we end the scene with Madam Meiyin saying to his face, "You aren't his fated partner."

In my personal opinion, I think Liu Qingge realized who Madam Meiyin was actually referring to in her divinations. There are very few people who fit that description, and he would be one of the few people who have been around Shen Qingqiu and Luo Binghe enough to see first hand how close they were, pre-abyss. Of course, Binghe is supposedly "dead" right now, as far as Liu Qingge knows - maybe he would have assumed Madam Meiyin couldn't know/see that. Or maybe I'm pulling this interpretation out of my ass. One of the two.

In regards to the repressed sexual frustration that many people view Liu Qingge as having: whether or not you interpret his character as asexual is a personal choice, as when asked directly he did avoid the question, so neither opinion can be canonically incorrect. With how unaffected he was during the fight with the naked succubi, it's logical to assume that he's either ace or gay. But then when he's hit with the aphrodisiac, he becomes visibly distressed and asks Shen Qingqiu to help - by allowing him to beat him up to vent his irritation.

So aside from liushen necessitating a wild misinterpretation of Shen Qingqiu's character and an outright slap to the face of Luo Binghe's entire existence in the narrative, I also think it does Liu Qingge a disservice. Faced with a soulmate divination of the person he would hypothetically want romantically and he adamantly denies the love part? Literally drugged with sex mist, is offered assistance, and he wants to fight him? This doesn't read to me like he's out of touch with his emotions to a herculean extent - it just reads like he doesn't want that.

[bonesandthebees]

Guess who’s awake again. It’s me. And I just want to repeat how good you are at foreshadowing and setting up the pieces. Like Jack pushing Tommy had been building for a while as this quiet annoyance and snidy remarks, but I didn’t realise what was going to happen until [In the corner of his eye, Wilbur noticed Jack lean over to whisper something in Niki’s ear. She nodded once, her face unreadable.]. This was the point where everything clicked into place and I had to pause to come scream in you inbox. Because this is the moment the plan forms in their heads, before that they were just kinda hoping Tommy’s lungs would kill him in that passive, “I’m not going to kill him, but I’m also not going out of my way to save his life, let alone risk my own while doing it” kinda way.

And it’s so obvious what they’re about to do and Wilbur is completely blindsided by it because he’s been so focused on Tommy the entire time that he either missed all the signs or didn’t care to interpret them. And it’s just, the narrative has been quietly building towards this for quiet some time, but I didn’t realise this was how it was going to end until the last ask I sent before chapter 27 when your “Niki will remember that” line suddenly snapped into place with actual canon. But it was always going to end this way. It’s the only way it could have ended.

Also, congratulations, Bee! You are now 4/4 on getting very close to killing major characters, but having everything turn out okayish in the end. And reading Wilbur’s breakdown was so much fun even though I’d already figured out what was going to happen. Just another thing to show what an amazing writer you are. It didn’t feel too drawn out if you knew, but it’s still long enough to make it plausible and let it have that emotional weight.

I’m skipping over the Priest and Schlatt, but I’ll get to those in the proper analysis. Just know that when Schlatt showed up I realised that we had only had 2/3 of the major scene and it hit me like a train. I really did get everything I wanted out of this chapter. Also, you managed to make me feel bad for Schlatt for 0.5 before I remember that he is an asshole who still could have tried. So good job.

I’ll probably write the analysis in my notes like I did with Stars and send them in in batches. So you’ll probably get those in a few days, because I’m about to dissect this entire chapter like a surgeon.

-🌲

aaa thank you spruce!! god yeah I've been building up to jack murdering tommy for a WHILE. it's been something I just wanted to leave in the background to brew, reminding the readers that yeah, jack and niki have held this grudge for a while. it never went away. and sure they weren't actively planning to murder him, but if the opportunity arose they were certainly going to take it.

niki will remember that :) yeah that was funny to me

and yes wilbur doesn't notice because he's so focused on so many other things! it's incredibly obvious to us as the readers but he just doesn't realize. not to mention, despite knowing that tommy did it to jack first and knowing how pissed both he and niki are about it, and knowing that niki and jack have the same kind of friendship he and tommy have, he never REALLY thought that niki would do something like that. jack? maybe yeah. but niki? his niki? his closest friend besides tommy? it just wasn't something he ever seriously considered. she wouldn't hurt him like that. she's niki.

god you're right I really do nearly/do kill a major character at the end of every long fic of mine. oops. didn't mean for that to be a theme.

I'm so glad you enjoyed that though. the main reason for tommy's brush with death was more about wilbur being forced to confront and make a decision both about his own faith and tommy's. he forcibly pulls tommy away from his goddess, while also finally shouting everything he's wanted to shout at his own goddess. he's truly done after this.

HA YEAH you think things are over and then boom schlatt appears and you realize oh yeah bee said there were 3 scenes she was excited for :) I'm very glad you got the conflicting feelings of feeling bad for him for a second before remembering what a dick he is

i'm soooo excited to hear all your thoughts spruce

[deathfavor]

@piscesiawave said: He had only planned on being in the heavenly realm for a short time. Enough to drop off the scrolls he had borrowed and then be on his way, a simple, easy task.

Though if the god were being honest with himself than he’d know that a simple meet and greet and drop off was never just that. However, from all the ones he could expect it from, the least was Ling Wen.

When he had arrived at her desk it was empty, covered in scrolls, a mountain really. One of them had been splayed out, her quill sat on the side with the bottle of ink right next to it. His nose scrunches up a bit in curiosity as he had just spoken to her over the array and she had said she would be here. He thought to leave the scrolls there on her desk, but then, there were so many he didn’t want to mess up anything she may have organized for herself.

Perhaps he could put them back? He wasn’t entirely sure where to begin with that, but maybe if he’d walk around some and run into her while he did so.

Xie Lian of course, once turning into one of the many hundreds and thousands of aisles, this one just happened to have exactly who he had been searching for. Though not in the state anyone would hope to find. Ling Wen had collapsed to the floor, some scrolls around her which told him that she must have been carrying them at the time of her fall.

He rushes over, setting down his scrolls and gently lifts her up onto his lap. Brown eyes lean in with concern, and he slowly waves a hand in front of her face. “Ling Wen, Ling Wen’ he says her name twice before she stirs ever so slightly and her icy blue eyes open to look at Xie Lian staring down at her. He smiles softly and with relief. “Oh thank goodness. Are you okay?” // gives you some xie lian

my muse collapes in font of yours, how does yours react?

One minute she's walking with a headache feeling like it was going to make her head burst and the next....she wasn't sure. But what she was sure of was that the next minute she DOES remember is opening her eyes while someone calls for her. ( Actually, there were several, but only one within the immediate surroundings rather than including the communication array. )

Her eyes open and she squints at the light before staring at Xie Lian with an inscrutable expression on her face. Other than the apparent exhaustion. But that was hardly a new look to c hange anything on her expression. She sits up with a little help, casting a brief glance towards the scrolls she'd dropped before looking back to Xie Lian.

" Yes, I'm fine, Your Highness. " Debatable. One would be wise to avoid such debates though. " I apologize for the concern. " It would be wise for her to get up but it feels like a monumental task when she considers it. Oh how some of these people would be thrilled to catch word of this. It's a though that only adds a fresh wave of exhaustion to her already crushed body.

Her lips press together in a thin line, a gesture almost synonymous with her name itself with how frequently she does it. One could hardly blame her with the amount of problems and information that was often brought to her doorstep. In this case, she's created her own problems potentially. But that was for her to know.

" I must have tripped. " Ling Wen tugs a few of the closest scrolls back towards her. It was plausible - truth or otherwise. That was for her to know and ideally no one else. Although she really can't recall the last few seconds before she'd evidentally collapsed. Maybe she HAD slipped. " I didn't realize that you would be returning here today, Your Highness. "

Her muscles protest as she shakily drags herself back up to her feet as she eyes the scrolls and then looks back to Xie Lian with a thin smile. " How may i help you? " All she could do was try to brush off the incident and pretend it never happened.

[cats-inthe-cradle]

WAIT I JUST REALIZED LILY COULD'VE BEEN MORRO'S AGE

Okay I might have this entirely wrong but from what I remember, Lily's father was the elemental master of earth at the time of the Serpentine war, right? And those take place not long after Morro leaves Wu, and about 40 years prior to s1 if I'm remembering correctly. So in s1 Cole is in his teens (personally I headcanon him at about 16 at the time). So assuming Lily was let's just say 20 at the youngest when she had Cole, that would put her at around 36 at the least for s1, were she still alive at the time. Which would put her as being born a few years after the serpentine war (I think, idk how long did the war last?). BUT it is entirely possible that Lily got married/had Cole at a later age than 20. (Especially if we consider s13, where it's shown that she was traveling to like further connect with her powers or something? I can't remember for sure but at that point we know she's married because of her locket but it is very doubtful that Cole had been born at that point.)

So it's is entirely plausible to place her age during/prior to the serpentine war anywhere from kid to mid-teen, late-teen to young-adult if we push it, but it's still possible.

WHICH MEANS that she could very well be around Morro's age and that I can headcanon them as acquaintances or even friends during Morro's time with Wu which makes me happy.

AND THEN in my Morro lives au I can have Morro and Cole bond over both having known Lily especially if it was like right after s13. Like Morro didn't really remember her at first or at least like he never really connected her being related to Cole. But then s13 happens and he realizes Cole's mom Lily is the same daughter of the master of earth Lily that he knew forever ago and he mentions having known her and then him and Cole bond because yeah.

[shinidamachu]

Hello, what’s your thought of Inuyasha episode 98 on Kagome and Kikyo alone in cave? Many say that Inuyasha was ooc in that episode as how strong his sense of smell is he would know that Kikyo near by and he will also be able to smell Kikyo on Kagome body but why he not choose to run to Kikyo? My personal opinion is not ooc for Inuyasha not run to Kikyo because there are many example throughout the canon.

Hello, anon! Thank you for your patience. This ask has been sitting on my inbox far longer than either of us would have liked, but here we are now.

Short answer is: I think "Kikyo and Kagome: Alone in the Cave" is overall a cute episode, but I agree with you: no, choosing not to seek Kikyo wasn't out of character for Inuyasha. At all. Obnoxiously long answer is... under the cut.

The first thing I want to address is that Inuyasha's heightened senses can be convenently inconsistent when the plot calls for it. Take "The Darkness in Kagome's Heart" for instance:

Now, we know she had this realization ages ago, but I believe it's the very first time she said it out loud and Inuyasha burges in not a second later. Logic dictates that he had to have heard it: even if he didn't have a privileged hearing, Kagome was well within human earshot and wasn't exactly keeping it down. Yet, the incident was never discussed. Ever. Which can only mean one of two things:

Inuyasha heard her loud and clear but decided not to bring it up in the name of respecting her privacy (it was a personal moment and if she had wanted him to know she would have told him) on top of avoiding a difficult conversation they probably weren't ready for about a sensitive topic (that had a great potential of making Kagome self conscious and their interactions awkward) in the worst possible time (he was still mourning) or...

Inuyasha didn't hear a thing. Maybe he was too preoccupied, too into his own head to notice. The situation was urgent, after all. Whatever the applicable justification may be, however, I guess we can all agree that ultimately, the whole thing was nothing but a cop-out: Inuyasha hearing her confession, despite making way more sense, just wasn't "interesting" to the plot, because then it would have to be addressed eventually and once they talked their feelings out, the resolution would inevitably take away from the "love triangle" tension.

In my opinion, strong points can be made for both theories. And the mystery, although probably more of a fluke caused by inconsistent writing than a creative choice, it's the beauty of it. We're free to interpret, analyze and speculate as much as we want. Every take is valid because there's no right answer. The same can be said about episode 98.

The possibility that Inuyasha conveniently didn't see the soul collectors, heard Kikyo nearby or smelled her scent all over Kagome is pretty much there even if, logically, we know it's not really plausible. Agaim: inconsistency.

I'd argue, though, that there's a key difference: unlike "The Darkness in Kagome's Heart", a thoughtful analysis shows that "Kikyo and Kagome: Alone in the Cave" actually implies that Inuyasha did know, which is why the discussion centers on whether or not he would have gone to Kikyo rather than if he even did or didn't know she was close by.

In this specific episode, we are shown that it was still daylight when Inuyasha started looking for Kagome.

However, it's not until it's literally night time that he either feels her spiritual powers being used or hears the aftermath of her attack.

And so he finally knows exactly where Kagome is, but still doesn't go to her, which doesn't make sense considering that she could have been in potential danger, that Inuyasha had spend the entire day looking for her and that he had the infamous tendency of tracking her down, unceremoniously fetching her and bringing her back whenever she strays away.

Unless, of course, he had a good idea of what was going on and, by extension, that Kagome had been with Kikyo, that they were both alright and that she was already heading out. His presence there would have only escalated the situation, so he does the smart thing for once and waits for Kagome to obliviously walk to him.

And his body language it's definitely worth taking a look at. Inuyasha is clearly aware of Kagome's approach: the footsteps and the scent would have accused her moviments even if he couldn't see her yet.

He feigns indifference because he doesn't want her to know just how desperate he had been searching for her, but I believe that his closed eyes and crossed arms are more than an attempt to come off as aloof. He's bracing himself for a fight.

That's why he's so surprised and drops the facade immediately when Kagome calls out his name so warmly. Last time he saw her, she had been livid at him and after an encounter with Kikyo, he didn't expect her to be happy to see him at all. And yet she was.

And when Kagome shyly asked him if he had came to look for her, Inuyasha hesitates, grunts, blushes then promptly changes the subject, urging her to keep going so they can go back to their friends.

He never denies it. And even if the audience didn't know this was absolutely the case, the pink on his cheeks totally gives him away. There would be no blush if he had a different agenda. Perhaps an angsty, frustrated or sad expression, but never a flushed one. We only get those when it's Kagome related.

Then she tries to bring Kikyo up, but Inuyasha seems to already know what she was going to say, otherwise he would have asked what happened or at the very least payed attention to her weak attempt of explaining it. He doesn't. He keeps looking forward without as much as sparing her a glance, a clear sign that he had no intention of discussing it, which is understandable.

And Kagome either takes the hint, since she knows how to read him better than anyone, or she simply concludes that the moment they were having was too sweet, too beautiful to ruin it and that they deserve to enjoy this, so she keeps it to herself. Regardless, she does let it go because Kikyo doesn't belong in this scene. This isn't about her. It's about them. And the fact that they acted like it, shows great character and relationship development.

And in that sense, Inuyasha has no reason to go see Kikyo. After her resurrection, every time he goes to her, it's either because she's in danger, because they had to debate over Naraku or because he wants to see for himself that she's okay.

There are no danger anymore, there are no Naraku news they need to talk about and, since she was with Kagome, he has no doubt Kikyo was fine. What else is there? Nothing. Inuyasha had no interest in persuing Kikyo romantically whatsoever.

Had it been the case, he could have always just left Kagome and stayed by Kikyo's side. No one was stopping him from doing so. But their present interactions were pretty much platonic. Even the two kisses they shared consisted on a "kiss of death" and a "closure" kiss.

He chose to keep coming back to Kagome because that's what he wanted, that's what made him the happiest. Sadly, Kagome can't see that. Kikyo makes her insecure and biased. She gets stuck on her own perspective, draws the wrong conclusions and the audience tends to go along because the narrative succeds on making us empathize with her heartbreak.

We should be looking at the bigger picture here. Even if Inuyasha wanted to go see Kikyo — which I don't think it's true —, this wasn't the first and surely wasn't the last time he prioritized Kagome over her. Especially when she's somewhat unhappy with him and Kikyo's not in trouble (the time Inuyasha didn't chase after her when he found out she had survived, claiming that it was enough knowing she was doing well and that he wouldn't go when Kagome was that upset comes to mind).

Shamefully, all the growth the characters went through in this episode was bluntly ignored later on, especially where it concerns the Kagome and Kikyo dynamic. This was the first episode I remember Kikyo ever being civil towards Kagome, recognizing her strength and importance in Inuyasha's heart without the usual bitterness but after that, things seemed to have regressed between them until we got closer to her final death.

That's when I found out this episode was a filler that wasn't featured in the manga in the first place. Which explains a lot. It also absolves you from overthinking mischaracterization, since technically you don't have to take it as canon.

If people still want to talk about Inuyasha being out of character in "Kikyo and Kagome: Alone in the Cave", though, why aren't we talking about the reason Kagome got angry and ran off on her own in the first place?

Inuyasha showed no appreciation for the food she cooked especially for him, going completely against his manga self. Actually, it sounded meaner than usual and absolutely gratuitous even for his anime version, until you realize it only happened as a plot device to get Kagome alone inside that damn cave.

I mean, I can't even get mad at him for that. Sunrise is to blame here: they could have done it in a thousand different ways, but they would never pass up the opportunity to "tsundere" him out of proportion and make sure Kagome used the sit command four times in a roll before leaving.

At least, at the end, everything was right in the world again and we got the absolute best shot of the whole episode to prove.

[thetrashywritingwitch]

“Be Still, Just for Me” Bakugo x Fem!Reader, Ch. 45

First Chapter

Previous Chapter

(all chapters are available in my masterlist!)

Summary: Bakugo Katsuki, a Pro Hero in Japan, is used to the routine: wake up, kick villain ass, rinse and repeat. He’s living his dream, soaking in all he’s ever wanted and worked for.

During the brief moment he lets his guard down, everything changes.

Tossed into a world without quirks with nothing but the clothes on his back, he’s forced to accept the help of someone who knows exactly who he is: a manga character who should definitely not exist.

Chapter length: 12k

Warnings: T+ for language, no warnings

Reminder that the A03, Wattpad, and Quotev links will be in a reblog so this post shows up in search results! They’re also in my profile header! <3

Co-written and plot mapped by @rose-sparks13

thanks to all my beta readers!!! <3 @birinboom, @bananabossbitch, @jems-all-in-a-wood, and a few others who prefer to remain anonymous. NOTE: please ignore and forgive anytime i might've misspelled "Yaoyorozu" because I swear I spelled it three different ways throughout the chapter and @birinboom bonked me on the head for every single one

Chapter Title: The Night We Met

__________________________________________

"Oooh, I feel like I'm gonna barf." Your hands never felt so jittery before, shaking like a leaf in the wind; well, no, that probably wasn't entirely true, but it damn sure felt like it was in the top five potential nervous breakdown moments in your life so far. Just to be safe, you hurried to the bathroom with the toilet seat up and paced on the cold tile. Despite your stomach's twisting unease, nothing came up. 

Waiting for someone to whisk you away to the world of My Hero Academia so that you could reconnect one last time with Bakugo Katsuki would no doubt give anyone brain fog at the plausibility of it all.

You should've been excited - you were excited - but the stress of committing such a risky leap into turbulent waters was nerve wracking to say the least. If things turned out well and Katsuki didn’t outright reject seeing you as his surprise birthday gift after six months, then you’d not only get to spend valuable time with him again, but you’d get to meet his friends, see Japan, and experience the world of My Hero Academia with your own eyes; an opportunity singular to you and only you in the entire world as far as you were aware. 

On the other hand, what if your sudden reappearance instigated Katsuki into another angry outburst to mirror that awful night after the theme park date? What if waiting months after Uraraka arrived with her gift at a second chance was the wrong thing to do? Rejection tasted like glass shards, sharp and bloody and nearly impossible to pick out every tiny piece. Hearing it from him the first time was bad enough even though he took it back and apologized less than an hour later… but you weren't sure if you could take having all of his friends watching as he potentially rebuffed your arrival at his own birthday celebration. 

Catching yourself in the bathroom mirror, you frowned at the stress evident from the shadows under your eyes; sleeping last night proved nearly impossible with anticipation twisting in your stomach. Nevertheless, you tried to rest as best you could considering the incredibly busy day ahead of you if things went according to… well, whatever plan Katsuki's friends had in store.

You'd been anticipating this moment ever since Uraraka left your apartment months ago. The realization of what exactly you agreed to didn't set in until that evening when panic slowly crept in as you went through a mental checklist of what you needed to do in preparation and what could possibly happen to derail all of it once you arrived. You asked for time off from work for the week of April 20th right after the holidays. To keep your parents from worrying if they tried to contact you, you told your parents that you were going on a week-long trip with some friends where you wouldn’t have close access to cellphone towers. 

Most unexpectedly of all was the fact that you and Livia from the ramen shop had actually become friends. Though she was younger than you and things had obviously been awkward at first, you found her energetic and optimistic personality a welcome gift in your dejection as it slowly waned with time. And because she had actually met Katsuki, you told her that you were planning on going to Japan to try and visit him for a week. It wasn't a lie… your trip was taking you to Japan… just in a different universe. 

"Oooh, that's straight out of a romance book my mom would read I swear," she'd said after you explained. "You nervous?" 

"I mean, yeah," you joked with a dry laugh as the two of you sat at a small café after work for warm drinks and pastries. "I've never been to Japan, but I've always wanted to go… "

"I meant about seeing your man again." Livia picked a crumb off her plate and stared at you with raised brows. 

You fidgeted with your mug and avoided her scrutiny. "Oh… um, yeah. Just unsure of how things will go, I guess. Since he doesn't know that I'm coming as far as I'm aware-" 

"Hold up." She blinked, obviously disbelieving your words. "He doesn't know you're planning this trip? Um, explain that one to me?!" Face scrunched and twisted in a way that anyone who wasn't being interrogated by her would find funny, Livia held her palms up facing the ceiling to pass the conversation back to you. 

Scraping your teeth across your top lip, you thought about how to spin this so she would buy it. She was smart enough to get into law school, which meant she was smart enough to pinpoint your bullshit. "So, like, his friends found out about what happened and contacted me saying that he wished he could see me again… sooo, we're kinda planning to surprise him… which wasn't my idea! I said they should tell him what they were gonna do, but they're his friends, not mine, and they wanna keep it a secret in case I can't make it or something…" 

She sat across from you, chin in her palm, lips pursed before she let her tongue click against the roof of her mouth. "You're gonna get kidnapped."

"What?! No-" 

"This is like, stranger danger 101. Now. I'm totally into traveling and experiencing new things and chasing what you want, but this sounds sketchy as hell." 

To anyone that didn't know the true context of the entire situation, yeah, it did sound like a dumb and audacious idea to travel to an unfamiliar country to find a guy you knew for a month. However, Katsuki and Uraraka and all of their friends were trustworthy Heroes who only wanted to bring the two of you together again. They'd never bring you there if it would put you in danger; if anything, being around top Heroes would be the safest possible option. 

You tapped a fingernail on the side of your cup and sighed. "It does sound reckless, yeah. But it's still four months away and I've talked to his friends. You and my parents know I'll be away. Like, I get it and this whole plan sounds like a bad Lifetime movie plot… but just-" The tea in your mug almost sloshed out onto the table as you slid it to the side and leaned forward into Livia’s personal space, eyes determined, and mouth pulled into a thin line. “Just know that I wouldn’t do this if I thought something bad would happen or I didn’t trust Kat’s friends. And even if our meeting doesn’t go as planned… well, I’ll just explore Japan on my own, then. Which is why… I’m wondering if you couldhelpteachmeJapanese!” 

The last words - a plea towards your new friend - slurred together as you sank lower into your seat. One of the biggest obstacles you knew you’d face being in a different country was that you knew next to zero Japanese aside from the easy phrases Katsuki helped you with. There was no way your phone was going to work there since Uraraka’s didn’t work here, so learning as much as you could in as little time as possible was your best chance at having some mild independence while there; plus, it was a huge bonus if you were able to talk to Katsuki without having an annoying robotic voice to translate every little thing. 

Livia's face morphed into the most shiteating, smug expression that would even give Katsuki a run for his money. "Aaah, I see what's going on here. You want me to give you Japanese lessons so you can talk to your hottie boy toy easier. OK, I might indulge you… but what do I get?" 

"I'll pay you money."

"Deal." Her response was so immediate, you couldn't help but snicker. "Plus, if you know the basics, then I’ll feel better about you going… but if they do kidnap you and you escape, I’ll totally be your defense lawyer.”

All you could do was shake your head limply trying to hold in your laughter while picking at the last crumbs of pastry on your plate. It wasn’t as though you were leaving your whole life behind for a guy, now that would’ve been dumb, even if the guy in question was Bakugo Katsuki. He was the one from the shounen manga story, not you. 

Now, months later as you double-checked your bag to make sure you had everything safely packed away while replaying Japanese phrases in your head. Clothes to last for a week, plus extra socks and underwear, hygiene products, makeup, styling tools for your hair, a phone charger that you probably wouldn’t even need… and Katsuki's orange hoodie. 

His scent had long since faded from the comfy fabric even though you tried not to wear or hold it too often. Sometimes, you just wanted to press into whatever was left of him as a source of comfort, even if it left you with mournful nostalgia. Maybe if things went well, he'd toss it in with his laundry or wear it so you could bring it back… or maybe that was a bad idea considering this would really be the final time the two of you could be together. Just delaying the inevitable. 

And finally, sitting on top of everything else was the red dress that had been gathering dust in your closet. 

You planned on wearing it for this birthday party of his. Hopefully, he’d think it looked as good on you as it did on the hanger. Hopefully, he wouldn’t be upset at seeing you again after all this time…

At that very moment, you jumped up from the couch and stared at the center of your living room as an iridescent shimmer began to appear and swirl around the air. Recalling when Uraraka left six months ago, this had to be-

“Oof!” The simmer quickly formed into the shape of a person before materializing fully. A familiar-looking man in plaid, sun-faded jeans, dirty boots, and a beard that nearly engulfed his entire face landed with a hard thud on your floor. 

“Fuck, shit, are you OK?!” You remembered how tired he was last time and thought you were prepared, but having someone manifest out of glitter in your living room was still kind of shocking. Bending down, you helped him onto the couch before grabbing him a glass of water. “Um, Devin?”

Clearing his throat, he finally looked at you and nodded. You knew it was him, but your nerves frazzled the rational part of your brain because you were about to travel to a different fucking universe! 

Devin’s strength began to return about ten minutes later as he took a deep breath as if sucking in clean mountain air before sitting up and letting it all out again. “Wa- ah, chotto matte,” he said with a thick American accent before he dug into his pants pocket and pulled out two things: a small device you didn’t recognize, and the champagne cork that looked just like it did six months ago; true to his word, he’d taken good care of it. 

You watched as Devin fiddled around with the device before holding it up between the two of you. “This thing workin’?” A small light on top flickered on before a robotic-but-pleasant voice came out of a speaker on the bottom. It seemed to translate Devin’s words into your own language… except it was much faster and more accurate than your phone app. 

“If you’re asking if I can understand you, then yes? It works." Well, this was something you didn't expect. "Is this a translator of some kind? Why didn't Uraraka bring it with her last time?" 

He took another long sip of water and relaxed into your couch. "Yep, it's a translator thingy. And it seems to work a lot better than whatever you used; still weird, but ah well. As for why we didn't have it before, well it didn't exist. Uraraka apparently thought ahead and asked someone in Support to make it with the excuse that it could help with their Hero work or something." 

"Support? Oh, you mean like someone who makes support items for Heroes?" Devin barely knew you and vice versa, so you weren't scared of accidentally saying something that Katsuki possibly didn't mention. The underappreciated department gave all Heroes their edge with specialized equipment and gadgets; it made you wonder if Hatsume was still around. 

"That's right," he confirmed while carefully placing the cork back in his pocket. "They'd already been workin' on this thing for a while since rescuing tourists could get messy if you're trying to tell 'em something important. But don't ask me how it works because I don't have a clue. I chop wood and fix stuff; Hero tech isn't my area." 

All of that made sense, and you felt lucky that they'd use a fancy gadget like this to help you out. "Ha, I'd been practicing Japanese since you and Uraraka left in preparation, but four months isn't long enough to know a whole lot. This is appreciated. Thanks, Devin." 

He shrugged. "Thank Uraraka. I'm just the messenger. Also a taxi, I guess… so uh, you ready to go or…?" 

"Oh, right. Umm… just one question, I guess. What's the weather there like right now? To make sure I packed appropriate stuff." Sure, a logical question, but maybe you were also stalling out of fear of what would happen once you got there. This was what you wanted - something Uraraka claimed Katsuki wanted, too - so all you could do was hope for the best. 

Devin found your question simple enough to answer. "I know about comin' prepared for a trip, though my pack is usually full of provisions and survival gear. Weather's nice in Japan right now. Cold's mostly moved on and a light jacket should be plenty." 

OK, yeah, that worked. You'd looked up the weather in Tokyo here but weren’t sure if it would be exactly the same there. Anything extra just meant you were stalling. "Then… y-yeah, I guess I'm ready." 

He waited for you to turn off all the lights and make sure you left nothing plugged in like most people would do when preparing for a vacation. You also sent texts to your mom and the few friends who knew you'd be gone before turning off your phone. If they tried to call and got some kind of disconnected message, it could cause unnecessary worry that you would hate to deal with when you came back home. 

"Does it hurt? Teleporting, I mean." 

"Nah," he assured as he stretched his thick arms towards your ceiling. He'd given you the fancy translator to hold along with your bags. "You'll feel a tug behind your belly button, but it happens in a flash. Probably be kinda disoriented and tired, but it'll affect me more than you." 

If it wasn't for Devin and the dedicated effort of Katsuki's friends, none of this would even be possible. "Thank you for all of this, Devin. Without-" 

"Nah, no, none of that." Holding up his hands as if you were sick, he sucked in his lips until they were completely hidden behind his beard. "I'm doin' all this as a favor to someone. But you better make this little journey count and snag that guy of yours, got it?"

Heat pooled in your cheeks as you shuffled your feet. Even this stranger was rooting for you and Katsuki to try and make it work… temporarily, at least. "Half of it is up to him, but I'll do my best. Now, let's go before I do something dumb." 

Devin cracked his neck before extending his elbow out for you to hold onto. Terrified that a vital part of you would somehow get left behind despite Devin’s reassurance, you gripped his sleeve and dug your fingers into his arm while your other hand shakily held onto your suitcase. Please let this work, please let this work, please let me not barf as soon as I get there…

You screwed your eyes shut while Devin pulled out the old All Might keychain Melissa gave him. All of these small, ordinary items held so much emotional significance to their owners… the world really was a crazy, beautiful place behind it all, huh?

The tug behind your stomach was immediate, like a vacuum trying to suck you into a powerful whirlwind that gave you no time to escape. Your vision swirled and meshed like a kaleidoscope of colors and shapes shoved into a blender. There was no time to process dematerialization or what you imagined taking LSD might be like, as everything turned blindingly white before something hard and flat came up to meet your palms and knees.

I'd much rather fall out of bed than deal with that. Thoughts disoriented and blurry, you groaned as you tried to figure out what happened, where you were, and if all of your limbs were still attached. Although nothing hurt, your eyes felt as though you’d stared straight at the sun for a second too long and struggled to open them. Unrecognizable voices talked around you in Japanese as you tried to sit up before a painful twisting in your chest had you doubling over in discomfort. 

Meanwhile, halfway across the city, Katsuki and Mar were talking to authorities after just apprehending a rowdy group of wannabe villains trying to start trouble at a bank. 

"Mm, that's right," Katsuki said to one of the cops on the scene. "They- hhrg!" Out of nowhere, a sharp jolt struck him right through the chest and nearly took his breath away, causing him to stagger and lean against a nearby building for support. 

"Dynamight?! What happened? What's wrong?" The officer followed Katsuki’s glare as he whipped his head around trying to find the source of the pain, paranoid that a hidden villain had somehow managed a sneak attack on him again… but just as quickly as it began, the pain subsided. Also, for some unexplainable reason, the ache that had plagued him since first returning home six months ago, the light tug of invisible thread wrapped rigidly around his heart… lessened. The thread was given slack like a jump rope resting on the ground while two points still held the handles. 

A bead of sweat ran down the side of his face at feeling the paradox of simultaneous worry and relief. Mar's voice came into focus as they jogged up behind him. 

"Dynamight-senpai? I saw you double over and-"

"You secured the perimeter, right? All the villains are in custody?" He avoided Mar's worried expression and instead stared across the horizon of the city trying to mentally piece together what just occurred. 

"Um, yes. I double-checked and everything's in order and accounted for. Did something happen…?" 

Katsuki remained silent, his lips pulled into a thin line. Just let me get through my fucking birthday without any bullshit. 

Back at the Midoriya household, you were dealing with similar confusing feelings muddying your thoughts compounded by the daze of landing in a stranger’s house with people who looked familiar. You almost couldn’t believe it despite knowing they were just as real as Bakugo Katsuki. 

A tall woman with long black hair pulled into a neat ponytail trailing over her shoulder and dark granite eyes was tending to Devin laying limply on a nearby couch with a damp cloth. She looked exasperated while trying to keep polite composure as she spoke in hushed Japanese. 

Another person, this one with pale pink skin, matching hair, yellow horns, and dressed in loud but chic clothing waved her arms dramatically while giving an earful to- 

“Oh my god,” you mumbled to yourself as you immediately identified the mop of forest green hair, freckles, and long-healed scars covering his hands and forearms as he nervously attempted to assuage the pink-skinned woman who was now karate chopping him on the head. Though they were older, taller, and noticeably more muscular - Midoriya, especially - you were clear headed enough to put names to their faces.

Yaoyorozu Momo, Ashido Mina, and Midoriya Izuku currently surrounded you while you recalled what the hell happened over the last five minutes. You landed on the floor, distressed voices in alarm, your chest hurt as though someone had smacked your sternum hard enough to knock the breath out of your lungs, someone helped you sit against the edge of a chair…

Your murmuring must’ve drawn Midoriya’s attention away from the frustrated Ashido as he swiftly walked forward with panicked eyes, glued his arms to his sides, and bowed generously while repeating what you could only make out as a string of apologies in rushed Japanese as you sat dumbfounded on the floor with your knees pulled into your chest. The translator Devin gave you lay off to the side since you dropped it while trying to break your fall. 

"Umm… " While you slowly reached for the translator while staring awkwardly at the man apologizing to you, Ashido gently pushed him to the side with a roll of her large black eyes before kneeling in front of you as her expression softened.

"Ogenki desu ka?" Ok, you could finally put some of your studying to good use…

"Uh, hai, genki desu," you answered easily. This mild disorientation was finally wearing off. For whatever reason, that made her giggle which reassured you that nothing had gone catastrophically wrong with this part of whatever their surprise birthday plan entailed. 

Just as your hand was about to close around the translator, Ashido noticed and snatched it up with quick reflexes before holding it up curiously. "Nanda korya?" 

"G-gomen! Hai," Midoriya stammered while grabbing the device out of her hand and handing it back to you. Pressing the "power" button that Devin showed you earlier, a green light flickered on while Ashido pouted. 

"Thank you," you said as the pleasant voice reverberated out of the bottom. "I don't really know what's going on… I mean, I sort of do, but-" 

"Please tell me you're (y/n)-san?" Midoriya looked as though he'd barely slept in days, so the least you could do was pacify him even though you desperately wanted to know where Katsuki was. 

You nodded and he deflated in relief. "Thank goodness… so, it really worked-" 

"Excuse me, Midoriya-san." The woman you assumed to be Yaoyorozu stood up from her place next to Devin, her perfect posture and disciplined visage almost imposing despite knowing her kind personality from canon. Hopefully, she hadn't changed drastically in that regard since being a teenager. "Can you please fill Ashido-san and I in on what exactly is going on? You asked us to come and help you with an important favor for Bakugo-san's party tonight, but have been evasive on the details. Who are these people," she said, gesturing to both you and Devin, "and how did they get here?" 

Knowing Midoriya hadn't actually told them who you were and what you were doing here made you want to curl up into a ball to catch up on missed sleep. Did that also mean they didn't know where Katsuki had been all that time he was gone? You knew his friends were as impulsive as they were strong, but there was no way this would go off without a hitch. What a mess and I've barely been here ten minutes… 

Chancing a look at the couch to your left, you asked, "Is Devin alright? He said he would be tired afterwards…" 

Yaoyorozu followed your line of sight and sighed. "Yes. He's asleep, but fine. Apologies for my rude outburst. I'm Yaoyorozu Momo and this is Ashido Mina. It seems like you already know Midoriya-san and that you are not fluent in Japanese judging by your accent and use of the device in your hand…” 

With fidgeting fingers, Midoriya stood up and again bowed in apology, this time towards Yaoyoruzu. “Sorry, sorry… I know this all must be confusing, but you and Ashido-san were who I thought of first to help with our, um, plan. Also, if we could try and keep it down… Ochaco is resting right now, but she’ll wake up soon to help with tonight since I know she wants it all to go well…” 

“That doesn’t tell us much.” Ashido stood up and brushed invisible dirt from her thighs. “I mean, I like surprises and all as much as the next girl, but we really need more to go on than that… why are you staring at me?” 

Her sudden inquiry made you realize that your eyes were glued to her appearance, which made you feel incredibly embarrassed. “Crap, that’s rude, sorry,” you apologized while standing up yourself to make sure the dizziness was finally gone. Introducing yourself properly even though they heard your name through Midoriya a moment ago, you explained, “It’s just… no one has pink skin or horns in my universe. But I still shouldn’t stare! You’re very pretty and it’s a lovely shade of bubblegum pink.”

Cupping her cheeks demurely, Ashido fluttered her lashes and gleamed. “Oh, well, thank you- wait. What’d you just say? What do you mean in your universe?!?”

You looked to Midoriya for silent advice on what to say since that answered a few questions regarding what they knew or didn’t know, but luckily he stepped between you and the other two bewildered women. “I-I know that must sound weird, haha! Like I said, it’s hard to explain… but um, hopefully (y/n)-san can fill you in because I have a lot to do before seven o’clock tonight.” Silently balking at Midoriya shoving the responsibility of telling perfect strangers your history with Katsuki on your own shoulders, you frowned as he continued to plead his case. “Just help her get ready? I guess??”

Ashido and Yaoyorozu shared a look that spoke volumes. “Midoriya-san, ready for-” 

A familiar but tired voice echoed from somewhere down a hallway on the opposite side of the room. “We were too loud! I swear, Kirishima-kun, Todoroki-kun, and I will make it up to you two! Devin-san can stay here for now, but if you all could leave and just come back later tonight, I think that will work best." 

Rather than wait for an answer, Midoriya quickly but politely shooed all three of you towards the front door while you dragged your single bag of luggage and purse behind you. Ashido and Yaoyorozu huffed while they slipped on their shoes, Midoriya continuing his trait of apologizing profusely before he opened the door, waited until his guests were fully outside, and waved goodbye before leaving you standing with your back to Yaoyorozu and Ashido while silently panicking. This wasn’t exactly how you expected to be welcomed by Katsuki’s friends…

On the other side of the door, Midoriya came close to banging his head against the frame from his own frustrations. “Why’d I do that?! Kacchan’s going to blow a hole in my chest if he finds out I pushed his girlfriend out of my house because I can’t handle everything myself-”

“Izuku? What’s going on?”

He turned around to find his wife, now almost seven months pregnant, holding her stomach while tiredly pointing at Devin still asleep on the couch. Her drowsy face and messy hair from waking up were adorable to Izuku; he wanted to keep her as relaxed and stress-free as possible as the pregnancy progressed, which was why he’d attempted to handle all of the party planning, communications, favors, and Kacchan’s extra special surprise gift all on his own despite Ochaco’s insistence that she was still perfectly capable of helping. 

Back outside, you stood by awkwardly as Yaoyorozu and Ashido discussed what to do about, well, you. 

“Look,” you interjected while wheeling your suitcase behind you like a lost tourist in a foreign airport. “I’ll explain what I know and why I’m here and all of that if you give me a chance. But it’s kind of a long story… I just don’t have anywhere to go and don’t really know anyone here besides Uraraka and Katsuki.” 

At using his given name, Ashido’s eyebrows shot up and the warm sun above sparkled off her sheer lip gloss with a silent “ooh…” while Yaoyorozu, ever the prim and proper lady, brought a hand up to her mouth as struck by your presumed social faux pas. Black eyes glistening curiously, Ashido reached over and tugged you by the elbow towards a very nice and expensive-looking car parked nearby. 

“I think you really do have a lot of explaining to do, missy… YaoMomo!” She called over her shoulder with a wave of her free hand. “You mind driving to your place?”

Knowing she wouldn’t get any answers as to what in the world was going on without agreeing, Yaoyorozu nodded with a sigh while pulling out her keys and mentally noting which tea blend would help with her inevitable headache. 

It proved difficult keeping your attention on Ashido and Yaoyorozu as you sat in the back seat studying the architecture, signs, and people - oh, the people - who differed so drastically from the familiar. Even though it looked like a normal residential neighborhood, it reminded you of the picturesque animation styles from classic slice of life anime with kids running to school with toast hanging out of their mouths. But what truly caught your attention were the people going about their day. Someone had more arms than Shoji while another seemed to have hair that twirled like lavender flames. 

It really hit you that you were the odd one out here. Not just as someone from outside their world, obviously, but you were also quirkless. Considering that only a quarter of people were quirkless in the canon timeline, that percentage had most likely shrunk even more over the past decade. Feeling so out of place, it reminded you of Katsuki's initial arrival. Well, with several key differences.

"Helloooooo, anyone in there?" Ashido's sing-song voice snapped you away from the car window as you held tight to your purse in your lap. She looked at you quizzically over the headrest while Yaoyorozu kept her eyes trained to the road ahead. 

"Sorry. This is just a lot to take in… but you want to know what all this is about, right? And who I am and why I'm here and all that?" 

"Bingo," she affirmed. "We're Heroes so our whole job is to help people, but all this is like, giving me weird vibes. And what you said earlier about people not having pink skin where you're from? What's that about?" Her tone was pleasant laced with skepticism, but her large black eyes seemed to regard you with slight mistrust. You really couldn't blame her and were honestly frustrated with Midoriya for leaving this part of their "plan" in your own hands when you were more out of the loop than anyone; well, except for Katsuki if they'd managed to keep this whole situation a secret since December. 

"Yeah," you breathed out with your head heavy on the back of the seat. "You both deserve to know what's going on since you were dragged into this… I'll try to summarize but it, uh, might be a long story…" 

The car rolled to a smooth stop at a red light as Yaoyorozu said, "We have six hours until the party tonight. That should be enough time, right?" 

Wrapping up six months worth worth of time in as many hours would've been doable if you were able to get through it all without questions or interruptions, but less than five minutes after nervously recounting the first day he arrived so many months ago, Ashido nearly made Yaoyoruzu lose control of the car with her yelling. 

"NOW HOLD ON!" 

"Ashido-san, please don't make sudden movements while I'm-

"You mean to tell me," she continued while halfway turned around in her seat to face you, face smeared with incredulity as Yaoyorozu returned her focus to the road. "That aaaaaaall this time, Bakugo was just fine and dandy while all his friends thought he was in trouble? And that you come from a different universe that’s similar to ours, but everyone’s quirkless?!”

Gnawing on the inside of your cheek, you avoided eye contact and gave a short nod. Ashido opened her mouth while the device in your hand translated, then shut it again as Yaoyorozu interjected. 

“I can understand Ashido-san’s… hesitance to accept such a tale,” she admitted, fixing her slick black hair in the rearview mirror while waiting for some pedestrians to cross the street. “But I trust Midoriya-san and assume he is aware of what happened since you are here because of his help, I assume. Kirishima-san and Todoroki-san must also know where Bakugo-san was since he mentioned them as well…”

Ashido huffed and slumped against her seat. “I knew Kirishima was keeping secrets. He’s such a bad liar. Best bro friend privileges, I guess. OK, OK, so like, he crash-landed in your house, so what-”

“We’re here.” You peered through the gap in the front seats as Ashido turned around to see a set of large and intricate iron gates swing open to reveal a long, winding driveway leading up to a beautiful house big enough to fit at least ten of your apartments inside. Right, Yaoyorozu is rich… I feel too poor to be here.

It felt similar to walking into a ritzy hotel, wheeling your suitcase behind you as you followed Yaoyorozu and Ashido inside. Following their example, you removed your shoes and slid on a pair of indoor house slippers that you knew were customary in Japanese homes to avoid tracking dirt everywhere. Again, you felt incredibly out of place: a tourist in a new place with no real direction, resources, or friends - well, except for Katsuki and Uraraka - relying on the kindness of strangers; the situation really was parallel to Katsuki’s. The sooner evening came and you found out if this whole ordeal was worth it or not, the better. 

Yaoyorozu led the two of you through a sprawling entryway and into a dining area that could’ve easily seated twenty people. Along the way, you spotted photos hung up on the walls of Yaoyorozu and her supposed parents since they were never shown in canon. The pictures that gripped your attention, though, were the poses of her standing next to a shorter woman with dark violet hair and long earlobes that ended in earphone jacks. Holding hands. Smiling… oh man, does this mean MomoJirou is canon?! 

A pink hand gripped your sleeve and tugged you further into the house. "C'mon, missy. YaoMomo can tell you about herself and her girlfriend after we get some more answers. Man, that translation thingy is annoying… " 

"Not as annoying as using an app on my phone that's only about seventy percent accurate," you admitted before someone you didn't recognize appeared from around a corner and held out a gloved hand as if wanting to take your suitcase. "Um…" 

"Don't worry." Looking up, you saw Yaoyorozu seated gracefully at a table as another unidentified person waited patiently at her elbow. "Kageyama-san will keep your things safe while we talk. Are you hungry? Some tea will be out for us shortly." 

OK, this was a little more overwhelming than you expected, but things could've been worse. "I'd like to keep my bags with me if you don't mind." There were too many sentimental things stuffed behind the zippers and letting them leave your sight, even if they would be secure in trusted hands, made you uneasy. "And I don't want to impose or anything… but I guess I was too anxious to eat breakfast this morning, so I wouldn't mind a snack." 

Ashido echoed your desire for some food, albeit in a more relaxed and amicable way, before sitting down herself with her chin resting in the palms of her hands while Yaoyorozu waved off who you now assumed to be hired help. Feeling black and grey eyes staring you down expectantly, you sat down with your things at the table, Yaoyorozu at the head and Ashido seated at your opposite.

Clearing her throat as if to begin a speech, Yaoyorozu cut the silence. "Now that we are comfortable, I'd like you to continue explaining who you are, why you're here, and what happened with Bakugo-san while he was missing."

None of this was going how you expected it to play out. These two heroes were familiar to you from canon, but they were essentially complete strangers who were trying to understand your motivations; yet another parallel with Katsuki's stressful vacation away from home. Maybe once you gave them enough diary-esque word vomit to satisfy their curiosity, the stiffness embedded in your spine and fidgeting fingers could finally relax. It'd be nice to be friends with Katsuki's friends… 

So, with a deep breath to steady yourself, you began. 

Your confusion and his anger. Your generosity and his needs. Your flustered inelegance and his effortless poise. As you talked, Yaoyorozu and Ashido slowly began to understand. The warm tea and appetizing spread of food placed in front of you went untouched as you recalled that first week and a half with Bakugo Katsuki. It was as simple as tying your shoes or brushing your teeth, tasks ingrained and completed without effort. After all, you'd lost count of how many times you replayed his visit from beginning to end over the last six months. Rewinding the tape to remember and sadly smile with nostalgia and yearning before pressing the button worn down from the oil of your fingers right before the credits rolled to bring it back to the beginning once more. Day 1. Day 2…

The two women sat in wide-eyed silence, a teacup hovering in Yaoyorozu's manicured hand while Ashido curled a section of hair around her finger while  gradually scraping off her lip gloss with her teeth. The latter snapped first. “Oh. My. God. Oh my god,” she repeated with increasing volume. “So you and Bakugo were like, DATING?!” You answered with an endorsing nod, which made Ashido slump in her chair like bubblegum ice cream melting in the sun. “I owe Sero soooo much money…” 

In contrast, the ever-composed Yaoyorozu carefully set down her teacup and met your stare with her own. “I see. Well, that certainly does answer some things. In all honesty, I’m as surprised as I am happy for Bakugo-san. He was in a dire situation and you offered him help when he normally refuses such things if he cannot reciprocate in some way. Forgive me, but he never struck me as the… dating type.” 

You managed to let out a small laugh for the first time since arriving. “I mean, I was as surprised as you are when I wasn’t outright rejected. All I did was tell him how I felt and left the rest up to him. It’s not like I’d rescind my offer of letting him stay with me if nothing happened.” 

Skipping over that whole bit of conversation, Ashido chimed back in. “And you’re sure this is the same Bakugo Katsuki that we know? And not like… an imposter?”

While her exaggerated reactions to every new bit of information you revealed was funny at first, her reluctance to accept your relationship of all things ground on your nerves. Was it truly so unbelievable? 

“Ashido-san! Don’t be rude.” 

“I’m joking, I’m joking!” She turned to your unamused face and managed to look repentant. “Sorry. Bakugo isn’t the type to do something without putting 110% into it. And he’s such a workaholic…he never made time for stuff like that. But…!” Reaching her hands towards you across the table, Ashido winced and said, “If you and him were together that whole time, and then he had to leave, that’s so sad! No wonder he was so moody when he came back home…” 

It was then you realized that this was the first time you were able to be completely honest about Katsuki and who he was with other people. There was Uraraka, sure, but she already knew most of what happened. You were telling Ashido and Yaoyorozu what you couldn’t back home. Lying to your parents, your friends, coworkers, your therapist about who Katsuki truly was and why keeping in touch wasn’t as easy as just calling or texting. He was unreachable, and though you’d tried so fucking hard to accept that reality and move on… here you were one last time. 

You only realized you were crying when Yaoyorozu jumped up from her chair in a rush to grab a box of tissues. 

While you were sipping lukewarm tea in her mansion-like house, Katsuki was finishing up the day’s paperwork after returning to the agency with Mar. No other bizarre incidents happened after that invisible sucker punch to the chest, but it still put him on edge for the rest of his patrol. Something just felt… off, and it had nothing to do with his birthday. At least, he hoped it didn't, considering he wasn’t sure exactly what those idiot friends of his had planned. 

“Knock knooooock!” Katsuki didn’t bother looking up, knowing Kirishima’s sing-song voice as he waltzed into his office as if he didn’t have one of his own right down the hall. "How's the birthday boy-" 

"Shut the hell up," he hissed with a glare. "Announce it to the whole damn city, why don't you? I've already gotten enough annoying texts to last me through all of next year." 

Kirishima didn't falter at the sass and instead walked calmly up to the large wooden desk in the center of the room with a knowing grin. "C'mon, don't be a sourpuss on your birthday of all days; you got 364 other days to turn up that dial as high as you want." 

Even though he knew Kirishima was right, Katsuki just clicked his tongue and leaned back in his chair with crossed arms. "Mar already called us old, the little brat… if you really want me to relax, the fewer people know about today, the better." As far as he knew, Kirishima had no idea that Todoroki opened his mouth about their little surprise party tonight. Might as well fuck with him a bit to teach him a lesson about secrets…

Laughing, Kirishima said, "Yeah, well, I already had a brief quarter-life crisis for about an hour. Then I got over it. We're just gettin'  better with age!" Katsuki stared at him blankly. "You got any plans later? And why are you still working? Reports can wait a day," he insisted with a wave of his hand. 

"Lucky you; I just finished," he replied. Well, he was ninety-nine percent finished, the remainder being reading it over for mistakes… but Kirishima was right, it wasn't anything that couldn't wait until tomorrow. "As for plans, I'm going home. Maybe pick up a pastry or something on the way. Make sure my cat hasn't destroyed anything. Order out for dinner. Go to bed." 

The red head grimaced as if his imaginary plans let out a foul odor of their own. "Uh… that's it? No, no, unacceptable. What if I said-" 

"No." 

"...No? But I didn't say anything yet." 

Kirishima's sad, puppy-faced dejection almost made him feel bad. Almost. "Isn't everyone saying I'm a workaholic? Well, I'm going to relax on my own damn birthday." Packing up his things, Katsuki stood up as if getting ready to leave, sliding in his hearing aid kept in the small case on his desk. It had taken him a while to adjust to the damn thing after a villain with annoyingly precise aim got him right on the left ear. Things were just slightly… fuzzier out of that side, now. Doctors recommended he upgrade his ear protection and invest in a hearing aid. Plenty of heroes used prosthetics or support items to help them back on their feet after a rough fight; no shame in that. 

"I mean, true! The relaxing part." The slight urgency in Kirishima's voice was evident now as he followed Katsuki out into the main office, still talking as he locked the door. "But I totally think it would be good to, y'know, get out for a night and celebrate!" 

Quickening his pace towards the elevator, Katsuki didn't let his facade slip through Kirishima's nervous chuckling. "I already told you my plans. Isn't what I want the most important thing here?" 

"Just! Trust me on this; it'll be great." 

"What will? You dragging me across town to get drunk?" 

"No, something better." 

The elevator dinged.

"What'd I just say?" 

"We spent ages planning this party for you, and I'm gonna make sure you make it there!" 

Finally. The confession brought a sly grin to the surface while Kirishima deflated, assuming he spilled the beans. However, his raised voice caught the attention of several office staff minding their own business, Mar included as they walked in from the restroom to see their senpai dragging Red Riot by the arm around a corner at the other side of the room. 

He stammered, trying to backpedal his blunder, but knew it was too late. “Dammit… I was supposed to come up with an excuse to get you to come over to Midoriya’s tonight.” 

“I know,” Katsuki admitted coolly. “Or rather, I’ve known for a few months about whatever surprise party bullshit you and the other two members of the Nosy Friend gang have been planning for me.” 

“Y-you knew?! But how-”

“Blame Todoroki. He’s good at bullshitting, but didn’t seem bothered telling me over noodles. I just wanted to see how you’d get me to go along with it if I claimed to have different plans; you need to work on your script.” 

Judging that his friend wasn’t promptly freaking out, Kirishima assumed that Todoroki only told him about the party and not about the second part of their plan. He just needed to keep it that way for a little while longer…

As the two men bickered, Mar stood just out of sight around the corner, eavesdropping on their little conversation. Celebrate? Party? Specifically for Bakugo…? Then it clicked. Flaring their nostrils, Mar whipped around the corner, causing Kirishima and Bakugo to turn and stare at them. 

Deep breath in, deep breath out. “"ES TU CUMPLEAÑOS POR QUE TU NO ME LO DIJISTES?!?” (Why didn’t you tell me it’s your birthday?!?) 

“Uh… what?” Kirishima never was one for learning new languages, so he met the Spanish yelling with startled confusion. Katsuki, however, actually put some effort into learning some of the basics from Mar; living with you and engrossing himself in a completely unfamiliar country might’ve had an effect on that. 

So, he got the gist of why Mar was a fuming teenager. Cursing to himself, Katsuki glared at Kirishima’s fat, shark-toothed mouth before turning on his heel, bolting down the hallway, and kicking open the door to the stairwell leading downstairs. 

That whole relaxation idea seemed better and better by the second. 

Back at Yaoyorozu's home, things went much smoother and the discomfort slowly evaporated as the three of you talked and opened up to each other. Yaoyorozu confirmed that she and Jirou were dating, still flustered over it despite being together for almost two years. But it only got to that point after both laughter and tears were shed on all fronts. 

Ashido freaked out over the bear attack story - months of therapy made talking about it a hundred times easier - and insisted that she would've run away, too. In addition, Yaoyorozu reminisced on her childhood when you talked about the amusement park, and how her parents would take her to similar places; neither of them had been to one in years, though, and were in agreement that they would attempt to make time for plans like that in the future. 

It took a while, but your appetite finally returned once you felt comfortable enough to unwind from your initial reserved stiffness. True to what you remembered, Yaoyorozu’s persnickety options of fancy tea blends offered you warmth and relief. 

Once the two of them were in agreement on what exactly to help you with - Ashido would fix your hair while Yaoyorozu decided to paint your nails and help with makeup. At first, you insisted that they didn’t have to help and that you could get ready on your own just fine since you packed a week's worth of stuff in your bag, but they claimed they needed to complete the task Midoriya had given them. 

Maybe being pampered… wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world? Just for a few hours…

“I swear I’ll drip acid on Bakugo’s shoes if he says something stupid after all you went through to get here,” Ashido vowed while running her fingers through your hair after you described how you wanted it styled. “He’s smart, but he’s also dumb.”

“I agree that, while Bakugo-san is very knowledgeable with battle tactics and quick to react while in a combat situation, it would be callous of him to dismiss your efforts.” Yaoyorozu straightened out your red dress hung up on a door hook after insisting it needed to be pressed and steamed once she asked what you planned to wear in order to coordinate a proper nail color. It had wrinkled a bit while folded up in your suitcase, but she’d whisked it away before you could argue. 

Groaning to yourself, you wondered if he’d understand why you waited so long to see him again rather than coming here as soon as Uraraka handed you the invitation. “It’s been six months… what if he’s already moved on and is with someone else, now?”

Ashido sputtered behind you. “Pfft! Trust me, he’s not. Kirishima used to try and help him meet new people and even set up a few dates for him, but they never went anywhere. Actually… Do you have, like, lists of well-known people in your world where they’re ranked as hot or not or something like that?”

“Hm? Oh, yeah, I see those kinds of things on magazines and clickbait websites about celebrities… why?”

“Well,” she began as Yaoyorozu raised a meticulous eyebrow up at her colleague. “I’ve seen where people rank us Heroes and-”

“You can’t be serious, Ashido-san,” Yaoyorozu challenged as she held a jelly red nail polish in her hand. 

“I totally am. Anyway, Bakugo is usually on those lists, but there’s usually a little note next to his picture that complains about his personality or something mean like that; you know how those types of fanmade things are. Kami showed Bakugo the list one time thinking it’d be funny, but actually, Bakugo didn’t really care at all. Nothing and no one can make that man change who he is. We’re used to it,” she continued, pointing at Yaoyorozu as her other hand accidentally tugged your hair a little too hard. “And know that’s just how he is. For you to come aaaaaall the way here just to see Bakugo again tells me you’re one of a kind.” 

You sat stunned at Ashido’s unexpected speech that ended in defense of not only Katsuki, but your own feelings for him as well. It was definitely true that he never held back with anything he did or said and usually got straight to the point, taking the shortest route in favor of a longer, more scenic experience. 

Yaoyorozu nodded along in apparent agreement as she sat diagonally from you. “Ashido-san is right. Besides, would Midoriya-san have brought you here if Bakugo-san was dating someone else? That would be an awkward and uncomfortable meeting.” 

“I… yeah, that’s true.” While you knew that Katsuki favored keeping his personal life behind a privacy wall, with how much attention his friends were giving him, keeping a new date under wraps would’ve been difficult. Not to mention his insistence that if he were with someone, he wouldn’t be ashamed or hide them from the world. Their words set you at ease despite the lingering worry of what would happen when you finally came face-to-face again. 

This back and forth continued for a while with questions and light banter, both of them sharing about themselves alongside your own personal stories. Yaoyorozu was actually intrigued when you told them about your job since she has no real experience doing work outside of her Hero career. However, Ashido seemed more interested in digging up romantic dirt between yourself and Katsuki to quench her thirst for gossip.

Leaning over your shoulder as she finished up with your hair, Ashido hummed curiously. “Hmm… I have a very important question for you, (y/n).” 

You adjusted yourself in the chair to gain back some feeling in your butt after sitting in it for so long. “Yes?”

“Do you looooooooove Bakugo? And if you do, does he know?”

“Ashido-san! That is a very personal thing to ask,” Yaoyorozu chided, pausing with a fresh cup of tea in her hand and a frown. You stiffened in your seat as you chewed the inside of your cheek at Ashido’s prodding. 

How many times had you rewound the tape of that final tearful morning? How many times did you plead for an answer in return, even if it meant heartbreak? “Yes,” you said flatly, eyes transfixed on your fingers gripping the translator device in your lap. “Yes… I do love Katsuki. I did six months ago, and I still do now. And he knows… I told him… right before he left…” 

Ashido gasped and squealed like a teenager while Yaoyorozu placed a delicate hand over her mouth as a flush spread across her cheeks. Only when you revealed that you weren’t sure if Katsuki fully reciprocated your feelings did they both understand the final puzzle piece of your worry for the night to come. 

Halfway across town in the heart of Tokyo, Katsuki stood with his back against the bathroom counter, a mirror in one hand and a tar-black eyeliner pen in the other. 

After escaping Mar’s pitiful wrath and coming home, he gave his apartment a decent once-over to make sure his devil-in-cat’s-clothing hadn’t broken or wrecked anything. True to the warning he was given at the adoption agency, Princess Explosion Murder was an absolute terror… well, to anyone who wasn’t Katsuki, at least. 

That first week in his apartment, she’d secured some favorite hiding spots, including: under his bed, under the couch, squeezed between the wall and the fridge, and the dark seat of a rarely-used chair covered by the edge of a tablecloth. The first time he came home after a long patrol and found her perched atop his wall-mounted TV wobbling precariously on its hinges was also when she gave him some of the worst kitty scratches across his arm. 

She turned her whiskers up at half the cat food brands he bought until he attempted to make his own with the help of some online recipes and a bone grinder that he already owned for making his own stocks. That way, he knew exactly what was in it and she seemed to approve as well. 

She hissed if he got too close, but meowed if she didn’t get the correct amount of attention at exactly the right time. He’d written off the arms of his couch as a lost cause in addition to trying to cut her pin-sharp nails; at least she used the scratching posts… sometimes. 

However, when he eventually figured out the balance between giving her space and recognition, things slowly but surely improved. If he sat on one side of the couch, she’d inch closer from the opposite end day-by-day until she was almost against his knee. The furball even allowed Katsuki to pet her briefly, but only in specific spots and for the perfect amount of time before she tried to gnaw his fingers off. At least it was progress. 

While he and Princess were building up this cohabiting relationship, Kirishima had come by one day after seeing Katsuki carrying a bag of cat litter on his shoulder and practically begged to meet his new pet. 

“Do not make any sudden moves… at least your quirk is good for this,” he warned before opening his apartment door. 

Kirishima beamed at the beautiful white cat with the black rhinestone collar perched neatly on the back of the couch staring at them, orange eyes surrounding pinprick slits of black. 

"Oooh, she's so fluffy and pretty! Who's a good-" 

That's all he managed to say before Princess leapt off the furniture like a pouncing lion right towards Kirishima. He was hesitant to come and visit after that, escaping with a few scratches to avoid possibly hurting her with his hardened skin. 

Now, that spoiled and snarky fluffball sat in the doorway of Katsuki's bathroom staring up at him expectantly since it was almost her dinner time; apparently, cats understood routines very well when it came to food. If he was five minutes late, she wouldn't let him forget it. 

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Stop meowing like you're starving," he huffed before returning to the mirror to finish the perfectly crisp wing of his eyeliner. He didn't do this kind of thing often - dress up in a nice pair of dark wash jeans, a deep indigo blue button-up shirt rolled up to the elbows with a gray tank top underneath, his hair actually styled for once, etc. - but if everyone else was going to make a big deal out of his birthday, he might as well put in his own effort, too. 

Finally satisfied with his appearance, Katsuki tried not to trip over Princess, who tried to weave between his legs with angry meows while leading him to the kitchen. He made enough food to last a few weeks and just put them in pre-portioned refrigerated containers for ease. "You got your attention earlier, so entertain yourself while I'm gone tonight… do not break anything." 

He might as well have been mute and invisible to the damn cat who attacked the food bowl ravenously. Rolling his eyes, Katsuki did his rounds to make sure he grabbed everything and turned off most of the lights before leaving his apartment. 

Checking the time on his phone as he stepped off the elevator, Katsuki headed towards the door leading out to a private garage for residents when the security guard Takahata called out to him. 

"Don't usually see you heading out so late, Dynamight." Takahata knew exactly who came in and who left every single day, so a change in routine would never get past him. Plus, it was obvious by how he was dressed that this outing was for leisure and not work for once. 

With his elbow pressed against the door handle, Katsuki turned back and said, "Yeah, well, maybe it'll do me some good." Takahata probably knew the birthdays of every Hero resident by heart, but he was smart enough to keep his lips sealed for certain people. 

The garage was warm from the spring air outside as he walked under the ceiling lights towards a back corner with only a few cars sparsely parked nearby. Unlocking the chain around his bike, he let it fall against the pillar before sliding on his customized helmet with a grenade detailed on the back, stretched a pair of gloves over his calloused hands, and situated himself atop the second spontaneous personal addition he bought: a flashy motorcycle painted in gradients of black and burnt orange. 

After adopting Princess, he continued his moderately impulsive streak with the bike purchase after looking up reviews and maintenance costs of various models made within the last couple of years. Paying for it made him want to puke, but Katsuki considered it an investment in anonymity and privacy. With the slick black helmet and gloves, no one knew who he was on the road; maybe a few assumed he was a Dynamight fan from the subtle coloring and decals, but with his face hidden, he didn't have to deal with crowded public transit. 

He still rode the train if the weather was ugly and generally didn't take his bike to the agency. For errands or getting around town on less busy days, though? The motorcycle scratched his speed demon itch in a completely different way… plus, Katsuki was right: he did look hot zooming around Tokyo - and occasionally the mountainous city outskirts if time allowed. 

All of this to say that for the first time in months, the weight of every stressor and obligation just… disappeared as he focused on the lamp-lit streets leading out to the Midoriya household. And as much of a fussy show as he put on for Kirishima earlier, he really did feel excited about this stupid party. Maybe having a drink and eating cake and catching up with the people who put in an effort to come - the people who probably cared about him the most - wouldn’t be so terrible. 

Pulling up into the driveway, Katsuki took note of the cars lining the streets. He recognized some, but not others. The motorcycle kickstand moved easily under the toe of his boot as he took off his helmet and ruffled his hair; so much for putting in the effort to style it.

The lights were out and the neighborhood was quiet when, not bothering to knock, Katsuki opened the front door. 

“SURPRISE!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!” The lights flickered on simultaneously as the entryway flooded with hollers and laughter. Katsuki’s face remained as impassive as stone as his eyes roamed across familiar faces that seemed puzzled as to why he wasn’t reacting. 

“Um… did we get the day wrong?” Kaminari, wearing a cliché party hat with glittery polka dots all over it, whispered to Tokoyami who then looked to Midoriya who appeared to have barely slept for at least two days. 

In response, Katsuki scoffed and pointed a lazy finger at Todoroki and Kirishima. “Oh, right,” Todoroki recalled. “I told him about the party months ago.” 

While this revelation generated dramatic groans and sighs, a woman with dirty blonde hair and a plastic cup in her hand stepped into the center of the room and smiled at Katsuki who was about two seconds from walking right back out the front door. “Like, about time the birthday boy got here. This party was mega lame, but I bet we can totes save it.” 

“WOOO YEAH!” Kaminari enthusiastically agreed as Camie raised a half-empty cup that smelled strongly of alcohol. 

While everyone said their hellos and embarrassing birthday wishes to Katsuki who grumbled about how he just had to come so that all their effort wouldn’t be a giant waste - Kirishima blocked the door so he couldn’t escape - Midoriya sent a quick text to Yaoyorozu letting them know that they could arrive soon. He and his other two cohorts in super secret birthday present crime figured that it would be best to try and get the two of you together after he’d settled in and loosened up first. 

“Are you ready, (y/n)-san?” Yaoyorozu and Ashido stood waiting by the car as you stood under the porch light, your purse in one hand and translator in the other. They’d already put your suitcase in the back seat despite being unsure what would happen and where you’d go at the end of the night. 

With a lump in your throat and an overhang of worry shadowing you like an eclipse, you nodded. 

Being the enthusiastic person she was, Ashido tried to keep things positive and assuage your worry as the car drove through illuminated neighborhood roads. "You look so cute! We did a good job, huh Yaomomo?" 

She hummed while you watched the houses go by from the back seat window. "I should be more excited, right? And I mean, I am! It's just crazy that I'm actually here, but Kat doesn't… nevermind. Whatever happens, happens. No regrets…" 

Ashido frowned and glanced at Yaoyorozu who gave her a silent "I hope this works" look. They hadn't known you for long, but they did know Bakugo; you both deserved to be happy with each other again, even if just for a single week. 

Pulling back up to Midoriya's house, you counted the new, unfamiliar cars lining the street and drivewa while trying to think of what you were going to say once you came face to face with him again. Why are you doing this to yourself? Don’t be dumb. It’ll be fine… We’ll be fine. Yaoyorozu opening your door for you as the air outside ruffled the hem of your dress forced you to swallow your insecurities and troubles. 

Your heels clicked against the pavement, your eyes darting to the dark motorcycle parked close to the house; if Tokoyami was here, maybe it was his? He seemed like the motorcycle type. “Whose bike is that?”

“Hm?” Ashido spun around, walking backwards as she looked between you and the motorcycle. “Oh, hehe, that’s Bakugo’s! It’s pretty new, I think. Probably makes him feel badass or something.”

Eyes going wide at her answer, you almost tripped on your own heel, but caught yourself at the last second. God, if Katsuki called you Clumsy-chan in front of his friends, he might just find himself with smushed birthday cake in his face. 

Shifting weight between your feet and needlessly patting out nonexistent wrinkles from your dress, you stood behind Ashido and Yaoyorozu as they knocked on the door. A few seconds later, it creaked open a hair as if the person on the other side was guarding the entrance to an underground club. Everything seemed to be in order when the door finally swung open, revealing a man - more like a mountain in the shape of a human - with a long and spiky red ponytail who quickly and quietly ushered the three of you inside. 

Oh my god, that’s totally Kirishima and he’s even taller than Katsuki! And- why is everyone here so fucking attractive?! There was little time to try and introduce yourself to the fan-favorite and resident Good Boy Kirishima, though, as he ignored you for the moment and whispered something to Yaoyorozu and Ashido, the latter of which stuck her pink finger in his face to seemingly berate him for keeping so many secrets. 

As you followed their example and slid off your heels in favor of a pair of house slippers that weren’t as fancy as Yaoyorozu’s, the anxiety in your stomach attempted to bubble up again while you attempted to understand and recognize everything and everyone further into the house. 

Low music played from an unknown source while people stood and talked, a few of whom you identified almost immediately. Kaminari’s signature lighting bolt hair was unmistakable. So was… oh god, don’t make the same mistake of staring at Tokoyami’s bird head that you did with Ashido’s pink skin. And that’s-

Kirishima suddenly stepped to block your view, clapping his hands together and muttering something you couldn’t understand since you’d turned the translator device off with the assumption that it would be a mess surrounded by so many voices. Although you didn’t normally feel claustrophobic, being bombarded with unfamiliarity made you take a reflexive step back towards the front door. Where was Katsuki?

The green-haired man you knew as Midoriya skidded around the corner looking exasperated and relieved to see you again. Moving too quick for you to see, he suddenly appeared behind you and encouraged you forward with his scarred hands on your shoulders. In any other circumstance, you would’ve wheeled around and demanded to know where Katsuki was, but being surrounded by strangers without anyone to really lean on made you silently compliant. What the hell was going on?!

Kirishima followed Midoriya and Todoroki wasn’t far behind. Ashido gave him a brief scolding for not telling them what was going on, but you three managed to arrive at the literal perfect time, which meant they needed to get you to Bakugo as quickly as possible so the two of you could talk without prying eyes. 

“Is Kacchan still out back?”

“Yeah, said he wanted a breather from everything for a minute,” Kirishima answered before an arm swung around his neck and Kaminari sloppily pointed at your back, nearly spilling some of the alcohol in his cup in the process. 

“Heeey Kiri! Who is that? Didn’t tell me you were bringing pretty ladies to the party-”

The red head lightly headbutted his shorter friend. “Dummy, that’s Bakugo’s girlfriend! I told you we had a plan to bring her here, and tonight’s the night!” The tipsy grin on Kaminari’s face remained for a good five seconds before he yelped in disbelief. Or tried to, anyway, since Kirishima clamped a hand around his mouth to avoid Bakugo coming back inside a moment too early. 

Weaving between guests, a few of whom tried to stop and chat, Midoriya remained focused on guiding you through his house towards the back door leading out to their small covered porch and garden. He was so focused, in fact, that neither he nor the others noticed how rigid and strained you appeared. On the way, he passed by his wife who did a double-take while holding a tray of snacks. 

"Izuku! You didn't tell me (y/n)-san was here," she chided while attempting to give you a friendly and familiar wave, but you just stared straight ahead until you stood in front of the sliding glass door at the other end of the house. 

There, in your peripheral vision at the very edge of the porch stood the unmistakable silhouette of Katsuki. Like a phantom lit by the ghostly glow of the moon overhead, he remained statue still with his back to you as though closed off from the rest of the world in his own little bubble. 

The tightness in your chest swelled and your nails dug indents into your palm, unable to take your eyes off of him. 

Even for someone like Katsuki, there sometimes came a point when the quiet called out and drew him away from the raucous and rowdy turbulence of high energy situations. The porch was a respite away from Kaminari’s drunken shenanigans and Kirishima’s toothy laughter and the half-decent music that Jirou picked out. 

Condensation from the drink in his hand coated his calloused fingers as he leaned on the banister and stared up at the moon, bright and glowing in the cloudless black. The idea of you crossed his mind - as you often did during these serene escapes - and he wondered briefly how you were, what you were doing, if you were happy, and if you sometimes stared up at the sky in wonder like you did back at the cabin all those months ago. 

… But his moon wasn’t your moon, and his stars weren’t your stars. There was no cliché stargazing shared from opposite ends of the earth that could exist for him. Maybe the lingering fumes of alcohol brought out this fruitless romantic nostalgia; or maybe it was-

“Katsuki…”

Time stood still. The gentle breeze faded as if suspended. He’d heard the click of the glass door behind him and assumed it was someone about to drag him back inside. But no one called him “Katsuki.” Not in that voice, that tone, that painfully familiar lilt that he’d fought to remember and forget and remember and forget… and remember… 

“... Katsuki?”

Neck stiff and mouth dry, he looked down at the melting ice in his glass and silently cursed at the cruel tricks played on vulnerable hearts. He misheard. You weren’t here. You’d never be here. Haven’t you haunted me enough?

Turning with a frown to stare down reality and blink away the taunting mirage, Katsuki froze, struck wide-eyed and off-balance by Medusa’s gaze staring mournfully at him just a few meters away. 

Eyes locked on each other as everything and everyone else faded away. Two apparitions brought together once more to rekindle old love before finally being laid to rest. 

____________________________

... please do not hate me for this cliffhanger it's been planned for literal years and the next chapter will be SO fucking long so ummmm worth the wait??

again of course, so sorry for the wait lkajsdlkjaf i shold NOT have given myself "oh yeah next chapter by his birthday haha totaly doable" and here we are two fucking months later almost to the DAY. just... just tell me i'm a good girl and pat me on the head 😭

so heeeeh yeah. they come face to face for the first time in six months. it'll be satisfying i SWEAR so don't @ me but also you're allowed to strangle me affectionately for this cliffhanger :)))) love u all!

Tagged list: @featherboawing @108052921 @bemyhero-academia @hentaidemon69 @makarovs-brat @alexparrsih @desia22 @justalittlecrazybutimok @trashqueenbitch @loverbug1123 @manq-fandoms @theworldsgreatestdisapointment @dabwithperkins @sarcasm-is-my-form-of-attack @i-am-fandoms-and-satan @eternal-apricot @grumpbisexual @apsara-study @nyantodamax145 @bakuhoetoedoroki @stargazerunlimited @fairyf3v3r @the-abyss-of-fandoms @raeyn-muir @lilithbasically @spicywrites

[masonsystem]

giving dungeon meshi the second highest honor i can bestow to it: complaining about it (its ending specifically):

anyways the ending felt super rushed to me, almost like the author hadnt realized how long an ending with a cast this expansive would need to be, and ended up pacing it weirdly while also rushing some parts along the way. also these opinions of mine dont take into account any post-canon supplemental material, im judging the canon ending on an as-it-is basis, so maybe some of my gripes here get better explained in a bonus comic, but im not counting any of that rn. maybe later i will look back at this ending and feel better about it, but these are the impressions this ending had left on me as of now:

- laios becoming king makes sense when u consider the prophecy that this entire series prefaced itself with (the one who defeats the mad sorcerer will inherit the golden kingdom), but like.... it still feels somewhat out of place. its not a choice that i hate entirely, but i feel like the pacing towards this decision felt very off, when, in the ending to a series like this, shouldve felt more inevitable/final. it really did feel like there were numerous other options laios couldve taken on in the ending.

^these all felt like plausible outcomes to me

and while its somewhat logically explained that the only reasonable outcome for laios was for him to become king (cant leave the island to the long lived races and needs to take responsibility for.. saving the world?), this rationale for laios becoming king felt lacking in any emotional drama that i personally think this series' ending should have, especially considering that the events during the final climax just before this were extremely satisfyingly dramatic.

- izutsumi.... i can recognize that rui did her best to integrate her into the story and serve a narrative significance (barometz chapter succubi arc etc), and this did succeed to an extent, but it also felt like a case of too little too late.. the early arcs before izutsumi had very excellent pacing, with different chapters rotating its focus on a different party member effortlessly. it was during this time that the foundations of our main characters were really set up. izutsumi's late arrival meant that her character narrative had to squeeze itself between the other main characters' further developing narratives, alongside with the steadily developing climax, which had a whole other share of new character narratives it needed to develop (mithrun kabru thistle etc). this lack of breathing room for izutsumi made her feel kinda out of place in the overall narrative, when she, as a main party member, shouldve had more solid ground.

like for example, her yaad doll was barely mentioned until it was time to serve its narrative role (leading them out of the dungeon). looking back at the story, the doll was mentioned at least one other time besides its introduction and its narrative role:

^chp 85 in marcilles tower

but this happens during an extremely dramatic moment (marcille is losing her fucking shit) and this yaad doll mention ends up being overshadowed by it. i feel like the story shouldve called more attention to it; it's role as the plot key that lets the party safely escape the collapsing dungeon is a big role after all, and it shouldve been mentioned at a degree similar to shuro's bell or kensuke, two other objects that play a big role in the story's ending. but as ive said, izutsumi's character has to struggle to secure a spot with the various other rapidly developing narratives. this failure to cement izutsumi's bond with the yaad doll then had this important moment fall rather flat for me;

just like many other izutsumi moments that were meant to be emotional. izutsumi's character sadly didnt have enough time to stew and leave the bigger mark that she really should have, imo

- speaking of characters who didnt feel super impactful in the ending, i was disappointed that chilchuck and senshi didnt play bigger roles in the final climax. i think they played a significant role while marcille was the dungeon lord, but after that (while laios was the dungeon lord) they didnt really do much.. i wish we saw them do more when laios had turned into a monster, the way we see marcille lead the chase after demon-laios.

- also! why did the citizens of the golden land survive??? im so confused about that. like when i think about it i.. guess????? it makes sense?? bc they were cursed by thistle to remain in the dungeon otherwise they would turn to dust, but when thistle lost his desires, that curse was lifted, and they could return to the surface... i think??? but see, thats my problem w this, to make sense of this im doing a lot of guesswork, and something this significant shouldnt be left up to guesswork. i dont expect a story to explain every single detail about itself, especially with its ending; in fact some of my favorite endings are ones that leave certain details ambiguous, but this is an instance where there really should be some sort of explanation.. and the same can be said for why tf did thistle die! if he even died that is???? like man, so much is left up in the air, and the only really concrete things that happened are 1.) laios becomes king, and 2.) falin is resurrected. but my biggest gripe, the biggest thing imo that is not thoroughly explained when i really feel that it should be explained is....

- CAN PEOPLE JUST BE RESURRECTED NOW???????????? like marcille just spelt it out for us that they needed to learn to accept death, especially after spending such a long time in a dungeon where death is merely a suggestion, and yet.... falin was able to be resurrected outside of the dungeon?? does this mean Anyone can be resurrected outside of the dungeon, since the lines between a dungeon and the surface world have now been broken???? that cant be right, can it....??? didnt we just have 97 chapters of why People Should Not Live Forever And Need Food (taking the lives of other creatures) To Be Considered Alive? but how was falin able to be resurrected then??? 😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫 again, this is guesswork that I REALLY THINK should not have just been left to guesswork, man........ tho i do have an alternate explanation that kinda explains how she was able to survive, and ill hopefully post that at some point..

[minetteskvareninova]

Rhaenyra overcoming her fear of motherhood and pregnancy was such a missed opportunity! Like, imagine Rhaenyra, in her early twenties, who has just given up the hope of having normal intercourse with her husband - like, his sexuality aside (and that’s one hell of an aside), their wedding must’ve been extremely traumatic for him. There’s no way in hell Leanor was able to have regular intercourse with her, and both of them must’ve absolutely HATED it. It’s perfectly plausible that they gave up trying to conceive normally pretty early on in their marriage. Instead, Rhaenyra has some good old trauma bonding after the wedding with Harwin Strong, and then, after interacting regularly with him for a few months, is just like. Fuck it. It might as well be him.

And it happens FAST. Like, in the books, Jace was born the SAME YEAR Rhaenyra married Laenor, but even in the show she seems to have conceived within a couple of years after the wedding. So Rhaenyra understandably freaks out! Her little adventure with Daemon might’ve allowed her to put aside her fears for a while, but it of course did nothing to actually address them! She probably considers the good old moon tea, but she knows that as an heir, she can’t afford to just not have children at all. One day, she would have to face the music and give birth, no matter how much it triggers her trauma from her mother’s death. So she seeks help. She can’t turn to Alicent, not after she vouched for fucking Criston. Laena is still unmarried at this point, though Rhaenyra has probably heard that Corlys has agreed to marry her off to Daemon. Her last resort are her friends, except she doesn’t seem to have any (I headcannon that she does hang out with the women at court, but none of those are especially close to her, more like people to gossip, drink dornish red with and impress by her massive fuck you dragon), and... Rhaenys.

Like, imagine mommy Rhaenys coming to the court on her large fuck you dragon the in the last stages of her pregnancy. Imagine her being all “oh, honey, did you sleep well? what about the morning sickness?”. And at first it’s just care for her unborn grandchild, but for Rhaenyra, it’s a brief moment of having her mother back. And she starts to turn to Rhaenys for political advice, realizing she is much smarter than her father... For just a couple of months, the two are absolute besties! Rhaenys suddenly has a second daughter! Rhaenyra finally confronts her fears of motherhood and with Rhaenys’ guidance learns to love the child she is about to give birth to! It’s so beautiful... Untill her kid is born. Untill Rhaenys starts to hear the rumors. Untill she realizes the child is an absolute fucking miracle considering it was conceived so quickly after the wedding, with a father who doesn’t even like women (and was around the time of conception still mourning his lover). She doesn’t want to reject Rhaenyra to her face, but after they attend Laena’s wedding together (and boy is that a Moment for Rhaenyra, to watch her childhood friend marry her first love she’s probably not entirely over), Rhaenys returns to Driftmark and politely rejects her requests to visit her at King’s Landing, and always has an excuse why they can’t visit her and Corlys at Driftmark just yet. And if Rhaenyra doesn’t know why at first, she catches up pretty quickly. It’s the last straw that finally breaks her and makes her withdraw into herself, mining drops of happiness wherever she can - in the friendship with her husband, in her secret relationship with Harwin, and in her father. And more importantly, her son. Because she has no mum. She now IS the mum. And she can’t let her child down.

[nyxlaufeyson]

(Opening Pandora's Box) Chapter 3 - A Really Unimpressive Plan

Main Masterlist - Pandora's Box Masterlist

A/N: This chapter isn't my favorite, but it is necessary to continue the story. I still hope you enjoy it! I am excited for the chapters to come.

"So, let me get this straight, you accidentally killed a guy, assaulted a Norse King which resulted in your exile, escaped Helheim, and now they want us to do their work and hand you over to them?" Tony recapped, shaking his head.

Pandora nodded, confirming everything she had told them. She sat on a couch, other members of the team scattered around her, yet they weren't to be confused as off-guard. Pandora could tell they were still tense around her, which she deemed reasonable.

Thor paced the room, hammer still in his hand. He was wrestling with his thoughts, trying to come up with a plausible explanation and solution. After a while of thinking, he sat down on a couch opposite to Pandora, next to his brother.

Loki smirked, admittedly enjoying his brother's torment. "Oh come on brother, is it really so hard to believe that Odin lied to you, yet again? Need I remind you of the countless other times-" Thor glared at him. "Enough, Loki."

"Would anyone like a drink?" Tony said, rubbing his forehead as a few people answered, including Pandora. "I'll take one." She said, and Tony raised his eyebrow.

"Are you old enough to drink?" He joked, and Pandora rolled her eyes. She may appear young to the mortal eye, but she certainly wasn't a child. "The ID in my wallet says I am." She replied, shrugging. "I can work with that." Tony said, walking into the other room.

"If you argue self defense, why be so on-guard? Loki hadn't even engaged yet you were still suspicious. Why?" Natasha asked, trying to unwrap as much of the story as she could.

Pandora tossed an apple into the air, catching it. "Wouldn't you if you had several very powerful beings after you?" She reasoned, biting into the apple.

Natasha considered this for a moment before giving Pandora a small smile. "Fair." After all, the assassin had been in some similar situations.

Steve scrunched his eyebrows, eyeing the apple Pandora held. "Where did you get that apple?" He asked, scratching his head.

Pandora shrugged and took another bite as Tony walked back into the room, holding a few drinks. "Hey, who took the last apple? Peter isn't going to be happy." Tony said, handing drinks around the room.

As Steve turned back to Pandora, she smiled at him when he realized the apple was no longer there.

Pandora took a sip of the drink, the taste sharp on her tongue. It seemed to be mostly pure alcohol, but she drank it nonetheless. Of course, it had little chance of getting her drunk, as her Vanir metabolism was higher than the standard on Midgard.

"Did you have anything to do with the whole Pandora's box thing?" Clint asked, recalling a myth he remembered reading about at some point to his kids.

Pandora considered the question for a moment before answering. "Well, Midgaurdian myths often hold some truth to them. I was more of an outcast in Vanaheim, even before all the magic shit went down. And, well, some people weren't very fond of me. I was basically the scapegoat for some people, even if it was entirely their fault."

Pandora fidgeted with her hands as she talked, revealing a bit more of her story. It frightened her, sharing, afraid that it would be held against her for later usage. However, she held back her fear and let herself open up the tiniest bit in hopes to evade trouble.

With no response, Pandora continued. "So I hope you can understand why I'm not in love with the idea of going back to Vanaheim or Asgard, as they're the ones that sent me away in the first place."

After another moment of silence, someone spoke up. "I believe you." Pandora turned her head to the person who had spoken the words, Natasha, who smiled as she met Pandora's gaze.

"What!?" Clint said, surprised. "Look, I'm not saying I 100% trust her, but I believe what she's told us so far. I think she's being genuine." Natasha defended, and Pandora smiled at her.

"Thank you." Pandora said softly, lost in the fact that someone just defended her. She hadn't had many, if any, friends. Even if Natasha wasn't exactly a friend, it still made her happy to know that not everyone was against her.

Natasha nodded and Thor still sat contemplating his thoughts. "So, what the hell are we going to do?" Tony asked, taking another sip of his drink.

"We'll have to go to Asgard." Thor said, and as protests arose, he raised his hand to continue speaking. "I'm not saying we will necessarily hand her over to Odin, but we can't exactly keep her here. Heimdall would be able to see her."

Pandora nodded, silently agreeing with him. She wasn't even sure how Heimdall didn't see her in the first place.

"But how would you even go about that? From what we've heard, they seemed to have acted rashly with Pandora in the past, who says they won't immediately kill her?" Natasha questioned, taking another sip of her drink.

"If Odin lied to Thor in the first place, I doubt that he'd throw out the whole 'trial' idea. I don't know what Odin's plans are, but he wouldn't risk anything getting out to the public eye." Pandora said, thinking of the do's and don'ts of royal politics.

"So what are you going to do, just go to Asgard and take it from there?" Steve asked, unimpressed with the lack of a plan.

Thor shrugged. "There's not much we can do without assessing the situation first. I say that me and Loki bring her back to Asgard and act like we don't know anything. Odin has to consult with a council before making any big decisions, and I can sit in and push for more information."

Steve shook his head, sighing. "What if something goes wrong? You can't just leave her there, or it could end up in a repeat of... whatever happened the first time."

Pandora offered a small smile to Steve. "I appreciate the concern, but Thor's right. If I wasn't to be taken to Asgard, eventually others would be sent after me. I can't run forever, I need to address the situation at some point, even if the idea doesn't thrill me."

"Besides, if all else fails, I'm sure mother can help." Thor considered, and Pandora smiled at the mention of Frigga. "I've heard stories of the Allmother, but I haven't had the pleasure of meeting her yet."

Frigga hadn't been involved with Pandora's exile, but Pandora had heard of what the Allmother had done for all of the realms. Many said that she was a kind and generous soul, and that she helped those who were in need.

"Oh, Mother's lovely, she's very likable. Isn't that right Loki?" Thor asked, nudging his brother who muttered something in the affirmative.

"Alright, then that's settled. When do we leave?" Pandora asked, bringing her hands to her sides as she took a final sip from her now-empty glass.

"We shall call for the Bifrost tomorrow morning. I'm sure Stark has an extra room somewhere in this establishment." Thor said, and Tony nodded. "Me and Loki shall be the only ones accompanying Lady Pandora, as I'm not sure how this will play out. I do not know when we will be back, but I expect it won't be a swift journey." Thor said, and Pandora nodded.

"Sounds good." Pandora said, thankful that she wasn't just going to be thrown to the sharks. Whether or not the sharks would still get to her, however, was still to be determined.

Tony clapped his hands together, happy to finally get things sorted out. "Alright then. FRIDAY, set up a room for Miss Magic." He said to the ceiling. "A room across from Miss Romanoff is being prepared as we speak, sir."

Pandora's eyes widened as the computerized voice spoke, eyeing the ceiling suspiciously. "Pandora, meet FRIDAY, an artificial intelligence system more advanced than practically everything else on the market." Tony boasted, sensing Pandora's confusion. "And FRIDAY will be keeping an eye on you, so don't try anything stupid."

Pandora nodded, not fully understanding what FRIDAY was. "Okay, come on, I can show you to your room. Big day tomorrow." Natasha said, getting up. They bid their goodnights and Pandora followed Natasha through the hallways, eventually leading up to a door.

Natasha pointed at one of the doors and turned to Pandora. "That's yours. Hold on a second." She said, turning to another door and walking in before coming back with a pile of clothes.

"Here's some clothes, hopefully they fit, you look about my size." She said, handing Pandora the clothes. "Thank you." Pandora said, gratefully accepting them.

"No problem. Now get some rest, I'll see you before you leave tomorrow." Pandora nodded and wished Natasha a good night before settling into her new room and collapsing onto the bed. 

A/N: Thoughts? Love to here them! Comments and votes are always appreciated. 

[dash-n-step]

A long post but something I just really find interesting from a gameplay perspective about that snowgrave route is that it's literally impossible to bumble your way into completion. Which is kind of obvious considering how nobody knew about it for almost a whole day, and the very specific areas and items you need to collect but just... consider that, right?

Like sure maybe you find Noelle's ice skill to be useful, and you might backtrack a bit so you can see what she says about stuff, you might even think you're genuinely helping since the end of the battles do say "Noelle has become stronger".

But then comes the multiple layers of dialogue choices:

The ferris wheel is almost harmless, maybe you just like the idea of Kris and Noelle hanging out again. Childhood friends and all that, even if the second insistence sounds rather forceful, it's not completely out of nowhere.

There's the dating shoes dialogue, which is like, alright maybe you REALLY like the idea of Kris and Noelle hanging together, everybody's got their preferences and this choice is in a normal playthrough as well.

Then you immediately get to the ring that "strangely" costs precisely one dollar more than your total money

Though hey, benefit of the doubt, the item does make Noelle stronger and maybe by saying "Get It" enough times the guy will lower the price or a wacky dollar will show up out of nowhere.

Until Noelle freezes the guy to steal it.

At this point you have to realize something is wrong, but hey, EVEN MORE benefit of the doubt, maybe you think things are going alright.

Until you head straight to the lightning puzzle.

There's very little leeway to justify what comes next: Noelle holds the button for Kris and then quietly considers stepping off and letting them fry. Even if you somehow bumbled your way to this point you either call out how weird she's getting or condone it as an innocent impulsive thought.

And if you do let that slide, the music from this point immediately shifts and now the enemies are actively running away, and you have to search them out in a large map, car puzzles noticeably frozen over as well.

But hey EVEN MORE BENEFIT OF THE DOUBT, maybe you just really like the battle system and want to get stronger.

So I think the first true "oh this player has to know what they're doing" point is when you get to the second mouse puzzle.

All this time, with a bit of imagination, an isolated player could theoretically believe they've been building Noelle's confidence or even her relationship with Kris considering their past. However in that case, someone accidentally getting to this point would choose "Let's solve this puzzle together", and immediately you're back on track for the normal path, music's back everything's wacky and fun.

It's only by choosing the other option, multiple times, Proceed - Proceed - Proceed - Proceed, as Noelle gets backed into an electric wall, is the player stripped of that plausible deniability. You have to know that you're going down a bizarre route, and that there's very little comfort along the way.

And even then the game gives you a few breaks:

You have to go back a long way to get the ring from Spamton

You have to equip it despite the strange debuffs of actually hurting Noelle while she has it

You have to get into the fight with Berdly (again while not choosing the option that you've simply been protecting her from him, or even people like him)

You have to pressure her to use a spell she clearly doesn't feel comfortable even acknowledging on her own classmate with the one word effect: Fatal

At which point you're truly locked in with the choices you've made.

And I just think from a game design perspective where often you have to consider what the most unfamiliar player might do, it lets you deliver certain punches well.

To an extent you can't blame someone for misinterpreting certain gameplay options, it's almost like not knowing whether a game has fall damage and then a game calls you out for a poorly calculated leap of faith. But when you've designed it so there's only one way, a hard way, to do something, you can properly lay on how much of what is happening is entirely on the player.

What also fascinates me is that this is only Chapter 2, we have no idea how this plays out for the rest of the game, how if in some messed up way choices like these actually lead to better circumstances later on or if there are dire consequences to making these choices, despite the advertised "one ending".