#I Blame MYSELF and I BLAME THE MACHINES ~ Ruin

[staystillgregory]

@horrifichaunts asked:

(horrfichaunts, something silly and soft after Ruin for the kids birthday because I love our lil found family) It was rather silent when Gregory woke up in the room he shared in Ness’s apartment with Cassie, Freddy’s head, and Roxy who’s still powered off for major repairs. No sign of Cassie in the bottom bunk of the bunk bed, and she usually slept in since they rescued her from the Plex, and Freddy’s head was also missing. It wouldn’t take him long though to find where everyone went as once Gregory entered the kitchen. “Happy Birthday Gregory!” “Happy Birthday Superstar!” “Happy Birthday squirt!” Who says you can’t have cake for breakfast? Waiting for Gregory was a very very messy hand made cake, and two wrapped up presents on the table.

Gregory was alone when he woke up. Curious, considering Cassie's habit of sleeping in - even though Gregory was no morning person, he was still usually up before her. Had he overslept? Fumbling around on the small shelf nailed to the wall, just above his head, he grabbed his watch and squinted at the small screen. Nope, it was his normal time to wake up... Weird.

A glance over at the room below showed Freddy's head was already gone - not as surprising as Cassie's absence. After all, Gregory usually moved him out into the other room when he woke up, so she had probably done the same. With a yawn, he climbed down the ladder, not bothering to get dressed yet.

He didn't have to go far to find where everyone had gone, however. Upon stepping into the kitchen, Gregory stopped dead in his tracks, jaw dropping at both the exclamations and the cake on the table.

They remembered. Holy shit, they remembered. He knew he shouldn't be so surprised, necessarily, but having his birthday fall on a holiday and past experiences had taught him to not expect much to come of the day. Sure, Cassie had tried in the past few years to do something, but they had never had the resources for much. But now, here he was, with a cake and presents on the table. Gregory didn't care that it was messy. To him, it was perfect - a true reminder that he had found a family, and they cared enough to try.

"Thank you." Gregory laughed out, and - oh, fuck, there were tears in his eyes. When had those sprung up? "Thank you! I... God, I didn't expect this." It had been a long time since anyone had wanted to celebrate his birthday like this. "This means a lot to me."

[staystillgregory]

Gregory returned Cassie's fleeting smile with a steadying breath and a firm nod. "I promise." He offered readily, now confident he'd be able to keep it. So much had changed since his days of being a shadow on the streets. It still wasn't a conventional type of life he lived, but he didn't mind. It had room for the people he loved, and that was enough.

Cassie knew where parts were stored. Now that would be helpful! Especially considering Gregory's idea up until this point had been more or less to wrestle and dismember an endo... "It won't be easy, but I think we can find a way in." Already he was brainstorming, mentally going over the routes he knew of.

The Rockstar Row elevators were likely out of commission. That was alright, though. He had a feeling Cassie would be sticking to stairs for a while, anyway. The atrium route, though, was more promising. Maybe there were other ways, too - Ness would probably be able to help them on that front. "I've gotten pretty creative with maintenance and repairs before, so I'm sure we can figure out something."

Cassie's noise of pain pulled Gregory out of his thoughts, and his gaze softened in sympathy. "Not much farther." He murmured, trying to reassure her. In just a minute or so, they'd be close enough to the surface for his location to be tracked. He'd be able to flag the others, and they'd get Cassie the help she desperately needed. "You'll be able to rest soon."

Despite her pain and exhaustion, his cousin still was able to tell him what she had done to the Daycare Attendant. "That sounds about right... Sun wasn't hostile to me when I was trapped, so I don't know if the virus took root in his half of the system. He was really neurotic, though. Panicky, and high-strung... But Moon was another story." There was genuine fear breaking through his lowered voice at the last part, though it was obvious Gregory was trying to hide it. "He was very much infected. Maybe your reset put them into safe mode..."

[Unfortunately, Cassie knew what being missed meant to Gregory -- she didn't know the extent of what he'd been through, but she got little hints every day. The way he'd reacted to her raising her voice spoke volumes. He probably needed to hear that others cared about him; Cassie would gladly continue to remind him once this was all over and done.]

❝ You better. ❞ [Cassie smiled playfully, but dropped it as she continued.] ❝ ...Just promise you won't up and vanish again. Okay? ❞ [She couldn't handle another disappearing act from her cousin, especially after tonight. It had been rough enough sticking "missing" posters around town, but she had this whole mess to worry about now, too. The Mimic had impersonated her cousin just to lure her here, so there was always a lingering possibility that she could be tricked again...]

[Gregory reassured her with his next sentiment -- he realized now that his actions were wrong. That definitely shone in his attitude tonight. He seemed genuinely remorseful, and that was enough for Cassie. He'd be able to prove it to the animatronics if he helped patch them up, too -- he didn't have to leave things on a sour note. The animatronics were still their friends.]

[Supporting Cassie's impromptu plan, Gregory conceded that it could work; he suggested going to Parts & Service, and she wholeheartedly agreed...save for the fact that she had no idea how to get there, thanks to the damage the Pizzaplex had sustained. They'd probably have to carve a path through the rubble or try to get an elevator working...which she wasn't too keen on. At the moment, the mere thought of boarding an elevator made her stomach drop.]

❝ If we can find a way down there, it'd definitely be a good start. ❞ [She agreed with an enthusiastic nod. He was right; there'd be all sorts of tools down there they could use, and a heap of spare parts...for the animatronics' endoskeletons, anyway. Maybe she could nab a head for the second Freddy, too.] ❝ I definitely remember where they kept the endo parts, but I'm not sure about the casing. We'll figure something out either way. ❞ [Cassie smiled reassuringly -- they could be resourceful, if their collective Pizzaplex experiences had taught them anything.]

[Gregory offered his shoulder again; Cassie gladly took it. As they started to walk again, she sucked in air through her teeth -- she'd forgotten how strenuous the simple act of walking had been. Clearly, the adrenaline from tonight had worn off.]

[Cassie lowered her gaze as Gregory inquired about the attendants' condition; she was relieved to hear that they hadn't been victims of his, but they were still in such terrible shape that it hurt to look at them. They'd been a second set of parents to her, with how long she'd stayed in that Daycare...seeing them in disrepair broke her heart. She was glad she could help, in some small way.]

❝ ...It's pretty bad. I helped, but only with Moon. I'm still not totally sure what I did, but I think rebooting them made Sun and Moon...coexist, I guess? ❞ [The attendant was now a blend of them both, an Eclipse, exhibiting the kindness and compassion that Cassie remembered from her childhood. Had Moon always been such a problem? Every night in the Daycare had been peaceful and soothing with them around. Cassie had never slept better anywhere else. Part of her wished that the attendants could tuck her in tonight and keep her out of harm's way, if only because she was sure she'd have nightmares otherwise.] ❝ I guess what I mean is, the only damage they have now is physical. We're going to need all the spare casing we can find. ❞

[demigod-shenanigans]

Credit where credit is due because it was @poppitron360 bringing up Jason’s extended family in a fic that made me think about this.

Anyway. I think Leo deserves some closure with his extended family, too. Obviously it’s never going to happen with his shitty aunt. However. He has a cousin.

His name is Raphael. We don’t really know anything about him except that he bullied Leo when they were kids (that’s the only half-sentence mention he gets). Obviously this isn’t a great start, but I think it makes sense in context.

Rosa never liked Leo. Maybe it was a superstition thing. Maybe she took issue with the fact that his dad wasn’t in the picture. Maybe she convinced herself that he’d somehow ruined her sister’s life. Either way, of course her behaving that way and talking badly about him affected her own kid.

Raphael also didn’t really get Leo, who went on about boring machine stuff Raphael didn’t care about for ages and just wouldn’t shut up. Who’d only play in very specific ways and get upset when Raphael tried to change the rules. He was weird, and Raphael didn’t like him, so he was mean to Leo.

When Rosa tells him Leo is going away and he’ll never have to see him again, Raphael isn’t upset. He takes his mom at her word that it was Leo’s fault his aunt died.

But Raphael was nine, then.

(I’m putting most of this under the cut because it got incredibly long. Oops. Fair warning, I did make myself weep writing this.)

Raphael doesn’t think about Leo for years. They were never close. He’s just a weird kid that used to be a family member but that they’re not seeing anymore. Raphael has friends and school to worry about. Leo doesn’t even cross his mind.

But then he’s packing for college, going through boxes in the attic, and there’s two that look weirdly different from the rest. He’s curious and opens them. It’s mementos. Pictures of Esperanza, and of Leo, and a whole bunch of random trinkets taken from their apartment after the workshop burnt down. And suddenly he’s wondering what happened to his baby cousin, ashamed he hasn’t thought of Leo in so long.

So he asks his mom. Rosa shrugs and tells him Leo went into the foster system and they’ll thankfully never have to deal with him again. That if there’s any justice in the world, he’s dead, because it’s his fault that his mom died.

Raphael is horrified to hear her talk like that. Leo was eight. Even if he did make a stupid mistake that somehow led to his mom dying—and he isn’t nine anymore, he won’t just take his mom’s word for it this time—that’s more traumatizing to Leo than anything. And he was just left alone to deal with it all. A child with so much blame on his shoulders, made to feel like his family didn’t love him.

He’s kicking himself for not asking about Leo sooner. For not being nicer to him when they were kids. For not being there for him when his mom died.

He asks which foster home Leo went to, and his mom snaps at him to drop it. But Raphael doesn’t drop it. He asks his dad when he gets home, and his dad tells him.

It’s a dead end. Leo hasn’t been there in years. Ran away after a few days, apparently. It’s a miracle the person he calls even remembers who he’s talking about.

There’s nothing he can do about it now. But he takes the boxes along to college. If Leo can’t have them, the least Raphael can do is keep them far away from his mom. He puts up a picture of Esperanza and little Leo along with the ones of his own friends. Because if all he can do is carry their memory, he will.

The question of what happened to Leo never quite lets Raphael go. He tries a few avenues over the years, but it’s like Leo vanished into thin air. The only solace he has is that he doesn’t find any obituaries that fit.

Eventually, he decides to look into becoming a foster parent with his wife, and that’s how he finally finds Leo. One of the older social workers mentions she knew a Valdez boy that would be around his age now. Got into a whole bunch of trouble. Ran away from several different foster homes. He was sent to Wilderness School in Nevada the last time she saw him. Apparently ran away with a classmate—Piper McLean. Never heard from him again after that.

She only remembers because Piper is the daughter of a film star she really liked at the time. It’s just a weird random anecdote to her.

But Raphael knows Piper McLean. Not well—they’ve never really talked—but he’s seen her at an office party or two because she’s married to one of his coworkers. Reyna works in a different department, but he could talk to her. Ask her if Piper knows what happened to Leo. If maybe they’re still in contact, though that seems like a long shot after so many years.

He’s desperate and terrified to maybe, finally, get some kind of answer.

It takes him two weeks to work up the courage to talk to Reyna. She’s confused at first. They’ve only made smalltalk a few times, most of it work related.

But when he brings up Leo, something in her face changes. Yes, she knows Leo. He’s never mentioned a cousin—Raphael isn’t surprised—but she supposes a cousin could exist. She asks what he wants from Leo, and he’s honest with her about the fact that they didn’t have a great relationship growing up but tells her he’s grown since then and that he still has some stuff that rightfully belongs to Leo that’s been sitting in boxes in his house for years.

She gives him Leo’s number, albeit with some reluctance.

He calls and tells Leo that he gets if he doesn’t want to talk to him but at the very least he wants him to have the boxes with Esperanza’s things—boxes that should have been his in the first place. Leo doesn’t even have to see him if he doesn’t want to. Raphael can just drop the boxes off with Reyna or something. But he wanted to apologize for being a jerk when they were kids, because Leo didn’t deserve that.

———————

Leo is shocked to hear from Raphael, to say the least. When he first hears the name of the person on the other end of the line, he freezes up. He barely manages to keep it together for the call and afterwards, he melts into Jason’s arms and starts weeping because a part of him is terrified that this is some sort of cruel prank. Terrified to let himself hope he actually has a relative on his mom’s side of the family that cares. Terrified of whatever might or might not be in those boxes.

But he agrees to meet Raphael, if reluctantly, and he brings Jason. Maybe there’ll be some closure in it. He’s wary, because his cousin was really mean to him when they were kids, but they were also eight and they’re adults now and he realizes kids sometimes do dumb shit when they’re eight and growing up with terrible adults.

Leo is anxious when they walk into the restaurant where they’re meeting for lunch—Jason promises to lightning bolt Raphael through the nearest wall if he starts shit, which makes Leo laugh and relax a little, and they walk in holding hands.

Raphael spots them and his whole face lights up. He looks so different from how he looked as a kid, but there’s still that same scar on his forehead from the time he ran into a table when they were six. He still has the same eyes twinkling with mischief, but they’re not malicious now. He looks genuinely happy to see Leo.

Raphael is clearly nervous meeting Jason, who’s much taller and much more muscular than him, which Leo takes great joy in. And Leo gets the apology he was promised. He’s shocked to hear how long Raphael has been looking for him—shocked that apparently someone on his mom’s side of the family did care about what happened to him. And Raphael doesn’t even ask about his mom. Doesn’t ask what happened, which Leo was terrified he would. He just tells Leo he won’t believe the bs his mom is spouting about him anymore, and he’d like to be at least a little involved in Leo’s life, if Leo wants that. Even if it’s just the occasional call or Christmas postcard. But if Leo wants nothing to do with him after everything, he understands that. He’s just glad to know that Leo is safe and happy and loved.

Leo tells him he’ll think about it.

Jason sits with him when he finally brings himself to open the boxes. There’s so many pictures—several framed ones that they had up on the walls and a whole photobook with pictures of Leo, from birth until age eight. There’s several pictures of just him, and several of the two of them together. The last few pages are empty—memories they never got to make—and all of it is so incredibly painful but he can’t believe he gets to have all of this. Jason holds him through it, stroking his back and kissing his hair and telling him they can take breaks whenever he wants. Leo spends all night telling his husband so many half-forgotten stories of his mom as they look through the pictures.

There’s more in the boxes. A few of Esperanza’s tools. Her lucky screwdriver. An old folder with project sketches she made all the way back at uni that she’d sometimes show Leo drafts of. Random decorative items they had up around the house, many of them hand-crafted. There’s this tiny toy dragon his mom made him as a consolation when he was small and begging for some cool toy they absolutely couldn’t afford and Leo cannot stop crying when he finds it.

Also up there with the photos and the dragon on the list of things that make Leo weep the most is a thick notebook that’s halfway coming apart. It’s got pages torn from magazines and hastily written notes stuffed into it. Some pages have prints glued on them, others are hand-written, in his mom’s hand and different ones Leo doesn’t recognize. A lot of it is faded, and some of the pages have clearly had water spilled on them by accident, but most of it is still legible.

It’s his mom’s old cookbook.

And it’s so much less of her than he should have. But having all those memories back that he thought he’d lost forever means everything.

But after a full night of weeping in Jason’s arms and a lot of cooking (and making sure the cookbook is no longer at a risk of fading or falling into bits when you breathe on it) and even more processing he shoots his cousin a message that just says “I think I like the idea with the Christmas cards”.

And they’re never going to be best friends or anything. I don’t think Leo ever tells Raphael the truth of who he is or what happened to his mom.

But they talk to each other on the phone sometimes. Leo meets Raphael’s wife, and, eventually, his kids. Raphael meets Sofía a handful of times and sends her birthday gifts and Christmas cards every year.

He’s the reason Sofía gets to grow up with her abuela’s cooking and with pictures of Esperanza scattered around the Waystation, and Leo is always going to be grateful for that.

I’m assuming like three people total will read this all the way to the end at most! Thank you for putting up with today’s specific Leo brain worms. Not sure if this will ever be a proper fic because I have way too many ideas but have this for now

[yurislotusgarden]

Tying their hair up!

ʚїɞ Separately! Dazai Osamu, Nakahara Chuuya, Platonic! Kyouka Izumi x Reader

ʚїɞ Keep in mind English is not my first language, so you may find mistakes!

ʚїɞ I got this idea after seeing this post! It's not really related but I got the idea, so here it is. I will most likely make a part 2

ʚїɞ word count: 1206 (Dazai - 428, Chuuya - 446, Kyouka - 336)

ʚїɞ Tw's: None! Just pure fluff, pet names: 'bella, doll, reader's gender is not specified in any way (if it is please tell me so I can edit it)

ʚїɞ I WANNA THANK THE 22 PPL WHO FOLLOWED MY ACCOUNT <33 I did not expect ppl to like my works??? Like at all??? I actually posted my first works here thinking they're gonna end up with maybe 10-15 notes with luck, and there they are with much fucking more, so thank you if you interacted with any of my works<33

Dazai Osamu

If you entered the armed detective agency office at the moment, you would see people working, someone missing out on a job but the possibly first thing would be able to notice is that the workers are stealing confused glances at Dazai because… since when does he tie his hair up?

“Hey Dazai, what’s with your hair?” Kunikida asked, wanting to know why the oh so lazy bandage wasting machine changed his hair. In the 2 years he’s been working with him, he never saw the brunette tie his hair up.

“Oh? A fabulous question, Kunikida!” The grin on Dazai’s face could really compare to Kenji’s sun smile. 

“I feel like I’m about to regret this question” A mutter from where Kunikida is standing was heard, but the older detective ignored it.

“You see Kunikida, my beloved Belladonna has done it! And I couldn't bring myself to ruin said happiness they got from seeing me with my hair like this, so I just came in like this!” The bandaged man had stars in his eyes upon recollecting what happened before he came to work.

Dazai looked like he was about to talk more about what happened earlier this morning… Yea Kunikida is regretting his questions, why did he have to ask?

//////////////////

Dazai was sitting on the floor in front of the couch between your legs while you were sitting on the couch behind him, tying his hair up into a ponytail around the back of his head since you decided it would be better for him instead of a higher one. Surprisingly, when tied up, the ponytail was quite long - longer than you first thought it would be.

“You were meant to tie my hair up, not play with it ‘bella” A subtle comment, but enough to get you to stop just running your fingers through his hair, you would've been done by now if you didn’t do that, but hey, you're gonna take any chance to play with his fluffy hair.

“you can’t blame me, your hair is too soft to not play with it when I have a chance” You chuckled, finishing up the ponytail and tapping his shoulder to indicate that you're done and he can stand up or turn around, whichever he prefers.

And as it is with Dazai, he preferred to turn around and hug your waist, burying his face in your abdomen.

…Goddammit you want to play with his hair like you always do when he’s like this, but you can't or you will have to repair the ponytail. Sigh.

Nakahara Chuuya

“Chuuya-san?” The ginger turned towards the voice, who turned out to be a woman with red-ish hair colored hair, Kōyō Ozaki.

“Yes, Ane-san?” The shorter of the two turned fully towards the taller woman.

“...May I ask what happened to your hair?... And where did your hat go?”  Kōyō asked, actually confused. After all, it’s not every day that you see the hot-headed executive with his hair up, much less without his hat. She’s sure she barely ever saw him take it off besides when in closed private spaces, and his hair being tied up into a high ponytail? She never saw it, but even tho she doesn't voice it out, she thinks the look really does fits the man.

“Ah, I decided to leave the hat at home for once, it would destroy the hair.”

“Why do you not want the ponytail gone?” Kōyō understands that technically it’s easier to do things when your hair is tied up, but she knows that longer hair never caused any problems to the short mafioso.

“[Name] is the one who made it, and they seemed really happy to see it on me”

///////////////

“Please Chuu?” You asked for maybe the hundredth time today, -surprised your boyfriend still has patience for you- about to give up on asking your partner if he would let you tie his hair up. You just wanted to see what he would look like! You can bet your life he would look better than those guys on magazines many droll over. They could never compare to your boyfriend anyway.

A sigh could be heard in the room, a head full of orange hair moving to look at you. Chuuya was getting ready to go to the Port Mafia Headquarters and was about to say no, but when he looked over… yea it was over for him before it started.

“Just don’t rip my hair out, doll”

“Hey! You know I’m gonna be careful!”

Next thing you two knew, he was sitting in front of the mirror while you were standing behind him, making the ponytail high on the back of his. ‘Why is his hair so soft wtf’ had appeared in your head but didn't voice it out.

You hooked your arms around his shoulders and neck, putting your chin on his head. “You look so pretty like this” When Chuuya looked at you in the mirror -as if he wasn't the whole time- the soft smile you had on simply killed him. He couldn't bring himself to destroy the little thing that made you happy so he ended up shocking your ass later on by not bringing his hat to work for once.

Platonic! Izumi Kyouka

just to see how she looks

“You look so cute!”

“Really?” 

You and Kyouka were the only ones apart from the clerks and Yosano in the clinic doing who knows what in the agency building as the others had missions, so you decided to do random things as you have already ended all the paperwork assigned to you for the day.

“Your hair is perfect for any kind of hairstyle but I think you look adorable with a ponytail, it suits you” You smiled at her. It really did fit her the same as her usual hairstyle, you just wish you had some hair accessories at the moment. Her hair would look even better!

“I’m glad you think so [Name]” A soft voice came from the younger girl.

You two continued to make small talk while you fixed her hair, before turning towards the office door when it opened.

“What you two doing over here?” Yosano looked at the two of them with a small smile appearing when she noticed Kyouka’s hair change.

“Messing with Kyouka’s hair. There’s not much to do at the office at the moment but we shouldn't leave the office yet, it’s still quite early” You said quietly, starting to look through your desk to see if you have any accessories for hair. Colorful to be specific.

“Hmm, Can I add myself to the fun?”

“You want to do something with my hair?”

“I have hair clips and more in my infirmary desk”

You looked up at her with stars in yours with such speed that Yosano couldn't help but ask herself if your neck is okay.

“Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go to your office, Kouka’s hair needs something more!”

The rest of the agency slowly started to come back one by one, to not only Kyouka’s hair being colorful from hairclips and more, but also to yours and Yosano’s hair being the same. There was some confusion about what they missed, Atsushi and Kenji just so happened to join in, to say the least.

Notes, comments, reblogs and anything else is greatly appreciated <3

[miasmal-sweetness]

Here, Kitty, Kitty

NSFW - MDNI - 18+ ONLY

Graduation is near and I am ignoring health issues by writing hot trash. I put on fake nails for the first time in a literal decade so I have had to relearn how to type during this and I am going to blame that for why this is honestly Not Good and pretty sloppy.

This is absolutely my attempt to reclaim the pet name “kitty” for myself after my weird abusive ex ruined it for me years ago since that’s what he called me.

Here, Kitty, Kitty

Summary: yandere!Cloud x reader. 3.1k. Cloud finally has the perfect nickname for you, but you’ve gone missing. Don’t worry; your hero will save you, just like always.

Warnings: he calls you kitty, duh; reader is gender-neutral but has a vagina; smut; Cloud 100% kidnapped reader; bondage; noncon; suffocation/drowning

“I’m home, kitty.” That’s it. Short and sweet and it rolls off the tongue. That’s what you are—short, sweet, and you also feel great on his tongue. Cloud is certain you’ll love the pet name; his heart has skipped many beats every time he’s thought about it.

Cloud sets his sword down by the door, waiting to hear the usual signs of your presence. You two have been living together for a while now, and you’ve settled into a routine. By now, dinner will be ready, and you’ll be waiting for his return in the kitchen as you flip through a cookbook for the umpteenth time. But this time, he doesn’t hear your breath, your footsteps, the soft turn of pages, or you stirring a pot. It’s silent.

Cloud steps further in to his house. Were you asleep? You had tossed and turned a lot the night before; he wouldn’t blame you for needing a nap. He peers in to the kitchen and finds no sign of you, not a single dish out of place, like you hadn’t even eaten breakfast. The living room is similarly empty, even though the couch is where you usually take your naps. Maybe the rain outside disturbed you; there was a large window that overlooked the couch, so it could be a little loud and chilly there.

You’re not in the hall. You’re not in the extra room he’s let you slowly turn into your own space. His heart is starting to pick up the pace; if you aren’t in the bedroom, then—no. He can’t think that way. Cloud cracks the door open, just in case you really are sleeping, but throws it open when he finds that the bed is empty. Cloud takes a deep breath and runs his hand through his hair. There is one other place you could be, but not only did he keep it locked, you also hated it. The basement—a place you’d only go in to if he dragged you kicking and screaming.

It was storming, though. Maybe you found a way to get in and took shelter out of fear. Cloud left the bedroom after another glance, heading straight for the basement door at the end of the hall. Sure enough, the door was unlocked. He keeps the key on him at all times; there’s no way you swiped it off of him, since it’s still in his pocket. Maybe you found a way to pick it.

Either way, Cloud pushes the door open and makes his way down the stairs. “I’m coming down, kitty,” he calls, flipping on the lights. “Don’t be scared, okay?”

He knows before he even sees the basement that you’re not there. He can feel it, but he holds on to that bit of hope anyway. Hope matters little in this world, though. You aren’t there. The basement is empty. His gaze lands on the red silk that lies by the wall. Strong, tightly-woven silk that he brought home after you kept getting horrible rope burns and bruises when he tried cuffs. You were too weak to get out of it, but it didn’t hurt you, either. He wishes he had used it that morning.

One of the windows has been broken open, and your struggle is remembered by the shards of glass covered in your blood. The bars that covered every window were damaged on only this one, pried apart with a hammer from the toolkit he forgot to take back from you. You said you needed it to work on your sewing machine; it needed maintenance, but he didn’t have the time to supervise you or do it himself. What a dumb decision. He should have just stayed an extra thirty minutes.

Now you’re gone, probably lost somewhere out in the rain and possibly trying to fend off monsters. You aren’t a fighter. You were easy for him to drag here; so easy he wouldn’t have had trouble even without years of training and mako forced in to him. You’re probably scared, cold, and lost, wondering why he hasn’t saved you yet.

Of course, deep down, he knows that’s not true. You ran away. Pried off the prison bars keeping you caged, escaped the room he kept you in for a month and a half before he thought he wore down your will—the room he still brings you down to sometimes when you misbehave or something triggers his paranoia. Cloud knows all of this, but he’s good at ignoring it. You need him, whether you like it or not.

Grabbing the silk rope from the floor, Cloud trudges back up the stairs and grabs his sword. You can’t have gotten far. The house is way out in the countryside, where paths are limited; your bare feet are not going to move quickly or easily on the rocky terrain. He follows a fading trail of blood leading away from the broken window. He’s so focused on your trail that the feeling of cold rain pouring on him is barely noticeable; he only thinks about it when he realizes that you must be freezing.

He moves a little faster.

Eventually, the trail of blood stops, either because the wound clotted or the rain has washed it away. He hopes it doesn’t hurt to badly. He does. He does believe that—he’s tries to drown out the thoughts that insist that you deserve it for being such a brat, that this will teach you a lesson, that this is nothing compared to what he’ll do when he drags you back home. The thought of making you crawl over the broken glass you left behind in the basement is interrupted when he notices footprints left behind in the mud. They’re barely visible, but they’re there.

The footprints guide him to a few shrubs. Some strands of your hair are caught in the leaves and branches; he wonders if you were trying to crawl under them for shelter from the rain. Evidently, you gave up and tried taking refuge under a tree, but that must not have been good enough. Your trail leads right to a dying tree leaning against a small, rocky hill; a small source of relief from the rain. There are no prints leading out. You’ve barricaded yourself in with branches and leaves, mostly in an effort to stay hidden. He smiles at the childish attempt—he might be pissed that you left, but it’s adorable that you think that would be good enough.

“It’s just me,” he calls. “You can come out.”

No response. He doesn’t even hear you shift.

“Here, kitty, kitty,” he teases, circling your poor attempt at a hiding spot. “Come to me, kitty.”

You want to tell him to fuck himself. You want to stick your head out just to spit at him. Even though you know it’s over, though, you refuse to reveal yourself. He’ll have to drag you out by your ankles, something that you know he has no problem doing. If you can’t escape, you can at least make this difficult for him. You sink further in to your spot, batting your lashes to blink away tears and rain drops.

You’re dirty, bloody, sweaty, and drenched in rain. You have scratches going up and down your waist, legs, and arms. The soles of your feet are red and covered in scrapes. You just want to be able to cry in peace, but you’ll hold your breath until you pass out if it means he won’t get the satisfaction of hearing you.

“Come out, kitty. It’s okay; you’re not in trouble.”

Liar. You know the second you’re back at that house, he’ll be grabbing at you and crushing you and making you say you won’t leave over and over until you lose your voice and he’s satisfied. You knew the risk of leaving, and you decided at the time that it was worth it—but that was before the storm came and slowed you down. Your lips and fingers are already blue. You couldn’t keep going. You can’t keep doing this. All you have the strength to do right now is sit in silence like a pouting preschooler who doesn’t want to leave the park yet.

Cloud crouches down by your shelter. You wiggle away from him, casting your eyes to the ground. He reaches past the thorny branches you’ve barricaded yourself with, not even acknowledging the thorns that scratch his arms and leave blood in fresh red lines.

“Come on out, kitty,” he urges, holding out his hand to you. His voice is soft now, gentle; it reminds you of when you first met Cloud. He had been rough around the edges and awkward, sure, but you thought you saw a good heart behind it all. Sometimes you still did, when you saw his eyes go soft as he stroked your hair or kissed bruises that formed when you bumped in to the counter—when he’d bring you treats from outside, reminders of the life he took from you, with a look in his eyes that implied a quiet regret that he couldn’t voice. Somewhere in him, that sweet boy with those big blue puppy dog eyes is reaching out for you, asking you to stay with him after he’s already lost so much.

You give in. You’ve never been able to resist him—not when his eyes go soft and he looks like you just broke his heart. You take his hand and crawl out from your spot, seeking new refuge in his warmth. Even in the icy rain, he still runs hot. He wraps his arms around you as you miserably shiver and sniffle. This was a terrible idea. You never should have left. It was pointless, and only ended with the both of you upset.

Cloud’s hand moves down to your waist, and you hiss when his fingers brush over your scratches. He murmurs an apology as he examines your wounds. They’re shallow, just plentiful.

“You didn’t run in to any monsters, right? No other injuries?” he asks, running his thumb over dried blood that crusted on your hip.

“No,” you mumble, staring blankly at your bruised knees.

“Good.” He continues to contemplate your scratches, rubbing small circles in to your thigh. “Why did you leave, kitty?”

The new nickname finally hits you. Even in the cold, you feel a little warmer from it. You supposed it’s fitting—back in the sector, you made nightly rounds in the neighborhood to give snacks to the strays. Your heart sinks a little, and the bitterness of your situation claws its way back up your throat. Sure, he’s being sweet now, but that doesn’t change the fact that he’s keeping you captive. “I wanted to go home,” you spit, lifting your head to stare venom in to those stupid big eyes of his.

“This—”

“No!” You pound your fists against his chest, even though you know it barely does anything to him. “That is not my home! You are not my boyfriend! I want to go home to my friends, to the sector, to the cats and my neighbors!” Each cry is punctuated by another thump of your fists against his chest, and he takes it all without even a wince.

“Kitty, don’t—”

You won’t let him get a word in edgewise. “Take me home!” you demand, unleashing your fury in the form of a flurry of weak blows to his chest.

Finally, he responds to your pathetic attempt at a tantrum. He grabs your wrists and holds them together with an infuriating amount of ease. His eyes aren’t soft and sparkly anymore. He doesn’t have that pout that you fall for so easily. His gaze is hardened, sharp, and focused entirely on you as he throws you on to your back. You grunt when your back collides with mud and your hair is soaked by a puddle.

“Listen, kitty,” he snaps, giving a harsh yank to your flimsy shorts. You try to scramble away, but he pins you in place with just his weight. “This is home now. You can either make it easy on yourself and accept it or you can keep throwing your tantrums, but it won’t change a thing. There is nothing for you back there.”

Your top is ripped off, torn in two and discarded in the mud. He doesn’t seem to care one bit about the dirt and mud you’re in, nor about the puddle that you keep trying to lift your head out of. “Th-that’s not true,” you sputter, forcing your legs shut with all the strength you can muster. “My friends—our friends—”

“Do you really think anyone even noticed that you’re gone?”

You fall silent at this, mouth agape. You had considered the possibility that no one noticed or cared, or that they quickly forgot about you and brushed you off when you never came back. But you always held out hope that they remembered and looked for you.

“You were just another body to them,” Cloud mutters against your neck. He’s running his hands up and down your body, between your trembling legs, as though nothing is wrong and he isn’t saying horrible things in your ear. “I took you away from that. Give you a home and everything you need. Keep you warm and safe… and you fucking run away?”

Your legs are forced apart, and you feel like a hot poker is being shoved in to you. You weren’t prepared in the slightest, but that doesn’t stop him from pounding in to you.

“Cloud, stop!” you cry, trying to wriggle away from him as he sucks on his favorite spot on your neck.

“Quit moving around so much,” he grumbles, finally stopping the brutal pace of his hips. The relief you get is brief and nowhere near enough; Cloud stops just long enough to turn you on your stomach, before resuming the same pace. With your face now shoved in to the muddy puddle below, he can enjoy himself without you saying things like “no” and “this hurts.” You can only guess that this isn’t one of the days he enjoys it.

Even though you’re half-drowning and you can vaguely hear him hissing obscenities and complaints, he still shoves his hand between your legs and plays with your clit. And it still feels good, no matter how much pain you’re in. When this nightmare first started, Cloud had been awkward and inexperienced. With plenty of practice, however, he found each spot you enjoyed, and which way was the best to pleasure you. The kind of knowledge and familiarity you’d only expect to grant a partner. He knew every inch of your body; it was mapped out in his mind better than anywhere in Midgar.

And you hate it, even as the warmth builds up in your gut. He grabs you by your hair and lifts your head to let you take in another desperate gasp of air, before shoving your head back in to the mud. This isn’t like him. Even on the days you’ve been a brat and he’s come home angry from whatever the hell he faced out there, he’s at least been apologetic while brutalizing you. Frantically telling you “sorry, I’m sorry” as he fucks your throat without concern for your gag reflex or chokes you from behind as he tries to bury himself as deep as possible inside of you.

There are no apologies. The closest relief you have is the brief gasps he allows you to take, and it’s still nowhere near enough. Your eyes burn and are covered in a haze. You can feel the pressure inside of you building; the lack of oxygen only seems to make it more intense. He lifts your head just to hear you moan and sigh. He knows every sign of your orgasm—the shake of your leg, the way your core tightens, the feeling of you contracting around him.

“That’s it,” he breathes as you writhe in pleasurable misery. “Say my name, kitty.”

You obey without question. Whatever will get this over with—and his fingers away from your clit. “Cloud,” you whisper.

“Say ‘thank you, Cloud.’”

If it weren’t for the lack of oxygen and orgasm turning your brain to mush, you would have put up a fight. But there’s no point to it now. “Th—thank you, Cloud,” you manage to croak, struggling to speak past the hand around your throat and his increasingly frantic pace. You hear him groan against your ear.

“More,” he demands. His voice is breathy and agitated; he can’t tell you exactly what he wants to hear, but you can hazard a guess.

“Thank you for—f-for saving me,” you eke out, squeezing your eyes shut. The high of the orgasm is fading, replaced by pain from overstimulation and the tears he created inside of you. Still, you’ll savor the oxygen he’s letting you have. “Thank you for… f-finding me—I was lost and needed you.”

Of course that’s what he wants to hear. Another groan, and he rolls his hips against yours as you feel his cum spill out of you. Cloud rocks his hips against you as he rides out the last of the high; he wants to savor every last moment inside of you. You don’t dare complain. He’s letting you breathe, and the pain isn’t as bad as before, at least.

You fall back in to the mud when he releases you, your arms barely able to move in the clumsy motions you manage in a late attempt to catch yourself. You struggle to push yourself up and roll away from the puddle, panting as water drips from your face. You hurt. You want to cry. And you feel Cloud lifting you up by your arms.

“Let’s go home, kitty,” he says in that gentle, low voice. All malice is gone. The sadism that had been in his eyes just moments ago is gone, the only evidence of it being the mud on your skin and cum dripping down your thighs. “You can have a bath to warm up when we’re back. You should feel better then.”

You don’t fight when he sweeps you off your feet. You don’t fight when he rinses you off and sets you in a tub of warm water. And you just watch as he fixes the broken window, reinforces the bars, and boards them up to keep you from getting any more ideas. You’re tied up in a pile of blankets on the floor, his attempt at softening the reality of your confinement. You’ll be down in that basement for at least a week, until he decides it’s safe to let you out again. You should have known he’d keep his promise—he’d always come to your rescue.

[staystillgregory]

"A bit late for that." The words themselves held no bite, merely concerned. Following her wave, he sinks down into a seated position. Gregory watches as she unbuttons her trashed sweater, still fighting the sinking feeling in his stomach as she begins to explain.

She had followed his instructions - ones he had called in a desperate bid to get her away from the jaws of death. It should have been enough, but the monster in the basement had to have the last laugh. Amber eyes go wide with horror as he hears that once more, his voice was used in a bid to hurt her.

"I'm sorry." He chokes out. "I'm so sorry. It...it wasn't me. I did lose the signal, I swear. I would never have done that to you." This was his sister - maybe not by blood, but in every sense that counted. They were in this together. They always would be.

Gregory takes the sweater from her after her futile efforts to tear it. In a flash, he whips out a switchblade from his pocket (definitely new), and starts slicing the fabric to strips. It's a good distraction from the worry and turmoil he feels - at least he's being useful. However. the knife drops from his hand as he spots the mask Cassie is pulling out.

"What the fuck?!" He loudly exclaims, bristling with thinly veiled horror. "Why the fuck- Cassie, don't put that on! Oh my God, why do you have that thing?!"

“Well….I didn’t want you to worry.” Softly mumbled out of her crooked mouth 

Cassie lets out a small sigh , just kind of sitting down and slowly working on unbuttoning her sweater. They needed something for bandages, thankfully said sweater being rather wrecked meant her polo under is just fine, and while it’s not clean it’s not like she can wear it again with all the stains they’ll never be able to get out and the rips it already had. She gestures for Gregory to sit down with her as she works to try and rip it more. Gregory’s friends he vaguely mentioned, and Roxy who went on ahead to clear the way, can wait just a moment.

“ I g-got to the elevator like you were instructing me too. It got up ab-about midway and then…..well I pr-presume you lost the signal...but you were…It was still your voice and the speaker…..it said I c-couldn’t leave . Th-Then the elevator it-”

Hands shake, the ache in her chest is back because Cassie is trying desperately not to get emotional. He would never. Gregory would never try and-. They might not be blood siblings but they made a promise to each other the night they ran away from foster care. He was so worried when he found her hobbling out of the darkness with Roxy by her side.

“It’s a bit blurry af-after that, b-but Roxy f-found me….h-helped me get out fr-from down there. Th-then you found us.” 

Cassie hands the sweater off to Gregory, she’s having no luck tearing which is understandable as she’s exhausted and hurt, and she reaches into her bag to pull out her second most important tool of the night. The Vanni mask, as she doesn't want to use her head chip to talk to Helpi just incase it aggravates her head wound.

[lunalockley]

Night Desires

Dark!Steven Grant x Fem!Reader

Warnings: I mean, dark sort of creepy Steven Grant wishing to do things he shouldn't. Nonconsensual desires? Maybe.

Words: 900+

Notes: This is very short and not as dark as it could, I'm just testing the waters! Let me know what you thinkkk and thanks for always reblogging and commenting nice things <3 love you all

Masterlist

gif credit

It began before I could even see your face, it began before I even knew your name. It began with your voice.

You didn't realize such thin walls this building has, did you? Of course, you didn’t darling. Is that why you started to rub your pretty little clit in the middle of the night on your first day in? You thought your good new neighbor couldn’t hear you? God, Love, the sounds you made. I could hear everything. I swear I’ve never been so hard in my life before, never so fast. I tried not to react to it, at first. I really tried. I’m a good guy after all. I’m a gentleman. But who could have resisted you?

I used to wonder how would you react if I told you. When you are all sweet and nice to me in the corridor, what would you do if I say how hard you made me come with your moans and that gasping breathing of yours? Would you blush if I say how I was stroking my cock with one hand and covering my mouth with the other so you couldn’t hear how you wrecked you had me? Would your heart pick up in your chest if I say how badly I want it to be my hands the ones that had you whining so pretty? Would that make you wet? I bet it would. You’re not a good girl, not all the time at least. I know that much.

But you can’t blame me, can you? After that first night, I decided I would never think about it again. I was ashamed. I was even planning on moving my bed from the wall to the farthest possible place in the flat. Can you imagine? I was planning on keeping myself away from you. What an idiot. I didn’t last much though. We bumped into each other in the elevator a few days later and I was a goner.

You had to be so bloody gorgeous, didn’t you? You were all smiles and blushed cheeks. Calling my name in that way you did. Steven, you said. How your lips wrapped the sound, how it ended somewhere low in your throat it drove me insane right there. Steven, it never sounded so glorious before. I wonder how it might sound all breathy and delirious in the darkness of your room, I wonder what it would do to me then. I need to find out.

It used to be okay Love, this little secret between the night, the walls, and I. My favorite time of the day. Delighted in you, holding my breath, measuring my movements to don’t lose any detail I could catch but then—then that disgusting vibrating sound ruining everything. Overcoming your sighs, your pretty little whines. Everything.

How dare you do that to me.

Using some lifeless cold machine when I’m right here alive and warm and eager to do anything you could ask me to. It’s cruel. Making me jealous of some stupid battery thing when I could give you everything. Anything you needed for as long as you wanted it. Letting you catch your breath just to start it all over again.

I hate it. Night after night I hate it more and more. That detestable repetitive sound. It makes me mad. I want to take it off your hands, rip it apart and show you—

Once I read that no man with power should be trusted because he will always use it for his own benefit. I used to think that wasn’t true. I had faith in people, I had faith in me. But now I know—If I just had a tiny little amount of power over you. If I had you all helpless at my mercy, nowhere else to go. God, the things I would do.

Nothing to hurt you, of course. I could never hurt you. Not if you don’t want me to, but I bet you would.

I would just take you the way I’ve wanted all these months. Pump my cock in and out of that wet pussy just like you do with that toy. But, Love, I would be so, so much better. I would know how you need it just by looking at you. Giving it to you faster, slower, harder. And you just would need the lay back and take it for me.

At first, I would have you on your knees. I want to hold you against a wall and fuck your pretty face until your throat is burning, until you’re choking on me and tears run down your cheeks. But I want it slow and tender too. I want you to take just as much as you want to, your hand stroking the rest. I want you to lick me, to savor me. I want to feel your lips and your tongue. And I want to kiss you afterward.

And I want to taste you. I want to drag my tongue just like I’ve been dreaming for so long and I want to feel you tremble and to hear you beg and I want you to get mad and push me against you, I want to lose my breath and have you in my mouth and my lungs and my hands.

And I want to know how those pretty little sounds feel right in my ear. The warmth of your ragged breathing into my neck. Your soft hands holding into me. Your wet cunt clenching hard around me, and my name on your lips over and over again. 

I need everything and more.

I fantasize about it. All the damn bloody time. About just breaking in and giving you what so desperately need. 

Anything you need.

I used to want but I’m getting tired of it. Enough is enough, Love. I’ll start doing now.

[goodolddumbbanana]

There are so many things to analyse for today's episode, omg.

Especially the way Dark Sun talks with Sun.

Something very endearing about how, Dark Sun, like I said before, still thinks of himself as Sun. Like, instead of distinguishing himself and Sun, or think of himself as more superior like Moon with Nexus, I feel like he sees Sun as a past version of himself, the one who hasn't got tired of Moon yet, the one who still naive.

"I am speaking of myself, for myself..."

"He isn't at that level... Yet"

"I can't believe how naive I was..."

He never talks bad about Sun's intelligence, never in every single episode when Dark Sun shows up.

"... Unlike you, I don't hold such bad manners about my name.."

"... And Sun was preoccupied..."

When he talked with Puppet, when he mentioned about Sun, he never said Sun is not important because he is dumb. No, what he said was Sun's focus was in another place back then.

Lunar, Moon, Nexus, Puppet... A Lot of people even if they are Sun's family or they care and love Sun, they still usually look down at Sun's capacity or intelligent. Even Moon, sure, he is much nicer than he is back then, but he still thinks Sun is a bad actor and doesn't believe in Sun's capacity to handle himself, or to fool Ruin.

He only criticises Sun's naivety, or Sun's lack of confidence in learning everything.

Sun is not stupid, of course. But his trauma makes his head blank and he gives up on things very fast. Like the thing with magic, portal or things with machines. He even gives up to save Moon because he doesn't think he can cast magic.

The only time he keeps going, the only time he tries to find things his way and never gives up and try to find solutions is the time he tries to kill Eclipse v2.

It does not end well.

It seems like, the way Dark Sun sees Sun, is like the parent seeing their kid doesn't live up for its potential.

"I hope the next time we meet, you will grow a spine, Sun."

That is what I don't understand. Or hardly understand that term. Why, Dark Sun said that to Sun, when obviously, Sun doesn't put up with any of his bullshit.

Like, Dark Sun wants Sun to open his eyes, but...? It doesn't make any sense!!? Unless, Dark Sun wants Sun to see his way and choose his way? Dark Sun wants Sun to be more active? Or, he wants Sun to eat Moon's brain?

Just like how in Nothing happens dimension, sun sees NHD! Sun is naive and doesn't have any backbone by how Moon treats This Sun. Does it mean, what Dark Sun implied is... Sun needs to be more aggressive and try to do things his way?

They are obviously machines. By that count, Sun can be upgraded to be more intelligent than he is by now. But he chooses not too, or he doesn't think any of that, because he is scared.

When Sun is terrified, he usually just freezes. He doesn't know if the way he decides things, will make it worse or not. And with how anxious and failure he built up in these years, to grow day by day, I don't blame him for being like that.

Still, there is something very intriguing about how Dark Sun speaks with Sun with that level of patience, or such gentle manners we only see nearly, not enough, on Foxy.

Sideline: I hate that Dark Sun doesn't argue back when Moon said he doesn't see Nexus as his brother. Because it can interfere with many things.

1. Moon is right, Nexus is only a tool and Dark Sun only uses him. But because Dark Sun hates to see Moon being right, he directed the conversation and threw it out of the window.

2. Deep inside, Dark Sun truly thinks of Nexus as his brother, the one he makes, the one who stayed with him. He still uses him though.

3. 1 and 2 combined.

Or I just think too deep and I hope it doesn't happen.

[seokmattchuus]

Na Kamden as a dom

Prefacing this by saying I am very delusional.

This is in no way accurate by any means bc all I've seen from other content is the opposite of this.

I wrote this for the sake of my sanity.

But moving on.

Somewhere in the middle of hard dom and soft dom but if you push enough, you get a brat tamer.

No, I will not elaborate because I don't even know what that means.

It just makes sense, y'know?

Like,

He's nice until he's not?

But when he's not nice anymore, he will fuck you up?

Definitely might take him some time to get there, but you can't tell me he wouldn't make the best brat tamer.

Like,

On the regular, he's not too strict but he's also not the most lenient.

Mostly because he uses his height to his advantage.

He doesn't need to you the voice because all he has to do is take a little step towards you and look down at you and boom, a natural brat-be-gone.

Can't blame you, though.

If he stepped towards me after being a brat, my five-foot-one-and-a-half ass (the half counts, okay) would cower like the chihuahua that I am (got that dog in me, y'know).

Like.

My hypothetical timbers shiver at the thought (in a good way).

But brat tamer Kamden?

:3

He likes to use pet play as a funishment.

Because he's still trying to give you a chance to make it up to him.

And he's also not trying to ruin you completely.

Just a little bit.

The degradation of having the full kitty get up is enough to humble you so you're not pushing it.

Ears, collar, tail, no clothes.

Because kitties don't wear clothes.

He uses the leash to keep you in place.

Or keep you from looking away.

He'll pull you up to be right in front of his face and hold you there.

He's a lover of forced eye contact so he can watch you struggle not to close your eyes.

Which leads to my next point:

If he is trying to ruin you completely, the tail might be a plug.

That vibrates.

Ororor

Maybe cuffs you to a cage and refuses to touch you.

Maybe uses a fuck machine instead. Because you obviously aren't going to listen. Why would he even try?

And he'll be mean about it.

"Awe, does someone want me to let them out?"

"If I let you out, don't think I'm going to make you cum."

"You get the machine, or nothing at all."

Or you're only allowed out if you're going to get yourself off.

Bc he's not about to reward you.

"You didn't want to listen, so you obviously don't need me."

"Show me how much you need it, and I might touch you."

I will not expand on this for my own sanity because I'm not trying to give myself thots. It's almost 4am.

Moving back to regular dom Kamden.

He loves reminding you how small you are compared to him.

All the time.

Holding hands and talking about how small yours are in his.

When you're sitting on his lap and he just towers over you.

Or his hands on your thighs.

Or when he has both your wrists in one hand.

Or when he's holding your wrist and his hand is just. So big.

He loves to verbally remind you, too.

Usually cooing at you.

Gives caregiver vibe lowkey, but he also just seems like the type to baby you anyways.

"My little baby."

"Look at how cute you are." (usually while pinching your cheek)

When he's feeling generous and wants to see you correct your own behavior, he likes keeping track of how much you're misbehaving.

I'm talking using a clicker all day.

And the final number could be anything, really.

How many times he's going to deny/keep you cumming.

How many spanks you'll get.

How many minutes he'll go without touching you (he might multiply it by two just for funsies)

Or how long he'll go on teasing you.

If he's feeling not-so-generous.

He's using the three-strike method and announcing them very loudly.

Does not care if you're around others.

Nope.

Counting down from three while walking towards you.

Or giving you silent signals to check you.

Bc he knows you're looking at him after messing up.

But he loves the attention.

And loves that you're doing it for his attention.

Wouldn't have it any other way, truly.

He also likes to threaten you with what he's going to do to you once you're both alone.

Just to rile you up some more.

But his aftercare game?

Unmatched.

He's gonna let you both nap before he washes you up.

Let's you relax in the bath after cleaning you so he can work on some food or snacks. Whichever you're in the mood for.

But you do get a big glass of ice cold water.

With a bendy straw :)

He gives you his softest hoodie to wrap yourself in while you both cuddle and watch tv.

Wraps his big ol' arms around you and holds you close while feeding you and maybe the occasional forehead kiss.

And asking if you're okay.

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"Nothing hurts, right?"

"My baby eats so well."

"Let me know if you need anything."

He's completely different from before. Total 180.

Big ol' softie.

[viaphni]

RUINED REALLTY SEASON THREE: CATALYST TRAILER ANALYSIS

I have to completely admit that the end of season 2 and its epilogue had me very hesitant for the way things are going, and I am still a little hesitant, but i DO BELIEVE THAT THEY ARE 1000% COOKING

First of all, that trailer was AMAZING!

The music, atmosphere, and cinematography were all done very very well (and great voice acting from Rinzler too)

But onto the actual trailer

It opens up on the results of the Soulstice's arrival, with Light alone, showing everybody's souls stolen away and their bodies on the ground. Light has lost it all. He immediately blames himself. It's also made apparent pretty quickly that Soullless is still present in some way, and is going to play a significant role again.

One of the first really interesting things to occur is Light taking the Soul Eater's weapon in his hands.

He stares at it for a moment before picking it up, the screen fading to black. But why would he be using his worst enemy's weapon? What benefit does it serve him? Mostly likely, I think it would have something to do with Soulless. Whether he likes it or not, Light now has a complete tie to the Soulstice itself. As he takes it, he says "And now, another threat is here..."

And Void's new reign of terror is displayed:

We are shown the Yellow Kingdom again, and the areas around it, completely overtaken by Darkness. Void must have taken complete control of the situation, as we just saw Seer with active dominance over their body in the epilogue. Maybe it was a defense mechanism to keep him alive after Corrupt's attack?

After these shots, we see what I think is the center tower of the kingdom—and there is a deep, bottomless pit surrounding it where the moat of lava once was.

It reminds me a bit of the castle entrance to the Depths from Tears of the Kingdom. Void might have something important down there.

A few more shots cycle through of the tower, and we see this—

The camera is descending into the chasm.

Next, we see a room maybe akin to some kind of lab?

It could also be a big machine. Somebody is standing there, but even with heightened exposure and brightness, it's hard to tell who it is. I'm sure it's Void, however, due to the chasm and darkness. This shot is really interesting, too--

--because it seems to be the view of the surface from this area underground. With heightened exposure, the walls look very machine-like.

Whether that or a lab, it clearly serves a primary purpose in Void's plans. (One of my first thoughts was likely a stretch, but I asked myself if it could be similar to the Soulstice--in the way that a machine was created to steal all souls, another would be created now to spread Darkness. Shadow Sabre did something similar in RQ.)

The next four shots emphasize what seems to be some of our new group of main characters.

We see the Purple Leader in his home. Him coming into the main cast will be very interesting, as I'm sure it will give us more opportunities to learn about the histories with people like the Sorcerer and Phantasia, strong links to the Soulstice. I'm sure this knowledge will be vital to the fight.

Now this next photo--I can't exactly tell what's going on here? It appears to be Corrupt's lab? When the exposure and brightness are edited, I can't see any details. But this is 1000% Corrupt is just is trust frfrfrfrfrfrfrfrfrfrffrfr Corrupt is alive

The shot then switches to an Indigo and an unidentifiable Aquamarine who seems to be imbued with light energy, given the white eye. I assumed this could be Aaron, but his soul got stolen. Who knows? The Indigo is the Doctor Indigo, I would think--given the coat and monocle, but he didn't have a design in Season 2, so I'm unsure. Both of these could be completely new characters.

And now, Dimension facing off with the Soulstice. It seems that Dimension will play a much bigger role now and actually put in the work for once. I guess that was his final straw? Or maybe the season will start and he will still show absolutely no concern.

A couple of interesting shots of Light and Soulless show up after this.

In a similar fashion to the Season 2 intro, Light walks towards the camera and glitches into his other forms, this one being Soulless. It only emphasizes his apparent new role in the season.

After this, we see a standoff between the main cast and the main opposition. Light, Professor, Dimension, Purple, and...a strange new variant of Assistant. It makes me think of the assistant robot from A Dark Soul, which was also themed around light. In the beginning of the trailer (and in the thumbnail), we only see the Assistant as a head. I guess he got repaired, and Light was a major factor playing in it.

I'd also like to point out how odd the new Sculk Steves look. They have gray streaks, like light energy. Since Corrupt was absorbed by the Soulstice, I imagine that the light crystal he held became of high use to the Soulstice, allowing it to power up these Steves like this.

The patterns on the ends of their limbs also look much bigger/brighter/saturated, or maybe its just the lighting--like soul flames instead of the typical sculk steve pattern.

The Steve standing above in the second picture catches my eye, though. It seems to be a "normal" being, and even appears to be holding something if you look closely.

Right by the head there. This figure is also standing closest to the Soulstice, so they must be important. Could it be Corrupt? Well if you watch a few more seconds--

Right there. We see Light fighting with who appears to be that figure. But that sword... We have seen that sword before!

Corrupt's sword.

We never saw Corrupt disappear when the Soulstice found him. It's more than probable that he simply could have just absorbed the light energy from him, used it to power up the sculk steves and other operations, and left Corrupt weakened. But what purpose would he have even leaving him alive? The Soulstice has everything it needs now, right?

Light found Toxin, too. And with a potion effect? He seems weakened. Perhaps Void has abandoned him and Light will team up with him? He already seemed to be cracking during his fight with Light in the forest where his prior identity as Soren was revealed. Is it finally time we get Soren back? Or will he still be evil?

The next few shots depict a battle between Light and Void, seemingly at his new base of operations. I'd put photos, but I'm almost out of space, and I want to keep this all in one post. Plus, there isn't a lot to analyze there.

The final shots of the trailer are some of my favorite ones.

There's a good bit to break down here.

We start out by seeing Light's cursed form, except his curse appears to have spread greatly. I've also just realized that he doesn't have his soul-afflicted eye in this form. Images of Purple Leader, Soulstice, Professor, Soulless, and Assistant are not surprising--we already know of their larger roles. I believe that's Corrupt again in the 5th shift. As for the 8th, I'm a bit confused. I don't think we know who this person is. However, the purple belt definitely brings up a few ideas, even if they're stretches. Could we meet a new Purple Steve--maybe even Phantasia?? I doubt that's the case, as it seems pretty outlandish. The Yellow Leader being present actually makes a lot of sense as well. His Darkness should give him resistance to the Soulstice.

BUT, I'm really focusing in on those last three. Louis, Cliff, and,, Seer.

We saw the Elites' souls taken. Clearly, they find their way back to the land of the living eventually (and with some sick new redesigns.) Louis doesn't change much, but Cliff appears to now be entirely a Light Steve. Which brings up another thought--if he is now 100% light, does this mean that he is completely purged of Darkness? Is his Shadow gone? Is his shadow the reason he had to become fully light?

And then there's Seer. There's no doubt that this is him. My friend @chaoticcyprus brought up this photo:

We saw this shot during the semi-finale when Void was battling the Soul Eater. The outfit aligns perfectly, except now his hood is down, and he seems to have been set free from whatever chains held him previously.

But how would Seer and Void separate? I assume it would have something to do with Corrupt's final blow on Void.

Corrupt dealt an absolutely MASSIVE amount of power onto his opponent. I'm sure that the sheer amount of light energy could be enough to somehow split Void and Seer apart. It would explain Void's sudden spike in power and authority that he seems to have in the next season.

As for any final thoughts,,, I can't think of much else for now.

But I'm looking forward to hearing what everyone else has to say, and also what the team presents for Catalyst!

[staystillgregory]

Gregory carries several weapons in his Ruin verse - both his Fazerblaster and Faz-Cam, as well as a pocketknife and a taser, courtesy of Vanessa.

[retrobr]

Lazytown Shenanigans pt. 2

So this time I've watched two episodes in a row: "Sportacus Saves the Toys" and "The Lazy Cup." I can't say that I liked both of the episodes, but they weren't bad either lmaoo. And, well, I think I liked the "Sportacus Saves the Toys" episode more than "The Lazy Cup"

So,

"Sportacus Saves the Toys."

In the first of the above-mentioned episodes, there were – holy moly – some new locations, even despite the fact that they weren't shown for too long. I liked that China and France looked somewhat identical to Lazytown, like they looked funky and colorful as well as Lazytown, u know

This episode made me feel a little bad for Ziggy tbh. I mean, Ziggy is one of my favorite characters; he has a very sweet (badum-tss) and kind personality. I live for this kind of character who is mostly cheerful and happy about everything in their life. And this episode was one of those in which someone ruined his mood, so that made me feel sad. I am sad /ref

And it was Stingy and Stephanie again who did that, just like in the "Ziggy's Alien" episode. Bruh why are they doing that to my boy :(

OH AND ZIGGY'S AND SPORTACUS' "FAMILY BONDING." I fucking adore their interaction, and I fucking love when Sportacus tries to cheer Ziggy up. I just can't do it anymore why are they so adorable 🥺 But then Stingy and Stephanie (mostly Stingy. All the blame is on him /j) ruined his happy mood once again. DAMN WHY JUST WHY ARRERGH-

A few words about Stingy. My God, he can't even play peacefully without proving that things belong to him. BRO UM JUST PLAY NORMALLY, GODDAMMIT, WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU?? Holy chimichangas, he even took all the sunscreen for himself, what the hell, seriously.... I just despise him at this point, but I can't help myself. He's just annoying.

Anyways. Milford and Bessie were adorable, as always. Can't help but smile like a dork when I see them interacting 🥺

And for goodness sake let Robbie rest and eep!! I can't say that much about him because, well, he was acting silly again as always, so yeah. But the machine that he built was a TOTAL MONSTROSITY. I would've shit myself if I saw that thing walking towards me omg 😭 /hj

And, finally, the "grab my hand" line. Nothing much to say because I'm shaking fiercely like a small pathetic chihuahua..... these dorks are going to be the end for me fr.

"The Lazy Cup."

Well, um, that was something I guess 😭 I don't even know what to say about this episode, except for some small things.

The Sportacus' "ball" shout from the very beginning set the mood for the whole episode, I tell you guys. (/j) I mean that was just very sudden, I just turned on the episode, and the very first thing I heard was "BOAHL" 😭

Won't say anything about Bessie and Milford again because I told about them earlier; they're just cute, like a married but not actually married old couple. Good for them

And speaking about old couples and stuff. There's no doubt to me from this point that Robbie is fucking obsessed with Sportadork. I mean, bro says that he hates him but at the same time HAS A GODDAMN MANNEQUIN OF HIM; bro says "ooohhh noo not him again" and still continues to watch him. Like dude, my dear, calm down 😔

But whatever. Robbie's disguise was pretty nice, I should say; I think his name was Sergio?? I honestly don't remember, but I think it's one of my favorite disguises of his.

And I would like to say that Robbie's team was SO FUCKING ODD I JUST UGH?? 😭 BRO GATHERED THE MOST CRINGE GUYS THAT HE HAS I SWEAR. And like, how did it even work? Did he just bring his own disguises to life? I don't know maybe I'm just stupid, but I didn't know that his disguise machine could do things like that

Finally, Stingy again. In this episode he actually did something nice – in other words, he helped Stephanie. Ok bud, that was a good act of yours 🙄

Well, I guess that's all.. It turned out to be a little longer than I expected, so I want to thank you if someone read this to the end :]

[plaindangan]

Yusuke finnaly managed to remove despair from junko (which hey, means no end of the world pretty darn cool! And this time he didn’t even had to kill anyone) using a machine of his work.

Howeveeeer. In order to do so what he did is that he bombarded her info with the only thing that junko cared a bit as much as despair, to overflow and crush her despair obsession with it. What was that thing ~? Pure unaldurated EGO.

Turn out it also made her even Thiccer and gave her a huge 5 foot long third leg of a futa cock.

Question is : how does yasuke handle an overobsessed by herself junko~?

Disclaimer: R18 material! If not to your liking then please do not view!

"Ready for the night of your life, my darling whose second only to moi?~"

"...You know? I blame myself for this..."

Yasuke knew how toxic Junko's despair fetish was and had a feeling it would only cause untold Tragedy in the future. Thus, in conjunction with a NEET animator's work, he had reworked her brain with a new brainwashing video to put all those strong feeling onto his own high ego...

And the results was...well....this. Yasuke was trapped in a room filled with some much Junko imagery it made calling her a narcissist seem unfitting. Her ceiling was a lewd shot of her, the pillows and sheets on her bed was sexy pin-ups of her. Her wallpaper? Junko. Her dresser? Junko. Her doors and window curtains? Junko.

Junko, Junko, Junko, Junko, Junko.

There was so much of her that Yasuke could safely say he'd have enough of her to last a lifetime...and even that was too much!!!

"Whaaaaaaaat?~ What blame? You showed me the absolute truth of the world: that there isn't a soul on Earth that matches my brains, my beauty, my skills, my power, and, now....especially don't match my body~"

As she rose up from her place underneath her sheets, she showed off her body to Yasuke. Her chubby belly, her new F-cup sized boobs that she gained through embracing herself (and or/robbing Seiko~), childbearing hips that could crushed steal with ease and, the part of the hour, a friggin' log of a dick that was twitching and waiting for a nice, tight, butt to ruin~ Like...the one in front of her perhaps?~

...

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, can see where this is going." Ignoring the cheeky grin from Junko, Yasuke stripped down to show off his surprisingly feminine hips and especially chubby butt. Bending over the bed, he looked off to the side, a bit embarassed and cheeks quite pink. "Just, sticking it in already, why don't you?"

"Puhuhuhuhu!! To make me like this, yet also be subservient to me - such a good pet I have!! For that, your Goddess shall reward you with a time like no other!!" Lubing herself up, it didn't take for Junko to grab her bitter BF by the hips and get to ramming his ass with the force of a celestial being more than determined to create life via seemingly impossible means!!

PLAP! PLAP! PLAP! PLAP! PLAPLAPLAPLAPLAPLAPLAPLAPLAAAAAAAP!

"J-J-JUNNNNNNKOOOOOOO~"

"That's it...moan for me!! Get to serenading me with you sounds of pleasure!! Worship me!! In turn, know how absolutely blessed you are to by my loyal servant!!!!" Junko demanded, eyes filled with madness, lust and an arrogance none yet seen before. Slow, yet strong, to fast, quick thrusts. Junko was adept at both on the fly and made Yasuke feel so damn good as his body, ass especially was being permanently shifted by his beast of a woman. No, this Goddess who was making itself home inside of her pouty little cocksleeve and leaving him a nice, hot, mess, inside of him in return~

A cocksleeve whose unnerved nature faded to one of yearning for more fucking from this new being. For now and forever~

[franki-lew-yo]

My Employer is dead and everything's Worse Now

A small piece.

Everyday I ask myself why I care or should sob about anything in my life when people (children!) are literally dying or being enslaved -for those curious, no no one actually guilting me; I'm just naturally like this. ((Maybe blame Dr. Seuss's "Tell Yourself how Lucky You Are"-vibe idk)) But sometimes, it just all comes out like this. The frustration. The anger.

The pandemic was the final nail in the coffin for the corporation that employed me and I didn't even know how dire it was until the month it was shutting down. Now I know from insiders that it's going to join the likes of Bed, Bath and Beyond and that even the nearest existing locations near me (which I couldn't be moved to, because all the job positions were taken up) aren't going to last much longer.

My SSI hearing is still on the table. Who knows how long it will be there and how much longer I'll have to live with my reduced amount.

My EDD is somehow always unfilled even though we had all the paperwork and information in three months ago.

The job I've applied to three times now has an in-person manager who's optimistic but the company site itself has turned down my assessment all three times, meaning I have to create new accounts from new emails to take the assessment again. The (quite possible) reason?

AI.

AI is being used by corporations who have a HUUUUUGELY outdated system enough as it is and it is ruining everything. That's the most likely reason my job assessment keeps being turned down. The assessment itself runs on tests designed for humans to be graded and judged by other humans, but they're instead feeding the results into a machine that does have right and wrong answers programmed inside it. There's a lot of talks that even government agencies like unemployment and SSI are being hampered by AI's incompetency.

I am unemployed and scared and I feel like garbage even complaining when I know people who have it worse. I have enough money to pay for squarespace. I feel spiteful hearing of people who are still able to afford vacations or intuitions or have any job in the arts paying and paying well.

AI is ruining our day to day lives in ways you can't even imagine. I hate AI technology. I hate capitalists and millionaires. I already hated you as an artist but now you are actively making people's lives worse.

[halloweeneverlong]

selfish machines sentence starters

sentence starters taken from selfish machines by pierce the veil <3

besitos

- “you’re my favorite explosion.”

- “you’d better not get back up!”

- “leave the water by the bed for later.”

- “i’m tired of holding up your backup plans.”

- “all you have is not enough.”

- “i heard what you said. a friend of a friend.”

- “if that doesn’t turn you on, i’ll keep talking ‘til something does.”

- “i’ll steal you flowers from the cemetery gates.”

- “so say it. i’m in love.”

- “don’t expect me to understand.”

- “she was covered in blood, last seen in san francisco.”

- “they were there from beginning to end.”

southern constellations

- “please keep chasing me.”

- “i’ll never let you freeze without me.”

the boy who could fly

- “it’s time to take you home.”

- “i’ll be the brightest someday.”

- “don’t ruin a perfect thing.”

- “why do i still pray? when will it end? and who fucking cares?”

- “i swear to god, i did what i could.”

- “i’d rather be dead.”

- “don’t rain on my parade!”

- “i guess i never should have loved you.”

- “if you were gonna leave this world, how could it be without me?”

- “love dies like a dog.”

caraphernilia

- “there ain’t a thing that you can do that’s gonna ruin my night.”

- “honestly, it’s harder breathing next to you.”

- “hold my heart, it’s beating for you anyway.”

- “what if i can’t forget you?”

- “what’s so good about picking up the pieces?”

- “just give her back to me.”

- “you can’t just throw me away!”

- “what if i don’t even want to?”

- “i’d better learn to live alone.”

fast times at clairemont high

- “i was saving myself for you.”

- “we’ll be throwing a party.”

- “hold on, this is innocent blood.”

- “without you, nothing ever mattered.”

- “if i die, you die too.”

- “i just wanted one dance with you.”

- “melodramatic, but it turns me on.”

- “i’d kill anyone who gets too close.”

the new national anthem

- “somebody’s supposed to fall in love.”

- “you’ll be excited just to see me someday.”

- “darling, look at the sparks!”

- “you hold my attention without even trying.”

- “love, don’t forget to bleed.”

- “if i ever catch the ones who hurt you, i’m hoping that god looks away this time.”

bulletproof love

- “we used to laugh until we choked.”

- “it was the best time of my life.”

- “now i sleep alone, so don’t wake me up.”

- “the taste of you and me will never leave my lips again.”

- “i wanna hold your hands so tight i’m gonna break my wrist.”

- “i’m barely hanging on.”

- “by the time you’re hearing this i’ll already be gone.”

- “there’s nothing to do.”

- “this isn’t fair! don’t you try to blame this on me.”

- “my love for you was bulletproof, but you’re the one who shot me.”

- “goddamn it, i can barely say your name.”

stay away from my friends

- “i want you in the most unromantic ways.”

- “you’re torturing me with a beautiful face.”

- “come on, i thought we had a damn good thing.”

- “stay away from my friends.”

- “i still can’t believe how you look next to me.”

i don’t care if you’re contagious

- “i don’t wanna leave without you buried by my side.”

- “they’ll never take us alive.”

- “i would rather spend my life vacations in bed with you.”

- “i don’t care if you’re sick, i don’t care if you’re contagious. i would kiss you even if you were dead.”

- “i’d do anything to hold your hand.”

disasterology

- “i drank the poison then i passed the fuck out.”

- “i have a million different kinds of fun.”

- “can we create something beautiful and destroy it?”

- “you were screaming ‘till the police came.”

- “if every living thing dies alone, what am i doing here?”

- “if it’s the end of the world, you and me should spend the rest of it in love.”

million dollar houses (the painter)

- “would you ever try to leave me?”

- “i’ve broken bones for you, and for you only.”

- “we can run, baby, run now.”

- “i still remember how you moved so slow.”

- “we don’t stop ‘til someone’s bleeding.”

- “i make money, but we just can’t keep this home.”

- “sometimes the moon looks brighter than the sun.”

- “sometimes things don’t work out the way we planned.”

- “maybe we’re meant to lose the ones we love, but i’ll fight for you ‘til then.”

the sky under the sea

- “it’s gonna be the best day of my life.”

- “you’ll never be as beautiful without me.”

- “you’ll be alright as long as i’m not.”

- “sharpen your teeth and bite as hard as you want.”

- “is this fantasy real, or is it all home-made?”

- “yeah, that’s fuckin’ right.”

- “do you think you’re the only one afraid?”

[filmfactors]

opinion on hunter from toh

WARNING: I probably won't get all my thoughts across perfectly. Sorry it's honestly taken me awhile to get back to this anon, I did have thought's but couldn't quite catch myself in the mood to write em! Now let's get started:

Hunter is, by all means, a character I personally should've liked. I did at one point! The Golden Guard easily had my attention, he was sassy and I love my masked characters. It's what they started doing with him that made me less of a fan over time, that and I have a personal grievance with the fandom. Being the rare Belos fan I couldn't go into his tag without seeing it mostly about Hunter all the time.

Obviously I'll state I do not dislike Hunter for having a redemption, rather, it's how Owl House redeems characters that make's him as fascinating as plain white bread. What is this method?

Redemption = Lack of bite, a total lack of genuine flaws... and a reason why their actions can be blamed on someone else.

Let's bring in Amity as another example: Upon her introduction we see her bullying Willow, alone. When Understanding Willow comes around, we see that it's claimed it was her parents, and even later, just her moms fault. Inner Willow says 'you let your friends pick on her for years' but we don't acknowledge Amity did the exact same for no good reason.

Once Amity is redeemed, do we see the attitude? Do we see her hesitations with Willow? Do we even see her trying to make it up to Willow? I am not counting Labyrinth Runners for this because sure we got some closure but it doesn't fix the base issue. Any sort of Amity's actually negative flaws are erased once she is Luz's cool girlfriend.

It happens to Lilith, with her complexes, she never again expresses negative feelings that aren't easy and palpable. She's never superior or with attitude, and she only cursed her sister thinking it'd only be a day. That's a whole other can of worms though.

Point being, Hunter is the exact same. We can blame all his negative attributes on Belos, and once he's good he can no longer have any of those. He's not sassy, or fun, and admittedly is just kind of an angst machine.

I often feel the point of redemption is that it is nice to see someone who did bad things, get help or help themselves. The belief even bad people can change, because in the end they are still human. It's not fun when all your redeemed characters are simply 'misunderstood.' When you can push the blame off of them and instead place it on someone else. Owl House's message is that people are complex, but fails to deliver on this.

An easy comparison to make is Hunter is Zuko, but he's absolutely no Zuko. They both follow a similar principle, it was a family member that led them down the path of ruin. Yet Avatar understood that at some point down the line, your actions are your own. Zuko is conflicted, and hurting but he still does actions that hurt others. He has to apologize, make up for it, etc.

Now I'll say Zuko's redemption is not and has never been the end all be all for redemption. I have a whole slew of thoughts on the matter, point being is that Hunter was this type of redemption. It fails to be anything much other than making Hunter the resident sad but bad boy, and the shows punching bag.

At some point all of his angst was just egregious punching down, as in by Thanks to Them. Flapjack, the possession... it didn't need to happen. In fact it hardly effected anything at all! It just gave Hunter more trauma and powers, but what did it do for the story? Hunter is barely in the finale. I guess let's watch some Boscha and Kikimora hijinks instead?

Moving on from the general issue of Owl House's writing, what else can be said about Hunter? Well he is a screen time leech. Consider, an episode like Labyrinth Runners. Technically a Gus episode, but he once again takes a backseat for other characters. Just like his one other episode! Hunter for some reason knows Willow better than him as well, just for some shipping fuel.

All that to say I don't hate the concept of this episode, I really enjoyed the Gus and Hunter interactions! I find their friendship to probably be Hunter's most compelling relationship outside of Luz. It's only a problem for the fact Gus' whole character is tossed aside by the writers.

He sees Belos' memories, his traumas, etc- what does this lead to? Making Hunter feel better. Gus never actually gets to do anything despite all the set up of his illusion powers, his episodes are overtaken by someone else or a ship. I'll admit this is not just a Hunter problem, but it contributes a lot.

All in all once Hunter was introduced, it left Willow and Gus further on the back burner. No matter what you say, there is an obvious lack of use of these two. Speaking of them, or more specifically Willow:

I'm actually okay with the concept of huntlow! I do not think it's nearly as bad as people in the critical tag claim it to be. It was rushed and not well written, but I felt the writers were on the right track for the idea. However, there have been some pretty bad faith readings of the pairing. Mostly for folks claiming that she 'didn't start liking him until he had powers' which is blatantly untrue.

Willow may not blush at Hunter, the tell tale sign someone in Owl House has a crush. Yet I feel you can pick up on the fact she has an interest in him in Thanks to Them, notably a pre-Hunter powers episode. I won't claim it's extremely compelling, but it's simple and it's cute it just results in some messy things for the sake of ship fuel.

My biggest complaint is that yet again, Hunter steals Gus' role of being a good friend to Willow in For the Future.

I feel there is much more I could say on Hunter, and his character, but I'm bad at writing all my thoughts without specific questions to remind me...

Overall just take it as I dislike Hunter, while also thinking he's one of the better characters of the series. He's got all the right ingredients to make a good cake, but the writers kept adding too much vanilla extract.