#abt fictional chs

[metabolizemotions]

The creative choices on the show are as subjective as each of the viewer's interpretations.

I think a lot of why I personally feel deeply uncomfortable n resistant is the asymmetry.

I get the need for variety. The same thing may be expressed differently for different characters. A healing journey will differ from person to person. Each step is also taken on a personalized timeline.

But I can't help but think of the asymmetry of how the show dealt with Mason vs Beckett n even Dixon. They condemned Mason immediately at his worst but dug deep to show the sides of Beckett n Dixon that were still human despite it all.

The trigger shot scene with Beckett felt like 0 to 100 in his reconciliation with Maya. It felt like a 12-step program of which he skipped many steps when it came to Maya. From the get-go, we saw a sexist, incompetent captain who was demeaning to his team n constantly put them under stress n in danger, on top of endangering civilians n even equipment. For months, we saw this middle-aged man in a position of power, take perverse joy in bullying a younger female subordinate to appease his ego. That was workplace harassment. He also took out his unresolved trauma on the people around him, in this case, people he had authority over. Alcoholism was not the sole reason for all his bad behavior. Even if it was, it should not be used to excuse it.

The team, esp Maya, was trapped in this hostile work environment sanctioned by the female chief. This was a more common n insidious manifestation of toxic masculinity, one that was amplified by his position of power, n sometimes even supported by women, when their goals aligned in the power struggle.

Yet the show gave so much more grace n compassion to the bullies than the bullied. The team treated Beckett n Ross with more kindness n respect than they earned, n less kindness n more apathy towards Maya than she deserved.

Then he was given a long, carefully constructed redemption arc, while Mason, a rushed condemnation arc.

It felt like 100 to 0 with Mason. We saw Mason briefly in earlier seasons, mainly thru the eyes of Maya. We missed a lot of the in b/w. We caught him again at his worst. We only saw the side that was full of hate ideology, but not his side that was also human. We knew about his addiction n homelessness. But we didn’t see how as a young abused person w/o positive role models n a support system, he was vulnerable to these hate groups, which he clung to, when offered him just a semblance of belonging or respect. He had not learned to let go of his resentment of their parents n Maya but taught to transfer this unresolved hate to fill a meaning void.

The scene itself b/w Maya n Mason was great. It was an urgent n imperative story to tell. Maya's actions were right n necessary. But in the bigger scheme of things, it felt like a quick tie-up of loose ends, of a once-beloved brother, who came n went abruptly. Despite it being a logical narrative choice to wrap up the nature/nurture discussions of Marina n discovery that Maya's deepest fears about herself manifested in her bro instead. It's heartbreaking n yet disheartening that it was again about queer hate when it came to another main queer character on the show.

It is just jarring to juxtapose Mason with Beckett in 703 then 707. Also juxtaposing his empathy towards Maya with the lack thereof from the others, despite everyone having just been thru 706 n having witnessed Maya's breakdown. So, in a way, I see the actions of these characters as being designed with the goal to emphasize Beckett's empathetic side, in support of his arc.

When looking at a scene with 2 scene partners, what it is really about? Who it is really for? Would the scene be the same if one is replaced?

There are many different takes on this. For me, it was really about Maya, but choosing Beckett as the scene partner made the scene more for him. If it were for Maya, other scene partners would be more meaningful n realistic. Esp those who earned their right for her to be vulnerable with. Maya, who bottled her feelings, let alone spill her deeper emotions, to someone whom she never had a proper conversation with, not to mention a fraught shared history. To add, alone in a small enclosed space, while administering a shot that made her even more vulnerable.

For the realism argument, this was not more realistic to me than having Carina, for a show which took a lot of liberties. It was a choice to design the circumstances to make Carina n the others unavailable n combine 2 scenes together. Carina's also Maya's life partner n best friend. A more realistic choice for Maya to share this devastating heartbreak n grieving process with. It was a big aspect of their marriage. We saw many discussions b/w them yet when it finally came to the conclusion, it was with the least likely person, an almost stranger.

I see the trigger shot as part of Marina's baby journey I wish we get to see them undergoing together. It reminded me of 5b in that Marina's story about their own baby journey - again with someone of a fraught shared history, of a different nature - was more about him n to lead to his own bio family story. Marina's story was messy n got nowhere. And here we r, seasons later, rushing thru it.

It's not that Maya/ Carina or Marina should not have scenes with others. It's that it's usually more about the others even if it's their storyline. Or they r the backdrop for others' drama. They either isolate Marina or suddenly include them or one of them in an in-depth discussion of their private matters with others, usually something we hear about for the first time. I just don't remember something like that happening with other characters. Is it too much to ask to see a married w|w couple, with little screentime, share a meaningful conversation or moment first, also or exclusively? We so rarely see such a rep on TV. The show is not about Marina, but shouldn't their own story reasonably prioritize them?

#this is just my personal take on this #this is in no way to invalidate other takes #i'm sorry i really don't know how to be succinct #my fav thing abt fandom #is to talk. cry. laugh. be silly n fangirl tog #abt fictional chs #or actors #i love to see diff povs even if i may disagree w #when expressed respectfully #i love #discussions #or see details someone noticed #interesting connections... #feelings r valid #but povs r subjective #my 2 cents is #it's ok to like only one ch #or all #hav opinions on everything #or accept everything #u decide what u want out of it #viewers have opinions #agreeing w everything is in itself an opinion #i rant a lot abt the decisions bts #it doesnt mean i don't respect their hard work #my opinion is just my pov #it's not more right or better just diff #it's my way to make sense of this #station 19 comments #station 19

[harbingersecho]

Marrassurma, God of Death (and Dreams) from The Abyssal

bonus Sol bc the hand kiss scene is cute

#the abyssal #the abyssal if #interactive fiction #mine #*23 #art #marrassurma #i really want to do the pestilence thing but like. why would marrassurma do that he likes humanity + the human world :/ #btw if u think marrassurma is edgy i originally thought abt marrasverisurma lol. but i was like thats way too long dude im sorry #it doesnt mean november death btw it means killing of an omen (of death) or being killed by one. google's stupid #finnish lesson ahead ig. surma can be a violent death/a killing/voluntary manslaughter/a tragic accidental death/the destroyer of something #or a poetic way to say kill. surma can ALSO be a very hard obstacle or opponent or a personification of death when w/ certain chs #and marras is just any omen of death/person who brings death/person who's about to die/any dead thing/a ghost. yeah uhh dw about it #so marrassurma can technically mean a combination of any of these but i'm using it as like. the one i explained before lol #why am i even explaining this. maybe bc im cursed with the ability to talk endlessly abt stupid shit i think is interesting

[lanshappycorner]

Sometimes I look outside my scope of mutuals and I'm like.....I'm glad I'm not them (whole essay in the tags)

#im going to ramble about a very touchy subject here but it pertains to 🐉♠️ which i am very open about shipping #apparently its Problematic or whatever 😭😭???? according to Some People #you know ive been thinking abt this for a while now but people really like spouting rhetoric abt how this or that is problematic without- #-really considering the specifics of why things are bad. things being bad are not the same as things possibly being uncomfortable #like people have an aversion to adult/minor ships or incest ships because these are real and tangible things that happen and are disgusting #i do feel like people have freedom over what they want to consume/create in fiction although those topics are an ick to me and i avoid it #but also you have to understand people dont like it primarily because of the realistic aspect of it and how it connects to reality #not a one to one but because reality already has these preexisting issues we naturally have an aversion to it #you cannot apply the same logic to like a dragon man x human ship because a dragon man is not going to scoop you from the sky #the ramifications of shipping an immortal and human are nonexistant and do not pertain to reality and cannot be judged on the same scale💀 #well beside from the logic 🐉 is old in body but his mind develops in the way a fae would. and he is described to be young in fae #so up until now i assumed the normal assumption was to say that he is around ~18 in fae yrs by how he interacts with others in his yr #🐉 is like old in the way where hes lived for a long time and understands the passage of time #but hes processed it through the lens of a young person hence why he can come off as immature despite how old he physically is💀 #like are we playing the same game?? if he was a well adjusted fully developed adult with a complete understanding of the world and stuff #like idk trein. none of the events in ch 7 would be happening. its kind of like a huge part of his character that despite his physical age #he IS still learning as he IS still young #i could go into a analysis of his character but thats for another time </33 #anyways i see people . primarily young people. telling their mutuals you can or cant ship this and that #and im like its okay to not like ships if you personally find it uncomfortable but to police ur friends...for ships that arent even 'bad' #its insane to me...how do u live like this? #people really need to start thinking about the nuances and why things are the way they are in regards to fiction #instead of buying into that weird pr*ship/ant*ship thing 😭 ive always hated it its so dumb. my university professors wouldve hated it #theres no nuance like...none. personally i also think its why people have low reading comprehension these days too tbh #life is about looking at various viewpoints and coming up with your own opinion #not 'picking a side'💀 learn to form your own opinions. talk to people around you about it. do not constrict your opinions to black/white #its an extremely dangerous mindset to have even outside of literature and it makes you very susceptible to dangerous ideas/propaganda #anyways what im getting at is learn to have educated discussions with others and come up with your own opinions instead of picking a side #btw there is no right/wrong side in literary discussions. there is no good/bad side either. whatever you come up w someone will disagree #thats why its important to just believe what YOU believe in (and not parrot others💀). and also be open to change

[druidgroves]

❣️🤡💝 for Greta!

Misc. Ask Meme

❣️ - What are their love languages?

Greta's main love languages are gifts and physical touch. Growing up, she clung to the idea that her parents were at least trying whenever they bought her love/obedience/affection. She likes having tangible things from the people she cares about so she can hold onto the feelings she had when she received whatever she was given. Her family also wasn't very touchy so she craves being close to people she cares for (Nathaniel provided that for her in spades, but with Deacon it takes a little longer past what they provide each other during their FWB era).

🤡 - What’s something dumb they’re embarrassed about?

One time during an undercover op with Deacon, her wig was off center the entire time and he didn't even SAY anything. He just let her go around like that the entire time.

💝 - What gestures do they really appreciate? How do you get on their good side?

Greta really just likes being thought of. She loves when someone tells her "oh, I saw this thing and thought of you" which also ties into one of her love languages being gift giving. Knowing that someone saw enough of her, knows enough of her, to do something like that makes getting on her good side all the easier.

#asks #devilbrakers #ch: greta bishop #i dont talk abt her nearly as much as i should but she's got a lot goin on #i have an entire fiction semi planned in my head for her but idk when i'll ever write it bc im on that georgia brain rot #but. love greta. she's a mess. #thank u ezra 4 sending one in !!!

[vaugarde]

actually watching equestria girls always gives me extreme whiplash bc they call canterlot high “CHS” and the school colors are blue and yellow. which are the same colors and abbreviation as my actual high school. so the equestria girls could very well have gone to my actual high school.

#mascot wasnt the same tho and ofc my high school was literally fucking awful #then again i dont particularly think abt fictional chs as a setting. i really only skip to the magical girl segments ngl #im worried this is partly doxxing but like. eh if u somehow piece this together then i didnt do anything significant there so #cant really find me through there #echoed voice

[motownfiction]

i am thinking abt him (will o’connor)

#text #ch: will o'connor #i had a dream abt him & lucy last night. yes i dream abt these fictional gen x’ers who exist only in my little mind

[robobarbie]

i finished bp abt two months ago and almost everything i read abt AI in real life has me saying "damn, i played an otome game with this exact plot" like...... apparently ch*tgpt breaks and releases training data if u overwhelm it? that's soooo xyx's route. life imitates art.

LOL yup. I've been around bots like this in my work circles for a while (I don't work on bots myself). BP's bot concepts just came from what I knew existed, with some fictional flair added for spice

#anon ask #bp ask #hypebot #bloombot

[de1-os]

[Slight?? Iruma-kun chapter ch. 329 spoilers]

I'm literally so obsessed with the characterization of each and every character in iruma-kun. Its so rich!!!! Every single development capitalizes on doing something unexpected but with the purpose of making the character 3-dimensional rather than doing it for purely shock factor/gap-moe appeal, which is soooooo refreshing.

I'm mostly talking abt Sylvia rn. One of the bigger highlights about the series is the fact it has such a large cast but they take time to develop and invest time in every single character without it feeling like one of those obligatory "we have to show their backstory (bc we did that for all the other (more important) characters but we didnt really plan it so heres a flashback)" moments most other series have, and each character is enjoyable by default so it really just makes them more enjoyable!! I'm looking so forward to how she and Sabnok (and their dynamic together!!! And the rest of their family!!!!) Is elaborated on later in the series

im also thinking so extremely hard about Iruma not being scared from the hyper-realistic zombies in First Love Memories! He's been through so many Absolutely Terrifying real life experiences that something fictional isn't all that scary to him, but rather exciting and thrilling!!! Aaa!!! It was so unexpected!!! Aaa!!! The series just defies expectations and tropes, even in minor ways like this, and you can really tell how much love goes into the characters!!! Aaaa!!!!

#keni.txt #sorry sorry sorry im having a tism rn #mairimashita! iruma kun

[xbruised-peachx]

Mäuschen Ch 4.

After a bit of a break (sorry, I shifted schedules at work not to mention all my other projects I have!) chapter 4 is here. No smut, just some nice relaxing fluff :3 (also help i dont have any new renders/clips for this that fit so uh... um...)

(sure) Summary: After waiting for him to return from his work, you two can finally relax and have moment to yourselves, hopefully setting your worries aside. Word Count: 8,586 Tags: Fluff, making out, a sprinkle of angst, face reveal, this was written b4 i made the discovery abt the t-shirt being his mask don’t worry i know i’m the one that made that tiktok you dont have to mention it 🔞+ STORY Ch. 1 Ch. 2 Ch. 3

AO3 link. Translations notes at the end of the chapter!

Tag list- @xncasi @m99n @uwu-i-purple-you @quiziwizi @kitty-satan1 @xxgirlscoutcookiexx @rainydayfanfic @confuseddipshit @konig-breedme @seraphimcollections @ashmichi-34 @carrieism @lilpothoscuttings​

As you read the fictional war-time set book that he had readily available on his bedside table, the hours passed easily it seemed. You got up on occasion just to stretch your legs from laying on his overly firm mattress, but couldn’t complain too much from how big it was, how nicely it enveloped you. Looking over to his alarm clock, it had finally hit 5:30 pm, and your stomach would have reminded you if you didn’t check. You were thoroughly starving, the toast from this morning only lasting you until about 2 until you started feeling hunger pangs. You suppose it’s one of the unforeseen consequences of this deal; anytime he was on a mission, you would only have breakfast and dinner, if that. You assume there may be a point where he’s woken up at 5 am and just has to go, leaving you for the whole day. But maybe it’s different since he’s just a contractor.

You wondered if he’d be back soon. You didn’t even recall what time he left, but it had to be just before noon. You hoped it’d be soon since it was getting harder and harder to focus on reading. You knew though that he and Horangi were still trying to figure out something about the tape. You didn’t want to rush that, not that you could even with you being holed up in his room. And you knew they certainly weren’t going to get it figured out in a day, especially while using code words in a supply room. But the sooner the better, and the sooner he got back the better too, as it felt like your stomach was about to eat itself.

About ten minutes passed as you struggled, re-reading the same sentence as you struggled to focus, you heard a click from the door, looking up and seeing the lock turn left. It slowly opened and he peered his head in, his eyes slowly showing his smile as he met eyes with you again. You gave him a cute wave, smiling back at him as he started to walk in. He shut the door behind him, but you noted that he didn’t lock it. He let out an exhausted sigh as he slowly walked to you.

“You look so cute on my bed... so little, meine Maus.” He walked up to the side of the bed, leaning over you and putting his hands on either side of you. You blushed, averting your gaze from him as you shut the book, setting it back on the table and just as quickly meeting his eyes again.

“It’s because it’s made for you, big guy.” You smiled cheesily as you pushed yourself up slightly to meet his loom over you. You heard his breath hitch and he quickly pulled up his mask, you both knowing to come close and close the gap, kissing softly as you wrapped your arms around the back of his neck. He pulled away, letting out another sigh, but this time sounding relieved.

“I’ve always wanted to come back to a beautiful girl waiting for me... heheh, this still doesn’t seem real.” His voice trailed off as he brought one his hands up and placed it gently on your waist. “...Wish it was in better circumstances but I guess I can’t complain too much.” He let out a small chuckle as you smiled sweetly back at him. He rubbed his thumb up and down on the side of your stomach humming slightly to himself, almost covering the rumbling of your stomach, but he could clearly feel the vibrations as his eyes went wide. You instantly blushed, feeling embarrassed and broke your gaze from him. “Oh, Scheiße! I’m sorry, Liebling, you must be so hungry. I should’ve asked as soon as I came in.”

You smiled slightly, glad he wasn’t mad at you for not telling him sooner, but also wishing he wouldn’t blame himself for it. You met his eyes again, seeing they had now averted from you sadly. You brought your hand up to softly hold the side of his head, his gaze quickly shifting back to you. “It’s okay. Why don’t we go ahead and get some dinner then? Then we can get back and we can relax.” You smiled softly to yourself as you looked to the side, your mind wandering. “...We can actually relax.”

When you looked back at him, you could tell he was smiling at the thought too. He nodded, nuzzling his head in your hand before standing upright, letting his hand run down your arm and helping you up off the bed. You stayed holding onto his hand, walking with him as he reached the door, stopping when he did and turning to you. “I should say, even though you probably know, we can’t be... oh, what’s the word for it? I know there’s one, where we can’t kiss or do anything romantic out there...”

“No PDA?” You answered, trying to complete his thought. Public displays of affection, you knew they were very frowned upon, especially while in uniform in the military. So that made sense.

His eyes lit up as he snapped the fingers of his other hand. “That’s it! Thank you. We can’t have any PDA out there, so... I mean if you need to get anything out of your system.” His lids lowered slightly as he bent down to reach your level. You chuckled and shook your head softly, looking down to the floor then meeting his eyes again. You quickly grabbed the end of his mask and pulled it up, clashing your lips against his. He quickly reciprocated, taking his arms and wrapping them around your waist, pulling you close as instantly the kiss got more deep and passionate. You moved your lips softly against his and he slightly opened his mouth, letting his tongue just barely to lick your bottom lip. You smiled as you felt it, letting your hands run up around his neck and grabbing the nape of his neck, letting your fingers intertwine with his hair. You could feel him pull a sly smirk in the kiss as he lowered his hand to your ass, acting as a support as he suddenly stood upright, bringing you with him. You yelped as your lips pulled away instinctively. You legs wrapped around his waist instinctively as well, as he started to laugh. “Sorry, Mäuschen... gotta get some stuff out of my system too before we go.”

He quickly brought his lips back to yours as the kiss continued right where it left off, just deep as he licked your bottom lip again, asking for permission to enter as he just barely skirted the line of pushing it in. You smiled and gave him what he wanted, opening your mouth and letting your tongue meet his. He hummed delightedly in the kiss as you both let each other softly and passionately intertwine. Slowly he pulled his tongue back, ending the kiss reluctantly, but not before giving one quick peck before fully pulling back, letting his mask fall. You slowly opened your eyes, seeing him look at you sympathetically as he slowly brought you back to the floor.

“Alright... let’s go get you some food.”

You chuckled as you held his hand while he opened the door. He didn’t fight that, you imagine you two could pass it off simply as him guiding you. He turned and locked the door behind him, then turned to his left to guide you down the hall. You were surprised you were able to keep pace with him considering his much longer legs. You were walking at a normal pace to you, and you wondered if he was doing this purposefully. You looked up to him, seeing him continue to stare straight forward as he turned another corner, his hand trembling against yours slightly. It seemed he felt you look at him though as he met your gaze. For a moment his eyes looked worried but as soon as they saw your loving gaze, he returned the expression.

As you continued walking though, staring into each other's eyes, you heard more muffled voices get louder as you both slowly approached some double doors. Above it was a simple little sign that stuck out to the hallway. “Cafeteria.” You heard a sigh from him as you glanced back to him, pulling his hand away slowly.

“I’m... I’m sorry, Liebling. I want to keep guiding you by holding your hand but... I don’t want to attract more attention when we walk in.” His voice sounded sorrowful but with a lot of nervous shakes and hesitation as he spoke. His anxiety... You could imagine from the amount of people, it was making it spike more than ever for him. He probably already gets lots of stares anytime he has to duck under a door frame to get into a room.

You nodded at him, showing your sympathy for him the best you could. “I understand... I’ll just stick close behind you, okay?”

You could tell he was smiling as you answered, nodding at your suggestion. He took another deep breath and very gently opened the door. The noise of the room escaped as he very quickly ducked his way in, you following closely behind. More harsh fluorescents stung your eyes as you slowly refocused, peering at the room. Some voices stopped talking and looked at the both of you that entered. You instantly flushed, feeling embarrassed, especially as you looked down at your pajamas. You quickened your pace to meet König at the beginning of the food line. With how fast he was moving now, you knew he was holding back in the hallway. He grabbed a tray for you and him, keeping his head down as he continued down the line. It reminded you a lot of being in school, all the food lined out for you to choose, but nothing too interesting honestly. On yours, you put a slice of turkey, some gravy, and some string beans. Normally, you would think potatoes would go great with this but after yesterday, you weren’t sure if you’d eat potatoes for a while. On his he had meatballs with some sort of brown sauce on them, potatoes, and a roll. The roll sounded good but it seemed he took the last one. He glanced over to you right as you were looking at his roll, wondering if he would split it with you.

“D-did you want this?” His voice came out choked as he spoke with a hushed tone. You looked up at him, seeing he was completely avoiding eye contact with you. You could feel it too though, what was making him feel even more anxious. The few stares that were still directed at you two. It made your anxiety shoot up too. You nodded softly, but thought for a moment he wouldn’t see it. Just as you were about to speak, he quickly took the roll and put it on your tray. You looked up at him and smiled, not wanting to attract any more attention, you just simply mouthed to him a thank you. You assumed he saw it as his gaze averted even more to the side as he continued down the line.

Grabbing two water bottles, he was easily able to hold both with one hand while holding his tray, as he picked up pace as you exited the line. You tried to keep up with him as he went for a table that was in the furthest corner, nobody at the tables surrounding it. You looked at him as you set your tray across from him, lifting his mask up to start eating quickly.

“We have to eat here? We can’t take it to your room?” You asked with a hushed tone, watching as he snapped to look at you, but quickly darted back to his food, looking down.

“Yeah... some people have brought their food to their room and forgot to take it out after so, it's banned. We all have to eat here.”

You nodded, understanding. “I guess that makes sense... still kind of dumb though.”

He remained silent in response. You were hoping talking a little would ease his nerves a little, but you could still feel his leg bounce, slightly shaking the table as you started to eat. You watched him curiously as he continued to eat, pulling his mask up and wolfing his food down quickly.

“You always keep that mask on, huh? Even when you're eating?”

He finally locked eyes with you for a moment. You couldn’t quite tell his expression, his brain seeming overwhelmed to the point he couldn’t even think of which one to express. “I... Y-yeah, I don’t like people looking at me. At least this hides me somewhat, even when I have to pull it up.”

You shrugged your shoulders as you took a bite of your roll he kindly gave you. “Now, I mean this in the nicest way possible... but I think people look at you more because you're wearing the mask. Having to pull it up to eat kind of draws more attention than eating like normal.”

He nodded, his eyes going to the side as he started to dip his spork in the remaining sauce from his entree. “You’re right... but they still aren’t looking at me. They’re looking at a mask that’s over me. That’s all they can associate with me. But I know I’m more than this,” he tugged at his mask as he brought the utensil up to his mouth, “so they’re just looking at my mask. Not me. If you get what I’m saying...” He glanced over to you, watching for your reaction as you continued to eat your roll, mulling over his words in your head a bit confused. “...No one here has seen my face, so they don’t even know me. The only me they know is König, the tall guy with the sniper hood on all the time. They are only looking at a part of me... Besides, I find it kind of comforting to wear now, I don’t even think of it most of the time.”

You nodded, kind of understanding what he was getting at. Sure, it wasn’t the healthiest coping mechanism but it at least helped him. You just wondered what he’d be like when he wasn’t deployed or got out of the military, what he would do then. You figured it’s something he would probably figure out by the time that happened, or at least, with how he worried about things, it’s probably something he’s thought of too.

He sat silently as he ate his potatoes, not looking at you much as you continued to eat as well. String beans weren’t your favorite but at least it was better nutrients than yesterday.  You noticed just how fast he ate though, easily outpacing you and making you realize probably why he got so big growing up. You looked over to your half finished roll, you had set it aside as you got a bit tired of the flavor, but saw him still just about done with dinner while you had barely reached the halfway point. You gently place the half of the roll on his tray, returning the favor when he gave you it. He looked down at it wide eyed and confused before catching your gaze again. 

“You don’t have to, darl-” He stopped mid sentence, doing a faux clearing of his throat. Clearly, he didn’t even want to have that public display of affection, but you suppose it wasn’t bad to be too cautious. Besides, he peppered you with enough pet names in private to last you a lifetime. “You should have it, you’re the one who hasn’t eaten all day.”

“I had toast this morning... Besides, I guess I just have a smaller stomach than you.”

He let out a little laugh, and with him lifting his mask up to eat, under the shadows you could barely catch a glimpse of his smile. It was cute, wide and a little asymmetrical, going to his left a little more, giving him an almost permanent smirk. “I... don’t think that’s how that works. Please,” he put the roll back on your tray, meeting your eyes again, “I appreciate it but I’m a big boy... I’ll be fine without a roll tonight.”

He leaned back to his seat, you hadn’t even noticed how close he had gotten to you, making your blush as you realized it. Quickly you glanced around the room, just to make sure no one saw. It seemed finally people diverted their attention to their own tables, in their own conversations and meals. When you looked back to König, you noticed he had done the same, glancing around the room to make sure people had stopped watching you two. 

You finished up your roll and string beans, just enjoying the presence of him in silence, knowing he didn’t really want to attract any more attention by keeping up a conversation. He had already finished his meal, so he was just watching you, his elbows on the table as he rested his face against his interlaced fingers. Though, he probably wasn’t actually watching you, as you noticed his eyes not really move much, and rather was probably just spaced out. When you finally noticed he was focused on you again, that’s when he spoke.

“What do you like for snacks? Something more sweet or something like chips?”

You paused as you thought about the random question. “I think it depends on my mood really... I can go either way.”

“Any particular thing you like? From both those categories.”

“Um...” you were a bit taken back by the random questions, but noticed his posture as he was about to get up. You glanced behind yourself, looking at the variety they had available here. “...I guess the Lay’s Wavy and those little chocolate cakes with the frosting in the middle.”

He nodded and stood up in silence. You just watched as he walked away again at a fast pace, going through the line as you took one of the final few bites of your turkey. Once he returned, he had a small package that he had already opened. You looked at the little snack cake in his hand that he had already eaten half of.

“...I thought you said you didn’t like American sweets,” you said light-heartedly, attempting to hide the goofy smile that was creeping on your face. “But, you're eating a twinkie?”

He shrugged his shoulders while grabbing his tray and yours, starting to walk to the trash, holding out the package in his other hand. You took his offer, grabbing the other little cake that came in the package. He had finished his in two bites, letting him throw away the wrapper as he set the trays on the already started stack on top of the garbage. He turned on his heel, patting your back as he started walking forward, encouraging you to walk alongside him. You did as you took another bite of your treat, taking one last look around the room. You didn’t notice anyone looking at you two as you left at first, but then caught a glimpse of a familiar face... well... mask and sunglasses, looking in your direction. You gave him a small wave goodbye as you two left through the doors.

You had finished your twinkie as you both reached his dorm door. Wiping the crumbs on your pants, you were reminded of how you told him you needed new clothes. Right as he pulled his keys out, you spoke up, “König, remember how I said I wanted a change of clothes?”

He looked back at you wide eyed. “Scheiße! I do... damn it...” He paused, bringing his hand to his mouth as he looked off to the side, lost in thought. “...Can we just... uh, check the lost and found? I’m sure something is there.”

You crossed your arms, giving him a bit of an annoyed look. “You don't want to talk to the girls here, do you?”

He let out an exasperated sigh, then met your eyes again, almost pleading but still looking as serious as he could. “Yeah, I really don’t want to knock on the doors and ask the girls here if they have extra clothes. It’s just... It really doesn’t sound right coming from me.” He gestured at himself, his entire tall and bulky figure.

“I can do most of the talking, I’m sure they’ll understand if I ask.”

“Can we please just... do this another day, Liebling?” His voice snapped at you calmly. He very clearly didn’t want to do this... having gone through a lot today. You felt bad pressing him but... you really needed new clothes. You looked to the side, then met his gaze again. You nodded, agreeing to go at least check the lost and found.

It was just past the end of the hallway, just a large cardboard box with a paper sign above it, labeled in a permanent marker crudely. There wasn’t much to choose from, but it’s not like you could be picky considering this was basically stealing clothes. He said he’d throw them in the wash while he was working tomorrow, then get them and bring them back once he finished, but it left you wondering what you’d do for tonight. You really were tired of this shirt, it felt dirty and you hated that feeling. You figured you’d just ask him once you got back to his room.

Opening his door, you followed after him, walking past him as he shut the door behind and locked it. Letting out a huge sigh of relief, he turned around, his eyes closed as he spoke, “Endlich kann ich entspannen... Scheiße...” He spoke the curse softly under his breath as he slowly opened his eyes. They remained half lidded, exhausted but relieved as he looked at you, letting out a little laugh and shaking his head. “What a day, ja?”

You giggled softly as you took a step toward him, keeping your eyes on him as he approached as well. He was quickly and easily able to pull you toward him in a huge hug, gently squeezing you as you were enveloped by his embrace. Your smile grew on your cheeks as you returned it, though you weren’t able to encase him as much, you still tried your best to squish his body as much as you could with your strength. You knew he was holding back while holding you, but you didn’t have to.

“I can’t even imagine the stress you’re going through right now...” His hands gently combed through your hair as you shifted from shoving your face directly into his lower chest to look up at him. “Sometimes... I think I really don’t have much to worry about, but still my brain can’t stop racing... But then I’ll stop and I’ll look at you and every worry about myself stops for a moment as I just start to worry about you, mein Mäuschen...”

Your brows furrowed as you caught his gaze shifting away from you, lost in thought. “Hey... I... We are going to get through this. I know it’s easier said than done but... don’t worry about me.” His gaze shifted back to you as you spoke, softening as he saw your expression. “As long as you're with me, to support me, I will be fine. I... I feel the same way; once I see you again, I feel my worries melt away. I just feel so at ease with you... We haven’t known each other for long but sometimes... You know, you just get that with someone, where it feels like you’ve known each other for years just from how easy it is to relax and talk with them.”

He nodded, and you were able to tell he had a soft smile creeping up his face. The way the light through the window hit him... It was just before twilight, the sun just barely starting to set but still making the room a nice amber tone. It made his already gorgeous eyes look even more beautiful, the warm tone contrasting beautifully to his cool toned eyes. “I feel the exact same, Liebling...”

His grip on you tightened as he started to lift you up. You adjusted your grip, going from wrapping your arms around his abdomen to letting them go up and around his neck as he pulled you closer. One of your hands pulled up his mask slowly as your legs wrapped around him for additional support, as the two of you brought your faces close to each other. For a moment, you stayed there, just an inch between each other as you shared bated breaths, before he gave in and closed the gap, his hand gripping your back as you pulled your body even closer to his. Your lips moved softly against his, your mouth opening to breathe, and he matched it, though you both held back, not letting your tongues slip out and instead just exchanging breaths.

Just as he started the kiss, he was the one who broke away first, slowly opening his eyes and looking at you, then shifting over to the bed. “...I hate to be a mood killer but the bed is looking really inviting now... and not even in the fun way but I just want to lay down.” He let out an awkward laugh, but let it fade out as you laughed with him. You unwrapped your legs from around him as you slowly lowered yourself, him helping as he leaned over to ease you to the ground.

“We should get into something more comfy then and just... lay down for the night. Put something on the TV and just, slowly doze off.”

He smiled as he looked at you. “That sounds wonderful...”

He had started to walk to his bed, but you gently ran your hand down his arm to his wrist. “Speaking of which though... is it possible I could just... sleep in one of your shirts for the night? I’m sorry, I know I keep going on about the clothes but just this shir-”

He cut you off by letting out a little laugh, taking a small step towards you. “Say less, my dear... My shirt might look like a dress on you but... I wouldn’t mind that at all.”

You smiled as he walked past you, turning to his dresser as you took a step back, starting to undress. You saw his gaze shift as he saw your shirt fly past him and into his hamper. You could imagine the little blush creeping up his face as he dug through his drawer. He held up a black shirt that had “Rammstein” written right on top, with the logo taking up a majority of the rest of it, all in a nice red to accent the dark tone. You definitely were going to be swimming in it. “This will work... I haven’t worn this since high school so... this is much too small for me.”

He let out a little laugh, cut short as he looked behind and saw your body again, his eyes going wide for a moment. You smiled, a blush creeping up your cheeks as you tried to remain confident. “Why’d you bring it then if it’s too small?”

He did a little clearing of his throat. He was on his knees to look in his dresser easier, but he did not switch to stand as he kept looking at you, instead slowly sliding forward. “Oh... I guess just memories. I like bringing a few pieces of home with me when I’m out of country like this.”

He looked at you, his eyes half lidded as he was right next to you. With him on his knees, he was finally your height, much easier to see you eye to eye. Gently, he grabbed your arms, lifting them up slightly to make it easier to slip your arms in. You helped him out, ducking your head under to get yourself in. As he pulled it down, he let his hands trail, outlining your body softly and delicately until he reached your lower hips. A shirt that was too small for him still went well below your pelvis, making it a very comfy nightshirt.

He wasted no time grabbing your hips and pulling you close, lifting his mask up and meeting your lips much easier at this height. You smiled and chuckled in the kiss, wrapping your arms around him as he hungrily devoured you. He was so cute when he was desperate and needy. When he broke the kiss he let out a sigh, looking deep into your eyes. “...I’m so glad you’re here, mein Mäuschen.”

You smiled, looking back at him just as lovingly. “I can say the same...” You let your hands gently drift down his shoulders and to his chest, drumming your fingers on his dark athletic jacket. “Now, I think you could switch into something more comfortable as well. I’m sure you don’t sleep with that mask on, do you?”

As you started laughing, he averted his gaze, the loving confidence in his eyes dropping as nerves took him over obviously. It made you cut your laugh short, knowing this was something that was more serious to him, spiking his anxiety.

“...Right... Y-yeah, you’re right, I don’t sleep with it on... I knew I was gonna have to take it off for you eventually... I just was putting it off in my mind I guess...”

He paused, still not looking at you and his grip on your hips faltering to just barely be resting on them. “...Are you worried I’ll not like you if I know how you look?”

He let out a big sigh, “That and nobody here has seen my face... or at least known they have... I know my head sticks out of the shower a little.” He let out a little chuckle, glancing at you a moment to gauge your reaction before returning to the floor. “I guess not showing my face kind of boosts what little confidence I have... but I can’t put it off...”

You brought one of your hands up to cup his cheek. He nuzzled into your touch, looking at you from the side as you spoke. “I promise... my opinion of you won’t change when I see your face... I’ll help you get more comfortable with it being shown, even if it’s just showing it to me. You’re helping me through this entire situation... I will return the favor, König.”

It was clear he was smiling as his gaze averted again, closing his eyes as he brought his hands to hold the one that was on his face, enjoying every second of the touch. He breathed deeply through his nose as he slowly opened his eyes, removing his hands to get himself up. “I may look a little odd too, as I still have this eye black on...” He walked over to his desk, opening a drawer and pulling out a towel, stained with other black smudges, and micellar water. He stopped for a moment as he set them on the desk and opened the drawer below, reaching into his cargo pants pockets, pulling out two bags of chips from the two on the side and three snack cakes from his regular front pocket. “...In case you get hungry while I’m gone.”

You started laughing at him pulling out so much food from his pockets, like a little Mary Poppins’ bag. You hadn’t even realized he snuck those away, though you remembered the poptart from yesterday, and it made sense how he was able to do it. As you wondered if he would be able to sneak you some more, he took a deep breath and pulled his mask from the front, letting it slide over the back of his neck as he slowly started to reveal himself. Short, messy bits of dirty blonde hair dripped over his neck. The way the light hit it, you could see very faint hints of the red, auburn tone hidden in there. He still kept his back to you, and you respected it by not peeking, though curiosity was about to kill you. He grabbed the towel, soaking it generously in the water and aggressively rubbed at his face. He put a little more water on it, folding it in half and rubbing it in a half-hearted attempt to clean it as he went in for another round, this time gently wiping using the other side of the towel.

He set the towel down and slowly, reluctantly, turned around. His eyes were closed the whole time, just barely peeking through a crack in his eye after a moment of being turned around. You saw the sliver of those beautiful blue eyes and took a step closer, wanting to see him even better. As he slowly opened his downturned eyes, you still saw the little bits of black makeup that stained his waterline, but somehow made his eyes pop more. His bushy eyebrow also remained stained slightly from the makeup as they turned up, concerned and worried as you kept looking at him in awe. His face was thinner, a slightly square jawline helping match his rather bulky frame. His nose was not quite thin, but also not wide, but from the side you could see the slight hook, the little bump of an aquiline nose. Possibly from it being broken as you saw it just barely tilt to his right. On his left, you had noticed it before when you first met him, and still felt it on occasion when kissing him; a scar going from the top left of his lip to just barely where his nostril started, but more so going onto his cheek. It wasn’t strong, but the pale skin contrasted to his surprisingly tan skin. It wasn’t like he was very tan, but for someone always covered head to toe and from Austria, he had a healthy glow to him.

His lips curled into worry as you remained silent, just looking at his face, taking in every inch of it. He opened his mouth to start to speak but you quickly silenced him, whatever bad thought he was about to voice about himself, as you brought your lips to his, kissing him deeply and passionately. He returned it just as hard, pulling your body close as he smiled softly, but seemed to fight the smile as you both continued. You pulled away, putting your hands on both sides of his face as he looked at you lovingly through half lidded eyes. Though he wasn’t the typical standard of beauty, not by a long shot, as you looked at him... those gorgeous blue eyes that always seemed to be both in bliss and hiding his broken past and thoughts.

“...Du bist sehr schön, mein König.” You were sure your German came out sounding a bit broken and stilted as you weren’t sure if you were saying the right thing. Clearly he didn’t care though as he quickly brought you to his lips again, holding you tightly against him as he hummed contently in the kiss. You smiled and laughed again as you kissed him back, loving hearing his little noises of approval as he kissed you lovingly.

“Und du bist perfekt,” he said while his lips were just barely pulled away from yours. You barely cracked your eyes open, seeing him as he looked at you with half lidded eyes, not with lust but with pure affection and tenderness. “...Mein perfektes Mäuschen.”

You pulled away slowly, taking another moment to look as he stayed smiling looking at you, but as your gaze continued his own gaze averted, looking at various places around the room and some spots on your own face and body. He did another little clearing of his throat, letting go of you as he stayed looking at the floor. “Well... now you’ve seen my face, we’ve gotten that out of the way, you should just... lay down. I’ll change myself and I’ll join you.”

You smiled as you saw him half heartedly smile at you, nodding in agreement as you turned, walking over to the bed. As you got yourself cozy under the comforters, you watched him, trying not to make it obvious as he clicked a button under the TV, turning it on. He kept his back to you as he pulled his shirt up and over. You admired the way his back muscles unintentionally flexed as he pulled it off, watching his large biceps as he tossed it into the ever growing pile of laundry. Even hearing the slight click of his belt made a spark shoot through you, though you knew you both were very exhausted and wouldn’t want to do anything tonight. Not after the day you’ve had. You watched him chuck his cargo pants over to the pile, letting out a little laugh as it slid slowly off the pile. He laughed as well, glancing back at you as he started walking to his dresser.

“Guess it’s a good thing I have to do laundry for you anyway, huh?”

You wanted to respond with something smart or cute, but just sat there, mouth slightly agape as you looked at his figure stunned. It was just as you felt through his clothes, muscular, but not fully chiseled. His pecs were huge and though his waist was smaller, it was only slightly as it led to defined abs. It complimented his large stature, making him both intimidating but even more enticing. He noticed you staring as the sunset hit him just right, the dark body hair he had turning auburn as he smiled again, the lopsided smile coming out fully as he chuckled. “Do you like what you see, Liebling?”

You giggled, feeling your face instantly turn hot as you were caught staring. “Hmm... can’t say I’m complaining. It really compliments your handsome face.”

He laughed again, shaking his head as he pulled out some grey sweatpants. “I would disagree but... My body is something I am more proud of... I worked hard because, well you can imagine hitting my height as a teen suddenly made more good fodder for people to bully me. I looked like a little baby deer.” He shook his head but kept smiling, memories coming back to him. “So, I wanted to even everything out. It helped the bullying stop, especially once I actually got into the military and could leave.”

“I think anyone bullying someone of your height has to be real stupid.” You chuckled, trying to reassure him.

“Oh, trust me... I was no pushover, I made sure they regretted it... Besides, that’s the only way they respected me. Seeing me fight back... they didn’t talk to me because they were scared. But that also meant they didn’t want to talk to me to mock me.” He shrugged his shoulders, brushing off his violent past as he pulled up his pants. Admittedly, hearing about his past, though it didn’t surprise you, still made you a little anxious. You worried about him possibly getting into something that was way over his head. Sometimes he seemed cocky, but sometimes with you he’d be reserved. You were sure on the field he would be way more confident.

“Is that why you joined? Does fighting make you feel more confident?” You tilted your head as you looked at him, walking over to the bed slowly as he thought it over in his head.

“Maybe... I don’t think of it that way but maybe somewhere in the back of my mind it does. I more so joined because it gave my fighting a purpose. It distracts me from everything else on my mind, I have to focus on what’s ahead of me or...” He paused, you both thinking the same grim thought. “...So, if it’s one of the few things I’m good at, why not hone in on it.”

He smiled softly as he sat on the edge of the bed. Though the bed was huge, his frame did take up quite a bit of it. You figured you two would just have to get close, not that you were complaining. He still had no shirt on, probably you had taken his last one since he needed to do laundry soon. Or maybe that was just a convenient excuse he was taking so he could have you even closer to him, to feel you on his own skin. He lifted the covers, scooting in to lay behind you, then pulled them back over. While his arm was over you, he propped himself up slightly, leaning over you to grab the remote. He left his arm draped over you as he started clicking through the channels.

“They don't give you any streaming services, huh?” You were trying to think of the last time you had to flip through channels to find something to watch.

“Heheh, no... one, I think someone could track us if they found whatever WiFi we were on and two, can you imagine how expensive it would be to get some ultimate account that could accommodate everyone here?”

You laughed slightly. “True but... I’m sure a company like this has the funds for it. But the WiFi thing you said is also a good point.”

He continued flipping through the channels, eventually looping back through until he stopped at some variety of cooking show with Gordon Ramsey. Based on the split kitchen, it was some Hell’s Kitchen re-run. He leaned back over you again, putting the remote down but slowed for a moment as he pulled back. He stayed there, slightly hovering and leaning over you. You gave him a small side glance, seeing him smiling as his cheeks were slightly red, turning slightly more as he noticed you caught him, but his smile did not fade.

“Du bist einfach so schön...” He brushed your hair behind your ear and continued to comfortably lay back, letting that arm settle right on your waist, his thumb gently rubbing your stomach through the shirt.

“I was going to ask...” You turned your head slightly to look at him the best you could while keeping your back to him. “I said schön earlier but that means, like, pretty or beautiful, right? Is there a word like handsome where like... it’s more masculine?”

He chuckled and you smiled, feeling his chest rumble against your back. “Well, I don’t mind you calling me schön. It’s pretty gender neutral but I guess the closest equivalent is hübsch. But they both mean the same thing.”

“I mean, pretty and handsome do in concept too but guys generally prefer not being called pretty.”

“I haven’t been called either so... I don’t care what you call me, I’m just happy you think that about me at all.”

Hearing that made you feel pity for him. You were sure people before could just look at his eyes, see how gorgeous they are, and thought it to themselves. Though they would never say it, intimidated by the rest of his form. “Speaking of calling you things and German, what are some pet names you’ve always wanted to be called? You’re always calling me Maus, Mäuschen, Liebling... I’m sure there’s ones you’ve heard and thought would be nice to hear.”

He hummed softly, thinking to himself. His fingers drummed softly on your side. You let your hand drop slowly, letting it rest on top of his hand and your fingers interlacing in between his. You felt him smile as he pressed his lips onto the back of your head, giving you a gentle peck and sighing softly. “Hmm... well you can call me Liebling too. That would be nice, especially coming from your lips... I think I’ve called you Schatz before. I don’t use it too much myself though. If you want an equal to Maus, Bär is one that’s common back home. It just means bear.”

“So, you’ve said chen makes a word mean small right? So if I called you Bärchen...”

He laughed heartily. It seemed like most times he held back his real, bigger laughs, but when he let them loose you loved it. It made you smile and laugh as well, hearing him filled with joy. “I mean, you’d be wrong describing me. But your German is correct. Du machst das gut, mein Liebling.” He brought his other hand that he was using to rest his head to yours, gently brushing your hair behind your ear as he let his fingers run through it. He let it rest above your head as he propped himself up, hovering above you and staring down at you. You could feel it and smiled, turning yourself onto your back to meet his gaze. He was looking at you dopily, pure awe filled as he took you in like it was his first time seeing you again. “Any other German you’d like to know, mein Mäuschen?”

You pulled your lips together as you thought, wondering if you should go with something that may be useful or something a bit more cheeky. “I is ich... want is...?”

“Will.” You loved the way he nearly bit his lip as it softly dragged against his top teeth saying the sound of the W.

“And to? Like ‘I want to...’?”

“It’s included with the will, no additional word is needed.”

You felt the way his hand wiggled his fingers against yours, still gently resting on your stomach and comforting you even more. “Kiss?”

His lids lowered as his smile increased. “Küssen.”

You smiled back as the blush on your cheeks brightened, thinking about the last word you had to learn. “You?”

He let out a little laugh as he leaned closer to you, leaving a few inches between your faces. “In this case, it’d be dich... but the word order will be different, so ich?”

He looked at you expectantly, the silence signaling he wanted you to repeat. “Ich.”

“Will... dich... küssen...” You repeated after him every word, smiling as it felt odd to be speaking another language. But him returning the joy made you feel better as you were actually saying it right. “Now put it together... say it faster...”

“Ich will dich küssen...” Your cheeks beamed as they grew hotter, especially as his eyes started to dart again, from meeting yours to watching your lips speak his native language.

“Und ich will dich auch küssen...” Before you could ask what auch meant, he brought his lips to yours, quickly closing the gap as your fingers interlaced and gripped his hand while kissing passionately. He let his other hand slip under your neck, pulling you closer to him. You wrapped your other arm around his neck in response to him pulling you up slightly, pulling yourself even closer. He gripped back with the hand that was holding yours, picking it up and gently putting it beside your head and holding it there, pinning you in place. As you started to smile, he slipped his tongue out, licking across your bottom lip, as if gently asking permission again. You let your mouth open slightly, letting your tongue meet his as you felt his grip tighten. His breath was hot on your cheek as he puffed out of his nose, letting his tongue explore deeper in your mouth. Slowly he pulled away, opening his eyes just as slow as his grip loosened, meeting your eyes again. “...Ich will dein Alles sein.”

You giggled as he immediately nuzzled into your neck, not even kissing, just attacking your neck with his face gently. Though he was clean shaven for the most part, you could still feel the little bits of facial hair tickle you. “What does that mean? You want...?”

“I want to be your everything,” he said breathily into your neck. “It’s so hard to describe how I feel about you, Liebling. I haven’t felt like this before in my life... Every part of me wants to protect you, care for you, make sure you're happy before anything else.” He leaned up again, looking into your eyes and just staring for a good moment. It was like he was completely awe stuck as he looked at you, mouth slightly agape. He took his hand out from under your neck and gently brushed through your hair. “...I want to do everything I can so I can wake up every morning and see this beautiful, smiling face looking at me with as much love as you are right now...”

You felt heat crawl up your face as you were called out for your own lovestruck look. You couldn’t help it as those crystalline eyes looked at you, shifting slightly as he took in the sight of you under him, the feeling of your hair between his fingers. It was true, he probably never felt this way before. He was so used to resorting to violence that feeling so soft and vulnerable around someone felt alien to him. But he was so willing to give himself to you, to enjoy this feeling he’s never had, you couldn’t help but admire and adore it... adore him even more. “Ich will dein auch Alles sein...”

He chuckled, making you blush even more knowing you messed up your German. He quickly gave you a kiss, reassuring you it was fine. “Close, meine Maus. Ich will auch dein Alles sein.”

You did a fake, over dramatic pout. “I don’t get German grammar... ‘I want also your everything be?’”

He laughed harder this time, getting off from being on top of you and laying back down behind you. “You’ll get it eventually, my darling. I know it’s hard but I’ll help you get through it. Now come on,” he took his muscular arm and draped it over you, pulling you in close to him again, “into my arms.”

You smiled widely and turned back on your side, scooting yourself into his loving embrace. He gave you a strong squeeze before releasing, letting out a relaxed breath as you settled in. “I always dreamed of having a beautiful girl in my arms while I dozed off... It’s even more relaxing when it’s real.”

You smiled, you could say the same, finding it hard not to just close your eyes and rest while wrapped in his arms, his body warm and comforting like a blanket in itself. You took both your arms and pulled them under and around his forearm, hugging it close to you. You gave in, shutting your eyes and taking in the whole feeling of him, hugging his arm like a teddy bear. He placed a gentle kiss on the back of your head before resting his chin on your head, keeping you very close to his body. You felt a shift behind you, the sounds of chefs screaming stopping. You cracked your eye open to see the TV off, darkness taking over the room. All you could feel was the little puffs of air from his nose as he breathed, his chest rising and falling, and the subtle beat of his heart. You nuzzled against him one final time, letting the relaxation take you as you fully fell asleep with him.

Translations! Endlich kann ich entspannen... Scheiße...- Finally, I can relax... fuck... ...Du bist sehr schön, mein König.- You are very beautiful, my König. Und du bist perfekt.- And you are perfect. ...Mein perfektes Mäuschen.- ...my perfect Mäuschen. Du bist einfach so schön...- You are just so pretty... Du machst das gut, mein Liebling.- You are doing well, my darling. Und ich will dich auch küssen...- And I want to kiss you too...

#könig #könig x reader #konig #konig x reader #call of duty #call of duty x reader #cod x reader #könig mw2 #mw2 #mw2 x reader #Mäuschen

[abnormalpsychology]

I went to my first Rocky horror screening on Friday and I literally miss it so bad!!! I lost my mind and felt so hot and it was . transcendent . so I made a list of highlights:

- MY FRIEND AND I GETTING SAT IN THE SECOND UP CLOSE FRONT ROW BC WE LOOKED SO ENTHUSIASTIC IN OUR FLOOR SHOW MAKEUP AAGHDH 😳😳

-MY FRIEND AND I GETTING TO BE BETTY AND RALPH HAPSHATT (HER SAYING YES DESPITE NOT EVEN KNOWING WHO THEY WERE LMAO) AND ME MISSING THE BOUQUET TOSS TIMING - MY ONE JOB!!!! - OUT OF SHEER BLUESCREENING FROM SEROTONIN OVERLOAD AND PANIC LMAO

- OUR VIRGIN GAME WAS LITERALLY NOT BAD AT ALL DESPITE ME HAVING BEEN SO SCARED LOL. “I went to Rocky horror and now I’m popped!!” as our repeated call to worship with a guy dressed as the pope agahshgk, they were so gentle w us fr

- THE CAST DID THIS PRE RECORDED ROCKY HORROR VERSION OF THE NICOLE KIDMAN AD AHHAJDJ

- the audience making a joke to the stage guy (who was like probably 30) abt skibidi toliet and him being like “what the FUCK are you talking about” 💀

- preparing the audience for the ride like “people are going to be yelling the worst things you’ve ever heard in your life at the screen.”

- RIGHT INTO IT WITH A STRIPTEASE AND TIDDIES COMING ALL THE WAY OUT ON SCIENCE FICTION DOUBLE FEATURE

- “fight a triffid” “WHAT THE FUCK IS A TRIFFID”

- doing the time warp with a crowd was like the most fun I’ve ever had

- I ALSO GOT TO BE THE FUCKING LEVER RIFF RAFF CRANKS FOR ROCKY TO RISE OUT OF THE TANK LMAO

- I can’t even remember all the crowd chants but so many absolutely DESTROYED me w laughter

- “LIKE UR NECK BITCH”

- “you say goodbye / and I say” “hello 😒”

- “hey Janet are you a slut?” “yes ☺️ I am”

- IT WAS WEIRDLY LIKE CHURCH BC EVERYONE KNEW HOW ALL THIS SHIT WORKED AND HAD THEIR LINES MEMORIZED AND WE DIDNT BUT THEY LITERALLY HAD SIGNS AND SO MUCH KIND NICE INSTRUCTION FOR NEW PPL AND LIKE. I LOVE THEM

- THE LINES I KNEW I WAS SO GODDAMN HAPPY TO KNOW AND I EVEN YELLED OUT MY OWN ONES I CAME UP WITH AND THESE OLDER LADIES BEHIND US KNEW ALL THESE ORIGINAL ONES TOO

- “keep calm / don’t panic” or something like that and everyone just screamed in unison 😭 multiple times lol

- FORGOT TO GET US A PROP BAG BC WE GOT TO BE VIPS WHICH KILLED ME BUT IM GOING BACK ANYWAYS SOOOO 🤪🤪

- everyone had so many funny chants that kept surprising me but I was just singing along bc the songs already are just sOOOOO INCREDIBLY FUN anyways

- the improvisations by the cast were so consistently v funny, I loved them . and like everyone was trans!!! so many binders!!! it was incredible

- “-visitors, let alone offer them hospitality “HORSE BRUTALITY?” WAS SAID SOOO LOUD LMAO

- “it’s a Bird it’s a plane it’s SUPER ASSHOLE”

- THE WEAKLING WEIGHING 98 LBS CALLBACK LINE WAS EVERYONE JUST BEING MEAN TO BRAD AND IT WAS SOOO FUNNY LMAO

- EVERYONE THROWING UP TOLIET PAPER AND PARTY POPPERS AND CARDS IN THE AIR WAS SO BEAUTIFUL TO WATCH ACTUALLY <3

- THE BEDROOM SCENE OUR FRANK WAS LIKE “yep it’s totally me . Brad majors 😐 That’s me” not even TRYING and I fucking died lmao

- OH MY GOD. THE BEDROOM SCENES IN SILHOUETTE WHERE THEY HAD THEM PULL DIFF INSANE PROPS OUT OF BRAD AND JANETS ASSHOLES 💀💀💀💀 I WAS LIKE “THATS NOT HOT????”

- the Eddie chanting (“not the ass but the side!”) was SO FUN I WAS SO HAPPY I STUDIED FOR HOURS READING THE PARTICIPATION SCRIPTS LMAO

- Eddie live where they did the hand jive and I couldn’t do it fast enough and Rocky was wtaching me and said “IM LOOKING AT YOU”

- THE REVEAL OF EDDIE’S BODY WHERE THEY COULDNT HAVE HIM LYING UNDERNEATH THE TABLE SO THEY JUST HAD HIS ACTOR RUN OUT AND BE DEAD AS FAST AS POSSIBLE FHSAHSHHAHAHA

- them like “haha Dr Scott! we are eating ur nephew” 💀 #prankd

- I got to throw in my own little lines with like “You’re going to kill him? What’s his crime?”“WHATS NOT?” And I FELT SO FUNNY FOR IT

- riff saying “my most beautiful sister” and my friend (WHO HADNT FINISHED THE MOVIE) turning to me slowly like .. 😟?

- EVEN IN “IM GOING HOME” THEY STILL HAD CHANTS MAKING FUN OF IT FHAJQHS

- THEY DID SUPER HEROES AND I WENT “THANK YOU JESUS” ALOUD HFJSJW

- they had audience members also be the table Frank rides in the scene and the sonic oscillator which was so great!!! my FAVORITE of which was the cutie playing the globe at the end who got so dizzy she had to stop 😭❤️

- anyways it went crazy. pls go to Rocky horror if you get a chance asap!!!! go to events! be gay! it will change ur life

- <3 u rockyhorror :)

#bbge.text #rocky horror picture show #rocky horror #rhps

[fluctuating-fanby]

In dreams we can get away, but I don’t wanna live that lie; I’ll stay awake for you, I’ll keep chasing you until the end of time.

...d'you ever get so invested in a fanfiction and so deeply attached to AU versions of characters very far removed from canon that it practically rivals your obsession with the source material?

Since April, that fic for me has been @a-slight-sweet-fiction's epic ongoing Kevcilos AU longfic Every Version of You. And at time of posting, Ch 99 has just been published!!! It's a long read, but well worth it. If you have any sort of attachment towards Kevcil or Kevlos or Kevcilos, I highly recommend you check it out.

It's deeply good! I'm deeply emotionally devastated! I'm deeply attached to a version of Kevin/Cecil where they've both had their lives destroyed by Strex even though their plotline is only about a quarter of the chapters of the whole fic!

It's about finding love and being loving in a life that's been so harsh. It's about moving on and second chances. It's about fearing loss but being grateful that the good even existed at all and clinging so so tightly to it while it's there. It's just [gestures wildly]!

Oh, and one last thing! MAJOR spoiler for EVOY Ch 96 under the cut.

Save the Date for the marriage of Kevin Paloma & Cecil Palmer on March 15th, 20XX, in an Other Desertworld!

LISTEN. LISTEN. I predicted that they'd get married as a joke but IT'S ACTUALLY HAPPENING AND I'M SUCH A FUCKING MESS ABT IT. They may not be able to send out actual Save the Dates or wedding invitations, BUT I MADE THEM ONE ANYWAY BECAUSE THAT WAS AN UNBEARABLY SAD THOUGHT. I'M SO SO NORMAL ABT THEM (<- lying)

(To clarify, March 15th is the in-universe date of their wedding, as confirmed by the author. The wedding chapter will likely be published irl sometime in February.)

#wtnv #kevcil #evoy #every version of you #fanart of fanfiction #digital art #digital painting #vince draws stuff

[sunnydaleherald]

The Sunnydale Herald Newsletter, Tuesday, May 28

Anya: Piano! Xander: Because that's what we used to kill that big demon that one time!Xander: No wait, that-that was a rocket launcher. (turns to Anya) Ahn, what are you talking about? Anya: We should drop a piano on her. Well, it always works for that creepy cartoon rabbit when he's running from that nice man with the speech impediment.

~~Buffy Season 5 Episode #98: "Spiral"~~

[Drabbles & Short Fiction]

Come Home To Me (Buffy/Faith, G) by Resplendence_Of_Starlight

Void if ..... (Xander, M, Aladdin xover) by JadeWine

Cool Lips, Cold Stone (Buffy/Faith, T) by bitterxox

Mr. Snuggluffagus (Buffy, Willow, Xander, T) by JadeWine

Cigarettes are meant for two (Spike/Reader, unrated) by WhiteMonsterEnergy

Sunnydale Pawnshop (Xander, T, Evil Dead xover) by samsas

[Chaptered Fiction]

Unicorn Ch. 1 (Buffy/Angel, Buffy/SPike, T) by desicat

Happiest Place Ch. 1-8/8 COMPLETE (Angel/Cordelia, AtS Ensemble,) by julianblackthornspancakes

Where goes the Heart? CH. 1 () by skhwriter

Disease Ch. 3/4 (Buffy/Giles, E) by guin_ramble

Cultivating Chaos Ch. 17 (Ensemble, M) by BunnyQuill

The Boring Stuff: Halloween Ch. 2 (Buffy/Angel, M) by missfiggy

Broken Curses Ch 1-22/22 COMPLETE (Xander, Fanged Four, Same Lawson, E) by Ihatechoosinganame

Shadow Over Hellmouth Ch. 110/252 (Buffy/Tara, Ensemble, ) by Tuxedo_Mark

I hate the way Ch. 15 (Buffy/Giles , E) by DancingAngel0013

In the Company of Witches and Slayers: Ch. 49/200 (Willow/Tara, Ensemble, E) by VladimirHarkonnen (TheLightdancer)

In the Dark of the Night Ch. 11 (Buffy/Spike, M) by norik23

To the Skylark, Chapter 2 (Buffy/Spike, M) by squiddz

See You Yesterday, Chapter 5 (Buffy/Spike, M) by all choseny

Love Bites But So Do I, Chapter 2 (Buffy/Spike, E) by CheekyKitten

Something Lingers, Chapter 25 (Buffy/Spike, E) by goodbyetoyou

Deliverance From Destiny, Chapter 15 (Buffy/Spike, E) by Ragini

The Watcher, Chapter 11 (Buffy/Spike, E) by In Mortal

Stranger in her Body, Chapter 3 (Buffy/Spike, E) by Desicat

[Images, Audio & Video]

Artwork:Young Robin Wood () by aa-arttss

Artwork:Illustration for elysianholly‛s "The Writing on the Wall" () by isevery0nehereverystoned

Artwork:Tara () by testframboise-aqua

Playlist:A Playlist for Willow () by gothhobbithoe

Playlist:A Playlist for Buffy () by gothhobbithoe

Video: Buffy & Spike | Bad Idea Right? () by https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gxRCqFji3tA

[Reviews & Recaps]

Real Me (BTVS 5.02) by buffster

Are You Now or Have You Ever Been (ATS 2.02) by buffster

Judgement (ATS 2.01) by buffster

PODCAST: ATS 216 - Epiphany by Another Buffy Podcast

PODCAST: Episode 29 - Enough with the Hecate! (Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered) by The Sunnydale Diaries

[Community Announcements]

Tuesday Prompt: Word of the Day by comment_fic

As a reminder, I have a Buffy/Giles discord server open to people 18 and up! by alexsrousseau

[Fandom Discussions]

hc abt the monks taking insp for dawn from willow? by pzyii

I’ve just realized what I actually find icky about Buffy and Angel. by reality-schmality

I just fucking hate how often the show paints Buffy as being in the wrong. by reality-schmality

You want to know why I love Spike so goddamn much? His redemption arc. by reality-schmality

I love Dawn and I love wondering how the early years might have been different with her involved. by reality-schmality

the fact of the matter is that buffy ends up isolated no matter what the scoobies do by greensaplinggrace

the most frustrating thing about the whole spike situation is that the scoobies act stupid as fucking hell about it. by greensaplinggrace

people in the btvs fandom will act like angel was buffy’s one eternal true best love and nothing else compares by greensaplinggrace

dawn summers, at 14, learned she wasnt originally human and that all of her memories were fake by leechjam

Still thinking about Buffy and Anne helping each other find themselves in Anne. by thechosenthree

ok so like. i watched the episode of buffy where the swim team turns into fish monsters alá chemicals in the steam room and. by girlboydotjpg

Having never been able to finish ats I just learned of this line angel without a soul says to Fred in season 4 of ats by raisedbythetv89

Sometime I get lost wondering if Buffy ever invited Faith to live with her and Joyce. by reality-schmality

coming back for the WIP game: tell me something about Coffeehouse AU that I don’t know by somekindofadeviant

Why do you think Cangel is forced? by thetopher

Cowboy Guy by Al_Bee

What is a line/scene where you realized buffy was an adult? by melaniemoth13

I finished it. by No-Cicada5474

Question about Anya, Buffy and Giles (Season 6 episode 6, All the Way) by technob8b222

At what moment did you feel the worst for Buffy? by InfiniteMehdiLove

Looking for fic by Looking for fic

Once more with FEELING! by billyylost

Favorite Tara Quote by Past-Throat-6788

Giles, Xander, Buffy and Willow by jogaforacont

What are some reasons you are happy that the Buffyverse was created decades ago by PristineSituation498

Buffy’s real name? by horoshev

Riley in episodes 1-3 of Season 5 by figinmyteeth

What's a minor "what if" that wouldn't have made much of a difference you would have liked? by GWPtheTrilogy1

Signature drinks of the Scoobies? by Sir_Poofs_Alot

Parallels between Jenny Calendar and Lilah Morgan’s deaths by Pumpkins217

Information that it's weird that the characters know? by foreseethefuture

[Articles, Interviews, and Other News]

PUBLICATION: This immersive 'Buffy' prom slays by The Bold Italic

Submit a link to be included in the newsletter!

Join the editor team :)

#btvs #buffy the vampire slayer #angel the series #fan art #fan fiction #meta

[onlyjaeyun]

hi zadie my love! the issues of people saying your romanticizing certain behaviors need to also understand that this smau is for a MATURE audience i mean you literally make it so clear you do not want minors to interact. so many TV shows, movies, even books (all fiction btw!!!) are targeted for a mature audience so that people can understand what certain behaviors may be portrayed and it is up to the viewer/reader if they still want to indulge in the piece of art. you can understand not everything will align w your beliefs or be your cup of tea but there shouldn’t be people telling you that ur “romanticizing” and that you should “set a good example” bc you’re actually not responsible for that. your work is fiction, your work is also coming from a person in uni who writes in her free time. you are not putting out fiction for every person in the world to read and you do not have to put out work to fit every person in the audiences criteria!!! it makes me so upset that people can bash you when all they have to do is click off!!

i have a friend who’s jay bias and i recommended her ur jay smau and then she told me she’s not a fan of the daddy/little girl theme and that was it. she didn’t have to personally tell you she wasn’t a fan. she knows you’re a beautiful writer (bc i share some of my favorite parts of the CH smau to her) and that’s all that needs to be known.

also it’s very clear from the beginning of the smau that it is very topic heavy with many difficult themes even them calling out each others parental trauma from literally the first few chapters .. so if someone chooses to progress with the story they are aware and should take caution if something may trigger them

i want you to know that many people enjoy your work, especially me. if there’s a theme ppl don’t enjoy then they can click off or ignore it?! they shouldn’t tell you how to write your story.

i love you zadie and i truly hope people would leave you alone abt this stuff :(

- 🍇

firstly, thank you so, so much for this baby. i really appreciate you and hope you know how much your words mean to me. i absolutely agree with you and have received quite a few other asks which have also helped me come to a conclusion since i did beat myself up a little yesterday so again, thank you so much for this.

honestly you basically said everything i was thinking so im not gonna add anything and just end this discussion here because imma also gonna make a separate post regarding this particular topic.

i just wanna thank everyone who sent me a message regarding this situation and hope you guys know if it wasn't for all of your reassurance and support i woukd have easily lost motivation by now. so thank you so, so much for always having my back and doing the rational thinking when my people pleaser brain is doing the most. i love and appreciate you all so so so much🩷🧸🫧

#; mailbox 📬

[compacflt]

okay here to pick ur mind…i know you’ve alluded to it throughout WWGTTAI and debriefing but do u think bottoming is something that i’ve struggled with throughout his relationship with mav-especially if he enjoyed it-bc it may have been “more gay” in his mind and therefore harder to excuse due to the inherent misogyny wrapped up in men’s homophobia? it’s something we’ve talked abt in my gender studies classes so i just wanted to know how you think your ice may have approached that due to the repression of his sexuality so throughly and for so long!

as always with questions like this there’s a diegetic (in-universe) answer and a non-diegetic (writing theory) answer so I’ll start with the diegetic answer (not tagging this as nsfw but obv refer to the subject matter & discretion advised):

he isn’t thinking about it. I mean, he has to think about the mechanics of it, because sure there’s a lot of prep work involved, but he’s not really thinking about what it means, because no one’s telling him to. He knows it’s “wrong” —but the whole thing is “wrong,” anyway! The fact that he’s doing anything with Maverick is already wrong... I think he categorizes things as “not-fucked-up” and “yes-fucked-up” in his head, and any form of non-societally-approved contact with another man is “yes-fucked-up,” and there’s not really a sliding scale. Which is why Maverick’s weird extended hug thing right when Ice leaves TOPGUN (ch.4? I forget) is like literally the biggest deal in the world to him. I think Maverick could’ve actually groped him and he would’ve responded the same way. It’s all fucked-up, in his head. No difference between hugging/kissing/fucking/being fucked; it's all the same. There are the rules, and then there’s breaking the rules—no gray area in Ice’s mind (though note, in turn, Maverick’s analysis of Ice bending the rules—there is a gray area, just an unacknowledged one). 

So, yeah, he isn’t really thinking about the implications of the specific act. Maybe he knows that he enjoys it, and that thinking about what it means that he enjoys it would ruin it, so he doesn’t think about it. Also, he’s operating under the unspoken assumption that there’s something “wrong” with Maverick and not with him, because remember that Maverick already confessed to engaging in same-sex acts in ch. 4. There’s something fundamentally “wrong” with Maverick, so anything Ice does automatically looks better in comparison, because (he thinks) his transgressions are isolated incidents, whereas Maverick’s are a known pattern—even if Ice’s “transgressions” amount to literally being fucked by another guy. Hey, well, at least I’m not as bad as rule-breaker Maverick, who does this all the time, apparently! 

In Ch. 8 I was kind of trying to harp on that fact with the use of the word “resentment” during Ice’s discussion of choice/free will—there is kind of a sense that Maverick did this to him against his will, as in, he wasn’t “yes-fucked-up” until he met Maverick/this whole FWB-situation started, and maybe there is some deep-seated resentment about the fact that he might have been “normal” if it weren’t for Maverick (he wouldn’t have been, but he doesn’t realize that). I was close to having him just say this outright in Ch. 8, but as I’ll talk about below, their relationship is already pretty toxic, and there were some lines of toxicity I didn’t want to cross explicitly.

As for the non-diegetic answer, AKA the reason I wrote it this way: I’m kind of hesitant to politicize sociosexual (esp. “hierarchical”) roles in fiction, because I feel like it’s an easy way to betray your own political biases (as a writer) towards male sexual roles—it’s just too slippery of a slope IMO. Especially once you introduce ranks and professional/financial power dynamic differences, I feel like it’s all-too easy to portray the relationship as incredibly and toxically sociopolitically unequal. Yeah, I guess it would make more sense for very-closeted Ice to top 100% of the time, but he’s already “hierarchically” above Maverick 100% of the time anyway—politically, professionally, financially, in terms of social respect, etc. I didn’t want their dynamic to be skewed all the way towards one character having all the social/external/traditionally masculine power, so I didn’t write it like that. That in and of itself is a political decision that betrays my beliefs about male sexuality, and might not make sense in-universe, with characters this repressed, but…I personally felt uncomfortable with the alternative.

I think I’ve explained this a couple times elsewhere, but I wanted Ice & Mav to be true equals in this fic, because it reflects the equality they achieve in canon— “You can be my wingman anytime” vs. “Bullshit, you can be mine.” They are canonically equals. And, yes, of course in a sexual relationship you can be “giver” or “taker” and still be “equal” with the other person, but—like, you see how it would be different, right? If you’re only ever the “giver,” in our society’s traditional understanding of gender roles, you have an insane amount of power over the other person, and I wanted Ice & Mav to be equals when they’re with each other. It’s why I was hesitant having like an actual D/S dynamic with them as well—and the lack of that dynamic is itself a plot point. Ice in ch. 8 rebels against what he thinks their dynamic is—namely, that Maverick always leads/gives the orders, and Ice always follows. He portrays himself as submissive in that moment (“I’ve never had a choice”), but in reality he has just as much control over this relationship as Maverick does—i.e. he is just as “dominant,” and wants it just as bad, he just can’t articulate that. Which is the point of his whole character arc. Their equality is the point, not the transgressiveness of the act itself.

Also related to his character arc is the passivity of the act of bottoming as well, which is maybe why it's "overrepresented" in the story (sorry coming back to add this graf after doing the tags already &then Having A Thought). Like if Ice's whole thing is following orders/not having a choice, which makes him a great naval officer but a deeply flawed and confused person, then it makes sense that his narrative focuses most on the following/passive act of "taking," not necessarily the more leading/active role of "giving." These are simplistic terms obv but hopefully you can see what I'm getting at.

#& i think honestly i rebelled so hard against the idea of ice stereoptypically ALWAYS topping/'giving' #that i maybe OVERrepresented him ‘taking’ in my writing #just bc it was like ‘oh ofc ice would top🙄’ so i wanted to do something different #which then turned into him bottoming all the time LMFAO that was NOT my goal #they are verses ok that’s what im trying to say here #bc at least with each other they need to be on an equal playing field #asks #edts notes #But thank you for the ask! most of this also stems from the fact that as a writer im just…bad at writing smut/ #characters talking about sex so i avoid it when i can & fade to black as much as possible #doesnt make me uncomfortable im just bad at it lol #especially in 3rd person (i usually write in 1st) #too many pronouns/name repetitions #and i abhor epithets & smut is the only time i use epithets to avoid overusing names #but my hatred of epithets > my desire to write smut so i don’t do it #which then leads to conundrums of clarity like this

[backroomskokichi]

i saw an ask you got abt the interpretation of the V3 cast's ages, and i'm honestly pretty neutral on the topic but you mentioned "no proof" on the adult angle so i wanted to share a bit on why i think either argument is reasonable & the ages are well and truly ambiguous on purpose? (disclaimer that i have nothing to do w that guy from the post that was linked & this isn't really focused on the existence of nsfw content)

1. due to the ending reveals, some people believe that the characters had to have been 18+ to sign themselves up for the tv show based on japanese law surrounding game show participation. of course, this is a fictionalization of japan and doesn't necessarily carry the same laws over, but i think its a reasonable enough assumption for some to make.

2. similarly due to the meta-fictional nature of it, some interpret it almost like adult actors being hired to play high schoolers for a tv role? again, i don't particularly have a strong preference for either age interpretation + nsfw content completely aside, i do find this an interesting scenario to explore for the psychological impact of brainwashing someone to believe theyre younger than they actually are for the sake of an experimental death game tv show.

3. due to the previous two casts being revealed as secretly older than originally presented/having forgotten years of memory, many went into V3 under the assumption that the cast would also be older than they remembered. the ending does not confirm this, but it doesn't necessarily contradict it, either. combined with the previous two points, the lack of confirmation in either direction led some to think "oh, so the age/memory twist this time was due to the show, got it."

4. ryoma is suggested to have been tried for murder as an adult, not as a minor, and went to a regular adult prison, not juvy. also something part of a supposedly meta-fictional backstory, but if even the meta-fiction is ambiguous and inconsistent with age, it's hard for me to believe that either answer is truly the "canon" one. his backstory also includes a "lover," which arguably could be there as a strangely mature speech pattern to "contradict" his apparent age, but could also be meant to suggest that he's over 18. the issue with age in the character backstories is that some of the timelines would have to be incredibly tight for them to be minors- not that its impossible, just that its a bit fantastical in nature (which isn't odd for this franchise, to be fair). like, if ryoma is a minor now, how old was he when he went to jail? how old was he when he had a lover? how old was he when he killed those guys?

5. similarly to the previous point is korekiyo's backstory (i dont know about you, but i personally interpret him as a victim of abuse by his sister). how old was he when he was being abused? how old was he when she died? and, most confusingly, how much time did it take him to kill 90+ women? the age timelines don't make much sense, and i think that's intentional! it's supposed to lend to the ch 6 fiction twist- these things don't make any sense because they are arguably not real, even within the context of the game.

6. the layout of the V3 map looks a lot more like a college campus than the first game did. a separate building dormitory, a casino, a love hotel- all of these things being on campus gives it a more mature atmosphere to me. unrelated to the characters' actual ages, i did immediately think to myself upon starting the game, "oh, they're going for kind of an older vibe than the previous games, aren't they?"

7. this isn't super important to the actual canon of the franchise, but i figured i would include it as it is official material; in the talent development plan mode + the summer game, the V3 cast attends hope's peak at the same time as the first two casts. it's irrelevant to their ages within the killing game, but is relevant to the belief that it's inappropriate to ship the V3 cast crossgame. within killing game canon, if ch 6 is to be believed, the first two casts aren't "older" than V3, they're just fictional characters. the only place they exist for real in the same universe is the side material where they attend school together, putting them in the same approximate age range.

8. now, i'm not going to claim something dumb like "minors don't have sexual fantasies." of course they do. but this ties back into point 1: the idea that they signed up for this tv show and consented not just to the killing game, but also for the love hotel events to be broadcasted. again, you could argue that the laws in this universe are different, and that the people who made the game are not below sexualizing minor characters, but... it's a pretty dark interpretation, even for an already dark game like this, that their universe has canonically legalized the televised sexualization of real minors (real in their universe, i mean). this i think is one of the biggest reasons that some people prefer to interpret the characters as adults: the game is just so much more uncomfortable if you don't. either interpretation does allow for interesting fan exploration in terms of the dystopia of this universe- either legal sexualization of real minors, or you could analyze the societal implications of this world utilized brainwashing to sexualize adults who believe they are minors + are dressed in school uniforms, as a way that media gets to create this sexualization without breaking the law. but, understandably, this is not a popular topic to explore even in criticism BECAUSE of how uncomfortable it is.

my biggest takeaway from all this is NOT to say that the cast is irrefutably adults, but moreso to say that ages are all intentionally kept vague to allow the player to decide. similarly to point 8, you can make the criticism that the team intentionally left the ages vague in order to dodge some criticism around the sexualization of "a high school aesthetic" - though even that isn't super neccesary, considering the many anime and games that feature sexualization of totally unambiguous minor characters. its all up for debate, in the end, but i have this theory that a lot of media leaves age unintentional at the teen/young adult line, like genshin impact pretty much never confirming character ages & using the same body models for teens as they do for short adults: they want to appeal to all customers, so the customers are left to interpret the character ages however they want.

"the ages are ambiguous, but i choose to view them as adults because the game is much too uncomfortable for me if they're minors" is a take i see a lot, and slightly lean towards myself. i don't think its any closer to canon than them being minors, but it does make things like the love hotel just a bit more bearable. and i think there's a pretty big difference between "i interpret the characters as adults" and "i want to make nsfw, and i don't care whether the characters are adults or not," you know?

sorry that was so long, thanks for reading, and have a good day!

Yeah you’re right the timelines don’t make sense at all so it’s a bit hard to grasp how old they are , though some of the characters believe they are minors like when himiko and Kokichi stated themselves that “we’re teenagers” “I’m not even an adult yet” which is a little proof that they believe they are minors from what I think one from the game and one from SS camp

,, not the backgrounds of the characters and ryoma plus some other characters are completely debatable but it’s specifically Kokichi and some other popular characters I see nsfw art of which is just uncomfortable wether they choose to believe they’re adults or not. I’m just personally uncomfortable with it.

Interpret the characters as adults and don’t make nsfw? Okay, I trust you

Interpret the characters as adults JUST to make nsfw? Then it’s a bit weird!

Thanks for explaining though ,, kinda long but I read through . I’m glad I’m finally seeing some debatable evidence that can work on both sides other than the typical “it’s fictional so it doesn’t matter!” “They’re adults because of the love hotel!” Cuz I’ve seen THAT ‘evidence’ for YEARRS and it just pushed me to believe they’re just minors. I still am going to persevere them as minors myself, but this opened my eyes a little to why ppl do what they do in the fandom all up to its interpretation.

#danganronpa

[mandalhoerian]

HELLO???? HELLOOO??????? HOW DARE YOU JUST DROP GHOST TO ITS HAUNT (joke). IT WAS GORGEOUS

i feel like i could shred it and render it to scraps and it'd still be the best piece of fiction made for a pre-existing media. like be so fr that was beautiful??? i love how you could tell that leon was Still possessive and Still wanted the reader just by the dichotomy of his words n actions ("i just wanna be yours you don't have to be mine"/"answer my calls how dare you show up drunk and alone") going to the point of showing up At Their Doorstep. it's just so... human, yk? you can say all this abt selflessness and "i'm alright wanting from afar", but at the end it's emphasized that regardless of the pretenses (reader saying it's over), there are still Wants ("happy. a happy ending"). it's just so human and URHRGRH

i just finished reading this and i could definitely give a better explanation of my thoughts but Man Oh Man was that good. i feel like Explosion, yk? thank you!! have a good day!!!

GRAHHHH ME WHEN. ME WHEN PEOPLE ANALYZE MY WORK (THANK YOU ANON !!!! 💓💓💓💓💓)

It was like “hey in case you didnt get leon still wants the reader from his own pov in ch 1 here’s him going a bit overboard actually because he got scared” —- like. Bro just had to say what he did at the very end of the chapter and this wouldnt have happened but he’s spooked and hesitant and constipated, and he CANT communicate how serious the reader should take what he considers to be dangerous (and just what that made him feel from assuming the worst) and has to involve sex in it because that’s how they communicate with each other. And reader allows him because that’s how he’s constant and present. They are all pretenses and excuses. Idiots just cant talk. Ican talk about this FOREVER i’ll stop LMAO

BUT LIKE EVERTTHING YOU SAID???? SO ON POINT THANK YOU FOR SHARING YOUR THOUGHTS WITH ME I HOPE YOU HAVE AN AMAZING DAY AS WELL

#an ask for shai