#( 'if i could trade with you i would' to any person who was envious of me )

[agenteight]

i think.... i want . top surgery <:]

[thebestsetter]

Thinking about Inumaki Toge being insecure about his speech (or the lack of thereof).

I feel like if he could trade a year of his life for sixty seconds without his cursed speech, he would. Without second thought. And specially because of you.

He's had a crush on you for a while (ever since your first encounter), but he'd never admit it. Not because he's scared of rejection, but because he's scared you'll reciprocate his feelings. Because he thinks you deserve better. Actually, scratch that: he knows you deserve better. You deserve someone so much better than him.

"And then you won't believe what he said! He said: 'I can't date you, cause I'm actually your brother!'"

"No way! That's the plot of the movie? How shitty!"

You deserve someone like Yuta. Someone who can make you laugh with their own words, someone who you don't need to strugle to understand what they're saying. Right now, you and Okkotsu are talking about some bad movie he watched. And you're laughing so hard and your laugh is so pretty it makes him wanna laugh too. He wants to engage on the conversation. He wants to say: "That's one of the worst plots I've ever seen! I can take you to the movies to see a real good movie if you'd like to"

But he can't. He can't, but Yuta can. He should let you go so you can be with someone who deserves you. He has no right to be this selfish, making you a slave of a love without any words of affection.

It feels like everytime he looks at you, there's a nagging voice in the back of his head, painfully reminding him that he can't be with you, and there's nothing he can do about it. It's an impossible love.

Hell, even Panda is making him feel envious and jealous. Even though he's literally a panda, at least he can talk to you. Sing your favorites songs with you. And he can't. At least not without cursing someone (and, God forbid, maybe even you. You're the last person he wants to harm)

He wanted you to confide in him just like how you confide in Maki. You always tell her everything. He wishes he, too, could be a source of relief. A shoulder you can rely on. But he can't. He can't, cause the best he could say in that situation is "Salmon", "Caviar" and other stupid onigiri ingredients that have nothing to do with the actual topic of the conversation. Honestly, he would be tired of himself if he was his friend. You don't have the obligation to understand his dialogue. Nobody does.

So, he comes to the conclusion that he should just avoid you. He should give up on loving you, because he doesn't want you to suffer.

"Toge, please! We haven't talked in days! Why did you suddenly stop talking to me?"

He stays silent. That's the only thing he can do, after all. He can't speak. He can't. But he wishes he could. He wishes he could tell you everything that's going through his head, tell you about how he feels like dying when he sees you playing a game with Itadori and Nobara because he knows he'll never be capable of doing that with you normally. If he speaks now, everything that'll come out of his mouth are foods. Speaking now would only remind him about the drift that exists between you both (and there's two options to avoid anyone's fall: you either close the gap or you widen it. He chose the latter)

"..."

"Inumaki, talk to me" (how sad. You want him to do exactly the only thing he can't do. That just makes him remember that he'll never be enough for you. Never)

Also, wow. You're using his last name. He got in a really bad situation, huh? How will he get out of this? How will he stop your (and also his) suffering?

There's only one way. And even though he swore that he'd never use his spell against you, he finds himself lowering his scarf with trembling hands.

"Leave. And don't look back."

~A/N: This is the fic I wrote that I mentioned on my last post!! I know a lot of people have writen abt this b4, so this is inspired by other stories I've read (if you've written something like this and want me to credit you, feel free to send me an ask!!). IT JUST FITS INUMAKI CHARACTER SO MUCHHH!! Like, I can totally imagine him being insecure about not being able to speak. I just thought I should give it a try cause I CAN'T FIND INUMAKI STUFF, so I took matters into my own hands. I don't realy like this, but I thought it would be a waste to not post it anyway

Masterlist

[idkwhatimdoinghere1655]

What Was I Made For? - Charles Leclerc

<word count - 1251>

Another day: done. Another day that had felt like it had been wasted doing your ever so boring job while you watched pedestrians walk in and out, smiling as their carefree hours whizzed by. 

You served coffee after coffee, frappe after frappe, and each one took you an inch closer to insanity. As soon as the clock struck five, you threw your apron into your locker and traded it for your jacket. 

Just as you were about to slip out of the employees only back exit, you heard your boss collaring your name. You were just going to pretend you couldn't hear and leave anyway, but there was no ignoring her when she tapped you on the shoulder.

"Y/N, I'm going to need you to put in a few extra hours next week since we're pretty short on staff and we've been really busy lately," she smiled, and the urge to punch her in the face had never been stronger. The last thing you wanted was to put in more hours of your life doing the least rewarding job you had ever had. 

"Do I get paid any extra or anything?" you asked. You only did the job for the money, since you liked to have some independence from Charles. As expected, he had offered to support your life since he made more than enough, but you wanted to do something with your life. But this wasn't it.

"Sorry honey, the best I can do is more coffee coupons," she chirped, and you wondered how she was always so cheerful and happy. It was almost envious. Well, it would be if it wasn't so damn infuriating and irritating. 

"Just send me through the hours," you tutted, not wasting anymore time in that god forsaken coffee shop than you had to. Walking back home, you couldn't help but frown at all of the people around you, enjoying what they did for a living. 

They were all making names for themselves, leading fulfilling lives and living their dreams. And then there was you, serving coffees just finding a way to spend time. 

What were you doing with your life? Who were you supposed to be? Why did you have to live through groundhog day every day?

As per usual, you walked past the art gallery, boasting creativity and colour, and the jewellery stores with glittering pieces that you wished you had made. Just so someone would recognize something you had done. 

Finally, you arrived at the safe haven that was the apartment you shared with Charles. He wasn't back yet, since he had gone for dinner with some friends for the evening.

You got yourself comfortable, taking a shower and snuggling up on the couch. As you watched a movie, you couldn't help but feel saddened by the actor's success.

They were household names, doing what they loved for a living. And there you were. Sat on your couch counting the hours away.

You just wished you could have been like them - even if just a little bit. Hell, you just wanted to be someone. You just wanted be something.

These thoughts rushed through your head for a while, so much to the point where you failed to notice the movie had ended and you were staring at a blank screen with watery eyes.

You also failed to notice the front door opening and closing as a tear of disdain and jealousy rolled down your cheek. "Hey, amor. How are you?" Charles asked, but you couldn't snap out of your darkened haze.

"Y/N? Are you alright?" He asked again, placing a hand on your shoulder and shaking you slightly.

"What am I doing with my life?" You asked, your eyes still glued to the black screen. You didn't hesitate to ask, there was no point. "What?" he asked, clearly not understanding the question.

"Who am I?" you asked, and Charles just looked at you, trying to figure out what you were asking. This was so out of the blue since you were normally a happy, cheerful kind of person.  "Exactly, I'm no one," you said, leaning forward and resting your elbows on your knees after he didn't respond.

"I just serve shitty coffee to shitty people and that is my life," you continued, the frustration building as you spoke. "Nobody knows who I am and nobody cares," you rambled, shrugging his hand away.

"Baby, you know that's not true," he said, struggling to come up with something to help you snap out of the stupor. He wondered how long you had felt like this for it to all come out so suddenly and strongly. "There's no point in trying that, Charles. I know it is,"

"I used to be untouchable," you sighed, thinking back to when you met Charles and what had lead up to it. You had worked your ass off like you had through your whole life. You tried hard in school and did everything you could to contribute to your community and others around you. 

"I used to be amazing, and now look at me," you babbled. You were living your dream, but you left your job to move to Monaco with Charles. "I threw it all away," you whispered, not wanting Charles to think it was his fault in the slightest. 

"But you are amazing," he tried to console, his heart breaking to hear you talk about yourself like this. "Not anymore," you said, thinking about what you could have been. Long distance could have worked and maybe you'd be happy right now.

"You can be whatever you want to be, you know that right?" he asked, not realising what he had set himself up for. "I'm not talented enough to be a singer, I'm not pretty enough to be a model, I'm not charismatic enough to be a talk show host, I'm not driven enough to have my dream be my job like you,"

"Everyone already has their lives planned out and are making leaps and bounds towards their end goal, and then there's me. Wasting my time and wallowing in my own self pity," you sighed, and Charles was wracking his brains for something that might help.

"You're still young, baby, you have loads of time to figure it out. And once you do, you have more than enough to get yourself there because you can do anything you put your mind to," he tried to reassure, mentally cursing at himself for how cheesy that sounded.

He hated that you had this opinion of yourself. To him, it didn't matter if you were the most talented, the prettiest, the most charismatic. It just mattered that you were you and he loved you for that. 

"But everyone else has it figured out. Everyone is already someone. You're Charles Leclerc, the face of Ferrari, the man from Monaco, hero to children across the globe. You have a purpose.  And what about me? Well that's exactly it, I'm just me," 

"There's no such thing as 'just me'. You are hard-working beyond belief, you take pride in your job, you care about other people, you're the love of my life. Surely that's enough?" he desperately tried to claw you back out of the slump, but his sweet words couldn't shield the darkness this time.

"Maybe it isn't, not anymore," you mumbled, standing from the couch and shutting yourself in the bedroom, leaving Charles sat on the couch by himself, gobsmacked. He didn't know how to help you realise how brilliant you really were, but you didn't really know either.  

A/N - I went to see Barbie the other night, and this song just destroyed me. I guess it just made me think about things, y'know? If anyone has any requests, feel free to submit them, I adore writing them!

|masterlist|

[dark-kingdom-stan-account]

Just like any self-respecting Utena fan, I've latched onto a (semi) minor detail that I just can't find a satisfactory explanation for!

(MASSIVE RGU (series and movie) spoilers ahead!)

As someone who has engaged with RGU supplementary material plenty, it often goes out of its way to point out how Miki's eyes are "like crystals" and similar things. You can see it in the game and in the light novels.

The fan translation is accurate in this case.

So after staring at movie screenshots one too many times, I noticed that his eyes aren't blue there... they're green! And he's the only character whose eyes changed like this.

What does this mean? My first thought was to connect it with the characters who most prominently have green eyes in the series - Anthy, Akio and Dios. The characters who have the most power despite also being the most trapped in the system, with Anthy in particular having the power in the movie and being the only one of the three who is alive - if some theories are to be believed, she was the one who created the world the movie takes place in in the first place. However, she's also the person most trapped in it too.

However, their eyes are definitely not the same shade. More on that later.

An interesting part occurs in the movie during the Touga and Shiori scene - we cut to Miki and Kozue in the bath. It seems Miki has grown since the anime - he accepts that there's no going back to their childhood, and tells Kozue she's still precious to him. In response, Kozue threatens him with a razor and calls him a traitor.

And yet, the next time we see them, Kozue has become a car, and he smiles after she passes by, not sparing her a single glance. What happened? Did she become a sacrifice? She isn't seen individually afterwards unlike Shiori or Wakaba, she becomes just another car in the locust crowd. Perhaps more unsettling is the reason he gives to Juri for being a duelist - "I always wish to obtain more power". Juri responds to him by calling it manly.

That fucking smirk haunts me. Anyway.

Pursuit of power - doesn't this ring a bell? Perhaps like a certain student council president? Of course, in the movie, Touga is dead, so perhaps someone else took his place in the narrative... Miki. The unsettling implications of what happened to Kozue seem to add to this. Not quite as sinister as Touga's relationship with Nanami, and there's no reason to see it as similarly complex, but also I don't see what else it could be.

So even though Miki appears to be pursuing power at the cost of even his sister, potentially, he's unable to get there. His eyes are not the same shade as Anthy or Akio, not even close - they're much brighter. He appears to have shed some of his innocence - no longer wishing to go back to that garden - but he traded it to pursue more power. No wonder he isn't ready to leave Ohtori yet.

An English-speaking person may also be tempted to connect this to the common expression of "green-eyed envy", and yet I'm profoundly unsure if this is the case. He's never shown to be envious of the power possessed by anyone (unlike Touga, he can't look up to Akio, who is also very dead), even if he and Juri see the ghost of Dios inspecting the cars.

However, no matter how much he desires power, in the end, he's one of the people helping Utena and Anthy escape. He tells them how to go to the outside world. He promises the student council will join them eventually. Arguably the most good-natured interaction Anthy has with any of them.

His eyes appear to be showing how much he's changed since we saw him in the anime, and in some ways, perhaps not for the best. However, he's not fully trapped in the hell of Ohtori Academy yet - there is hope for him, even if he's strayed into such a dangerous path.

In the end, I think all of them deserve their revolution, even if the road getting there is bumpy.

...Or maybe they thought it would fit him more to have green eyes idk lol-

[spacelazarwolf]

Also wrt the “transition for trans women is so much harder” like…we could do that too you know! There are absolutely aspects of transition that are easier one way, but that doesn’t make the entire process of transitioning easier in one direction than any other. It is no more helpful to say trans women have it harder because they have facial hair and other permanent effects of androgens that aren’t solved by HRT than it is for me to say “oh trans women have it so much easier because they can take estrogen to grow tits and just wear breastforms to pass in the meantime, whereas I have to get major surgery before people will stop misgendering me cuz my tits are so big that even binding isn’t enough.”

Everything i said there may be factually true, but that doesn’t make it helpful or reasonable to say. Breastforms are expensive, and not every trans girl on HRT will have an easy time growing breasts. Everyone has a different experience transitioning. Not every trans guy has an easy time growing facial hair, or binding, or with voice cracks. Some transfemmes have almost no facial or body hair, naturally softer facial features.

(Some transfemmes even naturally have tits! Lookin at you people with gynecomastia and other related intersex conditions!)

Like, especially with that person who said you couldn’t transition because transfems envy your body. Like, i just genuinely cannot imagine what gets in someone’s head to make them say things like “it’s transphobic to…*checks notes* be a trans man.” I hate to be the one to break this to them, but lots of trans men feel the same way about transfemmes! I sure did! Especially before i came out to myself I was so envious of my transfemme friends flat chests and deeper voices. I couldn’t understand why anyone would give up what I saw as clearly the better deal in favor of what I had. Does that mean it was somehow bigoted of them to transition? No! That’s literally the weirdest thing anyone has ever said!

seriously like. transition isn't easy for any of us! even in a perfect world it would still be stressful bc ur body is changing a ton!! instead of arguing abt who has it worse, we should be trading clothes and playing dnd.

[anemic-kazutora]

No one mourns the Wicked

If you like Kisaki, I automatically like you, just so you know.

I wanted to make a point about how, to me, it is obvious that his thinking isn't actually healthy, that there is something we are forced to overlook because of the narrative that makes Kisaki's reasoning about Hina make sense in his own head. By this I mean that there is no way someone as smart as Kisaki would pursue the plan he concocted if not for the need to desperately fight against something, which, I argue, would be loneliness, and the feeling of worthlessness that comes when you realize that your efforts mean nothing if there is nobody to acknowledge them.

Kisaki liked Hina, she was his childhood crush, but also so much more than that, because she was the first kid to ever treat him nicely and not like he was some subhuman weirdo because of his aptitude in school. She was the only one who showed the willingness to accept and welcome an outcast like him, not in spite of his perceived weirdness, but because of it- and this is where I argue that Kisaki is most likely neurodivergent, whether one agrees or not. She's a lovely person, she is everything that is good (I love her very much).

It feels to me like Kisaki is a number of things: - a "gifted child"/"genius", the type that adults love and kids despise, the type that has no friends because of it, the type that decides their own worth based on their successes or failures because their talent is all they are and ever will be to anybody who meets them; - plagued by the need to fit in, be accepted and recognized without actually changing himself in ways that betray his core values/what he thinks makes Kisaki Tetta Kisaki Tetta (which is something that is, I think, shaky and hazy to himself also. He's his brain and his smarts, but what else...?); - convinced that he's inherently unlovable and worthless unless he has tangible proof of his own successes (which is why he confesses to Hina only after realizing his 10 year plan) while also thinking, constantly, somewhere in his brain, that he's above everyone, that he just needs to show them just what he can do, that he's so much more than any normal person could hope to be; - unable to see others' affection as anything but transactional (something he can earn like a medal, something he has to trade for); - unknowingly (to a degree) desperate for genuine human connection (which he finds in Hanma despite not realizing it, because he's 13-14, they are both too young and neither really realizes that death can happen to them, too, and that they probably never could make it clear that they genuinely did care for one another); - deeply lonely and envious of everyone who isn't and is naturally a people magnet (Takemichi, Mikey, for instance).

To me, he was simply a boy who wanted to prove that he could do something great just by himself and on his own terms, that he was enough as a person for others to look up to and acknowledge, that he was worthy of the same love Takemichi could effortlessly get, just by being his naively heroic self. But he got caught up in the idea that Kisaki Tetta was what everyone else told him he was: a weirdo one should stay away from. He made that his strength, he became exactly what they said he was, because his admiration for Takemichi turned sour when it became clear that his charisma meant there would be nothing left for him. He mentions that a gang leader needs to have the looks to be successful in the part. He has resigned himself to the spot of those who lack every quality he values (outside of his own smarts), but he never stopped hoping that he could stand where the others, the "good" ones, like Takemichi himself, stood. He wanted to be like him, and be liked like him. But he couldn't, because he wasn't Hanagaki Takemichi, he was only Kisaki Tetta.

The end of the manga proves that simply having a friend who understood him from the start would have allowed him to become the fulfilled person he was always meant to be, that he was never inherently evil. He was just suffering through what Takemichi describes as the most painful thing. He was alone.

He was alone and he died alone. At 14, on a February night, on the asphalt, alone, under the horrified gaze of someone who had just had the thought that he would have deserved to die, someone whom he looked up to, despite everything, who had just told him that now everyone knew what he was up to and that nobody would ever listen to him again. He died alone and the only friend he had was too far away, and came too late. He died alone and the only one who could truly miss Kisaki Tetta was Hanma himself, while Takemichi belatedly realized that it shouldn't have ended that way and that it still wasn't right, that Kisaki was just like him: weak and only powering through by sheer force of will. He died alone, and he was the only one who died thinking and saying that he didn't want to.

He never got to be graced with forgiveness like Kazutora and Izana. Nobody even tried to understand him, save for Hanma and Takemichi.

No one mourns the Wicked. Yes, goodness knows The Wicked's lives are lonely Goodness knows The Wicked cry alone Nothing grows for the wicked They reap only what they've sown.

[blowflyfag]

WORLD WRESTLING ENTERTAINMENT MAGAZINE: January 2003

Psycho-Diva

Look Out, Trish–Victoria’s Gone Over the Edge!

By Brian Solomon

Jealously can be a very dangerous emotion. It was the Renaissance Italian statesman Niccolo Machiavelli who said that all hatred springs from envy. If there’s any truth to that, then Victoria must be the most envious person in all of WWE, because the hatred she harbors for Trish Stratus is about as strong and destructive as it gets. And if Trish isn’t careful, it could spell the end of her run as Raw’s dominant Diva.

Victoria’s jealousy of Trish is obvious to even the most casual viewer. While Victoria would vehemently disagree, her behavior would belie her claims. She can hem and haw about how Trish sabotaged her career as a fitness model, but that’s nothing more than simple bitterness. Victoria was never able to reach the heights that Trish did in the fitness world, so she takes out her frustration on her rival. It’s Human Nature 101: If you fail, blame those who succeed. 

For years, the green-eyed monster of envy possessed Victoria’s soul, but until now she was unable to exact any revenge. While Trish Stratus ascended to WWE glory, first as a manager and then as a competitor, Victoria wallowed in anonymity, powerless to stop her meteoric rise.

But all that’s changed. Trish can no longer categorize Victoria among the untold number who burn with envy toward her. Now Victoria shares the same locker room as her, competes on the same roster as her–even eats in the same arena commissaries as her. It’s got to be hard looking across the room, pretending not to see a woman scorching a hole in you with her eyes.

Taken at face value, it’s actually quite a testament to Victoria’s perseverance and dedication. Let’s face it, she set a goal for herself and achieved it. Tired of watching Trish every week on TV, Victoria stopped wallowing in frustration, deceiving to become a WWE Superstar herself and beat Trish at her own game. If she were a normal, sane young lady, this would certainly be a praiseworthy accomplishment. But she’s not. 

Victoria is WWE’s first-ever certifiable, grade-A wacko Diva. The only female of the past who even comes close would be Luna Vachon, but compared to Victoria, Luna was downright well-adjusted. That’s because Victoria’s obsessions and hang-ups are buried deep below the surface. Unlike the more histrionic and campy Luna, Victoria is an insane woman pretending to be sane–a deadly formula if ever there was one.

Almost no one–except maybe Trish–really knows how long this anger and bile have been building up inside Victoria. Whatever the case, her pent-up aggression has wrecked some heavy-duty damage to the woman’s psyche. In fact, it may be completely beyond repair.

“I usually don’t use such colloquial terminology, but this girl is batty,” opined renowned sports-entertainment psychologist Dr. Sigmund Ziff when contacted for comment. “To tell you the truth, from what I’ve seen of her, I can’t imagine anything short of intensive shock therapy making a dent in her psychosis. I’ve treated some difficult cases in my day–I was the guy who got George “the Animal” Steele to verbalize for the first time in his adult life–and even I have to throw up my hands.

“The layman may not fully appreciate it,” Ziff continued, “but even Victoria’s most subtle words and actions scream out to the trained analytical mind. She is capable of some terrible things. The last thing anyone should want is to be perceived by her as an obstacle. Honestly, I can’t even fathom how WWE could hire someone this unstable. Their staff psychologists should have spotted this problem right from the beginning.”

While that opinion is solely Dr. Ziff’s, we can’t help but ask the question: Should someone like this be allowed to ply their trade in a WWE ring? While it’s certainly true that WWE has had its fair share of madmen and maniacs on the roster in the past (and present), there have never really been any madwoman. Frankly, we’re not sure that the Women’s Division can contain such a presence. This is not meant as a knock, but any rational viewer would admit that many of our lovely Divas are simply unprepared to cope with the out-and-out menace that Victoria represents. People’s livelihoods and well-being are at stake here.

Perhaps if Victoria’s diseased brain existed in the body of a Stacy Keibler or a Terri, we would have less reason to be worried. But it doesn’t. It resides in a lethally skilled, athletically honed body that was built for combat. While she definitely possesses the sultry and seductive looks we’ve come to expect from WWE’s Divas, she is no dainty little damsel. Victoria is equal parts brawn and beauty, blending the two in a way not seen in WWE since the days of Chyna.

Trish Stratus is certainly no slouch either. In the past year, she has metamorphosed into an elite female competitor. Many so-called experts as well as naysayers have had their mouths shut by the ring prowess Trish demonstrated as Women's Champion. But we can only ask so much of her. There are many men on the WWE roster who would have their hands full in a match with Victoria. Trish’s defeat at the hands of Victoria at Survivor Series was surely not the end. The Women’s Championship has appeased Victoria, but her goal is far from achieved. Victoria will not stop until Trish is completely ruined.

Victoria is, after all, someone who still holds a grudge from fitness competitions that took place years ago. She’s not about to let a few setbacks get in her way. After all, it’s a lifetime of setbacks that resulted in the person she is today. In her mind, it’s time to make up for all that. Just like all those who are so warped by past traumas that they are unable to place the blame where it belongs–on themselves–Victoria refuses to see things for what they really are. Instead of making the healthy decision to safely channel her aggression in a productive manner, she has chosen chaos. 

Only sweet revenge can offer Victoria solace. And if she has her way, Trish Stratus will be the one sacrificed for her psychological health.

[6leggedhorse]

The Evil Eye: What is it? How Can I protect Myself? Personal Life Update & Experience With The Evil Eye.

I’d like to start off this blog post with an apology, I completely forgot about yesterday’s blog post. This was because I had a family emergency in which I’ll explain further down the post. Feel free to skip the personal life update as it can be put simply: family dog crossed the rainbow bridge unexpectedly last weekend and I’m grieving.

Have you ever met someone that doesn’t like you? Perhaps they envy you or wish you nothing but the worst for you. Or maybe you’ve done this yourself wishing that one shitty co-worker would step on legos bare foot or get their soaks drenched and possibly wished that their pillow is always warm. The Evil Eye, Nazar, or in Latinx/Hispanic cultures may call it Mal De Ojos and in Italy they refer to it as Malocchico. With the uprise of spirituality, the evil eye has been noticed and mentioned more and more. So before we dive right into this grab your favorite drink and snack, your fur baby, and get cozy cause we’re gonna talk about The Evil Eye.

What is The Evil Eye?

The Evil Eye is a hex, curse, jinx or simply bad energy/harmful wishes, thoughts and desires that is casted upon the u aware victim by giving the victim a ‘evil’ glare. This glare is spiteful. Envious. Enraged. Hateful. Mean. You name it there is ill will intertwined with it. However, nowadays you will see beads, bracelets, necklaces, amulets, mini tress, rings, car accessories and more with the blue amulet that looks like this 🧿. You can find this amulet in different colors, styles, and in different shops like Etsy, Amazon, Earth Bound Trading Co. (I think). And any spiritual and metaphysical shop. Some people have even tattooed this symbol onto their bodies with reports of it later fading away as time went on. The goal of this amulet is to protect you and shield you from the negative energy being sent your way. It is also known to have a return to sender effect and send that nasty energy back to the source.

This amulet is said to have its origins traced back to the country of Turkey and a couple middle eastern countries. In some cultures it’s an incantation while in others it’s a physical symbol.

How Do I Protect Myself?

So The Evil Eye can be either intentionally or be mistakenly done without the caster’s knowledge. In order to protect yourself, you should understand what the colors mean that way you can protect yourself accordingly to your specific situation.

Dark Blue: protects your fate/karma, communication and how to circumnavigate chaos

Light Blue: Basic protection, opening your mind up, peace

Black: I hear black can also transmute the negative energy and turn it into positive energy for the wearer (if this is true share you stories), power and prosperity

Brown: Earthly connections

Orange: creativity and happiness (could possibly help with your inner child work)

Dark Green: life balance and happiness

Light Green: Success, health and power

Violet: protects your love life, boosts intuition and communication

Red: protects you from anxiety and fear, boosts energy, confidence

Pink: (I hear it can protect your love life too and if it’s true please share your stories), helps keep you calm, save friendships, happiness

Purple: takes obstacles away, life balance

Yellow: protects health, protects you from burning out

Grey:soothes intense energies, protects against sorrow, makes one feel secure

White: Purifies, removal of obstacles

Now that you know what color you need, you can wear it, or keep one on your keys, keep one in the car or hand some up in your home. Be sure to cleanse it though because you do not know the person who handled it before and what kind of energy they got. You can draw it too on a canvas but as always be sure to cleanse your tools before doing any sort of witchy project! Also if it breaks or explodes, get a new one ASAP. DO NOT FIX IT. if it breaks it has served its purpose.

Personal Life Update

⚠️TRIGGER WARNING ⚠️ TW: MENTION OF ANIMAL DEATH, ANIMAL SURGERY, ANIMAL BASED INFECTION, GREIF

So, one of my family dogs died last week Saturday. I was at work when I got the call from my step mom telling me the dog is extremely sick with a uterine infection and that she is going to need surgery. The surgery was high risk, but it was a risk my family was willing to take to try and save her. The doctor took labs and x-rays and saw that her reproductive organs haven’t ruptured and the surgery would need to happen that night. My family opted to put her through surgery to try and save her. How ever by the time the doctor got in, it was far too late. Not only was it ruptured, she had gone septic. Her whole body was infected. Her survival rate went from a 50% to 0%, her quality of life would be extremely poor.

I refuse to go into the gore parts of it because it’s just too graphic to share with all of you and it’s haunting to still think about. This grief based scar is still fresh in my mind. I was extremely devastated by the details and once I got home from work she had been euthanized humanely. Now this infection happens suddenly, especially in intact female dogs who are not spayed and haven’t had puppies. Some breeds are more likely to get this infection than other breeds. Now, the dog did not show signs of discomfort, pain or suffering prior to the emergency vet visit, not until the very end as she stopped eating and walking suddenly. This infection happens quickly, so quickly in fact that the best way to avoid this is to spay your dog as soon as they’re eligible. I cannot begin to describe how sudden this all was. This past week feels so unreal, after work that night I screamed in my car before I drove home. I cried all night, I couldn’t eat, my boyfriend ended up driving me to Jack in The Box to get us comfort food that way I can eat. I cried talking to him over the phone keeping him updated about it too while he was working. I called off of work that same night. The dog that passed was never fixed due to the vet costs.

I want you guys to take this story to heart, not in a mean vengeful way, but as a PSA and cautionary tale. For the love of the gods, please, fix your dogs. Cats. whatever animal you have whether it’s a boy or girl. Neuter and spay them if you have no intention to breed them. Please look into local resources that can help get your dogs fixed at a reasonable cost, ask for that extra $50. Skip that Pumpkin Spice Latte from Starbucks. You don’t need that new eyeshadow palette from Ulta. My family is very responsible with the animals, I want to emphasize that, because even the most responsible pet owners still can experience unexpected tragedies. Even if they’re prepared for the worst. 

Personal Experience With The Evil Eye

So, now my experience is low key silly, but to make a long story short, before I got with my partner, I met this other guy who, I didn’t realize at the time was a complete pile of shit. I put workings on us to have him dump his GF and to get with me.(see where this is going?) Well, hail Loki those workings didn’t get too far as I met my boyfriend and got with him. Other time, I reversed some of the workings expect for the break up and domination ones (I was more focused of getting this pile of shit who I refer to as Dollar Tree Danny Zuko out of my energy.) I also need to mention that it is confirmed he treats his GF like crap too, hence why I didn’t reverse some of the workings. When I reversed the binding work, the next day I got a reading detailing what may happen as the working progresses. Not even half an hour later, my evil eye bracelet, exploded. I was putting on a shirt, it didn’t snag on a string or anything. I put on one of my Steven Rhodes shirts and it exploded all over my bedroom. Luckily I had a couple more evil eye jewelry as back ups in case of the event it would happen again.

I also like to mention that Loki does NOT like Dollar Tree Danny Zuko. Here is how they describe him:

References

Epilogue

There you have it, a long boi post to try and make up for Friday’s forgotten post. I do apologize for the personal life update. But Grieving the loss of a pet is one of the most difficult things to experience. My family’s other dog is grieving as well, my sister pampered her today with a bath and quality time as they both mourn (they’re soul mates ISTG). For more information on The Evil Eye, there is a book on Amazon that goes more in depth about this topic. If you would like to go on a head and read it, cool, unless you wanna wait for me to review it, because I got bills coming up and I’m on call for work right now so I’m doing everything I can not to spend unless there is a sale for E-books. I look forward to posting on time next week. Thank you for taking the time to read this. I hope I get to see y’all next week! Until next time I’ll catch y’all on the flip side! Here is the Amazon link:

The Evil Eye: The History, Mystery, and Magic of the Quiet Curse https://a.co/d/8evW9iS

[jeanie-g]

#22 Drysdale and Zegras for the Spotify wrapped

this one worked out soooo well cuz this song acts as a perfect companion to my "#81 - #SELFIE" fic, so go read that before this! (also sorry in advance i'll make a happy fic soon i swear! lol)

[#22] You First (Re: Remi Wolf) (Paramore)

I like it when you're pissed off / Fucked up in the head / It makes me feel a little less crazy

Jamie knows he's being a piece of shit, but he can't help it. He knows that Trevor feels like Jamie's using him—he's vocal enough about it—and maybe he is, but it's for both their benefit.

Things were easier in Anaheim. Jamie had everything under control. He and Trevor could hook up as they pleased and any blossoming feelings Jamie began to harbor could be neatly shelved in the "Worry about it later" pile, a box with chains he could leave to gather dust in his closet.

And then he got traded to Philly, and he realized pretty fucking quickly that he never had control of anything. And God—he missed Trevor like a limb. Not just fucking him, but talking to him. Being with him. Getting to see his smile in person every single day.

Jamie realized that probably meant he was in love with the bastard, and he freaked out. He ghosted Trevor for six months, and when the Ducks came to play the Flyers for the first time the next season, Trevor gave him a piece of his mind. Jamie was so relieved that Trevor was lastingly mad at him; it gave him an out to forget his feelings and move on forever. And then Trevor surged forward to kiss him, and one thing led to another, ending with Trevor on his knees and Jamie feeling very conflicted.

Jamie always hated feeling his control slip. How could Trevor be so forgiving? Jamie was a terrible friend, and Trevor was stupid for even giving him the time of day. Yet there he was, still as beautiful as the day he left him, still wanting him, and, and...

That box was rattling in its chains, and it made Jamie sweat. Who did Trevor think he was, storming in there and making Jamie question everything? It was Trevor's fault he felt like this: open and vulnerable and without control.

So, with his blood boiling and his heart hammering, Jamie got mean. He tightened his grip on Trevor's hair and ground out insults that he really wanted to hurdle at himself. And Trevor...liked it? When Jamie dug his fingers into Trevor's scalp or called him degrading names, Trevor didn't pull off and spit in his face. He whimpered. Jamie pulled back and came all over his face.

And so began their weird, little dance. Jamie had control; he could keep Trevor at an arm's reach, never too far but never too close. He was mean, and Trevor was mean right back. It was a far cry from romance, and that fact kept Jamie steady.

Jamie'd intentionally do things to piss him off. Trevor was a jealous, jealous creature, so he'd post photos of him hugging his teammates or slinging an arm around a pretty fan. Trevor would blow up his phone with angry text messages, and then Jamie'd send a photo of his leaking dick. Like clockwork, his screen would light up with a FaceTime from Trevor, and that's all she wrote.

The seldom times they got to see each other in person were extra special. Jamie made Trevor beg for it, and then he fucked him so hard the bed frame shook against the wall. And every time he felt the pull to hold Trevor close and never let go, he just fucked him harder.

It was stupid; it was self-destruction, but it was better than the alternative.

Yet, Jamie couldn't even have that.

*

It all falls apart after their last game of the season vs the Ducks. Jamie was set to meet Trevor at a bar downtown. Trevor wanted to talk, which made Jamie nervous enough. But right when he put on his coat, Cam asked if he could tag along. He hadn't seen Z in ages.

Cam didn't know any better—why would he?—and Jamie got a lightbulb. Trevor couldn't discuss whatever he was intending to with one of his bros right there. Plus, Jamie knows Trevor is envious of Cam—always has been, so the two of them arriving together... it'd be an added bonus.

Jamie purposely arrived earlier than the calling time and parked his ass at a table across from the bar. Cam brought back two girls along with their Heinekens, and they chatted meaninglessly for a while. Beers turned into tequila shots and Cam liked them. Jamie lost track of time.

So it's maybe an hour past their rendezvous time when he spots Trevor in his periphery, drinking at the bar. He has an empty glass beside him already, and a brand new shiner from the game. It makes Jamie feel vulnerable, possessive things. And so without thinking, he throws an arm around Cam and tucks him close.

Cam sputters into his drink from the jolt, and Jamie just laughs. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees Trevor take a long sip of his drink. Jamie smiles; good, he's pissed. Well, more pissed than he probably was.

With Trevor in his sightline, Jamie lets the tension marinate. He even laughs into Cam's neck at one point, earning a Dude, you're playing with fire right now hissed in his ear.

He thinks he does push it too far when he sees Trevor get up, throw some cash on the bar, and leave. That won't do; Trevor leaving is not very conducive to meet Jamie's end goal of fucking his face.

So, he slips his phone out of his pocket and shoots off a message to Trevor.

Jamie: You're so hot when you're pissed.

Jamie: Bathroom. Five minutes.

A response comes almost immediately.

Trevor: fuck you

Trevor: fine

And Jamie knows he's got him.

He tells Cam and the girls that he's off to the restroom. It's a single stall (Jamie checked ahead of time), so he enters and waits.

Five minutes later, on the dot, Trevor comes barreling in, and Jamie can already feel that something's off. Trevor's wobbling, for one thing; from their distance, he hadn't looked drunk at all. And sure, Jamie's not exactly sober either, but he's not nearly as sauced as Trevor. Thoughts of any canoodling have to get shelved for now; Jamie's an asshole but he's not a dick.

Trevor seems ignorant to this, though, swaying in to kiss Jamie on the mouth. Jamie pulls right back, putting his hands on Trevor's arms where he's squirming.

"Stop teasing me, Jame. Please."

"I'm not—" Jamie grunts. "I'm not teasing you, Trev. You're drunk."

"What did you expect?" He's slurring slightly, and it worries him. "It's a bar. Duh."

Jamie rolls his eyes. "We're not doing anything if you're drunk."

"Why not?"

Jamie doesn't deign that with an answer. "Z, c'mon. Let's get you an uber, okay?"

Trevor pouts. "Why are you so mean to me?" he asks, jabbing an accusatory finger to Jamie's chest. "You're mean."

And Jamie has to sort of balk at that. He's trying to help him. The mean façade he's been spending the better part of an hour building up has all but vanished. It's all performative anyways, and he knows Trevor likes it. He has textual and photographic evidence that he does.

"I'm not mean."

Trevor screws up his face. He raises his voice. "Yes you are. I...I..." he waves his arms, trying to find the words. "I wanna make things work, but all you wanna do is fuck me."

"What?"

"I've always wanted to—to be more, but you use me and... I keep coming back. It's mean. You're mean."

Jamie has to blink several times before Trevor's words make any sense. When they finally do, it's like static descends on his ears. "You...you want to be more?"

Trevor clicks his tongue, and his eyes become clearer. "I did."

Those words pierce Jamie's heart clean through. He thinks he can feel the exit wound in his back, dripping blood through his tee shirt.

"You know what, fuck this," Trevor says, laughing mirthlessly. It sounds almost cruel. "Fuck this."

And before Jamie can say another word, Trevor's out of the bathroom.

Jamie leans against the sink, turning his head to look at himself in the mirror. The fluorescent ceiling lights choose then to flicker, casting him in intermittent shadows.

And if that's what Trevor sees, Jamie can't say he blames him.

[imtheiliad]

I want to preface this by saying that I love my best friend an exorbitant amount. We have been through hell with each other, there’s a reason she is the only person from high school I still talk to. Who I would call other than my mom. All that jazz.

But, hanging out with her and her friends is a total double edged sword. They are all lovely people. She deserves this. Our social lives are mirrors and that’s why we found each other.

But I can’t help but feel a little jealous and envious, which I don’t enjoy and I feel guilty for because like I said, she deserves it. There’s a part of me that is asking what did she do differently to have good college friends that widened her social net. Why does she get a roommate she met in college. Several friends that live in her neighborhood. a partner. A perfect little apartment in a cute neighborhood that could have anything you needed around the corner.

Now I wouldn’t trade living alone and juniper for anything, these things are very important to me. But I’m so fundamentally lonely and alone that it hurts. And the neighborhood I live in doesn’t help. There’s no shops and convenience stores or restaurants. There’s barely any other apartment buildings which I feel contributes to the nature. It’s very residential.

And I very much enjoyed spending time with people my own age, cause my brothers friends are cool and all but it’s very large six years that separate us right now. And they aren’t mine.

It just feels like there is something so fundamentally wrong with me that I can’t hold onto friends, which dissuades me from even fucking trying. And I’m so fucking tired of being lonely.

[signedkoko]

Hello, me again, sorry lol,

I was wondering, could I please get a Helluva Boss matchup? multiple characters are okay, if you think it's fitting or necessary.

I'm 21, pansexual/romantic, and polyamorous

General personality stuff:

MBTI is INFP

Ennegram types 2, 4 and 8

Zodiac Taurus sun, pieces moon and rising

Appearance: 5'3, kinda chubby, a few tattoos, somewhat muscular, tan, brown eyes, brown hair (it's usually dyed or bleached), and a few piercings. I've also got a fair amount of scars. I'm pretty plain, I'm ngl. Fashion consists of graphic tees (with puns, memes, and trippy art) and jeans or shorts. I'll wear lots of different kinds of jewelry, and don't really have a set aesthetic.

my friends have told me that I'm smart, funny, sarcastic, polite, thoughtful, strong, empathetic and compassionate. I can be jealous/envious (but I've been working on not letting it affect my relationships). I have a bad habit of taking stuff personally and dwelling on issues that I should let go. I don't love being around new People and can get annoyed/frustrated easily, especially if I'm overstimulated. I do my best to stay patient, though. I'm also very jumpy and gullible. I've been told that I'm a bit too trusting, and it's very easy to appeal to my emotions. Communication is very important to me in all my relationships.

My friends will usually come to me for advice, and I've been told I can be a good listener. I tend to daydream and can be pretty anxious. I've been diagnosed with depression, anxiety, PTSD, and ADHD. When I first meet people, I'm overly formal and will crack a few jokes, but once I'm familiar with someone, I cuss a lot and enjoy playful teasing, but I always encourage people to tell me if I go too far or set boundaries if they need to.

I collect a lot of stuff. I have a Ton of comfort items- my posters, stuffed animals, collectible figures, etc. I'm a big over thinker. I can be pretty independent and self sufficient (sometimes) but I'm also very very insecure and doubt myself a lot. I'm pretty excitable and enjoy talking about pretty much anything. Big on current events and media analysis. I've got lots of vocal stims and am pretty fidgety.

I show my love through acts of service and words of affirmation. I enjoy doing things for my loved ones and making sure they can relax, feel safe, and be happy. I could talk about my friends for hours.

Hobbies/likes- roller skating, playing video games, driving, listening to music (and singing along.. Badly), smoking weed, watching TV shows and movies, hanging out with friends, drawing, Writing, reading, going to museums/amusement parks, taking care of/watching animals, and analyzing media

I hope this isn't too overwhelming, and I apologize if I overshared a bit. Please don't feel pressured to answer.

Take care 💛

You got...Stolas!

There's no one better for you than the Ars Goetia member himself, who is one of the most considerate and caring people behind the curtains.

Stolas absolutely adored literature, but doesn't have much hand in media. Despite that, he would love to trade stories with you and look over your writing- keeping anything you write for him- and would encourage you to introduce him to your favourite shows or movies so he can speak about them with you.

His love language is mainly quality time, he can listen to you speak for hours, or tell you all kinds of things about his history. Watching movies, reading in one another's company, every second counts. He can be a bit clingy because of it, but once you tell him you are off somewhere he backs off and leaves you be. The reunion always makes it seem like he hasn't seen you in decades, though.

Stolas never kept any typical pets, unless you count his carnivorous plants! They warm up to you, as well, and you become one of few people who can feed them without any scratches. Stolas trusts very few people to care for them properly and is stern about their caretaking- but fortunately you don't struggle with it at all!

Part of his home is grandiose collections of items, mostly valuables only royals could get their hands on. Nevertheless, he keeps a shelf or two for your items and treats them with just as much respect, all stuffed animals and figures are regularly cleaned and kept safe and sound for when you need them, and your posters are likely framed with gold and glass to keep them protected and to suit his aesthetic.

If anyone is good at keeping things relaxed, it's him! Whenever you feel overwhelmed or stressed, he can take for a stroll through the stars, where everything is relatively silent, calm, and beautiful.

Even better is that Octavia finds you a lot less stressful than Stella, and thinks a lot of the media you're into is pretty neat. She doesn't speak much with you, but youll catch her taking pictures with your things a lot and see the posts later that have some pretty flattering captions.

Expect lavish parties where you get to dress up and then sneak out together when it gets boring, and lots of activities and errands to go around with Stolas doing.

Author's Note - Your runner ups were Moxie + Millie, followed by Striker! Thank you so much for being my first request and being so considerate <3

[late-to-the-magnus-archives]

Oh, I have so many thoughts on this.

Let’s start with the fact that Jonah Magnus outright stated he chose which Fear to serve and try to make supreme - to the fanatical level that the writers he’d be a cleric in DND.

Jon, however, was chosen. Jonah wasn’t chosen. And yes, Elias tried to say he had chosen Jon in MAG 160, diminishing any specialness on Jon’s part, but in the same letter, said that the Web had already marked Jon, essentially gift-wrapping him, and implying Jonah’s choice wasn’t as important.

(That letter was all over the place, too, and I still believe it’s because Jonah both desperately wanted to be seen by the only other person on Earth who could understand him… and was simultaneously terrified of what would happen when Jon came, so Jonah half-heartedly beat him down with words and birthdays to try to keep him away. BUT ANYWAY.)

He mocked Jon for making choices, as if to blame him, then ensured Jon would do what he wanted by trading Martin away at the risk of his own life.

He fought for two hundred years to make the Eye supreme, and when he succeeded, the special magical Panopticon nest he’d planned ended up being made for Jon.

The Eye cared for Jon more than for Jonah. (Yes, it could feel things, in spite of what Gerry thought, which we know because it was fond - a personal emotion - of Martin.)

I fully believe Jonah was envious yet resentful, obsessive and dismissive, fixated but loathing, needy and superior, all at once, when it came to Jon. If he hadn’t been conflicted, he would have tried to prevent Jon from coming for him… but he kind of wanted Jon to, in spite of any reason.

So instead of a practical solution -

(E.g. call in a favor from the Flesh and paralyze Martin, guaranteeing Jon stays in Scotland to take care of him forever)

- we get Jonah released from being the Pupil, pulled out of an insane Beholding-daze that was blissfully too much for him, seeing Jon, and instead of anything like, “What are you doing here?” we get this:

Does this seem like the reaction of a man who never planned to see Jon again?

It didn’t surprise him. In the moment before his brain came back online, he recognized Jon and wanted to tell him the wonderful dream he’d been having.

I don’t have the urge to tell people I hate my wonderful dreams.

We. This isn’t a necessarily sexual thing, understand; but it is a deeply human one.

Jonah was disappointed at the knife. (“Ah.”)

He pleaded to live, but not like one would an enemy. Even at the end, he thought Jon might understand.

And he was sure he did understand Jon. His last words? “Good luck.”

Absolutely could be a “fuck you.”

Or.

It could be a near-genuine wish from a servant of the Eye who knew how lonely being the Beholding’s own could be.

it's so insane to me how differently jonah treats jon compared to how he treats everyone else. throughout his life he treated people like tools, like something "to watch, to know, and ultimately to discard". he doesn't care about their suffering as long as it benefits Him. but even though he separates himself from other people, puts himself on a higher pedestal, it never seems to apply to jon. with jon it's always "our master", "our victory", "the world that we have made". everyone else is for us to use. the world is our playground. he’s been living with this "use or be used" mindset for centuries, always on the run, never safe, never trusting anyone, just to meet jon and decide to include him in his life-long plan… and yes, part of this was out of the necessity (he did need to get an archivist for this to work), but if it was purely transactional, then why would he say all that. gayass

[umichenginabroad]

Vilnius: Fighting For Freedom and Democracy

My hostel is right next to one of the main attractions in Vilnius - the magnificent Vilnius Cathedral and Square. The cathedral is a masterpiece of Baroque architecture and is adorned with beautiful frescoes and paintings. The square it sits on is one of the most beautiful places in the city, offering stunning views of the cathedral and surrounding buildings. The morning view is magnificent.

During the stay at Vilnius, I made a one day detour to Kaunas. I visited a museum that used to be an atomic bunker during the USSR era. To be fair, it is more of a personal antique collection than a museum, but the guide’s stories definitely made everything came to life. After Lithuania broke away from the USSR, they almost immediately made any action supporting communism, especially the Russian government, illegal. Some may argue that this move is against freedom in politics, but I can totally understand those who suffered under an dictator disguised as “communist” would like to avoid it at all cost. The mentality is obvious; even as a tourist I can sense their support for Ukraine more than anywhere else in Europe.

The moment that touched me the most happened when looking through country badges before and after they left the USSR. When it came to Lithuania, the guide proudly said “See the Pine and Spruce? That is a large industry in Lithuania.” As someone who grew up in Taiwan, I know how insecure it is to be a small country next to a large, authoritarian government always looking to expand themselves. As of today, a lot in Taiwan beliefs that we got international support only because of the amount of high quality chips we produce; without that the international community will be more than willing to trade our freedom, democracy, and self-determination for the satisfaction of the government controlling one of the largest buying markets on Earth. Thus a question came to me naturally: how would a small country like Lithuania have the military defense strong enough to deter Russia from bugging them constantly? What is their “strong reason” for international support, if it’s not their strength or power in impacting the economy? I asked the guide about where do they get their military protection, and he gave me an answer so simple that I am mildly embarrassed to ask in the first place: NATO.

I cannot express how envious I felt afterwards. Imagine how much time and energy Taiwan could devote into areas other than military and semiconductors if there were some similar hard, law-binding support for us. Military service is still mandatory for boys of my age in Taiwan, and that is just recently extended from four months back to a year; all because of our nasty neighbor, their inherent overpower based on land and population, and the international community tolerating them bending rules in order to save their own economic interest.

Back to Vilnius. The Užupis District is my favorite spot in Vilnius.

This once run-down district has been transformed into one of the most eccentric and artistic neighborhoods in the city. Known as the Republic of Užupis, it has a bohemian vibe that’s infectious. You’ll find plenty of quaint cafés, shops, and galleries to explore. They even have their own constitution and country mascot – a cat!

The city also has a vibrant food scene, and there are plenty of restaurants and bars to try out. Lithuanian cuisine is hearty, delicious, and affordable, and a meal at one of the local restaurants is an experience that you won’t forget in a hurry. There beer pubs are also one-of-a-kind!

[priceofblindeye]

The Riddler is an Alt Right terrorist!

POST SUMMARY AT THE VERY END for those who don't want to read all of this! Alt right terrorism is so deep rooted in white supremacy, racism, sexism, homophobia, and anything and everything that "endangers their traditional values", this entire claim is INCREDIBLY far off. Now that i've said that, I can reassure you guys that this is not going to be a post justifying Edward Nashtons behavior. This will also not be a post claiming that he is an alt right terrorist. I'm going to be discussing some information about Edward Nashton, quoting Matt Reeves, and explaining the depths of this character that must have been missed by the average viewer. Recently, on Tiktok, I've become more and more aware of judgement towards the people who claim they relate to the new Riddler. There's a lot of shame pushed onto those who could possibly empathize with this character. There are frequent comparisons to the very typical "joker guy" meme that blew up after a lot of toxic masculine batman fans had adopted the persona of the Joker and used their mental health issues as excuses for harmful behaviors. While I can already see a lot of romanticized red flags of Edward Nashton (stalking, non-con, dead dove fics, etc) this does not mean that Edward Nashton is canonically the scum of all characters and therefore means whoever likes him, is too. Maybe you guys should get some therapy though.. Let me start off by saying that Edward Nashton/The Riddler in the Batman 2022 is literally intended to be the opposite of the Batman. For those who don't know.. Edward Nashton was born into a family of lower class, this was only implied later on when he lives in an orphanage, because he was unfamiliar with the idea of having so much wealth. In the book, "Before the Batman", we learn that Edward Nashton used to look up to the Waynes, but eventually was very envious of them. He had to constantly walk by the portrait of Thomas, Martha, and Bruce. Wealthy people who'd never experienced any of the hardships he'd already faced by the age of no older than 12 years old. In the movie, we learn that the orphanage was overcrowded, thirty kids to a single room. This shouldn't be a surprise with how many men, women, and adults are likely murdered or die of poverty, illness, and neglect. When Edward mentions that in the winter it got so cold, the babies would die? How did this happen? The movie talks about how the Renewal fund was basically going to help support the city and those that need financial assistance. It could pay for Orphans schooling, the bills to maintain the orphanage, food and supplies, and even extra activities like giving those kids a genuine childhood. Yet all of the Mob, the GCPD, everyone took advantage of it. When Thomas Wayne died, the GCPD and Falcone took control and kept the money for themselves, because the money they made from illegal drug trade wasn't satisfying enough. When the Waynes had died, everyone forgot about the Renewal Funds purpose and the promise that Thomas Wayne intended to fulfill.. This made everyone blind to the reality that it was being misused. "At least the money makes it go down easy." For finances, Edward as a teenager had to bike all through Gotham City delivering food just to make money to support himself and go to college. Edward Nashton is HEAVILY autsitic/adhd implied. In "Before the Batman" it was confirmed Edward Nashton did not do well in school yet he was very smart. Most typically, people with learning disabilities like ADHD are very smart but do not do well in school because the american education system caters to neurotypical kids. This is why he turns to puzzles. Quoted by Paul Dano in one of his interviews, that the only validation and success he ever got was through solving things like riddles and puzzles. "The Riddler is a person who is fed up, he's done. He's probably blamed himself for a lot of the failings in his life. He sees that maybe it wasn't all his fault." Edward Nashton went to college, while Bruce Wayne traveled the world, going to college after college for a short amount of time

learning different things. This fueled Edwards hatred for Bruce, because he

had the wealth to just throw away to pay for full tuition, just to not stay for the entirety of them. Edward then moved on to begin working as a forensics accountant. For those who don't know, this job was taken on by Edward because he viewed it as solving a mystery. The job of a forensics accountant is to look into fraudulent charges, and other illegal acts involving money. This job was likely how he became more aware of the abuse of the Renewal Fund and followed the breadcrumb trails that unmasked what was really happening in the city. All this being said, there's no possible way you could say that you wouldn't be incredibly pissed at least, that your entire life was been screwed over because of some greedy adults who wanted the money that was meant for you and a lot of other kids. Especially not when you've witnessed this greed literally take the lives of kids who never had a chance given to them. There's a lot of trauma and mental illnesses that could be developed just looking at the surface level of the shit that Edward Nashton had to go through growing up. This in particular, fueled Edward Nashtons motives. The motives that prove he is not an alt right terrorist. Edward Nashton is the embodiment of a revenge arc similar to Cruella, Glass, or Terminal, but he goes too far and puts innocent lives in danger. The story of a person growing up in miserable conditions because of money, or lack of, because of rich mens greed, (implied) ableism, untreated mental illness, and the affects of trauma gained at a young age is absolutely a story that i'd expect people to enjoy and relate to. The line is drawn however, when Edward Nashton intends to kill Bella Real, and flood the city. This is the terrorism that is very much a toxic part of the character that is not okay to be romanticized. This is what a majority of people who call Edward Nashton an incel, or alt right terrorist seems to fear will be praised and romanticized. What he does is not racially motivated at all, nor is it ever meant to be an act on enforcing white supremacy ideology. Edward displays the ideology of a Left Extremist. This dramatically changes the character and affects what community he draws in. Edward Nashton appeals to the community most likely because majority know he's the product of a very damaging childhood. Especially in a time where money and the accumulation of wealth being hoarded by corrupt individuals has been so incredibly prominent and a leading cause of struggle in our real world. Allowing a very neurodivergent, queer implied character to be admired and embraced by a community cannot be harmful so long as there is no erasure of the wrongs he has done, just as embracing Darth Vader, Arthur Fleck, or Loki as a beloved villain. All of these villains have varying levels of realism to their methods and attacks they've done as the villains of their stories, just as Edward Nashton does. So where do these fans get the idea that Edward is an Alt right terrorist? Edward Nashton is a white, cisgender man. Because they see someone in a messy, small apartment who's mentally unwell, and using the internet to connect with other civilians to organize criminal activity, these fans might likely take those traits that we as a society see come from racist, privileged white men most often, and focus on those rather than the overall picture. However, there seem to be some misconceptions about him that should be addressed. 1. He is not from a privileged background, and he is implied to be disabled. Take with that what you will. I'll be making a MASSIVE post about my psychological analysis of Edward Nashton later. 2. I believe that because of the consistency that men are often excused after reacting or behaving violently over any small inconvenience in their life, this is what people are afraid of and therefore automatically view him the same as many of the men they've personally witnessed behave in such a way. What people are missing, is this behavior that Edward has shown is the product of enduring traumatizing hardships his entire life. The fear

that

men will completely misinterpret the character is valid. Any misinterpretation of the character at all is a valid reason of concern. 3. Edward Nashton has looked at and admired Batman, a vigilante who gets praise to some degree by brutally beating and attacking criminals. He's using fear to scare people out of the toxic, damaging, and ruthless methods they've picked up to survive living in Gotham City, a city that is not taken care of by the higher ups and political figures. The city that is run by a crime boss! Edward Nashton saw someone doing this, and was influenced by what he viewed as a hero, to go a step further and target the real problem. At the end of the day, Bruce Wayne was only hurting people who'd been given no other choice. Like Selina says, Bruce must have come from a wealthy background to believe that some people CHOSE to live a life of crime. He wasn't fixing the issue. Edward targeted the real criminals, gathered evidence, and then went a couple steps further than the Batman. That doesn't justify his actions, but it does show how much Bruce didn't know. After all, the biggest message from the movie was"don't idolize someone until you truly know and understand them." That being said, WHY DO SO MANY PEOPLE ENJOY THE VILLAINS? Usually the people who enjoy villains are labelled as Villain Apologists! What is a villain apologist? A villain apologist is someone who excuses horrible behavior that villainous characters have done. In all honesty, fans of villainous characters are commonly mistaken as villain apologists. Most cases of villain apologists i’ve witnessed revolve around the Joker of all villains. He’s done almost every possible thing a bad guy could do, and a lot of very disgusting people often time idolize him. There's a real psychological study that I'm going to copy paste, and summarize, done by Science Connected Magazine that I think should be read! People care about their self-image and tend to see themselves in a positive way. Moreover, they try to avoid any negative associations that would damage their self-image. In this case, the researchers explored whether people favored villains as a safe way to explore darker traits or actions without fear of judgment. For example, Harry Potter quickly denied any similarity in personality traits with Lord Voldemort when Voldemort said that he and Harry were very much alike. In fact, people try to avoid any information that would jeopardize their positive image of themselves. But would it feel as threatening to be compared to a villain in a different universe, such as Magneto from X-Men?

The researchers predicted that story villains would provide an outlet to explore a darker version of themselves that would be immoral to act out in real life.

Fictional stories of villains may provide a safe haven for you to explore a darker side of your personality. This sense of safety may come from the fact that there is a psychological distancing between you and the villain. While you may fantasize about killing your bullies, you know you aren’t a murderer like the Joker. To test this idea, the researchers looked at whether people were still interested in villains when their sense of safety was threatened.

In a low-threat scenario, each participant was asked to rate their interest in a movie in a hypothetical situation where they would be watching it alone. The researchers compared their responses to their answers regarding a high-threat scenario; participants rated their interest in seeing the movie on a first date rather than alone. The researchers predicted that the context of watching the movie on a date would influence their choices in the next activity.

Next, the participants received a text message from a “close friend” with a screenshot of a movie and a message comparing the person with the movie villain. Afterward, the participants rated their interest in watching the movie with someone. The study revealed that the perceived higher threat of a first date made people less likely to choose the movie if the villain reminded someone else of them. Interestingly, people were more inclined to choose a movie that had a villain with a similar personality to their own if they were going to watch the movie by themselves. This study adds to earlier findings that people feel safe exploring villains that remind them of themselves, as long as it can be done privately." In summary, The Riddler and majority of villains will be looked at and likely empathized with because of the person looking at them! If a friend was connecting with Loki because of a terrible relationship with their family, their connection doesn't mean they'd stab their brother, betray you any chance they get, or try to destroy a whole planet. Look at it from a more empathetic stand point, as cringey as it may be for someone to really dislike a character. There should be no shame put on anyone who likes Edward Nashton or finds him fascinating. If someones love for the character concerns you, all you need to do is ask them how they view the character. If they praise his terrorist motives, then clearly they're someone to worry about. It's 2022, and we're just beginning to see the end of a pandemic that has torn down our mental health with a lot of traumatizing events. Many of us no longer have the ability to mask the traits of mental health issues, disabilities, and some have even discovered personality disorders. Connecting with a fictional character shouldn't be something that's frowned upon, unless that character was a literal n*zi, r*pist, or predator. If someone does not desire to associate with you because of the characters you enjoy, they're not worth keeping around. if you truly cannot accept that someone likes a character, then there's no need to enforce others to hold the same ideals, or make humiliating, shameful posts on social media normalizing bullying behavior. I've gone on long enough about this, and realized I have many articles I'm going to have to write to ensure this one isn't too long and spirals off on a bunch of different topics. SUMMARY!: Edward Nashton is a left extremist. He's incredibly traumatized, which explains why people may relate to him. Most typically, people who relate to villains with tragic backstories will relate due to their ability to see themselves, and to blur or ignore the evil behaviors the characters exhibit from pushing them away from the character or finding that their connection is worrisome, because it should be a given that the person would not mirror the characters toxic traits. It's best to acknowledge the flaws of a character, and to not erase them. Call someone out if they are showing toxic signs of connecting with a character. (Claiming they ARE the character, using the character to excuse harmful behavior, etc.) Thanks for coming to my TED Talk!

[lowkeyclueless5137]

Some ansty angst today

Yesterday, @spirtworld wanted for me to unleash some raw Floyd angst into the wild and see how everything will go down... So here we go :3

This is one of my favorite headcannon-theories that will play as a base in here, even if I believe it was debunked to not be real... But... Lemme have it... Because yes... It was inspired by some pretty fanart on pinterest, but I lost the links ;-;

I wrote this on discord... Explaining it in depth and how dark it could get...

But we aren't getting into the dark part for now :3

We will have a tiny weny oneshot of how everything played out after I explain everything.

Also... This might be hints about my pttw comic... So if you wanna figure it out... Go ahead and read it...

But if you don't want some slight spoiler hints... I recommend you shouldn't read it...

That was a warning!

Under the cut I'll explain it. (copy pasted from my notes and edited accordingly)

Anyway!

I headcannon heavily that Floyd is actually really aware of his public image. Like he is aware people fear him, he is aware other students would rather dig their own graves than hang out with him... He has that scary aura around him.

And that is a thing Floyd hates, because this is exactly a trait of the Diasomnia students... He tries his best to be playful and snuggle himself into social circles, but he does not really succeed so easy, which makes his moods to alter more, yet Floyd sees how Jade and Azul manage so well to blend in, making him a bit envious.

Because they were since start in Octavinelle (here's where the theory comes :3)

My theory is this: Floyd was sorted at first in Diasomnia (I say it because he really fits the vibe of scary, but actually a quirky guy)

But imagine how the world would crash onto him once he hears that. That Azul, his dear friend that even changed and grew before Floyd's own eyes and Jade, his own twin, his half, his family, the 2 most precious of persons Floyd ever had in his life... To be separated from him in a different dorm. That's how he made that commotion at the sorting ceremony, getting on Riddle's nerves and having his first taste of the 'off with your head'.

He started to feel conscious of his appearance, of his public image since that day. He didn't want to talk with silver(his roimmate) at all. He didn't want to get out of bed, he didn't want to eat, he didn't even want to touch his magic pen. He would even resort to running away and breaking into Octavinelle just to be with Jade and Azul.

Just to try and feel like he belongs somewhere, where he is actually loved for who he is.

Azul wasn't ignoring any of this. He was really concerned. And while Jade was aiding to his brother's pitiful state, Azul was trying his best, skimming through everything and putting all of his efforts into finding something that would priquire Malleus's interest enough, so he could trade it for his approval of moving Floyd into Octavinelle.

Azul tricked his way and made his reputation of being 'shady' just to become Dormhead and have the authority necessary to get Crowley and convince Malleus to let Floyd transfer to Octavinelle.

All, of course in the best of discrecy.

Of course this incident was hidden and most of the students remember only that Floyd caused a stirr at the ceremony just because he angered Riddle. No one actually paid mind to which dorm Floyd was sorted.

But Floyd couldn't shake that feeling that he doesn't belomg in there... He hates that he feels like he doesn't fit.

He hates himself for not making enough efforts to fit.

And sometimes, when emotions drive him off, his magic pen will turn a bright green instead of the usual white gem, typical Octavinelle, which would scare him, thinking that he'll have to go back in Diasomnia.

Jade forgot about the incident and decided that it was better if it wasn't brought anymore. Azul was keeping the contract(which wasn't out of his um) with Malleus and Crowley about the transfer, buried deep in the safe of his office.

Now imagine chapter 3... But Leona and Ruggie get their hands into that transfer contract too. And by destroying it, they force Floyd to go back to Diasomnia unknowingly.

Now let's see the little oneshot:

~~~~~~

Blot

Chaos

A mess everywhere you would look. That's how one would describe the scene left behind Azul's overBlot. One would expect that the Dormhead of Octavinelle wouldn't spiral in such a ravenous crying fit for just a contracts. And even after he was brought back to normal, Azul scrambled, under everyone's judging glares, to the pile of golden sand, grabbing it and digging through it.

He was desperate. There must be in there! There must be at least a little intact piece he could use magic to restore it. No? It has to be!

"Azul! Azul! Snap out of it! Look at me..." Jade was the first one who grabbed his friend by the shoulders, shaking him to gain his attention. Floyd was right next to Azul, getting a more firmer grip onto him than his twin, to have Azul in a somewhat reassurance, which didn't work.

"I-it's gone... It's destroyed... We lost it... We can't retrieve it... It's gone!" Azul started to mumble as his inky tears were rolling over his cheeks, the boy leaning onto Floyd as he was crying silently, mumbling in between heavy breaths about 'the lost object'.

Jade looked at the pile of sand, then at Floyd. At the poor clueless Floyd. Eyes landed onto his twin's breast pocket before teeth grittered with anger.

Getting up in a flash, Jade grabbed Leona by the neck. "Do you even realise what you've done?! ANSWER ME!" the boy screamed, which was a shock for everyone. Jade usually was the more collected one, yet right now, the eel was seconds away from just leaving Leona headless for real.

"Jade! Stop it! What has even gotten into ya?!" Floyd had to leave Azul's side to stop his brother as the others joined in separating the 2. Jade was struggling under the other's grip, trying to get his hand onto Leona, with a deep rage bubbling under his skin.

"oh... Did I come at the wrong time?" a voice piped in.

Azul froze in place as well as Jade, both of them eyeing Lilia with sheer fear. This was really happening. "What's the silence for? I thought you would be more happy to see me..." Lilia mumbled. "What's with you in here? The lounge's closed..." Floyd mused, still clueless.

"Oh... Dear... You don't know? I came to pick you up..."

Words that sunk into Floyd's mind like an arrow. His stomach was burying itself and his heart was squeezed in fear at those words coming from Lilia's mouth. "This is a joke... No? Jade? Azul? It's a joke... Right? It's a bad joke, guys..." Floyd said with a strained smile.

Yet Azul only looked down as well s Jade. "I am... So sorry, Floyd... I did everything I could..." Azul mumbled through tears. Jade only was silent as he made a small motion to his breast pocket, where his magic pen was. Floyd followed with his hand the said gazes that were targeted to his own pocket, fearfully touching his pen and getting it out. Tears were building in his eyes as Floyd lowered his own gaze onto the said pen.

The gem was green... A bright green Floyd oh so feared.

"No... Nonono... This can't be... You promised me... You told me we will be forever together... Right?" The boy said as tears stained his cheeks, falling on the ground. The silence though, was enough to shatter Floyd's heart.

"Floyd... I-" "No... You promised me, Jade! WHY WOULD YOU LIE TO ME?!" Floyd screamed as he pushed away his twin's attempt at a hug, then throwing his own pen on the ground. "I'm sick of this pity! Just leave me alone! All of you!" The boy declared as he turned onto his heel and ran away from Octavinelle.

"Vangrouge... Please... There must be a way to keep him..." Azul begged, on his knees, to the said Fae. "I am afraid the terms of the contract were all broken... I cannot do anything about it..." Lilia mused with a sigh. Jade only hugged Azul, caressing gently the head of the other to attempt at calming down the crying male. "Everyone... I advise you to get out immediately... Octavinelle will no longer welcome guests from other dorms for the rest of the day." The vice mused as he shooed away everyone. Lilia though, stood at the same spot.

Exhaling, the Fae crossed his arms. "It's pitiful from you... Such a sight..." "You have no words in this..." Jade snarled back. "You will have to embrace it... For his own good..." Lilia mused. Azul only wiped his tears with a trembling arm as he looked at Jade.

"He will have to accept it... Weather Floyd likes it or not..."

~~~~~~~~~

That's it for today :D

*hands tissues*

And here for y'all :3

[kung-laos-hat]

Fool

Kung Lao x Fem!Reader

Warning: Contains major spoilers from Mortal Kombat 9, including quotes from the actual script. :) kinda follows the canon but also doesn’t considering this is an x reader ‼️Not Proof read yet‼️

AN: words of affirmation and acts of service love language goes brrrrr

Summary: Kung Lao is devastated that his best friend and the girl he loves get to complete in the tournament without him, so he does what any sane person does: sneaks his way onto the island and challenges Scorpion in an attempt to impress the reader :D

“We’ll be back before you know it, Lao.” (Y/n) said, placing a hand on Kung Lao’s shoulder.

He chuckled nervously and nodded, trying his best to seem at ease but the uncertainty in his eyes gave it all away. It didn’t matter how long they trained or how prepared the elder monks thought (Y/n) and Liu Kang were. (Y/n)’s attempts at comforting the young man were fruitless.

It wasn’t just that he was worried for his childhood friends’ safety. There was no denying that was definitely one of the reasons he was reluctant to see them off, but aside from that he was envious. And how could he not be? The two of them were chosen by the elder monks to represent their section in the tournament where some the greatest fighters would be present.

Sure, he always knew the elder monks would choose (Y/n). She was the perfect fighter in his eyes. (Y/n) was clever, cunning, and quick on her feet. It just made sense that she’d be the first choice.

However, that left that second slot open for debate, and the primary candidates were Liu and Lao. Now Kung Lao promised himself that no matter what the elder monks decided, he wouldn’t let that drive a wedge in his relationship with his cousin, and he’d been fairly true to his word so far. He was proud of Liu, really.

But time went on and Raiden suggested that it’d be best for Liu and (Y/n) to train together in private, allowing them to grow accustomed to each other’s moves, strengths, and weaknesses. This would come in handy if the two of them should ever find themselves in a position in which they had to fight opponents together. Of course, Liu and (Y/n) already had established a close friendship, but there was nothing wrong with a little refining.

Lao had no problem with this, that is, until the tournament grew closer, and he began to see less and less of the duo. (Y/n) in particular almost seemed to be avoiding him, but Kung Lao knew her better than to assume that was the case. Yes, Liu Kang and (Y/n) were close, but not as close as Kung Lao and (Y/n). The three of them were the best of friends since childhood, but Lao always felt like there was something special between him and (Y/n) that just wasn’t present in her relationship with Liu.

(Y/n) had her fair share of sneaking out, having midnight conversations, and causing mischief amongst the other pupils, with Liu, sure, but it was Kung Lao she always turned to when in need of comfort. Somehow (Y/n) preferred to talk about her problems with Lao, and boy did he love it when she did. It was like seeing a completely gentler, more authentic side of her.

Because of this, Lao simply noticed things about (Y/n) no one else did. He knew what made her happy, and when one night she expressed how anxious training made her, he began to go out of his way to do some of her daily chores along with his own or do little things such as make her a snack. Of course, his pride would never allow his to flat out tell her he’d be doing all of this just because.

No, it was always,

“I just happened to make too much to eat by myself.”

Or

“Don’t look too deep into it. If I didn’t do your laundry for you, you’d probably let it lay around your room. Then you’d have nothing clean to wear and you’d start stealing my clothes.”

Soon enough, Lao’s thoughts were flooded with nothing but (Y/n), and everyday he was forced to remember that she and Liu Kang were spending more and more time together, and eventually would be sent off to potentially die. This not only rubbed salt in the wound of not being chosen, but created a new fear for the poor young man.

God, what if (Y/n)’s opponent didn’t spare her? Would Liu Kang or Raiden interject? Kung Lao knew he would. He’d do anything to keep her safe. Hell, he’d throw away his pride and get on his hands and knees to beg if it meant saving (Y/n).

Was that why Liu Kang was chosen and not him? Because he was a better match for (Y/n)? Did the elder monks think he was more capable than him than much? Or was it (Y/n) who chose Liu Kang to fight beside her?

Now here he stood before her, soaking in her presence potentially for the last time. (Y/n)’s hand lingered on his shoulder a little longer, then she signed and took both of his hands in her own.

“What is it?” She asked, looking up expectantly.

Lao blinked, “What?”

“You’ve got that look on your face. Y’know the one that screams ‘I’ve got something to say, but I’m a wuss so instead I’m going to dwell in my room immediately after you leave,’” (Y/n) teased.

Lao half smiled and pulled his arms away. “It’s nothing, I’m just worried for you two.”

(Y/n)’s face softened and she offered him a small smile. “Hey, don’t worry about me. Liu Kang’s bad temper, maybe, but I’m sure I’ll be okay out there.” She opened her arms and embraced Lao, which he quickly accepted.

“After all,” (Y/n) said pulling away slightly and flicking the tip of Kung Lao’s hat, “I trained with the best.”

“We’ve got to get going!” Liu called out from a few feet away at the enterance of the temple.

With that, she placed a small kiss on Lao’s cheek and ran off to join him and Raiden.

“You better return in one piece!” Kung Lao called out jokingly.

“If I don’t, you better build me a cooler body!” (Y/n) laughed, waving her hand over her head.

With a flash of light, the three of them were gone.

___

So far the introduction to the tournament was running smoothly. (Y/n) had managed to hold pleasant conversations with a few other competitors, including one by the name Johnny Cage. (much to Liu Kang’s distain. Apparently Johnny had accidentally disrespected Raiden and was under the impression that everyone there was just really into roleplay. But aside from being a little arrogant, (Y/n) didn’t mind him.)

(Y/n) had been selected to do a quick demonstration fight against none other than Princess Kitana, who put up a good fight but in the end didn’t stand a chance against her. While the princess laid half on the ground, (Y/n) was given the option to either finish her off or spare her. Despite (Y/n) choosing mercy, Kitana didn’t take this defeat well, but did her best to maintain her composure as the two retreated inside to tend to their wounds.

“...Why did you—,” Kitana began in a low whisper. (Y/n) turned to her and helped her hand, palm out, in front of her chest.

“You’re an excellent fighter. One with true talent, princess, believe me.” (Y/n) chuckled, “To take a life such as yours would be a waste. Don’t let one little defeat become a deterrence.”

The ghost of a smile graced Kitana’s lips. “You know, you’re a fool to be so kind to your enemies. The next time we meet might not be under such pleasant circumstances.”

(Y/n) huffed, “A fool, yes, but at the very least I’ll be remembered for it.”

———

The fighting continued on without the two girls for a while until Shang Tsung granted an intercession. (Y/n) made her way to Liu Kang’s side and nodded at him. He glanced down at her neatly bandaged hands and huffed in amusement, knowing damn well that when they returned home, his companion planned on showing off her “battle scars” to Kung Lao in an attempt to impress him. As they waited for the next match to begin, Liu Kang filled her in on what she’d missed during the Johnny Cage versus Reptile fight.

“I wish you could of been here to see it, (Y/n). I got second hand embarrassment from how arrogant he sounded.” Liu rolled his eyes.

(Y/n) stifled a giggle and covered her smile with her hand, but as she did this, she noticed one particular bodyguard’s eyes watching her intently from behind his helmet.

He was a bit of a distance away, but somehow it felt like his stare was burning through (Y/n)’s skull, and the very thought of that sent a chill down her spine. She awkwardly cleared her throat and turned to face the other direction, her fingers slightly latching onto Liu Kang’s arm defensively.

The rest of the day was nothing short of eventful. Raiden had requested that she accompanied him into the underground sections of the island, where she became acquainted with Sonya Blade and Jax, and even got to witness Sonya fight a man named Kano. Johnny Cage and Liu Kang eventually joined them, and there they established a sort of team while Raiden explained the severity of losing the tournament.

Afterwards Sonya and (Y/n) parted ways with the men and accompanied each other to their designated bedrooms, which, luckily, were located across from each other. As they walked, the two women got to know each other a little better. Sonya told (Y/n) more about how she came to meet Jax, her life in the army, and how she eventually ended up on the island. In turn, (Y/n) told her about her life with the White Lotus Society and Raiden. They went back and forth, trading silly childhood and training tales until they came across a certain mural in one of the main hallways.

(Y/n) paused in front of it and smiled fondly at the depiction of a man standing victoriously over his enemy on a great cliff or something of the sort.

She turned to Sonya and smiled excitedly. “The Great Kung Lao,” she explained, “He’s a legend back home. Truly one of the greatest fighters the White Lotus ever produced.”

She proceeded to retell the story of Kung Lao’s victories back in the day, and Sonya listened intently.

“So that’s your motive then, huh?” Sonya chuckled.

(Y/n) raised an eyebrow, “What do you mean?”

“Well I’ve got my mission to save Jax, Cage wants his fame... what about you? What’s your motive? Aside from the monks selecting you, that is.”

(Y/n) glanced back up at the mural, then back to Sonya. “A descendent of his— the great Kung Lao, I mean.” Suddenly (Y/n) felt incredibly shy and began to fiddle with her hands.

“Liu Kang?” Sonya tilted her head.

“No!” (Y/n) exclaimed, laughing slightly, “A friend of ours, actually.” As she spoke, her tone was laced with a certain fondness.

Sonya smiled, “A friend?”

“Yes, Miss Blade. A friend. Anyways, he helped me create all of my best moves. I hate to admit it, but I basically modeled my fighting style after what he taught me when we were kids.” (Y/n) faintly blushed and smiled to herself.

“So... that’s it then? You want to impress him?”

“I mean— I just—,” (Y/n) struggled to find words, “I mean of course that’s not all of it. Of course I’m here to protect the Earthrealm first, but...”

She glanced up at the mural once more.

“I don’t know, I want him to see how much I’ve improved recently.”

Truth be told, (Y/n) had always admired Kung Lao growing up, but it wasn’t until around their late teens or early twenties that she’d began to admire him a little more than usual. And because of that she’d begun to lose her focus around him. Sure, he had always been terribly strong, smart, and witty beyond compare, but as they grew (Y/n) began to notice how charming he was or how nice he looked without his gear on.

Or even how differently he treated her compared to everyone else.

———

The next day the fighters returned to the island’s arena. Shang Tsung and the monks took to their spots while Quan Chi stood at the foot of the throne.

Liu Kang and (Y/n) exchanged anxious glances At eachother. After the events of last night, (Y/n) could tell her friend’s nerves were a little shaken, despite how composed he seemed. She silently patted his back as a masked guard crossed his arms and moved a little closer to where they stood with Raiden.

“Kombatants! the next match will now begin!”

In a burst of flames, Scorpion teleported into the center of the arena. Everyone gasped in awe, and (Y/n) and Liu Kang shared looks of pure admiration.

“Scorpion!” Shang Tsung called out, “Specter of the Netherrealm! Resurrected by the sorcerer Quan Chi! Who among you is worthy of this challenge?”

“Where is the Lin Kuei Sub-Zero? He killed my family and clan. I will have his head!” The masked man snarled.

Without order, the mask guard standing closest to Raiden promptly walked to the center with Scorpion, discarding his mask and armor as he went.

“I accept the challenge!”

(Y/n)’s face fell. She knew that voice, and it definitely wasn’t Sub-Zero. She looked up at Liu with a worried expression, and he returned her stare with his own.

“Kung Lao?” He whispered as he turned back to the two men standing before them.

“Nevermind the Lin Kuei. Now you face a Shaolin.” He announced.

“Kung Lao, what are you doing here?” (Y/n) muttered under her breath.

The man ran two fingers over the brim of his razor sharp hat and turned his vision toward where (Y/n) stood with Raiden and Liu Kang. He pointed directly at the girl.

“(Y/n).”

Oh god.

“I dedicate my soon to be victory to you, my most prized companion.” He said firmly.

She looked around the arena at the other fighters with a mortified expression and caught Sonya and Johnny hiding their smiles under their hands.

“Please don’t do this, Kung Lao.” (Y/n) begged, sweat beginning to form on her temple from the sudden embarrassment she was feeling.

“It has to be done.” He said, assuming a fighting stance.

“All this nonesense to impress (Y/n) (L/n),” Scorpion huffed, “You will regret your impulsiveness.”

The fight commences, and although Kung Lao is a master of the Shaolin arts and a great fighter, his attempt at overpowering someone who’s spent years trapped in the Neatherrealm soon proved to be futile. (Y/n) could feel herself cringe at every severe blow Scorpion landed to Lao’s torso until he ultimately beat him into an unconscious state on the floor.

(Y/n) tore away from the crowd and rushed to Lao’s side, swiftly but gently lifting his torso onto her lap, cradling his head in her arms as his hat laid in the dirt beside them. Scorpion looked down at her, the pity in his eyes seemed almost unbearable to (Y/n).

“He is not yet a warrior. I apologize, (L/n), I did not mean to cause you embarrassment.” He nodded.

(Y/n) shook her head and let out a small laugh. “Don’t be sorry, Scorpion. There’s no bad blood between us.”

“Kung Lao!” Liu cried out shortly after as he jogged over to aid them.

He thre Kung Lao’s arm over his shoulder and housed him up, carrying him out of the arena as Lao came to. Raiden and (Y/n) followed shortly behind.

“Listen when your elders speak!” He scolded, “You could not win this fight! And lost it at the expense of both you and dear (Y/n)’s expense!”

“Master, please, that’s enough. He meant no harm.” (Y/n) defended as they entered the main hall.

Raiden sighed angrily, “Take him to the nursery and get him cleaned up.” With that, he turned back around.

———

“Are you sure you want to tend to his wounds by yourself? It’d go a lot faster with my help...” Liu Kang said as he stood in the doorway.

“It’s fine, Liu,” (Y/n) waved him off, “It’d look bad if both of us weren’t present during today’s fights.”

(Y/n) turned around and subtly motioned to Kung Lao, who was spread out on a bench, and shot Liu an expecting look that said, ‘Get out, dumbass, I want to speak with him in private.’

Liu Kang mouthed a silent ‘oh,’ in realization and nodded. “I’ll leave you to it, then. Take care of him, and I’ll be back later to check on the two of you.”

He eagerly left the room and shut the door behind him, leaving the two together in awkward silence.

(Y/n) sighed and turned to the cabinets to retrieve a towel and bandages.

Kung Lao sat up and huffed in annoyance, “Why must the two of you talk about me as if I’m not here, (Y/n)? I’m perfectly capable of tending to myself, you don’t have to stay.”

(Y/n) furrowed her eyebrows together but said nothing. She continued on gathering her materials and laid them out on the counter beside them.

“Are you upset with me? Is that what this is?”

Still nothing.

“What? Do you want me to apologize? Look, I’m sorry if I embarrassed you, (Y/n)—,”

“Why are you here, Lao!?” She interrupted sharply.

He scoffed, “Proving I’m equivalent to Liu Kang.”

(Y/n) shook her head angrily. “Why!?” She dipped her small towel in a bowl of water and squeezed it. “You don’t have to prove anything, I don’t understand.”

“Of course you don’t—,”

“Then help me here, Lao. Explain— Did Raiden... or the elder monks— did they say something to you?”

“That’s not it.” He glanced down.

“Did something happen? I don’t—,”

“It’s you, (Y/n). You’re the reason.” He blurted.

The room was silent again.

“Oh.”

(Y/n) slowly turned around and made her way over to Kung Lao, beckoning for him to give her his arm. She avoided his gaze as she placed the damp towel over a large gash in his shoulder.

“I’m very sorry then... Whatever I did, I didn’t mean to make you feel this way.” The heartbreak in her tone was prominent.

Kung Lao sighed, “No— sorry, I didn’t mean it like that. It’s my fault.”

(Y/n) paused, “What do you mean?”

Lao timidly placed a hand on her shoulder. (Y/n) looked up at him in confusion and scanned his face. He was giving her the same look he had on the morning she left for the tournament. The one that made it seem like he desperately wanted to say something but didn’t know how, or couldn’t muster up the courage to flat out say it.

Kung Lao groaned and burried his face in her other shoulder.

“I like you.” He mumbled, “There, I finally said it. It’s foolish, isn’t it? That I did all of this just because I wanted you to admire me back? I knew the elder monks didn’t choose me for a reason. I’m sure I couldn’t have handled the tournament, anyways—,”

“That’s not it at all!” (Y/n) cried, gingerly wrapping her arms around his torso, “It’s my fault you weren’t chosen, I’m sure of it.”

“I don’t understand,” He said, looking up.

(Y/n) sighed, “It was originally supposed to be us two. At the tournament, I mean. The elders said our fighting styles complimented eachother the most out of the three of us. But then I started to slip up during training whenever you were around. I’m sorry, I thought they’d replace me with Liu Kang, but—,”

“They replaced me instead...” Kung Lao finished.

“You are no lesser of a great fighter than Liu Kang. It truly is my fault, Lao.” (Y/n) confessed.

Kung Lao blinked and was silent for a moment. “So... you were slipping up because...?” A cheeky smile slowly made its way onto his face.

(Y/n) signed and hid her face in the crook of his neck.

“I like you too, you idiot monk. I always have.”

Kung Lao laughed, “Why didn’t you tell me!?”

“What didn’t you tell me!?” (Y/n) argued playfully.

“What? Was doing all your chores and things not enough of a sign for you?”

“Well, clearly they weren’t. Otherwise I wouldn’t have been so stressed over the matter.”

“Oh goodness...” Kung Lao chuckled.

They two sat there, holding each other, for a moment until (Y/n) pulled away.

“I have to finish cleaning your wounds, Lao.”

He nodded and sat up straight, removing his shirt so (Y/n) could clean the wounds on his chest.

As he looked down at her hands, gently pressing the towel to his wounds, applying the medicine where needed, and wrapping them up neatly, his eyes couldn’t help but trail over her lips. This wasn’t the first time, naturally, but know that he had confirmation that she was finally his...

He swooped down and captured her hips with his in a chaste but sweet kiss that lasted no more than a few seconds. (Y/n) stared up at him in surprise.

“Too soon?” He half laughed.

She shook her head, “Not at all.” (Y/n) wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him back down for a real kiss.

Their lips locked softly once again, and the two of them could feel the sense of pure joy and excitement building up in their chests. (Y/n)’s eyes fluttered closed as Kung Lao deepened the kiss. As Lao moved his lips against hers, it tasted sort of metallic from the dried blood that remained on Lao’s lips beforehand, but (Y/n) didn’t seem to mind.

When they finally pulled away, Kung Lao rested chin on top of (Y/n)’s head.

“You’re a fool, Kung Lao,” (Y/n) said endearingly.

He kissed her hair and let out a small laugh.

“For you, perhaps.”