#this game is also about healing trauma and forgetting bad memories!

[crtgirl]

I released a new tabletop game!

Let the Fire Soothe is a two player narrative card game about an adventurer making a deal with a fire demon.

it has beautiful artwork by Drew Shields and is played using Spindlewheel, an interpretive tarot-like storytelling deck.

the game is $10 and you can check it out on my Itch.io page

[awlwren-writes]

Thank you for indulging me!

Heartbreak for Amani, Fear for Maria, Guilt for Helen, Hide for Eliana, and Midnight for Alexander

<3

Sorry this has been so delayed; I kept forgetting I had them here! -.- I'm adding backstory so people who don't memorize all my OCs (how did I get so many?) won't be hopelessly lost.

Amani is my OC who is married to Pelna. She was a glaive, retired from active duty to be home more so she could be a mom (possibly also got some sort of TBI that had her out of the game for a while, which was a happy coincidence).

heartbreak: Have they ever had a relationship that ended badly? Experienced some other kind of heartbreak? What happened?

Because this is the angst asks, you get the full angst. Some of my backstories have Amani, Pelna, and Nyx in a relationship when the boys just joined, and all three of them were glaives. This continued until Nyx's spiralling guilt about Selena, etc (exacerbated by the first kiddo being born, and then the twins being on the way) was causing him to take truly stupid risks with himself and push everyone away. The three of them loved each other, but Nyx really wasn't getting better and Amani didn't want to deal with the heartache when Nyx got himself killed in the near future and gave him an ultimatum - shape up or get out now, so the kids don't remember you enough to miss you.

Nyx chose sacrifice, to no one's real surprise, and left, crashed with Libertus for a while, maybe did something stupid enough he realized he really did need help and to straighten things out. He didn't completely heal the trauma, of course, (though he maybe added some new trauma, as a treat), but he managed to recognize it and gain some tools for dealing with it, at least. Eventually, he became friends with them again, and is still pretty close to the family, but never romantically again. And then he fell in love with Cor, of course. He still thinks of all three kids as somewhere in the nibling to stepkid range.

Amani maybe was a little heavy handed with this; Pelna had agreed to an intervention, but not the ultimatum. It allowed Pelna to not be the bad guy, though, and still be able to support Nyx in the aftermath, so he wasn't completely cut off. In hindsight, Amani realizes there were definitely better ways to have handled it, but stubbornly insists it was necessary and the wake-up call Nyx needed, and refuses to apologize for saving Nyx's life. Things are still a little frosty between them, but they build a new friendship, even if they never fully trust each other, they can still enjoy each other's company sincerely.

Even if Amani sees Nyx's face in their daughter's face, and all three kids' gestures, and sometimes imagines "what if".

Maria

Maria is a member of the Kingsglaive who joined in the same class as Nyx, Libertus, Luche, Pelna, and my OC Helen (her girlfriend). She ends up becoming a mage, but also does some training as a scout, and uses a spear.

fear: What is your OC's greatest fear? What do they do when confronted with it? Are they open with their fear, or do they hide it away?

Maria is most afraid of being powerless. Of watching people and places she loves slip away and not being able to do a thing about it. She tends to get angry when she has to face it -- the whole reason she became a glaive was to not have to sit by again, after all, and she hates that it still didn't fix the problem completely.

She doesn't talk about it to everyone, but is fairly obvious to those who know her and whom she loves. "Don't make me watch you die" is a phrase she pretends is a light tease, and sometimes lets be as grave as it deserves, but they all know what's behind it, anyway. She keeps her brother's memory alive, and that includes talking about his death, and so by the time they know each other enough for her to know how much them getting hurt guts her, they know why it hits her harder than most.

It was particularly cruel of Drautos, then, to send Helen to die on a mission Maria wasn't allowed to go on, but made her own death on the battlefield two months later less of a surprise to everyone she loved. Maria did go down defending the rest of her baby mages, who did survive that battle, so at least she had that.

Helen

Helen is a member of the same class as Maria and the boys, ends up specializing as a scout. She dies on a solo mission following Niff movements on Ravatogh, and her daggers are the ones you find there.

guilt: What is your OC guilty about? How do they handle their guilt? Do they try to avoid guilt, or do they accept it?

Helen tends to feel a lot of guilt, in general, being a rather responsible person, but the most persistent feeling of guilt she has is one that she knows doesn't really make sense -- she's guilty for being Insomnian. She didn't have the childhood stress of Niffs breathing down her neck (for the most part), she didn't have a tragic backstory to make her join the Glaive, her family is safe within the city, and she doesn't deal with the discrimination the majority of her friends feel.

She knows it's dumb, and it's not like she can change any of that, and logically she doesn't want to. But it does make her feel like an outsider sometimes. Generally she deals with her guilt by working harder to prevent a repeat of the action, or talking to people directly, but that feels wrong for this kind of guilt. So mostly she ignores it, suppresses it, and does her best to be the token Insomnian friend to help her friends get to places or cut through BS. Occasionally she ends up overstepping and white knighting for them, and then kicking herself for it later.

Eliana

Eliana was a member of the Royal Guard before it became the Kingsglaive, and has known Drautos since he joined (she's 5-10 years older than him). She delights in being a foul-mouthed hardass, and is one of the primary trainers of the rookie Glaives.

hide: What does your OC hide? Why do they hide it?

Eliana hides her trauma and how much it interferes in her life from everyone, but especially the baby glaives. Be cool, be funny, be tough, be an example of being the biggest, baddest bitch on the battlefield, and maybe she can whip them into shape well enough to survive longer. They just need to respect and fear her, after all, and then she can teach them efficiently.

Drautos knows, because it's the reason she's insisted on staying a trainer rather than being in the field. She still tries to hide it from him as much as she can because she doesn't trust him not to use it somehow. In her mind, he's spent too long in the political side of things without truly having to answer to anyone, and if she wants to be someone who can criticize him when he goes too far or not far enough, she has to be strong enough he can't fight back easily.

And she hides it from herself as much as she can. It doesn't fit her image of who she is.

Alexander

Alexander (it's his last name) is Cor's secretary. He's very good at his job, and very loyal to Cor. Many think he has a crush on Cor because he falls into gay stereotypes, but he just thinks Cor needs a minder.

midnight: What keeps your OC up at night? Do they have nightmares? Fears? Anxieties? What do they do in the small hours of the morning when they should be sleeping?

Alexander sees too much of Cor's workload to sleep well at night. He knows how badly things are going, and he does his best to do his part, but he knows everything that's happening is far far above his ability to change. He wonders sometimes if there is more that he could be doing, but he also knows his skills and limits and knows realistically this is the best he can do.

It's harder to accept that when he knows the doomsday clock is seconds from midnight, though, and all they are doing is delaying the end a little longer.

So when he gets too wound up about that, he goes and looks up ways to better take care of the plants that cover his apartment, or builds jigsaw puzzles. Things that he can do with his hands and see the fruit of. Sometimes even that's not enough, so he starts ordering food or distractions for the office and Cor, and blessing the ability to schedule emails for the morning.

Are you happy now? :P

[serpentide]

i know that i've already said that my main verse here will be the more general one for the sake of crossovers, but i'm thinking about serpent's canon route and ending in the original game and honestly ? while i do understand the kind of message that it wants to convey ( to serpent, especially ) i think that it does not serve a healthy purpose in the slightest. telling serpent that she can and will be happy one day in spite of everything that she has gone through is indeed valid, but telling her that in order to be happy then she must learn to love others + learn how to be loved by others is not what she needs, in my opinion. even in the canon dialogue during her ending, we see the chief asking others to tell serpent that they like / care about her just so she will stop causing problems to others.

THIS IS ABSOLUTELY NOT WHAT SERPENT NEEDS. as someone who is prone to obsessing over things ( it was her obsession with the abstract concept of happiness that has caused all of this mess in the first place, after all ) , telling her that she can finally be happy if others love her is just going to further twist and distort the way she looks at things + the way she perceives herself + the way she approaches others when it comes to interpersonal relationships. of course, serpent can experience true happiness through another's person love BUT NOT LIKE THIS, not with others just telling her what she wants to hear so she won't cause problems to them.

i believe that in order to be truly happy, serpent must heal first. her obsession with ambrosia and with "forgetting all the bad memories" directly stems from the fact that her life has been nothing more than a long string of horrors, one interwoven with the other, and she wishes she could forget about those too even if she never outwardly says so. this is why she offers the drug to others, not because she wants to just wound them or earn money through it, but because she empathizes in a twisted way with other people's agonies and traumas [ ... ] because even if the ambrosia had no effect on her, then maybe it will have effect on someone else.

serpent does not need second - hand affection to be happy. serpent needs to heal, because only once she's capable of looking at the world through her own eyes and no longer through the grotesque lenses of her traumas, she will finally be able to find not only her little place in the world but also someone to share that place ( and thus her newfound happiness ) with.

[bonesandthebees]

So some more Glass thoughts. Aka, things I forgot about but remembered because of everybody else’s asks (for context I only read chapter 15 once and I have not read it since, so most is based on memory and a skim read this time around).

One of the things Jack also seems to be upset about is Tommy not telling anyone shot about Wilbur. He brought it up first in chapter 13 (I think) and now again during the fight. Clearly it upsets him because Wilbur is his friend too, but Tommy is hoarding the info. And it’s not as easy as saying that he’s in the right or wrong for this.

On one side, knowing certain things would make Wilbur easier to deal with for other people. If it affects their interactions, you could argue that they have a right to know. Niki and Jack don’t have bad intentions, much like Phil and Techno. Non of them can help Wilbur if they don’t know what the problem is and what the triggers are. And Tommy can’t and shouldn’t do all of this on his own. And since some things are very hard for Wilbur to talk about and Tommy is very observant, it might be better if Tommy gives out some info about Wilbur behind his back so he doesn’t have to say it himself.

On the other side, Tommy shouldn’t slip everything he knows because Wilbur has a right to privacy. So non of the Deathlinhs have a right to know anything about him that he doesn’t want them to know. They don’t get to know his name, or age, or past trauma. They don’t need to most of the time. It also builds trust between Wilbur and Tommy. He can tell Tommy all these things about himself because Tommy is the only person who will know. There’s no game of telephone spilling all his secrets. At least, not when it!s just him and Tommy. This allows Wilbur to trust and tell other people at his own pace, which is what Tommy wanted to achieve.

Over all it’s a pretty complicated situation and there’s no right side to argue. There’s arguments for both and it’s not as clear where the line should be. Some things should be shared, other things kept a secret. Sometimes Wilbur needs to be forced out of his comfort zone, other times pushing him will break him. The progress ain’t linear and ever interaction calls for a different method depending on a bunch of different factors. There’s generally no right way to go about it either.

But there’s still progress. Wilbur doesn’t try to run. Wilbur tells Niki his name. Wilbur stops pretending that he wants to leave. Wilbur wants to see a mirror and look at his reflection. That’s a big one, especially because he know he hated looking into mirrors at the start of the fic. Wilbur let's Tommy see his full face. Wilbur tells Tommy he’s 22. Wilbur is going to heal from this, but it’z going to take a while and a lot more progress, both negative and positive.

Also, since it’s speak your language day and I can’t exactly do an entire analysis like this, have a message for all you lovely people: Ik hou van jullie allemaal!

-🌲

no you're exactly right. the situation is very complicated. tommy is right not to disrespect wilbur's privacy, but at the same time it's a lot harder for the others to interact with him when they don't know what they're dealing with. of course, at least a partial solution is that tommy just straight up could ask wilbur "hey, can I tell the others [insert thing wilbur told him here]" but he doesn't. and while you could argue that that's simply because tommy doesn't think wilbur will say yes or he doesn't want him to feel pressured, let's not forget how tommy found out wilbur's name behind his back and started using it despite his protests. tommy isn't afraid to push wilbur out of his comfort zone. the only reason he hasn't asked is because again, tommy is possessive. he likes being the one who knows wilbur best. he likes being the person closest to him. it's childish and he convinces himself it's for other reasons, but that's at the root of it.

so the only way for wilbur to make progress outside of tommy is to do it on his own. which he does sometimes! he's finally wanting to see his reflection which is definitely huge. it's a long road, but progress is being made

also im sorry i'm answering this so late so it's definitely not speak your language day anymore but i'm proud to say that even though i don't know dutch i was able to recognize that as dutch at first glance!! (shoutout to my one belgian friend lmao)

[sunny6677]

Flames.

Summary: Skid is saved from a situation he never thought he'd be in. But now he has to heal from everything he went through. And he doesn't know how.

Chapter 7: An Outing.

TWS: SKID IS TRAUMATIZED, BUG MENTIONS, TRAUMA IMPLICATIONS, IMPLIED VAGUE KIND OF FLASHBACKS OR AT LEAST BAD MEMORIES????, KIDNAPPING IMPLICATIONS.

(SERIOUSLY. SKID GOES THROUGH A LOT IN THIS SHIT. BE WARNED. YES, THIS IS A STORY ABOUT HIM SLOWLY HEALING FROM HIS TRAUMA, OR AT LEAST TRYING TO. BUT THAT DOESNT MEAN ITS NOT SOMEWHAT DARK. BE WARNED. DONT WORRY THOUGH, IT DOESNT ROMANTICIZE ANY OF THE DARK THINGS IN IT THOUGH. IT IS POTRAYED AS A BAD THING. THIS IS JUST ABOUT SKID HEALING FROM A BAD EXPERIENCE.)

(I ALSO PARTIALLY WROTE THIS STORY TO KINDA COPE WITH MY TRAUMA, SINCE WRITING ABOUT PEOPLE SLOWLY HEALING FROM THEIR TRAUMA KINDA MAKES ME FEEL BETTER ABOUT MY OWN EXPERIENCES.)

————

Skid and Pump stared at the door as it opened, their conversation and game interrupted by such a portrayal of sudden light. The door creaked, and in its light of blinding luminance was revealed a figure. Of course, it was just someone they knew. It was Skid's mother. Skid couldn't help but feel a little anxious though whenever doors opened, as he had grown accustomed to the sounds of opening doors being a sign of danger.

Skids mother walked in, a smile on her face. Though by the twitch of the line on her lips that was curled up into a smile, Skid could tell that she was forcing it somewhat. Why she was, he didn't know. Yet even so, he remained quiet. His mother then said in a chipper manner, "Hey, kids! You wanna get ice-cream now? I think we can probably go now since I've changed and everything.". She appeared to be in a slightly different outfit, merely wearing a white dress and black boots.

"Uh.. su—sure, Ms. Lila!" Pump tried saying, with a nervous grin on his face. Pump then turned back to Skid, his gaze fixed upon him. "Come on, let's go get ice-cream together!" He held out his hand, and took Skid's hand in his. It was his own silent way of saying, "Hey, let's just forget about what happened, okay?".

"Uh.. o—okay. I think I might have to change though." Skid replied, nervously taking his hand out of Pump's grip. Pump looked at him for a moment while arching a brow, but he then slowly nodded, "..well, okay. If you say so.."

As Pump walked out of the room, Skid's mother raised a brow at the odd tension in the room. Though of course, she said nothing. She then pulled out a few clothes from the drawer in Skid's room, and handed them to him. With a smile, she said, "Just change into them and we'll be out here waiting for you, okay?".

Skid nodded, softly smiling. His mother gave one last smile, before walking out of the room.

Skid looked at the clothing he received as his mother closed the door. It wasn't anything too special. Just a dark purple t-shirt, some black pants and shoes that were his size. He had to admit, it was at least nice being able to wear clothing like this after so long of being forced to wear the same thing thing say.

An unknown flickered at the back of Skids head. It felt wrong, but he didn't know what felt wrong. Everything was fine now. He wasn't in the hands of someone he didn't even know anymore. Yet it persisted in his mind.

Even so, he shook his head, and changed into his clothes.

————

Sunlight blazed it's comforting glow against the town, and a warm but almost unbearable air filled the atmosphere. The light blue sky practically glittered with clouds of white stuffing that resembled cotton. Birds chirped, bugs buzzed. As of now, the three had already left the house. Skid had his hand held in his mother's hand, while Pump walked near him and stumbled around while grinning.

"And then we can go get candy cans together!" Pump cheered. He had been.. kind of doing this for the past few minutes now. He kept exclaiming the endless possibilities that could come now that Skid was back. Skid didn't exactly know what to say in response to all of his suggestions, but he listened with a smile the best he could. "Yeah.. and then I can see Kevin again!" Skid suggested softly in a tone meeker than Pump's.

Pump grinned in response to this. His hands balled up and rocketed to the air. And from his mouth, he exclaimed, "Yay!". Despite it having been a year since he last saw Pump, he was still ever the excited one. It was at least nice to see nothing much had changed. His mother didn't exactly question who Kevin was since she had already known about him due to the various times Skid had rambled about his day and mentioned him in it.

She seemed to be off in her own head, in her own thoughts. Occasionally, she'd look at the two, and she'd smile. But she was oddly quiet the entire time. Skid couldn't help but feel a little anxious. Silence did unnerve him a little, but only for the reason that it just scared him in general. He was always so used to being loud before being taken away that silence grew to scare him a little.

Of course, Skid tried not to comment on this. Instead, he noticed that most of the buildings hadn't changed much either. All of them looked about the same, except for a few new things here and there, and occasionally, there would be something he didn't remember being in a certain place. The suburban town hadn't changed just as he hoped. Though he wondered how many times someone from his town came to the beach and didn't realize that he was there..

He shook his head. He couldn't think about that. He didn't want to think about that.

"...are.. you okay?" Pump asked, seeming to have noticed him shaking his head. Skid looked at him, and blinked. "O—Oh.. yeah, I'm fine! I was just thinking about.. something."

"Oh. Okay!" Pump smiled, quickly accepting it. Pump then said, "Maybe we can make a new costume so we can continue to be spooky!"

That was right. A new costume. Skid only gave Pump another little smile, "Yeah.. maybe. I don't really know how to make a costume though."

"That's okay! I think I know enough from arts and crafts at school!" Pump cheered, his tone chipper as ever. Skid only looked at Pump once more, and gave a slow nod. "..well, if you say so.."

As Pump continued talking, his speech became somewhat muffled to Skid. He thought about going to see Kevin again. But.. the thought of the very building he also worked in occurred in his mind. For a moment, it was there, like a frozen image stuck in his mentality.

Skid held back the urge to shake his head, and only shut his eyes tightly as to not worry Pump. There was no use in thinking of that. Everything was fine.

Everything was fine.

Everything.. was fine.

He didn't need to worry anymore.

...right?

————

The three continued to walk along a different sidewalk for quite some time, passing a few weird things here and there. There was a broken fire hydrant nearby that people appeared to be trying to fix. There were two monarch butterflies that were following eachother, occasionally dipping down into nearby flowers. The warm air reminded Skid of the metal feeling of a hot car seat. Or at the very least, the feeling of hot metal. Hot metal was a very painful thing to have to endure after all.

Though as they walked, Skid's mother spoke. "Hey, son. I was thinking.. what if we went for some candy after we get some ice-cream? You and Pump we're talking about that, right?"

Skid looked up, and he blinked. "Oh—yeah! I think I want some candy anyway. I haven't had any in so long.."

"Yeah! We should get lots of spooky candy! Like chocolate and gumdrops and candy cans!" Pump grinned. Skid looked over at Pump, and only chuckled slightly. "..yeah."

He then went quiet. He could feel Pump's gaze on him. A bead of sweat went down his little face.

He then heard his mother speak. "..uh, are you sure you'll be okay—"

Then, a masculine but familiar voice suddenly echoed loudly from a nearby white van. "Kid?!"

///////////////////////

FINALLYYYYYY I WROTE IN IT JSJEMEJE PROCRASTIONATION IS A BITCH HOLY SHIT

[amberpriceenthusiast]

More post game TQ headcanons but it’s basically the same stuff I’ve said before but rephrased and/or added to (long post btw)

Once help arrives and after giving their statements, all the survivors including Travis would have to stay at the Harbringer Motel for a few more days in case the police have any follow up questions during their investigation. During this Motel stay, I feel like Laura makes a point to check on everyone and get their numbers so she can make a group chat later on. While Laura only knows Max, and now has a bond with Ryan, she does actually want to get to everyone, eventually. She takes the first few days just to finally be breath and feel okay, but she soon develops a mother like role to the group. She notices that Nick isn’t talkative about what happened, probably because of what he remembers about turning, so she gets Max to talk to Nick about his experiences. It helps him a lot actually. Kaitlyn and Laura bond over becoming the mom friends for their group, and eventually enlist themselves as the Radioheads wingwomen.

Ryan and Dylan take months to get together after Hacketts Quarry. They’re very good and talking often, “joke” flirting, and avoiding talking about anything serious, including the trauma they now have. The first few weeks after the Motel, Ryan and Dylan don’t talk outside of the group chat. Kaitlyn and Laura both know that they still have feelings, so they continue to try to get them together. Both Laura and Kaitlyn decide to back off after awhile. Ryan and Dylan start talking regularly two months after the motel, they don’t have a serious conversation until month 3, by month 6 so not officially together but they’re definitely flirting a lot, and by month 8 they are officially together. The group finds out around a year after the Quarry at the beach house, but Kaitlyn and Laura put it together a month after Ryan and Dylan officially start dating.

Part of the reason Ryan and Dylan take so long to get together and don’t talk after Hacketts Quarry, is because what went down there. Dylan lost a hand, it’s not exactly easy to just forget and move on from that. He doesn’t blame Ryan, he knows that he told him to it, and he doesn’t regret it. Dylan knows that he would have been healed from the infection by now but the thought that he could have turned and hurt someone? That’s terrifying. He’d choose losing a hand over the possibility of maybe killing a friend any day. All that being said though, seeing Ryan makes him think of the stub, and seeing that makes him think of that night. And what could have happened. Ryan still feels guilt for Dylan’s hand too, but besides that he’s still recovering from the lose of Kaylee, Chris, possibly Caleb. Dylan reaches out to Ryan first, saying that he still likes him but it’s just hard to cope with the hand thing. Ryan doesn’t pressure him, he completely understands, but he does say something like “so how about we make better memories to make up for the bad ones?” “Yeah, yeah I’d like that”. Which is why they take so long to get together, part of it awkwardness, but it’s also because they want to take things slow and give themselves time to heal from what happened.

Max ends up meeting and interacting with everyone at the motel before they set up the group chat, he gets along with everyone pretty well but especially Dylan, Abi, and Jacob (why Jacob? Try to prove to me that they wouldn’t be friends, you can’t.). He remains friends with everyone through the group chat, but talks to those 3 separately a lot. He ends up telling them that he’s thinking of proposing to Laura, but only those 3 because though he loves the rest, he knows that Emma and Kaitlyn would not be able to keep a secret. Ryan knows about this through Dylan, but is far from surprise from what he’s been hearing from Laura, actually word for word he’s heard her say “if he doesn’t propose I will”.

Nick and Abi do still have feelings for each other, but come to a mutual decision to not have a relationship. They both now that what Nick did and said wasn’t himself, but Nick feels too guilty and Abi finds it hard to ignore what happened, even if she does know that it wasn’t him. They don’t talk to each other for a bit, but they eventually become really good friends, Abi feels safe enough to tell Nick about her feelings for Emma.

Everyone has trouble talking about what happened, but Abi, Dylan, Jacob, and Ryan kind of completely shut down. Ryan always seemed distant to the others but after losing at least one close friend and a father figure, he doesn’t talk at all. Neither does Abi, she channels most of her feelings about everything into drawing. Her drawings get darker than normal, even if she’s trying to make a nice scene, they turn dark. Kaitlyn doesn’t completely shut down, but she doesn’t talk anyone about Hacketts Quarry outside of Dylan, Jacob sometimes, and eventually she talks to Laura too, that takes awhile though. Jacob and Dylan have Kaitlyn to talk to, they say something every once in awhile, but it’s not often at all.

The main reasons Jacob shuts down is because of what he did. They were stuck there because of him. He starts to feel like he doesn’t deserve their support, so he doesn’t ask for it. Kaitlyn knows something is wrong. And she knows it’s about how trapped them for another night. She sends him a long message about how what he did was shitty, but he has no reason to blame himself for what happened. He couldn’t have known. She advises him to tell the group too. Maybe they won’t all forgive him, but she knows that some will, if Ryan is able to befriend laura even after she kills his close friend, then Jacob should be okay. He does tell the group, and yes they are all upset, but not upset enough to kick him from the group and hate him, he’s still their friend and he went through trauma too. They’re able to forgive him eventually, not immediately, but they learn to forgive him.

Emma stops posting on social media, saying she needs some “me time”. Which is true, but her followers don’t know the reasons to needing said me time. She gets morbidly into Bizarre Yet Bonafide, Dylan, Her, and Ryan set up a separate group chat to talk about the podcast. Ryan still enjoys the podcast, but sometimes even thinking about it makes him sick, so he has the gc muted most of the time.

Emma and Dylan end up bonding over the podcast, but also over the fact that they both put up mask. They find it surprisingly easy to open up to each other once they start talking. Their masks come down a little. Emma ends up telling Dylan that she has feelings for Abi and Dylan’s able to talk to her about his situation with Ryan. Laura and Kaitlyn may be the self proclaimed wingwomen, and yeah they did give Dylan and Ryan the push they needed, but Emma’s a pretty good wingwoman too.

[originaldanganronpascenarios]

could you possibly do some healing headcannons for Korekiyo post-v3? i love that guy so much and i want him to be happy

Yeah the things that happened to him were so fucked up... Sorry the beginning is still kinda sad!

[post v3 simulation AU] Korekiyo healing

Cw: I have no idea how to tag it but this does handle some amount of sensitive content around mental health.

Note: I wrote it as "the v3 backstories were fabricated but his v3 personality and memories merged with his former self"

When everything turned out to be a lie, it didn't take out his fake memories and trauma.

Actually knowing none of what he went through was real even further destroyed his mind.

He didn't know what to believe, even though he knew what was made up and what wasn't... The actual memories mixed with fake ones that felt just as real felt horrible.

And of course after what had happened he was all alone. People avoided him like the plague.

Those who didn't- didn't let him forget what he had done. And for once he found himself not knowing what to say.

He only ever talked to "his sister" whenever he felt bad. Which was only making things worse.

The only killer that put on a show like him was Kirumi and even she wasn't treated like he was.

But, she was the first one to talk to him. She was filled in on what he had done and since v3 was recorded she actually got to see that, to put it simply she felt both pity and related to him.

She was by no means a therapist, but she was helping him feel much less alone.

She didn't know everything about his trauma, and even if it didn't really happen- the memories and feeling of it happening was just as damaging.

So together they helped each other acknowledge that what had happened wasn't real.

They weren't monsters. They were manipulated. Their victims weren't the only victims.

Seeing Kirumi's efforts, some of the killing game participants decided to give Korekiyo another shot. To name them they were: Rantaro, Kaede, Angie and Gonta.

The others needed much more time, but the 4 I mentioned (+Kirumi) ended up providing him with a support system.

His anxiety wasn't as strong and slowly he didn't depend on "his sister" to calm himself.

He finally could reflect, still with guilt but also with reason. It helped him feel better.

Finally, he could see himself being actually happy. He recognized that although he still needed to work on himself- it didn't mean that he deserved only the worst.

Everything takes time. And Korekiyo isn't the most patient type, but his will only strengthened as he moved forward with others that helped him.

~Mod Angie

[bedeion-legion]

gay people?? in MY pokemon?? its more likely than you think

This post is about nightmare headcanons I have for Gladion and Bede, as well as how they help each other with their nightmares (Note, I ship Bede and Gladion together, hence the theming of my blog). I'll first talk about Gladion, then Bede, then the two of them together. The rest is under the cut!

Gladion has nightmares pretty much every night. I feel like that's a pretty believable assumption.

Going off of my own version of him, the guy was forced to run away from home with no money, no home, and half a team of Pokemon, one of which is sylvally in its type: null variant.

He had to grow up under the "care" of Faba because his mother was so busy with work, causing Faba to abuse both him and Lillie (paralleling Lusamine in the games, basically).

And then he found out that Faba, his abuser, hypnotized Lillie and Lusamine into forgetting anything bad happened. And right after this horrifying revelation, he sees his mother taken away by an Ultra Beast at the fault of Faba opening an Ultra Wormhole.

because of this, he has a ton of nightmares ranging from memories of Faba being way to harsh when training Gladion's eevee/umbreon, sylvally getting hurt/dying/taken away, his mother getting possessed by the Ultra Beast and screaming "I hate you!" at the top of her lungs, Lillie getting hurt and feeling betrayed that Gladion left, and every terrible thing he must've witnessed in his (at least) year-long stay out on the streets of an unfamiliar region... Gladion clearly has WAY too much trauma and guilt for a teenager to handle at once.

Every night, without fail, he wakes up in a cold sweat. He's had so many nightmares that he doesn't usually jump up anymore. He just opens his eyes, realizes that it was just a dream, and tries his best to go to sleep despite his fear of another nightmare. It takes a long time for him to finally fall asleep because of that fear, causing him to develop insomnia

Occasionally, however, the nightmare is so terrifying that Gladion shoots up and goes into a panic attack. He doesn't do this as much anymore, but it still absolutely happens. He usually switches to being nonverbal during panic attacks, so others must remember to be calm and patient with him.

Bede's nightmares aren't too different. He also has frequent nightmares, though he has gotten less of them lately due to Opal actually caring for him like a parental figure should (unlike SOME rich flowers i know COUGH COUGH rose COUGH COUGH). He still gets them more frequently than any person should, let alone a teenager, but he's slowly healing.

Bede usually gets nightmares about abandonment or losing the people he loves. Rose usually has some role in these nightmares, whether he's the person abandoning him or some other force.

He'll also often get nightmares that Opal will abandon him and leave him to die in the Glimwood Tangle, along with his friends and other loved ones. Despite Rose being out of his life, Rose's damage to Bede's psyche is still very apparent, and it's something he has to consciously fight against every day.

He at least has Opal, as occasionally she'll sense him having a nightmare and go to comfort him. At first he finds it extremely embarrassing and is all pissy about her helping him, but she tut tut's and makes sure he's ok anyways. He slowly shifts from resenting it to actively being very thankful for it, as deep down, he's glad that she can be there.

Bede and Gladion both understand what its like to have nightmares a lot, so they make sure to comfort each other the best they can. All the walls that they've built up towards people fall down in order to make sure they're ok, as they know how terrifying and lonely it feels to not have someone there for you.

Once they grow a lot closer, they'll offer to hug the other if they need it. This is especially good for Gladion since he still gets extremely bad nightmares at times and needs someone to hold him for a bit in order to calm down.

They don't only start doing this once they fall for each other, they do this as friends without any romantic reasoning because they know how crucial support is when waking up from a nightmare. Of course, once they do fall for each other, they'll make sure to occasionally kiss the other on the cheek if they're ok with it and give plenty of snuggles. The important take-away is that they know how to help each other when the nightmares get bad.

[theycanthearmewhenisay]

The content below is from the website of the original post, linked above.

In this episode we discuss trauma and how it is stored in the body. What causes trauma and what does it do to your body? We explore whether the rational, thinking mind can deal with trauma and look at some of the ways you can deal with traumatic experiences in your life. What are the best strategies for feeling safe, feeling calm, and feeling in control of your own body? How do you release trauma from your body and feel safe? We discuss all of this and much more with our guest Dr. Bessel Van Der Kolk.

Dr. Bessel Van Der Kolk is a Boston-based psychiatrist and The New York Times best-selling author of The Body Keeps the Score. He was previously the President of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, Professor of Psychiatry at Boston University Medical School, and Medical Director of the Trauma Center. He has taught at universities around the world and his work has been featured in TIME, The New York Times, The Boston Globe, and more!

* What is Trauma? 

* How do we define and understand trauma in today’s society?

* It makes you want to forget, it makes you want to push it away, it makes you want to erase it. 

* Trauma is something that is so horrendous that you can’t cope with it, it’s too much to deal with 

* Trauma renders you helpless and makes you feel like there is no way out 

* Helplessness is an absolute precondition for a traumatic experience 

* Our society continuously ignores how trauma is formed and created - pushing it under the rug and hiding from it

* Trauma is not a story - trauma is not a memory about the past. Trauma changes the brain. Trauma sits within you and within your body. 

* People experiencing trauma keep behaving and reacting as if they were stuck in that experience 

* When we are traumatized - the brain often cannot process it and the body “stores it” - the body gets stuck in a state of hyper alertness, the mind gets stuck in a state of hyper-alertness 

* The perceptual situation in the brain becomes rewired to be on “high alert"

* Your body, your mind, your entire system gets frozen or stuck in “fight or flight” mode 

* When you’re traumatized, it’s very hard to learn or integrate new experiences - thats what makes treating trauma  so difficult 

* Trauma is not typically rationally processed, it goes into the irrational part of the brain and your body gets locked into a place of constantly reacting as if you’re in a sense of danger 

* Your body starts generating stress hormones as inappropriate times and you begin to feel out of control and helpless 

* One of the most tragic results of trauma is people try to shut the feeling down and end up shutting down their ability to feel - or they turn to drugs, alcohol, and pharmaceuticals 

* Studies show that yoga is more effective than any drug that has been studied for solving trauma 

* There is promising research around psychotropics (psylocbin and MDMA) for trauma relief

* Neurofeedback is another promising solution for trauma 

* "Playing computer games with your brain waves” to solve trauma 

* Trying to remove delta or theta waves in the frontal lobe

* Self regulation - learning to control your own physiology using ancient Chinese and Indian methods - research is starting to show these solutions help as mind body interventions to solve trauma in the body 

* Our mainstream western culture is “if you feel bad, take a drug” 

* Practically what does it looks like to use something like yoga to regulate your own physiology?

* Chanting is also a very good mind body intervention - singing in unison with others 

* One of the biggest struggles of trauma is that you feel isolated or lonely or by yourself 

* Exposure treatment misunderstands how to treat real trauma 

* It’s not the memory its that you brain/body - entire system - is locked in a state of being “high alert” - and that these mind body interventions are some of the best ways to help people feel “Safe” inside their own bodies 

* How do you feel Feeling safe, calm, and in control over y our own physiology?

*  What are the best strategies for feeling safe, feeling calm, and feeling in control of your own body?

* Trauma is a bodily experience of being intolerable physical sensations - people can’t stand the way their bodies feel 

* Breathing, moving, chanting, yoga, qigong, massage, dancing - these are all ways that you can make your body feel safe. 

* Once your body feels safe, you can allow yourself to slowly go to experiences from the past that caused the body to be put into a traumatic state 

* Your body has to feel safe and be present to heal trauma 

* Sitting still and meditating is often a challenge when you’re experiencing trauma 

* None of this has to do with understanding or explaining why you’re experiencing trauma - understanding WHY your’e experiencing trauma doesn’t make you resolve it

* The rational brain has nothing to do with solving trauma in the body - it has to do with your “animal brain” 

* This is NOT a rational problem - you can’t solve it rationally 

* What are some of the best solutions?

* EMDR is another effective technique or strategy for laying small traumas to rest 

* What is somatic experiencing and how does it work? 

* Sensory motor psychotherapy 

* Traumatic sensitive yoga 

* Sidran Foundation

* Trauma Research Foundation

* This work is 30 years old - people are just discovering the best treatments for trauma and its a cutting edge field - lots of the solutions don’t have a lot of evidence yet because its so new - its all a work in progress - it’s not definitive yet 

* How to help release trauma from your body, how to feel safe in your body 

* What is EMDR? A strange technique that may be revolutionary for solving trauma according to new research and brain scans. 

* Does cardio help or hurt when trying to connect with the body? Not necessarily - it’s all about trying to make your mind and body connect more deeply. 

* Homework: Take care of your body. Develop a loving relationship to taking care of your body. 

[sirchubbybunny]

It's weird sometimes how you'll hear something and it just hits you super hard, awakening old memories or bringing the ones that are like background noise to the front of your mind. I came across the music video for Reasons I Drink and it took me right back to where I was between 2013-2017, and to some degree, even now.

In 2013, I was on the behavioral unit of my hospital twice for my ideation and the gap between those instances was two weeks at best. I thought I was fine. I thought I was getting better. I saw my dad and step mom during my second stay for the first time in years. I was feeling out a relationship and started feeling okay. I was also super medicated, which was the start to worse things to come.

By June, I was involuntarily committed to an actual mental health facility due to a shady doctor twisting my words and used a two year old ideation "call of the void" thought I had with my therapist against me. I had all of my meds changed, including being taken off klonopin cold turkey - which isn't safe. I'd have to get up early and get pulled aside every other day to get lab work due to being put on lithium to ensure my levels weren't getting toxic. I waited by the payphone every day hoping my dad would call to say he was on his way to see me. It's been nine years and my phone still doesn't ring.

Being there fucking sucked, even though I got along with the other patients who were 35 or so and up, with me being one of maybe five others in our 20s. We mutually related to how group and their idea of exercises was a total joke. Anagram art projects aren't healing affirmations. Magic ball games aren't getting to the core of my trauma or helping me work on my communication skills. That's all on top of the gaslighting with being told I got myself there, not by the other patients, but my then doctor. It made getting discharged all the more bittersweet. I had very little, rock solid support and I was going back into the world adjusting to new meds.

The weeks became months and I'd still think about klonopin and what it meant to me on top of how the hospital felt more like home than my own. I remember writing and journaling about both and looking back, it should have been telling I had issues if I talked about benzos like an ex you still have feelings for. The thoughts and feelings would gradually get spaced out, but they'd still creep in every so often like a whisper. It made wanting to talk about it hard, and even now, I feel like I'm crazy. It's been years. Why am I still thinking about you?

I remember an instance two or so years later where it was suggested that I could get some from someone who knew people, but I bit my tongue and declined. I don't know if that makes me a stronger person or not. I don't know where I'd be if I said yes and gave it a try to self medicate. I'm not sure if I want to know, but there's a part of me that looks down on my past self for not trying and taking a chance. The memory of it and what it did for me and to me still sticks to my clothes like nicotine. I'd like to forget completely, but it's hard.

It was hard to admit to myself five years ago that if I was left to my own devices with no personal obligations, I'd probably try to use with the right resources and that's on top of the downward spiral nights of drinking alone at 2am trying not to wake anyone up. It brought on one of the hardest parts of my life in the last few years; an explosive argument with one person and the feeling of shame and sadness with another for knowing how deep rock bottom goes. How did it get this bad? It's been years. I never used recreationally. Why do I miss you? Would I be able to quit you if I had you close to me again?

I'm in therapy now and we've briefly touched on it after having having some heavy intrusive thoughts about two months ago about how we [my thoughts @ me] should do something fun like pills and binge drinking. She knows about how I've been exploited by mental health professionals and on close to two dozen different medications since I was 17. I mentioned the benzos and how much it still sticks with me, not knowing if there's something physically or psychologically wrong with me or what. I think she suggested that perhaps it isn't a physiological type of need or anything like that, but an out to cope with all of the shit I've been through. I was so medicated that I was just gone some days. It's hard to get stuck in a flashback if you aren't even here.

With the anniversary of my last hospital stay coming up, it feels harder to face - moreso than years ago. I'm just starting the healing process of facing my trauma, how it's affected my relationships, and my new PTSD diagnosis. It's a daily struggle to keep the fears of abandonment away and the paranoia that people are either upset with me, lying to me, using me, talking behind my back, or conspiring to leave me once my purpose has been fully utilized - whatever that might be. It's the constant calm before the storm with waiting for the other shoe to drop when something like a flashback comes and hits me full force.

Now, the memories are just lingering around; giving me a nod across the room like an ex you're still on amicable terms with. I miss you, even though we weren't good for each other. It's been years. Why do you still come and go for me? I haven't felt you on my lips in close to a decade. Why can't I let you go? I keep trying to tell myself I'm fine and that I'm getting better. People tell me I am and that I genuinely look better, but am? It feels like I'm constantly one really bad day from another slip and I have to ask myself again if I had the means to and no obligations, would I try to use and see if it would help me cope or not?

Do I even have that willpower? I don't know and I'm not sure if that should scare me.

For all the reasons I could, I have to keep the one that matters in the front of my mind not to. If I can't do it for me, do it for my friends who are sober. Do it for them and make them proud. They've been clean and open about what their struggles and relationships to their vices are like, even having a good, albeit sometimes dark sense of humor about it. I don't want to let them down. I don't want them to worry. I don't want to be stuck in the past anymore. I can't. This shit fucking sucks and I'm not sure how much journaling will get me out of this one.

[tartagilicious]

sun and moon > xiao

happy (late-ish) valentine’s day yall! thank you, mihoyo, for once again reminding me that i’m easily attached to emotionally unavailable pretty boys. the "I hate everyone but you" trope is real here, I wanna be his friend and gain his trust like this is a mf otome game. to anyone still pulling for him, good luck~ don’t worry, you have a little bit more time and more free rewards are also on the way!! have some soft xiao for good luck >:D // w.c 1.9k // not a request 

also a big ty to @seerie​ for being my beta reader, bc I don’t know what I’m doing 🥴

summer sky by asking for a friend

You hiss softly as Xiao runs a damp cloth over the gash adorning the length of your cheekbone, face scrunching as his eyes narrow in concentration. It feels somehow wrong to have him taking care of you, much less sitting in front of you and dressing your wounds himself.

A majority of the bleeding had stopped not long ago, but there's still another fear that plagues you more -- your agreement with the yaksha adeptus, or rather contract, specifically trying to combat injuries on your behalf.

You aren’t sure if chickening out on calling him in the midst of the situation you were hurt is grounds for breaking the contract somehow, though either way, Xiao has always seemed to be quite serious regarding his promises. You remember his first and only instructions to you weeks ago being clear and concise,

“If you awake to a knife at your throat, if monsters dig their claws into you, if death comes knocking at your door, call out my name; adeptus Xiao. I will be here when you call.”

Surely a small wound like this wasn’t serious enough?

Xiao pulls the fabric away from your face and silently notes what must be the mess of blood covering it, lips turning up in a grimace. His standards of emergency are usually as one would expect, though lately for whatever reason, even the smallest of your wounds tend to put him in a bad mood.

From such a standoffish person, it’s a bit hard to get used to or understand -- but a part of you is only happy to know that there’s a chance he might care more than he lets on.

“...The abyss mages, they just came out of nowhere,” You try to explain but the silence is deafening. Eyes downcast to the stool beneath your legs, you mumble, “It’s not that big of a deal.”

Xiao doesn’t give any more of a reaction than an arched brow and a slight gesture with the gruesomely dyed cloth. You half expect him to be irritated; to give you a lecture on keeping an eye on your surroundings or to take better care of yourself, but he doesn’t. Instead, he looks away and shakes his head, spiking your nerves with a low sigh.

He looks back at you as he rests his elbow on his knee and thrusts out the cloth again, almost in exasperation. “Why didn’t you call my name?”

You feel the blood drain from your face as the words leave his mouth, and suddenly, you’re terrified to answer honestly. As already long-established, Xiao is someone who despite thousands of years of trauma, remains as hard as the rock of the nation he watches over. Compared to his lifespan, you’re relatively immature, so the last thing you want is to give an embarrassing reason to make him think that you suddenly don’t trust him enough to help.

“I-I don’t know,” You stutter and curse pitifully inside your head as you return his eye contact. “But I can’t just call you every time I’m in trouble, especially when I think I can deal with it myself, right?”

He scoffs as if you’ve just said the most ridiculous thing.

“This shouldn’t have to be a discussion. Your capabilities don’t lack anything, but your hesitation may very well be the death of you.”

“I never hesitated,” Though your voice is more steadfast, any illusion of confidence is shattered by the way you fidget with your hands. “I only misjudged. I make mistakes sometimes, but I think you forget that I’ll heal even after the worst of these injuries.”

Xiao sighs and crumples the bloodstained cloth in the palm of his hand, caging himself in his arms before speaking again -- just as he always does.

“Don’t be outrageous, I haven’t forgotten anything.” He averts his gaze and for a moment, you swear that you notice the tips of his ears flush. “It’s only ignorant to assume that I want to see you injured.”

Your brows knit as a similar knot slides down your throat. “I just, I just don’t get why you’re so worried about it.”

He stares at you, once again, as if you’ve just said something completely outlandish -- as if it wasn’t as hard to tell what he was thinking beneath such a guarded personality as you made it out to be.

“What?” You ask, slightly exasperated as you sit up straighter. You had still been sitting as if he were cleaning your wounds. “Is that not a valid question? It seems like you want nothing to do with anyone, but then turn around and worry when I’m hurt?”

“How could you do that and still not know why I hesitate to call for you?” Exasperated, you exhale and shut your eyes for a moment, deliberately avoid seeing his reaction to these words.

“...All I mean, is that sometimes it’s hard to tell what you’re thinking -- I feel like I’m bothering you, even if it might be in a situation where I really do need you.”

For a moment, Xiao is blatantly surprised by your reason for not upholding the contract you’d made. It almost gives you the impression that in your spiel, you’ve said something completely idiotic. A gradual flush of embarrassment flares up beneath your skin, but thankfully, you contain yourself before you have the chance to blurt out anything you’d regret.

His lips twist ever so slightly, as if he’s combing through things to respond with in his head. Obviously a bit flustered to hear your reasoning, it’s odd to see him in such a way, albeit while somehow remaining so uniquely him

“You… really are incomprehensible.”

Turning his head to shield his expression, he discards the cloth by tossing it in a nearby basket and stands. Your eyes follow him up until his own turn back towards you, golden irises glinting with a sort of hesitant concentration. You blink.

“If you trust me enough to enter a contract where i very well might decide between your life and death, do well and also trust me as someone who doesn’t break their promises.” Xiao’s brows fold delicately, as if mulling over the words coming out of hisin real time. “___, I don’t want to see you hurt like this.”

Your heartbeat briefly stutters, lips opening and closing as if to say something even when no thoughts are formed. Eyes trailing back down to your hands, you let out a small sigh. Before you can say anything, though, a gloved hand takes your chin and gently guides your eyes back upwards.

“So don’t hesitate.” His touch is soft as he maintains comfortable eye contact with you despite the straight-forward words. “I won’t allow you to die because of me.”

Blood pumps wildly through your ears as you suck in a breath of apprehension. As hard as you try to break away your gaze, something in his face keeps you anchored even when your chest begins to seize; a face that has been hardened over a millenia of suffering stares back at you with the improper care of a hopeful innocent, as if you are something that is worthwhile in the purest sense.

You swallow, Xiao’s hand’s position above your throat making it painfully obvious to him how caught off guard you are. Though naturally, if this action of yours makes him falter at all, he does so unnoticeably.

“I won’t,” It’s said slowly, as if you can’t comprehend what exactly you’re saying just yet. “You said I don’t lack anything, but in the moments I do--”

Your lips rest parted as anxiety cuts off the last part of your sentence, but Xiao’s patient expression pushes you forward.

“...I trust you to help me.”

Those words echo in his mind for a moment, ricocheting and hitting even the most unfamiliar parts of himself that he’d long buried. Feelings and memories that have since collected cobwebs begin to resurface and remind him of a more simple time he treasures dearly.

Trust.

Xiao’s thumb ghosts over your jaw, slowly wiping across the skin as he’s propelled deeply into thought -- fortunately too much so to notice the rising pigment on your cheeks.

He himself places his trust in people far and few. You might be different, well acquainted to human customs and the world around you, yet those words from you somehow feel just as special as if the roles are reversed. Your honesty and courage to accompany him has always dug at the cavity in his chest, but to hear you voice the metaphorical fruit of your labour so clearly is an entirely different sense.

All this time he’d blindly protected you, warned you about monsters lurking in the darkness, he’d fallen too far to even realise that you were beginning to change him. He no longer ate alone, nor did he adventure or sleep as he once did -- you had stuck onto him like a stubborn thorn despite, in your words, tending to feel as if you were bothering him. Regardless, he had somehow still earned your valuable companionship, and with it, commendable words that he could accept from you alone.

But there were times where he despised feeling such a way. He battled over the reasons he felt so inflicted when it was you who was injured, or you who chose to stick by him even after he tried so desperately to push you away. It was frustrating, dealing with a gentle care so foreign. Once he was used to your considerate nature, though, it became a different story.

Seeing you hurt began to shift from an expectable casualty to a blow to his own chest.

“...Xiao,” Your voice is hesitantly quiet, and suddenly, his eyes come back into focus. You’re staring at him with hesitant concern, setting his heart abuzz. “Are you okay?”

It’s when you reach up to wrap your hand around his that his mind finally completes his thought.

I love her.

As an Adeptus, he’s lived thousands of lives and outlived many more, and has taken the role of slaughterer before protector throughout many of them. In a way, the latter ways of his previous life have been ingrained him, regardless of those he manages to save in the more current centuries.

He imagines the figures of the spirits of those he’d wronged watching him in this moment, screaming a sound of contempt that he would never hear. They’re right to do so. They have no reason to pray for his happiness, much like he has little reason to pray for forgiveness.

Yet looking down at you, for the first time in a long time, none of that seems to matter.

With little thought, he grips your hand a bit tighter before letting go, his own hand travelling the length of your jaw to bring himself down to you. You remain completely still as he places a gentle kiss above your brow bone, breath hitching.

“I’m okay.” He reassures you quietly, resting there for a moment and sighing a small gust of air onto your skin. You mumble his name softly, hand reaching out to grab a hold of his shirt. The thin layer between your skin and his sends a sudden shiver down his spine, but regardless, he hums in response.

Your voice comes out in a whisper. “Are you sure?”

He nods, for the first time completely certain.

[ratcandy]

Subcon Forest Analysis

Hi everyone I'm here to spill my aggressive overflowing thoughts on Subcon Forest and what it represents because it's been driving me insane since I finished the Sleepy Subcon time rift. Okay let's go. Obvious spoilers for AHIT ahead so proceed with caution.

This is also very, very long.

Disclaimer/warning: I will be discussing abusive/unhealthy relationships in this analysis. I mean. Vanessa. Come on. Also, there is a section on the nooses, and that delves, of course, into mentions of suicide. It will be sectioned off and easily skipped, but if you'd rather be safe and skip the entire post, that's completely understandable! Please stay safe. <3

Alright. Main point to be had here:

Subcon Forest is a giant extended metaphor for Snatcher's mind and character.

You all get to now listen to me spout nonsense about metaphors and symbolism because I'm a sucker for analysis and I'm given an opportunity to go ham. So perish.

The Ice

Let's start with the most obvious and most glaring thing in Subcon. The ice. It's everywhere. Not just outside Vanessa's manor, either; no, it's throughout the village, too. Shows up in the well and in random locations sprinkled about. When it comes to literal plot, we know that ice is just what lingers after Vanessa's wintery curse on Subcon. But going deeper and analyzing the meaning behind it?

Well, let's look at this from the perspective I've suggested. Subcon Forest being an extended metaphor for Snatcher's mind and character. A symbol for Vanessa then litters his mind, enough where it's certainly noticeable at first but blends in more easily once more of Subcon is unlocked to Hat Kid. This is clearly meant to be his lingering trauma, whether or not he wants to acknowledge it. Which he doesn't, as he never mentions it directly in his forest (that I can recall). Her influence plagues him, as to be expected with the traumatic experiences he went through with her. Breaking the ice is something Hat Kid must do in order to fulfill the wishes of the Fire Spirits (another subject I'll get into shortly), which, if self-indulgently playing with the found family idea, could mean that Hat Kid is helping him heal; if indirectly. Even if fulfilling the Fire Spirits' wish to die is... counterproductive, in that measure, which I'm now getting ahead of myself so hold on a sec!!

Vanessa. Ice. Everywhere. Traces of it all over his forest. That's the effects of an abusive relationship! Especially in a worst-case scenario where... yknow! One party in the relationship dies! So of course ice would be everywhere.

In and of itself, ice is a common symbol in literature and other forms of media. In this case, it's presented as an antagonistic force; emphasis is placed upon freezing and the harm that comes with it. The cold is unwelcoming, threatening, merciless. Snow can act as an insulating force, at least, but ice cannot. It can only make things colder.

A slight stretch: Seeing as this game deals a lot with time shenaniganry, I'm not sure if it'd be too out of left field to connect "freezing" with the theme of time. Yknow. Frozen in time. Both parties here, Snatcher and Vanessa, would be in this frozen state. One largely repressing it and never fully moving on, and the other doomed to her isolation ever since the event in question. They never moved past that moment after the Prince and florist's interaction.

The Fire Spirits (& the Portraits)

I'll put a slight warning here for suicidal ideation, if only because... it's the Fire Spirits we're talking about. It's not as grossly in-detail as the noose discussion will be, though, so make of that what you will.

To me, the Fire Spirits are a very interesting case. After all, they're fire. They're a direct contrast to the ice, thus being the only thing we're shown that could potentially melt it. The Fire Spirits, in my opinion, represent hope or a strength to continue. A strength to move on after troubles of the past.

...And that hope wants to die.

The Fire Spirits wish to burn out, to leave this mortal coil and abandon the forest to the cold. They make no effort to melt the ice, they simply dance, blissfully ignorant towards their surroundings. This being a metaphor for Snatcher's own hope for moving on is made all the more obvious by the fact he wants them gone. The first contract is to kill the Fire Spirits, to kill the hope. Perhaps he believes that sort of thing to be fruitless or naïve, so it only clutters his mind or has him foolishly optimistic at points. So, get rid of it. And the hope is happy to oblige.

(That, or their willingness to leave the forest to its own suffering and not aid in the ice's thaw angers him. Besides the whole "bark bark growl I can't get to parts of my forest because of them!!" which... also could represent a naïve hope clouding his judgement, not allowing him to see a bigger picture. But hope can't all be lost if one wants to move forward...)

A little side-tangent now on the portraits! And it's another slight stretch but the idea is in my head and I can't let it go. Portraits are another common symbol, usually being a physical representation of a memory or idea. For our purposes, let's say they're memories. I know in canon they appear to just hold souls captive or something but for now we're just Ignoring That(tm). The Fire Spirits have to burn the portraits to disappear. See where I'm going with this, maybe?

Instead of handling bad memories (or perhaps memories of the past in general) in any healthy manner, Snatcher chooses to forget/repress them, which just allows his hope to progressively die out.

I'm really hoping this is making sense because it makes a lot of sense to me but I might be insane rn

The Fact that this is a Forest

Forest symbolism breakdown! What's a forest usually mean in literature? "Traditionally, the forest has come to represent being lost, exploration and potential danger as well as mystery and 'other worldliness'." Okay. Yeah. Fair enough. That certainly works with the whole aesthetic we've got going on. Wood usually is life, growth and strength. But the trees of subcon are all dead. So what about that? It stands for death, big whoop, very spooky, we know Snatcher's dead and so are the children, yadda yadda wowie wowie. But. :) The trees in Subcon look a lot like trees that were scorched in a forest fire. Don't believe me?

(You could also argue they're just regular marsh/swamp trees bUT SSHHSUUHSH HANG ON HEAR ME OUT LOOK LOOK,)

What I believe to have happened was a controlled fire to rid the forest of the majority of its ice and snow. Likely done by Snatcher. It leaves behind a very desolate, depressing, barren scene... but. What else do dead/burnt trees symbolize? Rebirth. After all, controlled fires happen to make way for new trees to take the place of old ones. Some trees only drop seeds in fires/hot temperatures, so new ones take root and begin anew. Weird. It's almost like... I dunno. Snatcher was given some sorta second chance, given he's not just a corpse in Vanessa's cellar. So were the subconites. Another life given then by Snatcher. All connected I tell ya!!

Generally, aside from that, forests have many connotations. Mystery, isolation, claustrophobia; a place to dwell on regrets, or the past; to worry over one's future; to seek escape from or escape inside of... hmgmrnmm!

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- T / W -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

The Nooses

The t/w is given at the top and another cut-off point will follow the bottom of this, for those that would like to skip. This will delve into talk of suicide and abusive tactics used by abusers. Please don't read if it will upset you or make you feel unsafe!!!

Personally, I cannot stand the nooses, but that's just due to my own triggers. Were there a way to hide those from the game or replace the damned talking ones with anything else. I would take it. In a heartbeat. But I can still appreciate the potential analysis to be had with them. So now i'm gonna talk about it despite how uncomfortable it will make me to do so. yEa

So, what about 'em? There are three types of nooses seen in Subcon. At least that I remember but I didn't really go looking for them. Empty ones, ones containing empty subconites, and the talking ones.

Nooses in general obviously can hint towards suicidal thoughts or behaviors of the characters that interact with them. If saying Subcon is Snatcher's mind, it could suggest that he suffered from some sort of suicidal thoughts in life (or currently, if second death is possible... or if he never truly died... or maybe he's trying to figure that out...which has given me... a separate idea...uh oh). But. And hear me out. Different perspective.

A talking noose. I hate them with a fiery passion that is unmatched. But think of the packed symbolism of a noose that talks. And think more about what it says. "I wouldn't mind being strapped around a cute neck like yours." "Be careful now, I don't want to see you meet a miserable end anywhere, but with me." Oddly, a lot of what the noose says seems almost... endearing? One could argue it's a way of luring someone to put it around their necks, which in and of itself is a whole lot to unpack when it comes to suicidal thoughts beckoning one forward; painting itself as something romantic, almost. But. Here's a wild idea, now. What if the nooses, at least the talking ones, are another symbol for Vanessa?

They're tinted blue, after all. While Vanessa's scheme is more red, one could argue two things: One, ice. Blue. Ice. yeah. Or two, the fact that Snatcher's scheme is more purple. Blue and red... make... purple. So, for all we know, Snatcher's current state was a compound effort between suicidal thoughts and Vanessa's treatment of him. Perhaps he even found a way to put himself out of his misery before freezing/starving to death. (I know he has dialogue that argues against that, but... are we certain Snatcher would be the kind to admit suicide over freezing to death?... I don't think so.)

At any rate, a common threat by those in "control" of an abusive relationship is that of killing themselves should the other person not do as they desire. It's a cruel form of emotional manipulation to get their way, worse off if the other party is an empathetic individual. As a person who has been the empathetic individual in relationships like this... I would know. I've been here, unfortunately So, it's not completely out of the question to say Vanessa could've used some tactic like that, even before the whole... cellar ordeal. Did she? I dunno. I'm tossing ideas around. But if she did, the threats of such would sit around in the Prince's mind easily. Even if she has a reputation of not going through with it. It doesn't matter. That shit sticks with you forever, that scare, the potential of it ever being true, is horrifying and it ruins you. I'm projecting, Squirtle.

Still. A noose cannot hang itself. It has to have a victim.

...yea.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- T / W PASSED -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Misc. Ideas

- The spiders: Aside from the usual things spiders can be chalked up to symbolizing - toxicity, alluring danger, just... general pain - I like the potential wordplay that can happen here. Yknow. A black widow. Say the Prince and Vanessa were married when one died. What would that leave Vanessa? A widow. ...She's red and black, too. Yknow. Like a black widow. HA wordplay is fun isn't it?

- Snatcher's tree: Love this place, love sitting in here. But not the point! The inside of Snatcher's tree is such a harsh juxtaposition to the rest of Subcon that it kinda throws ya off guard. After all, the dark, purples and blues then contrasted with the bright warm colors of the inside. Even the music switches over. The thorns outside aren't present indoors. Ohh yeah this is gonna be on the nose as hell but the Tree(tm) is 100% representing Snatcher's appearance/put-on personality vs. his truer nature. Spooky outside with thorns, foreboding, unwelcoming. Then the more comfortable interior. VULnerable. Have I even mentioned that the tree is HOLLOW I mean COME ON. The sturdiness of that tree? Nonexistent. He's not a sturdy guy at all no matter how he fronts

- Intrusions are unwelcome: Snatcher does not like the fact that Hat Kid sticks around in his forest. His personal space. His mind. In fact he tries desperately to get rid of her after their fight, not wanting her presence in his forest at all. He has no problem providing more contracts later on with the Death Wish thing, and he finds great entertainment in messing around with Hat Kid, so it's not just a weird sudden hatred he has for her; it's the fact that. After she's finished being useful, he no longer wants her around, lest she find some things she shouldn't find. Now he's just uncomfortable with her in his personal boundaries. Could just be a denial that she's helped him heal (breaking ice, stealing from Vanessa, being something interesting for his kids to interact with) or just not really wanting a child to get wrapped up in. All that. Most likely the former. Considering the amount of joke-hints he drops regarding his background during his Death Wish dialogue. I see you funny man, making jokes out of your trauma as a coping mechanism. Punts him

Annnd I think that's all I got, for now! I'll make an update post if I get any more sporadic ideas. If you read this whole thing, thank you!! and also!! Wow that was a lot!! Hell world. Please feel free to elaborate on any of my points or debate with me on em!! I'm always open to other ideas, just be aware that if I disagree I am not shy when it comes to debate hehehe, tho I won't be aggressive to any extent I prommy!!

Alrighty. goes to sleep goodnight

[backtobackbakubabe]

Speak Easy Part 10

Dabi x Reader, Bakugo x Reader

Words : 7142

Masterlist

Reader has a siren quirk and has spent the past several years of her life as a captive being experimented on by “heroes” Now that she’s out she needs protection and safe place to heal. Who will be the one to put her pieces back together?

Words with ‘this’ is dialogue written in her journal rather than said out loud and and words with ~this~ is dialogue said in sign language rather than out loud.

*********************************************************************

“Hold her down! Fuck! How is she still this strong? How much did you give her?”

Your vision was black, and you couldn’t tell if that was because you were blindfolded or just too drugged up to open your eyes. You could hear shuffling as two? No three people moved around you. One was pinning your arms down while another played with the collar that was digging into your neck.

“Listen man, I don’t think we’re supposed to be in here. If they find out we played with their new toy they’ll be pissed!”

There was a new set of hands gently pushing your flimsy medical gown up, “You heard what they were saying right? They said she’s the best sex a man will ever have in their life. It’s like her quirk or something.” You wanted to cry out, but your tongue felt like lead in your mouth. Were you even able to speak? Were you gagged? You couldn’t even tell. “What they don’t know won’t hurt them.” The hand firmly pressed into your hip. “Now hold her down, and make sure she stays quiet.”

You woke with a rush. Your breath beyond labored as you tried to run from the memories that refused to stay hidden for long. A new set of hands circled around your waist. These hands were different though. These hands were rough and callused. These hands were patient. These hands were reassuring.

“You want to talk about it?”

You shook your head before turning into him and burying your face into his chest. “Just another bad memory.”

His fingers trailed through your hair as he repeatedly kissed the top of your head. “Sometimes I wish I could just hop into your head, like you did mine the other night. Then I could see their faces. And I never forget a face…”

You heard the unsaid threat in his words. He wanted to know your demons so he could hunt them down. He was like Bakugo in that way. They both needed to do something…anything to make them feel like they were helping. The only difference is at the end of the day Bakugo’s victims end up in prison and Dabi’s end up six feet under.

The pounding in your head only seemed to increase. The drums of regret beating behind your eyeballs. “God.. why did we drink so much yesterday?” You groaned and curled further into Dabi’s side.

His fingers rubbed at your temples. “I seem to remember it being your idea. And who am I to deny the drinking queen.”

You groaned as you remembered your antics. “I know you’re not exactly known for being a good influence… but you could have tried a little harder to at least get me to drink some water.”

Dabi vibrated with soft chuckles. “Consider your hangover penance for making me play that ridiculous game. Now get off of me and go take a shower. You smell like a bar.”

With a pouting look you sighed, “But I’m still sad.”

Dabi gave your ass a hard slap. “There is no rule that says you can’t be sad and in the shower. Get your ass in there and clean yourself up. You’ll feel better after your clean and fed. I promise.”

With a chorus of dramatic groans and muffled curses you pulled yourself off of him and slowly made your way to his bathroom. You stopped right before you crossed the threshold and turned to give him your poutiest look, “Are you really going to make me do it alone.”

A pillow flew through the air faster than you thought possible and hit you in the face. “You are more than capable of cleaning yourself. I have other things I need to take care of.”

You stuck your bottom lip out, “Just because I can doesn’t mean that I want to.”

Like a man possessed, Dabi slowly got out of bed. He moved so slow, as if he was a predator stalking his prey. You instinctively held your breath in anticipation as he inched closer and closer. His eyes like a dim fire, but focused on you all the same. He invaded your personal space, slamming his hand on the door behind you beside your head. He leaned down until his nose brushed yours and his lips hovered over yours.

You closed your eyes as he leaned closer but right before your lips connected, “I don’t remember asking what you wanted. You need to take a shower, and I need to handle some business. If you’re still this desperate later then I’ll be more than happy to fuck you.” He gripped your chin and bumped your nose with his. “It’s not that I don’t want to. But I don’t want you to fall into a habit of letting me have my way with you every time you have a bad memory. It’s not fair to either of us.” You felt a single tear streak down your cheek as you nodded. “If it’s just a distraction fine, but you need to learn how to confront and deal with this shit on your own. It’ll just be harder later if you don’t. Believe me.”

A few beats of silence passed before he reluctantly backed away from you. His fingers lingering before letting go of you completely. It wasn’t until he was exiting his room you had the nerve to speak up. “You’re not just a distraction.”

There was no telling if he actually heard you or not. If he did, he didn’t react or respond. Your admission caught you surprise, and you almost hoped he hadn’t. You thought about this weird new attachment you were feeling to Dabi lately while you took your shower. You wouldn’t go as far as to call this foreign new feeling love or anything crazy like that. But you were growing quite fond of his presence. You felt comfort in his warmth, and you appreciated the way his hands always knew just wear to touch to ease your anxiety. Sure, he was a certified asshole, but at least he kept you strong. He made sure you took care of yourself. He didn’t take your shit or your excuses. He got you walking, talking, and opening up within weeks.

You went through your routine slowly, taking your time under the hot water. You’d rather not think about the memory that surfaced last night. But Dabi was right. You needed to take time to work things out yourself. His comfort was more of a band aid, a temporary fix. You needed to at least try to heal on your own.

You had no idea when it happened. It seemed like it was pretty early in your captivity. Back when you still had a little fight in you. You didn’t actually remember what happened after that but you can only assume the worst. Your skin crawled at the thought. You hugged yourself as you let the water hit your back. You closed your eyes as you let your heart beat slowly even out. You refused to let this define you. You were more than your trauma. You thought about Dabi again. He had his own scars. Both literally and figuratively. He had to look in the mirror every day and see the evidence of his trauma every day. If he could do that then you could do this.

One look into the mirror showed that your hair was absurdly long. You would need to cut it soon. But for now, you could just braid it. You giggled as you finished, it was like you had a secret weapon. It gave you a childish idea.

Skipping out of the room you made your way to the kitchen where Dabi was currently on the phone. If hero training taught you anything, it was stealth.

Silent as a mouse you tiptoed up to his turned back.

“We’ll be fine. You’re more than welcome to come if you’re that worried, but I promise it’s not a big deal.” You paused right before you pounced on him, curiosity getting the best of you. “I’ll send you the location, as well as updates. Will that make you feel better?” You could hear a rough voice on the other end and you instinctively knew it was Katsuki. “She’s fine, calm down already. She’s behind me right now thinking she’s sneaky would you like to talk to her?” You leapt at him swinging your braid like a whip and hitting him in the chest.

You froze as Dabi’s gaze flipped to you in seconds. “You want to talk to him?”

You silently nodded as you excepted the phone from him. “Hi…”

A relieved sigh, “I was worried you’d still be mad at me.”

You suddenly wished he was physically here so you could reassure him. “It was silly for me to react that way. It’s obviously not your fault. It… it just sucks.”

“I know…”

So many words hovered on the tip of your tongue, but you just couldn’t make yourself say them. “I feel like we need to talk, but I don’t want it to be over the phone.”

Katsuki gave a nervous chuckle, “Well I guess you’re in luck.” The doorbell rang out and you almost dropped Dabi’s phone.

Dabi took his phone back from you before stomping off to open the front door. “I really didn’t think you’d take me seriously when I said you could come.”

Without breaking eye contact with you Katsuki entered the house, “Well you did offer, and I did come. So, quite bitching and deal with it.” He noticed your nervous posture and he softened, which was something you didn’t think he was capable of. “You want to hash it out here, or would you like to talk privately?”

You nodded your head towards the back door, “It’s a nice day. We can sit on the patio.”

Dabi was secretly grateful. You would get the chance to have an honest conversation with Bakugo while also staying where he could see you.

Katsuki followed you out to the garden. He notices how you refused to look at the pool but he didn’t comment on it. “So… are we gonna talk about it?”

You collapsed into your chair and sighed. “I think we need to.” You looked up and your eyes locked with his vermillion ones. “Look, I’m sorry for reacting the way I did. I just… It’s just not fair.” You huffed as you averted your eyes. “That sounds so fucking childish but it’s how I feel. You, Izuku, Shoto, you all got to achieve your dreams. You’re heroes. But the people who did this, who are still doing this to me… they’re technically heroes too.”

His hands squeezed yours, but he made no attempt to cut off your little rant. “They would never do this to you. No one would even believe them if they tried. The public love you guys and you’re damn good at your jobs… and yet there’s nothing you can do to help me…” You could feel his gaze on you and your cheeks reddened. “I just feel helpless and stupid. Stupid for believing so much in the system. Stupid for falling for all their little tricks. Stupid for not seeing the bigger picture. And at the end of the day I can’t even fight it because I did those things… well not all of it, but a good majority. All I can do is lay low and pray no one ever finds me. I’m fucking helpless.”

He grunted and his grip on your hand tightened. “It kills me. You say I’m a hero and I can’t even save you.” You finally looked at him again and all you saw in his eyes now was raw anger. “I’ve never been so confused… so helpless in my life. I don’t know who to trust. I don’t know who’s on what side. Was my whole life a lie? Do real heroes even truly exist? Or are we all just pawns in some fucking bigger game?” His voice began to break under his emotion. “I love you y/n. I’m in love with you. I have been for a very long time. Maybe even since we were kids. And I can’t sleep at night because out of everyone in the world you were the one I couldn’t save. I blame myself every day. I tell myself if I had just fucking manned up and told you how I felt sooner then maybe we would have had a chance… and maybe I would have noticed when shit started going sideways.”

There was a flash of vulnerability in his eyes, but it was quickly replaced by anger once more. “Now you’re with him and it feels like I’ve completely lost you. Not that I’m complaining. If he’s what you need to heal then… whatever, I’ll just have to get over it. But I need you to know that I’ll always be there for you. No matter what. I don’t care who you’re with, who’s after you, I don’t care! You are and will always be my top priority.” You rubbed reassuring circles into his hand with your thumb. “You say it’s not fair and I get it. It’s not. It’s disgusting. You don’t deserve any of this. For the first time in my life it has me questioning what side I’m on.”

Your entire lives the only things Katsuki seemed to care about was becoming the number one hero and beating Izuku. So, to hear him say that he’s now questioning that broke your heart. “Katsuki, please don’t say that. Even if the hero system is fucked up. That’s doesn’t mean all heroes are too. You’re in it for the right reasons. I have no doubt that if all the hero agencies crumble today, tomorrow you’d be right back on those streets defending the people. You don’t need an official rank to be the number one.”

He let out a huge sigh and you could see the tension leave his shoulders. It was like a huge weight had lifted off of him. He gave you one of his trademark smirks, although it was a little softer than usual. “You always seem to know what to say when I’m falling apart.”

You ran a hand through his spiky blonde hair, “I’d like to think I am an expert Katsuki bomb defuser at this point.” He rolled his eyes, but you could see the slight pink blush dusting his cheeks. “I’ve spent most of my life finding ways to calm you down before you explode, and honestly I wouldn’t trade that time for anything.”

“Oh yeah? Even though half the time it ended in scrapped knees and pulled pigtails?”

“Sometimes it ended in shared ice cream and hand holding.” You giggled, “You used to hold my hand all the damn time when we were little. Dragging me from one place to the next, always so impatient.” You gave him a puzzled look, “But then one day you stopped out of nowhere and told me it was gross.”

“Tsk. You have my shitty mother to thank for that. When my quirk started developing, she told me to stop holding your hand because I might blow you up.” He gave you sly smile, “Technically she was right, but it still scared the shit out of me.”

You both talked and giggled for what felt like hours. The weight of the pervious day slowly floating away. You probably would have stayed that way for much longer if his phone hadn’t gone off interrupting the two of you.

He glared at his screen before grunting. “I’ve been here too long. I need to get going.” He stood from his comfortable spot next to you and stretched. He gave you a long look over from you head to your toes and back. “I promise I’ll try to not obsess over what you and staples do when I’m not around, if you promise to not do anything stupid.”

“You know I can’t promise that. Weren’t you the one who used to say stupid was my middle name?” He gave you an unamused look and crossed his arms over his chest in frustration. You cut him off before he could start on a lecture. “I promise to try to behave and stay out of trouble. There feel better?”

A drawn our sigh left his lips. If his expression was any indicator, your promise did absolutely nothing for his nerves. “I guess it’ll have to be good enough.” He leaned over and kissed the top of your head, “I’ll be back to check on you in a few days, alright?”

You nodded as he reluctantly made his way back towards the house. You watched him leave but decided to stay outside a little longer. It really was nice outside, and you wanted some more time to yourself before Dabi grilled you about your conversation with Katsuki.

---

Bakugo stomped back into the house and wasn’t surprised when he was quickly apprehended by the very man that plagued his thoughts. “Oi, whatever it is you want to say, say it quick. I got to get out of here before they notice I left.”

“I know the two of you have a lot of history… So…” He looked uncomfortable for a brief second. “She just looks happy when you visit… so uh… thanks.”

Bakugo had to blink back his surprise. He had been preparing himself for a fight. “Yeah well… you obviously aren’t doing a bad job either… she seems comfortable around you.”

The two men spent the next few moments awkwardly staring at each other before Bakugo cleared his throat. “Listen. I think it’s obvious I have feeling for her. She knows that now. But at the end of the day I just want her to be happy. Maybe if things had gone differently, we would have ended up together, and maybe one day we still will. But she’s gone through enough shit recently, and if… if you’re what she needs right now… Then I wont get in the way.”

Now it was Dabi’s turn to be surprised. Everything he knew about the great Dynamight was his unwavering need to be the best, to win, to conquer all opponents. So to him conceding really showed not only how much he had matured in recent years but also how serious he took his relationship with you.

“I’ll always be there for her. Like you said she likes it when I come to visit, so I’ll keep coming around.”

To this Dabi groaned, “Coming to visit is one thing, but hanging all over her and kissing her in front of me is another. Keep your sweaty hands to yourself.”

Bakugo barked out a laugh, “I kissed the top of her head calm down. Don’t tell me you’re not up for a little competition?” When Dabi’s only answer was to only narrow his eyes Bakugo smiled. “Just because I’m not going to throw a fit about the two of you… doing whatever it is you’re doing… doesn’t mean I’ve completely given up. If you ever mess up, and let’s be honest you probably will… I’m going to be there for her.”

“I’m actually counting on it.”

Bakugo gave him one last glance before nodding and making his way towards the exit.

--

Dabi joined you outside as the soft breeze kissed his always too warm skin. You kept your eyes closed as you heard his heavy feet approaching. “If you’re grumpy about Katsuki I don’t want to hear about it.”

His large form blocked the sun as he hovered over you. “What would I have to be grumpy about? He’s not the one you were begging to fuck you in the shower this morning.” His rough hands ran over your bare legs. “Put some real clothes on we have some errands to run.”

Your eyes snapped open. “Errands? Like we’re leaving the house? I’m going outside?”

“Well technically you go outside all the time, but yes, you will be leaving the property today. Stretch your legs, get some fresh air and all that good stuff. I don’t know if you noticed but we are really low on groceries and there’s only enough ice cream left for one of us and I don’t like you enough to share… So go change.”

You practically sprinted back to your room. You threw on the one dress you had that had come in one of your care packages from Izuku and Shoto. The only other clothes you had were either T-shirts, pajamas, or belonged to Dabi.

You knew you had a pair of shoes somewhere, but you couldn’t remember where you put them. You hadn’t exactly needed them until now. The longer you looked the more your nerves ate at you.

Were you ready to leave? You were safe here. Did you want to leave your little bubble?

You knew Dabi wouldn’t let anything happen to you, but it was still terrifying.

A soft knock broke you from your thoughts. “What’s taking so long?”

“Sorry, can’t find my shoes.”

To this he nodded, “Oh they’re in the garage.”

“How did they get there?”

He shrugged, “You threw them at me once, so I hid them.”

With a dramatic roll of your eyes you made your way over to him. “What you scared or something?”

His hands gripped your waist and pulled you to him, “Oh a shoe? No. Of you throwing said shoe at me? Of course. I would be stupid not to be afraid of you.”

You smiled proudly, “Damn right. And don’t you forget it.”

He gave your hips a squeeze, “I could get used to seeing you in a dress.” His hand snaked around to you lower back finding your long braid and grinned evilly as he grabbed it and wrapped it around his wrist effectively pulling you head back and baring your neck to him. “Oh and this braid is amazing.” His lips brushed over your bare shoulder, then your neck, your cheek, before finally giving you a quick peck on your lips.

You reached up on your tippy toes to ghost your lips over his. “Remember when I wanted to have sex this morning and your promised if I was still desperate later, you’d fuck me?” A fire lit in his eyes as he silently nodded. “You leaned even closer but still kept your lips from fully connecting with his. “Karma’s a bitch.”

“UGH!” His hands left you as he did what you could only assume was his version of pouting. “You fucking brat…Let’s go. The sooner we go, the sooner we can come back and lock ourselves in our room.”

Our room? It was the first time he had said that. You weren’t sure which room he was referring to, but either way, you kind of liked the way it sounded.

You held your hand out to him, “Oh come on now. Don’t be like that. You can hold my hand.”

He glared at you then your hand and then back to you. “No thanks. They probably are still covered in nitroglycerin from your little friend and I’d hate to accidentally look control of my quirk and blow us up.”

You balled up the hand you had offered to him and punched his shoulder, “Who’s the brat now?”

He led you to the garage in silence, noticing the way your shoulders tensed the closer you got. Right before you reached the door, he stopped you. “I know this is probably just as scary as it is exciting so just need you to remember a couple things, okay? One.” He placed his hands on your shoulders and looked you straight in the eye. “I’m not going to let anything bad happen to you. I think we both know I’m not above cremating someone’s fingers off if they even so much as look at you the wrong way. Two. You are way stronger than you feel right now. You may have been through hell, but you came out stronger than you went in.”

His eyes suddenly got very serious. “And most importantly three. Despite number one and two, I need you to be careful and stay close to me. I can’t help you if I can’t get to you, and just because you can take care of yourself doesn’t mean you should have to. It’s just a quick run to a grocery store and back. No reason to get into any trouble.”

You nodded enthusiastically, your excitement starting to overpower your nerves. He looked you up and down and smirked. His fingers came up to pinch your nipple through your dress which had you immediately moaning and pressing closer to him. “I’ll tell you what…one thing we will not being buying today is a bra.” Your teeth pressed into your bottom lip as you held back a whine of pleasure. He gave your nipple one last tug before letting go and backing away. “I love the easy access.”

You took a steadying breath before following him into the garage. You opened the door to the familiar car. The last time you had been in this car, you had been mute, malnourished, and Dabi was digging into you with his knife. You stared at the passenger seat for a moment too long.

“I promise not to stab you again, now hurry up and get in.” You took another moment to appreciate how far you’ve come since the last time you were in this car.

The second your ass was in the seat, Dabi was buckling your seat belt and pulling a hat over your head. “Here put these on too.” He handed you a pair or sunglasses. “We’re going out in disguise.” He smirked, “Well you are, there’s really no way for me to hide this handsome mug.”

“I don’t know. you have white hair now. Match that with some glasses and a bag over your head, and I don’t think anyone would recognize you.”

He reached over you and pulled a pair of sunglasses and a medical mask out of his glove box. “Hmm fresh out of bags. Maybe we should pick some up for later.” He wagged his eyebrows at you.

The wind blew through the open windows as the music surrounded you. For a moment it was easy to close your eyes and pretend this was just a normal day. The past few years didn’t happen, and you were just headed to the store on your day off. You hummed along with the song and even dared to sing a few words.

Dabi suddenly found it hard to concentrate with you singing next to him. He could feel your hum vibrate in his bones. Your words filled his lungs with air while simultaneously making it harder to breath. He’d like to think this was part of your quirk. But something told him it was something else entirely.

Before he could stop himself, his hand found it’s way to your thigh. He had no other intention than just touching you. He just wanted to feel you, feel your skin on his. Your presence filled the car and his hands itched to connect with you in any way they could.

His thumb rubbed absentminded circles as he found himself being hypnotized by your existence. The spell only broken when he pulled into a parking spot. Now reality was crashing back in. He suddenly had the need to rush you back home and lock you away. This world was awful. It didn’t deserve you. “Sorry… Sometimes my singing does that. I didn’t realize I was doing it.” Your hand ran through his hair as if the friction would reboot his thoughts. You could see the confused desire in his eyes start to fade. “I can’t explain it, but just like how my voice can hypnotize, sometimes when I sing it amplifies whatever it is you want in the moment.” You shrugged, “It so rarely happens that I don’t really know what triggers it.”

With a final blink of his eyes his thoughts seemed to clear. The overwhelming desire ebbed but didn’t disappear completely. He was quick to grab your hand as soon as you had both exited the car. “Oh? And what happened to there being too much nitroglycerin on my hands?”

“Shut up.” He yanked your arm rather aggressively as he stormed off into the store.

You weren’t prepared for how ridiculous you would feel. You wish you could take a picture to send to the yourself a few years ago. Here you were with a white haired, former villain Dabi, who had a grocery basket in one hand and your hand in the other. Both of looking totally inconspicuous as the florescent lights reflected off of your sunglasses that he insisted needed to stay on. The borderline elevator music that played in over the speakers just daring you to giggle.

With half of your shopping done you came to the realization that you had been freaking out over nothing. It wasn’t like there was someone hiding behind every corner waiting to drag you back to the lab. Just because it seemed like the world was out to get you didn’t actually mean the world was out to get you.

You were starting to let your guard down just a little bit. You let go of Dabi’s hand for all of ten seconds, which apparently was enough for a lecture. “What do you think you’re doing?”

Your hand hovered over a box of cereal, “Uh… I’m sorry do you not like Lucky Charms? Are you more of a Cinnamon Toast Crunch kinda guy?”

He snagged a box off the shelf before grabbing your hand again. “For my sanity… please don’t let go of my hand.”

“Oh come on I was all of two feet away. What’s going to happen in two feet.”

He lowered his sunglasses so you could see how serious he was. “If we lived in a world where everyone was quirkless… not a lot. But here in this world, where people can do bat shit crazy things… Super speed, portals, explosions, flight, laser beams, do you need me to keep going.”

“Okay I get it. I’m sorry.”

His grip on your hand tightened as he pulled you down the next isle. He was making it really hard to act normal when he insisted on treating you like a child. You gave his hand a tug to get his attention. “Hey look at me.” He hesitated momentarily before turning to look at you and pulling you both to a stop. By the way he was looking at you he knew you were upset, but he looked like the last thing he wanted to do was talk about it. “I get that you’re on edge, but I’m not a child. You gave me this huge speech before we left the house, but now you’re the one freaking out.” You gave him a quick hug. “Out of respect for your paranoia, I promise to stay within arm’s reach. But remember I’m not helpless.”

His shoulders slumped, but he nodded anyways. “Yeah my bad. I think I just underestimated how uncomfortable I’d be.” His shoulder bumped yours. “But until we get back home…I’m going to keep being an overprotective asshole, and you have no choice but to deal with it.” He started his dragging you down isles again. “You may not be a child, but if you pull away from me again, I will literally find a collar and a leash and make you my pet for the day.”

“You’re joking right… right?” He had to be joking. There’s no way he’d follow through with that… right? Part of you knew he honestly would and he’d probably fucking love it.

“Why don’t you keep fucking around and find out?” He smirked which made it even harder to figure out if he was serious or not.

You decided you weren’t going to test him. Not today. Hopefully there would be more trips in your future, and maybe he’d ease up by then. Today he seemed stressed enough to actually snap and follow through with his threat.

He continued to hold the basket for you while he let you reach out and grab whatever you wanted. He wasn’t even really paying attention to the items you were putting in the basket, as his head remained on a swivel, looking for anything suspicious. If he had, he would have noticed it was predominantly junk food. That’s fine. You could stand to gain a few more pounds. He’d make sure to sneak some healthy stuff in there at some point.

You were making your way to check out when he heard a familiar voice calling out to him.

“Dabi? Hey man is that you?” He instinctively placed you behind him as he turned to face his old colleague. “Holy shit it is you! I wasn’t sure because your hair it totally different, but those staples are a dead giveaway. What’s up man? Haven’t seen you in years! What have you been up to?”

You clung to the back of his shirt and you could feel the heat radiating off of him. “I’m doing my own thing now.” His voice was much lower than usual and it sent chills down your spine.

When the mystery man caught on that he wasn’t going to get any more out of him he pressed, “I heard there’s a couple of the guys who’ve been trying to get ahold of you recently. They need help with something. The money’s supposed to be pretty good.”

The man’s eyes shifted to try and get a look at you behind Dabi, but Dabi just shifted to shield you from view. “Not interested. I have enough money.” The man was starting to give him a weird look and it was pissing Dabi off. “Do you have a problem?”

“No, but obviously you do. What crawled up your ass and died? And who’s your new little friend?” He craned his neck to try get a peek at you. “As long as I’ve known you, I never knew you to be the domestic type. She the reason you’ve fallen off the grid?”

Dabi’s hand started to glow with flames. “If you know what’s good for you, you’ll mind your fucking business.”

“Oh shit. She must be something special to get the big bad Dabi playing guard dog.” He lifted his hands up in surrender, “But don’t worry about it, man. I’ll get out of your hair.”

Dabi kept his eyes on him until he was out of sight and quickly turned back to the check-out line, “We need to hurry and get the hell out of here. That guy works for the League as a hitman. It’s possible we didn’t see him by accident.” He ushered you through the line and quickly paid for the few groceries you had and was practically sprinting towards the exit.

You made it back to the car and you let go of his hand to quickly make you way around to the passenger side. You had your hand on the door handle when your instincts started screaming. Your eyes cut to the store and then back to Dabi. “I think someone’s i-“

A hand slammed on top of your mouth as you were pulled backwards and in a whirl of wind and disorienting speed you ended up on the other end of the parking and moments later you saw blue fames spurting off in all directions where you had been standing earlier.

“What a temper that guy has.”

You looked up and saw the man from the store. His quirk must have been super speed and you knew you’d never hear the end of this from Dabi.

His hand gripped your chin, “What’s so special about you huh? What could you possibly have that would domesticate that beast of a man?” He pushed you to your knees in front of him.

Your panic was setting in. All the years of training, all the hard work you put in, and the only thing you could think of was running away. You bottom lip trembled. “I’m quirkless… I’m his… his pet.” You hoped you could find a way to stall for time. You had faith Dabi could handle whoever he was currently fighting and then he’d come for you. You just needed to make sure this guy didn’t run off with you again.

The man laughed loudly, “I have to admit I always thought he was a bit of a freak. But having a quirkless little play thing isn’t what I was expecting.” He turned your head to one side and then the other getting a good look at you. “You sure are fucking pretty though… I guess I can see the appeal. Maybe I’ll take you with me.”

Your fight or flight was kicking in, and you knew for a fact there was no outrunning this man. You activated your quirk and locked eyes with him. This was the first time you had used your quirk offensively in a long time. But it was like riding a bike. First you used your voice. “You don’t want to do that. No, you’re a good boy. You want to let me go.”

You watched as his eyes glassed over briefly before he shook his head. “What the fuck! Get out of my head! Quirkless my ass!” His hand left your chin and back handed you. Your head hit a cement parking divider. So maybe it wasn’t like riding a bike.

You needed to focus. No half assing this. Growing up you had learned that your quirk was like a battery. You could either go at full strength for a short period of time or lower strength for a longer period of time. You just needed to up the strength. “I SAID!”

He sprinted away before you could finish talking. You looked around frantically to see where he went but before you could find him he was sprinting by you and kicking you as he passed. His strategy was smart. You wouldn’t be able to get him if he kept moving. He continued his game of sprinting by you and kicking you or hitting you until you were a bloody mess on the ground. Where the fuck was Dabi?

You were pissed. You had had definitely been through worse. You spit out some blood from your split lip. “You hit like a fucking bitch!” You smeared blood and saliva all over your hands and waited. “Fucking fight me you pussy!”

You listened closely for the familiar sound of him approaching. Right before he got to you you rolled over and grabbed his leg as he attempted to kick you. You tackled him to the ground and shoved your hand in his face smearing your blood all over his face, forcing your blood and spit into his mouth.

He sputtered before shoving you off of him and spitting on you. “What the fuck? You’re fucking disgusting!” He tried to stand up to get away from you, but your quirk was starting to work on him. You blood was slowly paralyzing him. You watched as his eyes started to harden inn fear.

“Great keep those open for me.” You locked eyes with him again. “What did you want with Dabi?”

You watched his thoughts as he showed you instructions from Shigaraki. He was supposed to locate Dabi and ask him what his connection was to the people who worked for your hero agency. Apparently, word had gotten out that he had been hunting people and The League wanted to know why.

You heard footsteps rapidly approaching you. You swung around as fast as you throbbing head would let you. Relief flooded over your entire body when you saw it was Dabi. He skidded to a stop when he saw the state you were in. He looked between you and the now paralyzed man on the ground. “I’m going to fucking kill him.”

The man managed a creepy chuckle. “She must be that siren hero everyone’s looking for huh?” You were impressed he could still talk at this point, but it was obvious the rest of his body was frozen. “They said she was dangerous…she didn’t feel that dangerous when my foot was connecting with her face.”

Dabi let out a feral growl and he stalked over to him hands out ready to burn him to ashes.

“Dabi NO!” You coughed as you grabbed your ribs. “Stop… he can’t move. We can just call Katsuki, he’ll come pick him up.”

Dabi turned to look at you, his eyes practically glowing. “No fucking way. He’s seen you, he knows too much.” The flames in his hands got hotter. “Just look at what he fucking did to you! He’s not leaving here alive. So either you let me burn him and scatter the evidence or you take this fucking knife I have in my pocket and kill him yourself. Either way this asshole dies now. I told him to mind his own fucking business… he signed his own death sentence.”

You stood up and squared off with him. “I said no… We don’t have to kill him. We can just turn him in!”

“YOU CANT BE THAT STUPID!” He ran a frustrated hand through his hair leaving black streak of soot in their wake in his white hair. “We turn him in, he gets arrested. The people who are looking for you… the ‘heroes’ will integrate him and find out your with me. Then it’ll only be a matter of time before we’re on the run.” He reached in his pocket and held out a knife to you, “He dies now. End of discussion. What’ll it be.”

You looked at the knife in his hand before crossing your arms over your chest and averting your eyes.

“That’s what I thought.”

You didn’t watch as he incinerated the man who was helpless to stop it, but you could smell the burning flesh and you could hear the brief scream of agony before it was gone.

Dabi waited until his hands had cooled down before he bent over and scooped you up. “It had to be done.” The car was still running with the driver door open from where he had driven over here and hopped out. He tucked you into the font seat and took a look into the back seat, “Fuck… the ice cream is melting.”

Your eyes bulged at him as he gunned it towards the main road, “You just murdered someone with no sympathy, but heaven forbid the ice cream melts!”

“Actually, I just murdered two people. And I would do it again without hesitation. I was looking forward to that ice cream!”

********

Tags: tags: @falling4fandoms @wifunozomi @here-in-never-land @whore-for-anime @klecksstorys @aurorahoneybuns @theunknownrandom @insane-without-delirium @frenchsfryys @officiallydarkgeek @neofixcs @music-is-all-i-need @katsuki-bakubabe@unadulteratedtastemakerpoetry@dabislittlemouse@aimee1602@pinkhatlizzy @kunaigirlx44 @nii-sanfucker@bestgirlb @silver-stardrop@bakubby99

[writing-for-me-at-this-point]

Holy shit, imagine this for the afterdark au:

Thanks to the emotional, physical (and maybe sexual) trauma that Mc went in Twisted Wonderland, they develop amnesia from all those events once they arrive back to the world.

They don't remember names, faces, events, but they do remember the pain, to the point that Mc really needs professional help. It years, but eventually they forget everything and managed to properly heal.

Imagine the reaction of dark!twist boys once they found out they don't exist anymore to Mc

Oh no ;-;

tw: triggering content, yandere, abuse, dark behavior, and more

Okay, so each boy would have a go at MC. But by the end, I wouldn't be surprised if MC were to black out these memories as a means to protect themselves.

But, if they leave, they can heal.

The dark!twst boys would have different reactions.

Abandoners ( Jack, Sebek, and Idia )

These boys could honestly care less. They didn't care for MC when they were around, so why should they care if they leave? They're more likely to be disturbed by other characters about the disappearance, than feel anything towards it.

Yanderes ( Malleus, Jamil, Azul, Floyd, and Rook )

These characters are heartbroken. You were torn from them, and now you have to suffer a life where you never knew them? Where you completely forgot them? Their love for you? Their time and effort to make you see it?

That won't do.

They'll find a way to bring you home. Into their arms. Back to their love. To where they can protect you, love you, and create something better with you. You were... Taken from them, yes. You would never leave... You were taken.

You can't escape these yanderes, different world or not, you belong to them- just as they belong to you. You were meant to be. Two pieces of a puzzle. Each others one and only.

And your memories gone? Of them? Must have been from the trauma of being torn from them. They'll bring you back, and if you're memory as so bad, they'll just create better ones!

Also, they would be highly attached, and do whatever they can to make you fall in love with them. Most likely to baby trap you as well, no matter if your body could do so with or without magic, you now have something to tie you to them forever. Now you can't leave.

Manipulators ( Lilia, Jade, Cater, Leona, and Vil )

These boys will either use you for their own game, or use you to make another happy, maybe both. Lilia and Jade are prime examples- both using their manipulative tendencies to being you closer to their loved ones, Malleus and Azul/Floyd respectively. You will NEVER know what they're doing, gas lighting, manipulating, lying, and more just to get you into the arms of their family.

Cater, Leona, and Vil will use you as they please. Either getting work done for them, experimenting on you, or... Using your body for their pleasure. And you'll THINK you want it.

Cater uses you as someone to release his tensions on. Any stress, anger, happiness, and more... You'll see it all. He uses you to cope with his loneliness and dark thoughts. Leona does the same, using you to tend to him personally, taking a load off of Ruggie while he takes care of the dorm... And you Leona. Vil uses you as a doll. Potions, potions, potions! So many to try and all the time in the world. You become malleable, dependent, perfect for him. You'll become the prettiest thing that hangs off his arm, all while taking care of him behind closed doors, if you are conscious about it or not.

You're not allowed to forget them unless you have permission.

You'll never get it.

Blissfully Ignorant ( Ortho, Silver, and Kalim )

Would be heartbroken.

Ortho eventually moves on... Begrudgingly. You played with him! Took care of him! He blames himself for getting attached so easily.

Kalim grew close with you as well! He enjoyed taking care of you, and seeing Jamil be so happy with you, he even planned a wedding in his phone! WILL bring you back if you agree.

Jamil says you cried with joy... So of course you can come back! Those lost memories can always be remade! Don't look so stressed! They still love you! Even if you're crying... Scared... It's because you're stressed... Right... Stressed.

Silver thinks it's best you left.

His father and Malleus... Are a fate worse than death, it's not like he doesn't understand, he just accepted he won't be able to escape long, long, ago. It's best to just go along with it.

Abusers ( Riddle, Ace, Deuce, and co. )

Depends on the character. Some may not care, others may have become dependent on you, while others are spiraling at the loss of control.

It's best if you never saw them again.

For your sake or theirs?

Both.

[not-majestic-bluenicorn]

Cravity’s League of the Universe Theory UPDATE

Season 3 Hideout: Be Our Voice & The Awakening: Written in the Stars

Hello! My name’s Ori and I write k-pop theories and fanfics and today I’m revisiting my Cravity theory cause apparently I didn’t update for Hideout Season 3 even though I thought I had lol This is going to be a mini update since there isn’t much to add, but let’s get right into it.

Arc 1: Hideout Season 3 Main Plot Points

During the prologue of Season 3 we finally get to see more about Woobin, Seongmin and Minhee. At the beginning they hear their names being called by Wonjin, who’s probably using his power to convince them to meet the others. Then we get to see a little of their private lives.

First Woobin is studying in his room when he spots a dead butterfly and revives it. He then tries to take the elevator to leave his apartment building but he ends up getting too scared and gives up; the instagram account also confirms his fear of elevators. He then presumably leaves to spend some time at the arcade. From Minhee, we get to see how carefully he cleans and takes care of his room, making sure even the smallest object is in place, before his alarms sound and he has to get ready to leave. 

[Gif: Woobin picks up a dead butterfly, the scene cuts and we see the butterfly flying again.]

Seongmin is at the bus stop at night, waiting for it. We know from the Instagram posts he doesn’t want to go home so ends up choosing to go to the arcade and he forgets his cellphone. Minhee finds the cellphone and upon touching it discovers Seongmin’s plans and goes to meet him there. At the arcade, Seongmin struggles to play with the dart, but when he closes and opens his eyes again, suddenly he’s nailing every single shot.

[Gif 1: Minhee picks up Seongmin’s cellphone at the bus stop and has a vision of Seonming playing with darts and failing all his shorts.

Gif 2: Seongmin is at the arcade playing darts, he closes his eyes and after he opens them he does a perfect shot.]

Minhee arrives during this and gives Seongmin his cellphone, which is when they notice they both have similar stones. Woobin also notices this and joins them. They notice Seongmin’s injured hands and Woobin heals him, revealing his power to them.

[Screenshot: Woobin standing with his back to the camera. His arm is up as he shows Seongmin and Minhee his stone.

Gif: Woobin grabs Seongmin’s injured hands in his and his hands start to shine as he heals Seongmin. The scene fades to white with the light coming from his hands.]

After a cutscene, we see the other six at their hideout. Wonjin is explaining that Seongmin and Minhee are a year younger than them and that Woobin is his and Hyeongjun’s classmate. He also mentions already calling them and Allen adds that he’s dreamt of them as well. Finally, the three of them arrive and introduce themselves.

[Instagram screenshot: A picture of a table with pictures of Minhee, Seongmin and Woobin sprawled on it. The caption reads “The friends from Allen’s dream that he talked about. Friens that Allen introduced to me. I’m sure they could hear my voice will they? Finally today! #photo taken by Hyeonjun

Screenshot from Epilogue: The nine members sitting around a table in their hideout.]

In the epilogue, they’re all spending time together at the hideout. Wonjin and Taeyoung are talking. Seongmin is repairing something for Hyeongjun. Serim, Jungmo and Minhee are with Revue when Jungmo tests Serim’s power by asking him what is the color of the third cloth in his wardrobe. Serim correctly guesses it’s a purple hoodie. We also confirm Jungmo’s ability to communicate with animals. Finally, Woobin is asking Allen if he can predict which team will win tomorrow’s game, to which Allen responds that’s not how his power works, before they’re interrupted by Seongmin asked to be healed by Woobin.

The scene cuts to them playing a board game. Taeyoung tries to cheat by freezing time but Hyeongjun discovers and stops him. Suddenly, Allen looks up and all the lights around them begin to turn off before they look at the camera and the final light goes out. Then, Allen wakes up to Woobin calling him. Finally, in the Hidden Film we see all but Seongmin and Minhee celebrating their graduation.

[Gif: The members look around as the lamps they were using for light start to turn off on their own.]

What is happening?

Before we update the character profiles let’s talk a little bit about what’s going on. First of all, they’ve finished reuniting and Hideout is over just as we had predicted. This means the stasis stage of the story is over and now we need a trigger. While I think that The Awakening: Written in the Stars is sort of a little break while they work on the next part of the story, because we didn’t get any films or updates on the Instagram account, I also think that the title has more meaning to it than that.

First of all, the simple phrase “the awakening” already feels like a trigger because the word itself alludes to the start of something. I also think it might be literally referencing Allen waking up from the vision he has in the Season 3 Epilogue. Yes, I’m pretty sure the whole last scene is a vision, and while it’s a little different, it does preserve that 4th-wall-breaking aspect we’ve seen in some of his visions before, so it’s not a stretch.

What does this mean for them? Well, simply put, danger is coming, and whether they like it or not, they might have to start learning real soon how to better use their abilities. To be honest, I’m still not sure Starship is gonna go full superhero on them, because most of their powers are very passive, but we’ll see!

Updating the profiles

Now that we know a bit more about our last three characters, let’s summarize what we know and then make a list with their powers.

Minhee

He is an extreme perfectionist, to the point that every single thing must have its place and it seems that he has a very detailed routine to keep order in his room. We can also see that he has quite a lot of alarms that establish the order of his day. He doesn’t seem to have an adverse reaction to disorder though, and simply seems to enjoy the act of keeping his space clean and perfect, because we don’t see him do that with the hideout.

[Instagram screenshot: A picture of a perfectly organized shelf with the caption “Neat and tidy. Finished cleaning up my room.”]

Seongmin

Seongmin hates being home, to the point we don’t even get to see his house in any of the videos. He doesn’t mention it in the videos but he’s pretty verbal about it in the Instagram posts. It is quite likely he has a bad relationship with his parents and he seems to wander around a lot. He is also extremely prone to getting injured apparently. Someone help the lost puppy.

[Instagram screenshot: A picture of Seongmin sitting on a bench at a bus stop with the caption “Not yet... don’t wanna go home like this, should I go there again?”]

Woobin

Woobin lives in an apartment complex and he seems to be a good student. The one thing that definitely stands out about him is his fear of using the elevator. It’s still unknown if it comes from any particular elevator-related trauma or if maybe he has major claustrophobia caused by something that isn’t specifically related to elevators. However, he’s pretty terrified of them and although he’s been trying to overcome it, it hasn’t worked for him at all.

[Instagram screenshot: A picture of Woobin’s hand as he presses the button to call the elevator with the caption “Please, just for today...”]

The powers

Finally, the list:

Serim - People-focused psychometry, he obtains information about others, seemingly by accessing their knowledge and memories. So far his ability has only been seen with the members.

Allen - Precognition through dreams, he has dreams in which he’s able to see the future. All dreams seem to be tied to the members so far.

Jungmo - Animal Telepathy, he’s able to understand and communicate with animals.

Woobin - Accelerated Healing, so far we’ve seen him heal small injuries and bring back to life small creatures.

Wonjin - Telepathy, he can communicate with others through the mind, even if they’re far away. So far his ability has only been seen with the members.

Minhee - Future-focused psychometry, this one is still in doubt since we’ve only seen him use it once, but he seems to be able to see the future of the person who last touched the object.

Hyeongjun - Legit, no idea, what is your deal, child?

Taeyoung - Time stopping, he’s able to completely stop time for everyone else except Hyeongjun. He can continue moving and doing things normally when he does it.

Seongmin - Enhanced accuracy and precision, again this one is still in doubt since we’ve only seen him use it once, but he seems to be able to perfectly nail every shot he makes.

Conclusions

Cravity might actually be in danger, depending on what Allen’s vision meant. One thing is for sure though, the story is starting to move forward. On the other hand, someone help me with Hyeongjun, I accept suggestions.

[randomly-a-fan]

When MJ First Encountered IT (Finale)

Pt. 1

Pt. 2

Pt. 3

Pt. 4

Pt. 5

As morning came, Pennywise has sensed his Sr. genre Papawise, so he got up carefully as he saw MJ snoozing on the couch sitting up. So he carefully lied her down and gave her a blanket to keep her warm. He then did something that he is going to regret a little later, he actually kissed his entrée by the forehead. 

That sort of affectionate act made him feel all groggy. However, he needed to meet with his Papawise, so he left MJ alone, what could possibly happen? it’s not like she’ll runaway, after all, she owes him for saving her life.

Down into the sewers, he met with Papawise at his clown-cave. “Well bucko, how’s Junior-wise been doing huh?” Papawise greeted. “I told you not to call me THAT.” Pennywise snapped. Then the system from the kiss made him hurl. “What happen, boy? had too many German kids again? I warned you that German food doesn’t agree with you.” Papawise chuckled with a smirk. “No... I didn’t... Actually... There’s something you should know about this human girl...” So Pennywise explained to his Papawise about MJ and how it started and possibly ended.

***

Meanwhile, Aaron was at the front of the Neibolt house. “Alright sir, we’ll have a look...” The chief said before he signals the squad to check the house. In the Neibolt House, MJ was laying peacefully on the sofa, she felt safe with Pennywise... Not a good sign. That is until she heard the pitter-patter. “Penny?” MJ said in confusion. The squad saw the girl and carried her outside. “Wait, what are you doing? Let me go!” MJ begged. She was going to scream until she saw her dad with happy tears. “Dad!” MJ cried. “Makayla! Thank goodness.” Aaron said as he hugged his daughter tight. “ALRIGHT GENTALMEN LET’S MOVE,” The Chief called out.

Meanwhile in the sewer, Pennywise and Papawise were going up on the well so Papawise can get a glance at her. “So you really think she’s the one, huh?” Papawise asked, to be double sure. “Sure I’m sure, I told you before, she doesn’t want to leave me, so it makes sense that she looks into my deadlights, so she can gain some immortality and become my forever mate.” Pennywise expressed. “I don’t want to feast on her fears anymore... She’s sweet as honey... Thanks to her phobia of bees.” Pennywise added with a wink. Papawise laughed with a gurgle sound. “I’ll bet she refuses and runs off, let’s say... five months doing one’s hunt?” Papawise offered. “Deal!” Pennywise said as he shook his hand. 

Papawise’s handshake was awkward, he raised his arm high and goes Wah-Hah, Wah-Hah, Wah-Hah, “Okay okay, stop that, I get it!” Pennywise said as he pulled his arm away. 

As they both got out of the well and into the house, Pennywise made a big excited grin. “MJ, I hope you’re up, because I have a little surprise to tell--” When Pennywise looked from behind the couch, she wasn’t there. “You’ve never told me that MJ was a blanket...” Papawise snickered. Pennywise checked her bedroom, she wasn’t there either. “I don’t understand... Where could she have gone?” Pennywise asked himself while tearing up. Pennywise then decided to sniff the blanket and see if he can sense her whereabouts. 

Pennywise has sensed that MJ was getting on the train with her dad for home, where the train will pass the border. “The train station... I’ll get her back!” Pennywise said as he speeds on to get MJ back, while Papawise laughs from the background; knowing that he’s getting five months off from hunting. 

At the train station, MJ and her dad have boarded the train before Pennywise could reach her. He rushed and pasted his face on the glass window, giving MJ a startled fright. Her dad covered her eyes and pulled her closer as the train moves. Pennywise watches as the train moves. “The world isn’t big enough for you to hide, I’ll find you... And I’ll use you for satisfaction!!!” Pennywise yelled as his eyes turned red with anger with a hint of tear floating up. 

***

Even though the train passed the border, she’s still hearing his threats, so it’s going to take a long time to forget all that. Just like Kate, she too lost her voice, but not forever. MJ has to spend a whole year at the mental institute for the treatment for Stockholm Syndrome and trauma. MJ could not help but think about... Penny--something; her memory back in Derry is slowly perishing, so she’s also forgetting about the clown abductor as well. 

As the months passed, MJ slowly recuperates and is starting to talk again. Well, most of the time. Also like her niece Kate, she has the case of Selective Mutism; meaning that even though she can talk, but she doesn’t always talk to people she doesn’t know, which affected her life and her previous careers.

[Present]

Pennywise invited MJ over for a so-called visit since MJ can trust him, she’s willing to take the risk. “You know MJ, when I promised myself years ago that I’ll find you and use you for my satisfaction; I always keep my word... So let’s get down to some unfinished business.” Pennywise said in a serious tone. MJ grew nervous, as her memory from that time slowly grew. 

***

“NO, you just killed me!” MJ exclaimed with a laugh as the two were playing Mario Kart, Pennywise used a lightning bolt cheat to make her small and then ran over her to squish her. “Don’t be-little yourself,” Pennywise laughed. “Well look at that, I’ve won again!” Pennywise cheered. “Good game, Penny.” MJ congratulated as she was giving him a handshake. “Well, I had a pretty good teacher back in the day... She wasn’t a sore loser like I expected her to be.” Pennywise responded. 

They were taking a break from playing Nintendo just so they can relax and talk. “You know... Back then, I was going to make you my eternal mate, but then you’ve left with your dad... I didn’t know what else to think during that moment.” Pennywise explained. “Actually, I think what happen was that the squads found me and carried me out; I did try to get away and yell for help, but then I saw my dad with happy tears... I can’t be apart from my dad, even if it hurts me to leave you.” MJ replied with her side of the explanation. Pennywise was surprised to what he just heard. “So you didn’t run away on purpose? huh... Who ever thought I’d be so relieved?” Pennywise said to himself. “What do you mean?” MJ asked with a questionable look. 

Pennywise looked over at MJ with a chuckle. “I’m just saying that if you and I were in a committed relationship, I wouldn’t have ever met my true love of my life...” Pennywise said with a smile. “And I would never meet my true love of my life... Whoever thought that something so tragic could turn out so great for the both of us?” MJ said. “Well of course it wouldn’t turn out so great in the end, if our children hadn’t become friends; you would try to hurt my family.” MJ added. “And I would've lost my wife’s love if she sees me as a monster... which obviously I am...” Pennywise sighed in relief at the end. 

The universe truly made a strange path for the both of them, and they both hope that it would not end. “Well... I should be heading out to make supper for my family...” MJ said. “Same here, better go on my hunt for my family... You will come back next weekend and help me defeat Wiz Pig from Diddy Kong Racing, right?” Pennywise reminded. “Of course, you have my word.” MJ said as she was patting his shoulder; that’s when she remembered. “Oh Penny, I just remembered, how’s that wound on your shoulder of yours? back when you saved me from the dogs.” MJ reminded. “Oh yes, I’ve forgotten about that... You want to have a look see?” Pennywise asked before he took off his top. “Wow Penny! I can’t even see the scars, it healed good,” MJ said with amazement. “All thanks to you...” Pennywise said before he paused to think, then he made his move to hug MJ goodbye. “I’ll see you next weekend sug’.” MJ said as she blew a kiss. While MJ wasn’t looking, Pennywise gagged from the air kiss; which is not as bad as actually kissing a meal.

The End