#But for some reason I thought that so I didn't really question the save system at all

[lazycats-stuff]

could i request a batfam x male!reader where reader is partially blind/visually impaired

so one day reader loses his glasses or something and bruce walks up wearing black and reader, having seen batman before being adopted, recognizing his figure, is like ‘omg batman!’ cuz they can only see bruce’s physique and the colour he’s wearing and bruce is like 🧍🏻. sorry if this is confusing 😓

pwetty pwease,

-🐏

Oh my God, that's like... Bruce is just, what the hell. No problem dear 🐏anon, I got it. And yes, this is rather short, but I like the length of it.

Summary: (Y/N) needs his glasses to see.

Warnigns: cursing, (Y/N) is blind as a bat when he is not wearing his glasses(yes, pun intended)

(Y/N) was essentially a blind bat without his glasses. Think of Velma from Scooby doo cartoons. The moment that those glasses are off, (Y/N) can't see anything and he has to orient himself by other senses that a human possesses. Yes.

It's that bad.

(Y/N) didn't like it, he wished he didn't have to depend on them that much. Well, not much, more like fully.

It wasn't easy when you are in Gotham, at risk of being mugged or beaten. But... He got lucky. After years of being in foster care system, Bruce Wayne adopted him. He gained 4 brothers and a grandfather. It was a family that he has never had... And since Bruce is one loaded man, he paid for (Y/N)'s glasses and everything else that came with it.

(Y/N) was so thankful for it. He didn't know how he would have even survived without his glasses. It would be a lot of squinting and praying to God that he doesn't piss off the wrong people. And that's not the way he wanted to live. Especially not squinting while in this beautiful manor.

And one cool experience was seeing Batman. He saw him in an alley and (Y/N) thought it was so cool. And that's when he had glasses on. So, thankfully, he didn't miss him. But the suit was so cool. And the energy that Batman had was so scary and yet... You couldn't help but feel safe, knowing that he would save you.

Same went for the sidekicks.

Scary... But you know you'll be lead to safety, no matter what.

And that's what is so cool about Gotham and its resident vigilantes.

Unfortunately, (Y/N) couldn't find his glasses for some reason. He was sure that one of his now brothers misplaced his glasses. (Y/N) was trying to navigate himself in his room, trying not to bump into something. If he tripped, the house is going to explode with sheer anger and frustration from not being able to see shit. It wasn't nice. It sucked. He hated it.

He moved around by staying near the wall, using his hands as his guide to navigate around this place. It was not easy, but the memory of the layout really helps out.

But the fact that everything is blurry, not really.

(Y/N) stopped as he saw someone in black.

" Batman? "

He couldn't really control his train of thought at this point. And in (Y/N)'s defense, it does look like Batman.

" No (Y/N), it's Bruce. " Bruce stood there awkwardly, wondering how the fuck (Y/N) knew. How? They were all careful about hiding it. But for now he would deny it.

" Ah... Without glasses, you look like him. "

Bruce nodded. " Where are your glasses? "

" That's a good question. I do not know. I cannot find them, " (Y/N) answered as Bruce approached slowly.

" Hold onto my arm. " Bruce gently lead (Y/N)'s hand and (Y/N) held on tightly. " Do you think your brothers took it? "

" I hope not. "

Bruce chuckled as he started walking slowly, ready to help (Y/N) find his glasses. Crisis seemed to have been averted and Bruce was relieved.

That was a close one.

[cynthiav06]

Percy's amnesia in SoN gave him the perfect excuse to build his confidence to where it should be and break up with Annabeth, with very few consequences, and I will always stand by that. Annabeth may be easier for the Greeks to back due to her history there, but she has nothing at Camp Jupiter, where he quickly and firmly established himself as a powerful, capable and trustworthy entity, getting promoted to Praetor within a week. I honestly believe that, after his SON quest and the "greeting" Annabeth gave him on their reunion, Percy should've broken up with Annabeth, stayed with Camp Jupiter and thrived there.

Not only would the structure help him long-term in the way it canonically did in the (maybe) three days we saw him spend there, but he has a proper support system without biases in favour of Annabeth. It would also provide a fun narrative contrast to Jason, which RR was trying to push in-story, where they thrive in the other's camp despite the shadow of a figure they kind of feel they have to live up to. Jason does better in the looser structure of CHB due to his having picked up many wolf-ish traits from Lupa, while Percy almost *relaxes* in the strict routine of CJ because it helps with his ADHD symptoms.

And this confidence he very clearly has in SoN, and the way he almost romanticized the possible relationship between him and Annabeth when he didn't have his memories, would lead to a very jarring experience when his memories are settled and he reunites with Annabeth. Because, woah, that was not just a subconscious bias from preferring his new friendships/camp structure, but she actually is like that.

Boom, he now has recontextualised memories and perspective of Annabeth, and a place where she doesn't have a stronger reputation than him, and he can fairly safely break up with Annabeth and escape attempts at retaliation.

He might wait until after the quest the Seven go on, so that he can immediately cut her out of his lfe, but this new perspective changes how he approaches her.

The canon would never, but fortunately for us, there are fic writers. If I get enough time somewhere in this month or next, I might end up writing this, but I will have to see, no promises.

Back to your point; you have covered mostly everything so I don't see what I should be adding to this exact scenario but yes it is one of the few perfect pit stops for a percabeth break up to happen. I am going to go down a slightly different avenue for this one as my thoughts vary a bit from yours, so bear with me. It is going to be long, but I need to recap and clarify a few things for others; I will get to your specific questions near the end. [Everything's numbered, so if you are in a hurry, just scroll to the final four points]

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

The breakup could have been mutual, too, if Rick had written it well. If we follow the proper timeline, Annabeth was still hung up over Luke up until the end of BoTL and had just started to get over him at the start of Last Olympian. Percy had just been informed of the Prophecy and under massive stress between end of BoTL and start of TLO and was obviously arguing with Annabeth over it as she repeatedly got angry at him for reasonably freaking out over his then "assumed death" prophecy. To find some relief from all this, he was dating Rachel, who he really liked, had a kiss with, and overall a good relationship with.

Then the whole plot of the Last Olympian occurs in what can be considered to be a few months at best. Then both Percy and Annabeth get together but to recap the events leading up to this:

Rachel breaks up with Percy despite their good relationship due to understanding the role she needs to play in saving the Oracle.

Luke who had previously visited Annabeth to make her join him and who Annabeth was somewhat hung over still, dies.

The war ended up killing a lot of close friends and companions and was a generally traumatic event for everyone involved.

Percy is very high on mixed emotions, reeling from everything that's happened when he gets together with Annabeth, so neither of them have had any time to process anything that's happened properly enough.

They have their one month anniversary on September 18th[The Staff of Hermes short story], and Percy disappears in October. [Riordan.wiki has years and dates of important events].

So they have barely been together for two months, and Percy's already missing.

This is Annabeth's thought process when they do reunite. It implies she has been doing a bit of thinking about their relationship and might not be as sure about it anymore.

She also seems to heavily dislike Percy's initial idea of settling in New Rome and seems to have no intention of taking a break from quests like Percy does.

She also seems to dismiss Percy's unwillingness to go to NRU after the news of Estelle's birth and the events of CotG.

Those were a few key points of contrast between them both on their future plans. Not small ones either.

Now, back to their reunion and the events following; here are a few things:

She judo flips him in front of the Argo II and almost entirety of Camp Jupiter.

If Annabeth didn't know that Percy had lost the Curse of Achilles then she was judo flipping him on the small of his back where his mortal tether was located ; which she knew about and therefore would have killed him in her anger and hyper emotional state.

If Annabeth did know that he had lost the Curse of Achilles then she was still judo flipping her boyfriend who had been missing for six months after surviving an already very traumatic event where he barely managed to survive and was then put through kidnapping, six months of amnesia, and brainwashing against his will by a goddess and then thrust into an unknown land with enemies on his trail.

Further, she blames Percy for disappearing for all of the things HE suffered through against his will and HAS THE AUDACITY TO MAKE HIM APOLOGIZE FOR IT.

Annabeth says and I quote that she likes keeping Percy on his toes.

She also agrees with Piper that Percy needs to be leashed and controlled.

Then Percy's side gives us a few more concerning tidbits:

Percy repeatedly notes that he is scared of Annabeth or thinks she might hit him

He also says that she often brings up Rachel to make him uncomfortable.

Percy also doesn't feel comfortable confiding in Annabeth about Gabe or past trauma.

He repeatedly feels he isn't good enough for Annabeth, and obviously Annabeth's behavior consciously or subconsciously on her part enables his thought process.

He ends up almost killing himself because Annabeth makes him promise not to use his specific ability despite it being used in self-defense by Percy, which ended up saving them both because she was afraid of Percy's powers.

Yet another thing to point out is that Annabeth's fatal flaw hubris and her abandonment issues feed too much into her behavior, and until that is fixed, nothing can be helped.

Annabeth punched Percy in ttc just because he didn't ask her to dance like she wanted him to. She also gave Percy a very hard time just because he knew another girl (Rachel) and immediately acted controlling and toxically possesive towards Percy over Rachel and Calypso despite her and Percy not being in a relationship at any of those points. In fact, despite her supposed crush on Percy, she defended Luke all the way till Botl, despite his repeated attempts at murdering Percy, and even went as far as to say Percy was unreasonably angry at Luke. She also displayed rude and downright awful behavior when interacting with Rachel; and Rachel, being the better person, handled her with class and grace. This all is not even including her demeaning remarks against Percy's intelligence and condescending behavior.

We can conclude from all this that Percy and Annabeth are not compatible, with different future goals and clashing perspectives and most importantly due to lack of proper communication, terrible misunderstandings, and Annabeth's consistent toxic behavior.

But neither the characters nor the author and not even most of the fandom acknowledge any of these glaring issues, so nothing can be done, but their break up can go several ways:

1.

Percy and Annabeth both break up amicably with Annabeth apologizing and understanding the gravity of her behavior and her mistakes and consistently making up to Percy for all the things she has been doing terribly. This is only possible for pre Tartarus or pre MoA situation.

Annabeth could have had a good arc in overcoming all of her problems while Percy too dealt with his self esteem issues and past trauma and they could have given their relationship a shot again in the future; they are both too young right now.

2.

Percy confronts Annabeth on her behavior and breaks up with her. Things get ugly, and it ends up being horrible for both of them. This is a traumatic situation on both ends, but the reason why this is unlikely is that Annabeth and Percy have a case of trauma bonding, and there's hints of codependency more on Annabeth's end. Which makes Percy mask Annabeth's toxic traits easily and for Annabeth to ignore Percy's devolving mental health and self-esteem issues that she has been enabling unknowingly.

3.

The other likely option is third-party intervention. Sally or Poseidon/Athena or other campers.

I also disagree that the camp half blood would back Annabeth. Percy's their [CHB] unofficial leader and a good friend to all of them plus he is the reason the children of other non-Olympian gods have cabins and get claimed early so he definitely has a higher status than Annabeth does in both camps. Camp Jupiter also does respect Percy more than any other Greek, and he is the only Greek to ever be made Praetor. So in social or reputation terms, Percy's winning.

But I don't think other campers would dare meddle in Percy and Annabeth's business. Maybe the seven would. [Leo and Frank would never. Jason probably doesn't understand the whole situation. Piper’s misguided and would probably feed into Annabeth's behavior, so either Hazel or Reyna? Hazel would definitely help Percy understand, and Percy would totally hear Hazel out. Thalia, hmm, I don't really know what Thalia would do, but I don't think she would blindly back Annabeth. She does seem to care for and respect Percy just as much. Nico isn't touching it with a 20-foot pole, plus I don't think he is over his Percy crush at all, so he's not an unbiased party either. ]

4.

Last option and what probably is the most likely is that things continue as they are and Percy eventually snaps due to endless pressure and his mental health issues and Annabeth can't deal with it and then all their other issues which they have both ignored come spilling out and then it's just a clean break but it's going to be the most excruciating way out and given their luck definitely happening.

[witherby]

Omg hi!!! I love your mer!reader series and I was wondering if you take request? If so could you do batfamily headcanons in squid game? (You don't have to of course.) I just finished season 2 and im really excited for season 3.

Love you and keep writing❤️

Hi there! I can sure try!!! I only ever saw season 1 and that was like two years ago but I'll do my best!

( This is operating off the assumption that they are not all in the game together, otherwise they'd all make it out very easily. )

BRUCE WAYNE:

He's killing it. Not literally — moral code and all — but he's crushing this competition. Bruce Wayne's picture is in the dictionary when you look up "Strategist." He got into the games voluntarily and he will get back out alive, no question. He's doing what he can to help other players survive, but he didn't go in as Batman so he doesn't have any of the gear to help as effectively as he could've. He's gotta play it creatively and in a way that doesn't get him or anybody else disqualified for cheating. It doesn't take long for him to find any loop holes in game rules that allow for multiple people to get out of it alive.

Bruce entered the games, not for money, but to find out who is behind them and bring them to justice, so that no other financially disparaged people have to consider putting their lives on the line in order to clear their debts and start fresh.

DICK GRAYSON:

I feel like he didn't end up here on purpose. I really think he either signed up for something and thought it was a silly lil competition, or that the organizers of the game kidnapped the wrong guy and Dick just went with it because he had nothing better to do. Either way, he's here, he's intrigued, and he's gonna save everybody he can while keeping your spirits up.

The jokes never stop. He never stops. Motormouth is what the other contestants end up calling him. Dick makes one of the masked guards snicker once before they get whisked away, and that does make him feel quite a bit bad. Dick's not immediately looking to destroy the system from the inside out (he'll come back and do that after the games are over). Instead, I think his goal would be to convince all the surviving players that they should vote to end the games and go back home. He'd try to be their voice of reason, to convince them that there are better ways to pick themselves up and rebuild their lives than risking death just to get some fast cash. And I think it works.

TIM DRAKE:

Tim is the opposite of Dick. He was not invited to play but he did deliberately steal another contestant's spot to get put into the game. Like Bruce, he's already out-logic'd most of the competitions to create the most amount of survivors, but he also came prepared. The deadliest competitions are suddenly sabotaged not to be as deadly, or not to work at all. Hidden weapons being offered to other players to start a riot and dwindle the numbers have all suddenly been replaced with soft foam bats and nerf guns.

He already knows who's behind the whole thing, he just needed an in so he could tear it all down quickly and cleanly. When Tim is done, he'll be missing for 48 hours at the absolute max, and leaving that place with justice done and a huge, smug smirk on his face. What, like it was hard?

DAMIAN WAYNE:

Damian is tough. I think he caught wind of the whole operation and went undercover as one of those masked game monitors/referees so he could also dismantle it from within, but with less computer hacking and sabotage, and more slashing. I think this method works best as early Damian, who has barely been introduced to his dad for like a week, before he just drops off the face of the planet for a couple days and comes back blood-soaked.

"Hello, father. That suspicious money scheme you had your eyes on? I solved the problem. What do you mean, what am I covered in? Would you believe me if I told you it was ketchup? By the way, your No Killing rule is stupid."

JASON TODD:

Post-resurrection, he's not doing anything with any subtlety. At least Damian took the time to work his way in with a disguise. Red Hood is finding out where the whole shindig is taking place, gathering a crew, kicking doors down, and setting it ablaze. He doesn't have time for games, and the longer he waits to act the more innocent people are dying. He shoots the giant money ball down and lets the players collect it freely, tells them how to leave, and peaces out without looking back. In and out, job done, on to the next one.

[dalliancekay]

The 'Aziraphale Still Believes in Heaven' Take

Is one that I see so often. Too often. The way many fans (still) say Aziraphale is naïve, he's never learned anything, he does not really change; Metatron offered him a promotion and he happily jumped on it. Keen to go back to Heaven. Still in their clutches. Leaving Crowley behind. Cos nothing lasts forever. Amirite? Poor long-suffering Crowley. So patient. Goes through so much. Aww. Takes that say that because Crowley never told Aziraphale about the venom in Gabriel's "Shut your stupid mouth and die already", Aziraphale has no idea that Heaven is not the good guys, that he still believes they are on the side of truth and light.

Takes that claim Aziraphale wants Crowley to come to Heaven and be an angel again so they can be happy like in the good old times. Takes that basically say that Aziraphale is stupid. And blind. LISTEN Do you mean the Aziraphale who knew before Crowley did that something is rotten in the state of Denmark, that things are wrong and one can get in a lot of trouble for a thing as minor as a suggestion to improve things.

Is this the Aziraphale that would seriously suggest to Crowley, who he was immediately deeply anxious over, to go back to 'good old times'? What good old times? When? How is Heaven a place of light when a bunch of angels comes down to Earth to bully and PUNCH ONE OF THEIR OWN? Why would he think they are the light when they shame him for being who he is? (Gabriel's: "Lose the gut" comes to mind)

And yes, Aziraphale wants to do good. But that's not tied to him being an angel. And it's not a bad thing ffs! Crowley does good as well. Aziraphale might be the only one who knows, but he knows. Maybe getting humans out of the Garden to seek knowledge was always a (certainty) possibility, and maybe not, but it was Aziraphale's decision to arm them.

And She didn't make him Fall for it. And do you remember when:

Aziraphale openly questioned whether Heaven was actually doing what God actually wanted? He did what he thought was right. He trusted Crowley over his fellow angels, with his own sense of rightness. He and Crowley saved the kids that Aziraphale triple checked the Archangels saw no problem in letting die to make things easier. And She didn't make him Fall for it. In Edinburgh:

Aziraphale re-evaluated his assumption that grave-robbing is bad and did a full 180 degree turn when he learned it can be spun another way, trying to save the grave-robbing girl AND the possible future lives of children that could be helped via more learning. And when we come to Metatron and his threats, we don't see the full conversation, but don't we see enough? Aziraphale says that he's not interested. Metatron keeps nagging at him. Pushing the symbolic coffee from Coffee or Death at him. Flattering him with obvious untruths. After all, Aziraphale knows what Heaven thinks of him. He tried to reason with Metatron before. Metatron tells him they know how deep his disobedience lies:

Aziraphale is not a fool. He knows this is an offer of come quietly or we will find a way to destroy you and your demon this time. Aziraphale didn't have to hear Metatron's quip of: "For one prince of Heaven to be cast into the outer darkness makes a good story. For it to happen twice, makes it look like there is some kind of institutional problem." He knows the system is rotten. He knows for a LONG time. Did you see his face when he met Muriel and realised what a lonely sad existence they lead. AND Crowley doesn't love Aziraphale despite the fact that he's being used to get out of trouble, being made to listen about random things the angel enjoys from symphonies to food and plays, and who continues to believe in goodness and kindness and who keeps telling him no. CROWLEY LOVES AZIRAPAHLE BECAUSE OF THOSE THINGS AND because he sees Aziraphale for who he is, an angel who thinks for himself, changes his mind, angel who is brave, who stands for the right thing, who sacrifices his own happiness for the safety of others, especially the demon he loves. They are the same. They are lonely. They are one of a kind. And they love each other.

Aziraphale wants to stay at home. In the home he built for himself and Crowley. On Earth where he's found so much to love. But he knows it is impossible. As Crowley confesses his love, Aziraphale struggles to stay on his plan. He'll miss Crowley terribly. He wants them to be together. For him, they were an 'us' the whole S2. However tenuously. Fragile existence and all that.

But even this was ripped away from him. And whatever he's planning, he knows he needs to do the first steps on his own. He can't submit Crowley to the torture that being in Heaven is going to be for him, an unwanted, despised angel. He can't make him come. He can only ask him. And Crowley said no.

So he leaves. Furious. And determined. Whether it is to burn the place down or find God and ask Her all the questions to Her face I don't know. But his love will push him through.

And if I see one more simplistic take of the snarky demon is really good isn't he, so that means the stuffy angel is bad (and needs to change to be worthy of the demon) I will curse their dreams with lines about shades of grey. AZIRAPHALE AND CROWLEY ALREADY LOVE EACH OTHER

[onskepa]

You know? It would be cool if you could make a crossover between sully family and tonowary family with an old human reader who is immortal and has problems with his memory, forgetting very easily a chit chat he had a few minutes ago and can create ice like the ice king from adventure time and is not respected by any other skypeople who always make fun of him in secret and mock him but the reader leaves them be because with great powers come great responsability.

since this basically ice king persona, I watched a few compilations from that good ol' cartoon. Hope its good! Enjoy!

P.S: He is a she in this! Fem reader!

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

Zerok

Memories can be either precious or haunting. Depending on the person and circumstances. Some people prefer to lose them, some desire to keep every single fragment. But some are a bit unfortunate, they simply forget. Not like it's their choice, just bad luck. 

Zerok, as many collectively call her, is the oddest person of the human bunch. Yes, everyone is weird in their own way but zerok is just on another level. Many have asked her for something, or if she can assist but zerok….

“What? But I thought you said you wanted the red wires?.....Oh that makes sense, red wires mean KABOOM!! And everyone would be dead. Yeah, you're right, green wires next time!” 

“I wish I had a beard….like a really, really, reaaaaaaaaally long beard. Why? So I can fly! Fly fly so high! And stuff my snacks in it too!” 

“Oh hi! Nice to meet you! I am….uuuuuhhhh…….” 

“Phew, thank you so much lo’ak” norm sighs in relief. Lo’ak climbs down as he just cleared out the vents. Maintaining the airways is a high task that cannot be overlooked if they want to breathe properly. 

“Anytime, uncle” lo’ak replies. 

Norm goes to a monitor to check the air quality that is now flowing. 

“All systems are good. Perfect” 

Satisfied with the current status, they both relax as they feel the cool air enter the room. 

“How are the coolers holding? I'm surprised it's still holding up all these years?” Lo’ak asks curiously. Coolers in the hellsgate has been shut down in certain areas since they are not in use. It does help to save energy and make it easier to take care of the main cooler tanks. 

“So far so good I guess. Zerok takes care of them, "Norm replies. 

“Huh!? Who said my name!? Was it you glob…?” 

Speak of the devil. Or in this case, speak of the ice queen, since now the room felt extra chilly the second she entered. 

“Dad?” lo’ak walks up to his dad with something on his mind. 

“What's up?” Jake replies. 

Lo’ak takes a moment before asking his question, “why is zerok so……odd?”. Didn't want to say weird as it might come off mean when it's not his intention. 

Jake takes a moment, scratching his head, “I honestly don't know. She was already like that when I arrived here. To be honest, she is kind of ok with me. Though she does things that are a bit out of hand…like calling everyone gunter. I have no idea why. I used to remind her, norm, max, everyone tries to remind her of our names. On lucky days she will call anyone by their names, but on not so lucky days, everyone is gunter”

Jake remembers on his first day at the hellsgate. During the briefing, even old quaritch had to warn everyone.

 “And if an old weird lady calls you gunter, just roll with it. Also keep your doors locked at night, we dont need another heart attack” 

“She is harmless and all good” 

“So then why does everyone keep their distance?” lo’ak asks another question. 

“Well, naturally humans dont always feel comfortable around odd things or others displaying odd behaviors. Their senses tell them to back away as possible danger. Or other times they just simple dont like to be near odd people” 

Lo’ak thought of that over and over. He is odd himself, yet people like to be near him. Maybe zerok is a different kind of odd?

“BOOMBAKLAAAAAAAA~!!”

Zerok jumped from the third floor all the way down to the first floor, for some unknown reason.

Norm just shivered everytime he sees her. Quite literally. Its like her presence brings coldness to the air, in times that are not needed.

“Ugh, its that old hag again…” one of the scientists mutters, ready to boil some warm water.

“I'm surprised she didn't go back like everyone else. We are better off without her” another says. But norm just looks at zerok, yeah she is so weird in so many ways but really isn't harming anyone.

“Why the need to say that?” norm asks one of the other guys.

“Come on norm, we already have spider to deal with. With her around making a mess and shit, its like having a toddler in a old persons body”

“Hey now that aint-”

“GUNTER! LOOK THIS WAY!” zerok shouted. Almost instinctively, everyone turned to see a flash of white light. She took a photo, it seems. Another thing norm doesn't understand, zerok has a niche for photography it seems, but it seems in the most random moments. Never giving anyone a moment to prepare.

“Thanks!” and she runs away, the coldness leaves with her.

Tsireya was enjoying the lake not too far from the omatikaya village. The water feeling amazing, a bit warm but amazing nonetheless. Being away from water has made her and her family feed odd. The need to be one with the element is a must. 

But as she takes in the relaxing silence, all of a sudden the water felt….cooler? 

Stopping midway of her swim, she looks around and sees an elderly human. Her hands in the edge of the lake dipping into the water. What was she doing? 

“Hi, I thought you wanted it cold. Alright bye!!!” and the odd human left. 

Tsireya couldn't help but giggle, the human was odd but funny as well.

he side, trying to take in this new update of the old woman. 

“Does she posses something to make water cold?” tsireya asks. 

Lo’ak can only shrug, “to be honest, Im not sure. Everyone keeps mentioning how the air feels colder when she is around. Cold water is news to me” 

Tsireya humms, it would be interesting if she did. 

As they walk, they saw kiri and tuk enjoying some beverages with neteyam. They walk over to see. 

“What are you guys drinking?” lo’ak asks. Tuk can only humm in happiness while neteyam offers him a bowl. 

“Try it” he says. Lo’ak looks at it, was thick in paste but looks smooth as the same time, taking a sip he knew instantly it was banana, but it was mushed and cold? He offers it to tsireya who seems to like it. 

“Its good” she compliments. 

“Zerok made it for us, don't know how but its really really good. She called it a smoothie” neteyam says. 

“Speaking of zerok, has she dont anything weird around you guys? Or seen her doing anything out of the ordinary?” lo’a asks his siblings as he and tsireya sits with them. The other siblings look at each other and try to recall anything. 

“Anything and everything she does is out of the ordinary brother, even for human customs” kiri points. Which is technically true. 

“I like her, she is funny and makes the silliest dance moves” tuk points out. Remembering the few times zerok shows off her silly dances to her. 

“Norm says not everyone likes her, that she is too much to handle” neteyam adds in. Not always he goes to the lab, but when he does, a whisper catches his attention. How many talke so mean behind the old lady. 

“Best to ask spider, he should know a thing or two” 

“She is not normal” spider says bluntly. 

Everyone groaned at his answer, “we already know that cuz” lo’ak mutters. 

Spider shook his head, “no, I mean it literally. She is not normal, like by any human standards or human capabilities” he rephrases. Now this many many head turns. 

“What do you mean by that?” kiri wonders. 

“Best she shows you, come on” 

Spider leads them through a couple of halls, turning left and right. This was tsrieya’s first time seeing human structures, so she seeks comfort by holding lo’ak’s hand. 

Spider leads them all the way down to the air generators. Lo’ak remembers norm telling him how they often need to be maintained, and that zerok is the only one who does it. They all see that the metal parts are  turning slightly red, the temperature growing warm by the second. Spider smiles at this. 

“Perfect! Its getting warm” he says. 

“How is that good? Feels like we are near a fire” 

Spider says nothing more but pushes a button on a nearby wall. In a matter of a few seconds, zerok appears from somewhere. 

“Hi gunter!” she greets. Spider huffs, shaking his head lightly, “its spider, zerok. Always has been”. Reminding her for the millionth time. 

“Ok gunter” she nods. 

Quickly she took notice of the air generators heating up. 

“Oh my gloooooooob! Why didn't you tell me spunter!? This should have been taken care of since 5 megalions ago!” she cries out. 

“What is a…..megalion…?” tsireya whispers. Lo’ak shrugs, “I have no idea”. 

Zerok observes the generator and touches the hottest spot, her hand sizzling from contact. 

“Let it gooooooo!! Let it goooooooo!! Can't hold it back anymooooooooooore~!!” she sings out. And as if by odds, ice spewed out from her hands. Layers of ice began to cool off the hot spots, the air no longer hot. The generator was back to being normal. 

“YAHOOOOOO~!!” going a bit nuts, zerok then creates snow all over the room, to keep the generator cold longer. The kids were in absolute awe. They have never seen anything like this before! 

“Woa!! This is amazing!” tuk cheers, already collecting a bit of snow from the floor. 

“Huh?? Do you guys work here too??” zerok stopped what she was doing to just now notice the tall teens. 

“Uuuuuuuuhhhhh…….yes?” kiri answers awkwardly. 

“Cool!” 

“HUH?! Over 300 years old!?” lo’ak shouts in disbelief. 

After witnessing what zerok’s ice abilities, the kids simply wanted to know more. Apparently she is more than just a wacky old lady with a liking to the gunter name. She is also immortal. 

“Yes” zerok answers as she adds snowflakes to tuk’s ice crown. 

“H-how…?” tsireya’s was also trying to process this information. Immortality is simply impossible. 

“I dunno, its been so long I cant remember. But my only lead, is a prince” zerok answers honestly. 

“If I try to remember, my head begins to hurt, like a loooooooooot. So I dont remember, I forget easily” 

Neteyam noticed her polaroid camera at her side. 

“Is that why you take pictures? To remember” he questions. 

“Yuppa doozers! I have so many pictures, I even forget I took them in the first place! Ok, all done sweetie” 

Tuk stands up and admires her ice crown. Giggling, she prances around, loving how pretty it is while also cooling her head. Zerok grabs her camera and takes a picture of tuk. Her smile is now forever preserved. 

“So when is your birthday?” kiri asks. 

Zerok turns to her curiously, “what birthday?” 

“You know, your birthday, to keep track of how old you are…?” 

Zerok plays with her camera before looking up in a daze, “dang, I can go for have some bacon pancakes…” 

“Zerok? Your birthday…?” kiri tries to remind her. 

“What birthday?” zerok asks again, “I dont have a birthday! I dont even know how old I am!” 

Kiri quietly gave up, seems this human is just simply full of surprises. Even some zerok isnt aware of. 

Night feel, and everyone in the base was heading to bed. Zerok was just putting away her camera while making sure her pillows were extra crunchy with frost. 

“Dabadoo, dadaboo, yada yada, dooooooo~!!” she sings a random melody. Going back and forth to put away things, she stops to notice something. 

“Oh what a pretty blue girl, wonder where she got that crown” she says to herself. Seeing a picture of a na’vi child wearing a pretty ice grown. Around that photo were other na’vi kids. 

“Alright, all set for some sleeps! Tomorrow I should check on spunter, I wonder if he ate anything this month. I know! Ice, who doesnt love ice” 

Climbing onto her bed, zerok gets into a comfy position and lets sleep take over. While her eyes remained wide open, snoring away into the dark abyss that is called her inner mind. 

aaaaaaaaaand that is it for this one! Got stuck on what else to put but hopefully its good! Until next time! See ya!

--------

Zerok = remember

[cosmicpearlz]

yours for the time being |2|

summary: what happens when your academic rival of years proposes an offer of fake dating? pure chaos.

pairing: gryffindor!jude bellingham x slytherin!reader

a/n: chapter two is finally here!! there is a few time skips in this timeline because i really don't want this series to be overly long but everything still makes sense (at least to me lol). enjoy my loves <3

jude woke up the next morning determined to prove a point. prove a point to whom? no one per say but he was ready to tackle the day. showering and putting on his robes, he headed to the slytherin painting. the gryffindor managed to do everything before ron and harry woke up. did he need to wake up this early? no, he really didn't.

"where's y/n?"

"literally how the fuck did you get in here?" draco says, throwing a confused glance towards jude. the slytherin common room was pretty much empty besides draco, theo and blaise. the boy shrugged in reply to the question.

"don't worry about it."

"mate, y/n isn't even up at this hour. we can relay a message for you though," theo jumps in the conversation. he studied jude's face and body language, the slytherin boy knew something was up.

"i'll come back later then, yeah?"

"if you wish," theo shrugs his shoulders with a light nod. jude doesn't wait for anyone else to talk, he's off to his next destination. the great hall.

"he totally likes her," blaise says to the other guys as soon as jude left the common room.

"yeah, i can see that. i think she likes him too, if we're being honest," theo replied.

-

you were late. like super late and it's all because you didn't set your alarm properly. to make matters worse, of course your stupid friends didn't wake you. you missed breakfast, all of your morning classes and lunch. you showered, dressed in your robes and headed to the common room. you knew the friend group would be there at this time.

"you lot are fucking rude! how could you let me-" your voice trailed off upon seeing jude instead of your friends. a sight that shocked you once more.

"jude, what are you doing here?"

"welcome back to society sleeping beauty." you groaned and pouted at the thought of not having anything to eat. you seriously hated your friends in this moment.

"don't even start. i don't have any food in my system and i know that the kitchens are closed until dinner."

"lucky for you, i saved you a chocolate chip muffin. i know it's not a lot but i figured it would hold you until dinner," jude hands you the muffin that was wrapped in a paper towel.

"how'd you know i like the chocolate chip muffins?"

"i remember in our third year, you used to bully draco into giving you his. that way you always ended up with two." you heart skipped a beat, and you sent the boy a small smile.

"well thank you," you turn to take a seat on the couch. "you know you're missing the last set of classes to be here, right?"

"i was worried when i didn't see you for the day. so after lunch, i came to the common room with your friends. they left at some point to god knows where," he takes a seat next to you.

"and they didn't even wake me? ugh, those idiots."

"i think they thought that you weren't feeling good. to be fair, i would think so too. you're never late to class."

"you have a point buddy. thank you for the muffin again, i could literally kiss you right now," you take another bite, missing the way jude's smirk grows.

"i wouldn't complain about that."

"what?"

"i wouldn't complain if you kissed me. remember you're my girlfriend, a little peck wont hurt." you rolled your eyes and leaned closer to his face. you stare at him before placing a quick peck to his lips.

"you're so flirty bellingham. for no reason at that."

"what? i can't flirt with my girlfriend? and i don't think the kiss was long enough." it's official, the boy was going to drive you insane.

"not long enough?"

"yeah, c'mere for a second," jude wastes no time pulling you in for a kiss. the kiss is as gentle as his hand that rested on your cheek. you shuffle closer to his body, kissing him back intensely. the energy between the two of you pick up causing you both to fight for dominance. jude licks the bottom of your lip, seemly asking for permission. to which to you grant by opening your mouth enough for him to slip his tongue in.

"so he is your boy toy? and that's why he was here early this morning." you jumped away from jude hearing blaise's voice. turning your head, you lock eyes with your friends. each one staring in amusement.

"he isn't my boy toy. he's my boyfriend." you turned back towards jude, "you were here this morning?" jude interlocks his hand with yours, causally nodding his head.

"yeah, don't worry about that." you tilted your head in confusion.

"since when are you guys dating? you usually tell me everything," pansy asks with a slight pout on her face.

"we just started dating and its fairly new. i would've told you if you guys woke me up today! it's like y'all didn't even care my absence."

"told you we should've woken her up. sorry y/n, these idiots don't listen."

"you very well could've woken me up theo."

"you got a point. anyways, we were coming to grab you for dinner."

"good, i'm so hungry. we'll meet you guys in a minute."

"why? you wanna keep kissing your boyfriend?" draco says in a mocking tone. you give him a blank stare and flip him off.

"mind your business. shoo, we'll catch up." your friends left the two of you alone. waiting until the door closes again, you turn to jude.

"how'd i do?"

"you definitely made it believable."

"good. now, are we gonna talk about that kiss?"

"nah," jude shakes his head. "let's get you something to eat though," he stands up himself before helping you stand as well.

"so, we're just not gonna talk about the kiss?"

"walk," jude stands behind you with his hands on your shoulders. you huffed, letting the boy guide you out of the room.

-

the walk to the great hall was quiet yet peaceful. jude's hand remained interlocked with yours and everything felt natural. it was a crazy feeling seeing as it's only been two days since you guys agreed to fake date.

"will you sit with me?"

"are you asking jude?"

"yes. i'd like it if we sat together."

"because of lavender?"

"no, i'm not worried about her. i just like hanging out with you."

"that's a sentence that i've never thought i'd hear from you."

"is that a yes?" he pokes your side, waiting for an answer. you smiled up at him and nodded.

"sure, i'll sit with you."

jude leads the two of you to the gryffindor table. the quiet murmurs of students that watched the two of you suddenly made you self-conscious. you take a glance at your table, finding that your friends were already looking at you. you send a small smile to the group and focus on sitting down next to jude. meeting harry and ron's gazes, you could tell they weren't happy.

"what is she doing here?" harry looks away from you, turning his gaze to his friend.

"she's my girlfriend and i wanted her to sit with me."

"i'm sorry, did you just say girlfriend? as in this snake is your actual girlfriend?" ron asks in a dry manor. the table was awkwardly silent after that. hermione slaps his shoulder and gives a scolding look.

"well fuck you too," you mumbled under your breath. jude being the only one to hear you, kicks your leg lightly. you look to him with a scrunched face. to which he stares right back at you with furrowed brows, you sighed and began to pick at your food.

"don't call her that. we're still freshly new to the dating thing."

"we're happy for you," hermione smiles. you smile back at her and looked down once more. naturally ignoring the other two boys.

the rest of the table falls back into their own conversations. it makes you miss your table because it was like you were invisible during the time you say there. of course, jude did his best to include you in the conversation but the other two friends weren't having it. hermione being the only other person to talk to you. lavender stared at you guys the entire time. her grip on the metal spoon was enough to break it.

"so, in two weeks, our game is against slytherin," jude turns to you with a grin. the quidditch games between gryffindor and slytherin was always a sight to see. seeing as the houses were longtime rivals.

"let me guess; you want me to wear your scarf?"

"absolutely."

"no."

"oh c'mon! why not?"

"because slytherin is gonna kick your team's ass. why would i wear the losing team's colors?" you smirk up at him with a slightly scrunched nose.

"and how are you so sure that your team is winning princess?" jude gazes into your eyes. your chest starts to feel warm under his intense eye contact.

"i just know," you shrugged, maintaining the eye contact he gave you. unbeknownst to the two of you, hermione watches the exchange. she smiles to herself, knowing that the two of you were practically perfect for each other.

"do i have to beg?"

"maybe. i dunno, you should try it," you keep your snicker to yourself. it's jude's turn to huff and roll his eyes.

"can you please wear my scarf?"

"hmm," you stroke your chin with your pointer finger and thumb. pretending to even give it a second thought.

"no."

-

you wore the stupid scarf. maybe it was jude's pathetic puppy dog eyes that did it for you. or maybe it was you growing a small soft spot for the gryffindor over the last couple of weeks. standing with hermione and pansy, you felt nervous for this match. you wanted your team to win but a small part of you hoped jude won.

"wearing your boyfriends' colors, huh?" pansy smirked at you.

"pans, knock it off. jude asked me to wear it but it doesn't mean i want slytherin to lose."

"i think it's sweet that you put your pride aside to support your boyfriend," hermione says, while nudging your arm. you finally crack and smile at the thought.

"yeah yeah, whatever. i wish this game would start, it's cold out here," you snuggled his scarf closer to your face. seemly inhaling his cologne that was left on it. a delightful woody smell with a hint of spice. it was enough to make you melt, not that you would ever tell jude that.

"oh, look it's finally starting!" pansy shakes your shoulders, along with reaching over you to poke hermione's arm.

the slytherin team walks out to the pitch first. cheers and boos fill the stadium. next, the gryffindor team walks on to the pitch and receive the same treatment as the other team. with the blow of the whistle, everyone begins flying on their brooms.

the match was intense. from the defending to the fighting for the golden stitch. gryffindor was the first to score a goal, causing your fellow slytherins to groan. you were amused by lee's commentary that he says during every game. both teams going back and forth scoring goals.

"it looks like jude bellingham and theodore nott are going after the golden stitch! let's see who is able to make it first," the announcement rang through the stadium speakers. you couldn't watch as the two of them fight head on. you place your hands over your eyes but stood in anticipation with the rest of the crowd. that was until you heard the loud gasps of the crowd.

"jude bellingham has been knocked off of his broom! that might leave a nasty bruise or two," lee announced, causing you to gasp too. you watched as he felt from his broom, landing in a weird way.

"slytherin wins once again!" you couldn't bring yourself to cheer with your peers. rushing off the stands to follow the helpers that carried an unconscious jude off the pitch and towards the hospital wing.

-

"is he okay?" you burst through the doors of the hospital wing and questioned madame pomfrey. hermione and pansy standing behind you for comfort.

"he will be. nothing broken, just a few scars and bruising to the ribs." before you could answer, lavender entered through the same doors. you rolled your eyes and turned towards the girl.

"what are you even doing here?"

"checking on jude, as if that wasn't obvious." you stepped closer to the gryffindor girl with a fiery look in your eyes.

"listen here lavender. jude doesn't want you. it's pathetic that you're even still trying! me and him are dating, get over it. if he really wanted you, he would've been dating you a long time ago." your speech rendered the girl speechless. you watched as her eyes watered, but you couldn't bring it in you to care that much. jude groans and your attention is back on him.

"let's give these two some privacy." madame pomfrey ushers everyone out the room. you walk to his bed and watch as his eyes flutter open, meeting your gaze.

"sounds like i gave you quite the scare," jude's voice is horsed and he still manages to let out a small dry chuckle. you sit on the bed, bringing a hand to touch his face.

"you idiot."

"i'm okay, i promise," he wiggled his hand free from under the blanket to grab yours that rest on his cheek. jude maintains his eye contact, while bringing your hand to his lips. pressing soft kisses to the palm and your heart jumped.

"you're bruised up though."

"lucky for me, i have someone to take care of me," jude whispers. you chuckle and lean down to kiss his cheek. you weren't sure what came over you, but you felt that it was something you needed to do.

"who says i'm taking care of you?"

"me. it's part of the girlfriend rule book."

"the girlfriend rule book?" the boy dramatically gasps at your questioning tone.

"you've never heard of the girlfriend rule book?"

"pretty sure that's not a thing bellingham."

"of course it is. there's a page that says girlfriends must care for their injured or sick boyfriends."

"oh yeah?"

"yes."

"you made that up."

"no, it's real." you stare at him with a knowing look. for a couple seconds, it was silent between you guys. you were just staring at each other before jude cracks a smile.

"okay, i made it up."

"I knew it! it sounded so stupid, something you'd definitely think of."

"is it wrong for me to want my girlfriend to kiss it better?" he sticks his bottom lip out in a pout. you giggled at his silliness and shake your head.

"no, i suppose not."

"can i get a kiss?"

"do you deserve a kiss?"

"c'mon, i'm on my death bed," he whines like a child that isn't getting what they want.

"you're not on your death bed jude."

"woman just kiss me already!"

you lean your head down to press a kiss to his lips. you try to pull away but jude is quicker in pressing your face closer to his. mouths moving in sync with each other. he bites your bottom lip, loving the sound you make in the kiss. you hand touches the side of his rib, which causes him to break the kiss and flinch. a groan of pain comes out of his mouth. your hand jumps back from his body in stock.

"i'm so sorry. i completely forgot! are you okay?" your eyes search his body and face frantically. jude places both hands on your cheeks, turning you to face him.

"i'm okay princess. you did nothing wrong."

"promise?"

"i promise," he pulls your head down to peck your lips once more.

god, it looks like you both are breaking your rule of not getting attached to each other. neither of you seem to care too much about that. your hearts beating solely for each other. not that the other knows about the secret feelings that were brewing up.

[miraculouslbcnreactions]

Something I really don't like about the Peacock Miraculous is how the holder can "modify" the sentimonster. The show tells us that those in possession of the amok can shape their sentimonster. And this didn't end well, because the writers used this to make Gabriel be able to create whatever he wanted (optigami, hacksan, sentibug, senticlones), and this makes Gabriel basically be able to create any power he wants

This could have an easy fix, just take away the modifying thing and make sentimonsters be the reflections of the victim emotions, some canon sentimonsters work like that

The best example is the Lollipop sentimonster, the baby is sad and wants a lollipop, boom, giant Lollipop sentimonster

(Also, personally, I would only make sentimonsters have physical abilites, no superpowers, mainly because that's a little too much? Most sentimonsters can work without one and it just makes them even more OP)

But we have a problem, Adrien, the whole sentimonster plot actually, what kind of emotion can you feel that allows you to create a human being? Love? You love the idea of having a child so much that you create one?

For this I made another rewrite which I call, the doppelganger rewrite, the user of the Peacock Miraculous can clone another human being, but they need to have an object that belongs to that person, that object will contain the amok, so here, Adrien is a clone of Felix, made by Emilie, because she couldn't have childs of her own, however they grew I'm very different environments so they are different people

Yes this would require a huge rewrite in the sentimonster plot, especially since I don't know how to make Kagami a sentimonster here? But I'm pretty sure it could work, just focus Felix feelings about sentimonsters towards Adrien, and take away his trauma with his father, make him a tool for Adrien to gain freedom and to get development, he would be the worried cousin that came to Paris because he loves you so much (and to save you from your abusive father) (oh and to reveal you that you were created with ancient jewels powered by gods)

The thing is that I haven't thought of a way of combining both systems, but to be honest, I don't even like the sentimonster power at all, I still have no idea what it has to do with peacocks, wasn't a spying power or some kind of future vision easier? That's simpler and it tunes more with Peacocks

As a bonus, the Peacock miraculous isn't the only miraculous that should base the powers that he gives on emotions but doesn't, the Butterfly does it to!

In the Paris special, Marinette creates a super specific power for the alt Gabriel, in heroes day, Gabriel gives Nathalie the power to boost powers, what does have to do with their emotional state??

You're hitting on all the reasons why I think the sentimonster stuff is just generally a bad power. It's too derivative and OP, plus it just generally doesn't make sense. What even is an emotion brought to life? How does Adrien have a full range of emotions while Feast was just a sentient stomach? Does Adrien even have a full range of emotions? Who knows!

I've seen the vision fix come up a few times and, from what I can find, that seems to fit certain myths and symbology surrounding the peacock, which is the route I like to go when redesigning powers. I try to avoid total redesigns whenever I can, but the peacock is just so broken that I don't see a way to make it work. I also don't want to make it work when we already have the butterfly to be our monster-of-the-week machine without any of the ethical questions complicating things.

However, even when I redesign a power, I still try to stick close to canon, making the powers feel in the same vein. Because of that, I personally lean into the peacock being a symbol of beauty and vitality, but there are a lot of routes you can go. Peacocks seem to have a lot of mythology around them which isn't surprising given how striking male peacocks are.

[deifyruby]

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤbeware for spoilers for wemmbu's

ㅤㅤㅤㅤ<how i saved a hardcore minecraft smp>

minute: listen, i don't know where you're gonna go next, but it's important to be careful how much you're gonna explore out there. you don't wanna end up being the villain of your own story.

a yap. spoilers below. really tiny spoilers tbh. but spoilers nonetheless.

AM I CRAZY IF I CONNECT THAT WARNING TO MR SPOKE "DESCENDING INTO MADNESS" ISHERE. i recently took a break from uu, so i haven't watched the latest spoke uu eps yet. i also mention s1, but i may have forgotten some details so like bare with me, feel free to lmk if i got something wrong. ◉⁠‿⁠◉ i am just really insane about dadtech babysittertech or whatever, i have an urge to get this out of my system.

minute was there when ash 'foretold' that spoke would end up just like him. creating his own little mafia, getting drunk on the high of that power. ash saw the seeds were planted in spoke's time as 'fish bucket', and carefully nurtured them. he fed into it, even if at the time he didn't know it was spoke. at the time, i think minute and mapicc reassured spoke. but i had an inkling that, at least mapicc, —who was besides 'fish bucket' and had to rein him in whenever he saw fish bucket about to go off the deep end— was unsure about where spoke's own morals would lead him down the line now that the 'greater threat' was gone.

mapicc has been relying on minute from the moment they met. minute quickly became a reliable pillar whom devious could rely on whenever they found themselves in trouble. one of the biggest moments where mapicc's trust in minute is shown to us, is around the end of the big war against the mafia. spoke flew down into the void to break all the mafia's stasis chambers, and he planned to die with his goal. when mapicc found out, he instantly became distressed and lost his cool, began panicking and discarded the plan in favor of saving spoke. and the one person who came to their rescue (although belatedly), and the only person that mapicc had contacted for help— minutetech. mapicc trusts minute, and he came to him first when his best friend's life was in danger.

all that to say that it is not unreasonable to think that mapicc could have told minute about his observations and concerns, and minute being the smart cookie he is, he could absolutely have figured out the weird behavior spoke has been exhibiting, even if he doesn't know the details of it. as far as we know, minute and spoke haven't come in contact in s2, so here's the part where i am just blindly throwing darts and hoping it hits.

minute and spoke haven't come in contact in s2, but you know who has? planet and mapicc. more specifically, mapicc who has been relying on minute. mapicc isn't stupid, he must have noticed something off about spoke when they were in redd and jaron's base. spoke tried to hide any actions that he could be judged for, and even lied about the reason he was camping that base. of course, we don't know mapicc's pov, so it's hard to really ascertain whether he actually figured out spoke's lies during their time together.

but for the sake of this train of thought, let's say he did. at this point, i'd think mapicc would try to intervene, but there are so many questions yet to be answered. so much context and pretext missing that i can't say, with absolute certainty whether he hasn't intervened because of external forces, or by spoke's own efforts. there has to be a reason spoke is doing what he is doing, there has to be a reason he is alone, and there must be something that mapicc is doing behind the scenes. i mean, that's his best friend! i find it hard to believe that after bonding over near death experiences, a whole war, the self sacrificial plan, he would just let spoke be by his lonesome, as he obviously puts his life on the line infiltrating, living in the bases of people who would a hundred percent kill him if spoke slipped up and was found. especially because devious clearly weren't on 'bad' terms, mapicc would want to help spoke. and he did! enthusiastically so, during the redd & jaron base infiltration. yet, mapicc disappeared once again after the episode ended. 🤨

so what does minute know? does he even know anything? it sounds like minute has been holed up in the end, protecting it against the babblu & fants team (omg color crew ><). but mapicc could have gone to the end explicitly to find minute. so if he did, everything minute Could know, is everything mapicc knows. which is. enough to raise concerns, given you know. that they were both there when ash gave his ominous warning lol.

saying that minute's warning to wemmbu is influenced by him learning about spoke while being unable to help out because of his duties to keep the end safe from ill intentioned people, Could be a stretch. but it Would be, a really cool nudge given that spoke and wemmbu are both mcs. and not to mention, not a lot of side characters show up in more than one pov. :) i assume it's because of timezone reasons + they ask people they're closer with to record so inevitably, close friends will end up appearing in their friend's pov more, but that also means that there is a purpose to these characters that usually stay within one mc's orbit, to suddenly appear in another's.

anyway anywya anyway holy yap holy yap holy yap I LOVE DADTECH.

[ablogforrickenspony]

a friend of mine kept telling me to draw ruitoya kiss because I keep mentioning all these fic ideas where they're married but I always say I can't picture them kissing, SO I TRIED REALLY REALLY HARD AND WELL...... this was the result (a lot of writing and some drawings)

~~~ "I wonder what you'd do if you had more confidence in yourself." Rui was looking across the table that divided them, having momentarily abandoned the book he'd been reading. Toya looked up from his own reading material and peered back at Rui in confusion. "What do you mean?" "You're capable of accomplishing truly great things. What ambitions might you bring to life were you to believe you could… I do wonder." Rui seemed lost in thought, imagining such possibilities. Were he not waiting for Toya's response, he surely would have missed the hesitant shake of his head. "I don't… have ambitions," Toya replied, sounding uncertain even of that. "Oh?" Rui murmured, raising an eyebrow doubtfully. "Perhaps you just don't realize what lies buried within you." Toya focused his gaze on the book in front of him once more; not to read, but simply because he didn't know where else to look. He had no idea how to respond to Rui's current line of questioning. This whole library was filled with secret knowledge of magic unknown to them. The knowledge that Rui had gone to great lengths to obtain. He never strayed from that path in all the time Toya had known him. And yet, now he seemed satisfied to push aside his books and scrutinize Toya instead. "There was a time… where I believed I had a purpose. But… I failed those people. And now they are gone." Toya didn't make eye contact as he spoke. He would prefer to never know what sort of face Rui would make hearing it. Across the table, Rui had turned his attention towards the library of tomes. Toya often joined him in reading through them now, in the hopes of speeding up the process of uncovering all the secrets they held. So… you, too, choose to live your life for another? To be on the receiving end of such devotion was unnerving for Rui, but rejecting an offer of support was simply stupidity. One voice within him demanded he stay quiet and rely on Toya's commitment, while another voice pleaded with him to let Toya go and be saved from Rui's own machinations. Eventually, Rui surmised that he had always planned to work alone and he still believed it was possible for him to achieve his ambitions that way. Therefore, it should not matter to him whether Toya stay or go. It… shouldn't matter. Rui exhaled, hoping the doubt of his mind would clear out of his system that way, then broke the silence. "Would I be correct in my assertation that you seek purpose once more, by helping me achieve my own goals?" Toya didn't respond, which made the frown on his face seem even more gloomy in the silence. "Seeing you realize your own goals instead would be wonderful," Rui said. As the words escaped his lips, a thought sprang into his mind. A loophole! With a sly smile, he continued, "In fact, you might say that it is one of my ambitions to see you find your own ambition." This was the jolt to Toya's system that caused him to finally look up again. He stared at Rui, his mouth hanging open, as he had been prepared to respond. Instead, he had paused and fell into his thoughts. The fact that you seem to care about me… for some reason I cannot comprehend… is exactly why I wish to devote myself to you. "You want to help me with my dreams, and I want to help you with your own," Toya stated. "Perhaps this means…" Rui chuckled at the roundabout way they'd arrived at such a simple conclusion. "Perhaps we're friends?" Toya seemed startled by this statement. "I… suppose that might explain it. I wouldn't know. I haven't really had many… friends." "I'm not very familiar with the concept myself," Rui admitted. "But sharing the goal of our future happiness seems like the step from acquaintance to friend." Toya hesitantly nodded, and pushed aside what he'd been thinking at first. "My friend Rui," he murmured, trying the words out. Toya didn't notice the smile that was left on his face after speaking these words, but his friend on the other side of the table saw, and chose to remain silent.

~~~

"Rui, I've been thinking… if our goals are aligned, and we each wish to help the other accomplish our dreams… what if we were to make a vow?" Toya asked. Confused, Rui reminded him, "I made a promise to you once before, and you said you couldn't believe in promises. What's different about this?" Truthfully, Rui suspected exactly what was different about it. But he couldn't believe that Toya could be so forward after they'd only just called each other friends. And after all, how could Rui know that he was in a fairy tale, and princes in fairy tales usually proposed marriage far sooner than Toya had waited? "A promise is one-sided," Toya's answer began. "You may state your loyalty to another with promises, however weak or strong they may be… but a vow unites two causes as one." "Then, have we not already done that?" Rui questioned. "Well… It feels incomplete without a ceremony," Toya said. Rui jolted. He really is proposing marriage, isn't he?! Toya watched as Rui took a step back, and bowed his head solemnly, understanding that he had been rejected. The solemn look on Toya's face made Rui panic even more. It's not that I don't want to marry him but- WHAT AM I THINKING?! "My apologies, Toya, but I'm concerned I have misunderstood you," Rui spoke in a strained voice, doing his best to seem calm.

~~~

A voice in Rui's head had begun yelling at him, reminding him of how terrible an idea this was. If he rejects you, you may as well end it all. He was your only ally and you're just going to throw that away?! Why are you trying so hard to push away the only person who's been on your side after all this time? Rui could barely keep his head up, as facing Toya directly was the most difficult thing for him. Forcing himself to stay focused, the answer to his inner voice became clear. Because... he keeps looking at me with those eyes of unwavering loyalty... How can I believe someone would stand by me, no matter what awful things I do? He... he can't be... serious... Before Rui was able to make any choice, however, Toya started to speak instead. "If this is presumptuous of me, let me know..." After speaking these words, Toya raised his hand to cup the side of Rui's face. Rui was shocked, still unable to believe that Toya would not back away. And now, in fact, was doing quite the opposite. After a moment, he felt that shock begin to melt away, and he was left sinking into Toya's caress. "So... if I did kiss you right now, you'd be fine with it?" Rui said, certain of the answer now but asking regardless. Toya smiled ever so slightly, relieved to finally hear Rui say what he'd really been thinking, and answered, "Yes." Rui looked relieved as well. Then a moment later he turned away. "Wait... are you not actually going to kiss me?" Toya asked.

[rainbowcarousels]

Baby Genesis Headcanons (just because)

Genesis was the first baby born from the project. We know it was canonly either Angeal or him, but with a name like Genesis and the fact Deepground was set up after his birth rather than Angeal's, it makes sense he's the first baby.

He was also a premature baby. Given what we know of the process of the jenova babies happening, it's likely his biological mother died from mutations not unlike we see at Nibelheim given this was where the Jenova project was set. That would also imply that Genesis and Angeal were also Nibelheim babies as it seems there were multiple labs there from what we've seen in DoC and Rebirth.

Since we know whatever is in Genesis's genetic structure that's unusual was there at birth from the DoC guides, I tend to think this means some aspects of cell degeneration were already there there too. As such, I don't think his pre-SOLDIER immune system was great and he was the type of kid who got every cold and cough under the sun. It led to him spending a lot of time curled up books.

Spent more time at Angeal's or in the caves than he did at home. By the age of ten, he had mastered getting out of Angeal's window just to knock on the door as if he was arriving. Angeal's parents know of these shenanigans, point out they know but Genesis still continued to do it because he has always commited to the bit.

I do think Genesis is far more fond of Angeal's parents than he is of his own. Loves his own, obviously, but their relationship is far more complicated for reasons he doesn't understand and I think it says something Gillian displayed pictures of both of them. The woman might be stone cold in some ways (such as putting her guilt before saving her kid) but I think there is a sense of responsibility with Genesis and for whatever it was worth, I think Genesis honestly thought she'd help without getting Angeal involved because of that relationship.

Genesis had private lessons compared to Angeal doing the village hall packet classes. Whether he actually studied all of it is questionable, but he's always had enough charm and unapologetic gumption to get away with things. The utter hilarity that Angeal seems to have been seen as more of a bad influence will never get old.

Genesis did not know he was fostered at all, so this provides a certain amount of confusion to his childhood interactions with his parents. It's said that they 'grew' to love him, but he absolutely remembers that detatchment and doesn't really understand it. It's a wedge that sits between them for a long time, assuming maybe they didn't particularly want kids when he happened so he's a bit of an inconvenience and they're just dealing with that.

I absolutely believe Genesis' biological father is Gast. If he's the first baby and Gast is definitely caught in the excitement, I can see him deciding well he's too human, he can go have a quiet life in an apple orchard and given Shinra's surveillance, it's easy enough to check in on him if need be. I don't think he ever really considers Genesis his, it was very much a clinical process unlike with Ifalna, but does consider the kids his in a very broad sense of being part of the project. There's a disconnect there that - not unlike Gillian - he can really only see his own guilt and mistakes rather than the living, breathing kids it produced.

Genesis's first summon was found in the caves under Banora. It was a summon - for me, I use Ifrit - and he spent so much time and energy leveling it up and delving into fire and magic that they became his most intense disciplines as an adult. That said, people definitely....misplaced materia around him, oops, how did that happen? (Yuffie would be proud)

Given that Banora was the freezer for Project G, I think he and Angeal were the only kids around their age for a long time and they've been codependent as hell ever since. I think there is an aspect of Jenova cells recognising each other as much as it's being the only two little kings of the castle for their village for a good while, but the result is the same: getting seperated for great lengths was a lot harder when they got into SOLDIER because they'd spent their whole lives around each other (more than they know).

Genesis's interest in exploration of gender nonconformity grew out of the magazines and things that he could get from Midgar. I think originally it was just a bonding thing with his mum, like he learned how to make drinkslike a Little Adult from an early age. I think that doing things like nails or learning about make up was just a way to get his mother to talk at length without any weirdness creeping in but he developed a genuine passion for it as a form of individualistic self expression. Especially later around Sephiroth.

I think Genesis talks at people more so than to them because he grew up in a big house with very few people around and the silence was deafening. Even as a little kid, I think he just talked aloud. It just made him feel lonely, so filling that silence became a way of dealing with that and so, years on, when no one is listening to him, he's used to that. It's a good way to get past the 'you never told me that' thing because he can sneak in that he knocked over one of Angeal's bug infested monstrosities when Angeal isn't listening between LOVELESS arguments.

[drafthorsemath]

Brotherly Love

Synopsis: Crosshair can't sleep and Tech appears to him as a force ghost. Lots of comfort.

A/N: I need some kind of conclusion for my brain. Whether you accept the finale and that Tech is dead, I think I need to get this out of my system to grieve.

Word Count: 846

It was nearly pitchblack in the bedroom, save for a sliver of a moonbeam shining through the window. Pabu was quiet this time of night and usually Crosshair found comfort in that. Tonight though, he was struck by sadness. He thought of Tech and the nights they'd spend together as cadets. Crosshair's eyes would hurt from the bright lights on Kamino after long days of training. Tech would turn off the lights, get into bed with him, and read to him. Crosshair smiled as he thought about all the different things Tech read. History, science, even the occasional holonovel. He would always find comfort laying next to his brother and hearing his voice. He wished he could hear him again now.

Crosshair sat up in bed and sighed as he looked out the window. He could swear he felt Tech's hand on his shoulder; steady and comforting as it always was. He sniffled and leaned into the sensation, only to realize that it wasn't just a figment of his imagination.

"Tech?!" Crosshair jumped up and turned to see a kind of blue light around what he could have swore was his brother. "What the kriff?!"

"Yes," Tech replied, examining his glowing limbs with curiosity. "I could ask the same thing."

Crosshair reached out to try to touch him. He felt a presence and yet could see through him.

"Is it really you?" Crosshair asked.

"Of course it's really me," Tech replied with an eye roll.

"How are you doing this?" Crosshair asked.

"I am unsure," came the honest answer. "However, matter is never created nor destroyed. It simply changes form. For whatever reason, this is the form I am currently taking."

Crosshair sat back down and without warning, sharply inhaled and let out a sob. Tech put his hand back on his brother's shoulder.

"I've missed you," Crosshair said, trying to compose himself.

"I'm still here," Tech said. "I've always thought of you before I fell and I've been with you since. I cannot fully explain the latter part."

"This is the first time I've seen you like this, though," Crosshair noted.

Tech nodded. They sat in silence for several minutes. Crosshair somehow understood now. All those times he felt like Tech was with him and he tried to suppress the feeling for fear it wasn't true when in reality, his brother had never left him.

"Tech?"

"Yes?"

"I'm sorry," Crosshair looked into his brother's familiar eyes and couldn't help but let a tear slip despite his best efforts. "I'm sorry I didn't leave the Empire sooner. I missed out on time with you. I should have done better."

Tech shook his head and pulled Crosshair into a hug.

"I am just glad you came home," Tech said. Both men felt relief. Relief that there were no hard feelings between them and that they cared for each other as they always had.

After awhile longer, Tech asked, "Shouldn't you be getting some rest?"

"I don't want to wake up and find you're not here."

"I'll still be here, Crosshair. Even if you can't see me and I promise I'll do my best to show up so you can. There has to be some interesting science behind this and now I have an infinite amount of time to try to figure it out."

Crosshair chuckled. That was so like him. Then, even though Tech had changed form, Crosshair could sense his brother had a question as easily as if they'd both been there in the flesh.

"What is it?" Crosshair asked.

"Are you going to get a prosthetic for your hand?"

"I'm not sure yet. I still have my left hand and Echo's given me some tips on getting by."

"If you do get a prosthesis I would be happy to help you optimize its utility."

"Can you even hold a spanner?" Crosshair asked dryly.

"I'm sitting on your bed and just gave you a hug. If I can do that, I do not see why I cannot use tools to fix something."

"Fair point," Crosshair replied with a grin. "I'll let you know."

Without a word, Crosshair and Tech both laid down as they had done when they were cadets. Instead of reading, they talked about their brothers and Omega. How much time it took them to truly relax on Pabu after the intensity of all that had happened. How Omega was growing, having something of a childhood, and how her piloting skills were improving all the time. They were both filled with pride in her.

It took awhile, but Crosshair finally let himself sleep, still feeling his brother right next to him. When he woke up in the morning, he startled a bit. He couldn't see Tech anymore. His eyes searched his room, but Tech was no where to be found. Had it been a dream? Was his brain taunting him? Just as he wanted to curse these mind games, he felt Tech's hand on his shoulder again and took a deep breath. Tech was still there. Crosshair would never have to be alone again.

[zvtara-was-never-canon]

“Mai deserves so so much better from the fandom. She barely did anything wrong, especially compared to Zuko. "She's mean!" No, she's sarcastic. You just only see her with a girl she fears and a peppy bubblegum girl. Also it's implied to be a front because of her fear and probable hate of Azula. Also, while it doesn't excuse the fact she supported the FN in her actions, she never did ideologically, only going along with Azula because she was afraid”

What do you think of this? I agree that Mai is overhated but I disagree about her secretly hating Azula (at least show wise. Comics are different from what I’ve heard.)

I think this is the worst kind of "In defense of..." type of meta: the kind that refuses to engage with the character's canonical flaws, including the ones that are a core part of their arc.

While fear and control is absolutely an element in nearly every single dynamic that involves Azula, and Mai did grow to resent her for it and it led to their falling out, the simple fact is that Mai, for a long time, genuinely liked Azula and joined her in book 2 WILLINGLY. She always goes wherever she believes she'll have the most agency, and her parents were so awful that a control-freak Azula actually was an improvement.

Now, don't get me wrong, Mai was well-aware that, from the moment Azula showed up, she'd try to do something to force her hand if she had said no - hence the show making her question what the hell Ty Lee was doing there when she had been much happier at the circus, and also jokingly asking Azula is she was there to kill her.

But that doesn't change the fact that Mai was raised under the same tyranical rulers as both Zuko and Azula, and while she wasn't really a patriot that would set herself on fire if it made the Fire Lord happy like they were, she was still fed enough propaganda that she saw nothing wrong with the war and believed the Fire Nation had every right to just kill anyone that got in the way of their goal of world domination.

Much like Zuko, she was hunting down the last survivor of a genocide, constantly attacked the Gaang (and taunted them when she thought she won), and helped Azula take Ba Sing Se because she saw nothing wrong with any of it. She just didn't feel as strongly about it being her "duty" or tied to her "honor" like he did

(Hell, she refuses to obey Azula in "The Drill" because she doesn't want to be covered in mud, and is fully ready to face the potential consequences for it. If she had literally ANY genuine objection to all the racist/imperialist things Azula was doing, she would not have participated in it, no matter how scared she was of being hurt or killed)

But it's exactly because she knows Zuko and how strongly he feels about their nation that it shocks her when he changes side, especially when he says he did it to SAVE the Fire Nation. She doesn't truly understand what the hell he means at that point, but she trusts him enough to know that, if he of all people turned against the current system, he had damn good reason to do so, and thus she takes a leap of faith - and once again, follows the person that gives her more agency.

Mai doesn't care much for any ideology, but she WAS fed one from birth and it affected how she viewed the world. And because of her very strong attachment to PEOPLE and a desire to connect to something for once, she allowed herself to actually think about what she was contribuiting to. And while she still wasn't at a point where the harm the war did to the other nations would register to her, she saw first-hand the damage it did to the person she loved the most, and how her own parents were terrible to her because that system allowed them to get away with it, encouraged it even.

Much like Iroh and Zuko starting to question everything only after Lu Ten's death and the disastrous Agni Kai with Ozai, Mai's change of heart about imperialism could ONLY come after some kind of personal tragedy because that's how war propaganda works - it dehumanizes anyone that fits into the category of "other", to the point that you don't see their pain even when you're the one causing it. Once they had doubts about all the happiness and glory they were promised, they could see the role they played in other people's misery and actually feel any guilt over it.

The whole fandom loves Iroh and Zuko despite their past (that they felt WAY more "righteous" about than Mai ever did), it makes no sense to act like Mai going along with the exact same shit somehow makes her a fundamentally garbage person. We don't need to erase that flaw in her character to defend her from dumb people that are just bitter she's the one who made out with Zuko instead of their fave, we just need to point out the clear double-standard of them forgiving Zuko but not her, even though she changed sides almost IMMEDIATELY instead of rejecting chance after chance like he did for nearly three seasons (once again, propaganda is not that easy to get over).

As for her being "mean" - yeah, she is mean sometimes, much like Zuko could be a real asshole and downright verbally abusive before his redemption.

Now, do people exagerate how mean Mai tended to be in order to make her look worse? Absolutely (and they also exagerate how strong of a reaction other people had to it, see zutara fans acting like Zuko was deeply hurt by her "I just asked if you were cold" comment in The Awakening, even though he doesn't get mad at all AND actually turns to her for support again in Nightmares and Daydreams)

But there were moments where she DID cross the line from simply sarcastic teenager into "You're just being a bitch right now" (joining in on the trashing of Chan's house comes to mind), and that's okay, because it was the point. It was a flaw that she got better at handling as she opened herself up to loving and being loved, to not mistreating people just because she could/was ordered to, and that's why she was an engaging character who earned her happy ending. She learned from her mistakes.

[citygirlyuno305]

I've been thinking about your Kotoko post for a while. (Haven't got the spoons to fully respond, but I've got one thing...)

Something in Kotoko's case that sticks out to me is: "why didn't she just take the girl and run?" Incidentally, I came across "duty to retreat" but don't know how relevant that would be.

You always submit really interesting stuff, I’m really happy to see another ask from you.

Why didn’t she take the girl and run? I’ve thought the same thing and I think that it folds into why I see her character as addressing some of the more difficult questions associated with vigilante justice. I think the reason she didn’t think to run first is because, like many vigilantes, she wanted to play offense instead of defense.

Duty to retreat would limit her ability to claim self defense or defense of others, but only a handful of states use it, and honestly, after Daniel Penny’s case, I’m not sure it holds any weight anymore. If I look at the law strictly, it would probably apply in jurisdictions where it’s used, and even in jurisdictions where it isn’t, a strict view of the law suggests Kotoko didn’t act in legal defense of others.

I don’t have many spoons right now either so under the cut is a mindless jumble of unorganized thoughts that went through my mind reading your ask

Why didn’t she save the girl first? We are of the same mind, you and I, for wondering that. If I see a person setting a house on fire, the first thought is to go warn the people inside, help them, call the cops- not to beat the hell out of the arsonist and let the victims burn to death or get seriously injured while I’m busy rocking the aronist’s shit. Or if I see someone push someone else who can’t swim into a pool, my first thought would be to help the person who can’t swim, instead of beating the shit out of the person who pushed them.

Vastly different scenarios, but the broad principle is the same- it is a choice between immediately helping the victim, or hurting the perpetrator. Kotoko prioritizes the latter, her view of justice is centered on the latter, and I honestly think most vigilantes align more with the latter. But that topic honestly borders more on the philosophical, even when it comes to talking about the legal issues that vigilantism poses. (What is justice? Which victims matter more? What is morality and who should decide it? Is murder okay if the victim is a bad person? Who decides who is sufficiently “bad”? etc ad infinium). I am mindful that Kotoko’s victim was someone who was evading justice, so any faith in the legal system was nil, and I understand how that isn’t limited to fiction because no legal system is perfect, they are all flawed and could definitely use revamping in many respects. But it gets to a point where we could theoretically justify ALL murder, if we establish precedent that murder is okay if the victim is a bad person, even though they weren’t doing anything bad at that particular moment where they were killed.

And I think you’d be right that in a duty to retreat jurisdiction, it would come up just because Kotoko would inevitably assert some variant of defense of others. My jurisdiction doesn’t use the duty to retreat (I think only 9 or 10 states still have a codified duty to retreat) but I do know that it’s general design is to narrow the circumstances where its permissible to use force in self defense, and I think Kotoko definitely had the opportunity to escape safely before doing whatever it is she did here:

Because honestly, I think she followed him somewhere to kill him. As in, I think he might’ve started running at some point during the struggle and she chased him down to get him. But that’s speculation and based only on the fact that the picture of the murder location in undercover was an alleyway.

So assuming the duty applies with equal force to defense of others rather than explicitly self defense, I’d agree that in those states Kotoko needed to retreat and would be unable to claim defense of others. Probably. I only say probably because New York is one such state with duty to retreat in place, and Daniel Penny’s case is super weird with that in mind. For Penny, the jury rejected the duty to retreat argument, even though Penny did in fact have the opportunity to retreat. Like, he did not need to remain in the subway. I won’t give a firm opinion either way here on his case though, so don’t take it to be me doing so, but legally it is a weird verdict that just highlights how the jury’s biases and personal opinions will guide their reading of the law. However good or bad that scenario might or might not be.

And to that end, even if duty to retreat doesn’t apply, I still don’t think Kotoko acted in legal defense of others TECHNICALLY. I think the harm that the victim was going to inflict on the girl was not imminent enough to justify immediate deadly force under the law (I’m sorry but it’s an absurdly strict standard, future harm doesn’t count), and I think the force she used was disproportionately greater than necessary. So based on the cases I’ve actually tried and read, I’d say she does not satisfy the elements of valid defense of others. I think her beating other criminals would be especially probative as to her motive, M.O, and intent, and that it’d be admissible as evidence tending to prove that she intended to actually kill the victim.

Probably. Sorry to bring it up again, but prosecutors were unsuccessful in arguing that Daniel Penny couldn’t argue self defense because he used too much force to quell the threat that Jordan Neely posed when he compressed Neely’s airflow in a chokehold for 6 minutes. Strangling/choking is extremely personal, it’s so easy to prove premeditation when this is the method of murder. Easier than a gun, honestly. It looks to me like Kotoko probably beat the victim to death, which could be framed even more sympathetically, that she didn’t mean to kill him when she hit him and was only concerned with saving the girl, and by all measures (to me) Kotoko’s victim is more of an active threat than Neely was. I’m sorry for bringing up the Penny case again but his case is antithetical to literally every case I’ve had OR read involving self defense or defense of others. It completely skews caselaw in a way that’s almost alarming. Honestly, if Kotoko got Penny’s jury, she could potentially get 0 prison time. For the murder, anyways. I’d think her beatings of the other criminals would still be used as evidence against any claim of defense of others because it goes to show that her intent is to punish criminals more than it is to save victims.

At bottom, I like her, but I truly believe that Kotoko did not act with pure intentions. I think she went there with the intent to kill and the goal was more to kill the victim rather than save the girl from him. I do not think it was valid defense of others, but in large part that’s because I know she was beating up criminals because of her own sense of justice rather than preventing harm. I think that viewing the bare facts of that, along with her beating up other criminals, makes her easily the most likely MILGRAM prisoner to satisfy the elements of first degree murder. And people running around exacting justice based on their personal morals and perception of justice is something I absolutely would want to deter as a general matter.

But I’d rather get beaten to death with several million tiny sticks than prosecute a case like Kotoko’s. Voir dire would be impossible. I actually feel terribly for trial prosecutors that get cases like these, and I know they’re becoming more common with those videos of people luring predators to places and filming themselves beating them up. 99/1 odds that they can’t even use the evidence they’re gathering, and now they have to prosecute the vigilantes too

[stalky-arsen]

well, that kinda aged poorly lol

i think i need to get it out of my system.

Firstly, I am not a professionnal psy. So everything I'm going to say about Yamato should be consider only as interpretation or headcannons.

Secondly, this man has C-PTSD for suuuuure. If he wasn't abducted, abused and even forced to kill for 15 years early in his life, he would have ended up being a complete different person.

Now let's get started.

Yamato. My man. You have high sociopathy. I tested it XD

But you're going to ask me "how could you say I'm a sociopath when you don't even know what it really is." I have wikipedia. There is probably better sources but I can get a general idea on what this is.

So, wikipedia says : "Antisocial personality disorder (ASPD) is a personality disorder defined by a chronic pattern of behavior that disregards the rights and well-being of others. People with ASPD often exhibit behavior that conflicts with social norms, leading to issues with interpersonal relationships, employment, and legal matters." Basically you lack empathy and morality and it could get you some troubles in your relationships.

I also tested your sociopathy level by roleplaying you on several quiz websites, and boy this is very high probabilities~ (i was bored okay.)

"But these are quizzes, it's not serious." You want to play that way ? Fine. I'm gonna list all the "symptoms".

Impulsivity

Honestly, this is very hard to see at first. You seem very cooled down. People wouldn't call you impulsive at first glance. But digging deeper, I was able to ask myself a question.

Your plan, during Sea of Sorrow, it was full of flaws. It relies only on reliabilities.

The first one being Union's presence. Why would you invite them on board ? What was the reason ? To threaten Konkuzan ? Don't you think Konkuzan would have suspected something ? You were lucky you ended up with Tang Xuan 'cause they came with detectives, but imagine if it was someone else like idk, Li Ling, Lewis, Lucas, David, Mona, Brynn, Q... No offense to any of them, but they wouldn't think like Tang Xuan, some wouldn't even bring a detective, some would just set the boat on fire recklessly.

(out of subject but Drew would be hyper effecient lol he would even save Yuuhime from Yamato lol)

Oh also, what would've happen if any of the guests you invited didn't come ? Like they would have been too scared and would flee the country instead ? Just a possibility. You surely had make sure they would definitely agreed to come.

Okay but what if Masato didn't attempted to murder Konkuzan ? What would you have done ? Again, you really had to make sure he wanted to kill him.

okay okay, maybe that wasn't enough, then what about the fact you just thought the music box would tired itself ? How come you were so sure it would tire itself from overuse ??? It was a wild guess ! Imagine if it weren't the case what would you have done then ?

Imagine you would have fallen completely under the box's control ? What would you have done ?

So, the important question is, What if something went wrong, what would you have done ? How would you reacted ?

This is a wild guess yeah but he would've breakdown on the moment. This man was so sure his plan would have worked the way it would, not making sure of every possibilities. He didn't even plan a backup plan. What makes me so sure of that ?

Tang Yun's presence.

That monkey boy shouldn't have been on board in first place. Sure the Shadow Decree had some tension with the Syndicate, but like Union, it would have been anyone else, it would have gone differently and unlike Union, they didn't have the obligation to come.

Your plan worked because you got lucky, but if it went any other directions, you would have a meltdown.

Reckless disregard for one's own safety or that of others.

Why the fuck would you eat Fugu on a daily basis ??? "Because it makes me feel stronger" That's certainly a cope out then (okay let's not count that)

And honestly, you wouldn't care for anyone's safety, we could argue about your sister's but domestic violence isn't something safe yk ?

Irresponsible behavior

Okay sure, you can argue on the fact that taking care of a criminal and an assassination guild is somewhat impressive, I don't what would have happen if Syndicate's assassins just went rogue. But you did endangered many bystanders during on the White Beluga, in New Milo, and also in the desert full of miramons leaving MC and others to their mercy.

Irritability

eeeeeeeh

well, the only thing I can think of is you don't give the time to explain your motivation to anyone else. Do you have the patience for that anyway ?

Inability to conform to social norms

You may be a lawyer but you still choose to be an assassin, a thief, a liar etc.

Lack of remorse

Yuuhime.

Just why ?

Marked tendency to blame others, or to rationalize plausible excuses

You sure are giving excuses to Tang Xuan at the end of Desolated Lands event.

so, 6 out of 7, you have a high sociopathy level based on wikipedia, and that's not even counting you would put your person above all else, even your own sister.

Yamato is a sociopath given it was due to his environment, not a psychopath, that he probably has C-PTSD and things that goes along. I'm sure in other circumstances, he would be a nice caring brother called Shouta. But he's Yamato.

I love to explore all facette of his character ♡

[fallloverfic]

Thoughts on To Be Hero X Episode 9: Loss and Gain

That was a fun episode!

The good news is that Luo's not dead (yet)! He did nearly die, but Dean didn't kill him. Just, you know, traumatized him a lot. So... yeah.

Luo and Cyan's relationship is really sweet. They just care about each other so much. And they try to protect each other T-T

It's interesting to learn that Dean was a hero before all this went down, which again, especially based on his whole using the orphanage to raise heroes thing, makes me still think he caused the plane crash somehow, sort of like Mr. Glass in Unbreakable, maybe hoping to cause the creation of a hero from a disaster. A guy with wind powers like that causing a plane to crash is, well...

Conversely, Luo's parents were on the plane, and Dean needed to kill them for some reason, and got lucky that Cyan came out of it and fell into his clutches. It'd be interesting if the first time Luo got the name "Calamity" was after his parents died in a plane crash. Or at least that's related to my theory about what the Dean whispered to him: that Cyan is the only survivor of the crash where Luo's parents/guardian(s) died, and/or she's responsible for the crash somehow. Could be something entirely different (based on what I've seen in comments on official vids on YouTube already, other folks are also having an idea like that).

The song she sings while she busks is up: Wishing by DAIKI (AWSM.):

Apparently folks are saying X was the guy who gave her the first coin? It's a funny idea anyway XD

The full My Color song:

Some of this making me think of Ranka Lee performing in Macross Frontier. Sad greenish-haired girls singing for their tragic artistic guy friends, with the hope of the world on their shoulders, with haunting songs.

The blonde guy at I assume DOS looks like the secretary(?) for Old E-Soul (and hey, he doesn't wear pink all the time, maybe!). Liu Zhen having a second boyfriend? Good for him. Dean kind of sucks, so he could use more options. Maybe more shitty options, given most everything we know of the hero system, but it's not like Liu Zhen is a saint anyway (after he, you know, contracted his underage child out for something).

Ken still reminds me of Athena Cykes from Ace Attorney mixed with Sonia from Pokemon lol Did DOS actually try to find Luo? Are they just leading Cyan along that they're doing it to make her work with them? Did Dean lie that Luo is dead to make them stop looking? Lot of questions. I'm also curious what heroing exactly Cyan is doing. Is her concert money getting donated to charity? Or is it just more religious luck raising with a more corporate twist?

Poor Luo, trapped in that tiny room (though it's nice they bandaged his injuries and gave him a window, I guess; small blessings). And dealing with whatever dreck Dean told him. Now the question is if he caused the zombie(?) infection thing or if Dean did it. Is he controlling Dean or is Dean controlling him?

I hope Cyan helps save him and they're just free.

Great episode! Looking forward to Episode 10!

Looks like Liu Zhen and blonde guy are flirting some more, Luo(?) uses his power more, and Cyan gets some transformation archery skills. Hope she doesn't kill Luo. Though rewatching her character PV, I am not confident. If nothing else, doesn't seem like he survives this.

More thoughts:

Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5, Episode 6, Episode 7, Episode 8, Episode 9 (You are here), Episode 10, Episode 11, Episode 12, Episode 13

[the-knight-of-destiny]

On Fantasy High, Redemption, and Agency (General Spoilers for Junior Year, sort of?) Also this post about FHJY is long as fuck, as all of mine are getting. In short it's my understanding of how Brennan Lee Mulligan sets up the teenage villains of Fantasy High.

Fair warning, this is LOOOONG below the cut.

Y'know when I said I wasn't going to talk about Ratgrinder discourse? I lied.

So Brennan as a DM has a very specific narrative language for how a villain is 'redeemable' and it primarily has to do with the level of agency a villain has in their actions. This isn't particularly hard to notice when you look at our very own (and fan favorite) reformed villain squad.

Starting with Ragh, while he was in his right mind for most of his villainy in Freshman Year, he really didn't do too much other than beat people up and be a bully? While he worked with Daybreak on some level, he wasn't anything more than muscle and not very in on most of the plans. There was also some implication of grooming and manipulation from Daybreak to Ragh.

Zayn as an example also helps build this thesis, while he also hasn't done a TON evil he's generally a bit more discerning than Ragh. However he builds the understanding of how Fantasy High looks at it's redeemed teenage villains, when Zayn is found as a ghost he explicitly calls out Daybreak as being the only reason he's still housed, were he not to go along with the Freshman Year scheme he'd have been sent back to his abusive parents, the foster system, or homeless as like, a fifteen year old boy.

But the actual silver bullet to understanding this is Aelwyn, to preface. Aelwyn fucking sucks in freshman year, way worse than Ragh or Zayn. She's also responsible for way worse than any other teenage villain in the series. She's arguably committed worse than Dayne Blayde or Penelope Everpetal, but there's an important component to her redemption in Sophmore Year, something Brennan has her stay conscious despite making death saves to explain.

In tears Aelwyn notes that Kalina was actively threatening to kill her had she not complied with the Kalvaxus plan.

So there's a running theme here, Ragh didn't seem to have much of an idea of what the wider plan even was and was just muscle, Zayn was under significant threat to his personal safety (and unbeknownst to him, also under threat of death, a threat that actually gets carried out), and Aelwyn was literally convinced she'd be murdered for not complying.

This tracks with the teen villains who DON'T get redeemed by the way, Dayne had no qualms about casually murdering his classmates with a great sword, Penelope didn't seem to mind the idea of throwing her best friend Kalvaxus for a power play. They both get killed because they don't seem to really care what happened, were fully complicit, and had no form of remorse at all.

This leaves us with our code to cracking if Brennan sees the Ratgrinders as possibly worthy of redemption (IMO, signs point to yes, but it's complicated.) We know the Ratgrinders are being manipulated heavily by Porter (I have so many more thoughts about Jace's place in this but that's for a whole other post,) however they don't have Ragh's excuse of being mostly in the dark.

Kipperlilly and Oisin for sure know exactly what's going on, and the rest (sans Buddy) probably do too. The actual question is how much does Ankarna rage affect one's reasoning, and the thing that's interesting about how the Ratgrinders have been set up is that question is sincerely ambiguous.

Signs point to the corruption needing some sort of genuine anger or frustration to latch onto, but this is my first hot take here. This isn't really that damning? Pre-Rage Kipperlilly said some concerning things, in private confidential counseling. She (at the time) understood her fixation on Riz was a problem and perhaps not fair. Oisin probably was mildly frustrated or saddened a girl he had a crush on didn't notice him, but to cast Pre-Rage Oisin as a full on Biz Glitterdew incel is, in my opinion, unlikely. Ruben was already seeking attention but wasn't anything worse than a mildly annoying teenage boy, etc.

These aren't exactly 'good' feelings but they are pretty normal for 14-15 year olds. Pre-Rage Ratgrinders really aren't that much worse than Pre-Character Development Bad Kids, let's not forget that they too definitely act out in really mean, unfair ways at around the same time as Pre-Rage Ratgrinders (Fig and Fabian, most notably.)

As for agency though, they clearly have a bit more of it than previous teenage villains, and are a bit more aware of their actions. They're not under direct threat of violence like Aelwyn or Zayn (though the way Porter and Jace act around them may make that threat implicit.) and they don't have Ragh's excuse of being seemingly largely in the dark.

The Ratgrinders I feel are an intentional test for the Bad Kids (and the Intrepid Heroes as players) because they're significantly more antagonistic than previous teenage villains. Heck, even ones that turned out totally evil. Dayne's kinda chill to the Bad Kids initially, Penelope is a bit backhanded but she isn't outright mean. If you count him, even Johnny Spells humors Riz and is relatively lax to him. Ragh's honestly way more harsh for most of the first half of Freshman Year, Zayn's initially more rude and confrontational to them too.

That said they're both being influenced by a much worse adult (Like everyone in the Reformed Villain Squad) and have a rage god clouding their judgement to an unknown degree. If we follow previously established patterns, they're salvageable by the story's own logic.

The test is for the party, it's easy to forgive Zayn when he openly cries and apologizes immediately when finally confronted about his place in the villain plot, it's easier to forgive Aelwyn when she openly puts herself in harm's way and almost dies to save Adaine.

It's going to be harder, emotionally, for both the player characters and the players themselves to forgive the Ratgrinders and recognize they're also victims in some sense when the Ratgrinders have been actively fucking with the Bad Kids for the whole season, and taking an obvious amount of satisfaction in it.

The challenge Brennan has set up for the party, I feel, is a test of their character. Fighting a possibly ascended god Porter is gonna be a lot easier without a whole other party of enemies in the fight (and even much easier if you can convince some to fight alongside you as a part of heroes.)