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justmeinadaze · 1 year

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Good Neighbors Part 4 (Steddie X Reader)

A/N: This started one way and went another. Certain night time activities may have also been a factor but let's just say... fucking hell this got me🥵 .

Warning: Steddie relationship and all that that implies. (I regret nothing!) This one is a little rougher than the past ones but they are still cute as hell with her son and they still love our reader. She's definitely got a bit of brat thing going on.

Word count: 3443

You glare into the void as you sit outside your apartment on the stairs smoking one of Eddie’s cigarette’s that you stole out of his jacket pocket. Today had been Dylan’s birthday party which he absolutely enjoyed. A few friends and family came over including your boys. You allowed Charlie to make an appearance and that’s when things started to fall downhill.

You expected him to show up alone after work but he brought her. The woman that he cheated on you with in YOUR house on YOUR bed. You understood that Charlie was going to keep dating. Hell, you were technically dating. But the fact that he brought her of all people just triggered all those negative emotions. You tried not to let it show but your grumpy attitude leaked through.

“Hey, do you need help with anything?” Steve comes into the kitchen, gently touching your back. You jerk to the side away from him.

“No, I got it.”

“Whew! These kids are exhausting.” Your sister throws herself into a chair next to you. You reply with a subtle “hm”. Eddie’s eyes glance over at you with concern.

“You son is looking for you.” You jump at the sound of Eddie’s voice.

“Jesus Christ, Eddie! Do you always have to scare me?! Wear a fucking bell.” You put out the cigarette on the concrete and rise to head back inside.

He reaches out with his arm blocking you from entering the apartment. “Whatever is wrong with you right now, you need to get it in check because it has nothing to do with that kid in there. Don’t spoil his good time with your shit attitude.”

You narrowed your eyes at him, swatting his arm out of the way. As soon as you walk in Dylan runs to your side. “Mommy! Can Patrick stay over tonight?”

“Um, I don’t see why not.” You feel eyes watching you. You turn to see who they belong to, finding Eddie and Steve murmuring to each other.

“Dil! Come give me a hug. We’re leaving, Kid.” Charlie yells from the door. You son runs over to his father and Charlies lifts him into the air giving him a big bear hug. “Say goodbye to Vivian.”

“Bye Vivi.” He leans over wrapping his arms around her neck as she kisses his cheek and you feel the anger rise into your throat. They leave without acknowledging your presence and you’re fine with that. You didn’t think you could even pretend to be nice to her.

The only people left were now your neighbors. “Dylan, say goodbye to Steve and Eddie.”

“Are we leaving?” Eddie asks, his head tilted to the side.

“Yes, you are.”

“Oh, mom. Can’t they stay for a little bit longer?” When you shook your head, he began to whine.

“Dylan! Not tonight, baby, okay?”

Steve who had his eyes glued to you with his arms folded now walked confidently in your direction. “Ok, that’s enough of that.” He mutters under his breath. “Hey, Little Man, we’ll be right back, ok?” He grabs your upper arm roughly and drags you out the front of your apartment into theirs. “What’s wrong?” Steve pulls you closer to his face as he stares down at you angrily.

You try to pull out of his grasp but he just grips you tighter. “Right now, Steve, you are what’s wrong. Let me go!”

“Did something happen with Charlie?”, he asks

“I’m betting it’s the girl he brought.” Eddie came up to his side. “Is that thee girl?”

“I said let go!” You manage to get out Steve’s grasp with one strong tug.

“That’s a yes.” Eddie chuckles as he crosses his arms.

“Don’t do that. Don’t laugh at me! I don’t have to explain myself to either of you.”

“You’re right. You don’t have to but you should want to. That’s what people in relationships do.”

“Is that what this is?”

“Ah ah ah.” Steve holds up his hand and walks towards you slowly backing you into the living room wall. “I would be very careful with what you say next. We know you’re upset and we understand that but that doesn’t give you a license to be mean.”

You stand up straighter, looking him dead in the eye. “Say what you really mean. ‘That doesn’t give you license to be a bitch.’”

He smiles at you then and turns to Eddie who grins back, shrugging his shoulders. They both turn their back to you and head out the front door. You grab one of the pillows off the couch and scream into it. After a few minutes, you regain your composure and head back into the fray.

Dylan and Patrick are still on the floor playing the new video game your sister bought him. Steve was in the kitchen washing dishes as Eddie scrambled around the apartment picking up trash and bringing dirty plates to the sink. Neither of them acknowledged you as you walked through the door. You casually walk into the living room and sit on the floor with your son. The game pauses as his friend declares he has to pee and runs towards the restroom.

You tap Dylan on the opposite shoulder from you and he turns his head giggling when he looks the wrong way. He climbs into your lap and you wrap your arms tightly around him, kissing the top of his head.

“Did you have a good birthday party?”

“Yeah! It was so much fun. Thank you!” The little boy kisses your cheek and you feel your wall begin to crack.

“Hey. I’m sorry I snapped at you. Mommy’s just…exhausted.” You place the back of your hand over your forehead and dramatically sigh. He smiles at your theatrics.

“It ok. I know you were just upset because Vivi showed up. Daddy asked me if it was ok. I told him no.”

You felt your anger start to rise again. “Honey, you didn’t have to do that.”

“I know but she makes you sad.”

The mama bear inside of you snapped. You were angry that your son asked your ex not to bring her and he did anyway but now you were even more upset not just with Charlie but yourself because you thought you hid that pain better. Dylan was already going through enough with the divorce. You didn’t want to add to it in any way.

Patrick barreled back into the living room, grabbing the controller and unpausing the game.

“Hey! Not fair! I wasn’t ready!”

You slowly get up from the floor and head towards your bedroom. You knew you left your phone plugged in on the bedside table but it was now gone.

“Looking for something?”

Steve leans against the wall with his hands in his pockets.

“Where is my phone, Steve?”

His eyes zero in on yours. “You can’t call him.”

“I’m sorry. Did you just tell me I can’t do something?”

“I’m trying to help, Y/N. If you call him now screaming at him when you’re like this, it’s just going to give him more ammunition. You already have enough on your plate. Both of you.”

“I don’t need your help! I know how to handle my ex and I can take care of my son. Believe it or not, I did it for a whole 6 years before you two came into my life.”

“Wow, I guess we see where Dylan gets his tantrums from.” Eddie leans into the doorframe with both hands on either side.

“Give me. My. Phone.”

They both turn on you again leaving you standing there by yourself fuming. You run after them but stop when you see Dylan in Eddie’s arms. “Ok, Kid. We’re heading out now. Next time I come over I’m teaching you some D & D, ok?”

Dylan wraps his arms around his neck and thanks Eddie for the small guitar he gave him. Steve reaches out and takes the boy from his arms.

“It’s boring. You’ll hate it.” Dylan giggles, shaking his head.

“Thank you for my skates!”

“Hey, no problem, dude. Anyway, we can find to rep house griffin, right?”

Without meaning to, a small laugh escapes your lips. All 3 heads turn to look at you.

“Gryffindor, Steve.”

His eyes roll to the back of his head. “Whatever. Here, take this weirdo before I actually retain any of that.”, he says jokingly as he passes Dylan to you.

You place him on his feet. “Ok, boys, go get ready for bed. I’ll be right back, ok?”

Eddie and Steve are already halfway into their apartment by the time you catch up to them.

“Steven! Give me my phone.”

“Or what?” He smiles down at you cheekily as he slams the door shut.

#####################

A few hours later, you find yourself still awake, staring pensively at the ceiling. You know it’s not they’re fault. They did nothing to ensure your wrath but you couldn’t bring yourself back down from that ledge.

You were still running through the day’s events when a subtle bass beat grabs your attention. Opening your bedroom door, you hear it louder in the hall. You gently open Dylan’s bedroom but when you step inside you hear nothing. Closing his door, you follow the sound, finding yourself outside of Steve and Eddie’s apartment door.

Really? Ok, they want to play. I can play.

You bang on their door with your fist but no one answers. You pound on it louder and continuously until finally it swings open. Steve stands there in just his underwear, with a hazy look in his eyes.

“Excuse me, ma’am. There are children trying to sleep. Can you keep the noise down?” He starts to close the door again but you block it with your bare foot as you stomp inside. Their dwelling smells incredibly strong like weed and cigarettes.

“Heeeeey!” You hear Eddie screech from somewhere in the living room. You walk over to find him lying on his back on the floor in his boxers, a cigarette dangling from his mouth. You narrow your eyes at him as you reach out towards the stereo and turn off the music.

He jumps to his feet, standing face to face with you. Grinning, he extended his arm, turning it back on. When you start to lift your arm again, he grabs your wrist and spins you in the opposite direction. Your body smacks chest first into Steve.

“We have the settings just right, you know.”

“Yeah, just right to annoy the hell out of me.”

They both laugh. “To be fair, Princess, you started it. Your bratty attitude annoyed the hell out of us today.”

“Technically yesterday being as its 2 am.” Steve cackles as he looks at his watch.

You roll your eyes, crossing your arms. “And I’m the one acting like a little kid.”

“Jesus, she still has that fucking tone.” Eddie whines as he smashes the cigarette he was smoking into the nearby ashtray.

“Oh, be careful, Eds. She’s getting that angry look again.” Steve circles around you like a vulture.

“Stop.”

“Stop what?”

“Stop talking about me like I’m not here.”

“Oh Sweetheart.” Eddie starts sauntering around you as well. “We’ve been acting like you aren’t here all night. Haven’t we, Stevie?”

Steve smiles a Cheshire like grin. “Oh yeah. Since supposedly this,” he gestures between the three of you, “isn’t a real relationship or anything. Isn’t that what you said?”

A wicked grin spreads across your face as you laugh at them. They both stop moving, Steve in front of you and Eddie behind you. “I’m sorry. Did I give off the impression that I’m some timid little PTA mom who bakes pies and shit?” You stalk towards Steve guiding him backwards. “You can’t intimidate me, Steve Harrington. Neither of you can!” You turn to look at Eddie who was still in the same place with his arms folded.

Steve’s smile returned but there was something behind it, something that made your knees weak and your stomach flip.

“Intimidation isn’t the name of the game, baby. It’s humiliation.” He leaned his back against the wall looking down his nose at you as Eddie chuckled. His tone dropped so low you could barely hear him. “How do you think we felt when you were mean to us today? When you said what you said. Frankly we’re kind of tired of it. There’s no reason this has to be so difficult.”

Eddie comes up behind you, poking you in the side. When you turn, he shoves your phone into your hands. You look down at as if you’ve never seen it before. You were so focused on being angry at them that you forgot they even had it.

They both move away and leave you standing there. You hear the music begin to play again and the sound of them moving around behind you. Smoke suddenly fills the air and when you finally turn around you find them on the floor, Steve leaning back on Eddie’s chest as they passed the joint back and forth.

You sat diagonally from them and once again they didn’t acknowledge your presence. It hurt you but instead of being angry about it, you now felt like you deserved it.

“You were right, Eddie. Vivian was THEE girl. I came home during my lunch break to pick up something I forgot and I found them together. I found out later that everyone knew, our friends and his family. No one told me a god damn thing.” You glanced in their direction. They still weren’t looking at you but you could tell they were listening. “I know he’s going to be with other women. I know that. I know that they are going to be around my son and I know it’s not fair for me to be upset about it since you two spend almost everyday around him but… why does it have to be her?”

You crawl over to them, placing your head on Eddie’s tummy. “I’m sorry I took my frustrations out on you guys. That wasn’t fair, to you both or to Dylan.”

You suddenly feel Eddie’s hand caress your hair as Steve reaches down to grab your hand, intertwining his fingers with yours.

“I forgive you.”

“Yeah, me to.” Steve brings your hand up, holding it against his chest.

“Can I ask you guys something?” They both mumble a hm. “Why the fuck are you both only in your underwear?”

Steve and Eddie howl with laughter causing you to laugh along with them.

“What did I tell you when you came in?” Eddie asks as he leans up on his elbows.

You think for a moment. “That you’ve been acting like I haven’t been here?” The boy nods his head. “I don’t get it.”

Steve inhales the joint in his fingers and places it in the ashtray before looking at you with those beautiful brown eyes. “You want us to show you?” He grins seductively when you say yes.

He crawls over you and you scoot out of his way to sit by Eddie’s head. Eddie pulls your lips to his, kissing you softly. He moans against your lips, grabbing your jaw with his hand, and turning you to see what the other boy was doing.

Steve had Eddie’s cock in his mouth, moving his head up and down his length. A sigh escaped your lips as you crawled closer to watch him. You gently ran your fingers through Steve hair causing him to groan.

“Fucking hell.” Eddie licked his lips as he watched you two with lust blown eyes.

“He tastes good, doesn’t he?” You whispered into his ear. “He really likes it when you swirl your tongue around him.” Steve did what you suggested and Eddie’s eyes rolled as his head fell back on the floor. You felt his fingers reach for you.

“Come here, Princess.” You maneuvered to him as he tugged at your sleep shorts. You pulled them and your panties down your legs, throwing them to the side. Eddie grabbed you moving you forward till you were seated on his face. You moaned as he wasted no time wrapping his mouth around your clit. Steve’s mouth came off of his friend with a pop as he continued pumping him with his hand, watching as you lift your shirt over your head and toss it away.

You lean your hands on Eddie’s chest for support as you ride his face. Steve meets you in the middle pulling you roughly by the back of the neck for a sloppy kiss. You can taste Eddie on his tongue and it makes your pussy clench. You whimper as you watch Steve pull away and spit on Eddie’s cock as he takes the boy into his mouth again. The sound of him gagging is enough to drive you over the edge. Your body shakes and your thighs try to squeeze shut as you cum on Eddie’s tongue. His hands fly up and hold your legs open as he helps you through your climax.

Both boys, as if reading each other’s minds, get up and switch places. Eddie’s mouth is replaced with Steve’s as his head slides between your legs. You feel Eddie’s hand on your back gently pushing you towards Steve’s dick and he growls into your cunt as your tongue licks the precum of his tip.

You gasp when you feel Eddie’s cock rub between your folds. Steve’s mouth wraps around your nub, sucking and flicking, as Eddie pushes into your entrance bottoming out almost immediately. He sets a brutal pace making it hard for you to not gag down on Steve as your pushed forward into him. The sound of Steve sucking and moaning drives you crazy and Eddie grunts as you clench around him.

“Oh my god.” Tears start to fall down your cheeks. “Please. Don’t stop. It feels so good.”

Eddie falls against your back reaching around to hold your tits as he thrusts into your deeper.

“There you go, Sweetheart. Show me how Steve likes it.”

You dig your nails into his thigh as Steve starts pumping his hips pushing him farther into your mouth. You feel him moan into your clit as you keep your head still as he fucks your face. His movements sputter as his cum hits the back of your throat. You swallow him and Eddie turns your face to kiss your lips. He pulls up right against his chest and grips your waist as he slams into your pussy. Steve’s hands cling to your thighs as he aggressively flicks his tongue against you.

You cry out as your feel the coil snap in your belly and you cum hard shouting their names repeatedly to the heavens. You start to collapse forward but Eddie holds your tightly to him as he thrusts roughly into you, grunting in your ear before he you feel his seed filling you up.

You fall to the side lifting your knee so you don’t hit Steve in the face. Eddie comes down with you, his arms still wrapped your stomach and chest.

Steve’s palm rubs your leg. “Fuck, that was fucking amazing.”

“I’ll say.”, Eddie pants.

“Baby, are you ok?” The sound of your sniffles causes them both to sit up at attention.

“I’m fine. That was just really good.” You laugh as you wipe your tears and they chuckle with you.

Steve gets up and heads for his bathroom, bringing back a towel as he cleans between your legs. You reach out and caress his cheek. “Will you guys stay with me tonight?”

They share a glance. “Sure. Um, what are we going to tell Dylan?”

“Nothing. He’ll think I had a sleep over like he did. Just um, clothes please.”

They rise to their feet bringing you up with them carefully. Steve disappears as Eddie helps you get dressed. When his roommate comes back, he is now wearing flannel pjs and a Hawkins high athletics shirt. He throws Eddie his shorts and a t-shirt.

Steve lifts you into his arms as he carries you across the threshold and back to your apartment. He places you on the bed and curls in behind you. Eddie tiptoes in closing the door behind him.

“Kids are still passed out.”

“Good. Hopefully they sleep in.”, you murmur.

Eddie climbs in on your other side and without hesitation you fling your arm over his tummy. He smiles at your closed eyes as he takes your hand in his and kisses the back of it. You three pass out, limbs tangled together, and happy as can be.

#steddie x reader #steddie fluff #steddie smut #steddie fanfiction #steddie #eddie munson #steve harrington #eddie munson fluff #eddie munson smut #eddie fanfic #eddie stranger things #steve fanfic #steve smut #steve stranger things #joe keery #joseph quinn

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writing-for-life · 24 days

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Hey there! I hope you’re having a good day. I just saw a post you made about Dream’s type romantically. Thoughts on Calliope and Dream’s relationship specifically? It always stands out to me how though Dream has had a number of lovers throughout the millennia, Calliope is the only one he married. (And of course, Melissanthi Mahut and Tom Sturridge’s blistering chemistry in the show is an additional component for me xD but feel free to respond only based on the comics if you wish!)

Hey, always happy to see your asks in my inbox!

So, first of all; I don’t care what everyone else thinks:

Dream and Calliope are the OTP even though I’m not a shipper. There, I said it, hit me over the head with a hammer, I live well in that tiny little corner of fandom 🤣

Conceptually, they are very, very alike. There is definitely something in there about dreams marrying epic poetry (and eloquence!) that’s just so on the nose.

But I also can’t help thinking: Slight power imbalance maybe, and we also get this more directly via the “all gods get born and die in the Dreaming.” I think often about how this would have played out for them once Calliope’s last worshippers have died—it’s certainly a tough one, even if their relationship hadn’t soured.

But even so: She is the Muse of Epic Poetry, he is the Prince of Stories, so there is A LOT of overlap between what they stand for. And hence, a lot of mutual understanding. They always struck me as *getting* each other (probably why they fell in love in the first place)—until they didn’t. The fact they didn’t live together was good for them I think, because thoughts need to be allowed freedom to form and develop. Plus, there’s also a lot to be said for Calliope keeping her independence that way. Not just in terms of personhood, but again if you think of how she was essentially created in, and will return to, the Dreaming. It’s probably wise for her (in conceptual terms) not to hang out there ALL the time?

She seems a lot more grounded in the mortal world than Dream is though. I always thought that was down to the fact that humans know her, as in actively worship her/ask her for inspiration, which must make her much closer in a way? Because bar a few, no one really *knows* Dream exists, although everyone does, if that makes any sense? Mortals know him on a subconscious level (that’s why he’s forever nebulous and *lonely*), but people know Calliope as a deity and seek connection explicitly. I’m not sure what I’m trying to say here, but to me, that was always a reason why, although a goddess, she seemed far less removed from the mortal plight than Dream was (at least when they were still an item—we all know he changed, even if he didn’t admit it [well, he did in the end to Nuala, which is a whole ‘nother topic]).

And when I think about why they didn’t work out, I can only think: “Orpheus”.

I mean yes, she said that they were already starting to drift apart slightly before she was with child, but there was still a lot of love between them even so. I think the death knell was to have a child on these wonky foundations. Why they did, we’ll never know.

Conceptually, there’s again something very deep and painful about dreams and poetry becoming something real. And then, that mortal child becoming immortal (until his father finally intervenes). But Orpheus was still all mortal and human to his core, even when he became immortal for a while, and that was *always* at the base of their rift. But I digress…

Back to why was Orpheus the death of their marriage? Dream’s advice to Orpheus was sound, yet it was unfeeling and lacked empathy. Calliope’s was maybe (?) not as reasonable, but she understood her child because a mother’s love is (usually) unconditional. We all know Dream’s wasn’t for a long time although it should have been.

I think if they’d all sat together as a family, supported their son in his grief in a balanced way, this whole catastrophe could have been avoided (I mean no, not really—it’s a tragedy, “doomed by the narrative” and all that). But all of Dream’s relationships (be that to his son or his lovers) fail because he is unreality (hence he has a hard time when things quite literally get real), and despite *knowing* mortals on a very deep level, I don’t believe he truly *understood* them at this point. But I think Calliope did—maybe due to who she was, maybe just because she actually *allowed* them in? Because Dream never truly did that. And when he finally did and truly understood what unconditional love actually means, he came apart at the seams and unravelled.

There’s also something really interesting conceptually in thinking of the Prince of Stories who doesn’t believe he has his own, and the Muse of Epic Poetry who inspires. Who is trying to control whom in this scenario? It’s mirrored in how they behave when the whole Orpheus tragedy takes off:

Calliope tries to inspire and, dare I say try to control the narrative a bit, and I don’t mean this in a bad way, quite the opposite: She looks for the most favourable outcome for everyone involved, even if it means bending the rules: She tries to convince Dream to put in a good word with Hades and believes he would listen because Gods respect him and, dare I say it, are even a bit scared of him.

Dream is rigid. Which is so mind-bending for someone who is the personification of hopes, wishes and possibility. But he is an immovable object: If he’s right, he’s right. That’s the rules, that’s it. And he won’t bend them, not even for his son. I’m not saying that it’s not understandable from his point of view, because he might know things we don’t (potentially also that although he *could* bend the rules because he has the power to do so, it might have knock-on effects no one else can understand or see—it’s impossible to say), only that they are fundamentally different in their approach although they are *both* about inspiration. And inspiration is so closely related to bringing on change (ouch!).

Part of me wants to say that Calliope uses it to control the narrative while Dream doesn’t, that Calliope believes that we can change our destiny while Dream doesn’t, but that’s also too simple. Because Dream *can* be controlling, but in totally different ways and areas.

I feel like I’m rambling out a lot of unordered thoughts, but I guess what I’m trying to say is that Dream and Calliope were so close because they are so similar in so many ways bar one:

Their understanding how inspiration can be used to bring on change. I would somehow go as far as saying that Calliope understands what it means to have personhood, also for herself, and that’s why she understands it in others (I think this is made *very* clear when Richard Madoc holds her hostage). Dream doesn’t—least not at the point where it would have mattered with regards to their relationship, because I think the fishbowl has changed him in that regard. This is also why he wants to make things right with her I believe. But of course he would never openly admit it (he basically stops himself before blurting it out), simply because it would also mean he’d need to admit it to himself…

With regard to that meta:

I definitely think they were highly romantically attracted, purely down to who/what they are. I can’t say too much about their sexual attraction, but after Calliope’s speech at his wake, it would be somewhat unlikely to assume they weren’t 🙈🤣

Was it unconditional though? No.

Was it pragmatic (that sounds so bad and unfeeling, but it’s not a bad thing, because a certain level of pragmatism is what grounds love in reality and makes it last)? I think they tried. But ultimately, he can never live that way because he is unreality, and I often wonder if they both knew 😭

@two-hands-toward-the-sun ask answered

#the sandman #sandman #dream of the endless #morpheus #sandman meta #calliope sandman #calliope #sandman analysis #sandman character analysis #ask answered #asks always open

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psychoblush · 25 days

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A quintessential early-career Robin that fits the tone of The Batman

This post was originally written for Reddit, where folks are much more opposed to having Dick be in The Batman universe than on Tumblr. But still, I thought I would share it here!

Bruce, in trying to be more publicly a part of Gotham’s community, is out in the world again and in one of his public outings, he comes across the orphaned 15 year old Dick Grayson. This could be Haley’s circus but it doesn’t have to be - but Dick’s acrobat and gymnastics past should be retained.

(Another way to modernize it is to have Dick be an Olympic gymnast prodigy - but it’s not the most relevant. Theoretically you could tie this into the Grayson murder plot, but you don’t have to. Anyway…)

Bruce, against Alfred’s advice, wants to foster Dick himself and let him live with them at Wayne Tower. Alfred thinks this is a crazy idea because of Bruce’s nighttime activities as The Batman and because he’s far too young and emotionally-detached to be a father-figure, but Bruce is insistent on it after recognizing the extent to which Dick’s pain mirrors his. Bruce has an opportunity here: to give Dick what he wish he had when he was young and orphaned. Alfred comes around once he sees this too, in a moment mirroring Alfred seeing the footage of the mayor’s son in the first movie. Bruce gets an opportunity to emotionally reach a younger version of himself, and Alfred gets a chance to be more of what he wish he could be, a warmer father figure to both Bruce and Dick. This is a story about second chances. It’s a second chance for Bruce, it’s a second chance for Alfred, and it’s most vitally a second chance for Dick.

Here’s where things get interesting: even though Bruce adopts Dick early-on in the film, for most of it, neither of them are operating as a duo. Bruce and Alfred are keeping The Batman identity away from Dick, *and Dick is secretly hunting down his parents’ killer as a street vigilante inspired by Batman* - using a rudimentary version of the Robin identity. This becomes a major subplot and eventually connects back to the central antagonism of the film - whoever they choose, the killing of the Graysons is banally tied to this similarly to how the killing of the Waynes is ambiguously tied to the Falcone story in the first movie. At the same time, the dual deception between Bruce and Dick on each of their respective nighttime activities is a core obstacle to their relationship deepening. They can’t truly reach each other because they don’t trust each other- and Dick is singlemindedly focused on vengeance. It also gives us a chance to show Dick as a smart kid; he’s able to successfully elude the suspicions of both Bruce and Alfred while living with them and living a double life.

At the end of the second act, Batman comes across this proto-Robin and sees through it, and realizes the extent to which Robin is the same as him. He’s also a young boy who can’t move past his pain and is lashing out at the world and trying to make sense of the horror of it. Bruce does what he’s never done before. He takes off the mask and he lets Dick see him for who he truly is. *This* is when the Dick-Bruce relationship really begins.

Have Dick play a supporting but pivotal role in the third act. He needs to sabotage, distract, inform, scout, something. Give him agency and let him navigate the world, in between his new relationship as Batman’s semi-partner and still grappling with what this means for him. And have it coalesce in a moment where he chooses to accept his pain in a healthier way, to follow Bruce’s example. And the film ends with Bruce choosing to train Dick, to better him as a person and to offer him what Bruce sorely needed when he was his age.

Okay, now that the thematic plotting is out of the way, let’s talk about vibes. Vibes are super important to this universe and a core reason why people seem to have hangups around including Robin in the Reevesverse.

Early vigilante proto-Robin should navigate this world of orphaned street-bound teenagers who are parts of gangs and criminal networks. It should feel kind of like Victorian London’s child street gangs, but it can also be reminiscent of modern organized crime recruiting children. This is the world Robin navigates to get what he wants in the story, and it’s a world that is unfamiliar to Batman until Robin officially becomes his partner. Then it becomes a resource he can use to keep tabs on different goings-on in the city and make Gotham safer. This also echoes how Batman treats children and sex workers in the comics. Because Batman treats the vulnerable and disenfranchised with respect and humanity, it makes him a stronger and more capable hero to protect the communities he operates in.

Proto-Robin operating separately from Bruce should have a similar ad-hoc DIY vibe to The Batman, just lower tech and more discreet. It’s important textually that Robin was also inspired by The Batman without knowing him or coming into contact with him. It parallels Riddler ironically, it shows that the tragedy of Edward’s descent into vengeance and rage has had an effect on Bruce and that’s why he fights so desperately to keep the same fate from happening to Dick. Dick is someone who has had everything taken away from him, he was a brilliant gymnast whose aspirations were dashed when he lost his parents. Bruce can’t let him descend further into that spiral.

Robin isn’t a fighting partner in this film. He’ll become that when he’s older, closer to 16-17 in Part Three, but right now he’s a rogue agent navigating this world on his own, and Bruce has him as a mix between an informant, a spy, and an intel source. We need to sidestep the child soldier allegations, and it also means that Robin can do things Bruce can’t. Robin isn’t famous, Robin isn’t a fully grown adult. He can navigate spaces and places and worlds Bruce can’t, and that makes both of them stronger heroes for it.

In this sense, this version of Dick Grayson is a loose amalgamation of the first three Robins. He has Jason’s rage, brashness, and involvement in the underworld; he has Tim’s shrewdness, detective skills, and sense of loyalty; and he has Dick Grayson’s backstory and sense of optimism. We’re not just watching this boy become Robin, we’re also watching him transform into the version of Dick we know so well - the same way we’re watching Bruce transform into Bruce in this story.

Why I think we fucking need Robin in The Batman Part Two? Because Part One is a film about Bruce realizing that he can’t be vengeance alone, that he must be hope as well. Part Two needs to be a film about Bruce coming to understand what vengeance has done to those who have seen his example, and Dick presents a tangible opportunity to actually instill a better example in someone who went through what he did. They would act as foils to one another, they would be permutations and mirrors of each other, and we would finally get a faithful, beautiful, and compelling version of the Batman-Robin dynamic on the live action big screen.

#the Batman #Robin #Nightwing #dick Grayson #teen titans #the Batman 2022 #batman and robin #batman #dc comics #the Batman part two #the Batman sequel #the Batman part II #the Batman part 2 #the Batman 2 #jason todd #Tim Drake

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fizziepopangel · 1 year

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A Fizziepop Take: Let's talk about Stolas and Blitz's Relationship

There's a lot of controversy surrounding the healthiness of this relationship and because it's one of my favorite ships, I wanna break things down. Let's pop the top on this and get into it!

So to start, we have to look at how our favorite business imp and hellish prince learned about love. That of course starts waaaayyyyy back when with baby Stolas and Blizo before the 'o' was silent.

As children, neither boy was ever given a look at a healthy love, nor were they shown love in appropriate proportions. With the little we know of their backstories as of now, it seems that both boys got love primarily from their mothers while seeing their fathers there but not present.... In fact, their fathers are both portrayed as caring only about what the boys could do for them or what they represented at any given time rather than just caring about the boys as their children, with Paimon not even remembering his own son's name and needing to ask the imp assigned to care for him, and Buckzo actually selling his son off to virtual strangers for the day in hopes of robbing the royal family. While I haven't gotten a clear sense of what happened to their mothers, it seems that both women were removed from their children's lives somewhat early on; therefore taking the boys main source of love with them. Given the father figures they had, neither Blitz or Stolas were ever shown love from a masculine point of view, so they had to navigate that on their own.

Going into the two having to navigate love on their own because of the lack of love from parental figures, Blitz has attempted to look for love at almost every turn. This most likely would've resulted in a sting of relationships that were purely sexual or a sting of failed relationships, with Verosika probably being his longest lasting relationship.... Stolas on the other hand had his future planned for him and was told from his childhood that his future wife was already picked for him so he could sire a cautionary heir when the time came. While Blitz went from lover to lover looking for something without knowing what exactly that something was, Stolas tried to make the best of a marriage in which he was constantly reminded that he was unloved and abused.

Now, this is where I think it get's interesting. As he languished in a loveless marriage, Stolas was conditioned by his narcissistic wife to neglect his own emotional needs in order to keep up with meeting hers while also attempting to be a present father for Via once she was born. After not having experienced adequate familial love, then being shoved straight into a major relationship with someone who found her joy in abusing him physically, psychologically, and emotionally, Stolas believed he was supposed to be unwanted and unhappy. The love he knew was "I have to love my wife because....", and then the parental love between Via and him; a relationship that has also begun to hit the rocks because of Stolas not having an understanding of love and therefore getting lost in the slightest inkling of it with Blitz.

Blitz on the other hand, turned his need for love into something almost selfish. I believe he's afraid to be left alone, so in his mind, it makes the most sense to not let anyone too close and/or to be the first to run if something seems to feel too real. I'm inclined to believe that that's what happened with his relationship with Verosika Mayday since, as Moxxie says in the hallucinations in "Truth Seekers", Blitz has become a master of pushing those who do truly try to care about him as far away from him as impishly possible. With this self-sabotage, I believe he's trying to give people a reason to deem him unworthy of receiving love so that he actively knows why people leave rather than being left to wonder what he did wrong to make people want to leave him. The only people he truly seems mostly comfortable with are Millie, Moxxie, and Loona. Blitz's relationship with M&M is actually really interesting because the lack of boundaries he seems to have when it comes to them is linked to him wanting the kind of love they share but not understanding how to get it or what to do when he does because he's spent so much of his life alone and on the run from love like he's a wanted man.

So, now, we have two grown ass demons who struggle to express love while simultaneously craving it. Putting the two together seems logical at this point, so it wasn't super shocking that the ship became canon, but because neither man can express love properly, almost every move they make together seems toxic in some way, shape, or form. And the relationship already started out in a bad place, because of the agreement that was made. With the agreement in place the way it is, Stolas is in a position where he's holding a power over Blitz, and he knows this because when the agreement is made he is the one that puts it in place. This already gives off a very harsh dynamic between the two, but then you also have to add the fact that Stolas also feels like he is only being used for his grimoire. So now you have Blitz in a position where he feels that he is essentially no better than a blow up doll, and Stolas who feels like he is no more than a means to an end. If you add in the fact that both of these men are very bad at communicating, it makes things worse because there are no boundaries or limits set in place for either of them so neither man knows exactly where he stands or how far forward or backward he can step without changing the dynamic of the relationship completely, which is what we see in "Ozzie's".

In the episode "Ozzie's", we see stolas unintentionally change the dynamic of their relationship by not standing up for Blitz when Asmodeus and Fizz started going in on him. He didn't do it to be an asshole, he did it in a moment of panic and self-preservation. Growing up Stolas was constantly taught that he had an image to uphold, being a Prince of hell and dating or sleeping with an imp, which is one of the lowest classes of demons that we see, doesn't go with that image. Stolas has been shamed his entire life and made to feel insignificant and small, and always told if he was not upholding the family standard he was essentially worthless to them. Even his wife would go out of her way to publicly humiliate him in front of family or friends or whoever would go to the parties that she would throw, so he already felt very very low on that totem pole before Blitz drew attention to the fact that they were there and had a spotlight quite literally shown directly on them.

The issue is that Blitz sees this change in their dynamic as intentional. Given the agreement that they have, Blitz already feels as if he's no better than a sex toy because essentially that is what he has been to this man. He does not believe that Stolas could actually genuinely love him, not only because he believes he doesn't deserve love but also because he understands the difference in their statuses and how their dynamic came to be, so he feels very used and taken advantage of. Despite the fact that he does genuinely have feelings for the prince, Blitz believes he's only good for a good time, and Stolas has not done very much to combat that because all of his advances seem sexual or at least sexually suggestive. Well the advances being sexually suggested or sexually motivated is not completely the prince's fault, it's never something he takes into consideration to see if there are other ways to express a desire for the imp. When every other sentence coming out of the prince's mouth has to do with going to bed with him, and Blitz is given nicknames like "my impish little play thing", it would be hard for him to see how he was wanted for something more than just his body. As I said before though, Stolas is not entirely to blame for this issue with Blitz. Blitz is the one who spurred the advances on the first time, and he never stopped to correct him as their relationship progressed to know stolas believes it's just what he likes, and he'll continue to believe that until Blitz himself tells him otherwise.

Similarly, Blitz does treat Stolas like he is a means to an end. I don't believe it's intentional, because you can see in a lot of different scenes where they're together that Blitz does truly care for this man, but his original plan was just to manipulate Stolas into letting him use the grimoire so that he could perform his business and their entire agreement hinges on that exact thing. Outside of taking him to Ozzie's, Blitz never does ask Stolas on a date, or spend very much time with him outside of the bedroom, and even in that episode the only reason he does is because he has an ulterior motive. In the episode taking place at Ozzie's, I believe Blitz is so fixated on studying and living vicariously through what Moxxie and Millie have together, that he himself was not present with Stolas on the date he invited him to, and despite the prince's best efforts, he's not able to reel him back in until the spotlight is on them and Stolas has the immediate reaction to hide himself from the spotlight while leaving Blitz essentially naked and alone in that moment. The action was never meant to hurt him, but it told Blitz that he was an embarrassment to the prince. It solidified the idea that Stolas was essentially lying to him when he said that he wanted him..... And upon leaving, Blitz is so hurt that he wants nothing to do with the prince for that time, and despite trying to show Blitz how bad he feels, Stolas never actually verbally apologizes to him. After Blitz drops him off at home, and verbalizes that he's not in the mood to have sex with him and tells him that he understands that all they are is fuck buddies, Stolas invites him in and offers cuddles but when Blitz ultimately declines he just says good night, rather than offering it real apology, further solidifying Blitz's thinking but he is not worth the care that it would have shown to have an apology.

As I said in the beginning, I do think it is genuinely just coming down to the fact that neither of these men were ever shown how to care for or love another. Well it's true that they are both raising daughters, who they love unconditionally, everything that they have done for their children has been something they had to pull out of themselves. And they have never done that for each other. I don't think the relationship needs to end, especially not on the note that it did the last time they were together, but I think they both need to mature a little bit more and start understanding the communication that needs to happen between them in order for their relationship to move beyond just sex and heartache. If both Stolas and Blitz are willing to put in the work, and communicate with each other openly I think they could have a very, very healthy and wonderful relationship, which they both very much deserve after everything they've been through.

I definitely trust the process of the writing, but I would absolutely love to see this ship continue to be a thing and thrive, but story-wise I don't think either character is there quite yet. Both demons in question still have a lot of growing to do, but even if that is the case and that is the way the story goes, I don't believe that this is the end of their story together. I feel like these characters will always be drawn to each other, and whether or not there is a pause in their relationship well they take time to figure out their own goals, I believe that both of these men find home in each other and they will always be drawn to that peace.

#fizziepop thoughts #helluva boss #helluva boss blitz #blitzy #blitz needs a hug #stolas goetia #stolitz #stolas needs a hug #helluva boss stolas #blitz and stolas #millie helluva boss #moxxie helluva boss #just a thought #fizziepop take

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thenightcallsme · 6 months

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ATWOW | Neteyam Sully

"Neytiri cradles her youngest child as Lo’ak’s erratic Ikran lands beside his mothers. He seems unharmed, another relief. Then comes Jake Sully, their father, our Olo’eyktan. He, too, is unharmed. Strangely, there is another figure straddling his Ikran, haunched over in pain. When the last recognisable Ikran lands instead unmounted, I realise who it is. Neteyam"

Synopsis: An experiment to improve the Avatars as a child who managed to escape lab confinements and seek refuge among the Ometikayan clan, you are a nobody. You have no family name, no natural ties to the land of Pandora, yet the Sully's took you in. Life could not be the same without them, so when they are forced to leave to protect the clan, fate settles in, and you find yourself journeying alongside them in search of the foreign lands and ways of the Metkayina Clan. Threats of the sky people grow closer every day. Not only is everything you know tested by their advances but by the relationship you have with Jake Sully's oldest son. ...Neteyam.

Pairing: Neteyam x Fem!Ometikaya OC (Gi'anya, or Gi for short)

Contains: established OC POV, vague descriptions of wounds, crude language, tension between Neteyam and reader cause he's just so sexy,

Word count: 3,001

A/N: Okay, so, a little backstory... I'm currently in the process of writing out the Avatar: The Way of Water movie in a way that fits in my own OC because my hyper-fixation is so crippling that I have to lay down my thoughts precisely (I've lost sleep over this and decided to let it happen). I really want to focus on life with the Metkayina and the more social aspects not shown in the movie. Also need to think of a name for this series

find the rest of the chapters in my masterlist here :)

• • • • •

Children laugh as they sprint through the sprawling caves of the sky islands, chased after by young healers and human help in the absence of their parents. Their carefree nature is pure. Envious. Our numbers have reduced to those unable to fight and who have more use in High Camp, including me and my closest friend, Kiri. We linger at one of the mouths of the cave on woven mats to escape the potent unease. Kiri and I try not to speak on it, especially considering who’s out in the unknown.

“I’m definitely faster when I’m blue.”

I snort.

Kiri laughs airily at the remark made by the human sitting between us. Our fingers glide over his bare beige skin, drawing lines of blue that resemble our Na’vi colouring. We are careful not to stain his blonde dreadlocks. The human boy helps, digging into a wooden bowl of past and marking feline stripes on his arm.

The human boy is Spider, a member of our closely-knit circle. As a babe, the boy was one of the sky people, then orphaned by the great war. The friendly human scientists who remained on Pandora took him under their wing. Many of the orphaned children have integrated themselves into our communities, but it is Spider who is most lucky, finding his spot beside the most powerful family in the Ometikayan tribe. Our luck is shared.

“Skxawng,” Kiri teases.

“No, seriously.” A soft, mechanical inhale sounds from his oxygen mask. “Hear me out.”

“We’re hearing,” I sing.

“The animals respect me more,” he continues. “They don’t think of me as human.”

Kiri leans back on her haunches to hang her face before his, taunting him with a look of disingenuous wonder. “Wait, you’re human?”

“Ha, ha,” Spider deadpans before flicking blue-covered fingers in her direction. She makes a noise as she avoids the spray.

I’m about to join in the taunt, only for my airs to prick at a distant, familiar sound. Kiri is close to follow, perking up, eyes darting towards the cave entrance. A piercing shriek, the beat of something heavy… Spider notices our activated senses, and after a moment, his human ears hear it, too. Ikrans. A battle call blown through a hollow tusk echoes through the cave systems, signalling the return of our warriors. My heart both swells and sinks. It is rare that they all return untouched. Never has a raid ended in great despair for me, but who is to say that will always be the case? That being said, I am not heartless. The losses we have faced and will continue to face hit me hard. Greif is felt equally through our people.

My gaze turns skyward as people begin to call out through the stronghold. Sure enough, the low hum and shrieking cries are followed by creatures of beastly beauty. Mounting their backs with weapons raised and heads held high are our warriors.

“They’re coming! Kiri, Gi, Spider!” Tuk, the youngest of the Sully children, comes bounding over to us in glee. “The war party’s coming back!”

I’m first to my feet, Kiri pulling Spider in tow. I bend down to usher the young Na’vi girl along. She’s excited to see her brothers and parents. I share the sentiment. But even she, as young as she is, understands that the news may not be pleasant. Her hesitance is evident in the way she clenches and unclenches her fists.

I give her shoulders an encouraging squeeze. “Come, Tuk, let’s go.”

The decorated Ikran’s burst through the central, cavernous drop suspended above a sea of trees. The creatures come to graceful halts on the uneven rock floor. There are too many to look at, too many to sift through. I almost worry that I’ll miss them, but just as the worry comes, it vanishes.

My eyes find Neytiri first, the mother of the Sully children. With a grace, she drops to the floor. It's a grace that is gifted, not learned. Eywa knows I envy her for it. Tuk breaks from my hold and launches herself at her mother. Neytiri cradles her youngest child as Lo’ak’s erratic Ikran lands beside his mothers. He seems unharmed, another relief. Then comes Jake Sully, their father, our Olo’eyktan. He, too is unharmed. Strangely, there is another figure straddling his Ikran, haunched over in pain. When the last recognisable Ikran lands instead unmounted, I realise who it is. Neteyam.

The oldest Sully boy slides off his father’s Ikran, somehow graceful in his troublesome state. Grazes and grime cover the striped flesh of his thighs, forearms, hands and chest as if he was thrown down a gravel hill. He limps after his father with a strained wince etched deep into his angular face, which he hangs in shame. At the sight and Jake’s aggravated ‘fall in’, Kiri and I hang back a moment longer. The urge to run to Neteyam’s side is strong, but my fear of Jake clouded by the tribulations of war is stronger.

Jake rounds to face his oldest son, nearly crashing right into him. Lo’ak hangs a step behind awkwardly. “You’re supposed to be spotters. You spot bogeys, and you call ‘em in. From a distance!”

The further Jake raises his voice, the flatter Neteyam's ears fall against his skull. For a solid moment, Jake directs a firey stare at his son in silence as if testing him. Neteyam does not yield. Though he is silent and holds the stare, there is no lack of emotion in his eyes.

“Does any of this sound familiar?” Jake then turns to Lo’ak with a scowl. The younger son quickly averts his gaze. “Get here!”

Lo’ak steps forward. No doubt he finds the outburst humiliating. At the division of attention, I let out a breath I unknowingly held and rush to Neteyam. He doesn’t look at me as my hybrid five-fingers ghost over his bare back. Although he refuses to regard me in this state, he lets me examine the damage. The grazes are frequent and deep on his protruding shoulder blades. As my fingers lightly press his right bicep, he winces. There’s the faint promise of an angry bruise blossoming beneath an armband.

“Jesus, I let you two geniuses fly a mission and you disobey direct orders.” Then, to my surprise, Jake turns his attention to me. My hands refrain from examining a bleeding gash on Neteyam’s forearm. “Gi, can you go help Mo’at with the wounded? Please?"

Jake Sully speaks to me in a voice unlike the one he uses as he scolds his sons. It is soft and sympathetic to my willingness to help, but he believes the willingness is misplaced. His standards for Neteyam are high, sometimes too high. Though he may have disobeyed orders, he was only young and clearly sorry. The denial of attention seems to be a punishment. One that I do not think he deserves. So not to appear hostile or argumentative, I give Jake a sort of puzzled pout.

“But Neteyam is wounded.”

Jake’s look is torn between the urge to command and the understanding of my worry. Neteyam turns to me, his golden gaze soft. His touch as he gives my shoulder a squeeze is even softer, a silent thank you.

“It’s fine,” he says quietly.

“Kid, please.” Jake’s attention is then caught by Kiri and Tuk, who circle their other brother in search of harm. Tuk pulls at Lo’ak’s forearm with an intensive, seeking purpose. “Tuk, Kiri, go with her. Go!”

After a moment of looking between Jake and Neteyam, I sigh, giving the latter one last look before breezing between the two. Kiri and Tuk follow with looks as annoyed as mine.

Neteyam purses his lips. “Dad—sir, I take full responsibility—”

“Yeah, you do. That’s right. ‘Cause you’re the older brother, you gotta act like it…”

Jake's anger and Neteyam's apologies fade into the overwhelming chatter of the war party’s return. Kiri and I weave through the mess in silence, keeping a close eye on Tuk as we head for Mo’at’s tent. It’s the biggest within the healing sector. The peak of the patchwork tent is suspended by the floating rocks above, as all tents are. A gentle fire crackles away within a makeshift stone hearth. Kiri and Tuk’s grandmother welcomes the three of us with relief as she tends to a bullet wound in a male’s shoulder. Her tired gaze tells us she’s seen many of the wounded already—four more hover around the perimeter in anticipation of the great Tsahìk’s magical hands. Kiri and I are quick to help, passing around salves and bandages as we meet their needs. Tuk simply watches.

Soon enough, the last three are being treated. I am the first to finish, my patient simply needing two stitches in a short, yet deep wound. He bows his head in gratitude before disappearing into the bustling post-war activities. I lean back on my haunches and slump my shoulders with a sigh. Today has not been the busiest aftermath of a raid. I thank Eywa for that. Usually, I get tens of patients at a time instead of the two I have just seen.

Not a minute passes before three more figures approach the tent, two of them Na’vi, one of them human. I’m almost praying to the Great Mother that they are a simple touch and go before I realise who they are. Spider comes in first, followed by Lo’ak, who still looks a little butthurt. Finally, there’s Neteyam, who takes his time limping into the warmth of the tent. One of his hands cradles his ribs just below the sternum.

“Lucky you,” I say as he approaches. “You just missed the queue.”

His smile is strained. “Lucky me, indeed.”

I laugh a little before shaking my head as I take in the state of him. Beneath the hand on his abdomen, an angry bruise springs to life. I assume he broke a rib or two. “Jesus, ‘Teyam, look at you. What did you do?”

“I didn’t do anything.”

Lo’ak, who lingers at the entrance, seems to sink into his shoulders at the remark.

“Yeah, yeah,” I mumble. “Now shut up and sit down.”

Neteyam does so without question, taking up the empty spot before me with no lack of struggle. He huffs and winces before finally settling with his legs crossed. The sight is now familiar.

Our routine for the past year has been consistent. During the raids, I wait impatiently at High Camp gathering supplies, watching the children whose parents aim to protect the clan, and tending to the few wounded who did not get the luxury of a simple stitch and fix. Then, as the day drew to a close, the war party would return. Wordless and defeated, Neteyam would seek out the tent I worked in. It wasn’t often that anyone else besides his grandmother treated his wounds. Half of me was selfishly thrilled that it was me he searched for at the end of the day, relaying what had happened and the frustrations of his job while I poked and bruises and cleaning cuts. But another half of me was devastated we had found some rhythm at all.

Neteyam shouldn’t be out on those missions. He shouldn’t be returning to me clutching a wound and wiping at fresh blood. No one in the clan should be doing the same.

While nineteen was the cusp of being considered a man in our culture, he was still just a boy forced to grow up in the midst of war. All the years he was meant to spend carefree were marred by Jake’s ruthless training. A killer had been carved from his gentle nature. A lot of the time, that nature is overshadowed by his duty to protect, but it was still very much there, and I cherished any piece of it I could leach from him.

Mo’at and Kiri both finish attending to the last of the wounded. Assuming the Tsahìk would wish to survey her grandson, I refrain from starting anything just yet. Sure enough, she drifts to occupy the space I leave for her, a bowl of water and a washcloth in each hand. She hands one to me and instructs that I see to his front, while she examines the cuts on his back. He bares his teeth as she begins, not without scolding him first.

“Covering for Lo’ak again?” I ask so quietly, still earning a scoff from Lo’ak nonetheless.

Neteyam shrugs. “When am I ever not?”

I take the honed planes of his jaw in my hands and angle his face upwards once I kneel at his side. I have to hover over him to get the best view, and even when sitting, the Sully boy towers over me. My eyes are trained precisely on a gash on his cheekbone. However, my peripheral allows me to see his solid stare trained on my face. Neteyam is shameless and not easily embarrassed unless you were his father. Sometimes the intensity of his stare is unnerving, and it is no help that he could be blind and still make my brain a pining mess.

The cut on his face requires little attention, and soon enough, I am lowering myself to inspect the injuries on his chest. Still, his gaze is dead set on my face. I work for a second longer in silence, gently pushing at his shoulder to straighten his chest. When my fingers brush over his skin, something brushes over mine: his tail against my thigh. Brief and gentle is the contact, seemingly accidental, but it's still slow. Deliberately slow. Painfully slow. It still takes every ounce of my willpower not to blush.

“You’re kind, ‘Teyam,” I continue. “Too kind. Sometimes, people need to learn from their mistakes, and while they may appreciate your…distribution of blame, you’re only dragging yourself down.”

He tilts his head. “You don’t know what happened.”

My fingers pause, hovering the washcloth millimetres from his skin as I meet his eyes. “Would it make a difference?”

Silence. Then…

“No. You’re too good with words, you know. It’s very…confronting.” He lowers his brows. There’s a touch of playfulness in his voice to cushion the truth. “I don’t like it.”

I shrug nonchalantly. “I was sent here to be your rude awakening. Glad it’s working.”

“It’s always working,” he mumbles.

I swap the bloodied washcloth for a pot of salve and silently apologise for the sting it’s about to cause. The second I smear my fingers across the gashes, he lets out a hiss, his shoulders tensing. I halt for a moment, continuing when he doesn’t refuse my help.

“Aw, want a kiss on the boo-boo?” Spider teases. Lo’ak snickers.

“I would use yalna bark,” pipes up Kiri, who has been organising the balms and explaining to Tuk the use of each one.

Tuk comes to Neteyam’s side with a cup of something given by her sister. “Here, drink.” Neteyam does so hesitantly.

“Oh, you would?” Questions Mo’at with a challenging tone. “Who is Tsahik, hmm?”

“You are, Grandmother, but Yalna bark is better.”

Kiri sighs when her grandmother denies the outstretched pot. She defiantly continues to use whatever she already has on hand, and as she lathers Neteyam’s broken skin, he winces with an exclaimed ‘Ow!’ in protest.

“It helps with the sting,” I add.

Though Mo’at refrains from acknowledging my input, it’s enough for Kiri to silently slip me the mixture before retreating back to her organisation. While his grandmother is still merciless in her treatments on his back, he seems to relax a little when I use the calmer salve.

“How’d you manage this?” I murmur, running my free hand over the bruise on his ribs. It's meant to bring attention to my question, but as my fingers find the curves and inclines of taught muscle, my focus is entirely deterred. My heartbeat thumps in a joy I should not be finding. He tenses up at my touch.

“Well, I managed all of this trying to stop Lo’ak from blowing the wrong person's head off with the ARs.”

“So I was right, hm?”

“Yeah, yeah, now shush.” The rebuttal is defensive, yet humorous. “Got caught in the crossfire of an ambush and was knocked from the top of some crashed machinery onto some rocks. I guess I went ribs first.”

I scrunch my face and hum in thought. “If there are any more raids within the coming week, I suggest you don’t go.”

“I’m the Mighty Warrior, Gi. You expect me to stay behind?”

The Mighty Warrior. It’s a title placed on Neteyam by the general public; it is no secret that he is a prodigy in combat. Talented in his natural athleticism, he has excelled at all things physical since birth. Neteyam is known to be as skilled as his mother when airborne, even more skilful with a bow in his hand. Years ago he was named the youngest of the Omatikayan clan to make a clean kill on a sturmbeest hunt—I remember it to be the birth of the title.

At first, it was in jest. A reminder of the greatness Neteyam was expected to live up to. Only, it got serious quickly. Mighty Warrior. He takes the name lightly and often jokes about it, but sometimes there’s this guileful grin on his face when he says it. He loves it, deep down. It’s a small reward for his hard work climbing the merciless ranks.

“I expect that if the Mighty Warrior goes on another raid too soon,” I counter with a voice slow enough for him to understand the warning, “the Mighty Warrior will not be so mighty in the end.”

“Listen to the poor girl,” Mo’at urges with a not-so-gentle brush of salve. “She’s worried sick in the face of your cockiness and all you can do is parrot those titles in defence.” She turns her gaze to me. “For his sake, humble him a little more.”

“Please do,” Kiri mutters.

“I like my happiness.” Neteyam glares at her. “How about she humbles you and you see how brutal she can be?”

• • • • •

A/N: finally finding the courage to commit and post this, but don't hold me to any standards of completing this entire thing, ya girl is easily distracted and caught off guard by new obsessions that demand to be written out. Take The Arcana for example. I've abandoned that ship to sail this one. Also, exams and sickness are fucking me rn so these are pre-written chapters. Enjoy

#avatar #avatar the way of water #atwow #neteyam #neteyam avatar #neteyam sully #neteyam x reader #neteyam x oc #fanfiction

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epickiya722 · 4 months

Note

As antagonist who do you think is better between Sukuna, Kenjaku, or Toji? Why? How will you rank them?

Now, out of the three, Sukuna is my favorite. But to say who is the better antagonist? Yeah, I don't have a definite answer really.

Each of them severed/serves their role well as an antagonist to the other characters.

I'll start with Toji. He was more of an... "arc villain". He's not there for the whole plot, but he's still important to it and played a part to someone's arc and development. In this case, it was for Satoru, Suguru and Megumi.

All three of these characters were affected some way because of Toji.

Satoru and Suguru's relationship changed because Toji played a part. Had not Toji been assigned to assassinate Riko and succeeded, they would have went down a different path.

Megumi would probably have been a different kid if Toji had been present in his life.

Also, how he carries himself during his time in the story is amazing. I know, many people say the same thing, but Toji was some boring villain. This man's introduction was him in slides, sweatpants and a sweatshirt while smiling all devious. Dude is a deadbeat, yet got reasons. Not an excuse! He lost the woman he loved and that resorted him back to his old self. He sold Megumi to the Zenin clan because he believed if Megumi inherited the technique, which he did, he would have a better life than he did with the Zenin clan. Was it right? No, but it was to Toji at the time. He cares about Megumi to some extent because even with coming back to life and fighting his son, he had been acting on pure instinct. Yet, looking Megumi dead in his face is what snapped him out and once he learned Megumi chose to use "Fushiguro" as his surname, Toji with out a smile for his son.

During his time on screen, there hadn't been a moment that Toji wasn't entertaining. (Can't believe that's DIO BRANDO that voices Toji.)

Next, Kenjaku, they're like... the villain behind the villains. They're responsible for a lot of what happened to the others. Hell, their intellect is part of what kicked off the plot. If Kenjaku did not know how to make curse objects, Yuji would not have eaten Sukuna's finger. Kenjaku is a cunning, evil individual. Playful, manipulative, aloof. Yet, Kenjaku ain't no coward. Someone challenges them and Kenjaku is about it now.

How do they move in those robes the way that they do in fights? I don't know. (Yeah, that's a question I have for Suguru, too. Like, are those robes heavy or... nevermind.)

Like, Toji and Sukuna who I'll talk about later, Kenjaku doesn't bore me. While Toji is more of that bloodthirsty active kind of villain, Kenjaku reminds me of a villain that will sit in a big chair with a cat on the lap and monolgue. Then it's like when they get up, they show you why you should have your guard up and not take them lightly.

But the thing with Kenjaku is, they don't try to make others fear them or even follow their plans to be worshipped. They just do whatever they want. They're unhinged but not in a feral, loud way. It's more sly and unexpected because when you think Kenjaku has done something wild, here comes something even more wild.

There's also the fact that the mangaka took the classic tropes of the MC having an absentee father (parents in Yuji's case) and evil dad and played with them here a bit.

Oh, Kenjaku is someone's evil dad, alright. But they ain't Yuji's. Yuji's dad, we know Yuji has some recollection of him that he doesn't really remember much of, but the mom? Not so much. I wonder, Kenjaku, as to why that is. I know you know the answer!

Now, for Sukuna!

As I said, he's my favorite out of the three.

He is downright evil. I doubt there is a single drop of good in that demon's heart.

A while ago, I saw a video of a guy reacting to a post about which out of the selection of characters is the best inner demon and he said Sukuna (if I remember correctly). His reasoning is why I so. Kurama was a choice, too, that I remember. And with Kurama, he got better and got along with Naruto. That's good and all (I don't hate it), but when I see the word "demon", I think of "vile, evil, embodiment of pain and anguish".

That's what Sukuna is. He is a "good demon" for the simple fact that he just is evil. He doesn't care to get along with Yuji and vice versa. It's what I love about their dynamic. They stand on far sides of a field, opposing the other without the need or want to find some common ground.

Mahito was great as someone who made Yuji question his morals and his part in the battle curses and humans. But Sukuna? Yeah, he's the source of Yuji's suffering since the start.

Sukuna is sadistic, immoral, selfish. Dude immediately wanted to paint the streets red and not with paint when he was reincarnated.

Folks call him "Fraudkuna", but no. He's not a fraud. Sukuna ain't stupid. He has intellect that he does use. He grasps onto things quickly. He witness, he learns and applies. He's not faking anything. A fraud is someone who fakes. Sukuna doesn't do that.

Yeah, Gojo put in work, of course he did. He wasn't titled "the strongest" for nothing. Sukuna even acknowledges that.

That's also another thing with Sukuna that interest me. He's evil, but at least he'll give you your props if you impressed him. Which honestly, I rather not be praised because it seems if you're someone if he acknowledges as strong, you either die by his hand or possessed. Except for Yuji, who he hates with every fiber in his body and does not respect.

But that's fine, because Yuji ain't looking for it. (Yeah, those two are my favorite two. Funny, isn't it?)

Also, bonus points, but I also love Sukuna's nails (when he has them painted and long) and pink hair (which he apparently had in his OG form). And the tattoos are nice.

I just...

Toji, Kenjaku, and Sukuna all have so much we know about them, yet still don't know much about them.

How did Sukuna become the King of Curses exactly? What is Kenjaku's true form? Toji's history with Megumi's and Tsumiki's moms? So many other questions.

They're all human, but not too human.

Overall, yeah, all three of them play/played well as antagonists for me.

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saintchaser · 10 months

Text

good morning! today i want to talk about james potter.

(note: this is solely based on my interpretation of him, thr very same way other writers write james in their own way. this is the essay on how i see him, as a person, a writer, and someone who relates to him, and i am not implying that my characterization is better than someone else's; just my five cents on this!)

we're all aware of the general fandom consensus and characterization for him; sunshine boy, always willing to help everyone around him, never has any sort of problems and is often see through the prism of his relationships.

to start off with my last point, with him being seen and characterized through his relationships, i think it is tied to the fact that he, himself, sees himself that way. the relationships that he has with characters are often strong and intense, either like or dislike, and therefore, said relationships take a toll on him. he always surrounds himself with people, in order to not be alone with his thoughts, and have the time to see deep within him not what the world sees him to be, but what he really is, as imperfect as everyone else.

i also consider james to be the kind of person who runs away from his problems, and this is one of the fundamental differences that he and sirius have (while sirius confronts his problems — and the fact that he ran away from home is not running away from his problems, but actively confronting them. he ran away from home, his home life being a problem, which is exactly confronting it — meanwhile, james never confronts his problems because he's scared of the feelings that might be triggered in him in that case, he's scared of how deeply he feels things, and therefore he like busies himself with other people's feelings and other people's problems in order to not work on his own.).

this also plays into euphemia and fleamont's funeral. james was more focused on comforting the people around him about the death of his parents and not sitting down and thinking on his parents' death and allowing himself to grieve, because he was scared of the impact that it might have on him. (he had a son, and he had to be strong for him; which is also the tying himself to his relationship and putting other people above himself, his feelings, and his needs). after he did sit down on his problems, he started taking more missions and becoming more rash and being more reckless in general as a coping mechanism, which, in turn, hurt him.

moreover, him running away from his problems and helping other people instead of himself often times leaves him seeking something else in order to protect himself and to make himself forget everything he's thinking about; in some cases it may be quidditch, music, pranks, and, sometimes, more dsngerous things. he's a man of stability, in this regards, so therefore i don't thìnk he would do something as dangerous as to put the lives of himself and others in danger. (we see this with the prank; sirius is the one who takes rash decisions, james is the one who puts everything back together.).

james also suffers from savior complex. the criteria and definition for it is as follows "they only feel good about themselves when helping someone, believe helping others is their purpose, spend so much energy trying to fix others that they end up burning out", and "a savior complex, or white knight syndrome, describes this need to “save” people by fixing their problems". i see this more often than not played in jegulus fanfiction, but this behavior of his expands to other characters, too.

last but not least, and this is something i only see being talked about with sirius, respectively regulus, is the pressure put on one's shoulders to perform well when part of a circle of upper-class and talented people. his father invented multiple potions which significantly helped and improved the everyday lives of the wizarding world (i.e.: pepper-up). whether this pressure is put on by parents or yourself, the need to achieve as much as your parents did can both mess up the aspiring young person and burn them out. despite james being naturally talented, much like his parents, i feel like james definitely related to this pressure to perform.

so, in order to sum up; i believe that james potter, too, is a deeply complex and flawed individual, the very same way we believe of other characters to be. being a good person with a warm heart does not mean that one is always happy and that they are inherently a morally white character.

#wow this post was like a fucking. punch to the gut #never felt more exposed on tumblr!! :')))#this is just my five cents so feel free to not believe me #this is why i'm a james kinnie #anyways i'm going to maths class and i wish i didn't have to but like it's my last day before my match exam so yeah #anyways i'm gonna shut up now and just like. add the tags #james potter #james potter meta #meta #my writing

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kumoriyami-xiuzhen · 5 months

Text

Hakuoki SSL～sweet school life～『Christmas Weekend』 2016 SS

Well, I've decided that this is going to be my last Hakuoki post for the year. For December, I plan on working on that Collar x Malice Xmas short story that I've been putting off for a while and the next Deemo chapter... and then I'll probably try to do something about my non-existent queue since I really don't think I'll be able to translate much in January or February because of my exam... though I swear that I'll at least put in some effort. Also I do want to get back to Hakumyu Hijikata-hen's extras. Been sitting on those for a while because life's been busy... 😅 ehehehe.... (facepalm).

Anyway, this translation is originally from a story that was posted by Otomate in 2016... and I am 70% sure that this image was published with it. Unfortunately, I can't check since the link it was posted to no longer works, and I also can't check where I found the tl for this story (unlike most things, I know where it was located... but it was on blog.sina and I can't do anything about unviewable content). Still, I had this image in my drafts for years with a note blurb about the the 2016 SSL Xmas story so it probably is the right one?

Enjoy~!

Hakuoki SSL～sweet school life～

『Christmas Weekend』

Translation by KumoriYami

——Saturday, December 24

This year, a Christmas event was to be held on the 24th of December, between 3 consecutive days of vacation.

Although the 23rd is a Friday and a holiday, [since] the 24th fell on a Saturday and the 25th fell on Sunday, which resulted in a 3 day consecutive holiday, it was a rare occurrence to have such a Christmas holiday in recent years [SSL is set in 2016 [or so the tl note said]…. which had December 23rd, a Japanese national holiday which celebrates the birth of Emperor Akihito, fall on a Friday]. Therefore, it is very meaningful for those who had people of significance to them such as family, loved ones, and close friends who enjoyed such holiday activities.

However, there were also people who couldn't be included among them. Those who were working for example, who were unable to celebrate or find time to spend together with their partners, and those who did not make plans for Christmas, or even the holiday… Yukimura Chizuru was one of those people.

Chizuru did not originally intend to spend Christmas like this.

However, her father, Yukimura Kodo, was on a business trip at an offshore island and hadn't returned, while her older twin brother, Nagumo Kaoru, the adopted son of the Nagumo family, was spending Christmas with them.

Additionally, since the holiday this year had consecutive days, according to the usual conventions, Principal Kondou asked that the school activities be kept simple. Of course, Chairman Serizawa did not hold any Christmas activities.

It would have usually just been girls… Chizuru had originally thought that, but Suzuka Sen and Suzuka Kosuzu, who she had good relationships with, also had three consecutive days off, so they had gone back to their hometown in Kyoto to spend Christmas, and Chizuru had just seen them off yesterday.

Then her friends from junior high school were apparently going to an event by their new high school to play with a group and some boys. Chizuru was also invited, but as she was the only student from another school, even she participated, she would still experience anxiousness [tl says stage fright… so w/e], so she didn't go.

In this way, the 24th became a day without any plans.

So, what were the boys at Hakuo Gakuen who had good relationships with Chizuru? She didn't know why, [but] she hadn't hadn't received any invitations from them. She had already asked her childhood friend, Toudou Heisuke, indirectly, but he had refused and said that he had something else happening that day. In addition to Heisuke, it appeared that everyone else had a similar reason.

( It was just, the "something" Heisuke mentioned definitely had nothing to do with other girls! Chizuru tried to persuade herself about this.)

(That's right… For 3 consecutive days off, everyone else must have their own plans. Yet I….)

Thinking this, Chizuru had a sudden realization. Because she had realized it was the Christmas holiday, she had a strong desire to spend it with someone, even though it was simply 3 consecutive days off… As long as it could be thought of as a normal weekend, it wasn't strange that there was nothing to do.

（——Hm. Although it's a bit early, the end of the year is approaching anyway, so it wouldn't be bad to do a lot of cleaning.)

Just as Chizuru thought that, she received a text message on her phone, with the sender being Toudou Heisuke. She thought he wanted to call her for something so she picked up her phone and looked at it——.

----------------------------

Subject: Danger

Sender: Heisuke-kun

Message: Even if something happens, don't leave home!

----------------------------

………………

Chizuru stared at her phone's screen and tilted her head in confusion. What danger would there be on a calm and peaceful Saturday afternoon? But if what Heisuke said in his text message was true, there apparently was some sort of danger 【outside her home】, which was why she had been told to 【not go outside】.

She tried to get him to reply about if he had made a mistake or meant something else, but she received no response. Although she did try to directly call him, she only received a voicemail.

(What should I do? Maybe something happened to Heisuke-kun…)

Anyway, let’s go to Heisuke’s house next door first. She thought about this while she recalled the content of the text message he sent.

(It's just next door… there shouldn't be any problems, right?)

Just as she thought that, a message notification rang out in the silent room. She hastily got to checking her phone, but its sender was not Heisuke. The sender this time was Okita Souji.

----------------------------

Subject: Because it's dangerous

Sender: Okita-senpai

Message: You're a good kid, so you should stay at home

----------------------------

(……Okita-senpai is also saying this, what on earth is going on?)

Just as she was feeling baffled from what was on her cell phone, the sound of a a message notification rang in Chizuru's hands again.

----------------------------

Subject: (none)

Sender: Saito-senpai

Message: Regardless of what happens, stay where you are and don't move

----------------------------

Subject: It's alright [basically the tl here can be interpreted as 'it's fine', or 'no problems']

Sender: Harada-sensei

Message: Just bear for it a while longer, and keep staying at home

----------------------------

What could be learned from the text messages received was that something was happening to everyone. And the contents were almost the same, Not only were the contents were almost the same, they were all instructions for her to not leave her home… However, Chizuru was incapable of honestly staying home as everyone was saying. She grabbed her coat and hurried towards the entrance, not bothering with how her shoes were only half-on, and only wanted to open the [front] door and go outside. Accompanying the sound of being hit by the door, Chizuru was then pushed back into the inner entrance [uh, something like that?].

"——Why!? Why!"

Chizuru re-confirmed that the door was already unlocked again, and once again tried to open it, but the door remained motionless. It was as if someone was forcibly holding the door from outside, deliberately making it impossible for her to open the door.

Since that was the case, she could just use her body to press against the entrance with all of her strength to push it open. Just as Chizuru was about to do that, a voice spoke from the other side side of the door.

"Yukimura, I'm sorry… I cannot let you go outside."

"……This voice is Hijikata-sensei!? Why are you here…. that doesn't need to be mentioned now, what happened?"

She was pushing against the door while speaking to him, but it didn't work due to Hijikata's suppression from outside.

"Just lock up all the locks…… stay inside your home. After that…… Until one of says you can open the door, absolutely do not…… open it….. for anyone of us….."

Then Hijikata's voice disappeared midway. At the same time, the suppressing heaviness on the entrance hall also disappeared.

"Hijikata-sensei——!!"

Chizuru used all of her strength to push against the door, and the heavy door finally budged a bit, so she squeezed through the crack in the doorway that large enough for a single person to pass through and went outside.

Then what Chizuru saw was——.

"You've finally come out? My wife, you're late."

Dressed in a bright red Santa outfit, while also holding a large white bag and a bouquet with dozens of roses, was Kazama Chikage.

Then there was Toudou Heisuke, who was tightly holding onto Kazama's legs, Saito, who was grabbing Kazama's arms from behind him, and Okita, who was watching the two with a smile.

There was also Harada, who was sitting not too far away, looking a bit helpless, and Hijikata Toshizou, who was sitting against the door, motionless.

"Uh…what happened? Also, why is Kazama-senpai here?"

""Of course, I came to welcome you to this young master's Christmas party at the Kazama family home!" [I couldn't figure out how else to say this… lol.]

"Then everyone else is…"

"They were seemingly trying to prevent me from approaching you, but that wasn't able to stop me."

"Um…. did I make a promise with you…?"

"Of course this is a su-r-p-is-e [the tl had サ。プ。ラ。イ。ズ to accentuate "surprise" i guess]. However since you've come outside, doesn't that mean that you have already prepared to go out with me? Then just follow me——"

As Kazama spoke, he extended his hand towards Chizuru, and upon seeing this, Heisuke immediately ran over.

"Hold it——！ Don't joke around——！"

"I didn't expect that so many of us wouldn't be able to stop him…"

"His strength is still as outrageous as before."

With a serious expression, Saito tried to pull Kazama away from Chizuru. Okita muttered helplessly.

"Is is possible that everyone saying that there was something they were busy with today meant…"

"Ah, that's right! In order to prevent Kazama-senpai from coming here, we started monitoring him in the morning!"

"I-I hope you're not misunderstanding anything. We were monitoring Kazama, not your home."

"Wait a moment Harada-sensei. Even though you are resting, please come and help me me—"

"I'll leave the physical/hard work to you."

"Hey, Yukimura! We'll definitely drive Kazama away, so just stay at home and wait!"

"Ahahahahahaha!! Even if you struggle, it will all be futile! My sincere love is incapable of being stopped by anything! Surrender to my power of Christmas!"

With six adults arguing in front of house and making a racket, it was inevitable… that passers-by would stop and whisper, while people nearby would open up their windows to watch the fun…

"Please….. Please stop stop it——！！"

Because she was feeling heartbroken from this argument that seemed like it would never end… and more importantly, since Chizuru was more concerned about her neighbour's gazes, she therefore suggested holding a Christmas party inside her home, which finally got both sides to call a temporary truce.

"Wait a second, where did all of this food and decorations come from?"

"Of course, this is the result of the Kazama family's efforts, so be grateful."

"I'll say this beforehand, we didn't invite you, and simply couldn't leave you outside and bother/cause trouble for the neighbours."

"Didn't my wife ask everyone to come inside together?"

"Nn… Is this the inside of Yukimura's home…" "Well, if we had planned to find a place to hold the Christmas party from the beginning, there wouldn't have been that commotion. Speaking of which, who was the one to suggest it?"

"The person who said that they wanted to stop Kazama-senpai's plan, was Heisuke."

"Hey, wait a sec! Souji and Hajime-kun agreed too!"

"……You guys, just shut up. I am rarely able/You are seldom able to spend Christmas with my wife [no subject in this part so I don't know who is referring to whom here], so just enjoy this day and this moment."

"For Kazama to say such kind words… then let's just enjoy ourselves as much as we can. Got it? Yukimura?"

"Yes!"

「Merry Christmas！！」

Christmas 2016.

Chizuru, who originally had no plans, happily spent Christmas with everyone until deep in the night.

END

----end---

original link (no longer works): http://www.otomate.jp/xm2016d3tm4m/cri_ssl.html

The tl I found said that Otomate themselves probably said "Unauthorised reproduction of the text and images on this website is prohibited." or something to that effect of that, which is one of the reasons why I don't make Otomate stuff rebloggable.

#hakuoki #hakuouki #hakuoki ssl #hakuoki other translation #yukimura chizuru #hijikata toshizou #okita souji #saito hajime #toudou heisuke #harada sanosuke #kazama chikage

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spectruminterests · 3 months

Note

What other ideas did you also have for the Hollow Knight Modern AU?

I have… a lot. (For context: I originally posted about my Hollow Knight Modern AU here). I tried to type some things out and then tumblr erased it, so instead you get my unorganized ramblings that I have on my notes app. (Under the cut so not everyone has to read them). Essentially, Pale Royal (the Pale King) is the mayor of the oddball town of Hallownest and the somewhat negligent father of five chaotic children.

Character names:

Pale Royal (= The Pale King)

Blanca Royal (White Lady)

Hollis Royal (The Hollow Knight/Pure Vessel)

Kinsey Royal (Broken Vessel/Lost Kin)

Hornet Weaver (Hornet- her mom insisted she should have the Weaver name)

Herrah Weaver (Herrah the Beast)

Greene Royal (Greenpath vessel)

Knight "Ghost" Royal (The Knight/Ghost/player character)

Grimm Nightmare Sr. (Troupe Master/Nightmare King Grimm)

Grimm Nightmare Jr. (Grimmchild)

Dr. Sophia Monomon (Monomon the Teacher, I chose the name Sophia because it means wisdom or knowledge)

Quirrel Monomon (Quirrel, Monomon's adopted son)

Morningstar Claw (Mantis Lord)

Lance Claw (Mantis Lord)

Arrow Claw (Mantis Lord)

Mace Claw (Traitor Lord)

Bretta Scriber (Bretta)

Tiso Shieldsmith (Tiso)

Sybil Erebis (Seer)

Pale and Blanca have an open relationship - Blanca and Herrah get along fine and Pale having a child with Herrah wasn’t a problem for Blanca. Blanca is also bisexual and in a relationship with Dryya, the Hallownest Chief of Police.

Tween Hornet: What are you talking about I have no interest in girly things I like ninjas and swords! *hides princess book under the bed*

Ghost: second grade Force of Chaos

Grimmchild/Grimm Jr.: Second grade arsonist and Ghost's best friend/accomplice

Pale King and White Lady: parenting is easy! Just let the kids figure it out for themselves!

Teenage/Young adult Hollow Knight: the only responsible person in the household. Is slowly going insane taking care of four younger siblings.

Troupe Master Grimm/Grimm Sr.: Similar parenting philosophy to PK and WL. Is *fabulous* Actively encourages his son to be a ball of chaos.

Herrah: Like a crazy cat lady but with spiders. Her home is not a place for the faint of heart.

Teenage Mantis Lords: Sisters Morningstar, Lance, and Arrow. Leaders of the student-run Fencing Club which is really just a veneer for a bunch of kids who want to be TOUGH WARRIORS! Members include Hornet and Cloth.

Traitor Lord: Mantis sisters’ older brother Mace. A deadbeat high school dropout who makes a living as a drug dealer. The family doesn't talk about him.

Lance: "Yes I'm a girl and anyone else who'd like to comment gets STABBED!"

People know better than to mess with these kids.

When Grimm gets a call from the school: "Oh? My son set a fire in the boys' bathroom, you say? Did he tell you why? Because toilet paper is very flammable, he said? Oh well, kids will be kids, it sounds very much like something I would have done at his age... Suspended? Surely that's a little harsh? With all due respect, I think this behavior is teaching him important life skills! Surely that should be more acceptable in a school?"

I'm imagining Grimm Jr. asking Ghost to run away and join the circus with him 😆😆😆

"You'd be a great act, Ghost! I'm sure my dad wouldn't mind having another kid! You could be an acrobat or a clown or a mime... (at this point Ghost gives him a look).... okay, maybe not a mime."

The town of Hallownest is technically their "hometown," but the Nightmares travel. Grimm Sr. just drops his kid off at the local public school whenever he's too busy to take care of him, never mind whether or not he's actually enrolled. Cue a lot of teachers trying to figure out where the hell this kid came from. How much the kid is actually learning, missing school so often and being dropped in random classes is... questionable, but everything is fine! The Hallownest school system has already given up. Grimm Jr. really only goes to school because Dad is too busy to deal with him full time 😆

He's doing his best to just push his kid off on a stranger like in-game 😆

Ghost also often begs for Grimm to come sleep over, which of course causes more chaos than usual in the Royal household. Poor Hollis, trying to maintain some semblance of order.

Bretta is already writing fanfic. Ghost once saves her from a bully by dropping onto him from a tree, at which point Bretta decides she’s in love. Then Bretta mentions this to Greene. Bretta: “Oh, is he your brother? He’s so hot! 😍😍” Greene: “… sibling. And they’re seven.” Bretta: “Oh… so that’s why he’s… they’re… so short….” *is mortified*

Bretta later develops a crush on Hollis and writes fan fiction about them.

Grimm just drops off his kid at the Royal house with no notice and no indication of how long he'll be gone 😆

The whole Royal family is autistic in some fashion, because look at them. Pale is an inventor in his spare time and is always thinking about how to optimize infrastructure in the town of Hallownest. He also works late and forgets to eat or sleep when he's hyperfocused. Blanca (White Lady) spends more time with her garden and her large variety of houseplants than with her children, and everything has to be clean and Just So or she'll make a fuss. She always adjusts her children's and stepdaughter's clothing before they leave the house, much to Ghost's and Hornet's chagrin.

Hollis couldn't break a rule to save their life and comes off as stiff and robotic when trying to interact with people. Their parents are proud of the former and entirely oblivious to the latter.

Kinsey is sensory-sensitive and awkward. Loud noises, bright lights, and busy rooms drive them crazy. This does not stop them from being kind of an extrovert or from getting into trouble with Hornet.

Hornet, for her part, has some sensory issues with clothing (and hates the fancy things her stepmother tries to shove her into with a passion) and speaks in a very blunt but also overly archaic/wordy manner (if you've seen her dialogue in game you'll know what I'm talking about). She has little interest in socializing with people unless a) they're her mom or siblings, b) she's causing trouble, and/ or c) it's something violence-related.

Greene takes after their mom with their love of plants. They also love animals and are better with animals than people. They're super shy and awkward lol

Ghost is well, Ghost. They often struggle to speak/experience speech loss and have a raging case of ADHD in addition to the autism, making them constantly chasing after new and interesting things, unwilling and unable to pay attention unless they're interested, and entirely oblivious to social norms. In other words, they're hell to deal with 😆

Quirrel is Miss Monomon's adopted son and a giant nerd. He's 14 and a sophomore in high school because he skipped a grade as a kid. He has an I ❤️ isopods (group including pill bugs) pin on his backpack and is really into "bugs" and other invertebrates.

Hollis, nicknamed "Holly" by their siblings, is Very Tall (like 6 foot 5 or something), rather gangly and skinny, and AMAB (in part to make their height more plausible lol). At first they look kinda intimidating but they wouldn't hurt a fly, and are just about the quietest, shyest person ever, with one exception: if you hurt their siblings, you incur their wrath. Other than that they will take anything that's thrown at them - bullying, name-calling, way too many home responsibilities for a teenager, etc. - with a stoic front. They have just about no self-esteem and have a bad case of "awkward tall person syndrome," always hunching over and trying not to stand out despite the fact that they are literally head and shoulders above their classmates. Like all their siblings they have white hair (which they keep long), pale skin and very dark eyes.

Blanca (the White Lady) is an albino, thus the white skin, white hair, and very light blue eyes. She's also something of a Karen and acts like being an albino makes her an oppressed minority or something.

She also never leaves the house without makeup.

Tiso Shieldsmith is Hollis's classmate and maybe-friend who moved to Hallownest last year. He's kind of an idiot teenage boy and he calls Hollis "Stick Bug" thanks to their stick-bug-esque physique. He's, obviously, in the martial arts and fencing club, and he's kind of trying to be a tough jock but not always succeeding. I love the way he interacts with Hollis:

"Yo, Stick Bug, my man! I mean, my non-binary guy... I mean, uh...whatever. How are you doing, pal?"

*Hollis stares at him in an expressionless way as Tiso rambles.*

Hollis always refers to their parents as Mother and Father instead of just saying "Mom" or "Dad." It's out of respect mainly, and also because Blanca tends to like everything fancy. The outfit I drew Hollis in is what they normally wear to school, at their mother's request XD

Radiance is a local celebrity with a cult-like fan base. Miss Sybil (Seer) is the school's history teacher and the students are shocked when they discover she's an intense Radiance fan. “Radiance” is a stage name and she's Grimm's cousin (a relationship neither of them particularly care to mention most of the time). Pale hates her for reasons unknown, to the point where Pale has tried to pass all kinds of town restrictions on shows and circuses specifically because of Grimm and Radiance. Grimm either ignores the anti-circus ordinances or finds loopholes, and protesters stormed the town hall at the restrictions affecting the Radiance, enough that Pale had to undo them.

Grimm has some level of ability to break the law in Hallownest in part because the police in Hallownest don't want to deal with him either (lol) and in part because Blanca has used her influence and her relationship with the Chief of Police, Dryya, to discourage the Hallownest Police Department from prosecuting him. “Oh, Mr. Nightmare can’t be in jail, his son is my youngest’s best friend, and the poor man is a single father. I can’t imagine what that would do to poor Grimm Junior. Not to mention I’ve heard that Radiance is actually a relative of his… do you want her fans storming the police department?” (This is, of course, behind her husband’s back.)

Grimm is also very good at finding loopholes, twisting people's words, and generally being a pain in the arse to anyone who has issues with him.

Herrah has dark skin and a fat but very muscular figure. Usually around Hornet and the Royal kids she's all motherly and sweet, but when dealing with people she doesn't like she's intimidating AF.

Obviously the Royal family is white af because... a) they're entitled jerks, at least to a degree and b) look at them.

Hornet has brown/light brown skin but still has the white-blond hair and almost-black irises that run in Dad's side of the family. She gets strangers trying not to stare occasionally, but at least she isn't so pale she could be mistaken for a corpse XD

In fact I imagine that several of the characters often get strangers trying not to stare- Hollis and Grimm Jr. come to mind.

Grimm has dressed his son in red and black since he was a baby; it’s not every day you see an 8-year old dressed in a fancy black and red suit with a cape and makeup that looks like a cross between "vampire," "emo," and "circus."

Tiso: Yo, Stick Bug! What's with the dress? You look like you're going to prom or something!

[Hollis is wearing a white frilly dress that's too long to be anything other than one their mom ordered specially made, along with a fancy necklace and earrings]

Hollis: Mother has tea with her gardeners' club this afternoon and would like to show me off to all her gardening friends (said in a completely calm tone, even with a slight smile)

Tiso: "Show you off?!?” You say it like you're her favorite doll instead of her kid! Are you expected to do anything at her event? That sure doesn't look like gardening clothes. Your mom is definitely being weird, you sure you're okay with this?

Hollis: Of course. It means Mother is proud of me.

Hollis has issues.

They're shy and desperate for approval and their parents are (somewhat unintentionally) walking all over them. They need love and support that's not tying their value to being "perfect." Luckily, their siblings don't want Perfect Obedient Hollis, they want the real, happy them.

#katlyn post #hollow knight #the pale king #ghost hollow knight #fanfiction #the hollow knight #hornet #hornet hollow knight #hollow knight au #katlyn writes nonsense #Town of Hallownest AU

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banzaitaka · 2 years

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Interesting anyways, saw your requests are open 👀

It's about y/n (male reader) who is the son from the prison director, I think her name is Momoko and he is the new cell mate from the four main ones. He got the Japanese side from his dad who he k'lled for reasons. It's at first platonic but maybe he builds up a relationship with Nico. Maybe have them go on for adventures in prison, and maybe the secret of y/n is going to revealed

Take all the time you need for writing it

---

THERE IT IS!! MY FAVORITE PHRASE!!! "Take all the time you need for writing it" Ily

Also, Momoko is also Japanese, so if (Y/N)'s dad is Japanese then...Yeah, (Y/N) got his Japanese side from both his parents duifgidfg

YO the way I said I don't write angst. but then type this as if it was second nature sidjfosijfdi I just really hate bad endings, and I know the angst lovers would drown me in angst prompts if I allowed them--- This ain't proof read btw

Nanbaka Masterlist

I hope this is what you wanted & you enjoy reading! Tips are very appreciated!

TW: mentions of murder of parental figure (not described), hints of domestic abuse

Nico x male! reader

Overwhelmed

"Roll call! #69!"

"Yo..."

"You have bed hair. #25!"

"Hehe..."

"What are you laughing at? #11!"

"Yeah..."

"When will you stop using so much product? #(N)!"

"Over here."

"Good. #15!"

A moment of silence before Hajime grabbed the bars in the door window, "#15!" "I'm here, I'm here. Geez."

Another day at Nanba Prison, building 13, cell 13. Actually a rather special one, seeing Jyugo spent the whole night sleeping in the cell and had yet to open the door to sneak out. But it was also special because of another reason. Exactly one week ago #(N), (Y/N), was transferred to cell 13.

Something a certain cellmate didn't want to miss out on celebrating. Nico was pretty attached to (Y/N) starting from day one. But besides sitting together to watch anime, (Y/N) never showed any interest in doing any activities with any of his cellmates. He's been invited to their little breakouts numerous times, but he always declined. Nico actually got on his knees and begged him to come along, more often than not. Which resulted in Uno trying to convince him too, but to no avail.

Dragging him along with force wasn't an option either. (Y/N) has proven he's not to be messed with, and his cold glare alone was enough to make them back off. But by far not enough to make them dislike him. Especially Nico. One of the main reasons why he loved his new cellmate so much is BECAUSE of that. He's so mysterious, strong. And so many other exaggerated adjectives the green-haired saw in him.

"I don't need to get beaten up for no reason.", was (Y/N)'s reasoning. It actually went a tiny bit deeper. You see, he was actually the son of the warden, Momoko Hyakushiki. He already feels incredibly embarrassed to be inprisoned, in his mother's prison nontheless, but what if she also found out about him trying to break out? It didn't matter if it was for fun (which is how Uno tried to convince him to come along), attempted breakout is attempted breakout.

(Y/N) didn't want to be associated with bad people more than he already was. His heart was at the right place, and he wanted his mother to know that. That's why he tried hard to be a model inmate, doing whatever he was told by the guards, always being on time, never causing any trouble,... Yes, that was him. A good guy. A functioning member of society.

Not some ruthless murderer who felt like not wanting a father anymore. He was pushed and pushed and pushed to the brink of insanity, and while he didn't believe what he did was the right thing to do, it wasn't something he could've prevented in the moment of self defense.

Perhaps this was the reason why (Y/N) didn't want to grow close to his cellmates. Rather not be close to them incase they find out about it and then push him away.

And while Uno and Rock found his behavior kind of odd, they all decided to just leave him be. But knowing Nico, he couldn't sit still for long, and certainly didn't take 'no' for an answer.

"Hey, (Y/N)!" Startled, the male let go of the mountain, which consisted of his futon, in his arms, giving Nico a sideglare, "What?" The bright smile the green-haired shot him sealed his fate.

An everlasting scowl was planted on (Y/N)'s face, barely keeping up with Nico's quick step as he was dragged along by the arm. Nico didn't seem to mind, sending a lot of smiles his way, "So, what game do you want to play first?", they stopped in their tracks in the middle of the Arcade room. (Y/N) only sighed, letting his gaze wander from game to game, taking in the vibrate colors and cheery background melodies.

His fingers itched to start playing any of these, but was he ready to admit that mere minutes after he, oh so firmly, insisted on staying in the cell? Nope. But trying to leave wasn't an option either. If he played the next simple step right, he'll be playing without admitting anything.

"I dunno.", paired with a slight shrug of his shoulders. An invitation to let Nico decide. "Then let me show you my favorites!" Perfect.

...Nevermind, maybe it wasn't that perfect.

It didn't take long for (Y/N)'s pokerface to disappear without him noticing. And even though he still couldn't relax his muscles all the way and let loose completely, he found himself genuinely enjoying his time with Nico. His cheery personality was contagious, makes one wonder if that was one of his diseases.

The stories Nico started to tell were hilarious, pulling laughter out of (Y/N)'s lungs again and again. This was the first time Nico had heard the male laugh. It made him feel all warm and giddy "Haha! You seem to be having fun! That makes me happy!" It became really hard to deny Nico's observation, not that Nico would've believed him anyways. "I'm having lots of fun too! We should do this more often!"

A tempting thought, really, but it would go against the very first rule he put up for himself when he transferred. ...Was he...Was he overthinking this? Or was he starting to play it down, convincing himself it was no big deal even though it definitely is? In all honesty, (Y/N) started to feel a new emotion tugging on his heart; jealousy. He wanted to be part of those stories the green-haired talked about so fondly.

But what caused this sudden change? It wasn't like he never had the desire to befriend people and create memories together. In actuallity, it was him who swallowed it down in attempt to protect his heart. He didn't want to give in. He didn't want to let it out, but he didn't want to keep it in. What to do? What to do? What to do?

The joycon shook under his vice grip around it, visualizing the conflict that was bubbling up inside of him. This felt so wrong, but also like he needed it. Like an unbearable thirst, turning to mud water to quench it. And when Nico layed his hand upon his own and looked at him with concern in his eyes, he snapped. And cried.

It was too much.

That was many weeks ago. Many, many weeks. The sound of sirenes weren't new to (Y/N), but the thrill of being the cause of them definitely was. Who knew breaking out could be so much fun?

"(Y/N), watch out!" Just in time, (Y/N) managed to lean backwards to dodge a giant ball that was coming from a high spot on the wall. Uno took ahold of his arm before he could tip over completely and tugged him along, "You good?" The (Y/HC)-haired nodded, the shock of that close hit wearing off as he shared a grin with the blonde.

"Guys! This way!"

Uno and (Y/N) joined the other three at the end of the big room, Jyugo just opened a hidden door in the corner. They all squeezed in quickly, not without complaining about how close they were to each other, and as soon as they did, the door closed again, leaving only the boys' imagination to explain the deafening noise coming from behind it.

Letting out a big breath all at the same time, the prisoners allowed themselves to relax for a moment. "This was certainly a new approach of them.", Rock commented. "Yeah, but it was pretty dumb putting the door somewhere so predictable. They seem to have a thing for corner doors.", Jyugo added, shrugging.

That made (Y/N) tense up, "That sounds like a trap to me.", he started to sweat, mumbling on, "You know I enjoy doing this with y'all, but I really don't want my mom to find out about this..." Nico was quick to rush, as best as he could in that tight space, to the males side, "Don't worry! Hajime would never allow the warden to find out!", his cheery reassurance was accompanied by a small hug.

But before it could shake a reaction out of the male, the room began to shake instead...

Heavy, hot breath hit the cold night air, forming small clouds. (Y/EC) eyes looked around, trying to figure out where he ended up. "Oww...", a whine interrupted him, as his eyes settled on the green-haired laying next to him, face first on the ground. "You okay?", his mumble was accompanied by a growl of pain of himself. "Yeah, I'm okay. Egh-", Nico shook the dirt out of his hair, before turning to the other, "What about you?"

Watching those ruby eyes filled with concern look him over like that shook a memory awake. A memory he came to see as his favorite.

"Earth to (Y/N)! Heeeeellooooo!" "WH- Yeah! Yeah, I'm alright! Stop waving your hand infront of my face." Doing as he was told, Nico retracted his hand, giggling, "You're so cute when you're flustered!", the green-haired's giggle would've been contagious if it wasn't for the fract (Y/N)'s face felt like it was on fire. "And what do you mean by that, huh?"

"You often zone out when I'm looking at you, then go all red when you snap out of it!" For a moment, (Y/N) couldn't push out any words, just sounds, blabbering. Thought Nico was the oblivious type. Or maybe...he just paid attention.

"Anyways!", (Y/N) snapped his head in a different direction, "How did we end up on this roof? And where are the others?" Nico crawled closer to the other, sitting down next to him, "I dunno! This place is full of suprises. That's why breaking out is so much fun here!"

Finally a smile reached the (Y/HC)-haired's face as well, "That's true.", his gaze wandered up into the night sky, the stars were as beautiful as ever. But he couldn't admire their beauty for long, being interrupted by a sudden weight on his shoulder. Nico laid his head on it, smiling up at the male in a somewhat soft manner, fairely new to the usual energetic boy, "I really like your smile, it's so pretty. Makes me feel all warm and fuzzy when I see it!"

Was it happening?

Badumm

Did he feel the same?

Badumm

It's too much-

Badumm

"(Y/N)...you know, I- I really like you! Like-like yo-"

"Nico!"

The sudden silence was deafening to the ears, confusion was written all over Nico's face, while (Y/N) was starting to shake. Too much, too fast. He wasn't prepared! He wanted to tell him that the feeling was mutual, he really did! But he...he had yet to tell him about his secret. There was no way he'd let him in without being 100% honest.

The green-haired laid a hand on (Y/N)'s, trying to calm down the shaking, "What's wrong, (Y/N)?" (Y/N) knew he couldn't run away from letting it out. How will he ever learn to let loose when he keeps binding himself down? With something he had absolutely no controll over.

He wanted to be able to trust, to be able to love.

And that made him snap all over again.

Hiccuping was the only thing breaking the silence. (Y/N) was starting to regret several life decisions. Ever defending himself, ever letting Nico drag him along, ever letting go of his facade, ever letting Nico hear his laugh, ever growing close to his cellmates, ever falling for Nico...It was all too much.

"Agh-"

His back crashed to the hard ground, arms tightly wrapped around his neck. The wet feeling on his chest confused him, heck, the whole body weight on him confused him. "Nico...?"

"You're a hero!", the green-haired's voice was muffed, and you can practically hear the tears he cried, "You're a hero!", he lifted his head to lock eyes with the male he tackled to the ground, "You did it to protect your mom and yourself! You never had the intention to just do it! It must've- must've been so tough for you! I would never think you're a monster!"

In an instance, (Y/N) reciprocated the hug, wrapping his arms tightly around Nico's torso. And they cried in each other's embrace until Nico slowly pulled them both up, letting go was not an option though, as he grips the males hands in his own, "You're so amazing...", another smile broke through his teary face, slowly coming down, "After all that's happened to you, you're still so full of joy...I didn't know your story until now, but...I knew you had it hard either way. And how you're still able to shine is what I like so much about you."

The way the green-haired blushed as he went on, made (Y/N)'s heart skip beat after beat. It's too much, but not in a bad way, for once. It's too much, but- "I really want to be with you, so...knowing you trust me so much to tell me that makes me really happy!"

"I...I like you too...", a whisper, a shaky whisper, clearly overwhelmed, but it was okay.

Nico let out a hearty laugh, tackling down (Y/N) once again. They're laughter was just music to each other's ears. And they could feel each other's hearts just banging inside their chests.

"THERE YOU ARE #25 AND #(N)!!"

"Save yourselves!"

They're in trouble, but they're okay.

#nanbaka x reader #nanbaka x male reader #nico x reader #nico x male reader #nanbaka nico #nanbaka nico x reader #nanbaka nico x male reader #x reader #x male reader

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guiltycorp · 2 years

Text

One of the many things I like about Kaeya as a character is that his inner conflict is so nuanced. Like, there are different shades to his loyalties! When it comes to Mondstadt vs Khaenri’ah — Kaeya has abandonment issues from his dad leaving him and then also from Crepus's death and from Diluc, but when it comes to his own duties he is similarly flaky. If you think about it, Kaeya is abandoning his own people in a similar manner without showing much remorse ('sinners' line and his attitude towards the Abyss Order). When he did go against the Abyss Order by gathering info on them, he passed it over to the neutral party (the Traveler) instead of reporting it to the Knights and we can assume that he does the same when collaborating with Diluc, pointing him in the direction of the Abyss Order activity without attacking them himself directly. Neither declaring them his personal enemies, neither joining their cause. He was irritable about Diluc selling Crepus's manor and wasting father's 'legacy', and yet he himself claims that Khaenri'ah's legacy is long gone. He’s an actual descendant of the regent family, but chooses not to follow their goals of reviving their homeland. Their legacy is there, but he avoids it. And then gets mad at the Ragnvindr heir for doing something as innocuous as getting rid of a small part of his father’s inheritance only because it feels more personal to him due to their relationship (plus he was maybe drunk I guess). And yet! He was apparently forbidden from celebrating his ancestry (the burnt note about Alberichs, keeping 'the truth' about himself hidden), but he still puts Khaenriahn symbology on his outfit and incorporates its design elements into his attacks... Kaeya is always bringing up his ‘pirate’-grandfather who’s probably going to turn out to be a very real person, although maybe not an actual pirate. He doesn’t keep his surname hidden, either, and likes jokes that hit a little bit too close to home (’that must make me a descendant of the last royal family too’). So, when it comes to his more personal familial issues — He's surrounded by people who are in some type of broken-family situation. Jean is a child of a divorce, separated from her sister by their parents' decision, Rosaria was stolen away from her family and then also had to kill her new father figure, Klee's mom left her in Mondstadt for years. His only real example of what a normal family should be like were the Ragnvindrs, but even then 1) mom’s gone, 2) Crepus apparently lied to his son about important matters and then unceremoniously died (mercy-killed by Diluc). And when Kaeya also revealed that he was lying about himself, Diluc rejected him. That, and being abandoned by his bio dad, is why Kaeya feels so strongly about broken relationships and being separated from family. However! Despite his strong need to belong somewhere, he is routinely messing with his subordinates (providing sadistic challenges for them, wasting their time with Darknight Hero stuff, openly mocking them at times) and he clearly prefers to work alone. His only real emotional connection to the Knights is his relationship with Jean, but it’s still more of a working relationship (just compare how Jean acts with him and how she acts with Lisa.. and remember how Kaeya shied away from admitting that he organized her birthday). Despite wanting to belong, he makes the conscious choice to pull away. Despite being loved by half the city, his only real attempts at a deeper connection are focused solely on Diluc. Really, he could choose anyone in Teyvat to carefully reveal the truth about himself once again and then forge a real relationship with them. But he is stuck trying to get through to a man who already rejected him once, because it is a safer alternative to risking heartbreak once more.

Idk I just love how even though Mona says that Kaeya ‘believes he has made a clean break with his past’, he is still clearly undecided about much of anything. He strives to have strong convictions like Crepus&Diluc, but he has an extremely shaky ideological foundation which leads him to an unfulfilled life. But trying to fully commit to a cause or a person would be too risky! And his life is overall still pretty happy, so he has no real need to do that, which means... he’s stuck like this.

#kaeya #genshin #genshin headcanons #text

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davidmann95 · 1 year

Text

Twitter nearly packed it in last night, so transcribing a thread of mine from this year I liked here for posterity, with minor edits and a bit of reformatting:

A thread on how Superman's development over the decades inadvertently mirrors stages of human development, because even though I took 'Superman guy' out of my bio to avoid pigeonholing myself if I don't do this sort of thing occasionally I will explode.

Golden Age is simple - he's a newborn. The world's a hazy outline, and the big baby is destructively tantruming against everything Wrong in it.

He doesn't even have the object permanence to get that someone doesn't become a new person when they put on glasses!

By the Silver Age as a kid he's a little more cognizant. He's got friends and recognizes family, it feels like he's all-powerful and should be able to easily have whatever he wants yet at the same time he's constantly powerless, undermined, and under assault by the mean 'ol world.

(He's also kind of a little shit who thinks in black and white terms of right-and-wrong but delights in his ability to find 'loopholes' around the rules, and everyone generally indulges him.)

Bronze is the awkward teen years, wracked by ennui,

self-doubt,

and a soaring sense of potential and self-importance.

While more mature and capable of great insight, he's blissfully blind to how deeply, deeply stupid his world still frequently is.

Then the Byrne/Triangle years - he's grown-up, buttoned-up, a movie star now and putting on a professional front without his neuroses so blatantly on display.

He's even trying for something like an adult relationship after vacillating between 'I can't be tied down' and 'girls are icky'

He is however also helplessly getting his ass kicked or otherwise humiliated by the powers that be now on a semi-regular basis, because this is the Real World, Son!

In the 2000s and 2010s you start to get Superman as father - allegorically at first in starting to be treated as such by the rest of the 'superhero community', with Cir-El, Kon-El being revealed as his clone/kid/brother/whatever, Chris Kent, and culminating in Jon Kent.

(Illustration by Sebastian Fiumara)

This era's naturally bookended by Manchester Black telling him that he's a fuddy-duddy stick in the mud dweeb who's out of touch with The Kids.

(As pointed out by @charlottefinn the New 52 at least for the present-day stuff is in this context basically his midlife crisis - or perhaps midlife Crisis - where he leaves his wife and awkwardly dates around, gets a shiny new wardrobe, and generally acts like he's 20 again.)

(Prior to recent events, we were) entering the full-on middle aged era of Superman where he's slowing down if still very active,

the kid's out of the house,

and with so many years behind him he's reassessing.

(And even aside from a strategy however sensible in context of 'leaves Earth to hang out with a bunch of cool young people and get back to his alien-fighting dictator-toppling glory days', lest you think that midlife crisis is fully over:)

Like a lot of Superman - like a lot of any character that exists on this sort of broad scale - this definitely wasn't deliberate, but lines up neatly and lends a certain weight. Following to the logical conclusion, we can expect this Jon and Clark in 30 more years:

I googled 'Old Man Superman' to get that last cover since to my surprise I didn't already have it saved and found this extremely cool design by Giannis Milonogiannis and Ladon Alex, so here's your reward for making it to the end.

#Superman #Opinion

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merlot-and-chardonnay · 3 months

Text

Another HotD Related Take: Or, the Passive Rule of Viserys I

I just realized something when I was going through one of my Lark chapters as well as my take on the Blacks and Greens discourse. It's not actually related to the story itself but more something related to one of the HotD characters.

In case you haven't guessed by reading the title:

I thought about Viserys and my observation of him both as a king and father, how he chose to take passive stances over active ones. And after re-reading my last take I thought about why this was the case. Now it could be chalked up to maybe the man never really had any ambition to rule as king, but I was thinking there might be more to this.

So bear with me as I discuss my take.

Also I want to make clear this is NOT me in any way trying to defend Viserys or his actions (or lack thereof), this is just me trying to make sense of why he is the way he is. Also, this is all my opinion, so please feel free to agree or disagree me as you wish.

Before we get into Viserys the King, we first need to look into who he was before the starting events of House of the Dragon:

Viserys Targaryen was the first born son of Prince Baelon and Princess Alyssa. Baelon was the second born son of King Jaehaerys and Queen Alyssane. Since Baelon was the second son, i.e. the one who was not expected to inherit the throne (before the death of his older brother that is), it is almost certain Viserys was not expected to be part of the line of succession anytime soon.

That is until Prince Aemon's, and then Baelon's deaths which led to a crisis of succession and resulted in the Council of 101 deciding who was to sit the Iron Throne next after Jaehaerys. Which in this case ended up being Viserys, i.e. the eldest MALE descendent.

Now I can't pretend to imagine what Viserys was feeling the moment it was made official that he would sit the throne next, but if I was in his shoes, I'd be...well honestly pretty overwhelmed as the title of heir would come with its own pressures and responsibilities. Also, this was somewhat fairly sudden, and I'm not so sure if Viserys was given the proper tools to prepare to rule (which could in part explain why he didn't give Rhaenyra the tools to prepare to rule when he named her heir).

Again, being the child of the second son, he was probably never expecting to rule at all.

Thinking about it more now, I do have to wonder if Viserys had ever objected to this behind closed doors, to being king. I don't know if he had ever thought to renounce the title of heir, or if he thought to abdicate once he became king.

(worth noting in the Fire and Blood novel, Daemon was prepared to secure Viserys' place as heir by 'allegedly' gathering an army should the nobles object).

Maybe the notion never occurred to him.

Also another thing to remember about Viserys before his time as king was that he was the last Targaryen to claim the dragon Balerion, who we know as the largest dragon at that time, and whose first known rider was Aegon the Conqueror. I think people sometimes forget about this fact about Viserys, and I can understand why, but that is actually a pretty impressive accomplishment, not something to sneeze at (granted Balerion was old and probably in the process of dying after that stunt he pulled dragging poor princess Aerea with him back to his old home in Valyria, but still impressive nonetheless).

It's worth noting Viserys never claimed another dragon after Balerion, and there was probably a good reason for that.

I think in some way, being the Black Dread's rider gave Viserys a different perspective concerning the Targaryens and their relationship to the dragons as well as power.

In Episode 1, after the bulk of the events that passed, we are given a scene where Viserys talks with Rhaenyra before Balerion's giant skull. He tells Rhaenyra that the idea that the Targaryens can control the dragons is nothing more than an illusion. I theorize the reason he says this is because of his experience as a dragon rider. Having had a chance to ride the largest dragon in the world, it made Viserys realize these creatures can never truly be tamed, no matter how strong they may bond with them.

But, and again this is more a theory on my part, I wonder if this also made Viserys come to realize the power the Targaryens had. Sure, they could not actually tame the dragons, but they can form bonds with them, which gives the family a certain level of power in this world, one that probably never should have been given to them in the first place, even if said power is what allowed the Targaryens to conquer and rule the Seven Kingdoms.

And I think this scares Viserys on a subconscious level.

Much so that he fears the power he has as king, which could be part of the reason why he chose to make passive stances over active ones, why he often gave into pressure by the small council, especially by his trusted Hand...

And maybe why he often sidelined his brother during the early years of his reign.

As we have seen both in show and book, Daemon is an unpredictable and chaotic force to be reckoned with. Much like that of a dragon. He is someone who loves his family, but also craves power.

Now that I think about it, I wonder if Daemon was part of the reason Viserys never considered to abdicate. Since the man had no sons of his own at this point in time, Daemon was seen as his Heir Apparent. No matter how much he loved him, I don't think Viserys believed his brother would've been a good or stable ruler.

It certainly didn't help when Otto Hightower voiced his opinion that Daemon would end up becoming a second Maegor if he was ever to sit the Iron Throne.

Daemon acts like a dragon, and he has no regard for the power he holds over others, and I think this scares Viserys to a certain extent, which is part of why he sends Daemon away and disinherits him (I know that's not the actual reason, but it was probably subconscious; the snide remark Daemon made about Viserys' and Aemma's son being 'Heir for a Day' was probably the push Viserys needed to do something about his brother's power hungry ambition).

I think what I'm trying to say is that maybe Viserys holds a subconscious fear of the Targaryen's power, both real power and their illusion of power, which is why he chooses to take overly passive stances both in his rule and in his parenting.

I also think Viserys fears his own power both as a dragon rider and as a king, and he goes to great lengths to keep it in check. Claiming a dragon does seem to bring out a different side to whomever can accomplish this; the bigger the dragon, the bigger the change.

Note the confidence in Laena Velaryon when she claimed Vhagar, and the arrogance from Aemond when he made that same accomplishment. Maegor claimed Balerion after his father Aegon passed and...well we know what he was like as king. And of course Daemon has Caraxes, and those two are so closely bonded it's almost telepathic.

The man knows he has power as king, and there have been times when he exercised that power when he felt it was needed.

One example includes when he summoned Daemon to the throne room after making his 'Heir for a Day' speech. Viserys sat the throne with the crown on his head and the sword in his hands, making it clear that his brother was speaking to the king, and if Daemon didn't address him as such Viserys would order HIS kingsgaurd to cut out his tongue.

He also order Daemon to return to the Vale to his then wife. BY order of the KING to be exact.

Also, another Daemon related incident when Viserys summoned the man to the throne room AGAIN (despite Daemon's very hungover state, LOL) in Episode 4. Going on a brief tangent I feel like I'm seeing a pattern of Viserys exercising his power as king when his family, ESPECIALLY his brother go and do stupid shit. I'm sorry, I find this so funny.

Anyway, Viserys made his ire towards Daemon clear when he confronted the guy over worrying allegations about Daemon's tryst with Rhaenyra in the pleasure house, claiming Daemon 'defiled' her. He made said ire even more clear when Daemon didn't deny the accusations and Viserys flat pulls out his dagger, holding it against Daemon's throat, acting like he might actually use it. He is not being a pushover at this moment, and he banished Daemon afterwards AGAIN.

Other examples involved Rhaenyra like in the same episode when he scolded Rhaenyra for her reckless actions and ended her courtship phase, ordering her to wed Laenor Velaryon, exercising his power both as king and as father in this situation.

Also concerning Rhaenyra, Viserys would exercise his kingly power on more than one occasion when attempting to quell the rumors of the origins of her sons' births, i.e. that Jace, Luke, and Joffery are the bastard sons of Harwin Strong instead of the true born sons of Rhaenyra and Laenor. Regardless of how true those rumors were, Viserys would go to great lengths to defend Rhaenyra and her children, be it scolding Alicent to stop pursuing this matter in private, or flat out declaring to a room full of nobles and his family that anyone who dared to question the boys' lineage would have their tongues removed.

Please note in Episode 8, when Viserys, who at this point was basically at death's door, used what strength he had left to sit the throne for the Driftmark petition, and how he was prepared to cut out Vaemond Velaryon's own tongue when he shouted in the throne room that the boys were bastards and Rhaenyra is a whore:

So Viserys isn't afraid to exercise his power as king over his own family, nor is he afraid to invoke said power to protect his family either.

But from the same vein, he seems a little more hesitant to invoke that power when it comes to other matters, such as when the small council started pressuring him to take a new wife after the death of Aemma Arryn, even though he had named a new heir, and it had been less than a year since that horrible tragedy. And when he did give into the pressure, he was essentially provided two options to either wed Laena or Alicent. He chose Alicent, even though the girl didn't have a say in the matter.

There wasn't a third option?

He also doesn't seem willing to invoke his status as king when Daemon returned to King's Landing after being sent away. Guy just struts in like nothing happened, and Viserys just lets him. Not even a slap on the wrist like he usually does.

(not that I'm actually complaining, I mean, not with that face, lol)

Sorry, fanservice over, back to the thread:

I think Viserys also feels the burden to keep the realm together and not fall apart, but he also wants to keep his family together as well. Trying to have his cake and eat it too, it seems.

He's trying to please everyone, but that is not possible. And his lack of action and decision making will ultimately lead to the downfall of his family and dynasty.

So, to summarize, I think Viserys is the way he is as king because he didn't want, nor did he ever expect to ever have become king, and I think also because he fears the power he has a king and a Targaryen.

Additionally, there is likely considerable pressure to keep the realm stable, or at very most keeping it from falling into chaos. And of course, there is extra pressure on Viserys that he later passes onto Rhaenyra concerning the Conqueror's Dream (refer back towards the end of Episode 1).

So many factors to consider, but ultimately it doesn't excuse Viserys' OVERLY passiveness. I already made my disdain for this passiveness clear in my last take, as had Viserys taken a more proactive stance, he could've properly taught Rhaenyra to rule as Queen, as well as...you know...

NOT CREATING SUCH A POLARIZING DIVIDE WITHIN HIS FAMILY THAT IT LED TO A CIVIL WAR THAT ULTIMATELY LED TO THE EXTINCTION OF THE DRAGONS AND THE EVENTUAL DECLINE AND DOWNFALL OF THE TARGARYEN DYNASTY.

And of course, I will not excuse Viserys playing favorites with his oldest daughter compared to his children with Alicent, to whom he was basically an absentee parent. Even if you do shamelessly have one favorite child, it's still a shitty thing for any parent to ignore the rest. (looking at you Papa Odin from the MCU...and Firelord Ozai from AtLA)

If Viserys had actually taken a more active role in raising the rest of his children, especially Aegon, the divide wouldn't have been so wide if it had been created at all.

(Of course it probably wouldn't have happened at all if Viserys never married Alicent but I digress).

In an alternate universe, Rhaenys would've been the one to sit the Iron Throne (from the Queen who Never Was to the Queen who Became), and Viserys would've been content to live out his days out in the countryside continuously working on his model of Old Valyria and spending time with his wife and daughter.

Anyway that's my piece. I probably didn't make a lot of sense, which to be fair, I was stuggling a bit to put this take of mine into words, but if it did make sense in some way, I would love to hear what y'all have to say.

#hotd #daemon targaryen #rhaenyra targaryen #viserys targaryen #passive aggressive #asoiaf

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notebookqueenofnarnia · 2 months

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Totes ma goats imagine the Pevensie kids as the royal family. Not the head-cannon where they rule, but just the four of them being princes and princess of England or some (nonexistent) random European country. Like Peter being so like Prince William of a country and trying so hard not to screw up; Susan being so gracious and graceful and ladylike never a hair out of place. And since their parents are so busy like running a country, they try to raise their little siblings and Peter trying to make Edmund like him and Susan always fixing their appearances and manners.

(Also explains names like Edmund, but I also wanna an explanation for titles. Can they all be HRH not just Dukes and stuff) (what if their parents change the rules so that they all rule together to take the stress off and make them all equal. This is a total game changer you know. Forces think it makes them week but they are powerful as the the kings and queens)

Like also imagine them at all those public appearances. And Ed trying to get to movie premieres and trying to use his title to get on a Doctor Who episode. Peter telling him to stop using his power and influence. Think of all the things the royals do: behind the scenes at zoos, sailing fun races, hula dancing, traditions and cultures around the place, the Olympics (maybe Susan the swimmer even competes), parties. And Ed and Lucy at those boring events with old people just like reeking havoc when they were young and just judging everyone now. "Hey, Lu." "What?" "Did you see Lady Smallwood's hat? I think they forgot to take the feathers off of the bird." And then Susan yelling at them to behave while she charms everyone. (Also Susan with suitors and her and her brothers having no patience with the stuck up sons of Lords and rich peoples and things (and Caspian being one) but also using them to get money to charities.) (and Susan wanting to marry someone of and with purpose and with heart)

And everyone feels pressure in relationships, especially Peter who sees the hard marriage of their parents-who almost are ready for divorce. Peter has to find a queen for Petes sake (lololol a great pun), Susan wants what she wants(like maybe even Prince Charming day dream or that could be Lucy), and Ed doesn't even imagine marriage because he isn't Prince Charming and they expect him to be.

But also they all used to get up to trouble and mischief all four of them together, even sometimes now. Imagine craziness while visiting the White House, like super feminist

Susan meeting Trump but it ends up being Edmund and Peter who like loose their shit at him.

And all the social media (give me vlogger Princess Lucy) and activism and protecting each other from paparazzi and from rumor and scandals and stuff

Does Peter join the army to be a "normal guy" does it work?

They each ending learning different languages fluently (except Peter poor guy is terrible with languages) but so Susan can handle the German embassy, Lucy has any Spanish speaking country, and Edmund deals with the French and Italians

And scandals and pretend scandals and Ed just trying to run away from all of it (does he have a giant scandal?! Like is his father really the king? Or maybe drugs/drinking?) (OR he like gives away family gossip or something when he's young for sweeties- like betraying family and it's a big scandal, maybe even makes international relations bad, (or breaks up parents marriage) so after lots of angsty time he and his family finally forgive and he spends years trying to forgive himself and make it up by becoming the grave, serious, grumpy pants, with a beautiful soul) because who would notice third in line for the thrown at some massive university in the states. And Lu eventually follows him.

But just always living in the shadow of their siblings who live under the influence of the crown.

And they all just wanna be free

Want normal lives

And Aslan the Advisor finds ancient bylaws or old tradition or whatever where the four of them can rule over Narnia. And it takes the pressure off of Peter and they are all so badass together and they kill it even thought they are super young and are running a country. The white queen could totally be the kings sister and she is the reason he dies. (And the oldest of each of their children will fill their shoes when they die.)

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coachbeards · 1 month

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okay now for a tl question: as someone who also dislikes season three, i'm curious to know how you would have liked season 3 to end? i'm pretty sure you've talked abt it before but i'd love to hear your thoughts.

well, i think there are a lot of things that could've happened....but i'm not entirely sure, as i haven't seen the season since it aired. that means i can't give the biggest in depth answer to it regarding every single tl character, so i'll just give my thoughts on what i think should've happened............................................for beard

first of all, he should've broken up with jane after mom city. i've talked a lot about that, and how i believe that beard's forgiveness of nate should've been shown as a forgiveness of himself as well, and by extension beard finally beginning his journey of self-healing. because, no. forgiving nate didn't Heal beard, not by a long shot, but it helped fix a little bit within himself that would've paved the road to his breaking up with jane. realizing he didn't need to be punished anymore.

so, if there was no jane involved in the finale, there would be no wedding or beard choosing jane over ted.

HOWEVER. i think it would've been amazing to see beard choose richmond anyways.........finally making a choice for himself. he came to richmond in the first place because ted asked him to, and he was willing to leave richmond all because ted asked him to. ignoring the jane of it all, beard choosing to stay in richmond because he wants to....he wants to continue coaching the team, he wants to complete their mission of winning the whole fucking thing, he wants to nurture those relationships he made and be .,,,, well. his own independent person, something we never really saw considering he was either following ted or following jane. never on his own.

regarding the other characters,

JAMES DIDN'T DESERVE TO BE FORGIVEN. i am all for james's recovery arc, showcasing him in rehab and actively trying to get better. but just because a character is in recovery doesn't automatically erase all the harm they've done, nor does it mean their victims need to forgive them for anything. i think jamie should've been shown to grapple with what he wanted to do, forgive him or not, and come to the conclusion that he doesn't need to do anything. he doesn't need to care what james thinks of him anymore, he doesn't deserve to have that weighing on him. i think jamie should've been shown to be ... idk not Happy or Supportive, but be okay with james in recovery, but draw boundaries that he doesn't need to do anything past that. he should've had someone tell him it was his choice, rather than being told to forgive him.

roy should've been in therapy earlier on in the season than last second. i'm glad that roy is seeking help, obviously, but i think it would've bettered his arc if we saw more of it starting like,,,, 3x08 onwards. maybe. idk. again, i haven't seen s3 since it aired.

not sure about rebecca, since i didn't really pay attention to her arc that much in s3 (sorry to all) because i disliked the psychic aspect so much. i like her ending up with the dutch man! wish we got more of them between 3x06 and the finale, but i understand the romcom aspect of reuniting with someone you thought you'd never see again. i don't hate her ending !!!!

ted needed to go back to kansas, sorry. it wasn't dottie "forcing" him to go back, even though i will admit she's a pretty shit parent lmao. but it wasn't like that wasn't the plan from the very start. could it have been handled better? absolutely! should've jason played ted with way more emotion in 3x12? YES. but,,, come on. ted is a father first and foremost. before a coach, friend, romantic interest, etc. he's a father. and that's actually been a really big part of his character, so i never understood when people said that it "came out of nowhere" or it was so "out of character" for him.........to....be with his son? DON'T EVEN GET ME STARTED ON THE HENRY LASSO HATE. i swear some of y'all forget the message of being curious, not judgemental lmao. ted was always supposed to go back to henry. i don't agree with the idea of uprooting a literal child to a whole other country, though i can picture there being a time where they do move back to richmond together! the door is left open, not closed! i could picture him going there as a teenager and going to school there, but again. he's like.....12 lmao. ted's arc always circled around his son...and he needed to go back.

also keeley just deserved better. i'm perfectly okay with her remaining single at the end of the show, as i do think that that could've helped her heal herself and her relationships with other people and her career. no, giving her a romantic ending wouldn't have impacted her career, but i think i like where she ended up. on her own, with her new friend of barbara and their company, her and rebecca, and even her and roy and jamie!!!!!!! i think there's chances for their to be romance, but like. i think considering how much of keeley's arc has revolved around romance, it's nice that she didn't end up with anyone. idk.

#this became. long #and AGAIN. i haven't seen s3 in forever!!!!!!!!!!#rick speaks.#diirtgrubb

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