#It's a giant fucking insect but he loves it it's like his daughter but it's a ROACH

[zedortoo]

I think about these two every minute of every hour every though I have leads back to "how can I make this about Mr Stick and Burton". Sometimes I think about them so much I feel ill my autism knows no bounds.

[chidoroki]

Hell’s Paradise EP5

aka: don’t doubt the women

Ah, so Sagiri really did fall ill to those butterflies. She looks real pretty with her hair down though.

There’s gotta be people who live on this island with all those sculptures everywhere. It’s probably that group of people from the OP.

“They’re like malformed gods. Both the island and monsters are like that. They’re terrifying, but they’re also stupid.” That’s one way of putting it.

Oh wow, that’s quite the slasher smile Gabimaru has when he’s talking about the elixir being real.

Can everyone stop doubting Sagiri?? I know she’s got her own issue going on in her head that are preventing her from acting accordingly but the girl is doing her best despite everything!

“You’re clearly not strong enough for this island. It’s beyond your limits as a woman.” Oh kindly fuck off Genji.

Oh! We finally get to see Tenza! And he’s.. trying to escape with Nurugai?  Not fond of the insane island huh?

Yeeaahh, when you encounter a creepy shipwreck graveyard like that, I think it’s best to turn around.

Wait, Nurugai was trying to help these samurai and in turn they killed all the other villagers? What douchebags.

Oh nooo! That Kisho dude became a flower pot. Damn, he was pretty.

Tenza is such a good boy for protecting Nurugai while he makes up his mind about life or death.

I love they we’re learning the backstories of so many characters already.. it’s just gonna hurt twice and much if and whenever they die, ahhaa..

“The currents in this area probably all flow back to the island.” Of course this reminds me of Mirage Island.

Okay, yeah… Tenza is real handsome. Hello sir. You’re gonna give Chobei some competition for me.

OHHH Nurugai is a girl, oops. Sorry sweetie. I literally said couple episodes ago she gave me Dororo vibes too.. no wonder.

“I’ve fallen for your chivalry. Once we make it back safely, let’s get married.” Girl saammee! Tenza is precious.

“The insects’ poison acted quickly because of the wound I gave you, right? So I thought I’d, um.. and I owe you a favor..” Aw Gabimaru, he does care.

That’s such a calm smile he’s sporting too.

“If I live as a daughter of Neck-Chopper Asa, I’m scorned by outsiders. If I live as a warrior of the Yamada Clan, I’m shunned by my family.” That’s certainly not an easy choice to live with.

I had a feeling Genji was gonna attack her but our girl was quick on her feet and anticipated it as well! Nice!

Oh shit, that giant criminal came outta nowhere (somehow??) and killed Genji with one hit. Sagiri, honey, you better run.

[near-dareis-mai]

HDM Episode 1x06 recap

Recap of His Dark Materials Episode 1x6: The Daemon Cages

So we start off with Lyra getting introduced to life in prison Bolvagar

Establishing shot to remind us that we’re in the north

so lyra decides to sit by herself so as not to let the gobblers/bolvangar guards know that her and roger are friends

of course they decide this via a not-at-all obvious tete a tete between their respective daemons

a girl comes to sit at Lyra’s table and anyone with the slightest sense of narrative framing should already know where this is going

Of course their dinner is interrupted by the Bolvangar doctor, accompanied by handmaid# 2, who asks for lyra’s table buddy to come with her

then we get a 10 second creepy shot of handmaid# 3 staring right at us, for no real reason, until she's interrupted by the doctor

which segues into the intro music

up next, we get another doctor, who tells lyra that he needs to take some kind of "measurements" from her

lyra figures out that he’s taking pictures of the dust around her through the special camera

which prompts the doctor to ask where she found out about dust

the doctor buys it, of course

then lyra, truly the child of lord "gives no fucks" asriel and marissa "gives negative fucks" coulter, straight up calls him out on cutting children from their daemons, which the doctor of course denies

then they get interrupted by the fire alarm, and handmaiden #4 (or just #3 again? I'm losing count) gives directions to go to the nearest fire exit in the most robotic voice ever

we then cut to a very prison-like locker room where all the children are getting into their jackets, while being watched over my more handmaids  

more handmaids are taking roll call outside

surprise snowball fight started by lyra and roger, because this show is really determined to drive that schoolyard/recess allegory in with an anvil 

lyra and roger escape while the snowball fight is happening

they run in a direction which roger thinks is the way out and i have Questions as to why he would ever think that

another dead-eyed handmaid is coming around the bend (seriously do they order them from handmaid-costco or something?) so lyra and roger have to hide

they realize that they're in the room where the children's severed daemons are kept, neatly filed away by name

but cage containing billy costa's daemon is empty, of course

then they find the room in which all the children who have undergone intercision are kept

lyra and roger rejoin the other children as they go back in, resolving to escape before lyra is chosen for intercision next

meanwhile, bolvangar has an avian visitor

then we get a way-too-creepily-normal breakroom scene with the two bolvangar doctors

doctor# 2 seems to be exhibiting signs of having an actual conscience

then we cut to "our" world, where will is listening to an interview of his father's on his laptop, and then tucks his mother into bed

of course they're being watched by Lord Boreal's goons

STAY AWAY FROM THEM! GET A JOB!!

meanwhile back in Lyra's world, She is here, and the children all know it as soon as they wake up

lyra has a talk with the other girls and they agree to hide her from mrs. coulter

the girls tell lyra to hide under the bed, and the rest of them pretend nothing is out of place when marisa comes in to inspect them

meanwhile, we check in with the Gyptians who are trying to break into Bolvangar and save the kidnapped children (seriously, how is this show managing to juggle so many locations and characters in 50 minutes??)

back in bolvangar, lyra is organizing the girls to break out

doctor# 1 is back, and asking for Lizzie Lyra this time

lyra says goodbye to her newfound friends

lyra tries to make a break for it, but is stopped when doctor# 2 catches her daemon

dr. conscience locks pan up in a cage

of course lyra raises hell trying to get him out

LYRA YOU’RE DOING AMAZING SWEETIE

but she’s eventually subdued

doctor# 1 primes the intercision machine

pay not attention to the incredibly sharp giant blade 

as a last resort, lyra screams out for mrs. coulter and well, speak of the devil

then, marisa sees who's in the cage

of course she stops the “experiment” and saves lyra

we cut to lyra recuperating in what are presumably marisa’s quarters in bolvangar

we finally get a chance for lyra and marisa to talk, and for some things to be explained

and it just kinda goes downhill from there, guys

lyra asks her mother why she is intercising children and marisa gives her the same half-gospel half-pseudo-science spiel that we've seen everyone else give

Lyra of course calls her out by asking the obvious question here... if intercision is such a positive thing, then why was Marisa so afraid of Lyra undergoing it?

marisa promises not to hurt lyra's friends and of course lyra claps back because billy is already dead

marisa then explains to lyra that this experiment is her calling in life, and she's not about to be stopped by petty things like a conscience

marisa asks for the alehtiometer, and lyra hands over the box that it's presumably in

lyra escapes while marisa and her daemon are busy fighting off the metal-insect-spider-tracking thingy

synchronized screaming... loving these mother daughter bonding sessions the show is giving us!

lyra pulls the fire alarm, and tells the other kids to get out while she keeps the bolvangar guards distracted

in a truly horrifying intermission scene, we learn that the dead-eyed handmaids have in fact had their daemons intercised from them

roger finds the intercised children and tries to get them to leave with him, while lyra blows up the intercision machine

the children try to escape but are waylaid by Dr. Conscience and his bolvangar goons

who are then waylaid by the Gyptians coming to the rescue

because prison break-in is a family fun activity, the whole gang is here

meanwhile, the Gyptians are obviously outnumbered by the Bolvangar guards 

why, perhaps a witch by the name of Serafina Pekkala?

I didn’t have to take this many screenshots of Serafina taking out the trash. I CHOSE to take this many screenshots of Serafina taking out the trash.

then she peaces back out as quickly as she came

look who's still alive

we don’t even have time to breathe after the battle, before lyra says goodbye to the Gyptians and the freed children, and continues with roger, scoresby and iorek to free lord asriel

serafina pekkala shows up on the balloon out of nowhere but i'm not complaining because i'm always happy to see madame pekkala on my screen

lee and serafina have a very Important and Foreshadowing talk about lyra

cut to cute scene of Lyra cuddling to sleep with Iorek

LEE ADMITS HE LOVES LYRA THE ADOPTION PAPERS ARE GOING THROUGH IMMEDIATELY

then serafina bounces, and we should have the nice, peaceful, hopeful ending THAT WE ALL DESERVE, but of course we don’t, because lee gets woken up in the middle of the night by some noises

between all the chaos of fighting off the cliff ghasts, lyra tumbles out of the balloon

the return of synchronized screaming, the only true Lyra Family Bonding Experience

and that’s what you missed on Glee

[allegra-writes]

(Not so good at) Sneaking around

Peter Parker x Stark!Reader

Teen & up

Warnings: None

The Request:

Hey! So we always see the Reader and Peter sneaking around Tony and he suddenly finds out when he catches them making out or doing it and freaks out and it's like "Run Peter, run!" But c'mon!! There's no way his daughter could hide something like that from him I mean he's Tony freaking Stark! So just once I would like to see a fic where the Reader and Peter think they are being so smart and sneaky but Tony knows all along and just let's them go on because it's so much fun for him to see them running around and freaking out and just nearly giving them heart attacks every time he 'almost catches them'. Also let's be honest, he would totally ship it!

“It’s happening! This time it’s definitely happening!” Tony got in the bed whispering excitedly.

“What is, Tony?”

“SpiderStark! Y/n and Peter!”

Pepper turned around to face her husband, exasperated and refusing to have to be awake at such an ungodly hour.

“You say that at least once a week…”

“Yes, I know, but this time it really is happening!” He insisted, excitedly, “I was walking down the hallway outside y/n's bedroom and I hear them yelling at each other and…”

“How is yelling at each other conducive to them getting together?”

“Because of what they were yelling! Hear me out…”

Tony was having a pretty shitty night, the coding for his newest AI refused to cooperate but he couldn’t figure out what was wrong with it. He was missing something. He needed another pair of eyes.

Peter was out with MJ, great kid, really, he would totally be on board with that relationship if it weren’t with the fact that it was getting in the way of his OTP.

Because that’s what they were, ever since princess Shuri had explained the terminology to him, he couldn’t help to think about his own princess and his protégée like that. Because, let’s be honest, no boy was ever going to be enough for his precious girl, but the one he loved like his own? The one whose genius rivaled his own, the one who was braver than Cap himself, the one with a heart more pure than Thor's? That one came pretty fucking close.

And he wasn’t blind, he had seen the little glances they stole when they thought no one was looking, the way that “personal space” lost any meaning when it came to them, those kids were crazy about each other.

Now if only those two morons would get along with the program …

Anyway, Peter was out with MJ and Harley had gone home for the weekend. His own precocious teenager was geeking out somewhere on the tower with Loki of all people (and don’t even ask him how the bastard was still alive, Thor himself had just shrugged and welcomed him back), but he was going to have to interrupt them -such a pity - to ask her for help.

“If you’re looking for your firstborn, she just left for her bedchambers” Loki said without even raising his eyes from the book he was reading, sprawled on the sofa of the main living room.

“So early on a weekend night? You managed to bore her that much?”

Loki rose an eyebrow in obvious contempt.

“If you must know, she was visibly distressed after the spider-brat showed up. So much that so that she was of no use to any of our respective investigations so she decided to call it a night.”

“Distressed? Peter Distressed her?”

Loki scoffed,

“That little insect is not as harmless as you seem to believe…”

Tony rolled his eyes.

“Whatever, Snivellus. I’m gonna find her, she’s probably still awake.”

You were awake alright. Yours and Peter’s voices could be heard from the hallway. Frowning, Tony got closer to the room.

“… and where do you get off of telling me what to do or who to talk to?!” distressed, his ass, you sounded furious. “You are not my father, you are not my brother, you are no one!” Jeez, kid, harsh much? “You are just my friend and-!”

“That’s bullshit, y/n! That’s so much bullshit and you know it!” Tony didn’t think he had even heard Peter swear before, but he would have been the first to admit the tension between you two was bound to explode sooner or later. “The way we touch? The way you look at me? The whole way we just… are with each other, that’s not how friends are supposed to be! You wear my freaking t-shirts to bed, for God’s sake! Just admit it, baby, we haven’t been just friends in a long time.” He finished, voice full of venom.

Your dad froze outside your door. He felt the need to intervene, to put a stop to the argument before it could escalate even more and both his kids said things they would regret. But on the other hand, he had no idea what to do or how to break up that fight. Teenagers were a scary breed, especially female ones…

Especially Stark ones.

There was a loud crash against the door.

“What the Hell, y/n? You can’t just throw a vase at me! You could have hurt me!!”

His daughter’s response must have been in a lower voice because he couldn’t hear it. Tony got closer to the door trying to listen but the voices sounded muffled now, softer.

There was another dull thud on the door, as if something heavier had hit it, and then a stifled moan, and Tony left hurriedly, before hearing something he really, truly didn’t want to hear…

“… Wow”

“I know, right?” Tony sounded still amazed. Pepper, good pragmatic Pepper, wasn’t as enthusiastic.

“ And you are not bothered at all by the fact that your oldest daughter is currently making out, maybe even more, with a boy in her bedroom?” She inquired, skeptical.

��Honey they are eighteen, and they are smart. They can be a lot of things, but irresponsible is not one of them. Besides,” Tony left out a yawn “Peter is a complete gentleman.”

“It’s not him I’m worried about” Pepper muttered, but Tony’s eyes were already closed.

…

Tony Stark started to suspect Peter Parker wasn’t as much of a gentleman as previously thought a couple days later, when he caught you trying to sneak out of the med bay.

“I can’t believe you licked the alien thing” Bruce was so done as he and your father turned the corner.

“It worked! It was DNA activated!” Tony countered.

“But you didn’t know that at the time! Oh, hi y/n…”

You stood there like a deer in the headlights, cursing silently: it was just your luck to crash into them when you were almost on the clear. You had been so close, but the tell tale glow of the Starkderm -Your father’s high tech take on the transparent medical dressing, designed to aid in healing and completely camouflage wounds, making them indistinguishable from the patients skin once activated- on your neck, let you know your little mission had failed.

“Sweetie, are you ok? Did you get hurt?” Bruce’s tone was anxious and the guilt Tugged at your heart for making him worry. After all they had been through, they didn’t deserve it.

“You should let Bruce take a look at that, neck injuries are a serious matter, kid”

Had you been in a better mental state you would have noticed the amused glint in your father’s eye that belied his concern; but as it was, high on adrenaline and embarrassment, you didn’t see it.

“NO! I mean… n- no, it’s nothing, I mean -just a stiff neck.” You stammered, “That’s it, just a stiff neck. I thought maybe the analgesics in the Starkderms might help. I- I gotta go now. Bye!”

You practically ran out of the room, leaving behind a bewildered Bruce… and a clacking Tony.

“Oh my God!” your father was literally doubled up with laughter, “Did you see her face? She was so red she could’ve given the old mark II a ran for it’s money!”

“I don’t understand, the Starkderms don’t work on soft tissue sprains…”

“Oh Banner, you pure, innocent jolly green giant…” Tony wiped a tear from the corner of his eye and put a hand on his friend's shoulder -well, he tried for the shoulder, but the forearm was as high as he could reach- “It was a hickey. She was trying to cover a hickey”

Banner was even more confused,

“A hickey? But how? who..?”

Tony just raised an eyebrow.

“… No, no way!”

“Yes way.”

“Get out! Finally?”

“Yes, my friend,” Your dad patted Bruce’s (lower) back “Fucking finally!”

…

“I think your father knows”

Tony froze on his tracks right outside the kitchen as soon as he heard Peter and you talking about him.

“What? Why would you say that?” You sounded slightly alarmed, but not enough, in his opinion. Surely he was more intimidating than that, he was Tony fucking Stark after all.

“Well, you know since my aunt and I moved to the tower we have been doing our grocery shopping ourselves…”

“Yeah, I know” Tony could practically hear your eye roll, he knew you shared his opinion on the ridiculous Parker pride that meant that, despite May and Peter finally accepting to move in with the rest of the team into the new Avengers Tower, they still refused any and all financial help from Tony; never mind the fact that your father paid for everything for the other avengers.

“Well, last night after patrol I was tired and I forgot May had asked me to go to the store,” Peter sounded like he was blushing. Tony hadn't even know that was possible. “so I asked Friday, right? And then, when the groceries arrived…” Peter ended his explanation with an unintelligible mumble.

“What? I’m sorry Pete, I didn’t quite catch that last part” Your mirthful tone let your father know that Peter was blushing even harder. Tony had to stifle a laugh, he knew exactly what had been in those groceries…

“Condoms, ok?” Peter finally blurted out, “There was a box of condoms in one of the bags that I definitely didn’t asked for!”

“And you think that, what? That my father did it?” You said incredulously “They probably just mixed your order with someone else’s. Peter do you seriously think my father bought us condoms?”

“… Well, when you put it like that, it does sound a little ridiculous…”

You scoffed,

“You think? Besides,” You added, “we would know if my dad knew, he’s not exactly subtle, you know. Do I need to remind you the Carter Baizen incident?”

“The what?”

“You seriously don’t know?” You sounded beyond incredulous and we’ll into stunned territory now. “It was everywhere. My dad saw him trying to put his hand underneath my skirt once, while we were dating, and he blasted his car…”

“That was true? I thought the tabloids had made that up!”

“They didn’t. So, you see there’s no way we wouldn’t know if Tony –“

“Hey, did someone say Carter Baizen?” Your father interrupted, choosing that moment to finally walk into the kitchen and making you and Peter jump three feet apart “Because I swear, if that bastard is lurking around again…”

“Hey dad! No, ew that would be super creepy. He’s like, super old now…”

“Hello my heart.” He came next to you and kissed your head. “You better be telling the truth, because if I ever see him near you again, I will disintegrate him.” He then looked Peter dead in the eyes over your shoulder as he said, “Nobody puts their hands on my baby girl and gets to keep them”

Peter swallowed hard. Tony smirked. Oh yeah, he was still intimidating af.

…

“Friday, where’s my oldest daughter?” Tony asked certain Saturday evening, not having seen you in the whole week, thanks to the mission your team had been on.

“She’s in her bedroom on the penthouse, boss”

“Really? She’s not, you know, on the third floor, west side of the tower?”

“Negative, boss, she’s not at the Parkers’.” Friday sounded amused, “However, Peter is in her room with her.”

“Figures.” Your dad grumbled. But then an impish little smile appeared on his face: It was time to have a little fun messing with his favorite pair of jumpy teenagers.

As he neared your room, he was able to hear music, whooping, laughter and… Rihanna?

… So gonna let the rain pour,

I’ll be all you need and more…

“Sweetheart, can I come in?” Tony knocked on your door, and the laughs immediately stopped.

“Just a second!”

A lot of shuffling, the thud of something heavy hitting the floor and a few muffled curses reached his ears. A minute latter, a very flushed You opened the door.

“Hi, dad!”

“Hi, baby” He stepped past you into the room and took a look around: The bed was made (thank God) but there were a few pillows knocked off it, one of Peter’s sneakers was visible underneath the vanity and a pair of pink my little pony boxer shorts were laying on the carpet. Your dad poked them with his shoe.

“Nice shorts,” He commented casually, “I thought you had gotten over rainbow colored horses when you were six…”

“Stranger Things made them cool again” you hurried to explain, “Well, not cool cool, they’ll obviously never be cool, but like, cool amongst nerds. It’s more like a nostalgia thing… and who wants to be cool anyway, am I right? Cuz-…”

“Sweetheart, you’re rambling” Tony pointed out and you instantly shut up. “I just wanted to ask you and Peter if you wanted Italian for dinner. Where is he, by the way? Friday told me he was with you…”

“That traitor!” You murmured under your breath.

“What was that, my heart?”

“Nothing, dad” You replied, proud of how even your voice was despite of your heart trying to leap out of your body. “You just missed him, he left like two minutes ago to take a call from May. But I’m sure Italian’s great, he loves it.”

Tony wouldn’t admit it, but he was kinda proud too, you were definitely getting better at lying. As a father it was a scary thought but he knew it was a valuable skill in your shared line of work.

The only thing was, I wasn’t nearly as fun to mess with you if you didn’t fumble and stuttered your way out of the situation.

“Right, then, I’ll go tell Pepper to order while Mor and I set the table. You’re on dish washing duty tonight.”

“Sure, no problem dad.” If Tony hadn’t already known you were trying to hide something, that right there would have tip him off: You never, ever in your life had done the dishes without complaining.

Yeah, you were getting better at lying but there was still a long way to go.

As soon as your dad left, Peter got out of the ensuite, stark naked and arms full of clothes.

“Is he gone?”

“Really, Peter? Really?” You deadpanned, “first you come out here naked and then you decide to ask if my father is gone?”

God, he was so lucky he was pretty.

He chose to ignore your sarcasm.

“And he didn’t suspect anything?”

“He didn’t. Apparently My Little Pony is girly enough for these to belong to me” You snickered, holding his underwear up. He took them, blushing and mumbling something about a gag gift from Ned. Once he had them and his jeans on, he flopped down on the bed, rubbing his face with his hands.

“I knew the striptease was a bad idea!”

You laughed harder at that,

“You said you had moves! I had to see them!”

He peered at you through his fingers.

“Was I any good at it, at least?” he asked shyly but you could see the beginnings of a smile on his bitten red lips.

“Babe, you are the best Rihanna ever,” You said truthfully, “ I’m even tempted to put you on a full on French maid costume. Fishnets and everything.”

You leaned down on the bed to kiss him, but he used his super speed to flip you over so you were one your back and he the one above you.

“God, you are so weird!” He declared, but there was nothing but adoration in his eyes.

“Hey! Don’t kink shame me!” You batted half-heartedly at his chest.

The rest of your complaint was swallowed by his lips.

…

“Daddy! Daddy!” As soon as Tony put a foot inside the penthouse he got tackled by a little dark haired meteor.

“Maguna! Hello baby!” he grunted as he picked the littlest of his troublemakers up. He was getting old, and his little squirt was getting big. He started to walk the both of them towards the kitchen. “How was your day out with your big sis? You girls did something fun?”

“We did!”

Tony scowled in mock outrage,

“How dare you? I specifically forbade you two to have fun without me!” he growled to a giggling Morgan “There can be no fun if I’m not there, I told you!”

“We did! We had fun!” She confirmed delighted. She was obviously not intimidated in the slightest, and Tony was starting to resign himself to the fate of not being feared at all by his daughters.

“What did my girls do? If it wasn’t too fun, I shall allow it…”

“She and Peter took me to the Queen’s zoo!” She replied excitedly, “There were Coyotes! And there were mountain lions and sea lions! And we saw the sea lions have lunch! And then we had lunch. Oh and I got to feed a baby goat!”

“Really? You did all that? In just one day?!”

“Yes!” She confirmed, “And then y/n said she whished she could keep one of the sea lions as a pet, a little one, like a sea puppy! And I said yes, but Peter said he couldn’t let us steal a sea lion!” Morgan frowned, indignant. She looked so adorable that Tony was having a hard time trying to hide his smile.

“Did he now? The nerve on him!” He played along.

“I know! And then y/n pouted, and I made the puppy dog eyes…”

“The what now?”

Morgan sighed,

“The puppy dog eyes,” She explained, tiredly, as if she believed her father to be exceedingly slow, “It’s when I make my eyes real big and sad. Y/n taught me”

Tony rolled his eyes, unsurprised and unimpressed by that little piece of information.

“Anyway, she was pouting and I was making the puppy dog eyes, so Peter said he would be our sea lion instead. And he was making like this” Morgan started flapping her hands and barking in a rather hilarious impression of a sea lion. This time Tony couldn’t stop himself from cracking up, but far from offended, Morgan smiled, pleased with herself.

Once they reached the kitchen, he placed her down on the counter and started gathering the ingredients for a couple PB&Js while Morgan continued the retelling of her latest adventures.

“… And then, at the Aviary, I saw y/n and Peter kiss! But they told me not to tell you, cause it’s a secret…”

“They didn’t try and bribe you into keeping it?” Tony asked amused, without stopping to spread peanut butter on a slice of breath.

“Yeah, they did. They bought me ice cream and a sea lion plushie…”

Tony turned to face his daughter.

“Then why are you telling me?”

Morgan gave him a look far sinister than any seven year old should be capable of,

“Because they would only let me have two scoops…”

Tony had created a monster.

“Wow. We are so lucky you don’t know who Spider-Man is!” Tony commented, thinking just how much it might cost them for Morgan to keep a secret like that.

“But I do know Spider-Man! He’s my friend!” Morgan replied, having totally misunderstood her dad, “And whenever you are away on a mission, he’s the one that comes to check for monsters in my closet when I can’t sleep at night…”

“Of course he does” How was Tony ever supposed to hate her daughter’s boyfriend, when he was Peter Parker?

…

“Harley, what happened?” Tony demanded catching up with the boy on the hallway of the Medical Research and Treatment wing of the tower. Otherwise known as the medbay.

“Tony! It was that fucking Goblin again. He had some kind of gas he tried to douse on y/n. Peter took the hit for her.” The blond boy answered, falling into step beside Tony toward the infirmary, were Peter was being tended to by both Banner and Strange.

“I told you a thousand times, kid: That’s Mr. Stark, or boss for you. I’m your superior, show some respect, this is supposed to be a mission report.”

“Sorry, sir” Harley continued, sounding anything but, “We subdued the Red Goblin successfully and now he’s under custody of S.W.O.R.D. I believe they are presently trying to separate the symbiote from it’s host. Stature and Ironheart stayed behind to handle the clean up and I brought Spidey here.”

“Really? Y/n didn’t want to bring him in herself?”

Harley smirked,

“She knows I’m faster.”

“That I can’t argue with” Tony admitted, well aware of Harley’s disregard for safety rules in favor of speed. And the thrill of it, of course. “Do we know something about the substance that lunatic hit Peter with?”

“It was a poison, fast acting and apparently lethal on normal humans. On Pete's unusual metabolism, however, the effects are… pretty interesting.”

Tony narrowed his eyes in suspicion,

“How interesting exactly?”

Harley’s smirk intensified,

“Why don’t you see for yourself, boss?” He motioned at the door with his head and Tony’s weariness grew: if Harley found it amusing, chances were it wasn’t anything good.

“Mister Staaaaaaark!” Peter’s cheery voice slurred loudly when Tony wasn’t even halfway through the door. He turned to Harley.

“He is high?!”

Harley didn’t even tried to hide his laughter.

“As a kite!”

Tony was convinced that one this days, one of his kids was going to make him roll his eyes so hard, that they were going to get permanently stuck facing the back of his head.

“Nooo, don’t go mister Staark”

“Tony, get in here!” admonished Bruce, who was trying to push back into the stretcher, as gently as possible, the loopy teen with the super strength currently trying to make his way to his mentor.

“Woah, careful there, champ!” Tony guided a squirming Peter to lay back down, “What would y/n say if she saw you trying to escape like this?”

Tony never thought a person could make the exact same face of the heart eyes emoji. He was wrong.

“Y/n! She’s soo gorg- so gurgeu- so… she’s so pretty, and strong and braaave…” Peter gushed, “And I’m so so lucky, cuzz she’s my girl- my girlfriend… how did I get so lucky, mister Staark?” He looked at Tony as if he was just realizing who he was talking to- Which was probably exactly what was happening- and seemed suddenly petrified.

“Oh no! No mister Staark, you can’t know she’s my girlfriend or you’ll kill me! Kill meeee!!”

“Relax, kid. I’m not telling mister Stark anything.” Tony tried to calm the easily distracted boy the best way he could think of. And it worked. Kind of.

“Thank you mister Staark. You did sooo much for me! You made my suits and you took us in and- and… and y/n! You made y/n!! Did you make her in your lab too? Because she’s SOOOOOO perfect!

“Actually I did make her in my old lab,” Tony chuckled “Just not in the way you’re thinking”

“Dude! TMI!!” Harley quipped from the doorway.

“Seriously, Stark, don’t give the boy any ideas, I already walked into him and your heiress making out in the Sanctum enough times” Strange chipped in, holding up a syringe with a bright green liquid Tony assumed to be the antidote.

“What were they even doing in the Sanctum?”

“Besides making out? I’ve no idea.” Was Strange's dispassionate reply.

Peter was still spouting praise over y/n,

“She’s so niiice and sooo good and so brill- so smart!”

Strange came closer with the needle but Peter would have none of it.

“No! No needless! No pricking!” He started to struggle against Banner's hold and he truly did not want to hurt the confused kid.

“Tony, distract him!” He demanded.

“Underoos, what was that about my daughter?”

Peter’s face immediately lit up,

“She’s amazing, she smells so nice and her hair is soooo soft, like a princess!! But like, a- a badass princess… like Leia!” Peter turned suddenly solemn, “Miiister Staark, do you think she likes me? Like, like like me?”

Tony smiled,

“Well, considering she is your girlfriend, I would expect so…”

“SHE’S MY WHAT?”

Strange used the moment of distraction to pretty much stab the syringe into Peter’s thigh. He looked so betrayed that Tony had the unreasonable impulse of hitting the wizard right on his smug face, even though he knew the doctor was only doing his job. Or one of them, at least.

“This should help you expel the toxin faster. You might feel drowsy and lethargic so I strongly recommend you to lay here, take a nap, and when you wake up you should be back to normal,” Strange hesitated, “Or at least, whatever is considered normal for a hormonal adolescent boy with spider DNA… Seriously Stark, how do you even find them?”

Tony shrugged,

“You should see the one with the Prym particles irradiated heart”

Stephen Strange seriously hoped the billionaire was kidding.

“Right. If that’s all, I will be going now. Give me a call when the spider kid wakes up” He added to Bruce, “Even if you don’t consider it necessary, I would like to check on his evolution.”

“Will do, doctor” Banner gave him a reassuring smile. Doctor Strange could be cold, even a downright bastard sometimes, but he had a soft spot for the youngest Avengers, and that placed him firmly in the 'friends' category according to the oldest ones. He disappeared through one of his portals, that closed after him in a shower of sparks.

“Wow, that’s so cool!”

Tony sighed and was about to turn to go to Peter again, but to his everyone’s surprise, Harley beat him to it.

“Ok, Pete, that’s enough excitement for one afternoon”

“No, no, I want…” Peter ended his sentence in an unintelligible mumble but it was clear he was trying to sit up. Harley helped him to hold himself upright.

“That ok, Pete?”

“Kid, he’s not listening, he fell asleep” pointed out Tony.

“Ok, then” Harley guided Peter’s back to lay against the stretcher again, while Tony placed his legs in a more comfortable position. Once they were done, he raised a questioning eyebrow at Harley. The blond shrugged,

“What? I might not take a lot of things seriously, but he’s my friend…”

Bruce hummed unconvinced.

“You caught all that on video, didn’t you?” Tony correctly assumed. Harley gave him a dazzling smile in return.

“Every single glorious second of it, I even got some recordings of the flight back here. If you let me have some of the security footage of this room, we could turn it into a short”

Tony winked,

“You got yourself a deal!”

“God I’m so sorry Vine does not longer exists” Harley lamented, “This material is gold! Gold I tell you!”

“Well, I can always buy the company and bring it back…” Tony suggested, following the kid out. Bruce was left alone with the unconscious Peter, wondering what exactly was going to be awaiting the unsuspecting kid on the internet once he woke up.

“Wakey wakey, spider beauty…”

Peter really didn’t want to wake up, he had the feeling he was going to have the hangover of a lifetime once he did, but that little voiced lured him into consciousness like, well, like a spider lures flies into it’s web.

“Come on, Pete, open those pretty eyes for me…”

“Whu? Oh, oh hey babe…” Peter drowsily greeted you, managing to open one eye. You chuckled, relieved, and Peter thought that that right there was the most beautiful sound in the world. Facing the hangover to kill all hangovers was worth it, just to hear that sound again. He opened both eyes and took you in: You looked a little gritty, and exhausted from the last fight, but even so, you were still as breathtaking as the first time he had seen you, all those years ago.

“Hello, princess” He sounded much more alert now, to your infinite relief.

“Hey, there, handsome” you smiled at him and Peter felt his heart skip a beat. He vaguely wondered if it would always feel like this, or if he was going to get used someday to the idea of you being his. He seriously doubted that last one. “Is that my new nickname?” You asked.

“Yeah, yes it is. Because you are a princess. A badass princess, like Leia.” As soon as the words left his mouth, he was hit by the memory of everything that had happened earlier in that very same room. Peter groaned and covered his face with his hands, something he seemed to do every time he felt embarrassed, which lately was a very often.

“Babe, don’t hate me” He grumbled from behind the shelter of his hands, “But I might have told your father about us…”

Your laugh took him by surprise.

“Yeah, I know, he just gave me the “what are your intentions towards my protégée” speech”

Of all the reactions Peter had prepared himself for, that wasn’t one of them.

“Wait, so he isn’t mad?”

You snorted,

“I know! I was surprised too, but according to him, we won him a lot of money!”

“What do you mean?” Peter was sure the drug hadn’t left his system completely, cause you weren’t making any sense.

“Apparently there was a bet going on. He had a lot of money on “Secretly been together all along, just didn’t know it/refused to acknowledge it”” You explained, “and it seems Bucky made a lot with “Angrily confessed their feelings for each other in the middle of a fight” too”

Peter felt his jaw hit the floor,

“I think I need to lay down…”

“Babe, you are laying down” you pointed out.

“Well, then maybe I need to lay down next to you” He replied cheekily. You feigned an annoyed sigh.

“Fine, scoot over” You climbed on the narrow stretcher with him. The both of you barely fitted, laying side by side, but Peter wrapped his arm around your waist to stop you from slipping out. And if he held you a little closer to his body than was strictly necessary, well, you were openly, officially, his girlfriend now. He was allowed to touch you, to kiss you, to stake a little claim on you in front of everyone, here and there.

He laced the fingers of his other hand with yours, and held your joined hands up in the air in front of the both of you, testing the feeling of freedom, of not having to hide anymore, even if it was just of the infirmary security cameras. He couldn’t help the goofy smile he knew he must have been sporting on his face.

You stayed like that, admiring the way your hands looked together, before you had to ask,

“What are you thinking about?”

Peter seemed to gather his thoughts for a moment.

“You held my hand like this” He observed, pensive, “Back on Titan, I mean. After the snap, as we…” He trailed off, but you knew exactly what was left unsaid: As we turned to dust. As we died.

“And I know you must have felt it happening too, cause I remember I felt your fingers starting to crumble underneath my own and-“ His voiced cracked and he had to stop and take a few stabilizing breaths before he could go on. When he did, it was with tears on his eyes as he said, “And I know you were probably terrified, too, but you still held my hand and tried to comfort me. Because I was scared. Because I needed you. And then, when we came back…”

“We were still holding hands” You finished for him.

“Yeah” He murmured, quietly, amazed. He turned on his side, removing his arm from your waist, and placing that elbow on the thin mattress, supporting his head on his hand, to face you.

“I never told you this,” He confessed, “But I remember not wanting to let go” He squeezed your still joined hands, “I still never want to let go”

“Then don’t” You whispered, closing the distance between you, kissing his soft lips gently, trying to convey in that kiss all the adoration, devotion and longing you felt for him. He let go of your hand, only to softly touch your face, with heartbreaking tenderness, as he delicately bit your bottom lip in a silent request for permission. The helpless little moan that escaped your throat was all he needed to deepen the kiss, lips devouring yours, tongue worshipping every corner of the inside of your mouth, hands pulling you closer and closer, making your body come alive beneath his fingertips.

He rolled into his back, pulling you on top of him, one hand tangled in your hair, the other one trailing dangerously lower and lower on your back, seeking the skin under the waist line of your jeans, kiss getting quickly out of control.

When the need for air finally won, and you had to break the kiss, smiling at Peter’s attempt of following your lips with his, you knew. You knew, as certainly as you knew your own name, inexorably and inescapable like gravity. The words left your mouth in a breathless whisper, but as clear as the feeling behind them:

“I love you, Peter Parker.”

Peter could only gaze at you in awe, slack jawed and heart hammering so hard inside his chest you could feel it on your own. You saw the raw emotion in his eyes and knew he was about to say it back.

“That’s all very good but I think it’s about time Pete an I have a certain conversation”

The sound of your father’s voice had you both falling down of the stretcher in your haste to get away from each other.

“Dad! We were just-…”

“Mr. Stark! This isn’t what you think it is!”

Tony looked down on you at your sprawled positions on the med bay floor and scoffed.

“I think I know exactly what this is” He declared, pulling Peter up by back of the collar of his suit, “which is why I think it’s way overdue that Peter here, and I, talk about the birds and the bees…”

“Dad, no!”

“Dad, yes. Tell me, Peter, do you still have the box of condoms I sent you?” Tony left the infirmary dragging a tomato red Peter with him, and you just knew you were never going to get laid again.

Because if there ever was something worse than your father threatening your boyfriend to defend your virtue, it was your father giving your boyfriend sex advice.

The end.

So, this was too long to post in one go, I guess this prompt got outta hand. Or my characters got a little... Handsy.

[ionova]

( emily browning, 27, cis female, she/her ) Have you seen MIRA IONOVA around ? I hear they’re an BALLET INSTRUCTOR AT SWAG who can sometimes be MELANCHOLY & DYSFUNCTIONAL But I also heard they can be EMPATHETIC & PERCEPTIVE if you catch them on a good day. They’re usually hanging around LINCOLN PARK ZOO in their spare time. I sure hope they’re alright ! ( crow, she/they, 26yo, gmt-5) 

— BASICS

Full Name: Mira Ionova Nickname(s): Mir Age: 27 Sexual Orientation: Bisexual Religion: Lapsed Catholic Birth Place: A village with a name she can’t remember  Languages: English, Russian, Basque, Catalan Alignment: Chaotic Good

— PHYSICAL

Face claim: Emily Browning Eye Color: Brown Hair Color: Brown Height: 5′ Distinguishing Features/Marks: freckles; a snake tattoo on the back of her arm, covered up with flowers; a scar on her knee, ankle; scar on her neck

— PERSONALITY

Habits: flexing her ankle and foot when thinking; absentmindedly drawing swirls on napkins; staring off into space; going home, making a simple dinner, and soaking in a bath; stretching before bed & in the morning Likes: dance, long baths, film, sketching, insects, costume design, the unusual & odd, making complicated drinks, baroque art, when her students perfect a step, strong coffee & tea Dislikes: artificial sweets, rain, strong scents, sleeping, brain fog, the cold, loud noises, cruelty Strengths:  marksmanship, fist-fighting Weaknesses: chronic pain, reckless Traits: thoughtful, sociable, determined, loyal, melancholy, closed-off, wary, dysfunctional, caring

— BACKGROUND [TW DEATH, TW MURDER, TW VOMITING, TW CHILD ABUSE]

Mira barely remembers who she was before she became the daughter of Claudia Ionova. In Spain, she had another name, another life but that might have just been a dream.

She was seven when her mother died. Claudia adopted her, called her Mira. What Mira wanted was a family, and what she got was a pair of ribboned shoes and a gun. Her new mother doted on her when she did well, but was cruel when she slipped on the floor, and when she couldn’t shoot straight, her hand shaking. To be Ionova was to be perfect, and to not be perfect was to be dead.

The first time she killed someone, Mira threw up on the floor and scratched the skin from her hands. “It gets easier,” Claudia said, but it didn’t. To be Ionova means to be an assassin means to live your life in the service of the Zmeya. Mira never had a choice.

When she was fifteen, she entered the New York Academy of Ballet. It was her chance to leave the world she’d never been meant for, to make some friends who didn’t know how to kill a moving target. But she still felt isolated, alone. At nineteen she suffered a fall, sustaining injuries to her left leg and ankle - she didn’t really get back up after that. After physical therapy, she was back to what most people thought of as normal, but her leg protested whenever she lifted it into a passé, and in ciseaux, she wasn’t half as graceful.

Two years later, Claudia was assassinated. She was the one to find her mother. A friend helped her escape the ensuing chaos that erupted in Zmeya ranks when she was targeted, shuffling her to different states, before dropping her in New Mexico. She adapted, taking different jobs bartending and serving, before going back to school for her bachelors in Theater Arts.

She’d finally settled down when he returned five years later and told her, “You made me a promise.” and that gun was still in the back of her closet, locked in a safe with a combination she didn’t know. His gambling caused problems with the wrong crowd. It was $50,000 on the line, and the head of one of this gang’s most important members, but somehow it didn’t feel like it was worth the risk of her life. But she owed a debt.

A year after entering a relationship with her target, she was caught when finally she finally found out where the money was held and was taken captive, where she met Konstantin Vasile. He managed to get out. She didn’t.

She refused to sell out her friend, and they decided that they wouldn’t kill her. Not if she killed Konstantin. Her life for his - it should be an easy trade, they told her. After all, he’d left her behind.

Now she’s in Chicago, under someone else’s thumb. And she wants out.

— WANTED CONNECTIONS

Friends. Any kind of friends, really, from people Mira interacts on a daily basis with to casual acquaintances. She’s able to carry a conversation, but isn’t necessarily a chatterbox. It would be hard to get close to her on an emotional level, but she needs people to keep her company when drinking, visiting art museums, the zoo, and seeing movies.

Students. People she teaches in more intermediate classes, and any parents with children who she teaches. She can seem harsh sometimes, but only because of how important precision is in dance, and otherwise she maintains a good relationship with those she instructs.

Enemies. These will likely be people she’s known in the past, but I’m open to anything here. There’s a strong possibility of her not liking certain people, or at least not trusting them, and we love a little friction, don’t we?

Love interests. I have no concrete ideas for this area, but it’d be fun to have, whether they’re as fucked up as she is, or someone who’s functional (and whose life she can fuck up.)

Other: People she knew from back in New Mexico, people from NYC, those familiar with the Zmeya crime family, people who enjoy the fine taste of theater popcorn, friendly giant spiders

[dafukdidiwatch]

The Happening

When titles like “The Event” were already taken.

tw: will mention different types of suicides, will start/end paragraph with tw

So....that happened. Ha, I’m hilarious.

I don’t know if this is cheating or not, but for a while I would watch reviews of movies I haven’t seen or read the wikipedia plot for movies I don’t care to see to get the story without actually seeing the film. And The Happening just happened to be one of them. So I knew from the beginning what the twist was.

But what I forgotten from those reviews was how dead and robotic the actors where.

Overview: In New York City and all over the Northeast of the U.S, people are performing mass suicide in a daze. Fearful for his family, high school teacher Elliot flees with his wife, friend, and friend’s child to avoid the catastrophe, unaware that the danger is all around them.

Let’s get the elephant in the review out of the way first otherwise it’s gonna be on my mind all the time.

Plants did it. I knew that the Plants did it. It was the only thing that I actually retained from my review watching habit. And you know what, when I heard it I knew it was going to be stupid. They came up with some psudo-science bullshit about plant pheramones being so so strong that it affects the self-preservation part of our brains to make us want to kill ourselves. Like, this is just so easy to pick apart with basic scientific and logic.

The thing is that I don’t care.

I’ve seen bad anime with worse logical reasoning for having the plot happen. Like evil virus that only affect men so there’s like 10 guys left on the planet filled with women. Or waking up on an island via LOST style and having to fight off against giant insects. So I get it. The reasoning of “who did it” or “how did this happened” doesn’t really matter in the context of the movie. The plant thing is dumb, but it is something that I can understand people ignoring it to just enjoy the movie.

The Problem is that the rest of the movie is boring as shit.

tw The beginning of the film, Very Beginning, it was interesting. It had me by my seats. People are killing themselves, that’s pretty fuck up. And the movie doesn’t hold back in how fucked up it was. Seeing people just calmly in a daze just stab themselves in the neck with their own hair pin? Like, I had to take a step back. Was not expecting that shit at all. It certainly sets the mood, though I don’t know why they do this...backwards walking thing before they die. To show them being rewired? But my favorite part was with the construction workers dealing with people jumping off the building. That was really emotional to me. You just see the heartbreak during this slowburn of one person jumping, then another, then just 30 in one go. It went from sad to horrific in a great way. tw

TOO BAD it was freaking undercut by Matt Wallburg’s science class which killed ALL MOOD that was set up.

You CAN’T set up a thriller movie with the actual scary thing happening, only for the main character to just....completely ignore it/not know it for a long ass time! It ruins the whole thing!!

Like, HINTS!!! HINTS ARE A THING!! I thought you were supposed to be good at subtly Shyamalan! 

Ok, so here’s a quick sidebar. Train to Busan. Great movie. Go watch it. Same director as Parasite. It’s about surviving the zombie apocalypse on a train. Highly recommended. But the thing with THAT movie, is that we get Hints that the zombies exist in the beginning. We get some information that there could be danger, but we don’t SEE the actual zombies until it is too late.

HERE, we SEE people literally off themselves in some very realistic ways. You can’t expect me to mood shift that fast to Matt Wallburg just casually teaching about the death of nature and bees! That kills the mood! And makes the main cast look like an idiot because WE know what’s going on, but THEY DON’T!! It’s hard to feel connected to the main characters when we know more than they do.

And these characters SUUUUUUUUCK!

Matt...you stink. If I have to judge your acting career based on this movie, I will never watch anything with you in it again. He’s just so boring! And Dull! Everything he says sounds like a blank empty husk of a man. He has the worst reactions to Everything around him. Like a woman accuses him of killed her in her sleep (which is a bizarre scene anyway) and we get THIS

God he’s the worst! And this dull-ass line-reading bleeds to every other character!

Apparently her name is actually Alma. And here I thought that it was Emma. Doesn’t matter, did not give a shit about her. I really couldn’t give a shit about the romance. At all. Like, not one ounce. I was actually rooting for them to get a divorce that was so how uninvested I was in them. They are both bland. The whole thing hinged on them working things out and not emotionally cheat I guess, but it just seemed like Emma was getting worked up over Nothing. She ate cake after work with a coworker. Alright. You see her getting calls from him and when she does answer saying “no I love my husband it was just cake we had nothing between us” except it was just the guy talking about all the bad shit happening in whatever area he was. So, again, she just blew things up all out of proportion here.

Then the children....the little child Jess gets a pass. She’s not the greatest, but she’s a tiny child. There’s a lot more things to worry about than her acting. Like the other teen boys they meet while escaping, Jake and John. They have them randomly show up as part of their small group. Only for the Next Scene for them to be killed. Like, what the fuck movie? There’s dramatic tension, then there’s just bad writing.

Most of this is just a bunch of bad tiny plot decisions like....why the fuck did they add this in the movie? Just a lot of them trying to add in characterization...but it falls flat so so bad. Humor of Matt talking to a plastic plant? Lame. Trying to distract a person from horrors with a math problem? Possibly could have worked if they actually had any personality of a rock. Matt talking about how he...I guess was thinking of emotionally cheating on his wife with a pharmacist but was just lying.....just why??

Hotdog Man who first said it was the plants to begin with? He actually gets a pass. The hotdog thing is weird as fuck but he seems like the ONLY genuine actual human in this movie. I like Hotdog man. He was just trying his goddamn best.

Then different moments of trying to add tension when there shouldn’t really be? Like...some random ass hyper tension of Matt walking into a room that just has a doll? And I guess it is to...MAYBE imply that the old woman is nuts and thinks the doll is actually her daughter? That’s a bit of a stretch coming from me, but that’s all I got for why that scene exists. But that was soooo unneeded, unnecessary, no purpose to the plot for ANY REASON! Like, just....it’s shit like this that’s bad.

Look, Disaster Films need 2 things for it to work: A) showing the destruction that the disaster is causing, and B) Showing people trying to survive through said destruction. The Happening has a decent pass for the 1st part, mostly. The suicides are creative and disturbing. Just seeing people randomly grabbing the nearest thing to passively kill themselves does make you step back. Like driving through a street where people hung themselves. Or watching 30 people jump off of buildings. Or a guy sees a nearby lawn mower and just lays down before him. (The one where a dude just sits down casually to cut himself with glass, really fucked me up).

It’s the second half that needs work. None of these guys seem to give any actual human responses to that’s going on, whether it was the main cast or any of the side characters. It was like the movie was trying to make everything high tension and that comes off forced, boring, and bizarre.

Overall: I was not a fan of this movie. Did not like this movie one way or another. There was so much bad in it, but not in the fun bad. Just bad bad. The only two good things I liked were the Hotdog Man and the beginning scene with the construction workers. That’s it, and it does not save the movie.

If you want something similar to this that is a little better, try Cell by Stephen King. Instead of Plants it was Cell Phone reception. Just as ridiculous but a lot more heartfelt and frightening that whatever this mess was.

[thisiswhatwereupagainst]

I’ve been trying to figure out if Darkstar KNEW that her father enslaved Starlight. Because she knows they’re together. They’re together when Laynia meets the Presence and finds out he’s her dad. And then later, despite him being a supervillain, she and him and Starlight are all hanging out in his base at one point when Presence and Darkstar have teamed up to avenge the death of Vanguard, her brother and the Presence’s son (Starlight is, at one point, shown with tears streaming down her blank, expressionless face, which HAUNTS ME). And then at one point, when the Presence decides he wants a HAREM of Russian super-women as his slaves instead of just one, he sends Starlight out to kidnap Darkstar (yes, his daughter, who he KNOWS is his daughter) and Black Widow and bring them back to him. They seem to realize something is up with her at that point, as Black Widow slaps her to snap her out of it, but then after Starlight explains “well he wants to fuck you both” (Laynia is duly horrified because WTF DAD) they let her GO BACK TO HIM. Like Starlight tells them he’s mentally ill and THAT’S why he made this sick demand, and that her love can heal him, so she flies back and they wave her off with happy tears, touched to the point of crying. Yes, really. Fucking hell, Marvel.

So like...they seemed to understand that he had her under his control when she was trying to kidnap them, but don’t seem to grasp she’s brainwashed IN GENERAL and that going back probably wasn’t really her choice, nor being in “love” with the Presence? I think Laynia must have been entirely ignorant of it, not because “she’s my favorite and I like her so she couldn’t have done a bad thing” but because we know that Laynia wouldn’t stand for it. See, this one time early in Laynia’s history, the first time she broke away from Russia and joined the Champions (an interesting team that included Iceman, Ghost Rider, Hercules, Angel, and Black Widow), the Champions face a bad guy called Swarm. Swarm is a guy who is made of bees. No, seriously, he’s bees. He’s just bees and a skeleton. Originally he was a dude who was messing around with some mutated killer bees, but the bees devoured him, leaving only his skeleton. The bees' unique qualities caused his consciousness to be absorbed into them,. So yeah, he’s bees. But then the Queen Bee was stolen by an Interpol agent and encased her alive in amber. In order to maintain control of his bees/body, Swarm stole her back, but he hasn’t been able to get her out of the amber without hurting her. Now, again, Swarm is a bad guy. He’s a supervillain. And he actually was a scientist who worked for Hitler, so he’s a Nazi too. And he wants the Champions to help him, to get the Queen Bee out of the amber without killing her, so he can maintain control of the swarm of bees that make up his body, and thus continue to exist. Darkstar actually WANTS to help. But it’s NOT Swarm that she wants to help. It’s the Queen Bee. It’s just an insect, but she swears she feels a connection to the bee, that she’s calling out to her, to the Darkforce. She tells Iceman, who can’t believe she wants to help “this creep” (Swarm, obvy) that he doesn’t know what it is to be trapped like the Queen Bee is, to be “apart”, but she does. So. The Queen is, again, an insect. A bug. A giant, mutant bug. Not exactly a high priority for most people. Even less so when one considers that setting her free, means a former Nazi gets to continue to live/exist. But because the Queen is trapped, encased in amber much like how Darkstar grew up encased in the Super-Soldier School, apart from all but a few others, Darkstar empathizes with her. I doubt the bee is really calling out to her in her mind, even if she’s not a normal bee, but Darkstar FEELS like she is, probably because she just relates SO much to her (I notice she tends to anthropomorphize the Darkstar too, so maybe she has a tendency to assign human qualities and personalities to inhuman things, perhaps due to her isolated upbringing) and she frees the bee. Obviously this ends up being terrible because Swarm is terrible, and Hercules ends up killing the Queen anyway, but my point is, Darkstar can’t BEAR seeing ANYTHING trapped. Even some super-villain’s giant mutant bug. I can’t believe that she could know Starlight was trapped mentally and not tried to do something. And thus...god, can you IMAGINE the horror when she DID find out? Which I’m guessing Starlight would have told her once she was free and they were on the same team together. Like fucking IMAGINE finding out that the woman you thought was just your dad’s girlfriend was actually his mentally enthralled SLAVE all this time, that you were RIGHT THERE and didn’t know, didn’t help her, that you LET HER GO BACK TO HIM another time, like just...oh god, it must have been disgusting for her, for both of them. Those poor women. WHY ARE YOU NOT GIVING ME THIS, MARVEL?!

[virginlimbs]

Lucy in the Sky vs. Joker by Andrew Haworth

It makes perfect sense that Lucy in the Sky and Joker came out in the same month. It also unfortunately makes sense that one of them is being hailed as a masterpiece of art cinema while the other is being totally ignored.

I wouldn’t go so far as to call them yin and yang because yin and yang are both valuable properties and Joker is a garbage fire of a movie that many people are huddling around for warmth. But Lucy in the Sky is the antidote for the poison that Joker is putting out into the world.

There’s a lot of similarities. Both movies are based on existing stories that loom heavily in the public consciousness, one fictional and one real. Both stories involve characters that you could write off as crazy. Both (sorry Noah) underutilize Zazie Beetz. But only one of these movies actually tries to make you fully understand its protagonist.

If Todd Phillips directed Lucy in the Sky, it would start with her buying the diapers and the whole movie would be “the car ride with the crazy woman.” But Noah Hawley fixates on something totally different: the idea that hey, if you went to space and saw the Earth, you would come back fucked up!

This is his brilliant starting point. Seeing Natalie Portman in the best performance of her career staring at the Earth in awe like a kid on a plane for the first time, pleading with her boss for just a few more minutes.

When she’s back on Earth, everything else is insignificant. There are lots of issues in her life that demand attention: alcoholic mom, boring too nice husband, brother’s daughter pawned off on her. But she’s enlightened by this experience that .0001 percent of the Earth’s population can relate to. She knows the truth that none of this matters. I’ve seen all of space and time and you wanna ask me what’s for dinner?

So she becomes a nihilist. But while Phillips soaks his movie in that philosophy, Hawley wades through it like a chicken who needs to get to the other side. It is a testament to the strength of the filmmaking and Portman’s performance that I did not feel she had gone capital C Crazy until the last twenty minutes of the movie. Everything she does makes so much sense through her point of view. We roll our eyes at her boring husband, we salivate when Jon Hamm stretches out in the back of a pickup truck, we struggle not to be annoyed by Zazie Beetz just doing her best. And even when Lucy’s lost her mind, we sympathize because Jon Hamm was the one person she could relate to, the one person she could share her secrets with, and he’s the same guy emailing her boss saying she’s too emotional for another trip into space.

Lucy exists in a niche culture made up of the smartest people in the world who should be patting each other on the back every day, but even among her true people she has to prove herself and work extra hard because she’s a woman. A woman trying to hold a family together, caring for her mom and brother’s daughter who she didn’t ask for while Jon Hamm drinks alone in an empty house rewatching the Challenger explosion over and over.

When I was talking with my sister after we saw it, she brought up that the key to the movie’s success is that everyone in it is crazy. To be an astronaut, you have to be a valedictorian who doesn’t care if you live or die. This is not a movie about some crazy woman who tried to kidnap people because she was jealous of a woman stealing her man, the way the story was spun by journalists. This is a movie about a crazy culture where astronauts literally can’t even find the words for what going to space feels like, yet they all nod in total understanding when someone brings it up. And so do we, because the movie never hits us over the head with it. It’s a culture where if you’re not in space, you’re in a cafeteria or sleeping in your office, hiding a six pack of beer under your coat.

Joker, on the other hand, is only interested in over-explaining and lionizing bits of mythology we all already know, standing on the shoulders of a giant. And it’s good at fooling people because moments like Bruce Wayne’s parents being killed are so seared into the collective consciousness that it’s impossible not to feel something when you see it. But moments like Joker getting his name, even more heavy handed than Robin in the Dark Knight Rises or Han in Solo, remind you that behind the camera is an old man turning to you and winking. “See what I did there?”

For a movie that bathes in the river of backstory, all it can come up with for an explanation as to why Joker is crazy is because, well, his parents are crazy. His dad was abusive, but actually it was the mom’s fault somehow, so she deserves to die. You know, the classic scenario. Someone clearly told Todd Phillips about the movie Amour and he was like, yeah that sounds artsy, we’ll smother her with a pillow.

Joker stands for nothing. He means nothing. He is crazy because to a man child, that’s cool, and nothing matters in his world. He’s not even smart. He’s just a dumb lunatic. It makes you yearn for The Dark Knight, a movie which has its cake and eats it too in regards to letting you live in the Joker’s head but come away with the desire to fight for justice in a corrupt world.

Joker is apolitical, amoral, and totally pointless. His speech on the talk show is gibberish. It makes you think of another better movie with a long monologue about capitalism and the crazy world we live in. But the Lupita Nyong’o monologue in Us is towards the beginning, the movie’s jumping off point, while Joker’s is the climax.

Lucy is smart and cunning and crazy in a way that’s impossible not to relate to, crazy in the way we all get when someone hurts our feelings, or when we feel stuck. In space, she doesn’t have to worry about any of this. And when she comes back to Earth, she wants to be a nihilist to dull the pain. But against all odds, she ends up caring even deeper than before. She falls in love, the least nihilistic thing you can do. And when the dust settles from her existential crisis, she’s forced to remember she has an effect on people, and they have an effect on her. People are tiny when you look at them from the sky, but that’s just an illusion. When you’re back on Earth in reality, the things you do matter.

Lucy tells Jon Hamm that her husband is a better person than both of them. But she is not a villain and her husband is not a victim. What she means is he is stable and uncomplicated and doesn’t have the thing that drives them to go to space and risk their lives. Dan Stevens will be fine.

But the character who really gets the short end of the stick is the niece, who wonderfully plays every reaction shot with a look of total bafflement and confusion. She’s just as lost as Lucy, abandoned by her father as well, and just wants someone to lead her through this mess. And it’s not until the end Lucy realizes she’s become her father, putting herself before the little things that need her care in a nihilistic world.

Her speech to Jon Hamm before she sprays him with insect repellant is not the speech of the Joker saying a bunch of crazy nonsense. It’s the cry for help of someone we totally understand, someone who just wanted to be part of something like we all do, who was driven crazy by people who said she was crazy before she was even actually crazy and OF COURSE that would make you crazy. Lucy comes back to Earth numb and confused, thinking people aren’t the answer. But in this confrontational scene she is the most passionate and human she’s ever been.

In a way, Lucy has the last laugh. She has seen into the void and crawled through the muck and dirt of her own emotions and psyche to the other side, like the chicken she always talks about. And on the other side, little things do matter. So she embraces the tiny by suiting up and helping some bees. And just like when the water fills her helmet at NASA, she takes off her mask and lets the bees swarm around her, unafraid, smiling.

What’s she thinking about?

You wouldn’t get it.

[nakmor-leigh]

I had a dream yesterday that i was a mutant in some X-Men Origins: Wolverine and X-Men Evolution mashup. I had my fusion powers and knew of wolverine and the Xmen, but lived on my own until i was captured with other mutants by Striker and Wolverine. Since i knew Logan i was pissed that he'd betray us like that and i told him as much, which made him feel guilty. While being transported through a desert (I think it was like somwhere in the Middle East?), I managed to escape with a young boy named Otho whose powers were telekinesis and insect telepathy. Otho and i stole a motorcycle and drove it through the desert until we drove into a city built in an oasis.

The townspeople weren't happy that i was driving around recklessly with my motorcycle, but the king saw us, was very impressed, and invited us to his palace. I told Otho that if this turned out to be a trap, we'd just steal their horses and get out of dodge. Upon meeting the king, he told us how much he loved the motorcycle, and somehow guessed that we were mutants, which excited him even more bc he and his people believed the mutants were blessed people, and so he begged me and Otho to stay. He then sent us to talk to his daughter the princess and her lady in waiting. Otho and I were very respectful to them both, but still planning on stealing horses if this didn't work out. The princess was also very excited to have us there, and offered to give us a tour of the palace and the town.

Then a timeskip happens, and i think it's about a year or two ahead in time bc I'm suddenly heavily pregnant, married to the princess, and in the first stage of labor. My wife was freaking out bc our child was coming, but i was like 'Babe chill this isn't happening for a good while.'. But then the city's alarm went off, and a guard told us that we were being invaded by strangers, who were Striker and his men. Now my wife was freaking out even more, but I was still like "Babe chill I'll take care of this.". So Otho (who was now part of the royal family too) and i went and confronted them.

Logan was still with them and i called him out on that too. I was like "The fuck are you gonna do Logan? You gonna fight your pregnant friend and her 12 year old sidekick? Huh Logan? Is that what you do for these guys? What are you gonna do? You gonna step over here and kill me? Try it old man, see what happens."

Then right when Logan was going to change his mind instead of kill me, Sabertooth showed up because of COURSE he does. He does that whole "I'm evil and here to ruin Logan's century." thing he gets off on, but Otho and i are ready for him. Otho takes the guns away from all of Striker's men and holds them around us with his telekinesis, sicks a bunch of bugs after Sabertooth, and i use my fusion powers to fuse my arms with two guns and fuse those together to make one giant ass gun in front of me. But before i can rip Sabertooth a new one, the Blackbird flies over our heads, meaning that now the X-Men are here for some reason.

I woke up before i could find out who was coming to help (what the Fuck was i thinking i was in LABOR), but i remember thinking that if Kitty and Kurt were here, they'd be super disappointed in Logan and knowing that would break Logan's heart enough for him to do the right thing.

[purplesurveys]

442

What motivates you to do what you do? The possibilities that I’ll get to buy my own house, raise a family, travel abroad with my own money, scenarios like that. Always makes me want to start working my ass off and to stop complaining. What was the weather like the last time you went out? Super humid. Hard to breathe. Then it rained hard all evening. Do you go for walks often? OMG no I hate walking. I take my car everywhere lmao. What color shirt are you wearing? It’s black but has white floral prints on it; and it’s also a jumpsuit, not a shirt. What is your favorite type of youtube video to watch?  I’m a whore for YouTube so I’d watch anything. Right now though I’m into Good Mythical Morning, PewDiePie, and a little into mukbang/ASMR videos.

Do you need any new clothes right now? Yes hahahaha I have not enough clothes conducive for my internship, so defo have to shop for that. What's the next project you are excited to start?  Does interning count? Do you collect anything? If so, what?  I’m a photo hoarder, if that counts. I find it really hard to delete photos because I associate memories, times, and places for each anddd that’s why I have 3k++ photos sitting in my camera roll at the moment. ^and if not, what would you like to collect? Wrestling figures. What was the last disappointing thing that happened to you?  I overreacted to something Gab said and it blew up into a huge fight.  What is something God has healed you of? Have you ever experienced a miracle? I don’t believe in those. What was the last thing you ate?  It was a meal called ‘lamb pepper rice’ and it’s basically spiced rice with lamb as the main meat. Good shit. Do you ever eat food that's intended for kids? Like, nuggets? Sure. I don’t order stuff from the kids menu though–unless they serve corndogs hahahaha. What was the last stupid thing you did?  Last Friday, I was about to head home but my car key wasn’t in my bag when I reached in to get them. I took out every single solitary thing in my giant-ass tote bag but my key was nowhere to be seen, so then I thought I forgot it or dropped it in the restaurant where I had my dinner. I went back inside the mall, almost in tears, and was halfway up the escalator when I thought of reaching into my pocket. Car key turned out to be there. Do you get embarrassed easily? UGH VERY I’m a perpetual ball of anxiety and embarrassment. I get super sensitive and cry a lot. In short, I’m a pain in the ass for everyone. Are you wearing pants or shorts right now? I’m in a jumpsuit so neither? The bottom part kinda looks like pants though. What are your top three names you like for a daughter?  Olivia, Mia, and Harper. Would you ever film a vlog of yourself giving birth? If my heavily pregnant ass gets in the mood for it then yeah, I don’t see why not. Do you like getting caught in the rain? No, I hate getting wet with clothes on. Do you think your hair looks best straight, wavy, or curly? Wavy. What was the last craft project you completed?: I don’t do ~crafts. Name 3 youtubers you would like to meet in person:  PewDiePie, Shane Dawson, and I’ll count Rhett and Link as one because those two are inseeeeeparable. Has anyone ever spread an untrue rumor about you? Yes. Sixth grade was a funny time. What's one rumor you've heard about yourself, and is it true? Something about dating Andi. No it was not. What color are your nails painted currently?  They’re never painted. Do you use a pill box? I don’t. List 3 people you know who were loving and then turned cold:  Athenna. Times three. Have you filmed a youtube video today? No, I don’t vlog. Do you leave the house when you're on your period?  ???????????? Yes ????????????   ^If not, why not? Because it’s not supposed to stop me? Have you ever felt threatened for your life? Yep. There was one time I must have done something wrong to a motorist while driving because when I slowed down to traffic, he stopped his motorcycle directly beside my side of the car and just stared murder at me. For like ETERNITY. I was stuck in traffic and didn’t know what to do. Idek what the fuck he wanted but I hope he’s since crashed his stupid bike and died because as far as I know I did nothing wrong and he is just a stupid man looking for a fight. What are you behind on? WORK LMAOOOOOO Do you get enough sleep each night? Recently I have not because the work has just been too much. To be able to sleep at 10 PM is a magical thing. Which did you like better: high school or college?  High school if we’re talking about security and feeling safe and being happy; college if we’re talking about being independent. Which year of your life stands out to you as the most significant so far? 2014, 2015. ...and why?  They were the years when I knew I was at my happiest. What was the last store you shopped at?  It was an accessory shop. Gab and I browsed through to see if there were clip-on earrings available for me (there weren’t). Do you have a favorite pharmacist? I don’t. I don’t even know any. Do you have a favorite cashier at the grocery store? No. What was the last thing you ordered at Starbucks?  I had an iced caramel macchiato and a dark chocolate macadamia cookie. What's something you discovered recently?  Idk, haven’t really had eureka moments lately. What makes you more creative?  I’m literally not creative. What's the last magical thing you experienced?  Spending time with my girlfriend. What is the theme of your bedroom?  It has no theme. Depressed college student maybe? Have you ever lived in a dorm? Nope. I live kinda close to my school, at least near enough to be able to drive to and from school. Who is someone whom you admire, and why? I don’t think I admire anyone. When was the last time you stepped outside of your comfort zone?  Monday. My org opened elections for next year’s term and no one was gonna run for External Affairs, which is basically the committee that handles marketing and inter-org partnerships and all that publicity stuff. I’ve been a member of Internal Affairs for years now, which is basically the complete opposite of Exte, but no one was running and we were desperate to have someone. I got frustrated at how no one wanted to take the damn post so I took it so we could finally get the elex out of the way even if it meant completely stepping out of my comfort zone. Where would you like to travel to next?  Thailand or Vietnam would be great. Or just to go back to Sagada would be enough. If you could win three dream vacations to anywhere, where would you go?  Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia. Would you rather ride a camel or an elephant?  Neither.

Are you a free spirit? I can, but I also can’t. Do you want to lose weight? No. I want to gain it. Which insects scare you, if any? Cockroaches. Do you think it's silly to be afraid of a tiny insect?  No. Have you ever experienced paranoia? Sure, sometimes. Have you ever hallucinated? Only one time when I was 8 and had a really high fever. I was saying some weird shit to my grandma. Were you raised religious? Yes. Didn’t see the point by the time I was 10. Have you ever been abused? Verbally, mentally, and emotionally. Do you think the cops should do more about bullying? Everyone should do something about bullying, not just the cops. Besides, Filipino police are useless for the most part. Is there a coffee shop you like better than Starbucks? Nah, I’m pretty loyal to Starbucks. I love others though, like Coffee Project and Coffee Bean. If you could afford to get your hair professionally done, what would you get? Maybe a trim and tiny bangs hahaha. Then dye it dark green. If you had a lot of money, do you think you would use it wisely?  Not at all. I don’t even have money right now and I’m still spending it irresponsibly lmao I definitely need help. Do you know any rich people who are very irresponsible? If they’re rich then they must have been responsible enough to be able to get to that point. List five careers that you'd like to have: That’s too many and I’m too sleepy to think about this.

List five far-out things that you'd like to do before you die: Try out tamilok, ride a helicopter, walk on the glass floor of a really tall building, visit Chicago, try deep-fried butter. Do you dream big? Sure. What was your first imaginary friend's name? Katrina. What was the name of the first pet that you loved? Tobi, my rabbit. What was the first work uniform that you had to wear?  I’ve never had a job. Do you like to go barefoot? Filipino houses require everyone to be barefoot, so that’s just natural to me. Do you like the same colors now that you did as a kid? No. I liked purple then but I like black and pink now. Do you have a blog? Just this one. Do you have a youtube channel? Yep, but I don’t have anything posted. I use it so that YouTube can personalize my homepage to videos I wanna see and so that I can subscribe to a bunch of channels.

[serkonans]

i would legit love to know ur answer to all of those dnd questions tbh

so many gfsljgf thank you antonia i love ask memesputting #13 up here for the anon who requested it and the rest below the cut!13. Introduce your current party.I currently DM a few games! School is hectic and I don’t get to play very often but all the characters are GoodI have one group campaign titled “When the River Bleeds Red” (which is probably news to you, Antonia, and everyone else who plays, idt I ever mentioned that slkfjglfskj) that has a blacksmith (half-elven cleric, @the-idiot-who-stood-still​) named Brigitte Faestrum, a pumpkin farmer (halfling druid, @beesgnees​) named Cathal Headrig, a former stage performer (fire genasi sorcerer, @merrigold​) named Emelia Sparks, and a former mercenary (gnome fighter, @jacqmutiny​) named Nyx!I also DM one-on-one campaigns for @merrigold​ (who plays an aasimar druid named senua tasked with undertaking journeys on behalf of the gods in “The Glacial Erratic”) and @fictitiousbees​ (who plays a kenku wizard named scribbles called to the service of a high dragon in “Luck of the Draw”)Everything else below the cut!

1. A favorite character you have played.

I’ve only played two characters! One was Carran Warset, who is my Son and like the bulk of the reason I know I’m trans, and one was Chim from your one-on-one campaign. I rly like both of them tbh but Carran is my child gkjlsfgjs

2. Your favorite character that someone else has played.

Excluding anything I’ve DMed, Sivarna by @pluviance!

3. Your favorite side quest.

In the group campaign we played in together, there was one session that idr if you were able to be there for but we like,,, went into a forest and bought a really ugly belt from a stoner for zero plot reasons and I count it as a side quest in my heart

4. Your current campaign.

Well, you know everything about all my current campaigns that you’re allowed to know rn, but for anyone who might be reading who isn’t in them:

The group campaign is being used as scapegoats in the brutal murder of an ambassador’s daughter and is fleeing a city through secret tunnels -- we last left off at Cathal becoming a giant badger and burrowing upward

In the solo campaign with Senua, she’s attempting to deliver a large, magical object from the goddess of earth deep inside a mountain, and she’s facing down a basilisk with three NPCs

And in the solo campaign with Scribbles, he’s just played a card game that was really more of an interrogation, where he found out a high dragon has taken interest in him, and he is, in unrelated news, taking a package to the local apothecary

5. Favorite NPC.

Of someone else’s, I love Lucy from the Chim campaign!

Of mine, I will never stop loving Mr. Kretever Tatell. Kret is a goddamn idiot but he’s my goddamn idiot

6. Favorite death (monster, player character, NPC, etc).

Carran once killed an evil poison merchant by seducing her in an enemy king’s bedroom and stabbing her when he went in for the kiss gkfsljgfsj. Then he and Sivarna wound up hiding with her corpse under a bed discussing the concept of threesomes in whispers while the king wandered around his room. Not as like, a possibility. Just because the topic came up

7. Your favorite downtime activity.

S,,,hop,,,,,,, money tiem $

8. Your favorite fight/encounter.

I liked the fight where I balanced the combat correctly lkgsflkjskljg, the one with guards in the tunnels

9. Your favorite thing about D&D.

Storytelling!

10. Your favorite enemy and the enemy you hate the most.

Homebrew enemies are coolest imo but hard to balance; the giant gemstone ant I had you fight would’ve been my favorite if it’d been able to get more than like two attacks in gskjgksj

And insect swarms are very annoying to fight

11. How often do you play and how often would you ideally like to play?

How often I play is whenever every single one of the stars align and ideally I would play like every other day fksjglskfjg

12. Your in game inside jokes/memes/catchphrases and where they came from.

God the current ones haven’t gone long enough for those yet really and I’m blanking on most from the group player campaign

I do remember Carran was 1000% convinced basil was poison at one point and his pet rat killed an evil, powerful sorcerer by chewing his ear

14. Introduce any other parties you have played in or DM-ed.

Just the group player campaign with Carran, which didn’t get to the heavy plot stuff before it ended tbh, and then the solo one you ran with Chim in what was rly a Very cool world concept of like hellish Las Vegas that I’d like to steal at some point

And then you ofc know this but for anyone reading who doesn’t, I’m going DM a maybe-oneshot, maybe-a few more than oneshot post-apocalyptic campaign for you and @fictitiousbees​, set in a world that’s been destroyed by fast growing invasive fungi which is like. only The sexiest apocalypse scenario

15. Do you have snacks during game times?

Yes, religiously. Game time snack time

16. Do you play online or in person? Which do you prefer?

I’ve never played in person other than a single test game for new players! I prefer online tho; you can look things up and type if you’re shy

17. What are some house rules that your group has?

I have a rule about only two players being able to try the same sort of check, but that’s it for us so far that I can think of

18. Does your party keep any pets?

Not yet! Cathal has a way with animals though

19. Do you or your party have any dice superstitions?

I Do

20. How did you get into D&D? How long have you been playing?

I got into it bc Critical Role made it look super super fun, and I’ve been playing off and on for two years now

21. Have you ever regretted something your character has done?

I’ve regretted everything any character I’ve controlled has done I think that’s just dnd

Realistically tho, big yes for a lot of what Carran did, most notably snooping on another player character who had cast Alarm on her room

22. What color was your first dragon?

Haven’t had one yet!

23. Do you use premade modules or original campaigns?

100% original babey

24. How much planning/preparation do you do for a game?

3% planning 97% “oh fuck I need to have an idea Now” babey

For DMs

25. What have your players done that you never could have planned for?

Everything, it’s why I never know what I’m doing

I never expected Cathal to become a large badger and dig out of the underground, how do you prepare for someone to, in all seriousness, tell you they’re going to become a badger and scrabble to the surface

26. What was your favorite scene to write and show your characters.

I really tend to enjoy the one-on-one scenes; I think my favorite was having you roll that insane wild magic surge and detailing What Happened At The Theatre

27. Do you allow homebrew content?

Yes if it can go in DND Beyond

28. How often do you use NPCs in a party?

In group campaigns, not often, although we have two with us right now. In solo campaigns, if you want combat you’re getting an NPC party, at least for a bit

29. Do you prefer RP heavy sessions or combat sessions?

Personally I love RP heavy sessions; combat is fun but I crave Story

30. Are your players diplomatic or murder hobos?

I think mostly diplomatic with a dash of murder hobo

For Players

31. What is your favorite class? Favorite race?

I’m so so so boring but I love humans gksfjgsk

Humans, elves, and half-elves are my favorite

And then I Would Die For Every Rogue, it’s hands down my favorite class

32. What role do you like to play the most? (Tank/healer/etc?)

Rogue role

Lemme stealth and steal and stab

33. How do you write your backstory, or do you even write a backstory?

For Carran it was,, A Whole Process

I came up with a basic idea, then journaled as him several times and wrote and rewrote until I had what felt Right, and then I kept toying with it and adding more details throughout the campaign -- I love playing and would really like to again but the obsession with expanding upon his story made me realize I need the freedom of worldbuilding that goes along with DMing; I don’t think I could be a player without DMing a separate campaign bc I just try to take over

34. Do you tend pick weapons/spells for being useful or for flavor?

Both!

35. How much roleplay do you like to do?

So much, I usually use old acting techniques and get fully into character

thank you again antonia!!! these were fun

[i-am-loki-and-now-i-speak-up]

About my Blood: Loki Laufeyson

I was waiting for you.

That was what you wanted, wasn't it?

Loki Laufeyson. This is the name by which you learned to know me. From the infamous day in the Voult, when I first uttered it, with a broken voice, ... incredulous gaze.

A violent and painful emotion.

My ears were ringing, I stared at the emptiness for explanations that would never come.

Laufey's son.

Before starting I want to say immediately what I may have never dared to admit aloud ...

I started calling myself Laufeyson for revenge against Odin.

Just to spite him.

To reiterate that, if for him I had never been worthy to bear his name, I too didn't want to have anything to do with his people, arrogant and self-centered.

Calling myself Loki Laufeyson made me feel free from the yoke of Odin, from the power he had on me.

It was like laughing at his coldness.

"I am not like you, nor like that boisterous idiot of your son ..." said that name "I am other, something different from all of you, fucking hypocrites, that you go around like all of you were all shining and immaculate souls! "

It was like being able to shake off his reproach, his frowning expression of eternal discontent.

I was no longer Loki Odinson, sad, silent and obedient; that new identity, that reappropriation of my true roots had injected me strength, courage, will.

My Father silently disdained me for what I really was? Did all of them point out to me like the jealous, conspirator, liar and deceiver?

Very well, I would have satisfied them all by dressing gloriously of my new name.

I was a Frost Giant, son of an evil race, murderous and treacherous, .. he who had begotten me was their King, Laufey by the grin of predator, the look of blood, the hands dripping of the annihilated lives of his enemies and who knows who's others.

If this was what they thought of me, I would have given it to them.

Loki Laufeyson would have been what others wanted, or thought, I was.

And so Loki Laufeyson has betrayed Asgard, betrayed his brother, rejected his mother, tried to take what had always been denied. A place.

He brought chaos and destruction to Midgard, sparking a strange war that hiding something else behind it.

Loki Laufeyson was the most evil I could be.

And once again I find myself wondering if it was really what I wanted. The hatred toward my Father and the desire for revenge for what he had done devoured my soul, so that nothing at that time seemed to me enough to punish him.

To punish all of them, damned Asgardians, ... them and that look of superiority with which they all gazed at the others.

Loki Laufeyson had taken the little Loki with sad eyes by the hand, and with persuasive and poisonous words had put him in a corner, in silence, ... once again silenced and left to watch destroy his world and the people who, somehow, he still loved.

Whispering with his voice of treacherous velvet: "Look, child, ... look how easy it is to lie and deceive, taste the sweet taste of revenge, I do it for you, child. Is what you've always wanted, isn't? Be good, now, and let the pain of others drive your own pain away... "

Loki Laufeyson hasn't looked at anyone in order to have his revenge: not his brother, not his mother, ...for not to mention that infamous, arrogant liar of his father.

Yet I still believe that "he" was also a victim of Odin.

I know what you are thinking.

"How the hell do you talk today? Loki Laufeyson are you ... what are these little words tricks?"

Ah, sweet Midgardians children, you know how much the words plays on my lips, and how much I enjoy myself in this. Nevertheless there are events, in my unfortunate life, which by their nature can not be analyzed rationally.

By their nature, yes...

Do you have any idea, the furthest idea of what it meant to me, a boy, to have discovered the gigantic lie that had been my life up to that moment? See with horror my skin become blue, the sneer of the demon that held me tight so as not to lose even a moment of my loss, my paiful disbelief.

Understanding in a moment that nothing would ever be like before.

If ever there had been, a "before" ...

The nightmare had begun to end no more. I had become Loki Laufeyson. I had always been Loki Laufeyson.

A misfortune. The enemy. The blue demon. The monster.

I understood in a moment my father's lies, and the reason for his detachment. The most cynical part of me could even understand it.

How can you love someone you've never really wanted? The son of your worst enemy ...

How can you love a child who, you already know, will never be like you, or like the perfect child you already have ...?

You can not. And if you try to do it, at most you can offer that kind indifference, cold as the winter sun. And that will hurt him, slowly, silently, day by day, without remedy ....

Pay no attention to what has been shown to you. I didn't accepted that very uncomfortable truth in a week: things don't go so fast, and the souls torn to pieces, sometimes, need time to go crazy little by little.

I lived with that heartbreaking truth, in silence, for a long time, ... yes, a lot, if I speak in Midgardians terms.

My father had filled my brother and me, and our little children's minds, with myriads of grim and bloody stories about how monstrous the Jotunn demons were. Thor has become a man with the glorious mission to exterminate them one by one.

Can you understand my hell?

My pure terror? After a youth spent hating and fearing that breed of brutal murderers, suddenly the monster is me. I'm one of them.

One of them...

Can you understand? The sense of emptiness, the nausea, the disgust ... the feeling to be disgusting and dirty, guilty only for the fact of existing, living and breathing there, among the radiant Aesir. How many times I washed myself, in my rooms, and rubbed my skin, rubbed, rubbed ... with my nails, even, ... until I bleed, as if that blue could disappear, that horrible lizard color that disgusted me up to the point to throw up all night, desperate and on the verge of insanity.

And then the sharp thought of never being enough for anyone took over.

Not for my father, the biological one, ... the monster, he is, yes, ... who had chosen death for his son, whose only fault was to be small in a race of giants. Not for the man, ... The God who had wanted to save me for a strange mixture of emotions and strategies.

Odin, Allfather, who had found this adopted son under his roof, ... and who, only after many years, he realized he could never love him. I had not been enough for anyone.

Not enough for Laufey. Not enough for Odin.

If I had died there, on the frozen rock, it would have been better for everyone. Me for first.

I tell this myself again, sometimes, when anguish tortures me and sadness devours my broken soul.

Loki Laufeyson.

The son of the enemy. The Lost Prince. But also the rightful King of that inhospitable place, dark, cold, with the pungent air of ice.

Jotunheim.

When we were young, this word was enough for Thor and I to be overwhelmed by shivering with fear. And many, countless times, I stayed awake until late under the covers, terrified of finding one of those blue monsters, drooling next to my bed to devour me.

If only I had imagined ...

I am still struggling to accept passively my true heritage, ... to accept "the other", the blue demon I see in the mirror every time I allow my magic to loosen.

It's not easy for me, it's not at all.

Do you want to see?

Will you bear the sight of what I really am? Do you think you are ready, you who cry out to love my Jotunn nature, and accept my true appearance, no matter what?

....

Here, do you see it? Do you see the demon?

My skin ...is not ... it's not pale. It's blue ... my mother used to say that it looked beautiful, beautiful like the snow at dusk when it turns blue, .. but she could find some good anywhere ...

Do you see it? It is cold, cold as ice, adorned with intricate lines, lighter blue. They point out at my Prince Jotunn's blood, in truth. I already knew that, ever since I was a boy, I was studying and reading about the many peoples who live in Yggdrasill like so many swarming insects. The lines on my forehead are the three qualities that a King Jotunn must have: ruthlessness, brutality, and the last one, the one divided in two in a specular manner, is explained by a sentence in an ancient manuscript about my race ... "If you have to die, bring your enemy with you "

What kind of creature am I, with death written on my face?

Look me in the eyes, come on  ...

Are they still the captivating, deep green eyes you're in love with?

They are eyes like a beast, a ferret, demon eyes that pierce the darkness and that see you everywhere. Killer eyes.

Do you still like me? Am I still the wonderful God of Mischief ?

What do you see of me now?

Is it equally fascinating, Loki Laufeyson, in his purest form?

.....

You know, ... in the time when I started fighting my furious inner battle against "him", I also started to accept the fact of being this, and try to change it at the same time. To prove to the eyes of all those pompous bastards that does not count the color of the skin, but what you have inside ... that moves you, this is what matters.

I wanted to prove that I was different. I wanted to prove everyone that they was wrong.

So once I saved a girl, prey of dangerous winter fevers.

The healers no longer knew what to do, while she was extinguished like a little candle, day after day, thinning like a ghost, her eyes rimmed with dark circles, her lips dry and cracked. She stood still in his little bed, barely breathing, moaning from time to time, in his heavy and painful sleep.

I knew her. She was the daughter of a soldier, ... a shy girl who gave flowers to Thor and weaved silky bracelets to me. An adorable, innocent girl.

One day I went into the Healing Chambers and got everyone out. His mother, ... the maids, the old doctors with that heavy look of eternal gravediggers ...everybody get out, leave me alone with her ...

I sat at the side of the bed and watched her breathing hard.

"Thor's flowers have dried up, child, and you promised me a green silk bracelet with a new weave, do you remember?" I whispered, stroking her hot temples "Come back to us, come back to those who love you, little bird, ... Hel's bleating dogs are not worthy of your lovely face ..."

I gently took her hand, rested my lips on her forehead and loosened the magic that held the Jotunn shape.

I had to be very careful not to use too much power not to hurt her, ... just let the frost of my skin sooth the fever fire, slowly.

"Come back, little one... come on, come back to us, to those who love you ..."

And she did it. The fever lowered and I saw her sleep in peace, without jolts and moans, ... just pink cheeks, regular breathing. She was just very cold and red where I had touched it.

She healed, and she never knew it, though I suspect her mother understood it and told it to her, as she later thanked me stammering with tear-stained eyes. Little Elìn ... I hope life smiled at her later.

Last time I saved my brother.

Yes, you read that right, you don't need to reread.

I saved the precious God of Thunder's ass.

When my father allowed him to return from his exile (again, ... forget the stories of images you saw, ... the time is a ribbon much more intricate than simple visual tales...) there was another battle. Little thing, in truth, ... a skirmish. I could say that we had fought worst ones, yet on this occasion Thor was badly wounded. Very badly. Like a boy.

To a thigh, in a wretched spot, and the blood oozed out.

We had dragged between dry heather and boulders, far from the fight now exhausted, and both battered we looked at each other to see if we were still alive.

In reality, I was on the verge of losing my mind, and I was fighting another battle in silence, so as not to get rid of the demons' bites. So I pretended.  My father had taught me that. Or rather, imposed, since I was a child, and I had become good.

In a few days I would have come down to the Vault looking for answers, ... but I was telling another thing.

About Thor who, under my eyes, was bleeding like a rookie. Livid as if he were already dead, he looked at me trembling, his pants torn and soaked with blood: he also tried to disguise, with his smile like a braggart, ... but it was like seeing the depths of Hel come to take one piece at a time .

"Why...why you look at me like that, Loki, ... stop, ... you ... you're making me nervous ..."

My coat that had stopped the bleeding for a while, now no longer held ... I saw it darken, full of blood.

"You're dying, you silly, brainless oaf, how should I look at you?" I muttered.

He, with his last strength, grabbed me brutally by the shoulder and shook me: he still possessed a tremendous force, even with the claws of death planted in the neck .

"Do not you dare to talk to me like this anymore, little brother!

I pushed him away.

"Or what?" I cried, "Will you kill me like the Giants you hate so much? Just a little longer and you won't have a brother anymore!"

I said it because I wanted to poke into his arrogant, empty head that was really dying. To hear it now, it sounds sadly truthful, I realize ...

I pushed him against a rock to remain seated, then tore off the hood, uncovering the bloody gash.

"All right, I've had enough!" Now shut up, for once! "

I put my hand on it, he jumped violently: the blood leaked through my fingers, running in tiny red revolts. I had no more time to think ...

"Loki, what ... what are you doing ...?"

"I'm saving your life, you stupid, and now you close your mouth ... and don't say anything, before I change my mind ..."

In truth he no longer had the strength, and remained motionless, half-fixed, staring at me.

"We have to close this damn wound, ... and in the absence of fire, the ice will do the same service ..."

"Wha-what...?" became even paler.

Once again I loosed the magic and my skin went blue, the blue marks on my face, the demon's red eyes, ... I shuddered with terror: I was in front of Thor the Almighty in my full Jotunn form. Even at the point of death, he could raise Mjiollnir and crush me instantly, like a harassing insect. But the moments passed and I was still alive ...

"The fire and the ice both burn, isn't it? Only the ice is colder ..." I said it with tears in my eyes, chuckling.

Thor stared at me, wide-eyed, motionless, as if he were already dead and looking at me from the Otherworld. But then he whispered:

"Loki ... Loki, of all your idiocies ... what ... what the hell is that ...?"

"This is the most idiotic of all, I know, ..." I whispered almost speaking to myself  "Now close that damn mouth and don't let me say it again!"

I gave him no more way to reply, not even to look at me again with those haunted and upset eyes; I pulled the edges of the wound and squeezed, letting the power of nature Jotunn flow. I heard him scream, he clung to me with such violence that he almost broke my shoulder. I found myself staring at her blue eyes, full of resentment and surprise, planted in mine, red like the berries of winter.

They were furious and fierce eyes, which almost physically attacked me. He would have killed me. If only he had had a little more strength I am sure he would have killed me instantly, before realizing that it was me, prey to hatred of my race. Hatred that our father had instilled in him since childhood, poisonous drops that had corrupted his heart.

But it did not happen.

After those terrible moments, Thor gasped, closed his eyes and then collapsed heavily against me, unconscious.

I looked at him in shock, without having the courage to breathe, or dare to touch him: slowly, the magic that concealed my true aspect resumed control, and my skin became discoloring to become the pale one of Aesir. Although battered and covered with dried blood.

I was still. Hands up. The disheveled blond head of my brother abandoned on my chest.

What ... what did I just do? As I had thought of ...

But it was the only way not to have a new God of Thunder in my life.

Merciful Gods of Asgard ... I had just shown myself to Thor, in my Jotunn form and saved him from bleeding. It sounded damn surreal and senseless ...

And now what would have happened?

I remember checking the wound. It smoked. A dense, icy and whitish smoke. The skin was purple, almost blackish, so cold that it burned, if it makes sense ... the edges were juxtaposed, covered with a thin layer of ice and frost crystals. There was dried blood encrusted everywhere. Frost and dried blood on his pants, on my trembling hands, on Thor's blonde hair. A mess...

The wound was closed, burned by frost. Thor was safe. In a few days, I would have found myself dangling in the void beyond Bifrost, pushed down by my father's firm and cruel "no". Odin, who left his son to choose death with that refusal to resonate in the air, while the emptiness already cradled him.

That day, though, I had saved Thor's precious life and nobody ever knew it. Not even him, who was convinced that he survived because he had the brilliant idea of ??pressing fresh snow on the wound, ... that stupid naive child !!

This was and is still Loki Laufeyson. Contradictions and twisted thoughts.

Loki Laufeyson is an ice-skinned demon, torn between good and evil, left there to scream all his anger. Torn by the desperate need of approval and the cynical desire not to belong to anyone else who is not himself.

My legacy is dark, my lineage, brutal and cruel, ... while Asgard was my stepmother, at first benevolent, then, with resentment and cruelty, she abandoned me when I needed her more.

Is it any wonder, then, if I find this painful and inextricable tangle of demons that devour my soul, sometimes in silence, sometimes, ... as now, ... screaming all their anguish?

It cost me a lot to write all this. A lot of effort, a lot of time, a lot of tears, sleepless nights and new sadness.

And yet I'm not satisfied with it, because I feel there's still so much to boil in my bloody Jotunn blood. Something indefinite, nameless that presses and cries to be heard, to be seen, to have space

I have not even figured out who the hell I am yet.

The green-eyed sad child who was praying for a sincere caress of his father? The young Prince that no one has ever loved? The miserable wreck that caused the death of his mother? The glorious, shining God of Mischief, with his captivating smile and sharp tongue? The Frost demon that saved Thor's life?

Who is Loki Laufeyson?

All of this?

Something else, so terrible that others see and I have not dared to recognize?

From time to time I loosen the magic that hides my appearance, and I look at myself, as you did a while ago.

Do not think it's so natural for me, or that I like it. I spent years to remain impassive in front of the mirror, to look at my face furrowed by blue lines, crazy eyes ... my body, the blue skin, cold as ice on the water.

....

Here it is. I scrutinize. I look at myself.

I try to find splinters of what I have always known about myself in that blue-haired unkempt that looks back at me, beyond the mirror.

Loki Laufeyson.

This is what my father feared. That's why he kept me away. I wonder if he thought the same things when he picked me up, ... a Jotun baby. I wonder if he hated me since then.

A newborn baby who cried in despair, believing he had to die ... what threat could I represent?

But I had Laufey's blood, murderer and traitor. However, I was condemned.

It was my blood that scared him, that alarmed him.

Jotunn blood. The blood of a King.

I will never give up what the others think I should be. I will not bend to their judgments.

I am free of all their hypocrisy, and I have chosen to live respecting myself, ... at least for a while, as far as I can. For the time when my demons leave me alone.

Little Loki Odinson came out of his corner, tired of being put aside by everyone, and now speaks for himself.

I smile. I grin.

And the image in the mirror smiles me back.

[ayma-nidiot]

“Don’t Speak Their Names” - Shrimpshipping fic Chapter 28

This chapter can be found here on AO3.

Chapter 28 - A Worthy Leader

Rex couldn’t bear to see his own daughter kill the love of his life. All the memories he and Weevil had forged with their daughter over the past few months would end with Weevil’s imminent death.“Amber… Weevil…” he continued to cry in his hands, still unprepared for the inevitable. “Why did… Eh?”

The dino duelist peered through his fingers to see Amber’s arrow not only sticking from the ground, but Weevil still breathing. The magical bonds the Magician Girls placed upon Weevil lay next to Weevil in a raggedy heap.

“She… She shot at his ankle bonds!” Amber’s archery skills impressed Téa.

“It’s not possible!” Chocolate Magician Girl couldn’t believe it. “That binding was blessed by the High Priest Mahad himself!”

As Weevil stood up, still silent, Amber commanded, “Go, now, before someone in this room tries to kill you.”

Weevil left without even a nod, but Amber swore she saw a hint of gratitude in those forlorn eyes.

“What the fuck, Amber? Do you realize what you’ve just done?! ” Phuckdis clearly didn’t like this turn of events; nor did several disgruntled soldiers. Displeased with Amber’s lack of confidence and leadership, they left to join Domino’s Finest.

“Yeah! Now he’s probably off to join the other Earthbound Gods!” William added, kicking a small desk and sending it flying. “You had one job, Amber. ONE FUCKING JOB!”

It was then that Rex finally had the strength to stand on his feet. He walked up to his daughter and placed two hands on her shoulders. “Amber…”

“Papa!” Amber cried into Rex’s shoulders. “Gods damn me, I couldn’t do it! I love Daddy too much!”

“And thanks to your ineptitude, we’re all going to die.” Phuckdis rolled his eyes. “You had the one evil god that caused our destruction before you, and you could have ended it with a single damned arrow. But nooooo, your love for your daddy dear haaaaad to get in the way!”

“You’re not helping, you bastard!” Rex half-shifted, swiping at Phuckdis’ face with a rabbit paw to silence him.

Several minor scuffles amongst the Club’s soldiers broke out, adding further to Phuckdis’ worries. His army was falling apart before his very eyes as was his hope for saving his future from ruin. He started to think that he should have remained in the future, where he could receive a quick death, instead of painfully waiting for it to come. The rabbit claw slash Rex inflicted upon him was nothing compared to his helplessness. “We’re doomed… Dear gods, we are doomed.”

“Th-That’s not true…” Rex began to lose hope too, but loved Amber too much to dishearten her with more discouraging words.

“No, he’s right. Thanks to my choice, not only is my future going to come true after all, but now we’ve lost a good deal of soldiers. Either way… I lose. I’m destined to suffer, and I deserve it.” Amber clenched her fists, putting a halt to the infighting going on between the Club members. “I’m a sorry excuse of a leader. If my baby brother Francis were still alive, he would do a much better job.”

“Come on, I’m sure your daddy and I didn’t raise you this way.” Rex caressed Amber’s face as he tried to cheer her up. “What happened to my cheerful insect duelist? The one who’s so full of spunk and energy?”

“B-But… But what can we do against evil gods and their armies?”

“...” Phuckdis felt sorry for what he said, and had to think of a proper way to “apologize.” “I have an idea. It will be a lot harder than simply killing Weevil, but… Perhaps if we kill the other Earthbound Gods, their influence over Weevil will cease to be.”

“Ooh!” Tristan liked this idea. “I think that guy who nearly killed Joey is the really scary one. If we can get rid of him… ”

“Not bad, Tristan.” Duke chuckled. “I never thought I’d hear you say something smart.”

“Come to think of it, Daddy was always sweet in my future. But then he was abducted by a giant crimson snake monster, and just wasn’t the same ever again.”

“You see, sweetie?” Rex smiled at Amber, stilling her trembling with a hug. “Where there’s a will, there’s a way.”

“It’s not going to be easy, though…” William remarked. “We still don’t even know where their hideout is. And we’re talking about killing seven omnipotent gods, never mind their lackeys that we’ll inevitably fight along the way.”

“It’s in the theatre building,” Rex replied. “I know, I was taken there.”

“Be that as it may, we cannot start a full-scale war on the grounds of this university,” Phuckdis proclaimed. “It’s best if we take down each Earthbound God one by one, not only to minimize our own losses, but also to avoid as much damage to Domino City as possible.”

“Then we need to keep an eye out for where each of Domino’s Finest officers goes during their spare time, and corner them with the army one by one.” Amber spoke seriously, unlike her uncertain tone from before. “We have one advantage over them, and that’s sheer numbers. I propose that seven of us get assigned one officer to spy on.”

“That’s an awesome idea!” Apple Magician Girl raised her staff in approval. 

“All in favour say ‘aye!’” Blackwing - Blizzard the Far North’s idea spurred a round of “ayes.”

“Guys… Even after my failings, you still see me as a worthy leader?”

A Chocolate Magician Girl flew up to Amber. “You’re pretty, strong, and smart, and will do anything for your family. What more could we ask for?”

“I… I don’t deserve you guys. “Amber cried tears of gratitude.

Phuckdis patted Amber’s back in apology. “It was wrong of me to ask you to kill your own father, Lady Amber… If you never forgive me, I understand. And we really didn’t lose as many as you think. With an army of our size, there’s bound to be a few who disagree with you.”

“I’m sorry, too,” William admitted. “No matter the circumstances, it was wrong for me to lash out at you like that.”

“My daughter…” Rex hugged Amber with one arm. “We really will save your father this time. This army couldn’t ask for a more capable, talented, and smarter leader.”

“Papa… Thank you for giving me my confidence back.”

“No problem. You’re the one who- Ah…” A strong, painful contraction suddenly hit Rex, ending the light mood in the room as quickly as it began.

“What’s wrong?” Amber started to panic when Rex curled up into a ball.

“Cramping… It… hurts…” Rex cried as his gut felt like it was being run through a vice-grip. He felt like he had an enormous amount of gas that wouldn’t come out, no matter how hard he tried.

Mai looked worried. “I think he’s going into labour!”

“But… He’s still two months early!” Phuckdis exclaimed as the army ran amuck. “Damn that Watda! He did this!”

“If something happens to Lady Amber, I’ll kill him myself!” William proclaimed.

“Panicking about it isn’t going to solve anything! We need to do something!” Joey hoisted Rex onto his back. “I’m taking him to the on-campus doctor!”

“Then… I guess the meeting is over?” Phuckdis laughed halfheartedly.

“Haha…” Joey ran up to the stairs, as the elevators were either under maintenance, or full.

“It’s really mean to be laughing at someone who’s in pain, ya bozo. Ggh…” Rex groaned.

“I’m just thinking of how Tristan and I took turns carrying you after you lost your soul to the Orichalcos.”

“I don’t think this is the time to be reminiscing about dark shit, Joey!” 

“Sorry, sorry… I just thought I’d lighten the mood. I wanted to apologize for that time and help you out, you know?” Joey switched Rex to a princess-style carry and looked him tenderly in the eyes. “That’s what bros are for, Rexy.”

“‘Bros…?’” With just that one word, any remaining hate Rex might have had for this once-bitter rival had dissipated. Looking at how far he had come in his relationships with Espa and Mokuba, it did his heart good to see an even bigger change with Joey. Such heartwarming thoughts were almost enough to numb the pain of early labour. “Aye, I could go for that.”

He continued to smile as Joey presented him before Dr. Balls. “Oh my gods, what happened to him?” Dr. Balls sounded exasperated.

“He got-”

“Never mind, you can explain later!” Two of Dr. Balls’ nurses swiftly brought a stretcher over. “We’ll take a look at him.”

“Rex…” Joey paced around.

Amber called her grandparents. “Grandma, come quick! Something bad happened to Papa!” When she completed that phone call, Amber paced around as well until she noticed Joey’s presence. “...You.”

“Look, Amber, I know what you’re going to say.” Joey ran a nervous hand through his puffy blond hair. “‘You shouldn’t have touched Papa.’ But I couldn’t just leave Rex there, writhing in pain.”

“...Humph. Even I know to give gratitude when and where it is due. Dr. Balls came out of the E.R. thirty minutes later. “Doc, how is he?”

“Come this way.” Dr. Balls led Joey and Amber to Rex’s room. “He experienced Braxton Hicks contractions, not true labour. Although from how he acted, they were unusually intense… It’s strange to me.”

“It’s because he was captured and tortured last week,” Joey remarked, trying not to mention anything about the Earthbound Gods. “And, uh… Yeah, we filed a police report. We still don’t know who did this to him.”

“It’s a miracle, then, that the both of them are going to be okay. However, he will need to remain wheelchair-bound for a few weeks to recuperate from the damage he suffered. I’ll leave you guys be, then, and come back once his parents get here.”

“...” Amber’s eyes darted around the room, and she hoped her grandparents would arrive soon. She fumbled with the light switch, the medical supplies, the random pamphlets on diabetes and other diseases. Anything to distract her from the man that caused both of her parents immense suffering. She even thought about faking sudden illness just to get out of there. Just her luck she was as healthy and happy as a clam.

Joey knew Amber wouldn’t say a word to him, but he didn’t like the silence in the room. “So… uh… Before all the crazy stuff happened, what was your future like?”

“What?” Amber raised an eyebrow. “Where did that come from?”

“I’m just curious… Well… Don’t feel like you have to talk about it if you don’t want to.” Joey looked back at Rex. “I can tell in your 16 years that you’ve seen and felt more pain than I have in my 20 years.”

“Trying to make small talk, eh?” To Joey’s surprise, Amber relaxed her tone of voice. “Fine, I could humour you. My life isn’t all blood and guts, you know.”

“Ah, that’s good to hear.”

“Well, to begin… Papa and Daddy were the best duelists in Domino City, and even though they were a lot nicer than they are now, they still liked to cause shenanigans. One time, when they were both done with teaching classes for the day, they went to the bathroom and wrote ‘this shit could sand wood’ on every single roll of toilet paper. At 35 years old!” Amber got more enthralled in her own tale, recalling the pranks her parents pulled off, even as fully-grown adults. “A-And another time, Papa taped a remote-controlled fart machine to the bottom of a seat of a misbehaving kid. And Daddy hid his phone in a closet, then his phone went off in class. His ringtone was the Diarrhea Song! And they never got caught! Of course, I kind of took after that myself, hehe.”

“Some duelists never change. Hahaha! And I just love how happy you are, talking about your parents that way.” Joey couldn’t bring himself to ask who he’d ultimately end up with. “But what about me? Do I… uh…”

“You were a professional duelist who would regularly donate to and volunteer at charities… when you were not spending time with your wife and kids.”

“I had a wife? Is she…”

Amber winked. “You betcha. Your oldest son was exactly like you, too - and one hell of a guitarist to boot. He was somehow even more of a flirt than those other two friends of yours! He would ‘fall madly in love’ with just about any guy who gave him a compliment… that was until one day, he fell in love for real, with a young male dancer. It turns out that that dancer happened to be my little brother.”

“My son ends up with Rex’s son? That’s… weird. But I like it.”

“Well, I for one didn’t like it when I found out they were together, and you can guess why. But…” Amber’s story quickly began to take a dark turn. “But when Daddy went berserk and started killing innocent people, you were the first one to fight back… You were the first one to die. And your son ended up dying trying to protect my brother. I had to admit that I still had disdain for you before all of that… But after seeing what you’ve been doing for Papa lately… I…”

“So you guys are friends now.”

Rex’s abrupt voice made Amber jump. “Papa! You didn’t hear any of that, did you?”

“Oh, I did. Every single word. So I become a professor, even though I’m dumb as a bag of rocks. And… It’s good to know that I’ll carry another precious life one day.”

“W-Well…”

“I know.” Joey got up and patted Amber’s shoulder. “Even after you saved my life, you still hate me. Thank you for that, by the way.”

“...You’re all right, I guess,” Amber managed. 

“I think I’ll settle for ‘all right.” Hehehehe!” Joey ruffled Amber’s hair. 

“Humph. And I’d confess to Mai soon, if I were you. Or who knows, Valon just might end up being the father of her kids instead.”

“Okay, you’ve definitely convinced me!” Joey made his signature face, creeping out Rex a bit. “When I see her next, I’m going to let her know how I feel!”

“Let who know?” Ptera spoke as she opened the door, with Tricera, Spinos, Adelaide, and Camellia behind her.

“Grandma, you shouldn’t be eavesdropping.” 

“I don’t think that seeing my son after he nearly died is considered eavesdropping!” Ptera cried as she hugged Rex. “It’s as I feared. Those monsters are trying to kill my poor baby boy!”

“Mom, I’m gonna be fine. Sheesh.”

“You better be. I would love to give you my famous ginger tea again!”

“Is that the only reason you want to have a grandson?”

“N-No!” 

As Ptera teased her son, Dr. Balls came in. “Mrs. Raptor… I regret to inform you that because the damage to Rex’s body is so extensive, he’ll need to stay in a wheelchair for three weeks. But both he and baby will be fine after that.”

“Thank you so much, Doc.” Ptera took Rex’s laptop out of his bag and shook it lightly. “And I’ll see to it that my son still gets his homework done.”

“I’m already caught up on my assignments so far.” Rex took the laptop out and placed it on the small table in front of him. He scanned his class pages and combed through every assignment, making sure that each was thoroughly filled out.

“What about your PowerPoint presentation for biology class?” Ptera raised an eyebrow. “Did you remember your Works Cited slide for that?”

“Yeah, Mom. I’m 100% positive-” Rex stopped scanning his computer when he noticed that one of his assignments for ancient history class wasn’t turned in yet - or even started. “Uuuuh, not. I haven’t even started researching for my essay for Dad’s class.”

“And when is it due?”

“Next week…?” Rex laughed sheepishly.

“ Ay, dios mío, mi hijo. ” Ptera facepalmed. “What do you need to research?”

“It’s about ancient Egypt, actually. We need to go to a museum with an ancient Egyptian exhibit, pick an artifact there, and write a 1000-word report about it.”

This assignment’s description reminded Joey of his own visit to the museum, the one in which he learned the true identity of the Millennium Puzzle’s spirit. He thought, too, of Pharaoh Atem and the War of the Dark One - a war to restore the peace of ancient Egypt. Joey spared a prayer for that peace to last, and for the well-being of his rival, Kaiba.

“Joey, you’re spacing out.” Rex looked up from his laptop. 

“Wah…?” Joey snapped back to reality. “Sorry, I was just thinking about stuff.”

“Wait, you’ve hung out with Yugi and Atem, haven’t you? You know a lot about the museum?”

“Yeah. Maybe I can help with your assignment.”

“Really?” Rex pressed the call button on his hospital bed. “Can we go now, then?”

“Right now? Are you crazy? But you’re-”

Dr. Balls came in with a wheelchair. “Actually, you’re okay to leave every so often. Just as long as you remain in this wheelchair when you’re out. And don’t spend more than two hours out there, got it?”

“Let’s gooooo!” Rex had a burst of energy, that was until his giant baby bump caused him to slump forward and nearly fall to the ground. “Fucking OW!”

“Easy man, easy… Here, I got you. Up you get.” Joey helped Rex into the wheelchair.

“Joey…” Ptera couldn’t believe that the man who beat her son - twice - with no relent could be so kind to him. “Are you sure you want to do this? I’m sure you’ve got duels to win… Other poor mother’s sons to pummel…”

“Mrs. Raptor.” Joey looked at Ptera sincerely before he turned to leave the room. “I know I have hurt you and your son. I might not be able to earn your forgiveness, but that’s not going to stop me from wanting to do right by him.”

“Oh…” For the briefest second, Ptera’s expression went blank.

“Mrs. Raptor?

“Ah, you’re too serious sometimes.” Ptera patted Joey on the shoulder. “It’s okay to be a chucklehead like Rex, you know.”

“Hey, I don’t want him to be like me! ...Wait, who you callin’ a chucklehead?”

“Come on, Rex, go do your homework.” Ptera waved off Joey, cuing him to take Rex out of the building.

Rex turned to Amber while the trio made their not-so-far trip. “Say, Amber, you’ve done the essay, haven’t you? Can’t I just copy yours and change the words a little bit?

“How ass-backwards is that? You should be the one helping me!” Amber stuck her tongue out. “What a role model of a mother you are!”

“Pfft…” Joey stopped right after they entered the museum.

“Oh, put a sock in it.” Amber smacked Joey in the middle of the back.

“Oww, sorry, sorry! It’s just…” Joey stopped laughing all of a sudden. “The last time I saw my mother was right before my sister’s eye operation, about three years ago. And I don’t even remember the last time I saw my father. I just… wish I could have been as close-knit with them as you guys are.”

“Joey?” Rex turned his head around. “You cryin’, man?”

“N-No!” Joey tried to deny it, as he had not cried since his loss to Siegfried at KC Grand Prix. 

“Um…” Not knowing what else to do, Amber reluctantly patted Joey on the back. “Well, uh… For what it’s worth, you’ve got your sister, and us. And your dueling skills!”

“ Especially the dueling skills,” Rex noted with a groan as they moved to a much longer corridor. “I swear, you must have dueled every schmuck in Domino City.”

“Yeah… I just wish I could have dueled Atem one more time.” Joey never thought he would have uttered the name of the pharaoh again. He never would have thought the memories of his quest to truly earn Red-Eyes Black Dragon back would re-enter his mind, and his desire to defeat Atem in order to attain that goal. Entering the ancient Egyptian exhibit in which he learned of the pharaoh’s true identity brought even more nostalgia. “That reminds me. Rex, did you know that Duel Monsters originated from ancient Egypt?”

“I kind of figured it out during my duel with Bandit King Bakura.” Rex didn’t want to think of that fateful, harrowing duel - but the stone tablet that stood before him had other plans. “It’s… It’s that giant rock!”

Joey remembered the stone tablet too. Three monsters that vaguely resembled Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon, Creepy Coney, and Earthbound God Uru adorned it. “Brings back memories.”

“What kind of memories?” Amber wanted to know.

“Oh, I must have never told you in the future, then,” Rex began. “When your father and I time travelled, we had to duel this really creepy guy named Bakura. That was when we first learned that we had ancient Egyptian selves, and of Weeves’ ability to transform into an all-powerful god. We lost our souls four the fourth time… that was until Kaiba brought us back with his amazing dueling skills.”

“I would certainly have liked to meet him.” Amber looked upon the stone tablet. “He’s my cousin once-removed, you know.”

“Kaiba…” Rex reached out a hand for the glass protecting the stone tablet. “I really wish I could have dueled you again.”

No sooner had Rex’s fingertips touched the glass when he heard a voice speak in his head. Hu…

Rabbit stew…

You guys have to save Weevil from himself...

“Bakura… Kaiba… Atem… Is that you?” 

“Papa, what is it?”

“You mean… You guys didn’t hear those voices just now?”

“I didn’t hear nothin’,” spoke Joey. “Could be that you’re hallucinating because of the pregnancy.”

“Maybe… At any rate, I know what I’m going to do my essay on. In fact, I already know a lot about this artifact! The essay is going to be a piece of cake!”

“Oh!” Amber noticed another tablet right next to it - one with a rough figure with dragon wings and a tail. “Papa, this is the one I did my report on.”

“Yeah? How come?”

“Because it reminds me a lot of a legend from my future. Our chief god is called the God-Shattering Star. He is said to be of ancient Egyptian origin and has purged the world of evil once.”

“That sounds familiar…” Rex recalled the final fight against Zorc, and it quickly registered who this god was. “It must be Kaiba!”

“Are you certain? I didn’t know he was a shifter!”

“Have I ever steered you wrong?” Rex made finger guns at Amber.

“Why, yes,” Joey quipped. 

“Ah, shaddup. I think I’ve seen enough giant rocks for today. Take me out of here so I can get on that essay, before Mom and Dr. Balls get mad at me.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.” 

With that, the trio left the museum - and for Rex, he had more questions than answers.

[shsl-mothy]

45 Character Dev Q’s

Link 2 original post

1. Does your character have siblings or family members in their age group? Which one are they closest with?

Yuka technically has/will have 2 sisters in-law’s after she is married to her fiance, Kazuo Yamamoto. One sister is named Akako Yamamoto- she and Yuka do not get along at all. In fact, Akako is the one responsible for a majority of Yuka’s bullying as she grew up. The other sister, Shiro Kamiya, was adopted into the Yamamoto family in some not-so-nice ways. Yuka has never been allowed to speak to Shiro, but she doesn’t particularly dislike Shiro either.

2.What is/was your character’s relationship with their mother like?

Yuka’s relationship with her mother is incredibly close. Her mother is the one who got Yuka interested in insects in the first place, and was the one who encouraged Yuka to study entomology if con-artistry wasn’t what she wanted. Yuka was originally supposed to get into the Kagome clan’s business in crime, however due to her horrid health and waning interest in such things, her mother pulled some strings for her daughter so that Yuka could just study and live as she liked. Her and her mother are inseparable- it is a very loving relationship.

3.What is/was your character’s relationship with their father like?

Yuka is also very close with her father. Yuka sees him less as his work as a hitman is very sticky work and he has to put that before his family, however Yuka is a total daddy’s girl. She loves her father very much- and he would do anything for his daughter. He’s viciously protective of her, to the point of where he would kill for her in a heartbeat if that meant she was safe. He’s also the one responsible for while Yuka is so spoiled- he rarely says no to her.

4.Has your character ever witnessed something that fundamentally changed them? If so, does anyone else know?

Multiple things have changed her, pre-despair and post-despair. Pre-despair, the first thing that fundementally changed Yuka was likely when her giant hornets were accidentally cued to attack her fiance. She watched this huge man whom she platonically loves almost die at the hand of her study, which she though she had a master control over. At this point in her life, she was already very down on herself and rarely socialised with anybody, so this was the nail in the coffin of her having a very negative self esteem. She ran to HPA to try and build up her mastery over her study after that, determined to never let her fiance see her again until she could prove to him she had control.

Post-despair, I suppose something that fundamentally changed her was both Adachi and Genta’s death. She deeply respects those two, and after they both died, despite it being horrifically traumatising for her, she felt a growing sense of determination to try and succeed for them. Once it came out that it was a simulation and she was able to speak to these boys again, she had already grown into a slightly braver person. This is why she acts so differently now from how she was at the beginning of the game.

5. On an average day, what can be found in your character’s pockets?

Honestly... she doesn’t do this in game anymore, but in pre-despair, it was easy to find insects in her pockets. And other items like sweet scents, sugars, and pheromones. She carried them because she wanted to attract bugs to her as much as possible. She also carries her basic essentials with her, such as identification, her wallet, money, etc. Various medications are on her as well, and surprisingly, a switchblade. She didn’t get it in game, but she typically carries one outside of the game. 

6. Does your character have recurring themes in their dreams?

Not really? But Yuka doesn’t sleep very often, so when she does, her dreams are incredibly vivid, almost surreal.

7. Does your character have recurring themes in their nightmares?

When she has nightmares, she typically dreams about hornets. They don’t usually do just one thing, they’re just typically hornet nightmares. As of late in the game, Yuka finds herself dreaming about past death’s as well.

8.Has your character ever fired a gun? If so, what was their first target?

She has! Though she’s awful at it because she’s so physically weak that even handguns make her arms tired, her father taught her how to shoot a gun. Her first target was a normal paper target. No, she did not hit the centre ever. She managed to get the paper at least a little bit, though.

9. Is your character’s current socioeconomic status different than it was when they were growing up?

Yuka has always been ultra rich and has had a high social standing. It’s not a very popular standing based on the fact that she was born into the higher ranks of a crime syndicate, but she is still rich and very ladylike when she needs to be. However, she hasn’t always lived in a huge mansion. She used to live in a very small town- her parents wanted her to live peacefully as a child before moving into the bigger city with the larger main clan of yakuza, where her fiance lives. Unfortunately, with her bullying history, it wasn’t very peaceful, but the intent was there.

Yuka actually has a lot of sway on what she can make happen in the crime world merely because of who she is and who she is getting married to (future oyabun of the Yamamoto clan), but she never actually does any work herself. Consider her a spoiled princess instead of a queen.

10. Does your character feel more comfortable with more clothing, or with less clothing?

Yuka doesn’t mind either way, though she has a penchant for always wearing dangerously short skirts.

11. In what situation was your character the most afraid they’ve ever been?

Probably when Kazuo almost died in front of her or when he nearly beat somebody to death for her right before her eyes. Also, when Genta actually died in front of her. Scary stuff! The current oyabun of the Yamamoto clan also scares Yuka a lot, any situation she needs to speak to him she gets very nervous, especially since she almost killed his son on accident.

12. In what situation was your character the most calm they’ve ever been?

Whenever she is left alone to her own devices and is focusing on her work, is when she is the most calm. She loves her intricate studies. She also feels very calm in Kazuo’s arms, and now in-game: Ailani’s.

13. Is your character bothered by the sight of blood? If so, in what way?

She has a normal squick to it. She’s not grossed out for a certain reason, but it’s not nice to look at in great amounts either.

14. Does your character remember names or faces easier?

I’d say shes good at both, but is slightly better at names. She’s got a mind for information.

15. Is your character preoccupied with money or material possession? Why or why not?

Yuka is very very material. She loves money, she flaunts money, and she carelessly spends money- merely because she grew up with whatever she wanted. Yuka was incredibly spoiled. Yuka isn’t necessarily greedy to the point of wanting everything in the world, she is just not used to people saying no to her.  But, on the other hand... her entire wardrobe is custom made for her, for pete’s sake.

16. Which does your character idealize most: happiness or success?

Yuka goes for success. It’s sort of sad, but a truth of her family is- no matter how loving it is to her, they are built on accomplishments. Yuka is very loyal to her family, so thinking of disobeying and not being as successful as she can be is very bothersome to her. However, as of late, Yuka’s been slightly considering going the happiness route. In the back of her head, she’s considering running away from her arranged marriage... but it’s still a lot to consider for her.

17. What was your character’s favorite toy as a child?

Yuka has a little porcelain doll that she liked a lot. Yuka loved loved loved this butterfly net she got from her mother. Her mother used to catch butterflies to pin them, and she gave it to Yuka when she showed interest in butterflies and moth’s as well.

18. Is your character more likely to admire wisdom, or ambition in others?

Yuka’s lowkey a sapiosexual, so she admires the fuck out of wisdom. It’s why she likes Genta so much. This wisdom doesn’t need to be academic though, she admire’s Adachi for his practical and gruff wisdom (so to speak).

19. What is your character’s biggest relationship flaw? Has this flaw destroyed relationships for them before?

Yuka’s biggest flaw is the fact Yuka is incredibly nervous and scared of people. It’s calmed down over the course of the game, as it’s forced her to take a more brave role, but her fear of people, social inept’ness and overall rude and push-away personality has caused many of her relationships to crumble, in and out of game. In addition, it’s why she was bullied so harshly growing up.

20. In what ways does your character compare themselves to others? Do they do this for the sake of self-validation, or self-criticism?

Yuka compares herself to others so damn much. She does it very unhealthily, and tries to compare herself to others, hoping she would amount to them. She self criticises too much. At the same time, she tries to put others down for being lesser or lower class than others, so it’s a vicious cycle.

21. If something tragic or negative happens to your character, do they believe they may have caused or deserved it, or are they quick to blame others?

Highly depends. Yuka is highly logical in this manner. If she makes it out to be another person’s fault by fact, then Yuka is absolutely relentless in letting other’s know they are at fault. (Just ask Sarara and Holly, and a little Michiko, Yuka has fucking went OFF on them in canon!) 

However, when Yuka thinks it’s her fault, she gets incredibly down on herself. To the point of where it’s obsessive, and incredibly unhealthy. She has always been negative and depressive So if something is her fault, she practically grovels to try and gain forgiveness- it’s pretty bad.

22. What does your character like in other people?

Yuka appreciates smarts, patience, and somebody brave enough to protect her, but not belittle her as weak. She appreciates people who can give her long conversation, or people that just try to work hard in general. She herself is spoiled, but it’s hard for her to relate to other spoiled people. Though, it’s not impossible persay- she is friend’s with Michiko after all.

23. What does your character dislike in other people?

A LOT. Yuka is so... so... SO fucking picky about who she associates with. She’s judgemental of people who are too mean, too emotional, yet too emotionless, to reckless, yet people who are too particular. She’s such a hypocrite too, she’s some of the traits she hates as well.

24. How quick is your character to trust someone else?

It takes such a long damn time. Nobody in the game has gained her full trust. She has people she trusts to a degree, and she appreciates them a lot, but only people like her fiance, who she’s known since childhood, are the truly trusted people in her life. It takes a long time for her to even consider you an acquaintance, so.

25. How quick is your character to suspect someone else? Does this change if they are close with that person?

Yuka keeps her suspicion separate from her personal relations, so if she is suspect of someone, it doesn’t change her personal thoughts on somebody. Hell, they could be guilty and she would still think of them positively. However, if you wrong her in particular... that’s when you should be a little concenred. Yuka is big on trust and grudges.

26. How does your character behave around children?

Yuka is surprisingly SUPER motherly. She takes after her own mother, in multiple ways. One way is that around children, she’s very caring and observant, she want’s to make them happy. She wouldn’t be a mother herself, but she’s a brilliant auntie.

27. How does your character normally deal with confrontation?

Yuka’s pretty baaaad at confrontation usually. However, if you manage to get on her grudge list, then she will go to you and list your every flaw to you. Again, just ask Sarara, Holly, and maybe Michiko hahaha. Yuka goes from a nervous wreck to a furious monologuer, it’s both intimidating and lame.

28. How quick or slow is your character to resort to physical violence in a confrontation?

Yuka Kagome is a fucking bug, she’s so damn weak and sickly- she CANNOT resort of physical violence herself. Now, if her fiance and gang are around, or if she has easy hires around, THAT’S a completely different story.

29. What did your character dream of being or doing as a child? Did that dream come true?

Yuka wanted to write children’s books. For a while she also wanted to become an idol.

30. What does your character find repulsive or disgusting?

Yuka HATE’S sweets with a passion. It makes her gag. Though, she hates it for a reason actually. Yuka is used to being surrounded in a sweet scent, that smells like a combination of sweet sugars, rotting fruit, and intense flowers. It’s simply just being around that for way too long that make her lose interest in sweet tasting foods. Make’s her gag, actually. It’s a sacrifice she makes to attract insects.

31. Describe a scenario in which your character feels most comfortable.

Yuka is most comfortable when she’s surrounded by people that she loves, surrounded by people that know her for who she really is. Yuka as a person is incredibly caring and loving, it’s just that she has suffered a lot to the point of where she feels she needs to hide that part of her. When she is surrounded by her loved ones and interests, in an environment she loves (nature) she mellows out immensely.

32. Describe a scenario in which your character feels most uncomfortable.

Yuka hates crowds- she often panics in them. New people, people bombarding her, and expecting things of her make her very nervous. She hates being in positions of authority as well. She deeply prefers solitude or people around her closer circle of friends.

33. In the face of criticism, is your character defensive, self-deprecating, or willing to improve?

Highly depends on the situation. If it’s legitimate criticism, Yuka will consider it and change her ways, if it involves information unrelated to her. If it’s uneducated criticism or unwarranted, or if it relates to her emotionally, she gets incredibly defensive and even acts threatened- she hates her intelligence or way of life being questioned in negative ways.

34. Is your character more likely to keep trying a solution/method that didn’t work the first time, or immediately move on to a different solution/method?

Yuka will usually try to improve the method a bit more, before giving it up. An example is nightwatch. It was started to be used against them, so she tried to change it before giving up on it completely. She doesn’t like people who give up easily, so she only moves on to new methods if she has exhausted all her options of attempt.

35. How does your character behave around people they like?

I mentioned this earlier in a few other points, but Yuka is very sweet and caring. Very motherly as well- she’s very caring. She loves to spoil her friends and loved ones if they’re truly close to her. She’ll spend ridiculous amounts of money on them, and make them homemade meals. Yuka will even listen to their problems. She is still logical, so she’s not the best to ask for answers you want to hear, but she is good at telling you what you need to hear to truly get something fixed or finished.

36. How does your character behave around people they dislike?

So. Pettily. Yuka will usually put aside her dislike to cooperate in times of need, but in normal situations, Yuka is honest about her distaste and will make sure somebody knows it. She’s very petty, and will start fights if she feels even slightly threatened by them. However, if she feels like she has the upper hand on them, she can get very condescending, as if they’re not worth her wasting her breath.

37. Is your character more concerned with defending their honor, or protecting their status?

Yuka ties in honour with her status, so I suppose it’s both. Her family is very honour based, however they have their own definition in honour obviously as her family is a crime syndicate. They find this honour through servitude and success, so status is very important back at home for her. It’s partially why she is so incredibly defensive about her relationship with Ailani! Yuka feels like it’s wrong for her to be in that relationship at all, because she’s betraying her familial honour and the engagement they put her into. It’s her one role to play since she never had to go into the business- so she hates being teased about it.

38. Is your character more likely to remove a problem/threat, or remove themselves from a problem/threat?

The latter. But again, that depends on if she’s alone or surrounded by her Peeps. If she has her fiance’s gang around her, or her fiance in general, or people she’s hired, she is indeed ruthless enough to try and remove a threat. Yes, by death. She’s... not a good person.

39. Has your character ever been bitten by an animal? How were they affected (or unaffected)?

No! Well, yes if you are the type to count insects as animals. She’s been bitten and stung by her insects countless times. She used to cry because of it, but now that she’s relatively seasoned as an entomologist, she can handle it pretty calmly, as she knows what to do if they’re venomous or harmful. Never been bitten by a larger animal, though.

40. How does your character treat people in service jobs?

Yuka is polite and kind. She isn’t overly warm, as she has no need to be, but she has never mistreated anybody in a job relating to service. Yuka is particularly close to her fiance’s butler though, if we want to be literal in terms of ‘service’ job.

41. Does your character feel that they deserve to have what they want, whether it be material or abstract, or do they feel they must earn it first?

If it’s relating to material items, she sort of just expects it to come to her as that is how she was raised. But goals and accomplishments must be gained of your own hard work- she hates slackers.

42. Has your character ever had a parental figure who was not related to them?

Her fiance’s father and mother, in a way. He’s a scary ass parental figure, but he’s taken care of Yuka sometimes.

43. Has your character ever had a dependent figure who was not related to them?

No, she has not.

44. How easy or difficult is it for your character to say “I love you?” Can they say it without meaning it?

It takes Yuka 6 fucking years to actually say I love you confidentially to Ailani outside of this murder game. Another 4 to even consider marriage. Yuka has such a hard time saying I love you. She can never say it without meaning it- it’s a huge step for her as a person.

45. What does your character believe will happen to them after they die? Does this belief scare them?

Yuka on a normal basis doesn’t really think about death, it’s more of just a reality thing for her. The thought of her life being taken away scares her more than the actual concept of death. In a killing game though, that has been warped a bit over time.

[maryanneashford-blog]

If family sex Is So Bad, Why Don't Statistics Show It?

Jennifer White went along to insect her diplomat father at the U.S. Peace Summit and twist around with the minds of condition. Those poor guys almost lost their minds when they saw Jennifer teasing with her huge natural juggs. Security had to step in and pull that ho into the back room. Toni and John were ready to do anything they'd to to show this teen whore a small respect, including double-teaming her pockets. Once they'd both had their dicks sucked, they threw Jennifer on the couch to take turns savaging her pussy and butt, and on a DP! Wouldn't you wish to become the door to door salesman and come across Mariah Milano?!?! That is precisely what goes on in this episode of Milf Soup. The vixen that she is induces her drag him into her couch where she fucks the sale out of him and to grab the 20yr sales man from her doorway step. She sticks easy using his rant about that which ever he was selling and starts to suck his cock right there in her living room. The "paper boy" is so blessed with her he can't go and she pounces. Milfs are Enjoy! Phoenix Marie is a step daughter called Elsa Jean. While she was at toilet one day, Elsa decided to spy on her measure mom. Once Phoenix discovered what she do she had to show her a lesson. She had been going to have fucked by her step mom and her unwanted dude, if she was gon na spy on her step mom. Elsa was in heaven as she was eating her step mum's pussy. It's what she always desired. Until delivering a giant load all over her face also her negative dude along with Phoenix fucked Elsa at diverse places. Elsa was in heaven, there's nothing she likes more than being her step mom's in the world little toy. She is adorable Incest Videos to say the least and she only wishes to be free. She is a free spirit who loves to fuck. What's so wrong with this? Like a fantastic man should he licks her pussy till she begs for the cock. Once she gets the dick she sucks it till making Arnold schwarzeneggers brother orgasm & then they move to the next step. FUCKING! This small nudist can fuck for real! She loves to ride the cock specially & we like to see! Enjoy! (Arnold schwarzeneggers brother).) It's quite simple really. Girl comes over nude willing to fuck. Guy looks like Arnold is now prepared to fuck and schwarzeneggers brother. They like eachother enough to take the party to the sack and all hell breaks But Maya can't simply take her mind of Juan dick. She blows him under the desk with all an Mom. Subsequent to the Mother leaves, then they fuck on the dining room table before Maya receives a load on her pretty ebony face. Yo what's up everyone else? This really is the neighborhood FUCK TEAM 5 crew lead and this week I had some fun with my girls and went outside Trisha Rey, Sisi Sinz, and Tricia Oaks. I had the girls go around and decorate as naughty nurses and fuck shit up BANG BROS style! We were on the prowl to see if your average joe can step up to the plate and fuck these hot butt girls. It was not simple, we found a couple of limp dicks available that have been simply fucking hopeless maybe not these nurses could host their pitiful butt cocks. But I roster with troopers, these girls didn't give up until they found a cock worthy of pounding that butt! Brooklyn Jade stops by showing us her little control and also the damage they could perform. We've our friend measure upto the plate and also let's choose the reigns. After turn and having a few tugs our friend Chuck can not contain himself and simply erupts all over the torso of Brooklyn. Enjoy Juan is online with a willing hottie named Bijou. If he inquires the old "show me yours and I will show you mine?" , she is happy to show her beautiful boobs. In turn, he shows her his huge cock. Maya is impressed with what she sees. Afterward they're disrupted by a voice calling down to lunch. To their surprise, that the step siblings realize they will have already been web. What a predicament!