#this is probably the biggest compliment (compliments?) someone gave me I'm gonna cry

[kari-go]

I am becoming obsessed with your AU! You’re putting so much thought into it! I have never met someone who plots and plans a fanfiction out as thoroughly as I do before they write it but you’re doing MORE than I do! I think I love you 😂

You said to ask more questions so I guess idk start with the basics: who are your OCs? Stephan and I think there’s another one? The other main Miraculous user since Adrien is sidelined?

I am super impressed with your AU - usually, people can only handle one major thing. Either they can do a rewrite AU with different plot elements OR they can add in OCs and rewrite it that way. You’re planning on doing both! That’s super cool!

Honestly, if you weren’t using Miraculous as the obvious base, you would honestly be making your own world. Like a book or comic (or whatever art form you would choose) I mean. That’s amazing!

Not that fanart isn’t impressive! I just mean that when you make your own worlds and become the next big thing one day and be rich and famous, remember us little people on Tumblr! 😂

OMG you're so nice!!! I feel like I'm gonna cry 🥹🥹

Yeah, I plan a lot (but I also feel like I don't plan at all lol), I'm redoing the timeline for the third (and hopefully last) time and I'm trying to fit it to real dates. Like Stoneheart happens on the 4th of September 2023.

There's Stephan and Chris. I already made little reference sheets for them (although I changed Chris's and Marinette's secondary miraculous).

Stephan is the holder of the Black Cat miraculous and Chris is the holder of the White Lion miraculous. They are both Marinette's classmates, and they both moved to Paris before the series began. Stephan was chosen by Fu but Chris was chosen by Luxx himself.

Stephan is cold and distant from other people except for his mom, but he warms up to Plagg, Chris, and Marinette quickly. Plagg takes him as his own quickly and even gets kinda jealous when he uses different miraculous.

Chris is more social, he hasn't had that many friends since he moved a lot but has always managed to find someone. He gets along with Luxx well, but sometimes he overuses the miraculous and tires himself out.

They get along well no matter who they are. Stephan and Lion get along the best. They get along with Ladybug well. Gato and Ladybug are Lion's biggest fans. Gato usually clashes with Ladybug, mostly thanks to how they were introduced to each other.

Again, thank you so much for these compliments I really appreciate them, they make me ecstatic!!

[pianostarinwonderland]

Azul's Vulnerability

Happy birthday to me, and as a way to celebrate this, I'm going to be talking about my biggest gripes on how people view Azul in general 🤩🤩🤩 ok I'm not gonna attack anyone but I do want to speak about something that has been on my mind for a while

Having exposed myself to a lot of Azul content, I've seen a very common trend in the fandom when it comes to how people write about him. Much of the written content I see always has something to do with Azul being a so-called crybaby, particularly in x reader fics and headcanons. Reader would comfort Azul as he's crying, and they'd wipe his tears away while assuaging his insecurities. This also influences the NSFW content that Azul has as well. Reader would be the one to top Azul, and they would be the one in control in the bedroom.

I want to preface first that this is all valid. Write whatever you want. I don't have the right to stop any of you from writing Azul like this. NSFW especially is something that's really valid because a lot of the times, females want to experience having agency in the bedroom (let's not deny it, a majority of x readers are fem readers). In fact, fics and hcs where readers can comfort Azul stem from a desire to be the person to give him the comfort that Twisted Wonderland never gave him. We all want to be that person whom Azul can feel vulnerable to. We want to comfort him and to be close to him, and this is the best way we can do that.

But with that in mind, those fics and hcs also reflect the way people see Azul. People tend to write him as that crybaby. Whenever people talk about Azul, that's the one trait that they tend to attribute to him. I've heard people say it as an insult to him or to make fun of him as well. I'd even say that in the NSFW space, people choose to bottom Azul for that reason. And as someone who loves Azul, I really want people to see that Azul is more than just "a crybaby".

In fact, I would argue that the Azul we know now is not a crybaby. After his overblot, when everyone compliments his notes, Jade and Floyd comment on how Azul looked like he was about to cry. But pay attention to the way that they comment on it:

Floyd: What now? Azul, are you getting a little misty eyed? Jade: My my, have you gone back to being the ink-spitting crybaby? [shel_bb book 3 chapter 35]

The kind of wording in Jade's comment implies that Azul hasn't cried in a while. If he still cried often, Jade would have said something along the lines of "are you going to cry again".

And besides, if one is ashamed of crying, there would be a resolve built to stop themselves from crying. Personally speaking, I have a hard time crying unless something big happens because I had family either telling me to stop crying or laugh at me for crying over something trivial. Azul had been made fun of for the way he cries as a child—that has to have some traumatic impact on him, and it would make him hate crying and tell himself to never cry again. People who can cry easily are those who don't think it's a bad thing to cry.

There's this one anon ask that I will never forget that is related to this topic. It was one that a friend received, and it was a hc request to write Azul and Vil "being their vulnerable selves". As in, they explicitly said that the kind of confidence they exude is all a facade to hide the real emotional vulnerability underneath them, thereby saying that their vulnerable insecure selves are the real Azul and Vil and their confidence is faked.

A Vil essay can be made another day and probably by another person, but for now, we focus on Azul.

First of all, this will never be forgotten from memory because it shocks me that someone thinks Azul's confidence is wholly faked just to hide his insecurities. Now I'm not saying there's no merit to it nor that it's totally wrong. It's true that Azul's charm feels plastic. It's true that Azul does have a strong front that hides a painful past. But it doesn't mean that the Azul now who makes deals, runs a restaurant, and achieves high grades is not the real Azul.

What I want people (and most especially Azul himself but that's another post entirely) to realize is that he's grown to be so much more than the little octopus who used to be bullied and made fun of by other merfolk. The charisma and confidence he has is real. He worked hard to develop his social skills, and that hard work cannot be faked. I think if anything, the part that would feel fake is the part where he chooses to be Azul the businessman and not Azul as in Azul.

And Azul as in Azul is not just his insecurities. It's Azul with his wit and his strategical mindset. It's Azul with his joking remarks and his anger. Chapter 6 and Glorious Masquerade show Azul's real self the most in the game. When he shows his enthusiasm over City of Flowers' food culture in GloMas. When he teases Riddle during the part where the OB boys were playing video games after their experiments in ch6. When Azul roasts Deuce in response to a comment Deuce made about financier cake matching Azul in GloMas. When Azul gets mad at Riddle because he disagreed with his way of doing things in the tower chapters of ch6. There's just so much to Azul.

And lastly, I want to address the idea of Azul's vulnerability. Loads of times, when we think about vulnerability, we think about the sides we wish to not show to people, but we tend to associate those with insecurities and tears. Maybe it's just me, but Azul's vulnerabilities don't always have to manifest in the form of tears. Look at how he acts in narrating his flashback in 3-34 and in the way he reacted when Riddle in chapter 6 says that he can never be top 1 in their year because Azul runs his restaurant too. He's not bursting to tears as he's face to face with the insecurities—he's angry. He's angry about the circumstances he was placed in, angry at the people who hurt him. He's angry at Riddle for essentially saying everything he does was a waste.

It's also important to remember that to the general public, Azul keeps a certain image of himself. Capable of helping. Unable to be stepped on. So in a sense, anything that contradicts his image or even has the potential to harm it is in some way a vulnerability for him.

I think giving Azul a bunch of cuddles as he's crying is really cute. But you can also write about how Azul would open himself up to you—late night rant sessions about certain people, a secret about himself that not many people know. Something to remember as well is that he likes to be in control. Azul will have a tight hold on the kind of image he shows to people. Azul will choose carefully what people should hear and should not hear. So imagine him just letting himself be around you, with little thought about keeping that control of himself... that in itself is a sign of Azul opening up to you.

I acknowledge that this is a little bit messy, but I do want people to see that Azul is more than the breakdown that he had in chapter 3. He's got a more vibrant personality than that. And I would love to see more fics that explore his character a lot more, especially in romance fics.

[taegularities]

let me start by saying I apologize for the novel I’m about to write.

RIDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

OH MY FUCKING GODDDDDDD

this was. hands down. the best chapter so far. and I am NOT just saying that bc IT finally happened, ok?

like… everything about it was so beautiful and I usually hate pregnancy scares/arcs but it didn’t feel out of place or forced at all and oh my GOD jungkook !!! like I cried literally the whole way through from when she went missing until the end of the chapter. I didn’t think it was possible to physically feel how much two fictional characters loves another but you did it, Rid. you have breathed so much life into them that I felt like it was playing out right in front of me.

and even before the angst when it’s just them appreciating being together after the move, it was so wonderful to read. sometimes stories get boring when the drama ebbs but it isn’t like that with them bc their emotions are just beautiful to see play out.

and then… you sly cutie… he finally fucking SAID it. and it was so worth the wait of course, and it just made me cry so hard bc I think we all need to hear that right? that even if we stay broken forever someone will still love us? and more importantly SHE needed to hear that. and she better say it back after that stunt she pulled 👊🏼

also usually I don’t really think of the real life counterpart when reading fanfics, at least not unless it’s meant to be set in our world. but this chapter was so jungkook, wasn’t it?

like… in the bathroom scene, when he’s asking to be let in and telling her he’s gonna stay I started thinking about how that’s what his lives are for us, ya know? at least I know for me when i’m at my lowest and metaphorically locked in a bathroom I get that notification and it’s exactly like him knocking on my door. and even the ily confession just reminded me so much of things he’s actually said about him wanting us to be happy and that he loves us unconditionally. maybe I just miss the real jungkook too much… either way. you’re characterization is magical and I will probably never move on from him.

I feel like I actually have so much more to say but my brain isn’t spitting it out… i’m sure i’ll be back.

also, not to brag(?) but these last few chapters of them being official have really reminded me of my boyfriend and I and I think that’s why i’ve loved them even more than the past chapters. it just makes my heart really warm.

anyway…. you’re a goddamn genius and I love you (that’s a reference now 😂)

the best chapter so far?? ALYSSA 😭 also not using the ily as a reference im gonna sue you fkjshjkfaasf

ahhh i know, a lot of people do not dig pregnancy scares and i totally understand, but i'm still so happy you guys gave it a chance and enjoyed it. honestly, kook's reaction to it was my main concern and point, and i was low(highkey lol) excited to finally get to it bc he's just so… ugh. a dream. i cried a lot, as well </3 i'm so emotional bc everyone's been saying they could feel the love through that scene alone and it makes me sooooo ahhhh 😭

and the fluff 🥺🦋 ngl, i was extremely scared that cmi might get boring or less interesting now that the angst is over, but… it's really so encouraging to know that you still love it so much. and also to know that the wait for THAT THING was worth it!! i agonised over that scene bc i needed that big moment to be super special eeee 😭 he'll be here, no matter how broken she is, and… vice versa :( she better say it back fr lmaooo!!

that chapter was so jungkook? this is the biggest fucking compliment ever 😭 i always try sooo hard to capture their personalities well (especially with cmi11.5!!), so this makes my heart flutter :( <3 reassuring her and loving her is definitely a jk thing to do. he has so much affection in his heart for the people around him sigh.

omg you already said so much, but if you wanna come back for more,,, gladly hehe 🥺 you and your boyfriend sound so so sweet together!! happy you could see glimpses of yourselves in this one. here's to so much more.. thank you again, love <3333