#was she just blase about the whole thing

[backintimeforstuff]

the most insane thing scully ever did was to continue to live in her georgetown appartment FOR YEARS after melissa was gunned down in the doorway there. like was she just stepping over the threshold everday going yep. nothing to see here. everything is fine. let me just answer the door to the pizza delivery guy and stand in the exact spot where my sister was murdered.

[stevethehairington]

okay im 6 episodes into fellow travelers and damn this really is a WHOLE different thing than the book. like they kept a FEW of the same characters and like some of the very most basic foundations of it but d a m n they changed SO much

[goblinwithartsupplies]

This is not my original post it belongs to @caffeinatedflumadiddlebutpjo who deleted their account but it’s so good and needs to be preserved

I like that there is just... A noticeable gap in the gods' under standing of mortal children. Like, Zeus really accused a TWELVE-YEAR-OLD of stealing his master bolt and the only justification I have for this is "Well, Hermes stole Apollo's cattle right after birth so that tracks".

But now I have a theory that the gods don't rediv understand how mortal

children work and that's why they're so blase about sending them to do ridiculous nonsense?

Like...

Zeus: What do you mean 'first word'? Why would they only speak one word?

Artemis: Humans can only cry when they are born.

Zeus: Nonsense. When vou were born you didn't cry. You delivered your brother and then came to me to ask for a birthday present.

Artemis: Humans aren't the same though. They can't walk or talk for many months. When they do speak it is only in small, short words.

Zeus: …that's not true

Artemis: I'm afraid it is

Zeus, under his breath: What the fuck

Later on...

Zeus: Did you know human babies can't speak when thev're tirst born?

Poseidon: that's so sad. Are demigods like that?

Zeus: I have no idea.

Poseidon: Mavbe we should ask around more. Athena was saying something about brain development.

Zeus: Their... THEIR BRAINS AREN'T DEVELOPED?!?!

Poseidon: I guess

Zeus: THESE HUMANS ARE WALKING AROUND WITHOUT FULLY FORMED BRAINS?!

Poseidon: I mean, so are you and I don't complain.

The quest continues...

Hermes: So... you're telling me that human kids don't know how to fend themselves at all? They need to be taught? I mean, fighting, of course, but outside of that???

Poseidon: Yeah, I thought it was like fish

where you just naturally know what you’re supposed to do. But apparently they have no idea and need to be shown everything

Hermes: I... that's awful. Why?

Poseidon: I don't know.

Suddenly all the gods are very concerned...

Ares: You mean to tell me that my kids are probably traumatized from war??

Hermes: That's what the research shows. Human kids aren't supposed to handle that kind of stuff and demigods are more human than we anticipated.

Ares: But... War?

Hermes: Idk what to tell you, bud. I'm beginning to understand why they hate us tho.

Everyone is naturally panicking

Demeter: YOU SENT MONSTERS AFTER MY BABIES WHEN THEY HAD NO BRAINS AND COULDN'T EVEN READ?!?

Hecate: HOW WAS I SUPPOSED TO KNOW THAT DEMIGODS WEREN'T BORN KNOWING HOW TO READ!?!?!

Athena: Our children all have dyslexia.

Demeter: YOU LET YOUR DAUGHTERRUN AWAY WHEN SHE WAS SEVEN! SILENCE!

Athena:…And? She is very mature and had my protection. I'm not like the rest of you. rhave done my researcn on humans and led her accordingly.

Apollo: Think of it this way, Athena. She would have just started losing baby teeth when she left home.

Athena: What?

Apollo: According to my son, they shed teeth. Like, they fall out and get new, bigger ones when they re old enougn. Didn't you know that?

Hades: That's disgusting. Our children do that?

Athena: I... That's not true! Your son is a liar!

Apollo: I AM THE GOD OF TRUTH!

It's a whole thing on Olympus

Hephaestus: Wait, they NEED to eat?!?! It isn't just for fun???

Hermes: What about water???

Dionysus: How do none ot vou know these things. Maybe you all should be camp directors for awhile-

Hades: Eight hours? They need EIGHT hours of sleep? A Day? There's no way NICO Is getting that much..

Dionysus: Oh, are they? Yeah lol. None of them are getting that much.

Aphrodite: Oh my gods... What happens if they don't get enough? Do they become ugly? ARE YOU GOING TO MAKE MY KIDS UGLY?!

Zeus: They're so fragile. Why are they even allowed out of the camp?! Chiron, explain!

Chiron: You... Uh, ask them to do stuff for you?

All of Olympus: *flips a table*

[furubabasket]

dunmeshi posting today (spoilers ahead for manga marcille stuff)

.

.

.

i feel like there is so much to say and analyze about the fact that marcille's biggest--realest--fear is outliving everyone around her... specifically within the world of dungeon meshi that kui has created.

marcille's fear will certainly happen. (maybe not with falin, if her lifespan has been dragonified, but there's no way for us or for falin or marcille to know this yet.) and marcille has already watched every single one of her close friends die--temporarily. sometimes the circumstances have been dicey (or in falin's case nearly impossible) in ways that caused mounting dread and very real fear (in a way that seems uniquely upsetting in a world which has gotten somewhat blase about dungeon deaths--to have casual hope and to lose it), not even mentioning the initial shock, but so far, loss has not been final for marcille in recent years. that makes it hit all the harder when she has to contend with the possibility of falin being Dead For Good (such as when they couldn't find her bones in the dragon's stomach).

the thing that makes me absolutely sick about this is how marcille ends up just... having to swallow that her fear will come to pass. she just has to accept that both the "fix" she hoped for (the possibility of equalizing racial lifespans) is unethical and the "fix" she ALREADY USED (dungeon revivification) is impossible to implement everywhere. she just has to accept that no matter what, even in a world where death and loss isn't always final, she is doomed to experience it anyway or else succumb to the abusive and addictive pull of the demons' "security" like thistle and mithrun. (sidenote: all of the dungeon lords being elves, iirc, is telling and tragic.) I love the ending of dunmeshi and find it so compelling, and yet this is something that sticks out to me as so, so importantly "unresolved" even if I can't fully articulate it. marcille is not over this, and she can't be--while everyone else looks to the future, by definition hers is darker. that's going to take a lot more time to come to terms with. the moral is that whole "eating is the special privilege of the living," right? the moral comes down to "life involves hurting and being hurt, and that is the way of things, no matter how we run from it... but that doesn't have to be soul-crushingly depressing." marcille's friends are aware of the burden she has. they talk with her about her fears and comfort her without minimizing them. they help her feel less alone in what is a completely alienating existence. it's so fucking sad. it's horrifically sad! she got to save falin--but for how long? she got to save falin--but what about the next one? she got to save falin--why is that okay, but she isn't allowed to "have" everyone else? saving falin was only possible because of the help of a demon and forbidden magic, and while it's presented creepily, as readers we're certainly meant to root for falin's return. it's a "good" thing. it's the entire point of the first act, and the entire point of the very last. it's the good ending. it's happy! it's hard-won! and yet marcille needs to learn to accept death.

this dissonance is intentional, of course, and that's what makes it so fucking interesting. of course marcille goes crazy for a second. of course she struggles and obsesses. everyone else, functionally, gets to have what she wants! everyone else gets to "have" the dead now, no strings attached, no abnormal amount of future grief to carry. (for the opposite, past loss, imagine being kabru: being raised from the dead--watching your friends get casually revived--paying for the privilege--and thinking of your long-dead mother, who didn't get this chance, and wondering how easy it could have been.) in the future, when marcille's losses come, the dungeon's rules won't be around to protect her anymore from that cold, dull finality. it'll be real when it wasn't before. and she just has to be cool with that. man. MAN.

[adonis-koo]

sweet nothing • 2

(in which a disagreement turns into mess)

↳ Description: being a guest at the Jeon Estate after a mishap of being kidnapped and dragged into your brothers affairs isn’t all that bad. Truth be told it brings you a lot closer to the mobster and owner of the estate Jeon Jungkook himself.

His two rules are simple, don’t cause trouble and don’t give him a hard time. Somehow you manage to constantly do both in the most endearing way despite being pregnant and waddling around most of the time.

↳ Pairing: Jungkook/reader, ???/reader

↳ Genre: slice of life AU, mafia!AU, pregnancy, there’s like…a little bit of a plot but not a lot, future smut? maybe? it's very domestic!

Word Count: 2.7k

Previous | Next

Note: back with another part!!! she's short and just a tad angsty but the ending is cute so I allowed it! <3

“I want to paint.” 

Jungkook’s eyes glanced up at your somewhat antsy figure that sat across the small table from him, though dinner had been quiet it wasn’t a bad thing, he had just been buried in work more than usual lately.

Not just in his narcotic dealings but in his company as well, which meant spending his evenings and well into the night still trying to play catch up.

“Then paint.” Jungkook replied plainly, his eyes lowering back down to his monthly figures deducting what profit he had made between his input vs output and of course taxes- not that he paid them, but it was good to get an idea of just how large of a sum he was indirectly evading

Your lips twisted into a pout, it had taken you the last fifteen minutes to state your request, you hadn’t figured he’d be so blase about it, “No I need the materials to paint. There’s no supplies here, if I could go back home...” 

Jungkook finally set his set of papers down as he sighed, rubbing his face tiredly, “Just tell Jimin what you want for supplies, he’ll work out what you can buy.’” He waved a hand dismissively making your pout grow, now crossing your arms over your stomach. 

“Painting is expensive Jungkook,” You replied firmly, “I can’t ask you to buy any of that for-” 

You stopped at the sight of Jungkook pulling out his wallet from his back pocket, grabbing the black amex card as he tossed it in your direction, “Pin is 9207, go crazy.” 

“Jungkook!” You scolded him softly.

Jungkook raised his brows, “Bankrupt me if it means you staying out of trouble for one damn minute.” 

You sulked, it had been going on for two and a half weeks of you living in the Jeon Estate and it was evident Jungkook was still irritated at the whole stint last week where you had gotten stuck in his secret library but it wasn’t your fault…!

Well maybe a little bit, you shouldn’t have been snooping about but if you were going to be living here temporarily, then it would only make sense that you got acquainted with your surroundings. You glared at the card before snatching it off the table, standing up abruptly making Jungkook’s eyes dart back to your figure, now looking put off and irritated as you left without a single word. 

He looked towards Yeonjun who had been standing ideally by, “What the fuck was that about?” His lip twitched, “Any other woman would’ve came at just the sight of that card.” 

Yeonjun frowned, “With all due respect, you aren’t the most well spoken person Sir.” 

Jungkook’s nostrils flared, “And she’s been a headache and a fucking half, I meant what I said, if she can keep herself busy it would do me and the rest of the damn estate a favor.” 

Yeonjun said no more, feeling as though if he divulged any more of his thoughts he would once again be put under the cold pressure of a gun barrel, which he had already undergone three times this week, he’d rather not make it a forth, if possible.

—

You had been excited for your supplies to arrive, you had wasted no expense in nice canvases, primer, the expensive paints you’d only ever browse rather than buy, and of course brushes, but the finer quality ones that wouldn’t shed. 

And then among that you got pencils, charcoal, multi media paper, sketchpads. 

In fact, you felt a little bad spending over two thousand dollars within a half an hour, but then after looking at the black amex card for less than ten seconds, you remembered this was Jeon Jungkook’s bank account. 

The CEO who was apart of the underground mafia, who owned eight sports cars, two motorcycles, a fucking estate and three vacation homes, one which was in Greece, that he had confirmed himself and who knew what else. 

He had an black amex card for a reason. 

And then you promptly shut down any feelings of guilt. This was the very least he could do for acting like a total asshole to you. 

You wiped your brow that had sweat forming on it as you sighed, it was late morning but the heat of August was at its height and you could feel it. But you had gained a lot of inspiration from the gardens, so you had sat out with your supplies under one of the large willow trees next to the garden. 

It shielded you from the sun’s bright rays but good god was it humid outside. And carrying a miniature bowling ball in your stomach was making you a thousand times hotter than it would've been if you hadn’t been pregnant to begin with. 

Focusing back in on your painting you began working on the petals of the lilies you had first carefully sketched out before beginning your work on painting them. 

“You certainly made sure to spare no expense.” 

Your brush paused and your teeth gritted before you inhaled slowly, resuming your work as you ignored the one person you had no desire to talk to at the moment. 

“If you had just said so earlier I would’ve gotten you a whole studio.” Jungkook commented, peering over you at your work as he stuffed his hands in his pocket. 

“Oh so I won’t bother you and I’d stay out of trouble for’ one damn minute’?” You snapped as you glared over your shoulder. 

Jungkook was not dressed at all like you normally see him, he’s usually clean cut, in a button up of some kind and slacks, but today he’s in a loose white shirt with tattoos on display and gray sweatpants, hair messy and tied up indicating he had slept in, the first you had ever seen of such a case. 

Jungkook scoffed as he leaned back a little, “In case you forgot you had an entire house hunting you down for three hours last week. I remember it clear as day, so yeah sue me I want you to have some hobbies.” 

You groaned as you stood up, albeit a bit wobbly as you grabbed the tree for support, “Well I’m sorry for being such a pain in the ass! I was the one that got ripped out of my life and told that I have to stay here otherwise I’d be kidnapped, or killed or both! I’m not allowed to go to work, I’m not allowed to leave the estate, and now I’m not allowed to even walk around! I’m pregnant, not dying!” 

“Yeah well you’ll be fuckin’ dead at the rate you’re going doll,” Jungkook growled back, frustration evident on his face, “You were gonna get involved whether you wanted too or not because that’s what happens when people associate with rats.” 

“Don’t bring my brother into this!” 

“He’s the cunt to blame for you being stuck at my estate, sitting here painting in my gardens on my funds. You know what? You’re right Y/n, you should probably be thanking him right now because I know a lot of other fuckin’ men who wouldn’t be putting up with your bitching and crying right now except or me.” Jungkook replied coldly. 

You both glared at one another for a long moment before he noticed the slightest quiver in your lips and your eyes just a little glassy, “Fuck you.” 

Was all you said before indignantly walking away, though it was more of an awkward waddle to get out of the heat, but it was hardly to blame from the humidity anymore. 

“I know you’re a prideful fuck but c’mon man,” Yoongi took a long sip of his stiff vodka, watching Jungkook damn near kill his steak a second time as he aggressively stabbed it, yanking his knife through it like it was his enemies neck, “You can’t blame her for being mad.” 

“I gave her my fuckin’ amex card, what is she so pissed about?” Jungkook glared at his food, still cutting it up. He had purposefully chosen to go out tonight and have dinner with Yoongi to not have to see you. 

“You can’t buy someone’s heart Kook.” Yoongi replied.

“Who mentioned shit about hearts?” Jungkook scoffed, looking mildly amused for a moment before his expression soured once more, “She had no right to get pissy with me, what I’m doing is necessary to protect her ass. And she can’t get fuckin’ mad at me when she’s the one that’s always getting into trouble.”

“It was one time.” Yoongi scoffed as he reared his head back, the blonde shook his hair to get it out of his eyes, “You wanna know what I think this is about?”

“Quite frankly? No I don’t.” 

“Well too bad, I think it’s because you like her,” Yoongi pointed a finger at him with a gummy grin as Jungkook violently shook his head, “You fuckin’ like her and you can’t stand it. Or are you mad it isn’t you who got to fuck her raw and knock her up, after all you both knew each other-”

Yoongi’s sentence was cut off by Jungkook grabbing him by the collar of his shirt, yanking him close, hair covering his eyes as he spoke, “ I might be mad at her but don’t fucking talk about her like she’s some whore. And we might be partners but don’t think for one minute I won’t fuck you up if you say shit about her.” 

It was silent for a long moment and Yoongi’s grin only widened further, as if what he said had been confirmed. 

This made Jungkook scowl as he let go of him, “I just need to find Wonho and squeeze the fucker dry, then she can go back to her little boring life she so desperately wants.”

“If she’s such a headache then why not just let her go now? Who gives a shit,” Yoongi shrugged, straightening his collar back out, “I mean really Jungkook, you have no obligation to keep her there, she’s not your responsibility.” 

Yoongi glanced at him curiously but he said no more, this made Yoongi’s lips twist into a smirk as he took another drink. He didn’t say that this wasn’t like Jungkook to do this for a reason, because it was just like him. In fact this was the most Jungkook thing he could ever do. 

It’s what made Yoongi respect him, not only this but it made him much more interesting to work with than anyone else he had ever met, aside from their boss. 

“Talk all the shit you want Jungkook,” Yoongi paused for a moment, “But I think you’d both feel better if you reconciled.” 

Jungkook had taken a long drive after his dinner in thought of Yoongi’s words, thinking long and hard before he decided that Yoongi was right. 

He needed to reconcile with you. He had been stressed beyond normal and he had taken that out on you in the heat of the moment and that wasn’t fair to you, you didn’t ask for any of this. Jungkook had never imagined himself as someone who would get married, unless it was for the sake of his position, his company, or his ties in the mafia. 

And he sure as hell didn’t consider ever having children- unless they were bastards of a whore, in which he wouldn’t be surprised and took no claim over. 

So to say he was baffled and surprised at how quickly he had become stressed over you was a surprise to say the least. He wasn’t a man of attachment, but the idea of you being hurt, kidnapped or killed had an unimaginable amount of rage fill him. 

It had to be because you were just pregnant, you were carrying a baby that indeed did nothing wrong. Once you gave birth you wouldn’t be his problem anymore and neither would the kid. 

He resolved for that internally. 

Jungkook had come home to find out that you had made quite the stir in the estate as you had taken his words from earlier that day and did something about it. Finding a spare bedroom in the eastern side that would make a good studio.

Furniture was still left outside the room and the door was shut. 

Jungkook groaned as he ran his hand through his hair. He was many things, he was a businessman, a killer, a prideful person, intimidating to most. But he was not someone who apologized. 

In fact it was a surprise you had said what you did and walked away still alive, but it was only because it was you. Jungkook told himself, if that had been anyone else, if it had been any of his underlings, he would've executed them immediately. 

Jungkook leaned against the wall as he sighed, was he just going soft? 

Finally he knocked on the door, “Y/n…can we talk?” 

“Go away.” 

He tucked his tongue into his cheek at the muffled voice, he knew you’d be sulking, but he wouldn’t describe himself as patient nor soft, he banged on the door once more, “I’m not going until you talk to me.” 

“Then have fun sleeping outside.” You called back. 

Jungkook haughtily puffed his chest, teeth gritted as he glared at the wood separating you both. Muttering multiple foul sentences under his breath he leaned against the wall across from the door, if that’s what it took, then that’s what he’d do. 

Time had passed silently and the estate had fallen quiet as the night took over, many people asleep and a few guards had passed by bowing in respect but not daring to ask why their boss was half asleep, sitting on the ground with his back against the door. 

Jungkook was nodding off when he heard it, the sound of glass breaking, a loud tumble and multiple smacks of sound against wood. 

His heartrate had spiked immediately and he jolted right off the ground, “Y/n!?” He called out, but after a second of no reply he immediately opening the door to an unsightly scene, colored water spilt all over the ground and paints strown about. 

The easel knocked over with a beautiful bouquet painted on it- though a hole had been punching through it, now having ruined it. 

And you in the middle, covered in pain looking tired and thoroughly heartbroken at the scene. You had played a good game at not crying but right now it wasn’t working as your lips quivered and you softly wept into your hands. 

“C’mere.” Was all Jungkook said, stepping over the glass, carefully helping you up as you attempted to walk, “No, no you’ll cut your feet.” He scolded you softly, picking you up as he walked you over to the desk, setting you on top of it, “Is the baby okay?” 

His hand cautiously hovered over your swollen tummy though he didn’t feel quite comfortable to rest his hand on it. Fat tears trickled down your cheeks as you nodded, “I fell asleep and ended up knocking some things over, woke up in surprise and fell off my chair.” 

Jungkook sighed in relief before he grabbed a clean washcloth and the bottle of water on your desk, pouring it out he started cleaning the paint off your face, he paused as you both looked at one another for a long moment. 

“What am I gonna do with you?” He resigned as he tenderly thumbed the tears from your eyes, this made a soft whimper escape you as you closed your eyes, more tears trickling down your cheeks.

“‘m sorry.”

Jungkook only hushed you as he cleaned up your face before moving to your arms and then your legs, “What I said earlier today was unacceptable and cruel, I apologize for letting my temper get the best of me,” He sighed as he stared at your tear stained face, “I was being too harsh with you…How about we go out once a week? I’m sure you’re getting cabin fever.” 

You sniffled as you wiped your cheeks, “You wanna go out with me?” 

“If time allows,” Jungkook replied, “It seems like I can hardly trust anyone else, the moment you're out of my sight the moment this seems to keep happening.” He gestured around, a light smile on his face at your pout. 

“Anywhere…?” You peered at him a bit shy.

“Anywhere.” 

[tvxcue]

hm i was going to say that late seasons spn was very blase abt "redemption" and i think that's true, late seasons in general does not take itself as seriously as the early seasons do and its approach to redemption is a part of that but redemption is also very weird throughout the whole show, partly bc its moral core is so confused. like white supremacy and eugenics are a central part of the show's morality but it never wants to confront what that means, even as it acknowledges it every once in a while. and like the thing is that calling the show's morality confused only works if u look outside the show, bc within it, it's incredibly consistent. it's just that we know that its writers and the ppl that worked on it are not white supremacists, they are just white liberals who are enamored with the violence of hunting in spn AND the moral ambiguity of it (until they decide there is no ambiguity and hunting is noble and good and completely heroic) so they play with these concepts without actually wanting to admit what they mean.

and so the idea of redemption becomes tied to atonement for deviance and that remains pretty constant throughout the show. it's just that late seasons fully embrace the protagonist plot armor and that means that sam and dean and cas are never wrong (unless dean decides they are because he's the ultimate moral authority) and anyone who takes issue with them has to change instead. even when they are obviously in the wrong. so claire can't hate cas forever, mary has to learn to be their mother, kevin and kaia have to forgive sam and dean.

and those who did transgress, those who were wrong, only need to align themselves with the winchesters and their desires to deserve forgiveness and redemption and grudges beyond that don't matter. of course ketch is their friend now. sam just needs to get over himself and work with lucifer until he betrays them again and then it's everyone's responsibility. well cas feels bad about what he did to claire now, so she should let go. if the winchesters forgave him, why can't she?

[pepsiiwho]

okay well what if apollo knew hypnos before his eternal sleep (all the stuff we went over) but wasnt able to tell him how he felt. are you with me

Lord Apollo's spacial awareness was something to be in awe of, truly. The attendant had just walked into his room to refill his many chalices and restock his fruit bowls when she took note of the god. Basked in light, as he ought to be, Apollo sat at his massive window sill and stared into the distance, captivated by whatever was looking back at him. From behind he seemed almost peaceful but as she got closer a distinct boredom radiated off his person. A bored god, she learned, was a displeased one.

without looking at her, Apollo called out in a dismissive tone. The same one he used when calling for his less favorable hounds "you."

"Sire?"

The god stares out of his window, leaning on a open palm and glaring at the soft light streaming onto his perfect face. He looked like something out of a painting, something beyond even godhood. He looked like whatever came after divinity. The servant, still new to the whole 'attending to gods' thing, found herself unable to find a fitting word to describe his silhouette past— Apollo. "The last missive I sent down to that wretched place, what happened to it?"

He'd been asking about that message over and over for the last hour, unable to rest with a simple "we don't yet know". The last person to give such a blase answer was thrown from the window, the sun bleaching their skin as they fell from the heavens. "uh, it goes unopened sire."

".... unopened..." his glare hardens, going from mild distaste to something more sour. His lip puckers, as if trying to will a bad taste out of his mouth and he sneers at whatever he's looking at. "When did you last check?"

"8 minutes ago, my lord"

With the flick of his wrist he dismisses the aid, refusing to look from his view. "Check again. Leave me unattended until it's opened"

she leaves, nodding and Apollo is alone. Miraculously.

That miserable god stuck in that miserable domain forced to do miserable work below his station instead of what matters-- responding to Apollos letters. To imagine a god or mortal too busy to respond to Apollo when he's calling for them specifically is almost too much for his imagination. He might very well wring the incarnate's neck next time they speak, if he doesn't kiss it first. Damn it all. Apollo had half a mind to shine his divine light down into those hellish depths and blind everything in his path, just to prove a point. Perhaps he'll sear his image in sleep's eyelid, willing himself to be seen even when all else is black under that childish mask.

The thought does bring a smile to his face. Just barely.

FIC SOON

[kcsplace]

After his divorce some of Trent's colleagues give him a gift certificate to a psychic. After weeks of it sitting on his desk one of the other journos guilts him into using it - "stop wasting our money, wanker" - and off he goes, figuring at worst he can get some sort of article out of it.for the fucking Light Life or whatever it was that the new editor wanted them all submitting to once a month.

The psychic is clearly a lunatic, but he endures it all with a smile because he's going to eviscerate her in print and stop her from taking another penny from the grieving and the lost. Or, drunk journo-twats.

Its not until he's leaving that she throws out, blase as anything, "oh and your soulmate is a man named Ed, hes not from around here"

Hes halfway home when he stops into a pub and decides, well, he has to disprove the whole thing, so yells out "IS ED HERE??"

Only for the good looking, moustachioed man at the bar to raise his hand. "I win something?" Trent wants to scream; the man sure as shit ain't in Kansas anymore

Bellying up to the bar, Trent introduces himself, and then somehow it's four hours later and the barmaid is throwing them out with a twinkle in her eyes

Standing awkwardly on the pavement, staring at the Green, Trent's about to open his mouth when Ed starts talking

"I don't know about you, Trent, but this is not how i saw my night going. No sir. When you walked in, I thought to myself "now, that's the most handsome man I've ever seen, and then you asked for a Ted and I just-"

"I'm sorry, what??"

"You asked for a Ted."

"I asked for an Ed."

"Oh. Well, then we're in a predicament."

"Not Ed?"

"Ted."

"You're sure?"

"Since 1974"

"Shit."

"My mom did try calling me Eddie for a bit, does that count?"

"I…I don't know."

"You don't know?"

So Trent explains the whole thing to increasingly amused Ted.

"I see your problem. Well, I would like to see you again Trent, but I understand if you wanna find your Ed, and I might not believe in a higher power, but I sure don't wanna piss off one that might believe in me. But see, i believe in rom-communism, so hows this? In two weeks, if a Ted is good enough, I'll meet you back here. 8pm."

[authortobenamedlater]

I think I posted vaguely about this during S2 but after watching part of S1E2 over I want to post not-vaguely.

This is my simultaneously over-detailed and half-baked “hormone pellet” theory.

I don’t think they were specifically designed to suppress EMOTION, though I’m sure that’s the line Halsey fed everyone. I think the pellets were designed to suppress CURIOSITY.

I extrapolated this from Cobalt’s interactions with Silver. Cobalt Team is clearly “emotional.” They aren’t robots like Silver was early on. But Cobalt shows no curiosity about their mission. Even when John is pressing Val about why Cobalt would be sent on a “fix-it mission,” Val just says “these are the orders” or something (someone correct me if my memory is way off here, it’s been a minute). You can say all Spartans have followed orders that don’t make sense, so this is nothing new, but John obviously sees something off and Val is pretty blase about it all.

Bringing this back to S1, when Kai asks Vannak why Silver is going after John, Vannak says “Halsey’s orders. We’ll find out when we need to.” Similarly, when Kai asks why the Spartan program is now under Miranda, Vannak just says “It wasn’t in the brief.” Kai also asks him on Eridanus “do you ever wonder why the aliens want the artifact and want to kill us” and he just says “no.” And when Kwan is talking about how John killed her mother, John just says “the orders changed” like that was enough for him.

The whole hormone pellet thing is pretty slapdash honestly and I wouldn’t be surprised if the people who came up with the idea never thought of this themselves. But it seems to be the running theme. Spartans are incurious, especially about their orders and why they’re fighting. Given how Halsey designed her Spartans in this universe, it makes some sense. She needs them to simultaneously be fighting machines and docile and controllable, so she took away their curiosity. They never question their missions, never notice the holes in their memories, never wonder how they got here, never ask why they’re fighting or if the fight is good. They just suit up and do as they’re ordered.

You know this is a great Silver Timeline Central discussion. I think I’ll crosspost it there. Hashtag shameless plug.

[alexiethymia]

JSHK 105 reaction

Haven't done one of these in a while! My favorite panels in no particular order.

I just love how in the drama and morbidity of it all, Hanako's trait of unconsciously? constantly? touching Yashiro has remained consistent. And Nene's blase attitude about it (and the blood, like wow this girl has become desensitized and that's another worrisome conversation for later). No wonder she feels as if they haven't really changed at all despite her confessing her feelings, since after all they've been like this since the beginning! There's just something sweet about Hanako wiping blood off of her cheek with his sleeve as a parallel to when he wiped away her tears back then.

AidaIro does it again! This is such a gorgeous, ethereal, and unsettling drawing. Speaking off this whole arc, this brings to mind the Mokke of the Dead arc. I had this theory that there was something about Nene that allowed her to purify things (as opposed to exorcising them), so who knows! Maybe (once again) salt water she touches could work against Natsuhiko's blood? And the current flower zombie plague? I thought that special trait of hers had something to do with being a kannagi, but now that I recall, even Teru seemed surprised during the Mokke of the Dead chapter. If this special trait of hers had something to do with being the kannagi, then Teru would have expected it. So maybe it has something to do with her now being a (half-) mermaid? Or perhaps there's something more to Nene's past we're not privy to yet.

And finally, last and actually my most favorite! Oh wow, Hanako's most definitely traumatized. Now we know how he would have reacted if the akanene kiss succeeded. And actually this is the worst duo to find him in his (arguably) most vulnerable and saddened stated to date. But I don't care! I am so excited for the potential of this trio like you wouldn't believe! There's isn't even the enemy of my enemy is my friend here since all three of them hate each other's guts haha.

Speaking of, I always wondered why Akane persisted with the 'Honorable' despite hating Hanako, but then again this is the guy who still consistently calls Teru 'Student Council President' and Kou as 'Minamoto kouhai' so despite how outwardly he will be blunt with those he dislikes, he still keeps to the formalities.

And Aoi not being at the auditorium is most certainly a Checkhov's gunman type of situation. You'd normally think that meant that she was frozen yet I don't think that's the case. I can understand why Akane would be free from the time freeze, but not Teru, when even Kou was frozen. It's possible that Teru's bracelet allows him a measure of protection, so if that's the case then Aoi's probably unaffected too. But if that's the case wouldn't Akane's first priority be her?

Who knows? Considering the bonding they did on the train, maybe Aoi makes Hanako's case for him and this gets Akane and Teru to back off. In a reverse situation from the No. 6 arc, it would be the four of them off to rescue Nene.

As an aside, I seriously love hakujoudai. They look so worried about Hanako! Seriously, part of me still think that the hakujoudai (Hanako's and Tsukasa's) are actually the spirits of their parents still watching over them.

[flightfoot]

Fanfic Recs For Queer Miraculous Fics Completed In 2023

There are a lot of Miraculous fics out there that center around queer pairings or just generally queer themes, so I figured that people might like a reclist for a bunch of queer fics! All of these come from the fic rec lists I came out with earlier in the year of the best Miraculous fics overall from 2023, so if you want to see more fics I recommend, you can check out the collection I set up!

The Universe is an Accidental Ally? by @lostinthe–stars

‘As it turned out, the universe was very homophobic. Or very into overpopulation. Either way, this was bad news for Adrien’ <3 Adrien is dreading his soulmate, just hoping for the best that whoever it is, is down for being platonic soul mates. Luck, for once, is on his side. <3 Just a short soul mate AU oneshot, with a bit of a different spin on things.

This was hilarious! The universe might be homophobic, but it’s terrible at it XD.

---

Confession Plans of Questionable Sanity by yellow14

Nathanael Kurtzberg has a confession to make. He’s in love with his big classmate Ivan. With the help of Marc, Marinette, Adrien and Nino, he’s going to confess, using increasingly complicated schemes. Marc meanwhile, is busy coming up with even more complicated schemes to sabotage those schemes so he can confess HIS feelings for his redheaded friend. Nothing could POSSIBLY go wrong with this, right? Written for the March 2023 gift exchange on the Miraculous Fanworks Discord forum for CassieTheweirdWolf.

This fic’s just really funny. These kids love to make things waaaaay harder than they need to be. But hey, everything ends up working out in the end, even if it’s not the way they planned!

---

All Of Them? Every Single One? by @liiinerle

It turns out that Marinette loves a lot more people than she’d initially thought.

This is hilarious and adorable. Tikki lays out how Marinette has a crush on basically every girl she’s met - and even girls she doesn’t know are girls yet XD. 

---

Anchor by @liiinerle

“Marinette. Please take that sabre out of your neck.” “Right. Thanks. I forgot it was there.” She grabbed hold of the guard and pulled; the blade slid out like it had only been run through butter. After dropping it on the floor, she picked up one of the teacups and picked up a biscuit from a tin she’d brought in; she placed the biscuit on the saucer plate and handed the whole thing to Kagami, who could only really resign herself to accepting it. —– Marinette has raised Kagami from the dead, and also happens to be dead herself. It turns out some bad choices were made in the past. But that doesn’t mean they’ll lead to bad outcomes for them now.

I love this, Marinette’s incredibly blase about being a zombie - which makes sense, given how long she’s had to get used to the idea. And she’s waited so long, tried so hard to bring Kagami back as well, though if she didn’t WANT to be back, she’d accede to that request. Luckily, Kagami doesn’t seem to mind as long as she’s with Marinette XD.

---

Emotional Mountain Ranges by @liiinerle

After Zoé’s attempted romantic confession to Marinette is interrupted by an incensed Chloé and Audrey Bourgeois, she’s left distraught and adrift, a crying mess in an alleyway far from home. Ladybug saves her from the incoming akuma, and tries to help her back on her feet - and Zoé wonders what she could possibly have done to earn this much attention from a superhero…

Lovely Zoenette fic here! I especially like how Marinette talks to Zoe, reassures her that she’s good enough, that she (as Ladybug) isn’t as perfect and composed as she thinks, and just… tries to get Zoe to have more confidence in herself. It’s mostly from Zoe’s perspective too, which I like since there aren’t a lot of Zoe POV fics.

---

You’ll be the prince and I’ll be the princess by @mexicancat-girl

With Team Miraculous now full-time holders, Ladybug has them patrolling in pairs like her and Chat Noir. New partners Pigella and Purple Tigress get along phenomenally, their easy banter and similar wavelengths making working with each other a joy in and out of combat. But sometimes Tigress is surprised just how close she is with her partner. Sometimes she tries not to feel too guilty thinking about it.

There’s some nice Julerose here! I love them kinda getting into a lovesquare with each other, though it’s not as much of a problem as it is in canon since it’s reciprocal in every relationship and they’re both down for a poly. It’s fun, and I love the “Luka attempting to woo some of his love interests” plot going on in the background XD.

---

the best laid plans (of bugs and bakers) by @mexicancat-girl

Paris is buzzing with the appearance of a new ladybug-themed hero, Scarabella. Alya decides to use her second hero identity to help her best friend Marinette. A bit of her flirting with Marinette is bound to make Marinette’s crushes jealous and finally ask her out! Her plan is fool-proof…! Except when it’s not. Not enough people are talking about Scarabella flirting with Marinette. How can Alya properly help her best friend if the news can’t be bothered to cover Marinette’s budding romance with Scarabella and only posts things about Marinette with Chat Noir?! So Alya puts her all into her plan, upping up her flirting each time she appears as the newbie hero Scarabella. This totally does not backfire in any way.

I adore fics that center on Alya, I haven’t exactly been shy about that fact. This is a nice one for some Alyanette adorableness! (And some Scarabella and Chat banter, I really enjoyed reading that as well). “Fake” flirting to make crushes jealous tends to turn real very quickly, and this is no exception. It’s hilarious, Alya’s the last one to figure out that her romantic relationship with Marinette is very much real XD.

---

Within Your Heart by Inkyibis

It’s Valentine’s Day and Ladybug just wants to her superhero partner to find his love. And what she wants, the Lucky Charm will create. If only she could remember what it is she did last night.

Adrino fic here! Marinette’s drunk and feeling awful that her superhero partner is alone on Valentine’s (she’s in a loving and committed relationship with Alya), so she creates a Lucky Charm to help Chat find love! In this universe, Ladybug’s Lucky Charms have the power to create new rules for the universe to follow, such as making one that demands that if you have any magic in you, you have to tell the truth or else you’ll freeze. Or in Adrien’s case, that he has to wake up in the arms of his true love every day XD. It’s very sweet and I love both Adrien’s and Nino’s relationship, and the relationship between the rest of the Miracuteam members as well, even though that’s not the focus.

---

Rocking the Cat-Eyes by @buggachat

“I like being a girl.” “That’s the alcohol talking,” Marinette snorted. “I’ve always been a li’l jealous,” Adrien admitted. “… Of what?” “That you get to be a girl,” Adrien murmured, “and I don’t.” — When Marinette and Adrien host Girls’ Night at their apartment, Adrien is easily welcomed to attend as “one of the girls”… but has a bit too much to drink. Some drunken confessions are spilt, some assumptions are made, and most of all… Adrien is confused.

This is a great Genderfluid!Adrien fic. Marinette actually figures out that Adrien’s not entirely cis before he does, and tries to let him know she’s supportive… but unfortunately Adrien comes to some incorrect conclusions…

Anyway it’s a lot of fun, and Adrien rocks a dress and makeup!

---

Swimming in Circles by @generalluxun

Life has moved on for Marinette Dupain-Cheng. She’s not where she thought she would be seven years ago, but she’s still in a good place. Classes, hobbies, friends, her life is full despite the lingering shades of her faded yet sweet middle-school romance. Then just as quick at the first time, someone drops into her life and turns her into an absolute mess once more. Love and crushes might be her undoing, but she’s got a little more experience this time to weather the storm. This fateful stranger stirs memories as well as emotions inside of her, and with a forthrightness her old self would be jealous of, Marinette takes the plunge.

So this is a Trans fic, with Marinette’s new crush being a trans version of a certain classmate who she doesn’t recognize, who’s changed a lot, for the better. I like how it deals with the baggage she has with that person, has her think that through.

---

Three’s company by @torvalvt

Kagami has been doing her best for years to ignore her feelings for her friends. It doesn’t help that Adrien and Marinette insist on spending as much time as possible with her, even going so far as inviting her along on their dates together. If only the affection she felt for them wouldn’t get in the way of their relationship. Because it is growing harder and harder to tamp down her feelings with how close they are getting to her.

This is adorable. Adrien and Marinette really want Kagami to join their relationship and she just doesn’t dare hope for it. If you want some adorable Adrigaminette from Kagami’s perspective, I recommend checking this fic out!

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The moment I knew (I’d no choice but to love you) by @bbutterflies

“He’s dating me,” Nino said, taking Adrien’s hand in his own.

Adrien could only stare back at him in shock.

“How dare you all force him to come out?” Nino continued, glaring at the reporters. “That was disgusting.” He pulled Adrien over to the car, guided him in, and shut the door behind them.

In the relative quiet and privacy of the backseat, Adrien finally processed what had just happened. “So… when were you going to tell me we were dating?”

This Adrino fic is delicious XD. Reporters keep hounding Adrien about his love life, so Nino finally gets them off Adrien’s back by fake-dating him. Problem is, Adrien’s actually been madly in love with Nino for years but has never been able to tell him. And now as they’re spending more time together, Nino’s beginning to find that he’s enjoying all these “couple” activities more than maybe he ought to if it’s entirely platonic...

If you want to see Adrien and Nino PINING for each other while “fake” dating (is it really fake if both parties want it to be real?) then you’ve come to the right fic!

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Evillustrator Reimagined by onewaywriteturn

A full, mostly-standalone rewrite of the episode "The Evillustrator".

Nathaniel never planned to tell anyone about his secret crush on his friend Marc, but his world changes when Chloe picks up his sketchbook and mocks his art in front of the whole class, inadvertently outing him as bisexual. Now as the Evillustrator, he has two objectives: to take vengeance on Chloe for what she did to him and to go on a date with Marc for his birthday.

At the same time, Marinette is already struggling to defend Sabrina from Chloe when she learns of the Evillustrator's crush on Marc, one of her good friends. And while getting Marc involved with an akuma fight is messy enough, the fact that Marc has secretly liked Nathaniel for a long time complicates the situation so much more.

If you ever wanted to see Evillustrator rewritten to focus around NathMarc, this is the fic for you! The two of them just PINE for each other so hard and are so convinced that the other person couldn’t possibly actually want to date them, even with Evillustrator making it uh. Exceedingly obvious XD.

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In Direct Opposition by @generalluxun

Alya Cesaire is a brand new student to Francis Dupont, to Paris even. The first student she meets is one Chloé Bourgeois, and Alya is determined to make a friend. Things advance Chaotically. Her new 'friend' is definitely a handful, and suddenly Paris has a supervillain and two brand new superheroes! Alya finds herself balancing a lot of things, trying to live up to her ideals and those of her icons.

And then reality seems to contradict itself.

As time progresses it seems to happen more often. Becoming a hero, battling villains, staying alive, working through friendships. Something is lurking, tweaking events at times, changing them, and no one seems aware. Alya will need all her wits to get to the bottom of this. Her investigative mind can only get her so far though, and then she needs to rely on her friends. This is not a foe you can beat head on.

I betaed this entire fic, it’s really good! I adore the focus on Alya’s philosophy here, her determination to be a hero, to help people and defeat evil - and that defeating evil means trying to reform the people doing bad things when possible, to try to save EVERYONE, even the “villain”. I thought it was really clever the ways Alya would redirect Chloe and subtly encourage her to be a better person, while also trying to get the people around her to give her a second chance and keep an open mind. 

Also Alya and Chloe are an adorable sapphic couple XD.

---

Chemistry With Him by @bbutterflies

It kind of sucked Nino was taking chemistry, but classes had filled up fast and he needed to take something and his advisor had said the credits would, somehow, count towards his major. It really sucked he was taking it first thing on a Monday morning (and Wednesdays, and Fridays, unfortunately). But he could get through it. He knew he could.

So no more boys. No distractions. He could do this all on his own.

“Is anyone sitting here?”

Nino looked up to find the source of the voice. A blond, green-eyed, absolutely beautiful someone.

Okay. Maybe one distraction.

Ah, adorable Adrino. This is a universe where Adrien never went to public school, so while Chat Noir, Ladybug, Carapace, and Rena Rouge all know each other (and Marinette, Alya, and Nino all know each other’s identities) they’re unaware that they are all already friends with Adrien. I loved seeing Chat and Carapace excitedly tell each other about their awesome crush/boyfriend, not knowing they were talking about each other XD.

---

Accidents Are Also Miracles by @liiinerle

After a few turbulent days where four new people discover her secret identity, Marinette loses faith in her ability to keep the secret hidden. Wracked with doubts and insecurities, she pleads with Alya to take over as Scarabella, but she still can't let those worries go. Especially not once Monarch starts taking a particular, and personal, interest in her.

Along the way, she also starts to date Kagami, and has to deal with changing feelings about herself, Adrien, Alya, Kagami, and the idea of being Ladybug. At the same time, Alya works to uncover Monarch's secret identity, while Kagami struggles against a controlling parent, and a girlfriend who seems bent on destroying herself - with or without Monarch's involvement.

Fantastic Marigami fic here! You’ve got three major POVs in this fic: Marinette, Kagami, and to my delight, Alya. I loved getting to see Alya cope with taking over as Scarabella especially.

But of course, this fic centers more around Marinette and Kagami, with Marinette struggling with Monarch targeting her, and Kagami struggling against her abusive parent, as well as both of them trying to navigate their relationship together when they know that not everyone will approve. 

There’s also some other plots going on in here, like Sabrina breaking away from Chloe and becoming more independent (and closer to Adrien in fact), as well as a Lila takedown plot, though thankfully not one that involves demonizing other characters. While there are conversations about people believing Lila and siding with her, no one’s actually attacked for it except for Lila herself.

Oh yeah, and while this fic may not have much focus on Adrien, he’s still treated fairly and with respect, even when he messes up. He can make mistakes, but people understand where he’s coming from, and are still kind to him and want things to be okay, and to help him escape his abusive circumstances.

[littlemissaddict]

Please may I have a Stranger things scenario of when Steve made a big mistake of teasing you (you are the older sister of Will Byers and you are the same age as Steve and everything) when you were not smiling or anything for the last few days and it was for obvious reasons..Will was missing and you were worried and you snapped at Steve to leave you alone and you didn't care if you practically humiliated him in front of his friends and the others when you said that you were not smiling because your brother was missing and you were not smiling because Steve was bothering you nonstop and you lost it completely in the cafeteria.

(Steve and the reader weren't even together yet)

https://youtu.be/bTDjnrOiSHY?si=fG2bZvCb0LyCIzZN (How the girl reacted to the catcalling was exactly how you reacted to Steve teasing you wrongly)

Hi, I'm sorry this took a while to write and it feels really short so if you want a follow up of them making up and trying to be friends or even how I imagine they get together then please let me know :) Also just realised I've automatically written this as fem!Reader, if you would like this changed let me know and I'll change it asap for you but anyway I hope you enjoy it...

“Come on, give us a smile” Steve urged, nudging her with his elbow as they sat in the cafeteria. For some unknown reason Steve had invited himself to sit with her and Nancy at lunch despite the fact that he and Nancy had broken up and she had made it very clear that she didn’t like him, something that only Barb seemed to agree with or she did until she went missing.

She stared blankly at him, what did she have to smile for, not only was Barb missing, so was her little brother, Will, and he had been for far longer than Barb and yet the police seemed to have given up in their search for him. They seemed to have come to the conclusion that Will was dead and that was the end of it, only she was convinced of the opposite as was Jonathon and her mom who for the past few weeks had pretty much given up on everything to find him.

“Just a little smile, just for me, yeah” Steve carried on and she felt Nancy shift beside her, her body learning forward over the table to look at Steve and she knew that Nancy was about to say something. With a gentle hand to Nancy’s arm she stopped her with a reassuring squeeze, this was her fight and she was going to fight it.

“I’m not smiling because Will is fucking missing,” she spit through gritted teeth, anger building up inside her at how blase he was being about the missing kids. She’d have thought the very public break up between him and Nancy would have knocked him down a few pegs and made him realise that the world didn’t revolve around him but it seems it didn’t but hopefully she would. She also didn’t care if she embarrassed him in front of her friends or even the whole school but maybe if she could make him feel even a smidge of what she was feeling then she’d be happy.

“And I’m also not smiling because you’re fucking talking to me” she spat, now standing from her chair. The abruptness of her movement caused it to squeak loudly across the cafeteria floor, loud enough for the tables around them to hear it over the noise in the rest of the cafeteria as they all turned to look at the pair of them. “You fucking fuck!” her voice was raised even louder now as she let her anger take over, something she never did as she was always more like her mother than her father in that sense, always shying away from the sounds of her father’s raised voice but Steve was constantly pushing her buttons and this was the final straw. Somehow it felt like the only way to make him listen.

“I’m sorry I didn’t mean-'' Steve tried to diffuse the situation, unquestionably aware of the stares in their direction.

“Whatever” she glared, reaching down for her bag and turning sharply away from the table as she made her way out of the cafeteria.

Nancy shook her head at him as he looked forlornly from her retreating form to where she was still sitting at the table. “You’ve really done it this time Steve” she sighed, standing from the table, albeit less abruptly, following in her earlier footsteps by grabbing her bag and following the same path out of the cafeteria that she had, knowing that she would be in need of a friend at a time like this.

[variablejabberwocky]

started watching delicious in dungeon/dungeon meishi (sp?). or as i like to call it

~*AUTISM COOKING DUNGEON*~

dear god y'all have undersold this to me. and like i get it. spoilers and all that. but holy shit

our boy isn't like... "tee-hee little-bit of autistic, just a smidge" like you were all making me think. no no. no, this guy is DEEPLY autistic. we're talking "normally we only give THIS much autism to aliens and robots" kind of autism. the "i need an allistic translator for my social fubars" autism (rip your sister dude). the "i learned a thing! so now im not gonna shut up about it for at least an hour" autism.

and they gave this to THE ONE SINGULAR HUMAN IN THE PARTY. this guy is a HUMAN FIGHTER/KNIGHT-type that is like the MOST BORING/NORMIE shit in a d&d style setting. that is "why are you even playing a fantasy game?" level of normie shit.

and THAT is who gets to be The Party Freak(tm)

i love it. completely unironically/unsarcasticly i love it. they took the "that much autism isn't human anymore" bullshit thats so prolific its basically a trope and went NOPE FUCK THAT NOISE

what i find unforgivable though is that none of you mentioned he's a Kronk too.

boy sounds SO SO STUPID but is so so smart when you actually listen to what the fuck he's on about now (and think on why he's on about it right then). he's a big tank (literally in the fantasy class sense) that just wants to help everyone and do his little special interest shit on the side. and it is on the side because the other two seem like they had no idea it was more than trivia until he didn't have to help micromanage a massive party. like this shit has clearly been on repeat in his brain in the background for A WHILE but he was so busy helping/keeping everyone alive it got shoved aside of his outward behavior unless it was useful. he is a lovable dorky himbo and NONE of you mentioned this.

anyway, i'm also loving the way this whole show is basically only like this because him and senshi are vibing on the same wavelength and the other two are basically just along for the ride to save their friend/part member

the whole thing has a Green Eggs and Ham kind of thing going on with it too. but like...environmentalist about it? like it was more subtle about the whole "hey maybe work WITH your current environment rather than against it" bit and then we found out what senshi normally does and subtlety just went right out the fucking window on that front.

i'm also liking the way it both explores the horrors of dying in a world where being brought back to life is common, while also kind of...poking fun at it? like its reminding me of a thing i heard something like "the difference between comedy and tragedy is how far from it you are" kind of concept.

like they are so fucking ... how the fuck do you spell it blase? with the little "/" over the e. that. the story is so bland in how it handles how people came back from horrific deaths and yet when the characters have to face things that remind them of their own it gets heartbreaking very quickly. but like...chillchuck. goddamn. we get just enough from his perspective that its harrowing but the way its shown to us the reader/viewer is like a comedy skit

cause like...its both.

these guys keep dying/nearly dying to THE. SAME. FUCKING. SHIT.

mage elf is slimebait, chillchuck is basically Dungeon Canary with an emphasis on mimics, and himbro over here is gonna get himself killed trying to pet/eat a new monster no one else knows about at some point. probably why his sister seems to have specialized in healing magic.

i know the fandom is thinking once they get his sister back that she's gonna be Just Like Him but i think it would be much funnier AND more 'realistic' if they were classic autism-adhd alliance but siblings about it. like him being better at staying on a task and her being better at navigating social cues and shit. and both of them with their own little special interest energy. i'm betting her's is magic. and thats why even magic elf is like "omg shes so good at magic i'm no where near that level" about it. i mean its also the lesbianism but there IS more to that than thirst from what i've seen.

anyway i'm 6 episodes into what seems to be 12 available on netflix and i'm already hooked. might have to see if i can get my hands on the manga or something too

[mermaidsirennikita]

Too bad now you have to give recs of "hero goes down on the clueless heroine and she’s like wow thanks that was AMAZING, can women do that to men too? 🤔 " haha

I love the clueless heroine going down on the hero, she has no idea what she is doing but her eagerness makes it a 10, Best blow job of my life 🤌🏻

@hptriviachamp posts every time the latter thing happens with a very apt meme that makes me laugh every time (IT AIN'T MUCH BUT IT'S HONEST WORK)

I can't remember a lot of PARTICULAR moments, but for these moments or this vibe:

You should definitely try Elisa Braden for this vibe. Mooost of her heroines are virgins (honestly: too many of them for me lol, I do need a bit more variation) and they're often all "WHAT'S THIS BUTTON DO" about sex. Her Midnight in Scotland series is really good. I think The Taming of a Highlander is the one where the hero is like "THERE'S NO WAY IT'LL FIT. WE MUSTN'T." and she's like "la la la it grows exponentially bigger when I look at it, I suppose I shall attempt to stuff it in la di da" blase about it.

One Good Earl Deserves a Lover by Sarah MacLean, one of her best. The heroine's a scientist who initially gets the hero to teach her about sex only! Verbally! Before graduating to physically! Also! She's very "if he'd let me study his penis with a magnifying glass I would" in nature. I also really enjoy the scene where he eats her out, comes in his pants, and immediately afterward is caught when his buddy stumbles in like "hey where do we keep th--OH. SORRY."

The Duke Gets Desperate by Diana Quincy doesn't have this scene/a totally clueless heroine, but it does have a scene where the hero is like "my dick is trying to make friends with your pussy" so there's that.

And in the same sense, because I fucking know these authors are friends and there's no way this was a total coincidence... Frankie in Mila Finelli's Mafia Mistress & Mafia Darling is NOT a virgin by any means. But when she and Fausto make it official, they do immediately roleplay him deflowering her as if she has literally never seen a dick in her life and it's HILARIOUS. Like these are DEEPLY COMMITTED people going "oh no! what's that????" "it's my dick! it's trying to say hello!" and I. Die. Not only because it's very funny, but because it actually makes their relationship more authentic to me. That's the kind of shit you only do with someone you deeply trust lmao.

Grace Callaway is gonna give you this vibe. Not all of her heroines are virgins, but the ones who are... often are precocious... and will like stuff their mouths with the hero's dick like they're doing the chubby bunny challenge.... The Duke Who Knew Too Much comes to mind because he's like "NO WAIT STOP THERE'S CRIME AFOOT" but she's already going for it.

Speaking of, Elizabeth Hoyt's Duke of Pleasure always deserves cred for the singular moment in which the hero and (virgin, grew up as a street rat dressed as a boy) heroine are investigating crime and some evildoers come upon them and he's like "quick just pretend you're blowing me" and she does start like, a mild actual beej while he's telling the guys "PLEASE LEAVE I'M GETTING BLOWN BY MY DOXY~" but after the guys leave he's all "so you can stop" and she's like "no no no I'm going somewhere with this". This one is special to me because he makes her spit into his fancy handkerchief after and I promise that even if he didn't know it that's when he decided to marry that girl.

I would say How to Marry a Marquess is one you should check out--by Stacy Reid. It's a classic "brother's best friend teaches me how to be sexy and then things get Really Outta Hand" book. I also really liked this one scene in it when his whole "let me teach you what dudes are into" thing leads to him like, eating her out in a moving carriage and when the carriage stops he does an entire "EGADS" jump off of her.

I need to reread The Lady Gets Lucky, but that's a rake meets virgin sex lessons book, and I have to think based off the scene I remember where he's like 30 seconds away from coming just from watching her lick her lips, there's a lot happening.

[wherevenusholdssomeofficespace]

About Sara being the Murphy kid without Murphy's law. I think we could all talk all day on how Milo deals with Murphy's Law. How that effects him. I mean that is what the show is about. But, in a show that takes care in the statement that everyone should help shoulder Milo (and Orgaluth's) burdens as best they can, how DOES someone whose spent their whole life doing just that, do that?

We're introduced to Sara as a Doctor Zone fan, in an episode about how she handle's Murphy's Law. Where she is obsessively preparing for the inevitable Murphy's law, trying to prevent this thing being ruined for her, but ultimately makes it very clear that she cares more about including Milo than she does anything else. We do later see her taking measures against dealing with Murphy's Law by avoiding Milo and Martin when it comes to things. Her and Brigette both loving Milo and Martin, but taking every opportunity that they are gone to try and get stuff done. And they do enjoy their absences. In other words: they're accustomed to Murphy's Law, just as appreciative of the chaos it bring to their lives (train through their backyard). But also, they actually know what its like not to have constant disasters, and so can indulge in more fragile activities… and then be concerned about those activities getting messed up.

I think Sara's perception of Milo in the episode "Milo's World" says a lot too. She just sees him as a person. Unlike everyone else, Milo was not the first Murphy she ever met. That would almost certainly be her father, and she probably knew her grandfather, uncle and cousin before Milo came around. By the time Milo was born, Sara clearly already had an understanding that "stuff goes wrong around dad", which certainly lead into her later "keep fragile stuff away from dad and Milo". And was already handling disasters calmly and offering assistance to her family. (At the very least, She already knew how to call 911). By all accounts while throughout their lives Milo has certainly handled Murphy's Law more, and is definitely the expert, no doubt about it, Sara's handled it longer. Murphy's Law had been in her life longer than Milo has. She sees it not as a Milo quirk, but as a family quirk. Her dad and Milo have the same condition. But they aren't the same people. They don't handle it the same way. To everyone else, Murphy's Law is synonymous with Milo. To Sara, Milo comes with Murphy's Law, but the two aren't the same.

And I think this also contributes to her sort of blase attitude about things happening to Milo. She trusts him. She doesn't baby him. She's not overprotective as you might expect an older sister to someone who is the target of a lot of people's vitriol, or gets hurt a lot to be in a show like this. But she builds him up. I think the one time we see Milo struggling with something (shoelaces) what she says is "you just have to try". She calls him "wizardy" in regards to his skills. But she's not immune to concern for him, as when she realizes he does not have his backpack. I'd say her attitude is born of a mix of her genuinely knowing Milo's capabilities, that other people with Murphy's Law can take care of themselves just fine, she's dealt with it herself (to a smaller extent) and been just fine, and having parents who you know. Parent and support Milo themselves. He's not really her responsibility. Though we don't see it, this isn't to say she's incapable of stepping up if needed, just that in show, we never see her need to.

I've spoken before about her an Milo's relationship, but ultimately its significant for how normal it is despite their extraordinary childhood. Her establishing moment isn't something with Murphy's Law, it's her and Milo getting excited together about something they both like. They tease each other ("I'm behind backpack?"). They hype each other up ("You're Wizardy" "It runs in the family" or Sara supporting Milo when he was doubting himself for getting the family together). Sara tried teaching Milo to tie his shoes, and Milo's shared his ice cream with her. A normal, non-antagonistic sibling relationship.

Melissa and Zack are along for the ride. But the state of being "on" or "off" the ride bleed into each other for Sara. As we can see Murphy's Law sometimes effects people who aren't nearby, and the Murphy's house (and Sara and Brigette) are its biggest secondary victims. (Toboggan of Love specifically). Sara will join Milo without a second thought (unlike say Melissa whose been shown to skip Murphy's Law related shenanigans for a bit of peace). Not to say Sara never avoids it due to that, but Sara never lies or avoids saying as much to Milo's face while Melissa will be misleading or lie about what she's actually doing. And when Melissa's frequency of shenanigans when away from Milo is still less than Sara's when away from Milo (though not non-existent... it's still Danville).

But, when Sara ISN'T trying to prevent something important to her from going wrong, she's consistently some of the better backup Milo could ask for. (She got him an extra comic, she doesn't even flinch when learning that something has gone wrong. She's accustomed to Murphy's Law in a way that even Melissa isn't quite). Really, Melissa and Sara I think take up complementary roles in Milo's life. Sara has been with him throughout his home life, and Melissa's always been there at school. As Milo's grown, he's probably just spent more and more time hanging out with Melissa, and less time at home. It's just part of growing up.

She has a skewed idea of what is worth freaking out over. She reacts to (what others perceive) as high danger, or extremely inconvenient situations with an almost boredom (Dr. Zone Files, Family Vacation, A Christmas Peril, need I go on). But freaks out a lot over things that she sees as important getting ruined. (Dr. Zone files, We're going to the Zoo, Toboggan of Love). Usually doctor Zone related. She knows that getting lost or buildings and delays can be fixed and sees them as part of life. They're somewhat expected, planned for and are easily fixed (at least on her end). But ruining rare merchandise or giving a bad impression on a first date are unfix-able, and she reacts accordingly. Though never seems to hold it against Milo if the worst comes to pass and it usually works out just fine anyway.

Her third appearance emphasizes just how obsessed she is with Dr. Zone. She found something important to her, lost something important to her (respect of other fans), but was satisfied with being right the whole time, which seems to be what is really important to her. The knowledge of the thing itself, not (so much) the community. After all she has Milo. The episode also features a gag about them forgetting Sara.

I don't really think this means Sara is less loved. It's probably the fact that Milo due to his condition (and being the younger child) usually requires a little more consideration than Sara (only natural), but that even emotionally Milo himself is a little less emotionally independent, often engaging with his parents and their interests while Sara is much more independent, often caught up in her own thing. It's just as much Sara forgetting to communicate with her parents as it is their parents forgetting her. Sara wasn't there to be picked up because she was busy with her Dr. Zone drama, and Milo WAS there WITH guests. And unlike Milo and his friends who ARE more dependent on their parents for things like transportation, Sara usually drives herself places and just… does her own thing. I don't think its favoritism by any means. Some kids are just needier than others. Sara doesn't seem upset with her family, understands her brothers needs are a little more intense than her own and is also just has a fairly independent personality. Also she's just older. As such, it's only natural when Sara's not really engaging with the family herself, it's natural to forget that she came along. After all, Milo and his friends ALSO forgot her and she was TECHNICALLY left at the farm with them. Not that Sara isn't close to her family, aside from Milo she's shown to be able to go for her mom for help and we know she does spend some one on one time with her dad (and he introduced her to Dr. Zone). It's just she's an older teen with very insular interests and a very intensely focused personality. While I think you could make the argument that her parents focus on Milo contributed to her independent personality, it's really a chicken or egg question. Life is just like that sometimes.

I think Sara perceives herself and Milo as normal kids. She's dealt with a lot of second hand Murphy's law, to her annoyance and appreciations. It informs how she interacts with her family, how she prepares, when she enjoys time away from them, and what kind of nice things she does for them. Her relationship with Milo isn't unlike other older siblings with a significantly younger one, just perhaps more pronounced due to Murphy's Law. It also informs how she reacts normally (in what little we see of her life without Milo). Sara is someone passionate, creative, capable of leadership and inspiration. And due to her childhood, she is someone who may over-prepare and worry excessively about certain things, but who ultimately takes catastrophe in stride.

[legendarybelmont]

i feel like the fact that giro is a shady, cringe liar is a very undervalued and underused aspect of his character in fandom despite the fact he very much is all that. sure hes semi-responsible but he canonically completely lies to vent about how he met model z (confirmed in zx tunes soundtrack notes), for one thing, and even then if you arent a vent truther he very pointedly didnt tell aile jackshit until it was quite literally forced from him. he was more frank than he was with vent, actually telling her he was a guardian, but even then he was as vague as possible, as is shown with prairie and how she has to tell aile later on that giro watched over her primarily (at first) thanks to orders from ciel. not to mention how giro talks about model x in response to questioning in the intro -- "im sure its very powerful and very dangerous. its probably better we (you) dont know". brushing off all inquiry, making it very obvious he never intended to tell or show the protagonists a thing in the first place. if he wasnt forced into it, he probably wouldve kept omitting everything about himself to them, basically! indefinitely! and, of course, theres how he tells at least vent to deal with his salt regarding slither inc. in summary, "be as salty as you want, but dont show it in town, they arent going to like it". this is very shady. he is not an upstanding citzen. girouette consistently withholds information and even outright lies (and ropes others into said lies, poor fucking vent, EVERYONE was in on it) about incredibly important things, and he is generally quite a shady person, running a vaguely illegal transport company/front for a paramilitary organisation, as well as the literal opaque visor in his megaman transformation implying a need or desire for anonymity, especially with how in the manga vent doesnt recognise giro on sight. also in the manga, giro is shown to be incredibly blase about the whole megaman thing when he talks to vent at first, in, coupled with his other behaviours, is what i assume an effort to throw him off and downplay the importance of the situation, as usual. hes also really cringe in the manga too btw its great i hate him who says "YO" after dropping the craziest bombshell of vents life on him all casually

girouette is not a very honest person, and this is true ESPECIALLY in vents route. i can only assume that raising vent, an incredibly precocious and easily aggravated person, made his existing tendencies worse than how they ended up with aile, who he seems more open with, if only for her calmer personality in comparison. i wish this was more commonly depicted with him :( he is usually just watered down to 'responsible father figure' and like, yeah, sure, whatever, but hes a lying liar who lies! and hes vague and occasionally facetious! and he is so shady even just in his vibes! come on guys i swear hes such an interesting character when you look past the impression he is actively trying to project

p.s: yeah sure, his open affection with aile is cool and all, but what about his strained but very present and existing care for vent, that he yet feels the need to hide beneath numerous layers of deflection and faux-challenge? the care that, apparently, for some reason, he feels he cant express so blatantly as he does with aile, perhaps because he feels vent wouldnt appreciate it? and such. vent is also incredibly underrated. vent and giros dynamic, something that informs so much of giros character, actually, really is kind of forgotten huh. the price of aile-centric fandom. love aile tho