#//no good icons for this one in disguise

[corallapis]

i will refrain from voting for a bit bc i am torn btwn a few...

[lulu103]

Batfam x Neglected Tomie Reader Part 2

London, midnight. The city breathed between ancient fogs and modern lights, as if the past and the present intertwined in every corner. In the heart of the city, a private museum opened its doors only for the chosen. Among paintings and sculptures that spoke of the fleeting nature of beauty, one figure stood out that seemed born to be admired.

Her.

The forgotten daughter of Batman, now turned into an icon. She wasn’t a movie star, nor a pop singer, nor even a businesswoman. She was something more intangible: a symbol. Living beauty, unreachable perfection. Like a vision out of a sweet nightmare. Unsettling. Irresistible. Unforgettable.

She wore black, a form-fitting silk dress that flowed like liquid shadow. Her hair, her skin, her eyes... Everything about her seemed created to provoke obsession. And yet, there was an invisible wall around her. No one could touch her. No one could claim her.

And that night, among the attendees, were them.

---

Bruce Wayne arrived with his children. The invitation hadn’t been an accident; one of the organizers was an old ally of the League. It had been Tim’s idea, obsessed with seeing her since he stumbled upon an interview with her in a Japanese art magazine. Damian came for pride. Jason… simply didn’t want to miss out.

Entering the hall was a moment of tension. They were not Batman, Nightwing, or Red Hood. They were Bruce, Tim, Damian, and Jason. Men who, for years, had lived immersed in missions, fights, masks... And had ignored the existence of someone who was now more radiant than all of them put together.

And there she was. Talking with a French designer, smiling barely. The smile didn’t reach her eyes, but it still hypnotized. Her movements were graceful, her voice low, charming. People surrounded her with devotion. None of them had the right to approach her. But that didn’t stop them.

---

It was Tim who took the first step. His heart raced, his fingers trembled. She saw him approach. Her eyes didn’t show surprise or anger. Just... emptiness.

—Hello —he said awkwardly.

She looked at him calmly.

—Are you here to apologize, Tim? Or just to confirm that I’m still alive?

He swallowed. Each word was a blow disguised as courtesy.

—I wanted to see you. Hear you.—You already heard me once —she answered—. When I was thirteen and asked you to teach me how to use a computer. You told me you were busy.

Tim lowered his gaze. There was no excuse. No excuse for such everyday indifference. And now, that indifference had irreversible consequences.

Jason was next. He approached more confidently, more determined. He had rebuilt his life more times than he could count. He didn’t believe in the past. Until that night.

—You look good —he said—. Like nothing could touch you.

—And you look exactly the same as when you pretended I didn’t exist .

Jason scoffed. It wasn’t what he expected. He thought she would give him a chance to redeem himself. But no. She didn’t need redemption.

—I’m not good at this —he admitted.

—No, Jason. The only thing you’re good at is picking fights. But you won’t break me. They tried. It didn’t work.

---

Damian watched her from afar for long minutes before approaching. He, who had always despised weakness, now saw a different kind of strength in her. It didn’t come from training, nor from physical pain. It was a type of power he didn’t understand. Something he couldn’t control.

—I thought you were useless —he said bluntly, as always.

—I know —she replied—. You made it clear with every silence.

Damian clenched his fists.

—But look at you now —he added, as if surprised—. You have no weapons. You don’t fight. And yet... you are feared. Admired.

—And you, with all your training, still don’t understand why.

That hit him. More than a punch. More than any battle wound.

---

Bruce was the last. His imposing figure approached with firm steps, but his gaze… his gaze had cracks. He watched her as if she were a mirage. As if he couldn’t believe she was really there, in front of him, so alive and so distant.

—I didn’t expect you to want to see me —he said.

—I'm not here to see you. This is my world, Bruce. You’re the one who showed up here.

She didn’t call him “dad.” She hadn’t done so in years. And that, for Bruce, hurt more than any word.

—I failed you —he said in a low, dry voice.

She didn’t respond immediately. She simply looked at a nearby sculpture: a faceless woman, carved in marble. A perfect, empty figure.

—I didn’t fail you —she said at last—. You just never saw me. And that... that can’t be fixed with apologies.

He nodded, defeated. It was true. No gadget, plan, or strategy could recover something he had never known how to care for.

—But I look at you now —he whispered—. And I see everything you could have been with us.

—No. —She looked him in the eyes—. What I am now is precisely because I walked away from you.

---

And then, among them, appeared Dick Grayson. The first. The favorite of many. The one who always seemed to have a smile ready, the bridge between Bruce and the rest. But that night, he had no smiles. Only heavy shoulders and a guilt he hadn’t allowed himself to accept... until now.

She saw him. And for the first time, her expression changed, if only for a second. A spark. A memory.

—Hello, little star —he said, using the nickname he had given her when she was a child.

She blinked. But didn’t respond with sweetness.

—That nickname doesn’t fit you anymore.

Dick nodded sadly. He hadn’t expected anything else. Unlike the others, he had heard her laugh. He had been the one to care for her when Bruce couldn’t. The one who taught her to do cartwheels when she was little. But he had also been the first to walk away. To “prioritize” other missions. To assume she’d be fine on her own.

—I didn’t realize how much my silence hurt —he said honestly.

She looked at him with something that seemed like pity... or maybe sadness.

—What hurt the most was that your silence was the only one that really mattered to me.

That broke him. There were no tears, but there was a deep sinking in his chest. Because he knew. He had known since the first day he stopped calling her. Since the first time he ignored one of her letters. Since the day he decided it was “easier” not to deal with what she represented.

—I wanted to come back so many times —he murmured.

—But you never did —she responded, with no resentment, but also with no comfort.

—Can I do something now?

She stayed silent. Then shook her head.

—No. The only thing you could have done was stay. And you didn’t.

Dick looked at her one last time. He wanted to hug her.

He wanted to ask her not to hate him. But he understood that desire wasn’t for her.

It was for him.

And she wasn’t there to heal anyone.

He walked away without looking back.

---

Weeks passed. Then months. None of them ever approached again. But neither could they stop thinking about her.

She became a cult figure. Her face appeared in art magazines, her appearances at events were rare but impactful. Every time someone mentioned her, the Batfamily tensed. Because they knew she shone without them. And that was unforgivable.

Not for her.

For them.

---

The last time Bruce saw her was by chance: a feature in an architecture magazine. She was sitting on a balcony in Florence, drinking coffee. Smiling. With a peace he had never achieved.

And in that instant, he understood that they had never lost her.

Because they had never had her.

She wouldn’t come back.

And now, the echo of her absence was louder than any scream.

Sorry if there are mistakes, I don't speak English, I only use the translator.

[orellazalonia]

Catnapped

Summary: A mercenary tries to kidnap “the weird cat that’s always with the Avengers.” They succeed. Ten minutes later, you're back in human form, sitting on their escape van holding a taser with an exasperated Bucky arriving at the scene. (Bucky Barnes x reader)

Word Count: 800+

Main Masterlist | Original Fic

It was supposed to be a low-stakes surveillance mission.

You’d volunteered to go in cat form since it was easy to sneak past cameras, no need for disguises, and plus you got to nap in sunny windowsills while pretending to spy. Win-win.

Bucky had explicitly told you: “Stay within two blocks. If you get caught, don’t be a smartass. Just shift and call me.”

Naturally, you ignored the second part.

Because when a low-rank merc saw you napping behind a weapons stash near the docks, they scooped you up with a triumphant laugh like they’d just bagged a diamond.

“Well well well,” He cooed, holding you up by your scruff. “Aren’t you the weird little furball that’s always following Barnes around?”

You squinted at him. Then casually went limp like a floppy stuffed animal.

“Aw, no fight? You’re comin’ with me.”

He stuffed you into a duffel bag with air holes. That part was annoying. It smelled like sweat and beef jerky.

You waited precisely six minutes. Let them get all nice and cocky.

The merc’s van was parked in an alley. There were three of them: your scruffy friend, a bored woman chewing gum in the passenger seat, and a guy in the back watching TikToks on full volume. Truly, the elite.

“Barnes’ll lose his mind when he finds out we got his freaky little shapeshifter cat,” One muttered. “Think it’s got powers?” “It drooled on my boot.” “…so no.”

You rolled your eyes, managed to unzip the top of the duffel bag enough, then shifted.

And emerged: human, pissed, and holding a taser.

“Hi,” You said sweetly.

The driver shrieked as you zapped him square in the thigh. The woman reached for her gun but you launched the taser at her head. TikTok guy screamed and dove out the back of the van.

When Bucky finally arrived (having sprinted three blocks after you triggered your location beacon), he found you sitting on the hood of the van, sipping one of the merc’s energy drinks, completely calm.

The three would-be kidnappers were zip-tied and groaning.

Bucky skidded to a stop, blinking. “You good?”

You nodded. “They tried to catnap me.”

He paused. “Catnap. Really?”

“…Had to.”

He sighed and ran a hand over his face. “Why didn’t you just shift and call me?”

“I wanted to see how it played out.”

He looked at the van. Then back at you. “You could’ve easily gotten away.”

“I needed a dramatic entrance,” You shrugged. “Very effective.”

He just shook his head and muttered, “I swear to God, one day I’m gonna leash you.”

You smirked. “You say that like I wouldn’t love the attention.”

He walked off muttering expletives while you followed behind, smug and victorious, sipping your stolen drink like the chaos goblin you were.

Back at the Avengers compound, things got out of hand immediately.

You only meant to tell Steve. Just a quick, offhand “Hey, I got kidnapped in cat form today, tased a guy. All good now.” Casual stuff.

Steve blinked. “You what.”

Five minutes later, a full team meeting had been called.

You sat on the conference table, lazily batting at a paperclip while Bucky stood in the corner, arms crossed, visibly trying not to explode.

“…So just to confirm,” Tony said, barely holding back laughter, “You voluntarily let yourself be captured, didn’t call for backup, and waited in a gym bag until you could do a dramatic transformation and taser reveal?”

You nodded. “Pretty much.”

“Iconic,” said Sam, already typing something on his phone. “Absolutely saving this.”

Wanda floated a bag of chips over to you with a grin. “Next time, give me a heads-up. I want popcorn for the sequel.”

Bucky groaned. “Can we not turn this into a thing?”

“Too late,” Sam replied, dropping his phone onto the table.

On the screen? A meme of you photoshopped onto a “Missing Cat” poster, with Bucky’s face underneath and the caption: “If found, do NOT return. She bites.”

You snorted. “Okay, that’s good.”

Tony added fuel to the fire. “FRIDAY, note to install mini GPS on the shapeshifter’s collar.”

“I’m not wearing a collar,” You said firmly.

“Too bad,” Bucky muttered. “You’re gonna end up on a milk carton one of these days.”

“Is that still a thing?”

Steve tried to be serious, bless him. “You do need to be more careful. That could’ve gone really badly.”

You tilted your head innocently. “But it didn’t.”

Bucky, pinching the bridge of his nose: “That is not a defense strategy!”

And then, just to spite him, you shifted into cat form mid-sentence, leapt into his lap, and started purring obnoxiously.

He stiffened. “Don’t.”

You meowed sweetly and curled up like a loaf.

“You’re making this worse.”

Wanda took a picture. “She’s making it better.”

-

Later that night, Bucky found you asleep in your cat form at the foot of his bed. Still smug. Still slightly damp from your shower earlier.

He sighed, pulled a blanket over you, and muttered, “Absolute menace.”

Then paused.

“…My menace.”

You twitched your tail in victory.

[silvercoloredskiess]

Yandere Front Man/In-Ho x Reader (Platonic)

Note: I believe this is my first time writing anything yandere, like ever :P. So I apologize if this is bad. In-Ho struck me as a father-like person and after watching season 2 last month I wanted to write a oneshot about this. I was lightly inspired by some others I saw on here so I don't intend to straight-up copy. Have fun :-)

Reader doesn't have an assumed gender

Warning: Obviously yandere front man as your father, mentions of killing and blood since this is the squid game after all.

Word count: 968 (5,210 characters)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ever since you were born, your life has never been normal. Not even the slightest. Though your father tried very hard to disguise this as normal, but you knew it wasn't right. From a young age you had been locked up in some strange place you called home. It wasn't exactly the wholesome neighborhood homes full of warmth and smiling families like what you saw on TV; how you wished that was true. It sounded like a dream to be able to go to school, make lifelong friends, potentially find a lover (if that's your thing), and bask in innocence.

Instead you woke up everyday to the same room. Your bedroom was very different from all the other rooms. It was very nicely decorated by your father himself. It was his attempt to make you comfortable when in reality you never fell for his tricks.

Life inside this place wasn't fun at all. You never knew if it even had an exit. You weren't allowed to use any device because you would try to escape. So your days were spent lazing around in your room constantly feeling lonely. You couldn't roam around much around the place, and there were too many restricted areas for you to count. You always had to have meals served to your room and you weren't allowed outside your room past 7 pm.

But those boring and dreary days were nothing compared to the most dreaded times of the year; the annual Squid Games. It was when your 'home' was suddenly added with 456 people, all in green tracksuits. They all looked scared. And it was painful to see what was going to happen to all but one of them. From your room you could hear screaming, gunshots, and the arguing of players between who voted to end the games and those that voted to continue them.

Sometimes your father made you watch these moments, so you constantly flinched or closed your eyes.

"Dad.. why do you make me watch these games? Why do you keep facilitating them year after year!?" You yelled at him.

But your father calmly replied, "Do you think we force all these folks to join the games? They do this on their own. 45.6 billion won won't come by its own. Don't you see they still voted to continue the games despite the consequences? Don't feel bad for them when they wanted this.."

Your eyes widened. "B-but... that doesn't matter! Why don't we give them all some money and they can start living a good life?"

"You're cute" Your father grinned at you. "You've seen how desperate they all get for that prize money. They're all filled with greed and selfishness. Nothing will change that. They all have huge debts to pay and only this amount can guarantee them a stable life to start over on."

"I guess so...."

You stared at the floor in silence. You knew what was happening next, though; the lights out game you had to witness. And you knew the only thing coming out of it was when the lights turned back on to reveal the blood-stained walls and floors.

You thought of a way to stop the game, and tried to sneak to the control room, which was accessed through the iconic colorful room. However, you had caught the eye of a player since you they were trying to sneak out of the game. You tried to walk past him since he looked very crazy, but he grabbed your arm.

"WHAT ARE YOU D-" you yelled, but got cut off by the man.

"Ssssh. Be quiet, little one. Show me the way out, and you're free."

You got very shaky but tried to show him the way with him gripping your arm still. You were practically whimpering. But suddenly, you heard a gunshot and the man was spewing out blood, collapsing to the ground. It appeared he had been shot in the head from behind.

That was when you panicked even more, thinking you were next. But before you could run too far, a hand gripped you still. You recognized it was your father's instantly.

"Those who break the rules are punished." Your father said, glancing at the dead player. "Looks like it's time for clean up. I'll organize the guards."

You couldn't believe what just happened. The player was dangerous, but shooting him in the head wasn't necessary. Furthermore, you never knew your father was this possessive of you. But it all made sense as to why he controlled almost everything you did.

The guards, all with circles on their masks and their bright pink costumes, walked by you to put the body in a black box with a pretty pink bow holding it together. You didn't see the scene for too long since a certain guard with a square on its mask guided you back to your room, where you always were. There your father was sitting there, his legs crossed.

"Why would you sneak out like that!? You foolish child. Don't you know how to obey the rules?"

You sat there in silence, shaking.

"I..... I just wanted to.. to uh.. make the lights out game stop by going to the control room. I'm sorry."

Your father sighed.

"You're lucky we have cameras all across this place. But I never want you to disobey me again. Your punishment is, you will be staying right here for this entire week. You have everything you need right in your bedroom."

You were going to reply to that, but you decided to just not deal with it and do as he says. You were still trying to clear your mind of what happened ten minutes ago. The thought of him killing anyone who dared to touch you was haunting you the whole night

BTW, EDIT: PART 2 IS UP :) https://www.tumblr.com/silvercoloredskiess/773335237345312768/yandere-front-manin-ho-x-reader-platonic-part?source=share

[weeb-polls-with-pip]

Anime Awakenings Round 4 Side A Poll 3

Propaganda:

Haruhi -

"When I was a young kid she was sooooo gender to me and honestly she still is. Seeing someone who turned looks in both masc and femme clothing and be so comfortable being perceived as whatever gender made me hella envious. She'll be your handsome girl and your cute guy at the same time and little me wanted that more than anything. Also seeing her pull guys and gals of all types and her just being so nonchalant about not caring about gender whether it's hers, others, or who's attracted to really spoke to me. Now I'm a femboy trans guy and it's probably because of Haruhi and maybe her bisexual genderqueer dad, they're my icons."

"G E N D E R. I wish I could give as few fucks about my gender as Haruhi does about hers. Like, she does identify as a girl, but she genuinely does not care if people see her as a boy or a girl or something in-between, she just wants to be judged on her strength of character. And I was always so obsessed with that aspect of Haruhi's character literally from the first time I watched the anime five years before I started consciously questioning my gender."

"Seeing them disguised as a boy for most of the series (without being upset by it or seeing it as a joke even) made me understand I was transmasc better."

"Despite mostly using she/her, Haruhi's non-caring attitude about her gender helped me in my journey of learning my own nonbinary identity! She acknowledges she's afab but that means next to nothing to her! She doesn't care if people use he/him for her, she doesn't care if she's thought to be a boy by many others, she doesn't care whether she even presents as more feminine or masculine. Even if she's not canonically nonbinary, I consider her important to my journey in discovering I'm nonbinary."

"She gave me a deep desire to be a girl like her, because I've always wanted to be a tomboy when I transition, so she was a very early instance of that gender envy. Add in all the romantic situations she's in with girls as a host, really fed the lesbian in me."

"The fact I actually started the anime because I thought it was yaoi and I found the mc cute (because that's the kind of guys I was into at the time) and when I realized Haruhi was actually a biological girl the attraction stayed even when they were wearing girl clothes and I kinda had a bisexual huh. moment. Also not only did I want them I wanted to BE them, they looked good femme and masc and watching them be so chill about their gender was genuinely… enlightening? Idk all I know is I put less pressure in trying to be a "girl" after I finished the anime. Also just look at their big soft brown eyes, it had 12 y.o. me in a chokehold. Also, that anime was genuinely good when it came to fashion like there's some clothes trends there that no one wears today anymore for good reasons but the characters all somehow make it work still."

Utena -

"Her dressed as a knight and her relationship with Anthy made me even more sure that I was one of the sapphics."

[tiredspacedragon]

I love how BS01 describes the roles of the members of the Voya Nui resistance

There's Garan, the leader. Balta, the second-in-command and a skilled tinkerer. Dalu, the team's best fighter. Velika, a Great Being in disguise and the team's inventor, even more skilled than Balta. Piruk, the spy, their eyes inside the Piraka stronghold.

And then there's Kazi. He's a realist. His job is to stand there and remind everyone how utterly boned they are.

They could have made him anything, he could have been a medic, or a hunter, or a scout, but no. His title is "realist." Not even an allusion to him being the secretive one who knows about Axonn before everyone else, no, Kazi is defined by how he makes sure the people around him remember their circumstances and don't have too good a time. Icon, honestly.

[hotvintagepoll]

Will Scarlett has lost his temporary lead in the Hot Medieval and Fantasy Man Melee, so I'm back with screenshots to prove my point that Will is the Hottest Boy in the Land. I normally avoid these types of long posts but I will do anything for my Slutty Merry Boy, so buckle in.

To introduce Will Scarlett—oh by the way here's the link to his whole movie—I think it's important context to know that when we first meet him, Robin is saving a man's life and Scarlett is staring at nothing in particular. His head is empty of thoughts. He looks this way the entire scene. I'm not sure he blinks.

As soon as the danger is over (a danger he did absolutely nothing to help with) he has a chuckle with Robin! Sunshine and laughter and roses!

The next time we see him (which is soon, because this movie loves Will Scarlett too), he is bitching because Robin had them sleep in the woods (???) and he got stabbed in the back by some acorns.

Here he is falling over a log.

Here he is getting smacked with a branch.

HERE HE IS AFTER GETTING SMACKED BY THE BRANCH.

He serves cunt continuously through the entire Little John sequence, and we don't have time for all of my screenshots, so just a quick smattering:

Here he is being hot and unsupportive when Robin decides to fight the biggest guy he's ever seen. (Scarlett literally says "your skull not mine" and then just stands there.)

Here he is getting in Robin's way.

Here he is, picking the hottest pose possible so he can be the bard and play little showtunes while Robin gets his ass kicked.

Oh my goddd fuck me.

Worth mentioning that Little John does loudly identify Will Scarlett as "a pretty fellow" and nobody contradicts this. In a world where all of Robin's men have one personality trait (big, friar, or tiny), Will Scarlett's is Slut.

Once we get out of the Will's Musical Singalong chapter and Robin goes in disguise to the archery contest, Scarlett does too, except whoever told him he couldn't wear his normal Versace didn't tell him what normal people wear because he shows up looking like this.

Absolutely nobody else in the crowd looks like that. That's just what he thinks the Normies are doing.

With Robin captured, you'd think it's time for Will Scarlett to contribute something. Unfortunately he is constitutionally incapable of not serving cunt at all times to the exclusion of all else, so Maid Marian thinks of the plot while he stands by looking really hot.

Here he is serving cunt as a monk. Jesus Christ.

HERE he actually does something during the climatic battle! I had forgotten but he does swing his sword around a little bit. He doesn't actually look hot while doing this which explains why he has never done it before.

i saved this screenshot with the caption "the beatles" and i'm not wrong.

here he is doing new things with blood eyeliner. very brat.

SUCH A SERVE THERE IN THE BACKGROUND AND FOR WHAT

in conclusion, Will Scarlett is a hot hot man who is clever (by his own estimation, never proven within the story) and extremely hot (by everyone else's estimation, proven twenty-seven thousand times over). He serves several different looks in the movie, all of them incredible, and is apparently brought along by Robin just for his charming good looks and lack of thoughts because he's certainly not good at anything else. He is the hero to all of us who want to hang out in this movie but not actually work out or hold a weapon, and the bard that every Sherwood story deserves. Vote Will Scarlett, my legend, my icon, my idiot.

@medievalandfantasymelee

[sanshofox]

Still surprised over the high audience ratings for lilo and stitch. From all the info I‘ve gathered the remake really doesn‘t sound all too good and even movie reviewers are mostly underwhelmed or even very critical.

There‘s no gantu as villain (which seems to become a theme for disney to not have real villains), jumba and pleakley look horrible and it’s a shame they got rid of their iconic „bad human disguises“ and used real humans instead to act those parts and lilo’s hyperfixation about elvis is just gone and from what I‘ve heard the ending is also sadly different (believe me, if you don’t wanna have a sad moment today and your childhood nostalgia about ohana crushed, don’t read what the ending is about). So I wonder if it’s stitch/disney stans that fill cinema seats atm and that’s how it gets the high rating and the money.

It’s what I feared actually, that it draws a huge amount of audience and therefore money…and therefore green light for more live action remakes again (right when they put a stop to it after the snowwhite debacle). Stitch is one the most beloved characters disney has, selling tons of merch yearly, with lots of stans. With enough of their money, disney falls again into hubris deciding that they will proceed again with live action movies. Please no. I can‘t.

[littlebigmouse]

List of Small Things™ I enjoy about Fullmetal Alchemist in no particular order

Everyone in FMAB/manga is just Some Guy™ and very human and I love that so here goes:

Falman getting stuck with a serial-killing suit of armor in his appartment for days and his reaction to it. It may have been weeks. He's been on sick leave the entire time. He's a guy in his early thirties with a flock of early-greying hair because being in a dead-end-role in the military is stressfull, ok. He gets stuck at home with a funny little serial killer (and eventually some foreign body guards, and a foreign prince?? lighting signal fires in his backyard?? like man what a week)

The whole military ambush against the Devil's Nest was yes, kind of kickstarted by the gang kidnapping Al for Greed, but it was mostly kickstarted because Ed was down south to do his yearly official report and Bradley and Armstrong just happened to be present when he was informed Al had gone missing. Greed's entire operation was done in by a teen doing his paperwork

on that note, Greed really decided to spend his immortality wisely by pursuing absolutely none of his supposed ambitions and just decided to settle down with a bunch of buddies. An offshot of the buddies he was initially made to guard, too. I don't think Greed is aware of this either

everyone on that radio building. The radio host 100% down to get some coup-shenanigans into his station to drive engagement. The guys sympathising with Mrs Bradley and taking care of her. Breda taking control of the narrative with a perpetual frown by the skin of his teeth.

I know the story of how the Bradleys met is technically not canon(?) but Mrs Bradley slapping her future husband upon their first meeting because he got his flirting tips from his siblings will never not be funny. Idiots. All of them.

EVERYTHING about Darius and Heinkel. They lost their jobs and became wanted criminals upon helping out some scrawny 15 year old. They have families they miss dearly. They haven't looked back since. "You guys don't HAVE to help me save the world" - "It's not like we have anything better to do"

i was going to say the Ice Cream Truck, because it's iconic, but actually, when told to disguise a vehicle, 15-year-old pinacle of edgelord fashion Edward Elric turned it into a colourful nightmare of spikes that barely resembled a car but might be closely related to the worlds deadliest parade float. None of this was necessary. Ed is just like that.

Hawkeye growing her hair out after meeting Winry, and Winry getting piercings after seeing Hawkeye's

Denny Brosh bursting into tears when he sees Maria Ross is still alive. Dude managed to not quit his job despite working in the same city (department?) where his best friend's killer was his supervisor. They were also very real for showing us that this is a guy who oversleeps and is older brother to at least three younger siblings. There was no need to give us more on Denny Brosh but every little detail hit so hard when they reunited.

okay so remember that time Ed and Ling ate Ed's shoe. Remember that Ed spend some time on a "deserted island" as a kid. Gluttony's stomach had nothing on him. Izumi raised some anime-ass boy-scouts. 100% Farm boy behaviour. These kids are so 15 it makes me want to bite things

immortal, soul-spliced dwarf in a flask got rid of his Sloth and still managed to procrastinate on his world domination plan until the last minute. Most Human disaster.

the entire half-episode they spend on Dr. Knox and his regrets and family. FMA is so good about humanising everyone.

everyone bullied Yoki because he was a small town fraud exploiting workers for his own benefit. Simply a jerk. He also hit Pride with a car in an epic rescue, and cried and screamed the whole way through

that one shot of a kid curiously poking a soldier they found bound on the ground with a stick

(I know it's technically not canon, but-) "I'm trying to save your life, asshole!"

Edward Elric

[a-big-apple]

if someone's trying to really beef up a character's voice, what advice would you have for them (in general or in TLT in particular)? what are some major voice missteps you've seen esp given your extremely thorough reading of the series👀

jeej u always ask the most interesting questions!! i feel like in general, for me, i'm pretty good with remembering and recognizing voices (like, how they actually sound) and good at remembering iconic lines. so when i'm trying to write a specific pov, i'll sometimes revisit examples of the tone i'm going for by watching bits if it's a show, or listening to bits of the audiobooks for TLT, and then as i'm writing and editing i'll kind of read everything back to myself in that character's voice.

but that's a particular skill i have that may not be more broadly useful, so...in general, some of the things that stand out to me are vocabulary, register (like how formal or informal), and demeanor.

so for example, gideon has a really large vocabulary, and she uses big and/or obscure words for specific effect, usually to needle harrow, but not as much in everyday speech. she's also often crude, and she'll use slang, and she uses humor to defuse and disguise rather than speaking seriously very often, so when she's being honest and frank it has a big effect. her internal monologue isn't very formal, and neither is her speech most of the time, but the formality might increase when she's kiriona, for instance!

whereas harrow speaks very formally and precisely, might not use as many contractions (almost everybody uses contractions in normal speech and it sticks out when someone doesn't, this is a bugaboo of mine, but harrow does genuinely sometimes go super formal), and uses her own big vocabulary in her regular dialogue a lot more often. she's used to oratory, she's the leader of a religious order, she's pretty good at stringing together a speech whether it's intended to inspire or to tear somebody down.

then you've got somebody like camilla, who doesn't speak much but has a very dry humor when she does, and is more likely to truncate or leave off unnecessary words, making her come off kind of brusque. she waits to talk until she has something necessary or important to say, but she knows how to tease. she's fairly informal, but she can slide into an academic register very easily, and she almost always calls everyone, even palamedes, by their title instead of their name.

sentence structure can come into this too, for narration from a particular pov! gideon is observant but also sometimes misses things or doesn't have all the information, her narration might include more questions or commentary to herself. harrow is intellectual and scheming and sometimes super unsure, so she might have longer and more convoluted sentence structure in her narration. cam is super straightforward, so her narration might be full of observations and thoughts and feelings that she keeps to herself, but with more short sentences, a more clipped rhythm that matches her speaking style.

other things that can sometimes rub me wrong or stick out are endearments and nicknames! there are some characters who will make up names for people and keep using them (gideon) and some who will almost always use a respectful title or name (cam) and some people who throw endearments at everyone willy nilly (cytherea and augustine come to mind). if a character has a canon endearment or set of endearments that they default to, or specific ones for specific people, it really helps keep the voice in character to keep using those. harrow uses beloved for alecto, and it means something when that transfers to gideon in fic in place of griddle, or just her name. pyrrha uses kiddie, and six million other things, but only with nona and later a bit with kiriona. ianthe and coronabeth both flirt with nicknames that the objects of their attention either despise or don't seem to allow from anyone else (harry, jody, millie). gideon uses all her wild thesaurus superlatives for harrow, but when it's a crisis moment and she's showing her heart, she uses honey.

this is just my personal pet peeve i think, but love/baby/babe are SO overused as defaults, when there are so many good opportunities to either use something that the character does say in canon, or find something unique that fits the character and the relationship in the fic. and imo, these should always be used sparingly and for specific emotional effect, unless you've got a character like pyrrha who i think always uses nicknames for nona. (frankly, griddle is very cute but harrow doesn't actually use it as much as fic wants her to)

so i guess, tl;dr advice is to relisten/rewatch/reread the voice of the character you're trying to get into, and think about the way they say things and the way they present themself, and take note of any quirks they have that can be put to good use later!

[fluffybearsblog]

Alright, let’s break this down like a real scientist who just discovered the laws of Blue Lock physics. Because if you seriously think Nagi Seishiro is gone for good, I have a PowerPoint, a TED Talk, and several conspiracy boards to prove otherwise. First off, the math ain’t mathing—you don’t just slap an entire spin-off manga (Blue Lock: Episode Nagi) and a whole-ass movie on a character just to yeet him into obscurity. That’s like dropping the DLC before the main story is even over—it’s narrative malpractice. The second someone gets an origin story outside the main series, they’re certified to be a long-term investment. Why? Because that’s called character branding, and no sane writer (or marketing exec) would build up Nagi as a main pillar of the series just to send him home permanently.

Now, let’s talk about plot structure. Nagi’s entire existence in Blue Lock follows one of the most classic anime tropes: the lazy genius who doesn’t realize he wants to be great until he’s forced to work for it. This man started off treating football like a TikTok trend—cool to try but not worth the effort—and then got dragged into Blue Lock by Reo’s fanboy energy. His arc has been about evolving past that initial apathy, learning to love the game for himself, and actually trying for the first time in his life. If he just disappears now, then what was the point? You’re telling me Blue Lock, a series obsessed with character evolution and peak egoism, is gonna have Nagi take an L and not come back swinging? Be so fr. This ain’t a normal sports anime—this is Blue Lock, where elimination is basically a training montage in disguise.

And don’t even get me started on the economics of this. Nagi isn’t just a character—he’s merchandising gold. He’s one of the most popular characters in the entire franchise, and you think they’re just gonna stop printing Nagi-themed jerseys, figures, and collabs? Absolutely not. Capitalism won’t allow it. If there’s money to be made, then Nagi is coming back one way or another. Whether it’s through a wildcard event, a rival team picking him up, or even a redemption arc where he goes feral (which, let’s be honest, would slap), there is no universe where he just quietly fades away. Even Kunigami, who was dead for like 30 episodes, got a shonen protagonist revival arc, so Nagi—a dude who’s literally built to be a football prodigy—isn’t about to get permanently benched.

Now, for the final nail in the coffin: the meta-narrative. Blue Lock isn’t just about winning games—it’s about building the ultimate striker. And what’s the biggest rule in every competitive story? If you lose, you learn, you adapt, and you come back scarier than ever. Nagi losing doesn’t mean he’s out—it means he’s about to unlock some next-level development. This loss might be the catalyst that makes him truly obsessed with winning. And when he does come back? Oh, you know it’s gonna be iconic.

So yeah, from a scientific, narrative, and economic standpoint, Nagi’s return isn’t just possible—it’s guaranteed. Mark my words, this man isn’t just coming back, he’s about to pull a comeback so disrespectful that Isagi’s ego is gonna feel physically threatened.

[tanoraqui]

obviously the Historical Figure Episode(TM) of Doctor Who that I’d write would of the Noted Author subset endemic to the RTD Era; it’d be called “Spiders in the Trenches” and be set in the middle of World War One ft. one Lt. John Tolkien.

idk if the main aliens are spiders or if they're just using giant robotic spiders as soldier-minions. Either way, Tolkien is a little too defensive when he says he's not afraid of spiders.

The alien invaders want some sort of shiny mcguffin, maybe as a power source for their ship? Or for a mega-weapon? We do not want them to get it, at any rate. Race to find the Shiny Power Jewel-Thing which has been lost somewhere in this like 20-mile radius of the Western Front.

When our heroes narrowly beat the spiders to the SPJT, Tolkien realizes that the spiders only ever attack at night because light hurts them somehow, so he holds the SPJT up as it flares and shouts, "Get back, foul creatures! Back into the shadows from whence you came!"

(They're from the dark side of a tidally locked planet, and made for extremely low-light conditions? The SPJT flares because it's controlled telepathically and it connected to Tolkien's mind when he touched it?)

Ideally Tolkien's first encounter with the Doctor is that he wakes up in the trench one day (after losing some men to a mysterious monster in the darkness a couple nights ago?), and there's 2 random strangers in weird clothes idly singing and playing an instrument which they stole from someone a couple bedrolls down. (This works well with Fifteen & Ruby's established inclination to music!)

We do need an Eowyn Moment, because that's iconic, but I'd split it: for dialogue, at one point the head boss evil alien boasts, "No human can defeat the Tenebrarachnid Empire!" and the Doctor replies, "Good thing they've got me, then."...

[I don't know if this is a Fifteen line yet. I know it's a very Eleven line]

...and there's a soldier in Tolkien's unit who is revealed to be secretly a woman! Who disguised herself as a man in order to enlist for ??? reasons, and who dramatically pulls off her hat to reveal her long hair.

The third notable local character is the sort who inspired Sam Gamgee, "...the English soldier, [like] the privates and batmen I knew in the 1914 war, and recognized as so far superior to myself.”

^those two can have a romantic subplot if it fits (comrades-in-arms is also extremely good). Tolkien, however, at some point shows Ruby the picture of his wife Edith which he carries at all times, she of the black hair and bright grey eyes, and is obviously ready to monologue about how wonderful she is.

In the same scene(?), Tolkien looks up at the stars and says their brightness shining afar, clear of all the horrors on the ground, is always a source of hope and strength to him.

Maybe also in the same scene? Tolkien is shown to make up stories for fun, or to read them in his little spare time - fairy tales and mythological epics. Maybe he tells them to the men around the fire, maybe he keeps a little notebook, maybe he just admits to daydreaming... When asked why, he paraphrases his quote from later life, " Fantasy is escapist, and that is its glory. If a soldier is imprisoned by the enemy, don't we consider it his duty to escape?"

At some point (Star-watching scene? when the Doctor inevitably has to explain that aliens exist? when they're all saying goodbye in the end?) there's a line drawing attention to the Doctor's parallels with Eärendil - eternally wandering figure of hope, sailing the stars in a ship with a light on top, not quite mortal...

Tolkien DEFINITELY tries to figure out the alien language, in writing or speech.

Something the aliens are doing is making people sick. Maybe the attacking robo-spiders are venomous, maybe there's a toxic byproduct of the alien ship, maybe it's a deliberate first assault of the planned invasion... By the end of the episode, Tolkien is very ill. The Doctor has figured out an antidote and given it, but Tolkien says goodbye to him and Ruby only to stumble to a medical outpost - from where, the Doctor explains to Ruby, he'll be sent home with this bad case of what's assumed to be trench fever. Between the fever and the brief psychic entanglement, and unentanglement, with the SPJT, he won't even remember most of this, and what he does remember, he'll put down to fever dreams amidst the horrors of war.

But he'll remember some things! He'll remember an eternal wanderer of the stars, unaging and undying and ever-hopeful, heralded by light (and a vworrrp vrorrrp noise).

[matchalovertrait]

We can't act totally reckless here! This is a risky mission for a pair of amateurs. They needed to consult highly-trained and experienced professionals. Luckily, THE iconic duo from the S.I.M.S. Agency took time out of their schedule to share their wisdom. Yay!!!!! Thank you so much @ruthplaysthesims for letting me borrow Carlos and Tyson! 💞💞💞 Look at them!!!

Start from the beginning (Gen 2)

Previous | Next

Transcript

One phone call later...

DULCE: I’m confused. You know actual real-life secret agents???

ANTONIO: Yes, but you have to promise to not tell anybody. Not one soul. Except for Cosi.

DULCE: I do promise!!! But how do you know them? Aren’t they supposed to be... well, secret?

ANTONIO: A while back, I assisted them with some legal matters. They said they “owe me one,” so I am redeeming that help now.

CARLOS: Hey, what’s up?

TYSON: It’s been a minute, man!

CARLOS: This is the client sworn to secrecy, right?

DULCE: YES!!!! Obviously I’ve never heard of you two before, but I’m still very much a huge fan!!! I won’t say anything.

ANTONIO: I would’ve preferred you did this mission for us since it’s a dire situation, but I know you are very busy.

TYSON: We could tell it was urgent from the phone call earlier. That Leslie Caruso guy sounds repulsive. You sure you don’t want us to swoop in and take care of him?

CARLOS: He’s joking...

TYSON: Am I?

ANTONIO: We’re sure. All I’m asking for is advice. We need to go to the party in disguise and retrieve the notebook.

TYSON: That’s a good start with the disguises.

CARLOS: When you arrive at the scene, you’re not “Antonio” or “Dulce” anymore. You must fully embrace your new identities.

TYSON: Confidence will take you far. If you act with assurance, people will believe it.

ANTONIO: You got that? Daniela told me about your last attempt at disguising yourself at the coffee shop.

DULCE: Shhhh! I’m learning here.

CARLOS: Furthermore, keep your story simple if you run into anybody. Don’t overexplain.

TYSON: That can make you look suspicious immediately. Also, try to “speak their language.” Mirror them if you can.

ANTONIO: Keep that in mind too, Ms. Alegría.

DULCE: What if we get stuck and don’t know what to say?

CARLOS: Earpieces. Maybe get another person involved in this mission. Again, don’t tell them about us, please.

DULCE: Understood! Any last tips?

TYSON: Hmm...

TYSON: If things go wrong, don’t hesitate to abandon the mission. Leave the notebook and stay safe. If you do retrieve the notebook, don’t stick around. Head straight to the exit and don’t look back.

CARLOS: And work together as a team. You have to rely on and trust each other wholeheartedly. An unsteady team can easily jeopardize the mission.

DULCE: Thank you! These are the things they don’t cover in the spy movies!

TYSON: We’re happy to help.

CARLOS: Good luck.

TYSON: Let us know if you need anything else.

ANTONIO: We appreciate it immensely.

DULCE: Bye!!!

DULCE: [Whispers] I love you guys.

[novankenn]

(In the Spirit of @howlingday's RU-JA-GUN-CON, and my own Jaune Gets a Gun Au I present... )

"Jaune Gets An Upgrade AU" Day One - (Entrenching Tool)

Ren was still brooding over his newly acquired ability to become a waifu... and was seriously annoyed at Jaune's complete acceptance of that strange fact. While in the back of his mind the true fear about what Nora would do if she ever found out.

Jaune: SO...

Ren: No.

Jaune: But...

Ren: I said no. You are not going back for that dagger thing...

Jaune: I guess. Well we do have these new bracelets, and I think...

Ren: Don't say it. Don't even think of it.

Jaune: Come on Ren. It's a cool ability, that NO one else has!

Ren: It's a inane ability that makes no logical sense!

Jaune: Gee, for a guy who keeps spouting things about being open minded, you sure have a closed view on the whole gender-swap thing.

Ren: ...

Jaune: I wonder how the girls are making out in the firearms section?

Ren: Probably better than we are... and seeing as I haven't heard and screams of terror or explosions...

Jaune: Then Nora and Pyrrha are keeping team RWBY under control.

Ren: Is it weird that it's team RWBY and not Nora we're concerned about causing destruction?

Jaune: Ah, I mean they did blow up the docks and cause millions of lien in damage fighting a mech.

Ren: It was a stolen Atlas Paladin.

Jaune: Right. A mech.

Ren: ...

A pair of figures in the distance causes Jaune to stop in mid stride. Ren notices this and also stops.

Ren: Jaune?

Jaune: I think... is it?

Ren: Is what? Do you see someone you know?

Jaune: It couldn't be... but it has to be.

Ren: Ah... Jaune?

Jaune: It IS!!! Aunt Sally 674735-Arc and Uncle Sam 668843-Arc! Over here!

Ren's brain paused, and then crashed as a pair of very similar looking figures turned to face them. To him, they booth looked exactly the same...

(Images copied from https://warhammeruniverse.com/death-korps-of-krieg/)

Aunt Sally: Jaune!

Uncle Sam: Nephew!

Jaune jogged up to the pair of figures a huge smile on his face, leaving a still bewildered Ren flat footed and behind.

Jaune: Why are you guys here? Last I heard you were deployed to the out reaches to breach a Heretic base?

Aunt Sally: Vacation Days, so we thought we'd come visit some family.

Uncle Sam: We're due back in about a week.

Jaune: Well Mom is going to be thrilled that you're here! Does she know?

Uncle Sam: No. We haven't told her yet. We want it to be a surprise.

Jaune: I won't tell a soul.

Aunt Sallyy: So why are you here, Jaune?

Jaune: I'm here to find an alternate weapon to Crocea Mors.

Uncle Sam: Why?

Jaune: Well.. um...

Aunt Sally: Does your mom know you are in Vale?

Jaune: Well...

Uncle Sam: Jaune?

Jaune: I sort of ran from home to attend Beacon, and borrowed Crocea Mors... WHICH I want to send back, so I need to find something else to serve as my main weapon.

Jaune fidgeted, and by the time Ren finally reset his thoughts and joined him, Jaune looked like he was about to burst into tears, under the stern gaze of the pair of gasmask wearing individuals. At least Ren thought it was a stern gaze. To be honest he really couldn't tell.

Aunt Sally: You're mom has to be worried sick. I suggest you CALL her very soon...

Uncle Sam: Preferably before we visit her and tell her were we saw you. Understand?

Jaune: Yes, and I promise to call her as soon as I finish here.

Uncle Sam: Good boy, now as for a replacement for Crocea Mors... not that much could ever replace such a honorable and venerable blade...

Aunt Sally: How about this?

Ren: That's a... shovel?

Aunt Sally / Uncle Sam / Jaune: HERESY!!!

Ren: huh?

Jaune: That's not a SHOVEL!

Aunt Sally: It's a Munitorum Mk III Sapper Shovel! An intrinsic and iconic part of the Death Korps of Krieg kit of battle!

Ren: Death Korps?

Uncle Sam: Is your friend a heretic?

Jaune: I don't think so? Ren you're not a Heretic disguised as my friend are you?

Ren: ...

[weeb-polls-with-pip]

Anime Awakenings Finals

Propaganda:

Haruhi -

"When I was a young kid she was sooooo gender to me and honestly she still is. Seeing someone who turned looks in both masc and femme clothing and be so comfortable being perceived as whatever gender made me hella envious. She'll be your handsome girl and your cute guy at the same time and little me wanted that more than anything. Also seeing her pull guys and gals of all types and her just being so nonchalant about not caring about gender whether it's hers, others, or who's attracted to really spoke to me. Now I'm a femboy trans guy and it's probably because of Haruhi and maybe her bisexual genderqueer dad, they're my icons."

"G E N D E R. I wish I could give as few fucks about my gender as Haruhi does about hers. Like, she does identify as a girl, but she genuinely does not care if people see her as a boy or a girl or something in-between, she just wants to be judged on her strength of character. And I was always so obsessed with that aspect of Haruhi's character literally from the first time I watched the anime five years before I started consciously questioning my gender."

"Seeing them disguised as a boy for most of the series (without being upset by it or seeing it as a joke even) made me understand I was transmasc better."

"Despite mostly using she/her, Haruhi's non-caring attitude about her gender helped me in my journey of learning my own nonbinary identity! She acknowledges she's afab but that means next to nothing to her! She doesn't care if people use he/him for her, she doesn't care if she's thought to be a boy by many others, she doesn't care whether she even presents as more feminine or masculine. Even if she's not canonically nonbinary, I consider her important to my journey in discovering I'm nonbinary."

"She gave me a deep desire to be a girl like her, because I've always wanted to be a tomboy when I transition, so she was a very early instance of that gender envy. Add in all the romantic situations she's in with girls as a host, really fed the lesbian in me."

"The fact I actually started the anime because I thought it was yaoi and I found the mc cute (because that's the kind of guys I was into at the time) and when I realized Haruhi was actually a biological girl the attraction stayed even when they were wearing girl clothes and I kinda had a bisexual huh. moment. Also not only did I want them I wanted to BE them, they looked good femme and masc and watching them be so chill about their gender was genuinely… enlightening? Idk all I know is I put less pressure in trying to be a "girl" after I finished the anime. Also just look at their big soft brown eyes, it had 12 y.o. me in a chokehold. Also, that anime was genuinely good when it came to fashion like there's some clothes trends there that no one wears today anymore for good reasons but the characters all somehow make it work still."

Ranma -

"A very young egg me got exposed to Ranma 1/2 and became so utterly obsessed with the idea of falling into the Spring of Drowned Girl that it led to me eventually realizing I was a trans girl. It warms my heart to know the new Ranma anime is probably cracking the eggs of a whole new generation."

"Genderqueer."

"i read this in my formative years and the egg only cracked years later... guy who sometimes looks like a girl but is decidedly a boy no matter what. trans icon."

"Realized I had a crush on Ranma, in both of his gender forms."

[yubellia]

OH MY GOSH! Season 6 is here! And Cerise/Lila whoever was super creepy and amazing!

„Nothing. Hah. Nothing. You know nothing about me, about us, about them. I‘m everywhere. I‘m nowhere. I‘m a chameleon. Nowhere. You won‘t get anywhere.“

——~~~——

Not gonna lie, I really don‘t like what they did to Marinette. The girl is struggling…. We get that…. But did they really have to make her act like this? She can‘t even really keep it together als Ladybug anymore. She can be lucky that the miraculous prevents people from noticing the obvious similarities.

But back to Cerise! We don‘t see her face in the entire episode. We only have her voice but that’s enough already. After all, sound is almost more important than visuals. What would Micheal Myers be without the iconic sound. Try it. Mute the movies. It won‘t work.

But anyway. I wonder, when she akumatized that girl, this is how she handles things. She just talks and offers a solution like a good friend. Siding with her victim. She doesn’t even demand anything. No „I’ll give you that power. In return I want Ladybugs and Chat Noirs miraculous!“ No. None of that!

Also, the camera zoomed in, almost like we were going into the victims head. Is this what actually happens to you, when you get akumatized? Bah! Imagine having Gabriel in your head like that! No sir. Thank you!

Could it be, that up until now, we saw the whole process from the outside? That would be so cool. It would also mean that Cerise clearly….. goes deeper that Gabriel could.

Also, we learned something very important. Apparently, they don‘t know better yet, Cerise akumatizes people randomly without the goal to attack. She just lets them cause chaos and the heroes come out. At first.

We also learn that Cerise writes EVERYTHING down!! Like girl, be careful with your hand! That must hurt! Also she technically creates tons of evidence. If she looses ONE of those notebooks, it’s game over. Unless she writes in code….. would not be surprised.

Also the end of the episode, where she is in the café „Nothing. Hah. Nothing. You know nothing about me, about us, about them. I‘m everywhere. I‘m nowhere. I‘m a chameleon. Nowhere. You won‘t get anywhere.“

I am not sure if she completely lost it NOW, if she ALWAYS was crazy like this, or, with her disguises and all, she is completely stating the truth.

But I know one thing.

I LOVE HER FOR IT!! I can‘t wait to actually see her! Also it seems like she upgraded her miraculous, just like Marinette did with all the others. At least that’s what I heard, could be a leak. She got the guardians book too after all from Nathalie in that one episode, together with all of Gabriel’s secrets.

So yeah… the new season started…. A bit meh. I really wish they could have given us the REAL first episode. But it seems like there is something wrong with the continuity anyway. Alya and Nino interviewed Sublime‘s mom, but she didn’t appear yet…. Strange….

But anyway, we might be missing some lore here.

I am still excited for more.