#(seems a little ooc???)

[notmoreflippingelves]

Actually going insane over the implications of Jason asking Dick to be the Robin to his Batman in Battle for the Cowl.

Like I initially took it at the purely surface-level of Jason wanting a partner in the general sense. Which made sense, it's a huge responsibility and a lonely one so an assistant/sidekick/partner seems a no-brainer if you can get one.

But then I really thought about it, because Jason is not asking Dick to be his partner in the general sense; he's not even asking Dick to be his Nightwing. He's asking Dick to be his Robin.

And they both know exactly what Jason means: "Be the light to my darkness. Be the smile to my scowl. Be the hope to my fear. "

He's saying "Be 'Robin'; be the embodiment of Love and Justice and Goodness. Be the exceptional person that you have always been. Be the slightly-less exceptional person that I was when I wore your colors. Be the person that I was in the process of becoming and might have been (or might still be), if only Joker hadn't clipped my wings."

He's saying "I am prepared to become vengeance, become the Night. And I will go further than Bruce ever dared to, because it is what is needed. I will be the necessary evil. But you don't have to be. If Batman is Gotham's curse, Robin has always been its blessing. I will be the brutal punishment to our world, and I am asking you to be its incandescent gift."

He's saying, "Be for me, what we were for Him. Be my anchor, my comfort, my hope. Remind me what it's all for, why it's all worth it. And remind yourself as well."

He's saying "Be 'Robin' again--for both of our sakes."

[heartsfromdoll]

"how can you love me?" alhaitham asks abruptly, his voice barely above a whisper as he looks at you with an unusually pained expression on his face. his hand that had not ceased to twirl a strand of your hair since the beginning of your conversation suddenly raised to cup your cheek. he does not fail to notice the way you lean into the warm feeling of his calloused hand on your face. you smile gently and a little melancholic at the question.

"i have a lot of love to give, you see," you start to explain. "and it just so happens to have made a home in you." now reaching to hold his hand that was on your cheek, rubbing the back of his hand with your thumb as if to soothe the doubt of his own worthiness to receive love from his mind.

"...in me?" he inquires hesitantly. a man so sure of his vast knowledge and ability to understand anything, suddenly unsure of your words' meaning.

"yes. my love has made a home in your heart and in your head and anywhere else from head to toe," as you tell him you trace your pointer finger from his chest up his neck, making your way to move beneath his bangs and rest at his forehead. "my love fills you to the brim, that's how much love i have to give to you." the taste of your confession feeling a bit unnatural on your tongue, but the urge to bare your heart to him was irresistible when you heard the pain in his initial question.

alhaitham closes and opens his mouth a few times, unsure how to phrase the endless pouring of affections and loving phrases filling his brain. a feeling similar to electrified cotton reached from the length of his spine down to the tips of his fingers, lighting him on fire while also making him feel like he's floating on air. is this what loving you is like? letting you into his heart can make him feel so strange and wonderful at the same time?

"i love you," he finally breathes out. and as he observes your initial shock at his sudden confession, evident in the way your eyes widen and eyebrows raise, melt to the goofy smile of yours that he adores accompanied by the giggle that seemingly involuntarily leaves your throat, he knows that his statement is irrevocably and utterly true from the bottom of his heart, the same heart full of your love.

[strywoven]

hey , hi , hello — how are we ? great.

so here’s the skinny , the break has been good ( & necessary ) . i don’t think you need the details as to what all has been happening behind the screen , but just know i am slowly pulling my mental health back into something more manageable. you might be asking : what’s going on with the blog ? a few things are going to happen …

the blog will go through an overhaul ; new graphics , new theme , new carrd AND a new url ( “ilbound” ) . i am NOT deleting and starting over because , frankly , i don’t care to do that , so the next best thing is hard-resetting the entire blog.

i will be removing EVERYONE from my following because the number is high as it is and i feel like starting from square-one , ensuring that i keep a smaller circle of people , will help tremendously with how out of touch and disconnected i have been feeling regarding the RPC on the whole. this does not mean i don’t want to interact in the future if we organically find each other at another point , this is just for the sake of my own stability at present. you DO NOT have to like this post for me to follow you back whenever i restart the blog ( but it will help me to remember people’s urls ) . if this is where we part , i thank you for being part of my dash regardless ! know that even if we did not interact , i greedily consumed the content you all produced.

i mentioned in the post prior to this that drafts will be dropped. as of writing this , only 2 of you reached out to claim drafts so i’ll take it as a sign to employ my own discretion as to what i want to keep or toss. unprompted asks and starters i’ve yet to reply to are exempt from this ; i intend to keep those.

i intend to ( try to ) launch some new characters , too !

annnnd that should be it ! i don’t know when everything will be set up / finished , but the purge ( tm ) will be done around the 22nd. i’m shooting for the new year for everything to be settled but we shall see. i know this might not be ideal for people , but i’m not doing this to be bothersome ; it simply felt as if something had to be done to re-establish my space and make it feel “good” again. none of my negativity was due to anyone personally , it was a collection of things offline and the feeling of the RPC in general. as always , thank you for understanding and i shall see you when i see you ( likely on better terms ) .

[fl00mie]

how calmly he's saying this makes me think that he actually had good intentions because he gave ink the opportunity to remedy things

or at least that's a way to see it

[wannabe-minion-of-chaos]

Don't mind me just

Smacks Gregory over the head with burnt out gifted kid syndrome™

[rottenappleinthebox]

I found a pic on my gallery that reminded me sm of Wenclair I just had to make an edit xD

Original comic:

I'm having difficulties finding the original post and the artist (I tried image search but nothing came up so I'll have to find it myself), once I find it I'll include the links for the post and the artist's profile

Edit: thanks to @lilpaprikajr now I can link the original art and the artist :)

[kjones-fandom]

I do think that Neil and Aaron would eventually get along but imagine if maybe a decade or so after the king's men Neil and Aaron get into a fight. It doesn’t matter what about but Neil runs his mouth and Aaron decks him. It doesn’t hurt that much and he doesn’t actually want to hurt Neil he was just so angry. I think Andrew wouldn’t react that much in the moment. He would assess the damage and Neil’s fine but Aaron’s busted his knuckles. So he wraps Aaron’s hand for him and doesn’t say anything for the longest time. No one knows what he’s thinking but the rest of the foxes are there (think like a reunion) and everyone kind of moves on.

Later that night while Aaron is icing his hand Andrew enters the room. Neil and Aaron already would have made up by this point. They aren’t necessarily friends but they don’t dislike each other anymore. Andrew would be silent as he had been earlier and would stare at Aaron’s hand. Aaron opens his mouth to say something- maybe to apologize or maybe to defend himself. But Andrew gets there first, he doesn’t raise his voice or become violent. Instead, he makes eye contact with Aaron and says “ This isn’t college anymore. If you ever lay a hand on my husband again I will kill you.” His voice isn’t apathetic but it isn’t very emotional.

He doesn’t break eye contact and his voice is steady and Aaron knows he’s telling the truth. Aaron doesn’t look away even after hearing the threat. He just nods his head “ I know”. And he does know because the twins are not the same men they were in college. Andrew doesn’t threaten Katelyn or speak badly about her. The twins do grow up and I think Andrew would respect and even consider Katelyn his sister-in-law first and his brother's wife second. No, this isn’t Andrew and Aaron losing their relationship or having a falling out. They’ve grown and matured and Aaron would be more pissed if Andrew stayed silent the whole time. Because he knows he would have done the same if Andrew had laid a hand on Katelyn.

TLDR: Andrew and Aaron grow after college. They respect each other's partners. Hell, they even like the other significant other. Because Andrew and Aaron love each other and after years of therapy and peace they come to terms with the fact that Katelyn and Neil are both there to stay.

Edit: Also, I am not calling Neil weak or saying he needs protection. He can absolutely defend himself but he shouldn’t have to with family. I love Aaron and Neil’s friendship and the fight doesn’t affect their relationship.

[thebad-lydrawn-sanses]

I have no clue why people think nightmare would treat his team like if thare his kids I think he would be cruel to them

i think canon Nightmare would 100% be horrible and mean in some capacity. unfortunately i reject canon (and am probably unhealthily attached to the idea of found family)

[riddlerosehearts]

floyd/riddle valentine's day headcanons 💙❤️

(okay, this post is more overly detailed than i originally planned because i ended up writing a whole scenario about what their first valentine's day after they start dating could be like. but i still want to share it, so here it is.)

riddle is somewhat conflicted about valentine's day. on the one hand, he was always a bit of a romantic, and as a kid there were times when he dreamed that someday he'd have a special someone to spend this holiday with. but he's changed since he was a kid, and regardless of how he might or might not feel, this year he happens to have an exam coming up in a few days and thinks that studying for it would be a more practical use of his time.

besides, floyd will also be busy working at the mostro lounge that evening. each year they hold a special valentine's event with discounts for couples, and floyd seems to be very focused on helping jade and azul plan for it. what makes valentine's day so important, anyway, when the one you love should be special to you every day? they can just go on a date whenever they like.

he still wants to try and respect the rules of the holiday, though. he knows from books he's read that it would be wrong of him not to get his boyfriend a gift, and he also knows that it's a popular tradition to make handmade chocolates for your partner on valentine's day.

so he buys some chocolate-making supplies and molds--the molds are shaped like hearts and roses, so they're sure to make floyd think of riddle when he eats them. and he does the best he can, knowing floyd will still love them even if they're not perfectly made.

he also buys a card with a simple yet elegant red and gold design, and makes sure it's blank inside rather than having a cheesy prewritten message, so that he can write his own message thanking floyd for bringing so much excitement and joy into his life.

the card he picks probably looks something like this:

he plans to take the chocolate and the card, along with one white rose and one red rose from heartslabyul's gardens, to floyd in the morning and see if they can plan to spend a day together after the exam.

while on his way there, he starts to feel a little embarrassed and wonder if the roses are too much. he doesn't really care about the holiday (or so he claims, but he sure did spend a lot of time preparing for it) and surely floyd doesn't care beyond exploiting it for business purposes, so this is a bit silly, isn't it?

wrong! for floyd's part, they don't have valentine's day in the coral sea, so he's actually been pretty excited for it--which riddle had guessed, since for the last few days he's been constantly asking riddle for advice on decorations and menu items for mostro lounge's event as well as spending quite a lot of his spare time there, presumably helping prepare things.

what riddle fails to realize is that floyd's excitement is about far more than just making money at the lounge.

so, riddle is standing outside floyd's door and about to knock when floyd suddenly comes rushing out and absolutely lights up upon seeing riddle there.

he doesn't even give riddle a chance to get a word in before tearing the gifts from his hands, popping a rose-shaped chocolate in his mouth, and doing a goofy little laugh as he tells riddle he loves him. riddle hopes floyd doesn't see the blush on his face.

"goldfishieee!" he exclaims. "i got you something too, and i just know you'll love it!!"

he runs back into his dorm room and comes out holding a small, very messily-wrapped box of store-bought white chocolate truffles, a plushie of a pink hedgehog holding a heart, and an envelope containing one of those fancy pop-out valentine's cards--specifically, one with a goofy pun on it. i'm picturing something like these:

riddle opens the card and rolls his eyes at the pun while trying to pretend that he's not smiling fondly at it.

he's about to ask about their plans when floyd leans over and drapes his arms around riddle's shoulders, and then says that he absolutely has to come to the lounge tonight for a very special surprise.

riddle is genuinely shocked at this, but he agrees, somewhat reluctantly because he's supposed to be studying--but also secretly excited at the thought of floyd having planned something just for him. he has to enlist cater's help to find something decent to wear.

floyd grabs riddle by the arm and drags him over to a table within seconds of him getting to the lounge. jade takes their order, they talk and tease each other and laugh together like they always do, and they also have fun chatting with some of their other friends who are sitting nearby with their own dates.

riddle almost forgets that floyd was supposed to have some kind of surprise for him, until floyd suddenly excuses himself and then shows back up a few minutes later with a small heart-shaped cake, covered in strawberries and other elaborate decorations.

it turned out that floyd had baked and decorated this cake for him. riddle felt guilty because he'd already eaten more than he meant to for the day, and especially because this must have taken much more work than the chocolates and roses he'd given floyd.

he tells him as much but then floyd tells him he's being silly before snatching the fork from his hand and going "if you're not going to eat it then i guess i'll have to!"

riddle feels a flash of anger because floyd can't just try to take his food, there are rules against such a thing. he takes the fork back and tries a bite of the cake, reasoning that it would be rude not to. it's strawberry flavored and possibly the best thing he's ever tasted.

when they leave the lounge that evening, they end up going back to heartslabyul together and for some reason floyd all of a sudden decides that they're playing tag and makes riddle have to chase him into the rose garden.

floyd didn't have any extra surprise for him, he just wanted riddle to keep having fun with him for a little while longer.

at the end of the day, riddle finds that he doesn't regret having lost a bit of study time for this, and he makes sure to tell floyd how grateful he is. he has to admit to himself that maybe there is something special about valentine's day after all.

[shrineofprophecy]

HELLO???!??! YES GIRL SLAY

[skyward-floored]

(More hdw au, several months after this memory)

Gentle humming drifts through the air as Queen Adeline rocks her baby, little Zelda’s eyes finally slipping closed in slumber. Adeline looks down at her arms to be sure her daughter is asleep, and as she finishes her lullaby, she makes her way across the room, careful to step lightly.

“Goodnight my sweet Zelda,” Queen Adeline whispers, giving her tiny daughter a kiss as she places her in her bed. “Dream pleasant dreams.”

Zelda doesn’t react, other than with a quiet snuffling noise, and Adeline gives her one more smile before leaving her be.

She stifles a yawn as she then dresses for bed, slipping her shoes off with a relieved sigh. An ache is present in her toes, and Adeline winces at the state of her feet as she finally sits down.

Her husband is away checking the state of a new training outpost, so she’s been running around twice as much as normal. Adeline would have gone along with him, but Zelda was too small to travel, and things needed to be kept up with here.

Though the extra amount of work she’s had to deal with along with a baby has been taxing, even without the added stress of traveling, and she is, admittedly, worn out.

It used to be I could handle a week of days like this without batting an eye, she thinks as she lays back on her bed with a sigh. And look at me now. Nothing but an exhausted mother with achy feet.

Zelda lets out a soft coo in her sleep, and Adeline can’t help her smile.

I wouldn’t trade it for anything.

A quiet rapping at her door makes her ears prick, and Adeline sits up, then reluctantly stands when the knocking repeats a few moments later. Seems she won’t get to rest just yet.

“Just a moment please,” she calls, putting on a comfortable pair of slippers and a robe, and then heads to the door.

She opens it, and is met with the familiar sight of one of her closest friends, Impa’s red eyes bright in the dim lighting of the hallway.

Adeline smiles. She hasn’t seen Impa all that much since she got back from her most recent assignment, even though Impa was recently appointed her daughter’s bodyguard. But her smile slips as she realizes Impa looks terrible, dark circles under her eyes, hair slipping out of its usual neat bun. She seems like she’s barely standing, and Adeline puts a hand on her arm in worry.

“Impa? What brings you here so late?” Adeline asks. “Not that I’m not glad to see you, but... are you alright?”

“I’m so sorry to disturb you your highness. But I need... I need to speak with you,” Impa says in a small voice, unusually small for her.

Adeline’s worry deepens, but she nods at her, and quickly gestures Impa in. She leads her to the small couch in her quarters, and Impa sits, her arms crossed over her middle and face oddly nervous.

The queen sits next to her, giving her room, but close enough to offer support if it’s wanted. She’s had an exhausting day, but her friend is far more important than getting a proper night’s sleep. Especially if she’s resorting to visiting her so late in the day, looking so terrible. It must be important.

“So what is it you need, Impa?” Adeline asks lightly, leaning back on her seat. “Is something wrong?”

Impa continues to stare at the floor, her face curiously blank as her arms tighten around her middle. When she still doesn’t say anything, Adeline hesitantly puts a hand on Impa’s shoulder, and she flinches, finally looking over and meeting her eyes.

Adeline is shocked to see tears in them.

“Impa..?” she asks softly, urgently.

Maybe it’s her quiet voice, maybe it’s her hand on her shoulder, or maybe it’s even the fact that Impa is actually very close to her breaking point, but all of a sudden her tears spill over and Impa is crying.

Adeline stares in further shock at the tears streaming down Impa’s face before quickly tugging her into a hug, her friend’s breath hitching with quiet sobs.

“Impa, whatever is the matter?” she asks as Impa cries into her shoulder, worry thick in her voice. She’s never seen Impa like this, her strong, stoic friend heaving soft sobs into her arms. Not even when they were children did Impa cry like this— something must be terribly wrong.

Impa sniffles.

“I think—” she says, letting out a hiccup. “I think I made a mistake.”

Adeline meets her eyes, Impa shakily wiping some tears away, and gives her shoulder a squeeze.

“Tell me what happened,” she says gently, and Impa nods, breathing out.

Adeline rings for some tea before they start, needing something to keep herself awake, and knowing Impa will appreciate it. She knows her friend’s favorite brew, and Impa does look calmer once she has the warm beverage in her hands, her tears stopped for the moment.

Impa sighs.

“During— during the assignment,” she finally begins, looking down at her tea and not at Adeline. “With the diplomatic party to the Eldin caves. You know we met with the Gorons, but they aren’t the only ones who live in that area.”

“Yes... I recall mentions of a dragon before. I believe he was to be included in the negotiations,” Adeline replies with a gentle nod. “All of the reports said everything went very well... were they incorrect?”

“No, they were correct,” Impa says, taking a long sip of tea. “The ambassador did his job well. The negotiations went exceptionally, with both parties.”

She sniffles again.

“Other matters just... didn’t.”

Adeline offers her a handkerchief, but Impa shakes her head, her tears stopped for now.

“What happened, Impa?” Adeline asks gently, aware there’s something her friend isn’t saying. Impa sighs, and tightly closes her eyes, holding her tea cup so tightly Adeline wonders if it will break.

“...I fell in love,” she whispers finally. “With the dragon knight Volga.”

The words are like a cold splash of water, Adeline blinking in shock, but as Impa squeezes her eyes shut, Adeline shakes off her disbelief and gently pats her shoulder.

“Oh Impa,” she says softly.

Impa breathes shakily in through her nose.

“I thought him insufferable at first, prideful and so full of himself. To my dismay we kept ending up together, during meetings and dinners and spars and everything, it seemed like he was always around with a smirk on his lips and some ignorant comment. It wasn’t until there was a monster attack and we fought together that somehow I realized there was more to him, and we just... we grew closer. We didn’t trust each other a bit at first, but somehow things changed, and we... suddenly we were in love,” Impa whispers, clutching her teacup.

“I did wonder why you barely wrote to me,” Adeline says, putting her hand over Impa’s. “I assumed you were too busy... which I suppose was correct, in a way.”

Impa almost smiles, then breaths in slowly.

“Yes. I apologize for not doing so. Between Volga and my duties, I had little free time,” she says, setting her tea cup down. “But back to what happened. I... it turns out dragon courting customs are different then both Hylian and Sheikah. I gifted Volga a particularly interesting crystal I discovered one day after we sparred, but it turns out the way I presented it, and what happened beforehand... it is the first step of how dragons propose to one another.“

Adeline can’t help her gasp.

“You proposed unknowingly?”

“Yes. Volga reciprocated, but I did not realize what had happened at first... but once we both figured out what had happened, I... I went along with it. And we were married. Or, mates, as he put it.”

Adeline mulls the tale over for a moment, almost unable to believe it despite hearing it from Impa herself. Impa is many things, but impulsive is not one of them, and going along with a marriage she did not intend is... very unlike her.

Which can only mean...

“...You truly love him, don’t you?” Adeline asks softly, and Impa closes her eyes.

“I... I did. I do. Let me finish,” she whispers. “We kept everything a secret, so as not to cause problems with the negotiations. I... also do not know what others’ reactions would be, especially the other Sheikah. Volga keeps company with monsters, even if he is not one himself. So we kept it all hidden. And everything was going so well despite all of the secrecy, and we were happy, the both of us, but... but then it was time for the ambassador to leave. And me with him.”

Impa’s voice shakes a little. “Volga thought I would stay with him, help him guard over the caves. I told him I couldn’t, not with my duty to Hyrule and the royal family, and my tribe as well. I wanted us to continue our relationship from a distance, but somehow it all just... went wrong. We fought, badly, and I...”

Impa wipes a hand over her eyes. “I left. I was out of time. I tried to talk to Volga once more before leaving, but he refused to speak to me. And now...”

Impa’s voice breaks, and Adeline puts her hand on her shoulder.

“I’m expecting,” she chokes out, and begins to cry in earnest again. “I’m expecting, Addy, and I don’t know what to do.”

Adeline pulls Impa back into a hug again, and her friend sobs, hurt and fear and anger and grief all spilling out with her cries.

“Oh Impa, you’ve been dealing with all of this alone?” Adeline breathes, holding her tight. “You’ve been back for weeks, I can’t imagine...”

No wonder she hasn’t been the same since she returned.

Adeline holds Impa tighter, and does nothing but rub a soothing hand along her back for several minutes, Impa trying to get a hold of herself and failing quite miserably.

“It’ll be alright. We’ll figure this out, I promise,” Adeline says gently, and Impa wipes a hand over her eyes. “Do you know how far along you are?”

“Somewhere around two months,” Impa whispers. “I began to suspect shortly after returning, but the signs are unmistakable now. I confirmed it earlier.”

She sniffles and wipes another hand over her eyes, and Adeline pulls back a little.

“We’ll figure this out,” she repeats gently, taking Impa’s hands in hers. “Things will be okay, Impa. For you and your baby.”

“But this child shouldn’t even exist!” Impa cries, her eyes even more red then normal. “They will be half dragon, Adeline, and we may have an agreement that Volga is technically a part of now, but he is still not trusted! A relationship with him is unthinkable among the Sheikah, they might not even accept our marriage as legitimate! How will my tribe react at the news that I carry his child?” she chokes out.

“Impa, all will be well,” Adeline says gently.

“I will not be able to fulfill my duties to you and the princess if I have my own child to care for!” Impa says thickly. “And my tribe may very well kick me out once they learn what I’ve done. How will all be well, your majesty? Answer me that.”

“Because I will help you,” she assures, voice firm with conviction. “You are not alone, Impa. I am on your side.”

She squeezes Impa’s hands.

“I’ll help you think of a plan. A great many things can be blamed on a sleep-deprived queen who recently had a baby,” she says with a wink. “If we work together, we can keep things quiet, and nobody will ever need to know who the father is. You’ll both be safe.”

“I can’t ask that of you your majesty,” Impa whispers, and Adeline sighs, looking at her tea which is now lukewarm at best.

Zelda shifts a little in her crib across the room, but she doesn’t wake, and silence falls over the room.

“...Do you remember when we were younger, and we pretended we were sisters?” Adeline asks after a minute. Impa nods, a minuscule smile forming on her tearstained face.

“Yes. You insisted we should be twins, despite you being three years older and us both looking nothing alike.”

“Oh, we looked plenty alike, hush,” Adeline huffs, and Impa’s smile grows just a little. “...my point is that we looked out for each other then, before either of us had any sort of importance beyond titles that were meaningless to us both. That hasn’t changed. I want to help you, Impa.”

Impa looks at her, gratitude shining in her eyes, but her gaze is still dim with grief.

“You’re certain?” she asks quietly.

Adeline nods again. “I’m certain. You’re my friend, Impa, I won’t leave you to figure this out by yourself. Plus you’ve saved my life at least twice, this is the least I can do.”

“You know I don’t require repayment for that,” she murmurs.

“No, but I still want to help you,” Adeline replies decisively, and tugs Impa into a hug again. “We can get to work on a plan as soon as you’re ready. I’m behind you all the way.”

Impa exhales, lowering her gaze, and Adeline can’t help but notice when her arm returns to resting around her middle.

The silence falls back between them, drained and quiet, and Adeline rests her head back on the couch they’re on, the tiredness she’d forgotten about now returning. She doesn’t want to deny Impa the comfort of having someone sit with her though, not after so long with dealing with this alone, and so she remains where she is, Impa’s head resting on her shoulder.

“...I’m scared,” Impa suddenly whispers, in a voice so quiet that Adeline barely hears it.

Adeline swallows, and gently sets her head against hers. “All I can tell you is that I was too,” she replies softly. “And that I’m here to help. You’re not alone, Impa.”

Impa lets out a sigh, heavy with exhaustion and grief, and Adeline knows there’s nothing more she can say.

All she can do is continue to hold her friend, and support her as best as she can.

[nkgrimmie]

Also after having enough time to think about what happened once the immediate danger is over, he'd be so pissed about the fact that both he and whatever monster that was are both considered "scp"s. Like is he seriously being compared to whatever that thing is? He's obviously not that dangerous or scary!

and during the next experiment he'd ask that in an irritated tone, and for once, he'd actually get an explanation...

"You and ████ are both SCPs because you are both anomalous."

"... So we're counted as the same thing?"

"Ah, no."

"... So how are we different?"

You are Euclid, and ████ is Keter."

XXX3-A would stare with a tilted head, before motioning the researcher to continue.

"Euclid means that you are unpredictable when it comes to containment, and that you may or may not escape. Keter means that an item is very difficult to contain."

XXX3-A would cross its arms.

"Thank you. I was wondering when I'd finally be told something."

"No worries. Are you ready to go on?"

"Yeah, I guess."

"Do you need me to repeat it for you?"

"I.. No, it was just trying to draw another stick, right? And then if I fail try folding something?" As it spoke, XXX3-A would rest itself back down in the provided chair.

"Mhm."

"I'll see what I can do... It hasn't worked at all since I've gotten here, you know."

"I know, I just wanted to see if your recent stress has affected it in any way."

"Wow, okay. Am I really just an object to you?" XXX3-A would tense in its seat, irritation now clear on its face as it craned its neck to get a better view of the researcher. It then recoiled into itself, hand rising to rest upon the thin bandages that had been placed upon the side of its neck.

The researcher merely watched, before speaking their words, eyes shifting to the right.

"Well, technically yes, but you are not actually an object. That's just a... Term we use around here."

"... Right, I believe you," Growled words tumbled from its lips as it pulled its hand away, wincing from the feeling of pressure being removed.

(... He really scratched himself up, didn't he?)

[fallstreakfeathers]

Human as you are

When you tell him you want to demat his hair, you're met with a scoff

"It'd have to be cut. All of it. Make me uglier than I already am" he snarls

You disagree, and sweetly push, reassure, promise

He rolls his eyes, fights, tries to intimidate

Mumbles a sarcastic "only if you're naked, too"

He hopes it shuts you up. Embarrasses. Deflects your horrible insistence

To his shock, terror, you agree.

You sit behind him, nude in water a little too warm for your liking, muscles undoubtedly to cramp in the small space of a tub not meant for two people, but that's okay

It's claustrophobic, suffocating

But that's okay, too, because he's letting you close to him

Letting himself be vulnerable

An honor even his sister rarely sees, you're aware, even if he's mostly hidden himself from you by the ridiculous amount of soap bubbles that surround your bodies like snowfall

Even if he refuses to let his weary eyes meet yours

Gentle hands soak his gnarled, broken strands with conditioner and detanglers

He flinches under your touch

Your touch, which has never hurt him, would never, could never

But the world has, the world will, the world takes wicked joy in it, and that is enough to justify the tenseness of his shoulders and the bobbing of his throat as he swallows, forcing himself to still

To trust his judgement

To trust you

You pretend not to notice, preserve his pride, devour your own

He swears it burns where your flesh touches his, wonders if you think him as diseased as everyone else does, wonders if you even care

Wonders if Daki allowed you this time away from scrubbing floors to spoil her dear brother

Wonders how you stand the stench, human as you are, of the blood and gore and the decomposing filth that may as well take up as much of his head as his dark locks do

A bladed comb cuts through the worst of it, straightening the rest as much as his hair allows

He watches your reflection in the water, watches your tongue poke through your lips as you concentrate on a particularly stubborn mat, watches you smile as you massage the falling suds into the spots on his shoulders- not to erase but to soothe

You would never hurt him

You work long, and pull so many unsavable chunks from his head he fears you really might cut him bald

You work hard, and resist the urge to playfully squish the inky dots below the corners of his mouth

There's no pain in your work, not enough for an Oni of his strength to notice, but you apologize every time the brush catches his knots anyway 

It's cute

You're cute, he thinks

Eventually, slowly, he allows himself to lean into you

Relaxes in the warmth surrounding him

He tells himself it's only so you don't have to stretch so far to reach him

Wouldn't want you to hurt your weak human arms

Ignores the inner voice that snickers with the knowledge that if he weren't so ugly, prideful, scared, he may have even allowed himself to smile

And when you leave, finally, to let him to wash his lower half without the threat of you, and he's left to sit in cooling water, eyes wide in the confusion that someone dares to care for him in such a way, like he's not disgusting, like he's not a monster, like he's a person, he pretends the tears threatening to fall is just the water left from his hair.

[welcomefortune]

I do like failmom extraordinaire Alicent but I’ll be upset if she doesn’t care about what happened to Aegon next episode. She’s a terrible mom to him, she doesn’t like him, but she does love him and I think that’s more interesting than her simply not caring about him at all and wishing him dead.

[mp3stargrl]

Lydia deetz I'm so sorry for what that movie did to you.

[shiftywing]

ok but was this ruby