#Great Depression be damned

[brochacho]

Steve Rogers doesn’t surrender. Except to his boyfriend (and said boyfriend’s family) when it comes to letting them feed him.

[artuurle]

because today has been a Bizzyboy kick for me i decided to sketch my hcs about the height and builds of these guys. who knows if i draw them like this again or iterate upon the designs though.

Also calling out how horribly I dressed Grujaja. theres a reason i did it but its still foul XC

[heartfullofleeches]

God i hate drawing leather, but i love it at the same time too this SUCKS, anyway, rascal, funny guy, silly thing, is he a full rabbit dude? Who knows, i just drew him as one, colours were fun to do

My favorite fluffy bastard! <- That's probably what Creep calls it when they're high... Love the shoes you put them in - imagining being one of Creep's rivals and you see a bunny man in that get up barreling at you like a steam train. Obsessed with how you color your art, really like the detail on the collar. Thanks for sharing! ♥️🐇

[aroaceleovaldez]

tbh my latest biggest theory for why HoO and onwards is such a dramatic drop in quality and consistency is just. Rick stopped making teaching guides.

Like, the Lightning Thief teacher's guide is SUPER in-depth with even stuff like sources about middle grade child psychology and exact specifications of where he's applying that, explaining what different character's goals/motivations are, their dynamics with each other and their environments, etc etc. Even specifying which specific myths certain plot elements are supposed to reference or be about.

That stuff just doesn't exist for later books. There's activity guides and smaller, significantly more simple teacher guides for later books but they don't go into anywhere NEAR the same level of depth. The TLT one is a full lesson plan that breaks down the book at every level and explains what's going on and more or less why Rick did that. The others are all basically just glossaries of terminology and some simple question guides.

And they didn't even use the TLT teacher's guide for the Disney+ show because they clearly aren't adhering to any of what's discussed in that breakdown of the book.

By creating a teaching guide alongside writing the actual book, that's forcing you to document what you're doing, why, your sources, and information about your characters and the story they're in. It's like an even more in-depth version of a series bible. But that's lacking for later books (and etc) and it shows because that level of thought and depth and attention just isn't there anymore.

[serpentface]

You meet your other sister-in-law very briefly.

She arrives unannounced in full Odonii garb and a long cloak for the cold, soaked through with rain. She's taller than most men, and carries herself like one too. Her hair spills out of her veil, not only unbraided but a horrendous mess. It's kind of fascinating. You catch a glimpse of a handgun slung across her back, hidden beneath her cloak. This is especially exciting; you’ve never seen one up close. You try to peek around her to get a better look at it, and flush in embarrassment when she catches you, shooting you a cold glare.

It doesn't seem like she speaks much without being spoken to, and you aren’t really the type to initiate conversations either. Livya fills in for the both of you, prompting your sister-in-law to introduce herself. Her name is Couya. You give her a respectful bow and curtsy, she gives a very slight bow back without looking you in the eye. She compliments your necklace. Or at least, she mumbles something while looking in the general direction of your necklace, and it might have been a compliment. You aren’t sure whether there’s something wrong with her or she’s just rude.

She's just her for filial duties at the family shrine, and she doesn't stay long. Livya stops her on her way out. She says she's disappointed that the one time in a year she can be bothered to come by, she shows up looking like a disheveled street-whore in priest's clothing. Look at Hibrides, she didn't even know we were having company and still did up her hair so nicely, and all by herself too. Thank God your father isn't here to see this, he's suffered enough embarrassment as it is-.

Couya stands in the doorway in silence through this whole speech. You thoroughly inspect a loose tile in the floor and try your best to pretend you aren't there. Livya doesn't take her hand off your shoulder the whole time.

---

[I've been writing an overview of Hibrides' first several years of marriage for the hell of it. It's just a summary but it's written with like, the slightest bit of prose, so figured I'd dump a section here]

[dragonanon]

can you do a chapter based on your Death!Reader and God!Brother hcs where Death wakes up from her sleep and goes to Heaven to check up on her brother's children and everyone is obviously terrified of her?

Hmmm…I’m not typically one to do requests because the urge to write is so sporadic and random for me. BUT I have been thinking about the initial confrontation in Heaven for a while now, so here are some head cannons for that. >w>

——

- It’s a typical perfect day in Heaven…Until it isn’t. Having seen what had become of your realm and learning Heaven was to blame for it, you’re on your way to rip someone a new asshole.

- Screams erupt from the Angels as the ground begins to shake and the bright sky darkens. Sera and Emily rush out just in time to join the Angels in watching in abject terror as a massive pool of darkness forms on the ground, and from it slowly rises a menacing figure.

- The figure is massive, and it only continues to rise until even the tallest building barely reaches its hips. Its six long horns twist and arch toward the sky, only making the figure appear even taller. Upon reaching its full height, the figure spreads its six mighty wings, each one sporting a menacingly sharp claw and all as shrouded in darkness as the rest of the figure.

- As its wings blot out the sun further, the figure opens its many blazing white eyes; two where you’d normally expect to see eyes, a third in the center of its forehead, and dozens more scattered across its wings and body.

- Sera lost all color as soon as she saw the figure rising, and somehow lost even MORE color when the figure opened all of its eyes. She looks like she shit herself, and Emily is panicking, trying desperately to get Sera to tell her what’s going on; she’s never seen the older Seraph look so terrified.

- With this unimaginably imposing figure now looming over Heaven, Adam decides this is the PERFECT time to attack, having been dumb enough to think this was a Demon attacking Heaven.

- The exorcists fly up towards the figure, ready to attack. This only angers the figure further however, and with a rumble that shakes the ground itself, the figure merely flaps its wings; creating a gust of wind so powerful it knocks all the exorcists back onto the ground.

- It’s at this point Sera FINALLY snaps out of it, rushing to Adam in mad panic and damn nearly strangling him while telling him to call off the exorcists. Which he does, albeit with some reluctance.

- This doesn’t stop him from asking Sera what gives, and her response is “Adam you absolute fucking fool, that is DEATH!”

- Now it’s Adam’s turn to look like he shit himself. “Death? As in, “the big man himself’s younger sister” Death?? As in, “the baddest bitch you’ve EVER seen, but can kill ANYTHING by just touching it” Death??? THAT fucking Death????” Ignoring that last statement, Sera’s frantic nodding in confirmation confirms to Adam that he has indeed fucked up. Big time. Adam then proceeds to lose all color in his face and practically cowers behind Sera as she cautiously approaches you, mentally preparing herself to be reaped on the spot.

- Back to your perspective however, you’re fucking PISSED. So pissed that you don’t even notice or stop to think that most of Heaven’s inhabitants likely have NO CLUE who you are, and are likely legitimately fearing for their lives. Meanwhile for all the older Angels and Angelic beings who’ve been alive long enough to have known you before you went to sleep, like Sera, they’re all still very much afraid, but it’s more in line with the “oh shit mom’s home early and she saw the mess we made in the kitchen, she’s gonna kill us!” kind of fear.

- The fact that they sent exorcists at you makes you even angrier. Like for starters, how fucking weak do they think you are that you could be stopped by just some low level Angelic beings with pointy sticks?? And then the audacity to even attack you to begin with, like THEY weren’t the ones who fucked up and you’re just some kind of strange intruder needing to be slain?? The INDIGNITY of it all!

- Your voice booms throughout Heaven, making even the ground tremble at the sheer intensity of it. “WHO DID IT?” You’re met with only silence, so you ask again with more force. “MY REALM IS A COMPLETE MESS WITH MILLIONS OF DISPLACED SOULS RIGHT NOW. SO AGAIN I ASK, WHICH ONE OF YOU FLAT FOOT CHILDREN DID THIS?!”

- Sera replies, voice trembling slightly. “Are…Are you talking about the exterminations? “IF THAT IS WHAT YOU’RE CALLING THIS MOCKERY OF MY WORK, THEN YES.” Sera looks visibly confused and concerned. “But…That SHOULDN’T be possible!…The exterminations KILL the Sinners; their souls should be gone, not stuck in Limbo! There has to be some kind of mistake here!”

- Hearing this, you can’t help but let out a brief but harsh cackle, making the ground jolt from the abruptness. “DEAR YOU HONESTLY THINK A SOUL COULD BE SO EASY TO DESTROY? A SOUL IS A POWERFUL THING FOR A REASON CHILD, IF THEY WERE SO EASILY DESTROYED THEN NONE OF YOU WOULD BE STANDING HERE BEFORE ME NOW!…SO ONCE AGAIN, WHO. DID. THIS?! AND SO HELP ME, IF I HAVE TO ASK AGAIN THERE WILL BE CONSEQUENCES.”

- Whilst Sera is dumbfounded by this revelation, Adam sees a golden opportunity to save his ass and points at Sera. “I-It was her! Yeah it was all fucking HER idea! I-I tried to tell her it was stupid, b-but she just REALLY wanted to go down and kill those bast- Demons! Yeah she REALLY wanted to kill all those poor Demons, can ya fucking believe this shit?!”

- Before Sera can defend herself, the darkness seems to intensify, and she can just FEEL every one of your eyes glaring daggers into her. “SERA…YOU SIGNED OFF ON THIS?? YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELF, I EXPECTED SO MUCH BETTER FROM YOU! I LEFT EXPLICIT INSTRUCTIONS FOR HEAVEN AND HELL TO WORK TOGETHER TO SORT SOULS FOR THIS VERY REASON! AND NOW BECAUSE OF THESE BARBARIC “EXTERMINATIONS”, YOU’VE COMPLETELY DESTROYED THE BALANCE I WORKED SO HARD TO CREATE AND MAINTAIN. I HOPE YOU’RE PROUD OF YOURSELF, BECAUSE I’M CERTAINLY NOT!”

- It’s a strange and mildly amusing sight to see the head seraph get scolded like a misbehaving child by this massive dark entity. But here we are anyway!

- At one point during the tongue lashing you’re giving to your niece, Emily buts in and asks for an explanation for what’s going on; having not heard Sera’s previous explanation to Adam apparently.

- Your temper flares for a brief moment, and you just about launched into another lecture at the little shit who DARED interrupt you. But upon seeing Emily, you softened considerably, seeing that she was young and TRULY didn’t understand what was happening.

- “AH…I APOLOGIZE DEAR, BUT I DON’T THINK I RECOGNIZE YOU…COME CLOSER LITTLE ONE SO I CAN SEE YOU.” You slowly crouch down and lower your hand, offering Emily to climb onto it. Emily is hesitant, obviously a bit scared of you. But Sera encourages her to go to you, she knows that you won’t hurt Emily and it’s high time she meets her aunt anyway.

- With the small seraph in hand, you stand back up to your full height and bring her closer to your face. Now FINALLY able to see her properly, you speak. “YOU’RE FAIRLY YOUNG FOR A SERAPH…YOU MUST’VE BEEN BORN DURING MY SLUMBER, AND IN THAT CASE I APOLOGIZE THIS HAD TO BE OUR FIRST MEETING. TELL ME, WHAT IS YOUR NAME CHILD?”

- Her voice trembling slightly, Emily tells you her name and then asks who you are and asks if you’re a seraph like her and Sera. The innocent question gets a genuine laugh out of you, and despite it shaking the ground it’s a lovely sound. “OH CHILD, I AM FAR FROM BEING A SERAPH. THOUGH I CAN SEE WHY YOU WOULD THINK THAT. YOU WERE ALL MADE IN MY IMAGE AFTER ALL.”

- Seeing the visible confusion on Emily’s face, you elaborated. “LONG AGO, YOUR FATHER WANTED TO SHOW HIS APPRECIATION OF ME. SO FOR HIS FIRST SENTIENT CREATIONS, THE SERAPHIM, HE BASED THEM ALL ON ME.” Emily looks surprised, and follows up by asking how you know God.

- You give another genuine laugh at her question. “SWEETY I’M HIS YOUNGER SISTER, I AM “DEATH”, THE GODDESS OF WELL…DEATH. BUT YOU CAN CALL ME “D” OR “AUNT D”, MOST OF YOUR SIBLINGS DO.” Emily’s mind is blown “Wait! YOU’RE aunt D?! Sera told me all kinds of stories about you before you went to sleep, like the time you got into an argument with Father over his invention of the “Snuggie”. I never thought I’d get to meet you!”

- “IT WAS LITERALLY JUST A BATHROBE YOU WORE BACKWARDS, AND I STILL CAN’T BELIEVE HE THOUGHT THAT WAS AT ALL CLEVER.” You huff, feeling amusement and mild irritation at that memory.

- “SPEAKING OF YOUR FATHER, WHERE IS HE?” Sera speaks up, having managed to recollect herself, and explains that no one has seen or heard a word from God since before you went to sleep.

- The irritated snarl that leaves your throat sounds like thunder and shakes the ground, making everyone tremble with fear. “THAT LAZY BASTARD HAD ONE FUCKING JOB, WATCH HIS DAMN KIDS, AND HE COULDN’T EVEN DO THAT?! NO WONDER THIS ALL HAPPENED THEN, HE LEFT YOU ALL UNSUPERVISED!”

- Bending over, you carefully set Emily down before standing back up. “I HATE TO CUT MY INTRODUCTION SHORT, BUT APPARENTLY I NEED TO GO AND HAVE A LITTLE CHAT WITH YOUR FATHER.” You stare pointedly at Sera and continue. “DON’T THINK THIS MEANS YOU’RE ENTIRELY OFF THE HOOK EITHER. WHILE YES, YOUR FATHER’S ABSENCE IS MOSTLY TO BLAME FOR THIS DEBACLE, YOU ALSO KNOW BETTER THAN TO DO SUCH TERRIBLE THINGS. WE WILL BE DISCUSSING THIS MORE ONCE I FINISH WITH YOUR FATHER, AND IF I COME BACK AND FIND OUT YOU HELD ANY MORE OF THESE “EXTERMINATIONS” I WILL TURN YOU INTO A HOLLOW! DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?” Looking at the ground, Sera nods and says “Yes Auntie D…”

- Satisfied with that response, you bid everyone farewell and slowly melt back into the ground, completely disappearing. Once you’re gone, the sunlight is back and it’s as if you were never there.

- Now the seraphim have to soothe the murmuring crowd while Sera starts attempting to get in contact with Lucifer to let him know that “Hey Aunt D found out about the exterminations and is NOT happy about it. She just got done yelling at me, and now she’s on her way to go read Father the riot act. Just warning you now because once she’s done with him, you’re probably gonna be next.”

- Lucifer receives the message and is now frantically trying to create peace offerings in hopes they’ll make you more amicable, while also preemptively planning his own funeral in case the peace offerings don’t work.

- Meanwhile in God’s palace, God is currently relaxing in an elaborate hot tub and watching American football on an absurdly large TV whilst drinking wine like it’s water. He’s pretty drunk and having a grand time yelling at the TV.

- His fun is interrupted through by you literally kicking in the door and storming in, you’ve shrunken down to your smaller size so all your features are actually visible now and not covered in darkness as you glare at your older brother with an intensity that could peel paint.

- God startled momentarily before seeing it’s you and giving you a dopey smile. He’s also in his smaller form, so that makes things slightly easier for you. “Ohhh heeeyyy Death!…You startled me thereee…It’zzzz beeen awhillle, huh?” You scoff at his slurred speech, in disbelief that he could be so drunk right now.

- “Yes, it HAS been awhile. Good to see that you still choose to spend your days getting completely wasted instead of tending to your children.” You answer tersely, and God rolls his eyes. “Zzstill the saaame old ssstuck up bitch…Tha kidzz are fahine Deee! Yyyoou should cohme haave ah drink wib meee.”

- You ignore God’s offer for a drink and cut right to the chase. “No, your kids are NOT fine! When was the last time you checked in on them?! Do you even know what they’re up to right now??!” God dismissively waves his hand and chugs more wine. “I juzzt checked on thhhem ah couple decades aghooo..They’rrre prohably makinnn neeewh liffe.”

- “God that is a load of shit, and you know it! I was JUST down in Heaven, and the seraphim told me that you haven’t seen or spoken to ANY of them since I left to take my nap eons ago! And furthermore, while you’ve been in here drinking the day away, your children have COMPLETELY destroyed the balance we created! They’ve been mass slaughtering Demons annually for millennia now, and Limbo is a complete disaster right now because of this!” Hearing this, God looks down at his bottle of whine, embarrassed, and mumbles an awkward “oh”.

- Silence hangs heavy in the air for a moment before God clears his throat and says. “Zzsooo…You’rrree NNOT gooing to drink wiff me?” At this you snap and snatch the wine bottle from God and chuck it at the TV, smashing the bottle and the TV. God shouts in anger but before he can ask you wtf that was for, you just lay into him. Calling him a deadbeat and pathetic excuse of a deity.

- “How can you just sit in here day after day, while your CHILDREN are out there causing such mayhem! Do you not love your children all??!” God is shouting back at you, his anger having sobered him up some so he’s not slurring as much. “How DARE you accuse me of not loving my children! I would giive ANYTHING for them and you know that!”

- “Then fucking ACT like it!! Don’t just sit in here and rot your mind with booze and TV!” God growls. “I don’t need you to tell meee how to handle my children! Why do you even care?! It’zzz not like they’re yours anyway!”

- “I care because they are part of MY family, and I want my family to be safe and happy, something that you couldn’t give less of a shit about apparently!” God throws his hands up at this point “Well what do you want from me Death, go hhhold their handz?! My children are ALL capable of thinking and being on their own, they don’t NEED me to do shit for them!”

- “That doesn’t mean that they don’t still need you there emotionally! But with the way you act maybe it’s best you ARE never there! After all, what use could any of them get from your pathetic drunk ass!!” This clearly struck a nerve as God points back at the door you came in through and roars at you to get the fuck out of his house. Growling, you give a harsh “Fine!” and tell him he can sit and be a drunk deadbeat all he wants because you’re done with him and his shit, and he’s NEVER to contact you again unless it’s in regards to his children or business.

- You stomp out of God’s palace and return to Limbo, wanting to start working on getting things cleaned up and cool off some before you go check on things in Hell.

- Once you’re gone though, God slumps his shoulders and hangs his head. With your venomous words echoing his head, he summons another bottle of wine and begins chugging it while he trudges into his bedchambers.

- He flops down onto the bed and picks up a framed photo and slowly brings it closer to his face. It’s an old photo, one taken shortly after God created the first few seraphim. You and God are both standing next to each other, arms around each other’s shoulders and leaning in close while the first seraphim all stand in between the two of you. Everyone is absolutely beaming, and God looks especially happy; so proud of his creations.

- Tears drop onto the photo as God remembers how things used to be back then, back when he was actually NEEDED by those around him and wasn’t just some brand figure who’s only job is to smile and wave. Even as he slowly sets the photo down, tears continue to fall and he holds his head in his hands. “…I’m sorry I’m so damn useless…Hopefully you’ll forgive me someday…Not that I deserve it though…I’m…so fucking sorry…” No one is there to hear God’s sobs, and eventually he passes out. He’d rather be dreaming of happier times anyway.

[bananonbinary]

Once More With Feeling (buffy the vampire slayer) pisses me off so much because Wish I Could Stay is a fucking bop and it gets stuck in my head all the time but unfortunately i vehemently disagree philosophically with everything in it

which is sort of the problem with btvs as a whole tbh, a very well made, very compelling show that is nonetheless wrong in so many irritating ways i dont even know where to start bitching about it

[starryluminary]

FINALLYYYYY GOD. THIS TOOK 2 WEEKS TO BEAT

Reached 30 tags so here’s the rest of my thoughts:

AND I PLAYED FOR ANOTHER TEN HOURS. IT NEVER ENDED

but yes. despite all that whining I did have a blast with brothership

I want to play through it again. I feel like this is the kind of game that needs a second play through to digest it properly

Ok that’s it. Glad I finished l. Goodnight folks

[lord-squiggletits]

I was at a "making friends" kind of social event just this past week and ended up having two subsequent conversations with different people that gave me an interesting reflection on my own reasons for writing without me even intending to make the conversation about it.

First conversation: The person talked about the feeling of awe from being at a music concert and how incredible it is that so many complete strangers can be united by a singular love of music. I related to it with regards to my own writing and how many people have read my stuff. Ended up telling this guy about some of the AO3 comments I've gotten from people to the effect of helping motivate them to live/just reflect on life in general. Somehow went into a tangent about a suicidal friend of mine who died when we were in high school, and me saying that maybe the reason I write so much about the things I do is because of the influence his death had on me. And the other person ended up asking me, 'So do you think it's like every time you write, you're doing it in his memory in a way?'

Subsequent conversation was with someone who was a psychologist for a day job, and I ended up telling them that I was kind of thinking of getting a degree in psychology/therapy one day because writing about mental health issues had gotten me so interested in the world of helping people heal themselves. But then I was also like, "Well, I don't know, it could be that I don't need to become a psychologist to help people with mental health. Maybe helping people by being a writer and telling stories is enough."

It was just a surprising, but topical realization for me to have talking to a bunch of strangers. For someone like me who's often preoccupied with doing and having knowledge and expertise, I often fall into the idea that you need to be directly involved in helping people to really be making a difference. I've literally had thoughts in my mind along the lines of "I'm so smart, hardworking, and dedicated when it comes to writing, but wouldn't it have been so much more of a net gain to the world if I'd decided to be this passionate about something like being a doctor or activist that actually helps people?" It's not like I truly regret being a writer (or ever will, because there's nothing else that I love so much), but in my bad moments I truly do sometimes think "Why does it make a difference if I entertain people or make them feel nicer for a while if it doesn't actually change anything in the world?" To quote one of my favorite Transformers fics of all time, "There was nothing that would have been more worthwhile, but that didn't rule out the possibility that the whole damn universe was wasting its time."

I guess the answer is that making someone feel better, even in a small way, is changing the world, even if it's just a few people, and even if it's just as simple as making someone's day better.

[chenziee]

OPKisstober: Straw Hats

Day 6 for OPKisstober: Law/Luffy (HAPPY BIRTHDAY LAW!!)

[ Masterpost | Series on AO3 | Ko-Fi ]

When Law had proposed his alliance with the Straw Hats, it was a thing of opportunity for him. They appeared out of nowhere in front of him right as he was starting to think about how to put his plans against Doflamingo to motion, almost like a sign from the heavens. The helping hand in a moment of need that the Sister from his school in Flevance had told him about.

He had expected it to end in maybe 24 hours, the moment he actually faced Doflamingo. He tried to make it end there. But, unfortunately for him, Straw Hat Luffy was much more stubborn, much more selfish, and much more caring than Law had given him credit for.

And now, here he fucking was.

“Torao!! Where are you?!”

Law groaned. Can’t have peace for five fucking minutes…

“Up here!” he called back—after all, he had learned the hard way that if he pretended he wasn’t there, he wouldn’t hear the end of it.

A second later, a hand appeared on the railing circling the roof of the Sunny’s bathroom. Law sighed as the entire Straw Hat hauled himself up, a wide grin on his lips and a plate full of meat in his free hand. “There you are. Why are you hiding? It’s your party today!”

Law rolled his eyes, muttering, “You guys are too loud. I needed a break.”

“You never change,” Straw Hat snickered, finally jumping off the railing he had perched himself on earlier to join Law in his hiding spot. He would have to find a new one. Again.

“You expected me to change in the two weeks we didn’t see each other?” Law asked, a small, teasing smirk finding its way on his lips.

“Who knows? You’re officially old now!” 

“I’m turning thirty, not fucking eighty, Straw Hat-ya. And we’re still only six years apart.” Law deadpanned.

Luffy shrugged, plopping himself on the floor next to Law, placing the plate of meat on Law’s lap.

Raising an eyebrow, Law looked at Straw Hat questioningly, but Luffy only grinned. “Sanji’s special BBQ meat you missed! I’ll eat it if you don’t want it tho.”

With a huff, Law grabbed the fork that was on the plate—no doubt thanks to Black Leg; there was no way Luffy would think to grab one—, bringing a piece of the meat to his mouth. He could feel Luffy’s eyes glued to the juicy bite, clearly having to physically hold himself back from stealing everything for himself.

And honestly, Law couldn’t blame him; he shouldn’t be surprised by Black Leg’s cooking at this point, but the way the meat melted in his mouth, the flavour exploding on his tongue, the spices perfectly complementing the particular type of sea king… It was simply incredible.

“It’s good, right? Right?” Straw Hat asked eagerly, and when Law glanced at him, he was momentarily blinded by the excited, proud smile on his face and the stars dancing in his eyes.

It took Law a second to recover, but then he sighed, nodding. “It’s amazing. Although,”—he paused as he gestured towards the plate, giving Luffy a look—”I could swear there was more when you brought it here.”

Luffy blinked, his blinding smile melting into one so innocent and so awkward that Law was actually amazed by how unconvincing he looked. “It—It must be your imagination…”

Law couldn’t help it. He burst out laughing at the sight, a bubble of warmth growing in his chest. How was this guy so ridiculous? A Supernova, an Emperor, or the Pirate King, it didn’t matter. He was still just as dumb, just as selfish, just as reckless, and just as cute as he was when they first met at that auction house on Sabaody.

And Law just seemed to love him more every day.

“Don’t laugh,” Straw Hat muttered, a large pout replacing his fake grin.

Shaking his head, Law reached out with his hand, touching Luffy’s cheek, letting his fingers slide over that soft skin until they buried in Luffy’s messy hair, pulling him closer.

Luffy didn’t fight the guiding touch; instead, he shuffled a little closer, leaning forward eagerly. A moment later, their lips finally connected.

The touch was familiar, their lips moulding together with practised ease even as Luffy grinned into the kiss, a small snicker escaping him when Law ran tongue over Luffy’s bottom lip—tasting meat and spice, an unnecessary confirmation of Luffy’s crime of stealing Law’s food.

Not that Law really cared. He was used to it at this point, even expecting it. Honestly, he never truly minded sharing his food with Luffy—a fact that shocked both him, and everyone who knew him. Penguin still hadn’t let it go, teasing Law over it every fucking time Luffy grabs something off of Law’s plate with no repercussions, a feat that no one else would get away with.

Law simply didn’t share things, food especially. It made him feel weird and uncomfortable—just like the thought of kissing someone, caring for someone romantically, loving someone always made him feel weird and uncomfortable.

But Luffy always somehow found a way past Law’s barriers, defying logic and Law’s own convictions.

And Law was past wondering why or how.

As they finally pulled away from each other, Law raised an eyebrow at the unhappy look on Luffy’s face. “What?”

“You can’t just kiss me and expect me to forget you laughed at me! You didn’t even say sorry,” Luffy whined.

Law snorted, leaning in to press another kiss to Luffy’s mouth. Not saying anything.

“You’re a jerk. I hate you,” Luffy muttered, stealing all of the remaining meat on the plate, gulping it down in one go.

Shaking his head, Law reached out to ruffle Luffy’s hair. “Thanks. I hate you, too.”

When Luffy’s only response was to stick his tongue out, Law chuckled, kissing Luffy one last time before he grabbed the now-empty plate and got up, offering his hand to Luffy. “Should we go back?”

His annoyance obviously forgotten, a wide grin spread on Luffy’s face as he grabbed Law’s hand, letting himself be pulled up to his feet—only Luffy didn’t let go. Instead, he followed the momentum, crashing into Law, wrapping his free arm around his waist.

“Happy birthday. I love you,” he said, his grin widening.

The corners of Law’s mouth twitched in response. Pushing Luffy’s hair away from his face, Law leaned down, giving Luffy one final, small kiss. “I love you too, Pirate King,” Law muttered.

With a snicker, Luffy stepped away, never letting go of Law’s hand when he jumped off the roof, dragging Law down with him.

As the both of them rejoined the birthday party the Straw Hats had insisted on throwing him—a completely separate party from the one his own crew was throwing on his actual birthday in two days—, Law couldn’t help but marvel at how much his life had changed in the past four years.

Four years ago, he was still fighting against Doflamingo’s strings, attached to him like he was a puppet. Since then, everything had changed. He lost his ship, almost lost his entire crew—everything he had, for the third time. He experienced freedom, crushing defeat, crawling his way up again… and the Straw Hats were there for all of it. Law wouldn’t be where he was now without this crew of idiots, and their complete menace of a captain.

His ally, his partner, his king, the absolute bane of Law’s entire existence… 

The love of his miserable fucking life.

Four years ago, he didn’t think he’d see his 30th birthday but here he was, happier than he’d ever been.

[pocmuzings]

i spent new years on a huge bed w alll my besties , with a party bumping outside the door , the rest of us on mdma and coke , hugging and saying i love u i love u i love u over and over and it was the best fucking way to say goodbye to 2024 !

i hope everyone else is having / did have a great new year . may palestine , sudan , tigray and the women of afghanistan be free <3

[solis-angelus]

BABE WAKE UP NEW LOW JUST DROPPED.

source

[magistralucis]

Reading Severed again. I am noticing, more strongly this time around, just how thanatically obsessed Obyron is as a character - for him, death defines everything, not just the question of what to do about Zahndrekh. His lychguard phalanx, his insistence in referring to humans (e.g. the Callidus assassin) as 'mortal', citing his own tomb size to describe his status. For someone obliged to not-die for as long as possible, Obyron is rather particular in that he seems to view death as a welcome enemy, a salvation which hurts then stops hurting. He's always ready to embrace it, and he's really sad about it, and neither sentiment stops the other. The best gift he has to offer to his lychguard friend (Neb) is to let him die by his side. At the garden, when he saw Zahndrekh slipping, the first thing he actually did wasn't running off in denial - but to claim a memento, slipping right into the ritual of post-mortem remembrance, before he even knew if he'd need it. Bits of his living self forgotten in the void. Always ready to die or let die. Whether Obyron was always like this, or if this was a long-term worldview change caused by Zahndrekh's degradation is debatable, but I wouldn't be surprised if this man was straight-up born grieving

[deeply-unserious-fellow]

To me, personally, Vox and Velvette both have older sibling energy and Valentino has middle child energy. I don't know how to explain it they just do-

[camgoloud]

who else up feeling the soul-numbing empty hopelessness for absolutely no reason this friday night

[serpentface]

Don't get too attached