#I Really Tried to Keep Him in Character

[aheckinmess]

Weak Spot (Dad Sukuna)

(Part 1 of Cursed, Not Cute.)

Read on AO3.

Tags: Dad Sukuna, OC Child, Mildly Out of Character?, I Mean I Tried, I Really Tried to Keep Him in Character, Given the Circumstances, But Just in Case, Sukuna's Daughter, And Yes She Has His Sass

Word Count: 1,021 words

Summary: After Ryomen Sukuna has complete control of Japan as the King of Curses, he has a child that he's determined to train into a vessel of villainy, just like him. Things don't exactly go according to plan.

Chapter 1: Weak Spot

Sukuna should have seen it coming the second the damned woman told him she was with child. A night of passion and lust had resulted in a child of his own. One that he knew would be hellbent on destruction, just like him.

“I will raise you to be stronger even than me.” Flames reflected in his red eyes as he glared over the crumbled city below. He rocked her in his arms to the cadence of screaming victims below. “You cannot be weak if you’re going to inherit my legacy.”

A little girl with pink and brown hair looked up at him, babbling and cooing with a radiant smile. A smile reflecting paternal affection, dependence, and unyielding trust.

These were emotions he’d always thought he’d easily dismiss when the child was born. But truth be told? She wrapped him around her finger a little more with every passing day.

“We will rule this world together, you and I.” He promised.

The moment he felt such buzzing warmth for her, he should have killed her. Hell, he should have killed Asuka as soon as she’d said she was pregnant. Killed two birds with one stone.

But now, looking into his daughter’s eyes, his resolve crumbled. Her dark, pleading eyes squeezed a part of his soul that should have been dead long ago. He grit his teeth, raising his hand again to slice off her head. She’s just another obstacle in my reign of terror and misery! She has to go!

So what stopped him?

Those eyes. Those wide, loving eyes. Eyes that still stared at him with trust and adoration even as he held her life in the balance. A respect for her father that stood unshakeable even in the face of death.

“Are you going to kill me, Father?” Her lip quivered, though he’d long since taught her to be brave and keep her head high during her final moments.

Sukuna, for once, found himself speechless. With a roar, he threw his hands down before pacing across the balcony. Four sets of knuckles gripped the railing until they turned white, flattening metal with his great strength. This damn child. This. Damn. Child!

“I apologize, Father.” Her soft voice floated over to him. “I never intended for my weakness to cause you dishonor.”

“Silence.” Sukuna’s throat tightened in his fury.

The sound of crackling flames drowned out the silence between them as she listened obediently. Perhaps that’s why I’m so remiss to end her life. She's strong. Strong and obedient. Sukuna’s eyes met the gaze of a frantic woman clutching her child to her chest on the street as a curse cornered both of them. He flicked his wrist and the woman and her child dropped in a bloody mass without a second thought.

“I raised you to carry on my legacy,” He growled, slamming his fist down against the damaged metal and turning to her. For once, his brows wrinkled with pain, something he hadn’t felt in years. “Yet you stand before me, unwilling to follow the path of destruction I’ve set. Do you think I would just support your path of good fortune to others?!”

Her second set of hands always gave her away. While the bottom pair stayed by her side, she hid the top pair behind her back, fidgeting as her eyes glistened.

“No, sir.” She whispered.

“Do you expect me to accept such weakness from my own flesh and blood?!”

“No, sir.”

“Then what do you expect, Besu?!” He snapped, digging his nails into her cheeks as his frustration mounted.

“I don’t know.” She admitted.

Blood marred the sides of her face as he tried one more time to use his great strength to bring her a swift end. But he could only watch the blood drip from her chin before he pulled his hand back.

“Well, I don’t know either!” He huffed, raking two hands through his hair as the other two rested on his hips. With a heavy sigh, he responded as softly as the Curse King had ever dared. “I know what I should do.”

She didn’t say anything, and neither of them needed to. Sukuna knew she was a brilliant child. She was his offspring, after all. So she knew he should kill her, as opposed to giving her a gentle ending. They both knew he lacked gentleness with everyone.

Everyone but her. Why her?! I killed Asuka as soon as Besu no longer needed her milk. So why? Why, why, why?!

“I love you.”

Those words. Those damned words! Only she had ever uttered them. He’d never found a need for them from anyone else.

He whipped his hand around and bruised her cheek with the flat of his palm. She barely flinched and kept her back straight.

She knew not to say such things. She knew. Words had power. Those three little words already drove him to his knees as he rubbed a thumb over the growing welt, healing it in seconds.

“Love is weak.” He hissed, looking directly into her eyes. “I’ve told you that time and time again, Besu. You know that love is weak and…and…” He paused, waiting for the anger to pummel relentlessly into her before he broke. “And…and dammit, I love you too!” He clutched her against his chest. “I love you and I hate it!”

For those few moments he could only hold her and wish she were a newborn again, reveling in the fallen world with him. He wished she were not this sweet and precious 7-year-old holding his heart in the palm of her hands as she told him she didn’t want to be evil. He wished he did not feel this overwhelming urge to protect her until his dying breath. He wished he did not enjoy the relief that flooded him knowing she still breathed against his chest, trusting him with every inhale and exhale.

No. He wished he did not have a daughter at all. Because for the first time in history, Ryomen Sukuna had a weak spot.

And he knew it wouldn’t take long for the world to notice.

Continue Reading -> Ch. 2

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Don't Wormy About Me.

[First] Prev <–-> Next

[xxplastic-cubexx]

Marvel Meow (2021), Nao Fuji | Professor X and Magneto

Bonus:

[twolovelyberries]

don’t you want me baby?

[celtrist]

Would love for them to bring up languages at some point.

Angel: "shit they're speaking French. Smiles! Translate!"

Alastor: "I'm not sure which is more insulting; assuming I can fluently speak and understand French because I'm Creole, or that you think French and French-Creole are the same thing."

[spookberry]

I put them next to each other casually without much thought, but I've had to redraw them in this set up so many different times in the development of this project that I kinda ship them now??? like why are they always lookin at each other like that

[bonefall]

Did Brambleclaw actually disown the Three when the secret is revealed? I don't remember this happening (then again, it's been a while) but it does bug me how all three go "Poor brambleclaw :(( He was such a good dad to us and he has to learn we're not even his biokits :(((( poor guy" while simultaneously shitting on Leafpool and Squirrelflight despite them showing them more care and affection before AND after the reveal. If he does disown them, then.... WOW is the double standard real here.

In-canon? It's something you have to approximate. They don't seem to have a concept of ""disowning"" because blood relation is taken as such an insurmountable, FUNDAMENTAL fact of life. He doesn't write them out of his little kitty will and testament, but his actions ARE disowning.

It's as if the fact he is not their biological father is an automatic disowning. From the reveal onwards, he is immediately cold, distant, and the "betrayal" is mentioned often. The Three also explicitly don't blame him for his behavior, like it's just to be expected that he's Not Their Dad anymore.

Lionblaze in particular stares longingly at him several times, really missing him. And like... that's kinda what gets my goat so much

I do believe Brambleclaw is entitled to his feelings of betrayal. I believe Squilf was ultimately in the right to lie, actually, but he's still allowed to be upset and angry that she didn't trust him enough to tell him something so important. THAT SAID, YOU ARE NEVER ENTITLED TO TREAT OTHERS POORLY.

And that's what GETS me. He isn't upset that it was all revealed in such a painful and embarassing way when this could have been avoided, or that his lover struggled with this lie for so long without him, or that he feels he's lost his children. Squilf points it out in The Last Hope-- He's so ANGRY at Squilf that he will THROW HIS FAMILY AWAY

Lionblaze seems desperate to be his son again. Hollyleaf is gone for months, and Brambleclaw is still huffing about the secret when she comes back from the dead. Squilf is fawning in the hopes it makes him talk to her again. Doesn't matter. Brambleclaw Is Upsetti Spaghetti so the narrative will never examine his role in hurting this family he apparently loved so much.

(Narrative seems to understand full well that when Squilf lies for a good reason, that doesn't invalidate the hurt Brambleclaw felt... but when Brambleclaw is upset for a good reason, it actually DOES validate what he put her and his kids through)

In BB it is explicitly a disowning. He cuts them off as his children, and they reciprocate. BB!Lionblaze does so in a ball of fury, vowing that he has ONLY a mother.

[kami-kun1003]

TWST fic writers stop reducing Silver’s entire personality to just “sleepy boy who falls asleep all the time and is sooooo sleepy and tired and did i mention he sleeps a lot and also he loves his dad” challenge (impossible) (gone wrong)

[moeblob]

Look, I just think it's VERY funny and on brand that I thought of an entire premise of colorful characters for half the cast and immediately drew the only one void of color.

[kooldewd123]

honestly i think a big reason why i could absolutely never stay invested in tri is that the character designs are such a massive downgrade from the original series. the original designs are so incredibly iconic and so incredibly 90s that putting them into normal streetwear makes the series lose so much of its visual identity (and it definitely doesn't help that all the promotional art has them in identical school uniforms...). i genuinely can't recognize mimi without a ridiculous pink outfit or tk without a stupid-ass hat and i am honest to god not even joking about that. everyone just looks so forgettable here.

[aerithisms]

rotating the pub scene from 73 yards in my mind i think there is so much being said there about wales and welsh/english tension that is so interesting and is going so under discussed

[itsahotminuteinbetween]

I think I saw Vibrant Eyes by CG5 in there? I choose that. As a former DSMPer. I also like cg5. He's one of the top artists I listen to the most if not #1.

don't (tell them what you've done)

'vibrant eyes' by cg5

truman show au playlist

[eveningrainstorm]

Listen. Swansea is great; he's a well-written character and I like him a lot. But it's weird to me how much fan content I see about him that seems to make him out to be a lot nicer than he's actually shown to be in the game, and nowhere is this more obvious than in how people depict his relationship with Anya.

I've seen other people address the whole "If Anya had told Swansea what happened he'd have killed Jimmy" thing (she did. he didn't.) but there's a larger issue where people act like Swansea cared a lot more about Anya and was a lot closer with her than is actually the case in canon. And sure, the game leaves a lot of room for differing interpretations of things and imaginings of what could have happened offscreen, but I've seen so many people act like this idea of Swansea and Anya being close is something actually depicted in canon which. It very much is not.

Like okay. Let's talk about this. What does the game itself actually show us about Anya and Swansea's relationship?

Well, we don't see much of their dynamic before the crash aside from them just being coworkers with some level of familiarity with each other. They do stand together at the birthday party, and Anya playfully tells Curly that “Swansea really likes that cake. Don’t tell anyone,” to which Swansea only "hmph"s in response. From this we can gather that the two of them are friendly enough that Anya feels comfortable teasing him. Even so, she certainly isn't an exception to his characteristic harshness and brutal honesty — take an interaction later in the same scene, where a distressed Anya says she has no savings and asks if Pony Express can really fire them like this and Swansea, not cruelly but certainly bluntly, tells her that Pony Express going under has been a long time coming.

Of more importance, perhaps, is the game's first "2 months after the crash" segment, where we are first introduced to both of them — and where the game makes it quite apparent just how little Swansea respects Anya. The very first scene, in fact, features Swansea interrupting Anya and mocking her when she tries to explain why opening the cargo hold is a good idea. Later, when talking to Jimmy, Swansea calls Anya "our so-called nurse" and says that "it's in one ear and out the other" when talking about how she nearly got injured on the broken vent. And if you get the code scanner before talking to her Swansea will tell you to get her before opening the cargo hold but specifically with the justification that "even she couldn't make the situation worse with her presence." None of this is really uncharacteristic of Swansea, given he talks about Daisuke in much the same way, but it's not something that can just be swept under the rug — and yet, seemingly, everyone does. I hardly ever see anyone even mention Swansea insulting her here.

Of course, none of these scenes are where the idea that Swansea and Anya are particularly close comes from. No, that idea comes from a single scene: "3 months after", when Jimmy finds the two of them talking in the cockpit at night. We only see the end of this conversation, where Anya, apparently crying, is saying “No. I understand completely. If that’s how it has to be—”

The game never reveals exactly what the two of them were talking about; the two main theories I've seen are that Swansea was telling her that he was saving the cryopod for Daisuke or that she had told Swansea that Jimmy assaulted her and Swansea was saying she'd just have to put up with being around him for the time being. Personally, I think the latter is much more likely, but either way, the end result is the same: regardless of how much Swansea cares about Anya, her well-being is not his first priority.

We never see any follow-up on this conversation; if Anya and Swansea meet up behind Jimmy's back at any other point, we don't see it or hear it referenced. "4 months after" offers no interaction between the two of them at all, with Swansea busy dancing drunkenly while Anya, on the other side of the lounge, tells Jimmy about the extra medicine cabinet. "5 months after", Anya commits suicide in Medical while Swansea sits drunk and oblivious in front of Utility. The only reference to Anya and Swansea's conversation — and the closest we get to a confirmation of what it was about — comes after Daisuke's death, when Jimmy uses "telling Anya who knows what" as a sign of shady behavior from Swansea, and Swansea agrees that he did talk to Anya, "but it was her telling me all sorts of things instead, wasn't it?", the implication being that she told Swansea about Jimmy raping her.

This line is interesting. Swansea is referencing what Jimmy did to Anya here, and implicitly condemning him for it, and yet... well, Anya's already dead. Swansea isn't doing anything for her, really; he doesn't seem particularly emotional or angry about it, either. All it really is, when it comes down to it, is a spiteful jab at Jimmy — just Swansea, still angry over Daisuke's death, trying to get under Jimmy's skin.

We never see Swansea react to Anya's death. This isn't surprising; we aren't shown what happened when Daisuke got the door to Medical open, and afterwards Swansea is understandably preoccupied with Daisuke's fatal injuries. The first thing Swansea says about Anya after her death is the line about her telling him things. And, well... here's the problem.

That line? Is also the last thing Swansea says about Anya.

He never mentions her again. That one line, the one that doesn't even mention her death, the one that seems more about getting at Jimmy than mourning her — that's the last we hear of her from Swansea. And maybe he does care, maybe her death is just as much a catalyst for him trying to kill Jimmy as Daisuke's is. But he never says anything about her. He doesn't mention her in his death scene. Sure, that last portion of the game is largely filtered through Jimmy's mind, his disregard for Anya keeping her out of focus, but Swansea's death — a moment of sharp, simple clarity in which Swansea says all the things Jimmy doesn't want to hear — doesn't have that excuse. Swansea doesn't say a thing about her, because in the end, he's not focused on her either.

So that's what we have. They don't seem to be that close, before or after the crash, though they theoretically could be. Anya telling him specifically about what Jimmy did could be considered a notable show of trust, but then again she could have just wanted to tell someone and considered him her best option, and in any case if she was hoping for him to do anything about it, he didn't. And despite a large portion of the fandom believing it to be the case, there isn't actually anything indicating that he told Anya about the cryo pod — if anything, his assertion that it was Anya who told him things rather than the other way around is evidence against it. Technically, anything's possible — Swansea could have comforted Anya when she told him about Jimmy, he could have offered her the cryo pod, he could have grieved her just as much as Daisuke — but looking at what the game itself presents, the picture it paints is far different from the one typically seen in the fandom.

We don't know what's going on in Swansea's head. We don't know what happens in the time between the moments the game shows us. But what the game does show us is this: Swansea repeatedly is disrespectful and rude to or about Anya; Swansea doesn't do anything after she tells him what Jimmy did to her; Swansea doesn't have any real reaction to Anya's death. Does he care about her? Probably. I'd like to believe so. But she's not the one he decides to kill Jimmy over, she's not the one he has regrets for in his dying moments, she's not the one he's saving the cryo pod for.

Maybe Swansea cares about Anya, but she's not his first priority. And isn't that sort of the point? This is what the game has been showing us the whole time: Anya is no one's first priority, except her own.

[ahalliance]

how do i turn qantoine’s spontaneous marriage proposal to qetoiles into evidence of his early-days fear of qfrench drifing away and keeping secrets from one another

[good-beanswrites]

Hi Beans, I’m finally here. Diluting the sad with fun and very OOC.

I don’t really have a lot of ideas about what to write, but I remembered that I shared my idea of Es with the chivalrous Argenti's personality. So. AU in a vacuum (maybe an actors AU, maybe not), where Es thought that it would be funny to surprise the prisoners with the behavior of a knight(maybe Jackalope came up with that idea, maybe just strange sense of humor). What about the prisoners' reactions? (gallantry and compliments to plants attached) I think Mahiru would have joined the drive even if she didn’t really understand what happened. Fuuta would probably say "ugh, cringe" and that would make him a great target for the rest of the day.

YESS ahahaha, this is such a fun idea! I wrote a little scene with a few characters, but honestly it's hysterical picturing any of them trying to figure out how to react to this new and sparkling Es... I went for a version where not even Jackalope was prepared, but I can certainly see him suggesting something crazy like that to shake things up omg. Thank you so much for the request! The original meme was made by Mug, and I couldn't help but do a doodle myself ✨🌹

Amane was the first to witness it. She fled as soon as possible, finding sanctuary in the common room. The others were surprised as she stumbled in, face pale and eyes wide. Very little could frighten the girl; it was not a good sign.

Yuno moved to comfort her. “What’s wrong?” 

Her eyes went distant with the harrowing memory. “It’s Es,” was all she said. 

“Did they do something cruel?”

“No. Worse.” Amane shivered. “They were… nice.”

“They were what?”

Amane opened her mouth, but paused at the sound of heels clicking down the hallway. 

She stiffened. “If you need me you can find me in my cell.” She disappeared as quickly as she came. The others, who had been listening in on the odd conversation, gaped after her. They tried to piece together what had been so unsettling. Still, Es’ boots approached. 

All eyes landed on the doorway. 

And Es appeared. They looked very normal. Jackalope hopped up behind them. All shoulders sagged in relief. Es surveyed the room, slightly surprised to find everyone staring. 

Then, they smiled. 

It was a genuine, bright smile. The blue-gray of their eyes sparkled with a new light. Their lips parted to release a lighthearted laugh, unlike anything the prisoners had heard from them before.

They glided through the room, heels clicking lightly behind them until they came to Muu. The others stood frozen in place.

Es swept their cape aside with a grand flourish of their arm. They held both her hand and her gaze with warmth.

“Why, hello, Muu! You’re looking as positively lovely as always. Has this fine morning treated you well?”

“Um…” She looked to everyone, her face pleading for a little guidance. They were too busy looking eagerly to her in astonishment. “Uh… yes?”

“I’m pleased to hear it.” They reached behind themself. The room let out a soft gasp as they produced a pale pink flower from underneath their cape.

“For you, my dear.”

They didn’t wait for her to finish stuttering a confused ‘thank you’ before they turned to whoever was standing closest. Mahiru’s own face lit up as Es turned their glimmering gaze her way. Fuuta scoffed, muttering something about this being the lamest, cringiest thing he’d witnessed. Es pretended not to hear.

“Shiina Mahiru… a smile like yours is rare to find in a place like this. I thank you for it.” They pinched their chin and angled their head, thinking. “The meaning of your name has to do with light, correct?” 

She nodded, unable to keep the giddiness from her face. The others watched as Es moved their glove behind once more. Surely there was no room for any more flowers hidden there…

Surely they were all mistaken – Es flicked their wrist to present a small gathering of yellow blooms.

“Something radiant for someone as bright as you.”

She fell over herself with gratitude and giggles. She tried to tuck it into her hair, and Mikoto stepped over to help her. The pair raised their eyebrows at each other in disbelief. 

This time, Es retrieved their gift before turning to their next victim. A classic red rose. They caught a prisoner’s gaze. 

“Oh, no. Nope. No way.” Fuuta held up his hands, as if it could ward them off. “I don’t want your stupid-ass flowers.” 

“Now, now, I see you’re playing hard to get, as usual.” They brushed their thumb along the thorny stem. “You know, the rose has a very similar approach.”

Fuuta’s face now matched the flower’s color. “Wha–” He stumbled backward, then took off running to the door. “I don’t know what weird mind games you’re trying to pull, but I’m staying out of it!” 

Es only clicked their tongue gently when he disappeared. “Always making things difficult, that one. All part of his charm, I suppose.” 

They followed to the entrance. Turning briefly, they flashed their smile once more.“It was wonderful to see you all! I will await our next meeting eagerly.” 

With a fluttery wave, they vanished. 

Everyone’s attention shot to Jackalope, who had paused in the doorway. No one could understand his voice, but his little rabbit face seemed to say, Hey, don't look at me. I have no fucking idea.

[blitheringbongus]

New haircut! I really like this design for him but im not sure ill keep it, probably not, but its nice for doodles