#he struggles a lot with acting like a proper human

[wilcze-kudly]

The Gaang being 'bad parents' didn't ruin their characters.

I've seen this argument tossed around a couple times and it's honestly one of my least favourite criticisms of lok.

Katara (and Sokka but we have no confirmed kids for him, which seems unrealistic with how much game he had) lost their mother as children and their father was forced to abandon them when they were barely starting their teens. They were raised by their grandmother with little to no peers of their own age.

Aang did not know his parents and a huge chunk of his childhood was him being groomed into taking up the mantle of the avatar and mastering airbending. He also was isolated from other kids his age. His closest parental figure was Gyatso who was more of a teacher than a father. Also the Air Nomads were literally wiped out so that adds to the trauma pile.

I really don't think i have to talk about Zuko's family life here, but at least he had relatively positive parental figures in the form of Ursa (though i do have a burning personal dislike of ursa) and Iroh. Despite this his struggle around the subject of his family and his trauma relating to his upbringing was a focal point of his character arc.

Toph was raised in isolation by her asshole abelist parents who did not listen to her, sent people to capture and bring her back and then disowned her. (If my cursory understanding of 'the rift' is correct, I need to actually read it because i am unreasonably obsessed with the Beifong family.)

Where, pray tell, were they supposed to learn proper parenting skills? On their brief stint as child soldiers? While fighting a war as literal children?

There is the argument that they must've matured later in their lives, of course. But you can only recover so much from copious amounts of childhood trauma.

Being a bad parent doesn't necessarily make you a bad person. Sure it makes you a failure in an incredibly delicate and important aspect of human life but it doesn't make you a bad person. And saying that it does takes a lot of nuance out of the conversation.

Like, do you know how easy it is to fuck up a child?

Especially that the ways the members of the Gaang 'fucked up' as parents feel mostly in character.

Bumi was going to face some struggles with self worth due to being the firstborn child of the Avatar and arguably one of the most powerful waterbenders in history, while being a nonbender himself. That much was unavoidable, no matter how his parents approached the issue.

And Aang was obviously going to be over the moon when Tenzin was born. Think about it. He's literally the last of his people. He has no one else 'like him'. No one else to pass down the traditions, the teachings that Gyatso and everyone else he cared about and who were horrifically murdered to. Aang is getting older and he feels like his culture and history and his entire life before he got trapped in that damned iceberg will die along with him. And then Tenzin is born and Tenzin can take up the mantle that had been thrust upon Aang.

I'm going to withhold my judgement on Izumi and Zuko, since we barely know anything about them. She seems well adjusted but that's all i can say right now. But Zuko has also been shown to be extremely, painfully aware of how fucked up his family is and has clearly been putting in a lot of work to unscrew what his ancestors have screwed up.

Toph situation feels very tragic to me,because it's obvious that she thought she thought she was doing better than her parents. She gave her daughters the freedom to do what they want, to not feel opressed and trapped like she had. How was she supposed to know that she was making her girls feel like she didn't love them? (Here's another post of mine about the Beifong family and how they just feel like they're cursed or something at this point.)

TLDR; I get annoyed by people saying that the Gaang being 'bad parents' ruined their characters, because to me it felt like it actually enhanced them.

Neither Aang nor Toph acted out of malice or a lack of love. On the contrary, Toph was trying not to repeat her parents mistakes, accidentally committing a bunch of her own. While Aang probably didn't even realise that he was neglecting Kya and Bumi.

But just loving your children doesn't always make you a good parent.

I think these flaws only add to them as characters. It makes them feel more real.

It's unrealistic and, frankly, just plain boring to go 'oh the Gaang were all good people so they would be good parents too.'

The Gaang were a gaggle of traumatised children forced into saving the world, because the adults around them failed them, that then grew into traumatised adults who have no idea how to be good parents.

#badly voicing my thoughts #avatar legend of korra #i know i did not write this out correctly but it is like 3 am and i am tired and mad and stressed #avatar #avatar: the last airbender #the last airbender #legend of korra #aang #avatar aang #katara #sokka #toph #toph beifong #zuko #ursa #iroh #bumi ii #kya ii #tenzin #firelord izumi #lin beifong #suyin beifong #the beifong family #the beifongs #wow look at all these traumatised people

[scaredpigeons]

Aqua Regia III: My love is an animal call.

Previous chapter // Next chapter // First chapter

Neuvillette x fem!Reader

Word count: 2.3k

It seems both yourself and the honourable Iudex are struggling with some… ahem. Big feelings.

Authors note: i had to get wri involved, you don’t understand— no it was a necessity. Yeah— no, you get it. Don’t worryyy about ittttt :)

Neuvillette was struggling. 

Now, it wasn’t the way he was struggling before, no. 

You’d swept into his work life and cleaned up the mess he’d found himself caught in, made it safe to breathe again, made it easier. He’d never be able to put into words how eternally grateful he was for your work. You helped him retain the dutiful and serious image he’d carefully painted of himself over the years, even through this hectic and strange transition. 

No, for the first time in his life, Neuvillette felt like he was losing his grasp on his own mind. 

His capabilities within his workplace were fine, stellar as always, as everyone (you) keeps reminding him, but his inner workings and home life were in shambles. 

Strange, archaic instincts were clawing at his psyche, making him act irrationally. His bedroom was a mess, his prized belongings hoarded around his bed, walling it in so he quite literally had to leap into bed at the end of the night. 

He tried taking down the mess of knickknacks, books, fabrics and antiquities one morning after he first made what he now calls his ‘nest’. He shook his head as he carefully unstacked all of his most precious items and put them back in their proper places, only for him to return home after work and feel so restless, so incredibly distraught. 

Everything inside him screamed for the nest, so he remade it, and never took it down again. Anything to avoid that sense of restless panic that pulled at his chest. 

Neuvillette was also hungry. His appetite grew and grew, and his thirst was never quenched. He found himself pacing his house, only to give up denying his instincts and throw himself into the waters in the cover of darkness to hunt within the depths— something he hadn’t done since his youth. 

He felt like an animal, like centuries of living in the high society of Fontaine was reduced to ash in his palms, and if he didn’t satiate these urges, he would go mad and make a fool of himself in front of his citizens and colleagues. (again, you)

He thought of you a lot. He thought of you when he woke up, when he arrived to work. He thought of you throughout the day when you weren’t in his presence, and he thought of you on his way home at the end of the day. 

Even in his fever induced late night dives, he wondered what you would say if you saw him like this. Would you worry for him? You always seemed to be worrying for him. 

You were so considerate, so thoughtful and kind. He was confused, irate. He truly tried to keep himself distant from others, to remain a truly impartial and fair judicator of this nation. 

Ever since the traveler came through and wormed into his heart and homeland alike, he found himself more at ease when interacting with humans. He even found himself more at ease with the idea of perhaps having a friend or two, trustworthy people, people he genuinely believed would never be on the wrong side of Fontaines laws. 

He opened up with Wriothesley a little more, which seemed to shock the Duke at first, but he was very open to the idea of having personal chats as well as work conversations— which he had been pushing for ever since starting his career as the caretaker of the fortress. 

The traveler made it a point to speak with him whenever she and Paimon were in Fontaine, often inviting him to go on exciting little excursions when his schedule allowed it. He considered the both of them to be his friends now as well. 

The melusines were his friends, he supposed. He cared very deeply for them. 

But you? 

He knew you well enough by now to know that on surface level, you were a genuine, good natured law abiding citizen. But he’d seen people of the same standing do heinous things. 

He tossed and turned in his sheets at night, battling logic and centuries of experience with the longing in his chest that he felt for you. 

Whenever he would attempt to berate himself, tell himself that he could not get close to you, he could not risk the image of impartial justice he carefully constructed— a tumultuous and archaic anger would rumble in his chest, and he would quite literally growl at himself. 

A dark voice inside himself would berate him instead when he thought of all the ways you could betray his trust, the ways he’s seen it happen to others before— how dare you think that way of her. 

But no, he didn’t know you well enough yet to trust you completely, even though every fiber of his being was pulling him towards you. 

He was so confused. 

It took everything in him to compartmentalize during the day, get his precious work done, only for him to go home and completely lose himself to the madness. 

His chest ached, yes. But what worried him the most— more than the drive to hunt, to nest, was the aching feeling between his legs. 

He’d been around humans long enough to understand how procreation worked. It was similar with all species, though humans were the only ones he knew of that routinely copulated solely for the sake of pleasure, rather than procreating. 

He vaguely knew about dragon mating cycles, that dragons would choose a mate to further their species, carry on their legacy. But every time he tried to justify the pulsing between his legs, he would laugh at the lunacy of it all. 

He had gone half a millennia in human society without feeling any of these urges, and coming into his powers must be the reasoning for such primitive and dubious symptoms. You were just an unfortunate bystander in it all, It couldn’t have anything to do with you. 

No, certainly not. He surmised that he must be ill. There was no other explanation. His body was not used to such an influx of power, and was acting out, throwing one last hurdle his way before all was well and settled. 

Yes, that was it. 

——————

You used to hate having days off. 

It meant less money coming into your bank account, and more time to sit alone and think. Your friends were lovely distractions, but nothing really quelled the overarching feeling of dread you had at the end of the night when the lights were out and the dark consumed you. 

Now that money was no longer an issue, thanks to your cushy job as personal assistant to the ruler of the entire nation, (a job title that still astounded you,) you no longer felt guilty when meeting up with friends. 

You didn’t have to refuse their charity any longer, or invitations to expensive meals, or parties. 

You truly felt at peace with the majority of your life, and so when the Duke of Meropide invited you to the fortress for tea one evening, you happily accepted. 

You loved visiting Wriothesley. He was a lovely little breath of the air you used to breathe, of trouble and mischief. 

Certainly a close friend, confidant, and many others (Miss Navia and Charlotte) often poked at you that perhaps he would make a good husband for you as well. 

That certainly couldn’t be farther from the truth. 

Wriothesley was fun. He was witty and intelligent, strong, he fell into the role of leadership with far more grace than you had seen in anyone before him, and he made you feel very happy. 

But he was also emotionally unavailable, his entire world dedicated to his work, to the fortress and its residents. He left room for his friendships, keeping the fires there well stoked— but anything further would be a disaster waiting to happen. 

You’d thought about it once or twice, marrying him just for the sake of it, for the security, the titles and privileges that came along with it. 

These were weak moments, when you’d been at your lowest, finding no worth or value in yourself. These were selfish thoughts, unfair to your friend and yourself. Selfish because you knew he would say yes, if only to make your troubles disappear. 

Wriothesley was a great friend. You wished to stay that way for as long as he’d allow it. 

He seemed quite content sitting on the front of his desk while you sat in front of him, sipping an absolutely divine tea while listening to his favourite classical record. 

You still found it so amusing after all these years that he retained such a dark and intimidating outward appearance and still listened to the posh classical music he grew up on. He said it was something about reclaiming a part of him that he didn’t want his parents to own. He had a lot of parts to him that he reclaimed for himself. 

“This is beautiful, remind me what it’s called again?” 

He sat his tea cup down, eyes closed as he absorbed the music with you. “L’Amour Récompensé mais inconnu III, one of my all time favourites.” 

“It’s so calming, are the others of its title the same way?” You asked, placing your teacup next to his on the desk. 

“The record in total is four songs. It’s a love story, and this is the track that symbolizes the moment the lovers realize their feelings for each other. It’s less sorrowful than the first two, a bit more light than the last.” He says, looking across the room thoughtfully. “It’s happier, more hopeful than the others. It almost makes me understand what it might be like to be in love.” 

You knew what he meant, though you tried to push the idea away with each passing day. You could not have feelings like these, it was completely unacceptable. 

Wriothesley must have noticed your breathy sigh, your face scrunching up as it grew heated, and he quirked a brow at you. 

“Nothing-“ you stammered, pushing yourself up from the chair and pacing a few steps away from him. “It’s nothing! Don’t worry about it.” 

“You do seem a bit lighter these days,” he says, that telltale smirk spreading across his face, teasing you. “Don’t tell me someone’s finally caught your attention.” 

“What do you mean, finally?” You spun to face him, red faced and projecting your embarrassment into a raised voice. “I-I’ve had plenty of men interested in me!” 

“Ah, but that’s not what I said, is it?” He rose from the desk, walking towards you in half the steps you took to get to the same spot in the middle of his office. “I asked if someone caught your attention. Plenty of losers have thrown themselves at you over the years to no avail. But I’ve never seen you so flustered.”

His presence, while physically looming over you, was rather comforting. You felt safe within this office, in his counsel. 

“I’m… going through some mixed feelings…” you admitted. 

“Mixed?” He inquired. 

“I… I am attracted to someone I really shouldn’t be, and I loathe myself for it but I can’t seem to bring myself to stop thinking about them.” 

“Oh… certainly a sticky situation you’ve got yourself in, kiddo.” His words were light, but genuine. 

A knock at the door echoed from the spiral staircase beneath you, and he yelled down for whoever was knocking to enter. Steady footsteps sounded from the stairwell and you frowned, a little perturbed that you were finally about to vent to someone, only for it to be interrupted. 

In a kind gesture, he ran his hand soothingly down your upper arm a couple times, a gesture he repeated often, something he did when he knew hugging you would be a bit too much, or when others were around. 

His hand rested on you as he lowered his voice. “We can talk about it more later, okay? I don’t want you to—“

In a flash of white and blue, Wriothesley’s arm was ripped away from you, and he staggered back a few steps as his assailant held his hand up and away from you with firm grip to the wrist. 

You blinked, and Neuvillette was between you, holding Wriothesley’s hand and breathing heavy, if he was straining somehow. 

Wriothesley stared wide eyed and completely shocked. You were sure you looked equally as startled, because Neuvillette looked between the two of you, then at his hand gripping Wriothesley’s wrist, before his own eyes widened and he dropped his hold, stepping back and clearing his throat. 

“I am… so incredibly sorry, Wriothesley,” he said, rubbing a thumb along the palm of the hand that grabbed his friend. “I truly have no idea what just came over me then.” 

Neuvillette looked incredibly guilty, and his eyes wouldn’t meet yours as he picked up a folder that must have been dropped on the floor in the scuffle. 

“Here are the files you requested.” He said softly, setting them gently on Wriothesley’s desk. His gaze trained on the floor, so unlike him, so wounded, and you felt so confused. 

“I’ll take my leave now. again, you have my sincerest apologies, the both of you.” 

The Chief Justice nearly jogged away, a brisk pace you’d not ever seen him take before. 

“Wait!” You’d called out. “Sir! I’ll walk with you back!” But he was already gone, the door closing audibly before you even finished your sentence. 

You turned to Wriothesley, still staring at the spot Neuvillette was mere seconds ago, and gave him an apologetic look. 

“I’m sorry,” you stammered. “It seems like somethings really wrong, I need to—“ Wriothesley just nodded, blank stare, so you bolted after Neuvillette, taking two stairs at a time. 

Moments later, when Wriothesley recovered, and you’d been long gone, he sat in his chair, holding his wrist in awe. 

“Well,” he said to himself. “At least it’s reciprocated.” 

He smiled. “I just wonder when they’ll figure that little detail out for themselves.” 

#genshin impact neuvillette #neuvillette x female reader #neuvillette fluff #neuvillette x reader #neuvillette #neuvilette genshin #wriothesley

[adrianicsea]

the time that glenn howerton was in a gay period-piece play about crossdressing

so awhile back i was poking around glenn howerton's wikipedia looking for movies and such that i might have missed, and i noticed it had a small theatrical section listed. this was never something i'd given much thought in the past, but on this particular occasion i was so hard-up for new Glontent that i decided to see what i could find about the three plays listed there, because i'd never seen anyone else have much luck with that and i love a good internet scavenger hunt. walk with me.

compleat female stage beauty caught my eye right away-- the title of the play itself is interesting, and i happened to know already that the most famous real-life duke of buckingham was the lover of king james. so of course i went delving...

and what should i find but the entire playscript for compleat female stage beauty, For Free, on archive dot org? anyone on earth can rent it and read it for an hour at a time, or for 14 days if you want to really take your time with it. i have to assume that this is NOT common knowledge among sunny fans (or anyone else), as the archive upload only has 99 views at the time of making this post.

to give a VERY succinct summary of what the play is about-- in the 1660s, during the english restoration, women were allowed to act professionally onstage for the first time in english history. this caused problems for the male actors who had previously made their careers playing female characters, such as edward kynaston, around whom the play centers. outside of his acting career, kynaston is a gay man, and he's in a romantic entanglement with george villiars, the duke of buckingham (NOT the same duke of buckingham who was fucking king james-- that was this villiars' dad. we love gay fathers and their gay sons!) kynaston struggles to find his place in a changing social landscape where it seems as though his talents are no longer needed or wanted.

before getting into the script proper, the book has some information about notable early productions of the play. this is great because it pins down a lot of details about glenn's involvement in the show that wikipedia left unanswered, but there's also an unexpected sunny crossover here-- in an even EARLIER production, the lead role was played by david hornsby!

(i also learned over the course of my deep dive on this that glenn's costar, lead actor brandon demery, was a fellow member of glenn's graduating juilliard group!)

things don't end well for kynaston and villiars, but still, the onstage relationship between the two is both electrifying and heartbreaking as it changes over the course of the show.

now, this WOULD be where i would include cast pictures or footage or any kind of photos of glenn in this show... but if any such material exists, it's not publicly available. i went so far as to email the publicity and outreach coordinator for the theater that hosted glenn's production of this show to ask if they had any archived materials, but she told me that they didn't.

but this production took place in october of 2000, meaning it was pre-that 80s show, meaning we can all sit and think about how a glenn that looked like This was acting in a gay period piece about crossdressing and gender roles and the mystery of human sexuality. dudes rock.

a bit of a disappointing note to end on, i know, but i really wanted to talk about this play and share it with people!! it's a super interesting and overlooked part of glenn's early career, but also i think the script is fascinating and very well-written in its own right. i definitely encourage yall to check it out on the internet archive if you're interested-- again, it's literally free!

#glenn howerton #iasip #it's always sunny in philadelphia #compleat female stage beauty #this is a longer and more coherent version of a post i made two months ago that got no traction-- #--because i accidentally opted out of having my blog's original posts show in any tags. lol. and even lmao #it's crazy what's just like. there and relatively easy to find on the internet if you take the time to look

[b0xerdancer-writes]

The Warrior with The Poets Heart.

Tamlin x Fae!Reader

Summary: Before Tamlin was a high lord, he wasn't even the heir he was just a boy with a lot of brothers, who made him heir when they all died. He had fallen in love with a girl, who had showed him a book that reminded her of him. It left him with a reason in life after Amarantha messes it all up.

Prompt: Poet/Warrior

Warnings: War, graphic violence, blood, Amarantha

Word Count: 4,086

Notes: A bit smaller but I feel I conveyed my goal in this. A bit late bc the minimum editing I did went on longer than I expected. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Human Fae War had exhausted Tamlin more than he'd like to have admitted, he didn't like swords yet here he was brandishing one, he favored his time reading and writing poetry more even though war time poems were less than proper.

His brothers had all been killed by rival troops, his father had named him heir shortly after the news reached both of their ears; he had been in the med tent getting checked over for a nasty slash when he had heard, his father had bitterly told him that he was heir now and needed to act as such. He was relieved when the war came to its end.

He had sought his usual comfort when he returned to Rosehall with his father paid him no mind, while Rosehall had a fairly good sized library a major portion of the books were kept in his father’s study, he never wanted anything to do with that room really but he guess he had too now. He had read all of the poetry collections within the halls of the estate, his recent comfort had been sneaking off to the nearby village where a small female ran a neat little bookshop. It had shelves of poetry he had never read, and Tamlin had been fascinated how it survived under his nose without him knowing.

He had only found out about it because one of the servants found him wandering around the estate looking for some poetry book he hadn't read yet and stumbled into the servants quarters to see if they had any, and a small lesser fae with dragonfly-like wings had directed him towards her friend's store. Needless to say she didn’t disappoint, and the store had quickly become one of his favorite getaways.

He had saddled up his horse and rode into the village, the familiar cobble path turning into dirt the closer he got to the village; he slowed his gallop down as he entered the busy streets, greeting back the fae that greeted him as he swerved through the crowds on his way to the familiar 2 story cottage at the end of the shopping district. Ivy grew up from the building and around the small handrails for the three steps up to the shop's porch, he tied his horse to the small post she had put out front when she noticed him struggling to tie his horse to the ivy covered railings and headed up the steps. 

The familiar chime of the bells hung from the door handle announced his entrance and a voice yelled from the back room. “Be right there! Please feel free to look around!” 

“It's just me Petal, looking for more poetry.”  Tamlin called back, wandering around between the shelves.

“Oh! Tamlin! I ordered something in for you!” She rounded the shelves and grabbed his hand, pulling him towards the sitting area near the checkout. “It came all the way from Day, but it's one of only 15 copied all over Prythian.”

Tamlin followed after her with a grin on his face, their relationship had steadily grown since his first time in the building; he had been awkward and shy looking around but she offered to help him, when he said he was looking for some poetry books he had yet to read she lit up dragging him to a shelf of books that was all poetry. She had asked him if there were any poets he preferred and when he shook his head no she began listing off her favorites on the shelves. He had gone home with only one book, one she claimed was her absolute favorite and was so passionate about that he just had to read it.

“You ordered me a book all the way from Day Court and it's a limited edition? How much did that cost you? I need to compensate you for that darling.” Tamlin mused with a small chuckle. 

She tensed her entire face burning red. “No-no that's not necessary Tam, really, all I ask is that you also allow me to read it.” 

Tamlin smiled at her gently. “Of course darling, anything you want.” 

“We could read it together?” She mumbled softly.

“If you'd like to, I'd be more than happy to do that. Any excuse to not be up in Rosehall right now, father has been driving me up the wall.” Tamlin groaned dramatically and she chuckled.

She ushered him to sit in a chair and brought him a gift wrapped box, eagerly passing it to him she rocked on her feet as he ripped the nice emerald green paper off;  inside a neatly bound book with gold embossing was nestled.

“The King of Poets?” Tamlin read off the cover.

“I got to read it a long time ago, my father had a copy, I sent it to be restored in day court for you. The main character reminds me of you.” She mused back.

“Oh Petal-” Tamlin held the book tightly in his hands. “If this was your father’s I can’t possibly take this from you.” 

She smiled softly and sat beside him. “I want you to have it. You’ll see why.”

Tamlin looked over to her brows furrowed. “You sure darling? I know how much this must mean to you.”

She nodded. “It's not your normal poetry book. It's got small sections that read like poetry, when the main character is writing it himself. But it's a good book.”

“Then we will for sure read it together.” Tamlin nodded, pulled her into a side hug and with a blush on his face pressed a kiss to her forehead.

“I can close the store for the day and we can go upstairs and I can make us some honey tea while we read?” She offered

“I'd like that.” Tamlin nodded.

“Go ahead and head up then.” She stood and smoothed her skirts out, she busied herself with closing the front of the store.

The stairs welcomed him up them, decorated with ivy and faelights; if downstairs was cozy, upstairs was cozier. It was kept dim, dark wooden floors with beige walls she had decorated with plants, tapestries, paintings, and hanging faelights; the room was covered with her own personal collection of books on tall bookshelves, in the center of the living room was a dark green padded couch, furs and warm blankets tossed over the back. The old wooden coffee table was in the center of the sofa and two matching chairs, it was littered with small plants and books and in the corner a matching desk was stacked with papers, a journal, and writing utensils.

He plopped onto the sofa, and pulled one of the warm blankets over the back into his lap; the steps creaked as she climbed them and he watched her with a soft adoration on his face, these were his favorite moments now. They had started about two months ago, she had invited him upstairs for tea after weeks of the two sitting in the downstairs reading area and reading different books in silence together.

She carried up a tray with two cups on it, and sat it on the coffee table; she curled up into his side as he took a drink from the sweetened tea. He pulled  the blanket over her lap and wrapped his arm over his shoulder to tuck her further into his side.when she had fully nestled into his side he began reading aloud, the book was a good 25 or so chapters; small in comparison to some he had read but for the story it was trying to convey Tamlin deemed it the perfect size. Hours had passed and the sun was setting in the sky by the time Tamlin reached the last paragraph.

“-Even though he had to brandish  his blade to defend us, his people, his poets, we knew that in his heart he would have rather been lost in his work writing or reading. But even with a poet's heart he stood and fought for us, and even though he lost we commemorate him now and memorialize him in this book. Understand this reader, one does not need the heart of a warrior to stand up for those around you that you care for, you can have the heart of a poet and do just that.” Tamlin read aloud.

He looked down to find her asleep against his chest and smiled; she had known his struggles, had known how he felt about being heir now. His heart wasn't in it he had told her once, he didn't have a warrior's heart like the rest of his brothers; no, he had the heart of a poet, of an artist if you added in his prowess with the fiddle. She wasn’t good with words conveying her message; He knew that, but she always found a way to explain it to him with a book.  The character in the book was more like him than she had made it seem, for more reasons than one. 

He set the book on her coffee table, wrapped the blanket around her and carried her through the upstairs into her bedroom; setting her on the fluffy bed he moved to the desk just outside of her bedroom door and began to scribble a letter to her on it. He brought the cups down to the kitchen and washed them in the sink, tipping them upside down on the small rack beside the sink; he hummed a soft melody while he cleaned and organized. 

Eventually he slipped out the front door and used his magic to reseal the wards, untied the horse and set off back towards Rosehall and the estates grounds. He could face the challenges that came with being Heir now, he thought the war had taken its toll; he hated the mindless slaughter but he'd do it again if it meant protecting his people, protecting her.

+

The next morning she awoke groggily, dazed and confused about how she ended up in bed; remembering how she had fallen asleep surrounded in Tamlin’s scent, pressed into his side, warm, cozy, and with his voice lulling her to sleep. Really there had been no better way to fall asleep in her book. She dragged herself out of bed, finding his note folded neatly and waiting on her to open it.

‘Darling,

Thank you for the wonderful book, as always you know just what to pick; believe me you have conveyed your message my dear.

I understand now what you meant when you said the main character was similar to me in more ways than one. Not only was he blonde and green eyed or in love with a female who worked in the village nearby, but that I am a warrior with the heart of a poet. 

Like the King in the book I didn't want to join the war efforts, but I did to protect the people of my court. I too was anxious about taking over my duties as heir; but you Darling, have helped me with that. I believe I can face them now with no anxiety knowing I’m doing it for you and for my court to make this place better than I will be handed it. 

If I ever have to go to war again, know that I will brandish it in your honor. My father has asked me to assist him with a task as his heir, I will be gone for only a day or two but will return to you as soon as I make it back. If you would do me the honors, I would like to begin courting you upon my return.

                    With much love,

Your warrior with the heart of a poet.’

 She smiled softly, a warm blush creeping to her face.  She fully intended to agree to the courtship and would inform him so. She busied herself with getting ready for the day, and then opening the shop; it had most definitely picked up business since Tamlin had started swinging by.  

The days while he was gone passed quickly as long as she busied herself, if not with work in the bookshop it was with writing her own poetry collection. She had only started writing the collection after she had met Tamlin; she had written about 43 of them now, one for every visit. 

It had been late in the evening when he returned, he hadn’t even changed yet but he came knocking at her door, she had pulled him into a deep kiss.

“Well I guess that answers my question then, come up with me yo Rosehall. My father wants to meet you, he has agreed to let me court you but he would like to meet you first.” Tamlin had cheered happily, pulling her back into a kiss.

“I’d love too.” He helped her up onto the cream colored mare and jumped on behind her, his chest against her back.

The journey back to Rosehall was taken slower than when he had rode into the village; there would be gossip they both knew as they rode through town, he had one hand on her side and the other on the reins as they walked back to the grand estate. As they passed by shops, restaurants, homes, and the tavern people had been whispering either side of the path; neither seemed to care as they were caught up in their own conversations.

+

Dinner at Rosehall had gone off without a hitch, Tamlin’s father had approved of her and their relationship. They had spent the night celebrating with good drinks and eventually Tamlin’s father had dismissed himself to his room for the night. The two had stayed up for several more hours before they both agreed to head to bed, they dismissed the idea of sleeping in different rooms and he pulled her into his bed; she had borrowed one of his mother’s chemises to sleep in and he simply changed into loose trousers. Rosehall was quiet as the others' scent lulled each other to sleep. 

A commotion had startled Tamlin awake, it had come from the opposite side of the wing; he had a gut feeling on what it was about, the scent of Iron hung in the air. He held her close, the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end as a growl rested in the base of his throat; she clung to his arm, her heart pounding in her chest.

His door slowly creaked open as the air began to crackle with magic; Rhysand, who he had once called friend, stood there with a look of pity on his face. “I’m sorry.”

Tamlin had grabbed the dagger from his end table and extended it towards Rhys. The two slowly exited the hall where the commotion continued, a yelp and a thud followed by a scream of agony was the only thing that ended up keeping the boys from eachother’s throats.  She had ran to Tamlin the second the males both looked down the hall and turned pale, Tamlin lowered the blade and tried to cover her eyes but it wad too late and she had seen the bloody scene in the center of the hall.

Tamlin’s father was in his beast form, a giant golden wolf like creature with grand elk horns, was slumped against the wall; black oozed from the giant gash in his neck, obvious signs that fae bane had been wad the heavy sickly sweet scent that hung in the air. Across from him was a busted railing, all three had rushed forward to find Rhys’s father collapsed against the ground and impaled on some of the splintered wood; she had cried out and buried her face into Tamlins side, she should have never seen such a thing, not his little poet.

Both High Lords had twitched as the air began to crackle, they both knew what that unfortunate sound was. The males both nodded to each other and Rhys headed down the main staircase, he loomed over his father both dressed in black leathers; she watched as he stared blankly as the Night Lord wheezed his final breath, an eerie rattle that left blood seeping from the sides of his mouth. The magic in the air sharpened and separated, half ringing in her ears and around Rhysand as he absorbed the powers of the Night Lord.

The newly made night lord simply nodded at Tamlin and with a snap of his fingers the body of his father as well as his blood was gone, Rhysand turned and left the estate without another word.

Tamlin moved towards his father, who lay in beast form on the floor; the great golden hound blood gushing from the massive slit across his neck, he tried to get up and move but ultimately collapsed and blood gushed faster. Tamlin kneeled on the floor beside him, they both knew there was no coming back from this wound; there was a sorrowful understanding between the two as Tamlin dug the dagger into his fathers head, the magic buzzing loudly before his own body absorbed it like Rhys’s had.

She had witnessed so few had seen, the passing on of a High Lord and the exchange of powers; not only had she witnessed it once but she had witnessed it twice and both experiences were different, one had sent an electric buzzing through her body and the other had left a butter taste in her mouth and an ringing in her ears.

Tamlin stood and squared his shoulders. “I’m sorry you had to see this love.” He sighed, “let’s get you back to the room, get you in a bath and then i'll clean up out here, join you in the bath, make us some tea and we can try to get some sleep if you want love?”

He had put himself between Rhys and her, had brandished that sword for her; another moment she would add to the books.

+

The courtship was easy and quick, the two eventually were married and she busied herself around the manor; Tamlin dealt with high lord duties so she could work on the bookshop, she had bought a new building lined the walls with shelf upon shelf of poetry and sold the old one. ‘The Poets Rest’ it had been named.

Lucien had found his way into their hearts and home, her husband had taken him in and defended him from his family; she had helped the fox-like male mourn his lost lover only able to imagine what it would be like if she was in his shoes, they all grew into close friends.

Then Amarantha came, having fallen for the blonde male in front of the entire court and other high lords; Tamlin’s wife, his beautiful flower, had stood her ground and challenged the redheaded general. Amarantha had denied the fight, claiming he would find his way into her hands. 

The masquerade ball, she had been gifted a golden doe mask from her husband and Tamlin’s a mimicry of his beast form. Amarantha offered the two one last chance after she had taken Lucien's eye, the doe masked female trying to comfort their red-headed friend as he writhed in agony; Tamlin had stepped up in front of the two to ask what it would take for her to leave them alone, he declared he had no intention of leaving his Rosebud for her.

Amarantha hissed back a simple “We’ll see.”

Then the plagues came. Their masks bonded to their skin and panic arose, fae screamed, scratched, and ripped at the masks on their faces. She had seen many bleed out from the sheer panic, she had sought out the comfort of Tamlin only to be tipped from his arms by the red-headed general.

In the panic Amarantha had manage to hide the doe masked female that Tamlin had loved, he had thought he truly lost her and it led to him playing long with Amarantha’s plans. He led the human girl along, threw tantrums over her when he needed to, some tantrums were fake and some were real; he had learned to direct his rage and sorrow for not being able to protect her towards the human girl, all Amarantha had said to him in the aftermath was that if he played along he might have a chance to see his dear sweet wife again but the human girl couldn’t know of her. Their wedding portrait had been bitter to take down into the vaults, covered by a black cloth.

Then came the day he had to admit defeat that he just couldn’t fight anymore and just wanted to join his rosebud on the other side, but before he could declare his stance Feyre had been dragged into the throne room. He had done as Amarantha had requested now all they had to get through was her trials. Amarantha had given her a riddle and Tamlin knew the answer to it, the answer was Love, it had been a poem he referenced in his vows to his darling rose, yet he couldn’t open his mouth now if he had any chance of finding his lover.

+

Feyre had been illiterate her entire life, but when she had been tossed in the jail cell the night before her final trial she was surprised to find the hall of cells wasn't empty; a female was in the cell across from her, she looked frail and weak behind the golden deer mask.

After the guards had left Feyre had called out to the female who looked up from the book she clasped, a tattered thing with gold embossing, to ask her about the riddle.

“It's in reference to a poem.” The female had looked down into her lap, sadness deep in her eyes.

“What was the poem about?” Feyre had asked quizzically.

“A poem about Love. The answer to your riddle is love. How bittersweet it is Amarantha has picked that for you.” The female chirped back sadly.

Feyre nodded, finally able to take in the golden mask on the opposite female's face. “You're from the Spring Court.” 

“Indeed I am from a small village south of Rosehall.” The female replied. “Now if you would excuse me, I'd like to go to sleep.” The female stood from her stool and curled up onto the creaky old bed.

Feyre followed her shortly after into sleep.

Then as she rested in the cell the next morning, the doe mask had fallen from her face and the bars in front of her shattered. The curse had been broken but at such a bittersweet cost, she hobbled through the halls of the mountain till she found the throne room. Amarantha lay dead in the center of the room, a circle of high lords kneeled around the human girl; except for Tamlin as Feyre’s bones snapped and reformed into those of a high fae.

Feyre coughed and wheezed in pain as she sat up from the stone floor, everyone had expected Tamlin to kneel beside her and comfort her but when they looked up at the male he was staring at the sickly fae female clutching a golden doe mask and a worn book.

“Rosebud?“ Tamlin had choked out.

“Tam.” She had sobbed back.

He had been silent and still the entire time he was under the mountain but seeing her there, seeing her alive, had awoken the part of him that had slumbered since her disappearance and he set off into a sprint towards her. He wrapped his arms around her, spinning her, and broke into a sob himself.

“I’m so sorry, love.” Tamlin had choked over his words barely able to breathe through the tears.

“It's okay Tam. I get it.” She pressed the worn book to his chest.

Tamlin had looked down at the clothbound book and thumbed over the gold embossing. “You always were good with getting your words out through books and poetry.”

“You did what you had to do to survive, my sweet warrior, Even though your poet's heart was screaming not too. You made it out Tamlin, it's okay now, we can go back to us. You don't have to be that warrior anymore.” She soothed.

“First we have to get you back to Rosehall and nursed back to health.” Tamlin had whimpered dropping his head into her shoulder.

“Then take me home and protect me Tam.” She crooned to him and ran her free hand through his blonde hair

Taglist: @tamlinweek

#acotar x reader #acotar #a court of thorns and roses #acotar fanfiction #tamlin x reader #tamlin acotar #tamlin

[poopingonthefloor]

Davesport is Toxic NOT abusive

(((WARNING: PRETTY LONG POST UNDER THE CUT.))) I've seen some people making the claims that Davesport is comship/proship (ok well i've more seen people bitching about it) and im tired of the Davesport slander so this will be an analysis of their relationship. My motive isn't to force anyone to ship it or anything- i really dont care what you do with your life, my frustration is just when people try to make up REASONS why they don't like the ship, even though its literally canon (and not badly written). My main point is -- You can hate what you want. You don't need a reason, and it doesn't need to be bad just because you don't like it. But I will not take any slander on their ship nor any slander of people who like davesport. Davesport is absolutely toxic-- No DSAF fan would disagree. They are literally child murderers with little to no souls and literally are physically disfigured to the point they don't have the capacity to feel proper humanity anymore. You cant expect 2 men who live their lives willingly murdering and then partying in vegas to celebrate on repeat to be gentle and kind to themselves or anyone else.

However, its NOT abusive. I've seen multiple people (mostly from twitter screenshots) claim that Davesport is abusive or the way people portray it is in a fetishy or romanticizing way of abuse, when that's just not the case. I don't blame a lot of people, since a lot of it comes from reading context and intent of the artist, which not everyone is good at-- BUT I'm here to assure you that MOST people don't intend to do that much and just like to portray how their dynamic is canonically like or portray Daves obsession with Jack. Another argument I've seen (by a twitter screenshot...) is that people are comshipping Davesport because people draw Jack annoyed a lot at Dave when...thats not true? That's just Jack's personality, first off:

(From the Dave x Reader fanfic by Directdoggo)

"Jack is a bastardman not very touchy-feely. We can see this in many scenes, where Dave more or less says “I love you” and Jack responds with deflecting humour, or outright scorn. When Dave says it for the final time, this time, Jack tries to say it back, but can’t outright, only getting out: “Why is this so hard?” and “I hope you can find peace with what you’ve done.” Which Dave understood the meaning of. (Hey, better than Henry (LEGACY Jack) hearing “I love you” and proceeding to tear Dave limb from limb, huh?"

(Directdoggo describing Jack's personality)

I know it can be a little confusing to some people, but as someone who struggles with similar issues, just because he struggles to express intimately doesn't mean he can't love anything. Sometimes people are just different and communicating like that doesn't come as easily, even to the people you're closest to. To make it as easy as possible to comprehend-- He's quite literally a tsundere. (Minus the exaggerated ridiculousness in anime) He loves Dave, he just cant bring himself to say or act like it. The dismissiveness or rudeness in response to Dave's affection is not abuse, it's just a defensive response since he doesn't know how to say it back. (His way of being "shy") -- Also note its important that Dave UNDERSTANDS this about him by that point.

However Jack isn't the only thing I've seen regarding the claims that their ship is abusive-- and to debunk all of those I'm going to explain the three points that keep Davesport from being abusive, and I'll use Henry x Dave (which is what I'll call it to prevent it getting confused for FNAF willry) as an example alongside it since its super obvious why that one is messed up. Firstly, They are both bad people. By this point, Dave and Jack are murderers. It's just not surprising that they will be willing to kill each other at at least some point, considering they are willing to kill 5 year olds without remorse- and they'll both deserve it. It's only their own faults that they teamed up with the other, and it's meant to be the ultimate irony when Jack becomes even worse than Dave by "An ending". My point is- they're bad people. It's not like they're owed perfect company or would choose wholesome people to hang out with when they're literally both child murderers. Dave wasn't evil and didn't want to kill by the time he teamed up with Henry (and even after it was Henry's fault), so by that point his suffering was absolutely undeserved.

Secondly, They're lacking any specific power dynamic. Unlike Henry and Dave- whom have several levels of "Age, Father figure, and Employer", the most important one is that Henry is Dave's abuser. He manipulated him and purposefully harmed him both mentally and physically, whereas Dave never had any intention of doing either because Dave loved him and didn't want to lose him (because he had nobody else) This obviously much different with Dave and Jack, whom other than being taller and several years older than (which you can argue their 6 year age gap is weird but they didnt get to know each other till they were both older than 30 so by that point age difference doesnt rlly matter and (also theyre "mentally" like 24 and 22 canonically anyways (as much as I usually hate that argument)) Other then that they are only co-workers. This is a bit more arguable during DSAF 1, where Dave comes across more threatening and comes across like he's manipulating Jack, but I don't exactly count that because I wouldn't say theyre "shippable" or in their "situationship*" by that point (but also because them even being a ship was barely considered by the creator at that point obviously)-- whereas Dave is certainly more easily recognized as sincere to Jack in DSAF 2. Jack also is not someone who is afraid to defend himself against Dave, as shown by the fact he's willing to call out Dave's ridiculous behaviors (which is reasonable of him to do).

(Also from the Dave x reader fanfic) (I just think this specific screenshot debunks any sort of "power dynamic" claim)

My Third and Final point: There is a CHOICE involved I haven't really done much Dave defense in this post, but his defense is very simple: He is literally physically unable to comprehend guilt or conscience. Dave didn't want to murder anyone in the first place, but it was Henry who fucked with his (literal) head so much to the point he stopped being able to feel guilt. He doesn't care about murder and doing wrong because he CAN'T care. You can't really let that reflect Dave as a character when he's really not in control of himself in the first place. Now with that, that doesn't change the fact he could certainly affect and hurt people, and it's fully up to Jack as to whether or not he wants to deal with this purple man's freakish life choices and hobbies or not. And that's honestly super dependent on the ending you decide to base Jack on. Most people see the 'canon' endings to be: Gnarly ending (DSAF 1) -> An ending (DSAF 2) -> Good ending (DSAF 3) Where in all of these, Jack DOES choose to deal with Dave and basically is completely cool with murder. You don't have to follow those endings if you don't want to, but that's just typically what the modern "Davesport" is known for, but its what I'm using for my defense (considering this is a defense of both fandom and canon Davesport.) Though as opposed with Henry and Dave- Dave had no choice. Henry only ever manipulated him into thinking he did, and Henry made sure to feed this whole 'we will be a family' ideal into Dave (who never had one) so that Dave would be terrified to lose him. Jack never manipulates Dave (when teamed up with him), and Dave never manipulates Jack (tho arguable in DSAF 1 as well). They stay with each other despite all of their issues, and I believe its due to some co-dependency (imo I think Jack is also obsessed with Dave just in a different way before DSAF 3) Which isn't healthy, but not...inherently abusive.

I believe my main three points kind of cover the most of why I dont consider Davesport to be inherently a bad ship, but like I said- if you don't like it, none of that matters anyways. You dont NEED a reason to like something, and I wont try to convince you why you should ship something because I like it. Just don't hate it just because of what someone else says-- 90% of the dsaf fandom aren't comshippers, and Davesport isn't gross or "toxic /neg" just because it's not healthy. I think "Don't fetishize/romanticize literal abuse like its normal or sexy" and "We should explore more complicated and unhealthy dynamics" can and SHOULD coincide with each other!!!! I think Davesport is great because of how bittersweet it is that these two people finally found solace and acceptance in each other but couldn't get past the self-sabotaging nature of what Henry turned them both into, ultimately making it impossible to work out forever. I think embracing the Davesport makes the (kind of aged) trilogy a lot more enjoyable of an experience and I DO encourage any davesport skeptics to keep an open mind. [Pretend I wrapped this up super nicely I can never do that--- Also this is open for conversation and/or debate, and also yada yada my bad if i said something randomly terrible I have extremely poor social skills lol let me know so I dont do it again yada yada] *Also if anyone doesnt know a situationship is (at least in the context im using it in ive heard other definitions for it but its not a real word so i actually dont care) when 2(or more) people basically treat eachother like lovers but they never communicate this outright and dont technically officially date but like they treat and commit to eachother like a partner would) (So its kind of what all those people who playfully flirt and call each other their spouses as a commited running joke are in)

#this might have gotten a little messy by the second half but i've spent so long on this the words have lost their meaning #could you believe this is my second draft #ill make a tldr... #dsaf #dayshift at freddy's #dave miller #jack kennedy #dayshift at freddy's 2 #dsaf dave #dsaf dave miller #dsaf jack #old sport #dsaf old sport #dsaf william afton #dayshift at freddy's jack #dayshift at freddy's 3 #dayshift at freddys

[aealzx]

“Leonardo.”

A female voice that Leo had heard before in recordings addressed him with a single word greeting. She sounded pleased. Unusual considering the past circumstances. “Augustine,” Leo responded casually, willing the rest of the fog to leave his brain. He had a lot of questions, but none that he wanted to ask her. Other than something to further annoy her. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

Augustine’s eye twitched, and she crossed her arms despite her smile never falling. “You speak as though this is your home, and I’m the visitor,” she pointed out.

Leo could only grin slightly, having achieved his goal. “Well, it’s just been so easy for me to come and go as I please.”

Now the smile fell into a frown. But just for a moment before she forced it back. “And yet you’ve never once stopped for a proper chat.”

“You know how it is. I’d hate to pull you away from your work. I’m just it’s been taking up a lot of your time,” Leo jabbed again, his head clear now and mind already examining where he was. Simple restraints, they had taken his weapons, and bags, but nothing else. He could probably get out of this.

“...You’re a daring creature to continue to antagonize me despite your current position…” The smile had faded again, and Leo could tell Augustine was tired of playing the game of banter they had been engaged in. Eventually she shrugged it off, memory of recent revelations lifting her mood. “No matter. Despite your attempts to prevent my work from progressing I relish to inform you that it has all been in vain.” Her phone was slipped from her lab coat pocket, and after a few taps she held the screen up for Leo to see. “I’m not nearly proud enough to conceal the fact it was an accident. I was merely attempting to capture you four by targeting mutant turtle signatures with a mystic influence. And while I caught one, these other two gems decided to… do me the favor of proving my hypothesis true.”

The first video Augustine showed him caused Leo so suck in a hissed breath, a much too small mutant turtle trapped on the floor and crowded by people in surgical coats. Needles and blades in their hands, smaller than what he’d seen in person with Bishop, but no less infuriating. And then she swiped her screen across to switch to a different, even smaller mutant turtle that was blessedly still asleep in his fetters. “Augustine…,” Leo growled, a warning tone saturating his voice and his brows furrowed.

“Oh don’t get so worked up. I don’t plan on killing them. I need them alive to track how they adjust to this dimension. How else am I supposed to confirm it’s safe? You and your brothers refuse to answer my questions afterall,” Augustine chided, chuckling in bubbling excitement. She was pleased to see that the first subject seemed to be calming down. Either because he realized the futility of his struggle, or because her employees had sedated him she wasn’t sure. But she’d rather not have another incident like with Evangeline. “And you, of course, are my constant for comparison. I anticipate their biological structure is much more similar to you than to humans. Obviously. So as a native of this dimension I’ll be keeping you for my tests as well. But as for your brothers…”

She was gloating. And Leo knew she was, but he was still curious when she trailed off, her phone vibrating in a silent call distracting her and earning a slight frown before she answered it, turning away from her captive. “Yes?” She sounded irritated, listening to the quick response and narrowing her eyes as she was informed of their intruders. “Tch…. Gas them,” she spoke after a moment to consider her decision. “Yes, I’m sure. Once they fall unconscious we can capture them and revitalize them, to a point. But if they ended up dying then it is no loss. I still have the others. Make sure the frontlines have the portable nullifiers as well.”

Leo had to keep from smiling when it sounded like his brothers were already there to rescue them all. They had acted fast. That was good. And it sounded like they were further in the building than Augustine had expected. But her response was definitely concerning, and only motivated Leo’s resolve to escape on his own. When she ended the call and half turned back to him he decidedly kept his expression neutral.

“Well, it seems your brothers have skittered their way inside sooner than expected. So you’ll have to excuse me while I deal with them elsewhere. Be good and stay silent, or I may have to sedate you,” she ordered, turning to leave the room without waiting for a response.

A raised brow was all Augustine got from Leo as he waited for the door to hiss closed. Then after a count of ten, or actually eight, he started twisting his hands, testing the tightness of the restraints on him. They hadn’t even bothered to take his tactical sleeves off. If he could just slide his hand through and slip one of them off, then getting the other off would be easy. Just squish his thumb in close to his palm, shift his weight as much as he could to let gravity help, nevermind the sharp pain building in his joint.

A series of soft clicks abruptly released all tension in Leo’s limbs, dropping him to the floor where he caught himself on the balls of his feet and fingertips. That was odd. Leo didn’t think he’d triggered anything that would disengage the restraints. And it was increasingly suspicious when the same door Augustine had left hissed open once more. Suspicious, until the protocol announcement coming through the intercom in the hallway was overridden by a familiar code.

“Flight 182, this is ground control, you are clear for landing.”

April. Leo thought, breaking into a wide smile as the redirected airplane chatter fizzled out. So this definitely wasn’t something Augustine was doing to manipulate him, or the others. Running out of the room, Leo gave one of the cameras a wave and a smile, just in case Mom April could see him, and continued his escape down the hallway bathed in red and white lights.

___________________

Previous Next

___________________

I wasn't sure what to draw for this one, but inevitably frog Leo won X'D

#my art #tmnt 2003 #tmnt crossover #rise + 2003 crossover #cross dimension kidnapping #03 Leo #writing #fanfic #long post

[sunnynwanda]

Hellooooooo, fantastic human! I heard you were looking for requests so ask and I shall deliver:

Hero is sleeping on their couch when villain barges in to kidnap them but they notice how tired the hero seems and takes care of them.

Ofc its your choice if you want to do it or not, totally fine if you decide not to! Good luck with your writing :)

-🤎

Standards

The lock clicks, opening with too little effort. Villain’s brows furrow in expectation of a blast from the inside. Several moments pass in deafening silence, but there is no movement to indicate an attack. Villain takes a deep breath, pushes the door open and slips in without a sound. Behind them, the door shuts with another soft click, leaving them alone in what they believe to be their enemy’s lair. 

The apartment is smaller than they’d expected and a lot messier. It’s almost as if no one lives here, but Villain knew for a fact this was the only place their Hero had. They look around before taking a few careful steps forward, stopping every now and then to listen.

Suspicion rises with every quiet step. It can’t be this easy, can it? It’s only when they cross the corridor that they hear faint shallow breaths coming from what looks like the living room. It’s even darker here, so their eyes take a few seconds to adjust. 

Hero is fast asleep on the couch. Villain huffs, baffled at such a lack of precaution. What were they thinking with that single lock being their only protection? It almost annoys them because, honestly, Villain has standards. And this situation does not meet any of them.

They try to take a step forward, struggling because the floor is covered in trash. Mostly takeout boxes, the villain notes, rolling their eyes. No wonder Hero seems weaker recently. Probably hasn’t had a proper meal in ages.

They come to a halt by the couch, deliberating whether this could even be considered a kidnapping. 

When the hero finally wakes up, slowly opening their eyes, the sun is high in the sky. Something smells divine right by their side, so they turn their head only to jolt up at the sight of their clean apartment and a cup of coffee with pancakes resting on the bedside table. Wait a minute. They did not make it to their bed last night. They were certain they fell face first on the couch, unable to move even a muscle. 

“Oh, you’re awake,” Villain exclaims, alerting the hero into an upright position. “I was starting to worry you’d sleep till December.”

“Did I miss one of your attacks or something?” Hero inquired, their brain short-circuiting at the sight of Villain. In their apartment. With one of their cups in hand. “What are you doing?”

“See, I was going to kidnap you but decided against it,” Villain explains, taking a seat at the edge of Hero’s bed. “It would be no fun. You are supposed to be making this fun, and you’re failing.” Hero could swear they almost pouted. 

“Well, excuse me for not providing the entertainment you desire,” they offered. Villain hummed, taking a big gulp of their coffee. “I have a lot on my plate, and I’m not in the mood to play games.” The offended look on Villain’s face was an act, Hero thought. They must be planning something. 

“You should have killed me while I was asleep.” This time Villain looks genuine as he blinks, taken aback and if Hero didn’t know any better, they’d say hurt. 

“Killed you?” They ask in a tiny voice. Who said anything about killing? They were only having fun ‘fighting’ each other, were they not? Villain might have gone a bit too far trying to annoy Hero a couple of times, but nothing more than that. It was their job, after all. Annoying the life out of cute heroes. One particular hero, that is.

Something about the way their expression switches makes Hero want to apologize. “Is that not why you sneaked into my apartment in the first place?” 

Villain stands up, finishing their coffee and setting the cup on the bedside table. They cross the room, turning around and leaning against the doorframe. 

“Why would I kill you, darling? Now that certainly wouldn’t add to your entertainment value,” they say with a small smile before disappearing from view.

The front door opens, then clicks shut. Hero shakes their head, a light chuckle escapes their lips as they reach for the steaming cup to their side.

Hiiii! Thank you so much for the request! You're amazing! It just immediately set me into a mood. I simply needed to write this. Anyhow, I hope you like it, I sure had a blast writing it!

Masterlist

#writing #villain x hero #hero and villain #writeblr #hero x villain #creative writing #villain #hero #snippet #request #tired hero #heroes and villains #hero/villain #villain/hero #writers on tumblr #sunnynwanda #requests open

[silverteacups]

The Metamorphosis and Nightcord at 25

FAIRLY LONG POST!

Part 2

LYRICS "How do I look like now? Am I unsightly? Of course I am."

This doesn't just represent Mizuki, but Mafuyu. This is also why they were the two to sing Villain - and no, I'm not talking about the trans Mafuyu headcanons. I'd love for that to happen, but I don't think that's what it's about. For Mizuki, it's about how people feel about their secret. They disgust people by being themself, and if Mafuyu were her "true self", she'd probably do the same. A lot of people - namely her mum - accept as the person she's forced to be, not the person she is. In the 3DMV, Mizuki holds up their hand, looks at it, then faces the camera and smiles. I am still human. I am still myself. I can see it clearly. What do you see that I don't? ""I beg you, please don't throw the apples at me." They Lock up, Lock up to themselves-""

In The Metamorphosis, Gregor Samsa's father throws apples at him. One badly injures him, and this line is referring to exactly that. Don't hurt me. Don't turn your backs on me. Don't treat me like filth.

"Of course, I couldn't even have a proper fight with you."

This, obviously, refers to Mafuyu and her mum. When it comes to Gregor Samsa, it might refer to how he can't even communicate with his family. He has no way to defend himself, to explain what he's doing, to explain how much he's struggling. He is suffering, his family is pretty much shaming him for it, and he can't even tell them.

"It's not a joke! Don't eat my dreams away!"

Ena and Mafuyu both got the full line, just to clarify (+ KAITO). I'm not gonna link it to Gregor this time, just point out how this links to Mafuyu's mum not letting her have the career she wants, and Ena's dad discouraging her in terms of her art.

"It's as if you're biting into the apple, Sa-sa-Samsa."

Again, Mafuyu and Mizuki both sang the full line (+ KAITO). Gregor never took out that apple, I don't think - he left it to rot. To me, this symbolises self-sabotage, feeding off something that has hurt you beyond repair. Mafuyu and her mum, for instance - despite everything leading up to the events in Immiscible Discord (and then Saying Goodbye to My Masked Self), she can't hate her. In fact, multiple times before this event, Mafuyu has tried to make it clear that she still very much loves her.

"Even if I'll become a shadow of my former self, I'm right here."

Kanade got this line, but I still think it suits Mafuyu more. Even if she's not the person she acted like she was, even if she'll never be seen the same way, she's still Mafuyu. She can change her name, she can change her appearance, whatever she wants, but that shouldn't change how people feel about her. That shouldn't make her mum turn on her. That shouldn't change anything. In the 3DMV, for this and the next line, the focus is on Kanade and Mafuyu only. These lines are about them. What I've said about Mafuyu, but also Kanade's determination to save her.

"Even if I'm poisoned by the fringed iris."

I spoke about this here. TL;DR: The fringed iris (otherwise know as the butterfly flower) is poisonous and was used around castles to slow enemies. Here, it could refer to Mafuyu's mum again. Putting up walls to protect herself will only do so much, and eventually they'll come crashing down, and it'll only hurt her more. In the 3DMV, she also does a motion like eating an apple, which links back to the biting into the apple point I made. "The light is there, at 25:00 (1 a.m.). Now drag along your tail, Sa-sa-sa-sa-Samsa."

Again, the Samsa is sang by everyone at the same time. Gregor Samsa, as time goes on, finds it far harder to even move. Struggle through your pain, basically, because you'll find that light at the end, at 25:00 - when their group meets up. Again, probably a reference to Kanade trying to save her. Also, During her line, Ena's the only one shown reaching for the light. This could be because she's the only one who's been really and truly saved. Does her art frustrate her? Does she still encounter hardships? Of course she does. But she can face them now, properly. She doesn't have that desire to disappear anymore. Look at I nandesu - she sees beauty in the world, in herself, in love, in her art, in everything.

CARDS

I've already pointed out the fringed iris, but also that it could be a japanese iris, which represents hope. Then you have Mafuyu, the butterfly. Unlike Samsa, she hasn't changed into a "hideous" creature. She's a beautiful one, in fact. There are other butterflies put on display. I don't think this represents Mafuyu's true self - it shows her "masked self". The one that everyone admires. In this event, Kanade is trying to save Mafuyu from her mum, but from the perspective of her mum, she's not doing that. She's only holding her back. Trapping her. The way I see it, this set is seeing them the way Mafuyu's mum would. Kanade, the charwoman, with her white hair and the almost completely vertical feathers in her hat. At first, the charwoman is the only one not disgusted by Gregor, the only one who has seen the worst and isn't fazed by him, but she turns his room into a dump. A cave. That's what Mafuyu's mum is seeing - someone with good intentions, maybe, but she is ruining Mafuyu's life by making music with her and distracting her from her studies, and Mafuyu sees it only as kindness. Also, unlike the charwoman, she's kept the furniture there. She's keeping what makes Mafuyu comfortable, even if (at least in her mum's eyes) it restricts her.

When Mafuyu's mum interacted with Ena, she actually got a good impression of her. Ena had to force herself to mention her dad. She told her mum she'd be using Mafuyu as a model. Ena doesn't represent someone from the Metamorphosis, I don't think. Rather, she draws what Mafuyu's mum can't see - her daughter's pain. The fringed iris that keeps her mother from her true self. The apples she's thrown at her so many times. The mirror that Mafuyu has looked into so many times, and seen the same thing each time. She draws these in books, because Mafuyu's studying, the pressure from her mum, all of it, that's where a lot of that pain comes from.

Don't think they've ever interacted with Mafuyu's mum, but if she knew their secret, this is what she'd see. Someone who seems like a friend, trying to poison her. The opposite of Kanade, basically. This is also a good way to show how people in general see Mizuki, or, certainly, trans people. Mizuki and Mafuyu are both Samsa, and Ena and Kanade are both the charwoman (if you ignore the part where she dehumanises Gregor and such). Also, note the spider necklace. Ena is the only other one with this, with some sort of insect. Gregor finds, at some point, that he can just climb up walls and onto ceilings. In fact, he quite enjoys it. Even then, though space would help, part of him didn't want to have the furniture taken because he's still attached to it. He's still human. That's the thing here. Mizuki has been dehumanised. Mizuki has disgusted people for being themself. They're no less human, yet people continue to act like that's the case.

Samsa, Mafuyu and Mafuyu's Mum

Mafuyu's mum is everyone, really, who isn't Samsa. Maybe not all to start with, but definitely towards the end of the story. I'll go through the list:

Grete, his sister - she started to see taking care of him as a chore, and was the one to propose letting him die.

His dad - after a series of events, he mistakes Gregor's actions for being harmful, throws the apples at him like I mentioned previously. He never cared about his son - he cared about the man who made them money, who provided for them, who was a human. Not the man who didn't appear human, nor the man who loved him even if he couldn't say so, even if he could do nothing to show it.

His mum - so desperate to see him, but disgusted when she did. She loved him still, but she didn't grieve his loss. Rather, she was relieved.

The charwoman later on - She's blunt. She doesn't care about how Gregor feels, because he's been reduced to just a thing. He's dead? Happens to every other insect. No big deal.

And then Mafuyu, of course is Samsa.

Even if other people can accept who she is, what about her parents? Her mum, especially. Will she ever see her the same? Will she ever love her again? Will she ever get that approval again? What happens if she stops meeting the high expectations she set? What happens when she tries to run, when she tries to talk, when she tries to rebel? Will she die thinking of her mum, still, rather than those who truly care for her, and herself? Will her mum continue to hurt her? Is it even intentional? If she could just speak properly, find the right words, could that solve everything, or will it never be enough? If she gives herself away, does that erase any chance she ever had of coming back from it, if that chance was even there to begin with?

#project sekai #pjsekai #pjsk #proseka #prsk #kanade yoisaki #mafuyu asahina #mizuki akiyama #ena shinonome #i spent 4 hours on this and for what

[4am-enha]

enha as: your group in a zombie apocalypse

description/tags: short bullet points on each member, all enha members, some ideas of what i think they’d be like if you were all a group of survivors fighting on.

warnings: swearing, no punctuation/proper grammar or capitalization.

note: this is because i watch too much twd 💀 anyway, lmk what you think. do u agree or no? what would you be like/do? feel free to add on ideas you guys have! id love to hear them. i’m obsessed w apocalypse stuff rn idk why.

niki 🧟‍♂️

i feel like he would try and hide the fact he’s constantly shittin bricks

would always be the first to volunteer to do something risky though

would most likely make fun of and tease you from time to time for being paranoid

wouldn’t really be a leader but definitely always the one chosen to help with attacking and staying on watch

sunoo🧟‍♂️

he’s very expressive so you always know when he doesn’t agree with someone

the one that would actually stand up and say something about an issue , a lot of debating

the hope of the group. the world is fucked but at least sunoo keeps what’s left of his humanity alive.

might hesitate to kill.

jungwon🧟‍♂️

ofc because he’s such a good leader, he would naturally take on some sort of leadership role.

always the one giving out ideas, coming up with solutions, makes very logical decisions.

peacekeeper of the group- usually ends any fights that come up between you all.

wouldn’t leave a soul behind. very defensive of his group. would struggle to kill someone he knew.

sunghoon🧟‍♂️

probably always trying to crack jokes at the wrong times. the comedic relief of the group.

protective, but fearful. takes him a while to warm up to killing.

fast and flexible, slips away from close calls too often. causes trouble by being too honest.

follows others lead rather than his own, sticking by someone at all times.

jake🧟‍♂️

most likely hard to keep him quiet, screams without meaning to.

similar to niki, he might pretend he isn’t scared but he very much is. the only difference is that jake isn’t good at hiding it.

the one who dosent let go of his faith and hope. always thinking of a brighter side, but oftentimes conflicted.

very athletic and smart. solves hard situations along side jungwon, backing him up. best at scavenging.

jay🧟‍♂️

very very quiet. it’s easy for him to take responsibility of mistakes and deaths, even if it wasn’t his fault. blames himself too much.

good at spying and keeping watch, keeps everyone fed the best he can.

short temper of the group, easily gets frustrated in tough situations but it’s out of concern and love.

so protective he would sacrifice himself for the safety of you and the group- which might unfortunately lead to his quick death.

heeseung🧟‍♂️

people look to him a lot for answers and guidance, but he hates making any decisions or any leadership role.

another quiet one, but most likely acts on his feelings more often than logic.

asks a lot of questions, and he’s probably the flirt of the group alongside jake.

never thought he would be doing this shit outside of video games, but thanks to his gaming addiction, he knows a lot of handy tricks.

#what would you do #enhypen zombie apocalypse #personal thoughts #enhypen #engene #enhypen x reader #enhypen imagines #enhypen scenarios #sunoo #heeseung #jay #jake #niki #jungwon #sunghoon #enhypen fic #zombie #enhypen bullet points #kpop #enhypen jake #enhypen niki #enhypen sunghoon #enhypen heeseung #enhypen sunoo #enhypen jungwon #enhypen jay #enha #enha as #zombie apocolypse au #survival

[trashyreptilian]

Man, look at these dudes- The volume. 1 dudes!!-

Yes, I'm still alive. I promise I'm not dead trust me guys please- ahfshagfgsa,, Been wanting to draw some proper ref. sheets of the boys for a while. These are the designs for any AU related content soooo get used to it hehe~

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Biographies (long read):

((If it wasn't obvious, everything you're reading below is all made up stuff for my AU. Fanon junk basically.))

-General Info-

Full Name: Mark Heathcliff

Age: 18

Height: 6'0'' ft

Gender: Male

Sex: Male

Species: Human

Homeplace: Mandela County, Wisconsin (US)

Romantic/Sexual Orientation: Greyromantic asexual

-Other Info-

Personality?: Seemingly a nonchalant type of guy, just living his life and avoiding to attract attention. Often feeling like he doesn't fit in with society or any kind of community. He's not much for showing strong emotions, not near random people at least. Typical for him to carry around an "I don't care" attitude and crack jokes during bad times, but it all serves as a means of protecting himself. Being more than aware that showing his vulnerable side to the wrong people, can possibly be used back against him. The calm exterior hides an emotionally struggling artist, who's suffered through past childhood abuse from his mother. Sometimes that pain rises to the surface and accidentally shows up through unexpected mood swings or defensive outbursts. However, Mark knows well how badly he manages his own negative emotions. This kind of heated temper only shows up when heavily provoked or felt like he's backed into a corner. He might seem like a loner, yet in actuality, he's got a few close select people they care about a lot. And, depends on, more than he'd like to admit. But solely because of that, he shows a strong willingness to go far to protect them. Even if it somehow risks his own well-being. Seen in these instances, his more assertive and bold-self comes out.

Thinks Before Acting?: It's mixed with him, either does or doesn't depending on the situation. Typically, he'll try thinking over his actions and words. Especially when he can sense a bad outcome. Though, he's far from being the most calculated guy.

Positive Traits?: Mellow, modest, imaginative, soft-hearted, protective and audacious.

Negative Traits?: Reserved, insecure, confrontational, defensive, self-destructive and resentful.

Way Of Speaking?: Can talk in two languages, the main one is American English. Has knowledge in speaking Spanish, but it's kinda subpar. Remembers mostly from the lessons he had in school. On the odd occasion only uses it around Cesar, who encourages him to improve. His voice is generally calm and soft, with no particular accent. At times, loves using a mocking or sarcastic tone. (Headcanon voice: https://youtu.be/2rHRztFGOm8?t=1)

Occupation?: Works as a stock clerk at a furniture store. Assists with unpacking delivered items, organizing the stockroom, inspecting inventory and so forth. Also, he takes overnight shifts when possible for extra cash. Of course, the entire job itself is for financial stability. Otherwise, he cares little about it. Had hoped to get into some kind of art career instead, possibly becoming a cartoonist. Sadly, he's never gotten such an opportunity as he grew up. Didn't help that he lacked complete confidence, and still does to this day. So it all remains but a little fantasy he thinks about.

Powers/Skills?: Mark being human, don't expect supernatural abilities like how alternates have. However, in his very rare case, having an alternate for a parent did unexpectedly help improve him physically, and made able to defend himself. At a younger age of sixteen, he was gifted his first weapon which was a pistol Glock 19. With help from his father, he trained in remote areas. Shooting useless items that were used as targets. Now, he's well-practiced enough in using it properly, discreetly carrying it when out at nighttime. Of course, not limited to just a pistol. He's also got a metal bat safely tucked away in his bedroom. But for as long as he's known, anything can be a weapon. In a fight, he'll manage some inventive ways to beat someone up. Not exactly a person with a strong-build, yet he makes up for endurance. Fairly fast when running, most likely to outrun anyone. The type of guy to pick his fights. Besides all that, survival skills. Learned a few tricks throughout all the times he's gone out camping. Particularly good at starting a fire. Maybe a little too good.

Hobbies?: Main hobby is drawing, pretty much remained so since he was a kid. His art style is very stylized, expressive and exaggerated. Taken inspiration from his favorite animated shows and movies. He'll usually use a regular sketchbook with a pencil and pen to draw. But he dabbles in other unique methods like graffiti, and pastel art. A more recent past time is using a camcorder. What he chooses to record is random. Can either be a quick recording of his cat, or footage of activities and ramblings. For whatever reason he just finds it relaxing. Not to mention, it's his way of better preserving memories besides taking photos. Something else he does to unwind is watch movies and TV series, or play video games. His favorite overall genre is horror and thriller. On the lighter side, he loves all stuff that's animated, comedy and adventure fiction. Also, collects merchandise related to his favored media. Considers it a luxury, so he's not gung-ho about it. While these are all things he typically does alone. Camping and exploring abandoned places, are done together with his dad. Since they can't hang out together in broad daylight, they always go out during the night. Their activities start regularly, but sometimes end in some sort of chaos when they get overboard with property ending up mysteriously ruined. Just a not so subtle clue into what exactly happens on their trips.

Habits?: Often smokes and drinks. The first one is easier for him to keep controlled, the other is an addiction. Possibly inherited from his mother. He's aware of that, yet doesn't seem to understand how poorly it could affect him in the future. Both are used when stressed or annoyed, but gravitates towards the alcohol mostly. An insomniac, his sleep schedule has been, and still is, irregular. Tends to be active out of nowhere during later hours, and taking overnight shifts doesn't help him. All coupled together, it's easy to imagine his self-care is kinda non-existent. Not to say he's lacking in it, it's out of sheer tiredness and apathy. Irritability is a rather serious tendency due to trauma, and a main fueling reason for the reliance on bad substances. It worsens when experiencing a chain of obstacles, no matter if minor or severe. There's no clear pattern as he can seem fine in the moment, yet takes but one nudge to tip him off the edge. Resulting in sudden outbursts, causing to shut himself off from others.

Relationships?: Mark's dad has remained an integral part of his life. Who's in fact a type three alternate named Him. It's been the only one he's ever looked up to and known as family. Same impersonator was supposed to replace his biological father. It never happened as the target left Mark at a very early age before anything transpired. Sadly, living with an abusive mother got him in a worse vulnerable state. So getting attached to something inhuman, but loving, shouldn't be so surprising. Their growing bond continued while no one else had a clue. He has never cared that it's an alternate. Despite how much he's unintentionally seen and heard it lash out onto other alternates. Its raw wrathful nature is no secret. He looks past it as a means of protection. Many times he has wished he could be as reliable, strength-wise. Since Him's the single father, best friend and role-model he's ever had, he sees it in high regards. Mark would go to Hell and back for it, if need be. The relationship is far from perfect, both struggle to communicate sometimes. Opening up emotionally is hard too. For Him it's worse but as they say, like father like son. They stay silent of all this, safety's sake and to avoid unwanted attention. Living together in a little run-down apartment. Interacting with an alternate for nearly his whole childhood didn't make Mark the most sociable person. Frequently having trouble socializing, he gave up trying to befriend people his age. At some point he simply preferred being on his own. However, one real person managed to start a friendship with him. Cesar Torres. He and Mark were both young teens around the same age when they met. Cesar was a couple of months older. His outgoing personality had Mark spooked. He had little faith they'd be friends for how opposite they appeared. Took a while when he gave him a chance, once he felt like Cesar's character was genuine. They've grown close as friends over the years, Mark still remains secretive on a lot of stuff happening in his life. Usually for understandable reasons, but Cesar would appreciate to be trusted better. Nonetheless, they get along great. Both admire certain qualities the other has which they don't themselves. They enjoy pissing each other off until someone breaks. Random screaming matches over absolutely nothing have happened before. More than once, and only keep becoming more hectic. Moving back into otherworldly beings. Due to Mark's bond with an alternate, a certain figure grew interested in figuring out more about the two. After one major event, a series of unusual circumstances followed suit. Which then led to meeting a theraangel, Xanthan. When their first proper interaction went on, there was nerve-wracking tension. He wasn't sure what to make of them or what his intentions were. A lot of convincing was needed to earn Mark's trust. Managed having a mutual respect as they bonded over certain grievances each had. Later on a different date a bit, Xanthan becomes his guardian angel. Part of a deal made with Him. Solely of this guardianship, they find more things in common and have a deeper understanding of one another. In particular, their connection with art helps them be more open. Slowly Mark views them like a mentor. Maybe even as another father figure. Seeing how he appreciated his longer life experience, he'd seek out advice from him alone on the rare instance. Very few people manage to break down all the walls Xanthan puts up, and Mark was one of them. He proved to be pretty, consistently, insistent in making that guy part of his little family. Speaking of enemies, there's none to directly define as such for Mark. Besides perhaps, some people during his earlier years growing up, and few real family members he's distanced away from. None of them honestly fit such a defining label as "enemy". Yet, that doesn't mean he won't make adversaries in the future.

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((Cesar's bio is yet to be done. Please hold.))

#best friend au #alternate universe #au interpretations #mandela catalogue #the mandela catalogue #mark heathcliff #cesar torres #my art

[acourtofthought]

What we know of Elain:

The Elain she's always been and is trying to be, as she was raised by certain societal standards that she clings to because she was attached to her humanity.

What we know of unfulfilled bonds:

Irrational urges, feral responses, panting, etc. Does any of that sound prim and proper?

We've got no idea exactly what Elain is feeling but she is the only female who felt the bond actually snap into place at the same moment the male did. Even if she's only experiencing half of what Rhys and Lucien did, my guess is it's a loss of control beyond what she's comfortable with.

Sure Elain didn't choose to go into poverty as she didn't choose to be Made or lose Graysen but outside of those major events, Elain's life has been nothing but on her terms. She wasn't forced to take dancing lessons as Nesta was, no one expected her to do anything during their time in the cottage, she was allowed to recover from the Cauldron in whatever time frame she needed, no one asked her to tell her story to the High Lords during the meeting, no one demanded she speak to Graysen about finding a safe haven for the humans (that was her idea), she's not been forced to make a decision on the bond, no one pushed her to help with the Trove in the way they did Nesta (she offered assistance because she wanted to, not because anyone forced her hand), she wasn't even expected to go to the Hewn City but did so because she wanted to help.

The reasons for that are sad. No one believes Elain capable of much so they don't bother looking to her to do anything. But what that has given Elain is the freedom to decide when she's ready to take the next steps and do more, but only on her terms.

Basically, Elain has been given a lot more control over her decisions than many of the other characters. She's allowed to behave how she wants because no one is putting expectations on her.

But Lucien is the one thing that she can't control. If Rhys struggled when the bond snapped, if Lucien struggled when the bond snapped, how do people think Elain feels when she's around Lucien? Those are two male characters who have superior control (after centuries) yet it was / is difficult for them to remain cool, calm and collected at times.

So is it all that shocking that Elain does her best to ignore Lucien? That she shies away from him? Here she is exercising control in every area of her life, she decides when she's ready to do more and she's feeling good because she's retained her humanity in her behaviors (prim, proper, polite and gentle), and the second he comes around, it all goes to shit. It takes everything she's got to maintain the facade that she's a lady and in control of herself.

Az is easy for her because she's not drawn to him in an uncontrollable way. It's simple, it's comfortable, it's safe (it's boring). She gets to act human-like around him because he doesn't bring about a primal side to her.

I hope in an Elucien book, we finally see Elain let go of those constraints she's placed on herself and watch her go absolutely feral for Lucien 🔥🔥🔥

#elucien #pro elucien #elain archeron #anti e/riel #lucien vanserra #elain x lucien #lucien and elain #elain and lucien #pro elain archeron #pro lucien vanserra #elucien supremacy #mating bond #acotar mates

[shiningshenanigans]

Thoughts on Loki S2E3!

Henceforth and forevermore, Loki and Mobius shall be known as “The Wizard Gentleman and His Butler”

This whole episode had such an interesting vibe. I loved the way they utilized the film/storytelling styles of the time period, with all the melodramatic acting and ragtime score. But, it was also just so different, it took me out of the story at times. I really like it when the show feels grand and ethereal and sci-fi-ish. Still feel like we’re missing some of that this season, but the tonal shifts were a cool storytelling tool nonetheless.

We don’t talk about Mobius and Ravonna enough. Their relationship fascinates me. I love how patient he is with her, how much he genuinely wants her back on his side. The parallels between them and Loki/Sylvie seem very intentional this season. (Ps. I may or may not have a theory that they were married on the timeline, and one or both of their nexus events involved Ravonna leaving him for a Kang Variant. Has anyone theorized about this before and I’m just completely late to the game, or…? Guess we’ll find out soon enough?)

I don’t know how much more of Loki and Sylvie fighting I can take. 😭They’re struggling! They need each other! They both think the other doesn’t care about them anymore and they can’t get a moment to talk about it because the universe is melting! Please, Marvel, just LET THEM REST!!! 😭😭😭

All that said, I am SO👏PROUD👏of my girl Sylvie for starting to recognize that her bloodlust is killing her from the inside out. This is exactly the kind of growth I want for her. Her heartbroken expression when she realizes that killing Timely would make her just like He Who Remains, choosing who lives and who dies for the sake of the greater good… *chefs kiss* Sophia Di Martino knocked that WHOLE PERFORMANCE out of the park. 

Also, as much as I want her and Loki to just hug and make up, I do kind of love the fact that he’s giving her the space she needs to come to these conclusions on her own. He’s been where she is (felt what she feels, etc.). He knows that no amount of persuasion on his part is going to get through to her right now, so he’s letting her figure it out while he works behind the scenes to protect her new life. He’ll be there when she’s ready to take those next steps towards reconciliation (and he better have 10,000 snuggly tablecloths ready because sweet girl needs to be cuddled. A LOT).       

Watching Miss Minutes shift from one dated style of animation to another filled my little animator heart with so much glee. And yes, that whole scene of her coming on to Timely was delightfully terrifying. 

Poor Victor Timely did not ask for any of this when he woke up this morning. Give that man a break.

Ravonna is… awful. I’ve always disliked her. But honestly, hearing her monologue about how often she put the TVA before her own happiness, how it stole her humanity from her… I’m kind of invested in her growth now. Like, I’m starting to want redemption for her, too. Huh.    

Literally everyone in this show is on the same side. They’re all just disagreeing about what the proper course of action is. My guy Mobius’s words are really impacting me right now: “We’ve all lost our way… but someone’s got to keep track of the big picture here.” If that doesn’t ring true of our world, then I don’t know what does.

#loki #loki spoilers #loki season 2 #sylki #ravonna renslayer #mobius #loki series #sylvie laufeydottir

[ramshackledtrickster]

any cute headcanons about ezio and leonardo ? interactions or unknown things maybe 🥺🥺🥺

Sorry this has been in my inbox for a while !! I kinda struggled with trying to come up with things that haven’t already been said but I’ll try uhhh

Leonardo just. Really loves studying Ezio

He doesn’t flirt much or he doesn’t flirt intentionally (if he tries to force it he thinks too hard and it becomes super cringe fail). He gets frozen in place easily and it’s hard for Leonardo to express romantic feelings typically— he’s much more comfortable giving things or helping as his way of showing love (especially early on in their relationship)

More under the cut!

But close enough, he loves just,, studying and looking over him, committing everything about him to memory. He would praise him out of the blue or share what’s on his mind about him. For Leonardo this doesn’t really count as flirtation, but he loves to tell Ezio this bc he genuinely thinks he’s so wonderful.

They’d be laying next to each other and Leonardo would start holding his wrist, tracing over his knuckles and palms and wrist and silently admire the scars and callouses, taking his time with looking at the light, swirling patterns on the pads of his fingers. When Ezio asks what he’s doing, Leonardo would shrug and just say he’s just looking. In the same breath he’s marveling at how strong he is and how many scrapes he had made it out of. Maybe chastising him playfully about how he needs to get Ezio more lotion to keep his hands healthy and from cracking. But mostly musing to himself oh wow the human body can be so durable yet vulnerable at the same time

He’s tended to lots of his injuries before, so he doesn’t really have the leisure to explore him in that way when his life is at stake. But when they have time to themselves, he really just,, loves studying him. Sometimes it could edge into weirdly morbid territory though, especially when he gets inspired to share his own ideas on the workings of the human body via what he observed from Ezio. Ezio finds it amusing and humorous though (though some ideas keep him up at night)

Leonardo loves listening to his pulse and his heart beat, hearing blood course through him— he loves watching the rise and fall of his chest with each breath, he loves checking on his scars to make sure they’re healing proper and yet noticing the texture of the skin becoming different and raised , depending on how he was injured.

He would often share these thoughts with Ezio and honestly it helps him rest and sleep, even if he doesn’t understand half of what he’s getting at bc then Leonardo would go into tangents about comparing aspects of the human body and human nature to the natural world,, or the cow ovary he dissected the other day idk this guys train of thought is nuts.

This worship and study is how Leonardo shows a lot of his affection (physical especially), since it combines what he loves with being listened to, and it doesn’t force him to act outside of his own conventional manner and he doesn’t need to follow an internal script to impress Ezio.

Ezio meanwhile can get a little confused at times but he honestly doesn’t mind being admired, especially when hes being held or touched in the meantime. It makes him feel valuable and like a rarity, and he likes the feeling of being a muse for someone. Again, he has no clue what he’s on about some of the time but he can appreciate a man who has such an insatiable curiosity.

Of course, there’s more ways these two interact outside of this. Their relationship isn’t built on this, and Leonardo sees and loves so much in Ezio as a companion and a great friend, and he feels somewhat indebted to him for saving his life so many times— I’m just hoping I explained this one little facet of how Leonardo expresses some of his affection well <:)

#assassins creed #ezio auditore #ac leonardo #ezioleo

[nikki-is-a-nerd]

Since The Percy Jackson s1 is done, i can now write my overall experience with it. Mind you i only read the first book of PJO because I couldn’t afford the books and because goddamn borrowing it from the university library was like a pack of coyotes seeing a slab of meat after 15 years of starvation.

(Side note: i once got scratched in the face by a girl who wanted to read Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief, when i was gonna borrow the book for a second time. I learned it was better to just buy the books one by one per year.)

So i fully enjoyed the series. Regardless of how a lot of people have been calling it shit or a disgrace to the books. Like I appreciate how Uncle Rick managed to retell his own story, see it come to life, in a way that he wants. I appreciate Sally Jackson having a bigger impact to how Percy is as a person and as a character.

Yes, i too was shocked with the grover snitch scene in ep 1, then I thought about it, it made sense. Grover is my favorite character and i would like to say that the movie version of Grover made me feel uneasy but this version of grover, he made me long for that kind of friendship. I also love how Grover unlike in the movies, isn’t comic relief. You see his emotional struggles. You see him grow from “we have to keep the peace, let’s all be kind” to then showing us that he’s more than that. He is smart, cunning, manipulative if need be. He is also brave and he carries so much emotional baggage. The fact that he expresses rage about certain things, makes him feel more human to me. By giving him so much depth, by casting Aryan Simhadri, his depiction of grover would make book grover very proud.

Annabeth is also really really amazing in my eyes. Seeing a child give off an air of “i know things that you don’t” like an adult is so cool. Seeing her grow from “the gods are just and they have their reasons” to “The gods have flaws and they make mistakes, but i will be better than that” is very tear jerking. It helped me see Annabeth in those moments as a child who didn’t get to experience a proper childhood finally see what its like to be loved without having to give anything in return. Leah Sava Jeffries, shows emotions so well. Her posture changes depending on how she feels. She slouches a bit when she’s dejected or upset and is more poised when she’s feeling the most confident. Her eyes carry so much emotion in scenes where she doesn’t speak. She’s a lovely actress.

Percy, gods where do i even begin. Walker first off, played this character so well! You see how he’s feeling through his eyes, his face is so expressive and i love it. Percy also gets my mom approval card (which means my mom also loves his character). The way they show him to be loyal, caring, empathetic but also he’s just a child so you understand why he acts the way he acts. People complained about how percy wasn’t fighting like a pro, but i think that’s what makes it great. Percy is new, he’s learning as he goes, when we finally see Walker Portray the Percy that we all know, we can look back at s1 and we’ll see that truly, Percy has grown in skill. Also im always gonna sob over the fact that his scenes where he chooses to sacrifice himself for his friends, he always implies how he isn’t enough, we see how he sees himself and that hurts. Percy’s sass and humor though are also such highlights. I would love to see more of walker’s percy too.

Now honorable mention to my favorite backstabbing, pretty boy, luke. I love how he is such a good actor. Watching him play luke kinda immersed me in the moment, i forgot that this kind ,young man is the antagonist. Because when he played luke when we first saw him, i too wouldn’t be able to think that this guy, he can be cruel. But he delivers so much rage, so much resentment in his scene with percy in the finale. The way charlie acted in that scene, gods, i was shocked. I truly believe watching him and his character’s descent to something more is gonna be a rollercoaster ride of emotions.

The show in itself is really really good. Yes there are odd sudden black screens, but I don’t mind them. I don’t mind the changes, i just think that the episodes could be a bit longer. The story is captivating even with those changes, i love how Uncle Rick got the chance to give us an adaptation that isn’t an exact copy of the book, because i believe that a good adaptation doesn’t need to be a scene per scene copy, because if that’s what y’all wanted, listen to an audio book where people act out the scenes. Think of it this way, the book and the show are just two separate universes. Like how we have the MCU and the Marvel Comics. Same characters but different continuums.

People tend to find the negatives before they see the positives, its how we’re mostly wired. If we look past them, you’ll see that there are things that are better.

I would definitely be excited for a s2

#nikki rants pjo #percy jackson #percy jackon and the olympians #pjo tv show #pjo spoilers #essay

[olderthannetfic]

Hi there! I hope you're having a nice day.

Little bit of a rant and a bid for advice, if you or your readers have any. I hope that's alright.

I'm currently writing a fic or maybe multiple fics (plot bunnies be running rampant in me brains) about a rarepair of two guys. I'm a bi woman and have basically zero social skills, so in order to properly understand other people's body language, I like to look up guides or articles about body language between two people, although I know those things are full of bullshit and don't mean anything, and it's hard to find articles for example about whether another woman's body language indicates interest in you if you're a woman yourself, but eh, they're still better than my brain which is usually like "eh, could mean this or that or this or that or this or that or- basically could be anything, I wouldn't know that lol, now I'm tired and will shut off, bye" aka useless as well.

The results I've found have been absolutely useless. I like writing characters in a slightly plausible-sounding way, so I like incorporating body language as in acting choices or subconscious body language (or whatever a proper term might be) in my writing to make it sound more in-character. So for stuff like this, I usually just think "ok what is that person's expression and if I do it, what would that indicate me to be feeling currently", and I don't know if other people do that or if that's just me being bad with social stuff and intuition about it again, and if I should really try to get re-evaluated for autism which I have been advised to think about doing multiple times in multiple direct and indirect implicative ways such as people being like "hey btw are you autistic? no? you sure?" or "I know you got a negative diagnosis as a kid, but maybe that was wrong and you might wanna do it again because of all your social struggles and sensory stuff etc.", heh. (Have been diagnosed with ADHD though, so that might also just be it.)

Sorry for the rambling. English isn't my first language, so if anything sounds strange, that's to blame.

My question or rather bid for advice is: I am wondering if you or your readers might have any advice on where to find resources for reading body language and romantic or sexual implications in body language between two parties, in this case between two guys.

(Hopefully this is not too nonsensical or insensitive or something like that because that's not my intention. I just really don't know how to human or if there actually is some difference on how different people of different genders flirt consciously or subconsciously or if that's some weird unnoticed transphobic bio-essentialism shit that I hadn't yet noticed and sorted out of my head because I don't want to be transphobic since that sucks.)

--

Weeell...

If people have links to guides, that's great, but I do think that in the context of fanfic, people often write flirting that they find sexy or they write whatever the canon style of interaction is and recontextualize it as how these particular guys flirt.

They're not usually thinking "What does flirting look like in general?" and then having the characters behave in a new way.

A lot of our interpretation of body language in written fiction has to do with information we get from the POV character about how they're feeling internally. For the non-POV character, we may have the POV character's thoughts on what the body language means, but we're generally interpreting it based on media cliches and based on knowing this is a ship fic.

So the other dude acts like he doesn't like our POV dude and the POV dude is like "Alas, my pining is unrequited!" and the audience goes "Ooooh, it's one of those fics!"

If the goal is writing certain types of fic, you may not need a guide to How People Really Act as much as one to How Fans Interpret Such and Such a Behavior from Canon as Subtext.

[godlyaffection]

Puzzle Solving

Request

(Obey Me!) Brothers x Gn Reader

The brothers thoughts on a reader who acts like Near from Death Note. Somehow you are both childish and extremely intelligent at the same time, and the brothers have mixed feelings on it.

No Warnings

Lucifer;

– He wasn't sure what to think of you at first. You were pretty quiet, but with how childish you appeared, he thought it would make you a target which only meant more trouble for him. You liked silly little things and he couldn’t understand the appeal in that either. 

– The more time he spent around you he saw how wrong he initially was about you. You did like childish things, but that apparently did not make you childish in any way. After spending some time with you he realized just how intelligent you are, you picked up on things even he had trouble picking up on sometimes. It shocked him how smart one human could be.

– Sometimes he liked to test you. Not in a serious way, he just finds it interesting how easily you can solve the puzzles he gives you. 

– He’s tried to get you to explain how you know all these things, but he can never seem to get a straight answer for you. You like to give vague answers to most of his questions, unless it's a proper puzzle to solve. Lucifer has given up on making you speak when you don't want to at this point, he's happy to just sit in silence with you until there is something he really needs to ask you. 

Mammon; 

– He didn't have much of an opinion on you at first. You were just some human he had to deal with, sure you were a little strange but he thought that was just a human thing. He was intrigued with any of the things you liked and he certainly didn't understand why you liked any of the things you did, but he wasn't going to bother you for liking any of that stuff. 

– The first time he saw just how much of a genius you were he was taken aback. Mammon isn't the quickest when it comes to solving things. He can get there eventually, but you solved whatever was thrown at you very quickly. You were especially good at puzzles, which was something Mammon had a lot of trouble with. 

– He was impressed. Your brain rivaled Satans and that was an impressive feat. After learning how good you were at solving stuff he always came to you if he needed help with something. He knew you might actually help him, unlike any of his brothers, and honestly you could probably solve whatever he needed help with quicker than his brothers anyway. 

– He likes to brag about how smart you are, like it's his own accomplishment. You're quiet and don't talk about it nearly enough, at least in Mammon's brain. Sure everyone knows you're smart, but you like to revel in proving someone wrong instead of gloating about it. Mammon will do enough gloating for the both of you. 

Leviathan; 

– Levi is the one that actually started comparing you to Near. You had no idea what he was talking about, but when he saw just how much you acted like him he couldn't help comparing you to him. 

– He knows what it's like to like things that are considered childish, so he's happy to get you things that you enjoy. He never really thought it was that weird either. From the beginning he just accepted that that was how you were and didn’t question you much. 

– When Leviathan first found out how smart you were he thought it was pretty cool. He wasn't that shocked, there was a little bit of shock when he thought about you possibly being better than some demons at puzzles, but he generally thought it was cool that you were good at solving puzzles and things. 

– He would have you play certain games that he struggled in. He was good at solving puzzles in games, but sometimes they were just so hard for no reason so he’d ask you to come do it for him. You help him sometimes, if you feel like it in the moment and if the puzzle is interesting enough for you to actually want to solve it. 

Satan; 

– He also did not have a strong opinion on you at first. You were quiet and didn't cause a lot of problems, so there wasn't much to say about you. But as soon as he discovered your love for puzzle solving his opinion changed on you drastically. 

– It's not like he didn't like you before, he did, there just wasn't a lot that you had in common, but your love for puzzle solving and your high intelligence made him like you much more. Satan also had both of those things and he loved to do puzzles with you. 

– Satan did get a little upset when you were able to solve them quicker than he was, which also happened more often than he would like to admit.  At first he was quite angry, not at you, but at himself for being outsmarted by a human. As time went on though he got used to it and was just happy to have someone to do things like that with. He did wish you would let him solve it first sometimes though, but he grew to know there was no way you would LET him outsmart you, it just isn't the type of person you are.

– He did think it was a little strange how much enjoyment you found in childish things, but everyone had that one thing they liked so he wasn't going to make fun of you for it or anything. 

Asmodeus; 

– Asmo thought you were adorable from the moment he laid eyes on you. But at first it was in the way he thought little dogs were adorable, and not in the way he should have been looking at you. 

– He didn’t quite get your fascination with toys and things like that but he wasn't one to judge someone's interests. He also wasn't going to judge you for being so quiet, however he did have some complaints. For someone that is so quiet he never thought you were listening to him, and that annoyed him. It would take some assurance that you are actually paying attention to the things he's saying, but after that he would love to talk with you, even if he's the only one talking. 

– Asmodeus thought it was entertaining that you were so smart and were so good at puzzles. He thought it was funny how upset Satan got when you would be better at him, and loved making fun of him for being outsmarted by a human. 

– Aside from his amusement with you being able to outsmart Satan, he didn’t care too much about the way you acted. He enjoyed your company either way and as long as you would let him ramble on about his day he was happy. 

Beelzebub;

– Beel thought you were a lot like Belphie the first time the two of you met. You were quiet, clearly smart. Belphie didn’t have a fascination with toys and such currently, but that aspect reminded him of how Belphie was when they were younger. 

– He didn’t tend to bother you too much, and when he wanted to spend time with you he was happy to just sit with you while you did your own thing. He could watch you build a tower out of dominos or meticulously place figures and he was just as entertained as if the two of you were having a long discussion. 

– When Beel found out about how intelligent you are and how good you were at puzzles he thought that was pretty cool, and was happy you and Satan were able to get along because of it, but it didn’t affect how he looked at you. He didn't have a very strong opinion on the matter and didn’t see the reason to dwell on it. 

– Sometimes Beel could use the help when it comes to solving something difficult. He should ask for help, but instead he just sits there not understanding it. And although he does his best, he could really use your help if you're willing to give it. He appreciates it if you do help him, and can clearly see how capable you are, but still never asks for your help first. 

Belphegor;

– Belphie likes your personality quite a lot. You were quiet, very intelligent and you mostly did your own thing. He didn't mind you being in the same room as him when he took naps and on occasion he could convince you to join him, if the both of you were feeling in the mood for that. 

– After you solved a puzzle he had no clue how to solve, he was impressed. Especially because you were a human. He thought it was unheard of for a human to be as smart as you and to be able to solve things as quickly as you did. He also thought it was really funny when you made Satan or Lucifer mad for being so good at solving things. 

– He definitely tried to stump you on multiple occasions. He would come up with the strangest and most difficult riddles and puzzles he could think up. Then just tell them to you and wait for you to figure them out. You always manage to solve them, and it impresses him every time, but he does plan to keep coming up with more, just to see if he can stump you. 

– When he is feeling too tired to solve a particularly difficult question he comes to you. He does not want your help, he just wants you to do it for him. Belphie isn't one to actively wish to learn how to get as good at puzzle solving as you, he just wants to get through whatever he needs done the quickest. If you help him he will give you a quick thanks and move on completely, until he needs you to do something for him again, so there isn't a good reward for helping him either.

#.written-word (headcanons) #x gn reader #x male reader #x gender neutral reader #obey me #lucifer #mammon #leviathan #satan #asmodeus #beelzebub #belphegor #lucifer x reader #mammon x reader #leviathan x reader #satan x reader #asmo’s x reader #beelzebub x reader #belphegor x reader #obey me x mc #obey me writing