#a lot of people would probably consider anything i make platonic if i'm being honest. and so do i most of the time

[starflungwaddledee]

I have a feeling Starstruck Dee (and perhaps you lol) are gonna go all out in February, pinks and reds, decorating and covering Dreamland with hearts

absolutely!

perhaps in all honestly more likely me than her, but if valentine's day exists she would be SUPER into it for sure, whether she understood it or not. i think she and kirby could be team Friend Hearts Everywhere and every year everybody else just wakes up February 1 to find that even their locked rooms were decorated in the night.

fwiw, i decided that i'll be celebrating this month by posting answers to various starstruck 'ship' prompts i've received! there'll be some comics, some single images, and so on!

i by no means have enough to fill the entire month yet, so i'm still taking suggestions, and i'll attempt to do as many as i can! i'm not sure if i can feasibly maintain One A Day but i'll do my best!

[bucketbueckers]

TEAM BUECKERS

pairing: paige bueckers x fem!reader

content: language, kinda silly, kinda rushed

wc: 5.9k

synopsis: For you and Paige, the line between “friends” and “something more” wasn’t always this blurry. You weren’t quite sure how you got here, and if you were being completely honest, you didn’t know if you were brave enough to ever cross that line fully. It’s not until Paige ropes you into a Valentine’s Day couples contest you realize, with the two of you, that line never really existed at all.

notes: happy (late) valentines day 😋 yes i'm posting this after midnight on february 15 and yes i tried my best to get this out on the 14th when it was, you know, actually valentines day, but i fumbled majorly and im like 50% sorry. not proofread bc im sleepy. i lowkey don't know how to feel about this but i think the end makes up for it but i had an idea for this and it honestly derailed. i still don't know how taglists work (if you've asked and you're not on here, i'm sorry i will just throw up and die if i tag someone who doesn't actually want to be tagged in all of my works i hope u understand, pls be super specific my brain doesn't function like it used to) uhhh so yeah lmk what we think & happy vday 🫶

tags: @jnkbueckers

You and Paige weren’t always like this. There used to be a clear boundary in your friendship, a strictly platonic one where her embrace didn’t make your heart race and where her mischievous smile didn’t fill you with an exasperation that bordered on endearment. You didn’t always wear her jersey at games, didn’t always keep her favorite ice cream stocked in your apartment for nights she came over to binge watch the same show the both of you have probably seen a combined thousand times, didn’t always confuse where you begin or where she ends. There used to be a time where the two of you weren’t so inexplicably intertwined in the fabric of each other’s lives. 

If anyone asked, you wouldn’t be able to identify when everything shifted – when your feelings transformed into what they are now. It just happened. The realization was as easy as waking up next to her on the couch, your legs tangled under a blanket far too small for the both of you, her arm tight around your waist to prevent you from falling off of the cushions entirely. It was as easy as the spare toothbrush you keep in your bathroom because she sleeps over so often, as easy as the drawer you have in her room because sometimes her dorm is just closer than your apartment.

So maybe it was kind of inevitable that ‘you and Paige’ turned into a ‘You & Paige.’ The two of you have a simple understanding. You keep her grounded, she encourages you to dream a little bigger. You talk, she listens. You round each other out in so many ways that you’re not the least bit surprised by how many people think that you and Paige are dating. If anything, they’re more surprised when you correct them, saying, “She’s just my best friend.”

You’re content to take your feelings for her to the grave. Maybe you would get over her eventually. She’s Paige Bueckers. She has a national championship and the upcoming draft to focus on and you have your senior thesis due at the end of the semester. The both of you have a lot on your plates – you care for her too much to complicate things for her, even if that means putting your own feelings on the back-burner.

You’re sitting on your couch, twelve pages into your paper, sifting through the twenty-eight (yes, twenty-eight) tabs you have open for your research when you hear your door knob jiggle. You don’t think too much of it, trying to stay focused on the task in front of you before you give up and start scrolling through social media again. However, your discipline doesn’t last for too long because the familiar rhythm of footsteps could only belong to one person. You look up to find Paige making her way into your living room like she owns the place (which she may as well, considering how often she’s around), depositing her duffle bag on the armchair. You greet her, returning to your work, but you feel the couch dip under her weight as she takes a seat next to you.

And then she sighs. Loudly. Dramatically, like she’s begging for your attention. Like you’re not busy. You glance at her from the corner of your eye, finding her staring straight at you, but she says nothing. A few beats pass. You add a new sentence to your paper, pausing to go back and find the reference page. She sighs again, more purpose and intent behind it this time, and your lips quirk slightly. Still, she says nothing, and the silence stretches on for so long that you’re sure she’s given up on trying to annoy you.

You write one more sentence before she leans over, sprawling out across your body, chin pressing into your keyboard. Your eye twitches as a long string of ‘M’s takes over your Word document. Paige sighs again, sounding forlorn, like a kicked puppy, and you know you’re not going to get anything done unless you entertain her.

“Okay,” you say, pulling your computer out from under her head, making sure to save your paper before you close the lid. “What’s wrong?”

Her face brightens almost immediately. “I am so glad you asked,” she states. “So, I’m walkin’ through campus today, right?”

“As one does.”

She hums. “And there’s a shit ton of tabling outside the student union. Frats, clubs, some vegan guy giving out pamphlets –”

“Paige,” you interrupt, raising a brow. “The point?”

“Oh.” She nods, collecting her thoughts. “So there was this club – forgot who they were, lowkey, there was a lot of letters – but on Friday, they’re hostin’ a Valentine’s Day contest and the first place prize is insane. I’m talking gift cards, cookie decorating kits, I think there was even a coupon in there for a fucking spa trip, or some shit, but you get the point, yeah? I wanted to sign us up for it.”

You had to admit – you were a little intrigued by it. Between your class work and Paige and her teammates giving you an aneurysm every week, you were in dire need of a spa trip and a little bit of relaxation. But more than anything else in the world, you knew Paige. You recognized that gleam in her expression – it was a feigned nonchalance, like she was being slick and trying to hide it. “What’s the catch?” you ask bluntly.

She laughs, the sound more surprised than amused, and her head shifts in your lap to gaze up at you. You try to ignore the way it sets off a swarm of butterflies in your belly. “What makes you think there’s a catch?” she asks.

“You’re Paige Bueckers,” you state. “There’s always a catch. Like I knew there was a catch when you asked me if I would hide fourteen blonde wigs in my apartment.”

“They were for CD!” she argues. You narrow your eyes at her and she huffs a little, amused, her lips quirking into a radiant smile. “A’ight. I guess you got a point.” You hum, because of course you do. Her expression turns serious as she sighs, for real this time. “It’s a couple’s contest,” she admits. “But hear me out, okay?”

“I don’t think I have much of a choice,” you grumble, but your mind is racing.

“There’s a couple rounds,” she explains. “Like, the first round is trivia. How well do you know your partner, type shit. They score you, then they eliminate the people who don’t know shit about their partners. Second round is teamwork. They’ll give you a couple of puzzles and the most points will go to the teams who work well together and solve the puzzle quickly. More eliminations, then the partners are separated and they’re asked questions about each other – about what, I’on know. That should be the final round of eliminations and then the remaining couples are ranked based on points and prizes are given. Light work.”

“Light work?” you echo, a little self-deprecating. “Paige, we aren’t a couple.”

“Well, not exactly,” she concedes. “But we know each other pretty well. And can you really say no to the spa coupon?”

You bite your lip, sighing as you truly contemplate it. She’s got you there. The prize itself is worth the heartache that will come with pretending like you and Paige are actually dating. “You sure we can handle it?” you ask.

She pats your side, almost ignorant of the way it sends electricity coursing down your spine. “Duh,” she says like it’s obvious, her lips growing into a confident, assured smile. “We’re a dream team, baby. We got this.”

You could only hope so.

You nervously adjust your dress as you and Paige stand outside of the large room that the Valentine’s Day contest was taking place in. You spent the entire week leading up to Valentine’s Day an anxious wreck – part of you was worried that you would slip up and say something that you would come to regret, maybe say something a little too real. You had to keep reminding yourself that you and Paige were playing a part and once that gift basket was in your hands, then things could go back to normal. 

The two of you dedicated the better part of the week to perfecting your cover story. How you met, where you met, how long you’ve been together, all of the cheesy romance milestone moments that you were certain you’d be asked about. You mutually decided to not get too creative as maintaining the lie would become even more difficult, but you were confident in your ability to sell a story.

“You ready?” Paige asks you, drawing you from your racing thoughts as she squeezes your hand gently. You didn’t even realize her hand had slipped into yours. Now that you’re aware of it, it’s all you can think of. Her hand is strong, enveloping yours completely, and it brings you a calming peace you weren’t even aware that you’d been seeking out. Feeling yourself relax, you meet her eyes and nod, trying not to smile too hard when she beams at you.

As she leads the two of you inside the auditorium, you do your best to not stare too much at her. She’s dressed simply yet elegantly; donning a fitting suit that’s a light pink in color in honor of the occasion, the fluorescent lights overhead reflecting off of her stunning chains and the rings adorning her fingers. Her hair is tied back in her formal slick-back, the diamonds in her ears sparkling, and you really have to drag your eyes off of her. You’d already spent so much of the drive over staring at her and you’re sure she’d caught you a few times but was too nice to say anything to you.

The event had a decent turn out. You count fourteen couples at most, fifteen including you and Paige, although you couldn’t really tell if that was good or bad. Beating fourteen other real, actual, dedicated, in-love couples was totally manageable. So what if you and Paige weren’t actually together, but you were the most convincing pair of best friends the world had ever seen? She said you could do it, and damn it if you weren’t going to get that spa treatment.

The auditorium, however, was decorated to the nines. Lights and streamers were strewn about, various complementing shades of pinks and lilacs matching the Valentine’s Day themes. The tables were covered in pink tablecloths with gorgeous centerpieces. Honestly, you had to give props where they were due – this club has gone all out for this Valentine’s Day event, although you’re sure they probably splurged their semesterly budget on all of the amenities.

Before you or Paige have the chance to say anything to each other, you’re approached by a young woman wearing a pink polo shirt with the club's name and logo emblazoned on the chest. UConn, UMatter. You glance quickly at Paige, trying not to let the amusement show on your face as you remember her words – ‘There was a lot of letters.’ She was so full of shit. “Hi guys!” the young woman greets enthusiastically. “Thanks so much for signing up. What’s the last name?”

“Bueckers.”

The girl nods, scanning her clipboard before finding Paige’s name. “Okay, perfect. Let me show you guys to your table.” She leads you diligently through the room, craning her head over her shoulder to explain. “Madelyn’s gonna be around soon to walk you guys through the trivia section once we start, alright? She’ll let you guys know everything you need.”

You and Paige thank the club member and she offers you two one last smile as the two of you sit down next to each other. Paige’s hand finds your knee, almost subconsciously, and you try to find your dignity. It’s then that you notice the placecard in front of you – elegant script reading TEAM BUECKERS. With a quiet laugh, you nudge Paige’s elbow, drawing her attention to the paper. “‘Team Bueckers,’ huh?” you ask her teasingly. “You forget about me?”

“Never,” she swears. “I think they assign the names based on who registered. Trust me, I had a name lined up and everything. We were gonna be PB & Slay.”

You snort. “I’m Slay?”

“No,” she deadpans. “You’re PB. Keep up, please.”

“Of course,” you say obviously, like it’s definitely your fault. “I’ll do better next time.” She squeezes your knee under the table, smiling wryly at you.

Once everyone filters in, the girl who’d greeted you at the door makes her way to the front of the room, adjusting the microphone. She introduces herself as the president of the UConn, UMatter club, explaining some of their objectives and goals for the spring semester – you tune out a lot of it, which you’ll probably feel bad for later, but you weren’t here for the club recruitment. You were here for the pedicure that was calling your name this weekend. She makes it through the rest of her opening remarks, officially announcing the beginning of the first challenge: trivia. Several club members make their way to designated tables and a short, brunette girl takes a seat in front of you and Paige.

“Hey, guys,” she says, grinning widely and handing the both of you dry erase boards and a marker each. “I’m Madelyn. I’m gonna walk the two of you through today’s challenges. We’ll go back and forth – you answer one, then the other, so on and so forth. If your answers are the same, then you’ll get a point. Ready?” You and Paige hum affirmatively. “Alright. Question for Paige – when is your partner’s birthday?”

Paige huffs, her lips quirking into a smile as she uncaps her marker. “Light work,” she murmurs as she writes her answer down. “It’s a national holiday.” You roll your eyes as Madelyn laughs. Paige flips the dry erase board around, showcasing it to you and Madelyn, and you nod as Madelyn awards you both one point.

“Same question for you,” Madelyn says to you. “When is Paige’s birthday?”

You uncap your marker and write down your answer. October 20, 2001. “The world hasn’t known peace since,” you murmur under your breath, drawing laughter from Paige. You flip your board around and Paige nods smugly.

“Two for two,” Madelyn states. “Next question for Paige. What trait of yours is your partner’s favorite?”

You and Paige exchange a glance, her brow raising teasingly. She writes down her answer and you do the same, eventually flipping your boards over for the reveal. The two of you hadn’t exactly prepared well to answer this one, so you were hoping that you and Paige were on the same wavelength. You lean forward, glancing at her whiteboard, and smiling with relief when you see her answer: she likes my energy. Paige’s smile is smug, but there’s an underlying softness in her eyes. “Don’t laugh at me,” you huff, trying to explain. “You just — you have this way about you, like you’re kind, warm, you make people smile, and you always support them. You’re just genuinely good and, I don’t know, I really like that about you.”

Paige’s smile isn’t any less confident, although she seems a little bashful now, her cheeks tinging pink. “Three for three.” she says.

Madelyn tries to stifle her grin, but it’s clearly not working. “Next question is for you. When Paige is having a rough time, how do you help her relax?”

“With great difficulty,” you gripe, making Paige and Madelyn snort as you write your actual answer. By forcing her to chill the fuck out. You and Paige flip your boards, hers reading a much politer She makes me do nothing all day. Madelyn nods, awarding you the point, but you hardly pay her any mind as you meet Paige’s eyes. “You do too much,” you say, which makes her groan. “You overwork yourself and you microdose a burnout and I have to make you sit down and remember that you’re human.”

“You’re worse than me!” she points out.

You sniff. “This is about you,” you declare, “not me.” Paige rolls her eyes fondly, but she can’t help her laughter. 

“Next question,” Madelyn says, grinning. “Paige, what did you guys do on your first date?”

This was a question that the two of you had prepared for. You both decided that a little bit of the truth went a long way and the truth was that you and Paige had no shortage of quasi-dates that you could easily draw from. You tried not to think too hard about that as the two of you write down your answers. You turn your boards, revealing similar responses of ‘we went to her dorm and made dinner together after one of her games.’

You glance at Paige and she sighs. “Don’t start,” she pleads. 

“I’m actually a little invested now,” Madelyn chirps, which makes you grin and makes Paige bury her head in her hands. 

“All I’ll say is that Paige shouldn’t be in the kitchen without supervision but I really admire her, um, willingness to get creative,” you say kindly. Your best friend pinches your thigh under the table and you jerk back, laughing. Not wanting to embarrass her in front of a stranger, you leave it at that, although you smile at Paige like you’re the only two at the table. “I had a good time, though. She made it memorable.” She smiles back at you, something tender that has your heart constricting. 

The both of you knew the truth, though. Paige was not a good cook. She doesn’t make terrible food — dinner was delicious, but Paige is chaotic and an actual hazard. Watching her chop an onion hurt something deep inside you although she’d seemed so proud of herself. You didn’t have the heart to make fun of her. 

“Five for five,” Madelyn says, drawing your attention back to her. “Next question for you. Who confessed to who?”

You and Paige lock eyes again, a silent conversation passing between the two of you, and you write down her name. You turn your boards, Paige’s name written on the both of them and you smile to yourself. “She was pretty oblivious,” Paige says, referring to you, and your smile falls as your jaw hits the ground. “I dropped so many hints and she just didn’t pick up on them. I eventually got tired—”

“Desperate,” you cut in. 

“Tired,” she emphasizes, smirking at you, “so I planned out this huge romantic thing and at the end, she still didn’t understand so I told her straight up.”

You roll your eyes. “Maybe you’re just not as slick as you think,” you tell her. 

“Nah,” Paige says. “I’m super romantical.”

“Sure,” you concede. 

Madelyn stifles her smile. “Alright. Two more questions for both of you. Paige, what is your partner’s pet peeve?”

“If you get this wrong,” you grumble, hearing Paige snicker as the two of you write down your answers. After you flip your boards, she grins proudly when your answers line up. 

“She hates not being taken seriously,” Paige recites. “She’s an English major. People always think it’s just easy or unimportant shit, like reading and writing papers, but she actually does a lot of interesting analysis and stuff that I never even considered. I’ll admit I was a little ignorant but she set me straight.”

“Wait, I didn’t know you thought that,” you say, honestly confused. 

She shrugs, a little bashful. “I talk a lot but I listen. Sometimes when you leave the room, I’ll read your paper just so I can ask better questions. You get all… glowy. And… I’on know. I like seeing you happy.”

You blink once at her, genuinely touched, and if you weren’t head over heels for Paige before then you definitely are now. She squeezes your knee again, her smile crooked yet tender. Damn it. You are hopeless. 

“That’s so sweet.” You’re a little shocked by Madelyn’s voice, but you clear your throat, refocusing. “Next one for you. What’s Paige’s least favorite season?”

“That’s easy,” you say, writing your answer down. Paige does the same. When you flip your boards, you glance at Paige’s, smiling wryly. “Paige hates spring. She has really bad allergies and all of the pollen is honestly a death sentence, so she’ll get all congested and sneezy and will spend a good two weeks bitching about it and how it makes her Jeep dirty.”

You glance at Paige, waiting for her to say something, but she just shrugs with a smug expression. “Last question for Paige,” Madelyn says. “What is something your partner does to show her love for you?”

Neither of you say anything, but Paige stares at you thoughtfully, another silent conversation passing between you. You don’t need to think about your answer as you write it down. On cue, you both flip your boards, Paige’s reading simply, She takes care of me. You can’t help the way your heart swells, a fond smile overtaking your face. “Before you, I wasn’t really the… you know, the receiver, I guess. Always in control, always expected to lead. You make me feel like I can just be me, which is really hard sometimes.” Paige laughs off the vulnerability, but you see right through it – the painful honesty.

“We’re equals,” you remind her, nudging her leg with your knee. “We take care of each other.”

“Yeah,” she agrees, her voice soft as she gazes at you. “I’m glad that we do.”

You spot Madelyn out of the corner of your eye, which sobers you up quickly. She smiles. “You guys are so cute,” she gushes. “Final question for you and we’re done with this round. What is Paige’s love language?”

You feel Paige’s stare on you as you write, but you don’t glance back at her. You can hear the scribble of her marker, her capping it. When you’re finished, you finally look at her, taking in the soft expression on her face, and despite yourself, a smile grows on your face too. Together, you turn your boards, your answers being the exact same once more — quality time and physical touch. “Ten for ten, baby,” you croon, raising your hand for her to smack her palm against.

“Great job!” Madelyn says. “Let me just go submit these scores and I’ll be back to walk you guys through the puzzle round after eliminations. Sit tight.” She offers the two of you a quick grin before she’s walking off.

“Ten for ten,” Paige repeats, nudging you a little. “We’re like that?”

“I guess we’re actually kinda good at this friends thing,” you retort, although part of you wishes you were anything but.

Paige’s subsequent grin is far too knowing, like she has a trick up her sleeve. “Maybe a little.”

You laugh a little under your breath, adjusting your dress and leaning back in your chair to get comfortable. Before you know it, the scores are officially in. You and Paige had a perfect one, so you weren’t all too worried about getting eliminated in the first round, but five unlucky couples ended up leaving. The two of you watched from afar, trying not to stare too hard at the retreating couples, although they made it hard. One girl walked out crying, gesturing wildly as her partner trailed behind her, a desperate expression on her face. Another one was pure anger, slamming the door behind her. You didn’t think that this club contest would get people so riled up, but you considered that it was probably the realization that your partner truly didn’t know anything about you. You just lucked out with Paige – she understood you.

Madelyn returns quickly and cuts straight to the point. She instructs you and Paige to stand up, handing the both of you a towel, and adjusts your arms until you’re holding the towels perpendicular to each other, almost intertwined. “The goal here is to separate from each other, but it can be tricky because the towels will tangle you up. We’re looking to see how fast you can solve this puzzle and how well the two of you work together. Are you guys ready?” You and Paige nod and Madelyn grins again. “Alright. You can start.”

Instantly, the room around you two is sheer pandemonium. The couples around you are moving quickly, trying to untangle themselves, but it’s clear that the panic is settling in. You and Paige exchange a glance, laughing to each other softly. “Game plan?” she asks you.

“We need to get these like…not perpendicular,” you offer helpfully, and Paige nods, adjusting her arms. The angle change makes your towels bunch up and twist at their centers.

“Spin around,” she instructs. You do as so, the towels untwisting around the middle. You pause to analyze your situation, trying to plan out the moves in your head as Paige does the same.

“Okay, bring your towel over my head and let me step through it.” After that move, the both of you glance down, taking in your situation.

Paige hums. “The rest is easy,” she says. You nod in agreement, a silent understanding passing between the two of you and you move in tandem, twisting and shifting and stepping up until you’re both finally separating from each other in record time, having completed the puzzle. “We’re like that?” she asks you again, her expression smug and satisfied in a way that’s only comparable to when she’s on the court and her lips are curling after sinking a contested three point shot.

“Dream team,” you remind her, letting the victory wash over you, clapping your hand against hers, although she doesn’t immediately release you, squeezing your hand with a proud smile.

“I don’t think I’ve actually seen anyone solve it that quickly,” Madelyn admits. “Or that calmly.” As soon as she says it, a commotion from the other side of the room draws your attention. There’s one couple that are twisted so unnaturally that it looks like they’re playing Twister, but it seems that the girl gets tired of the shenanigans because she drops her towel and storms out with a frustrated yell. “Case in point.”

You laugh and Madelyn walks away again to tally the points and make their final eliminations. Once everything is set, five couples remain out of the initial fifteen. After the last challenge, two couples will be eliminated once more and the remaining three will be given prizes in order of points. You and Paige were determined to finish strong – if the first two challenges were any indicator, you two had this in the bag. True to Paige’s word, the couples were being split up for the last challenge, and she offers you a competitive smile as Madelyn whisks her away.

You pass the time on your phone although Paige isn’t gone for long. However, what does shock you is the sudden bashfulness that’s clear as day on her features, like the last challenge had made her confess something important or she had to be vulnerable. You can’t help the sudden worry that seizes your body, but Paige rests a hand on your hip, squeezing you once with a confident smile. It couldn’t be that bad.

Madelyn leads you into an adjacent room where the president of the club is sitting at a table waiting for you. She smiles when you enter, motioning to the seat across from her, and it feels strangely like entering the principal’s office in elementary school, like you’re in trouble for something. The club president doesn’t spare any time for pleasantries and instead cuts right to the chase, something that you’re grateful for.

“I’m not gonna take up anymore of your time, but after seeing you and your partner perform so well in this contest, I only have two questions for you,” she explains. “This is our second year running this contest and no one has scored as high as you two have, which is kind of insane because the third round scores haven’t been added yet.” You smile politely, honestly unsure of what to say, but the club president continues. “How long have the two of you been together?”

“Going on three months,” you respond, thinking back to the timeline you and Paige had agreed on, hoping your voice doesn’t shake. You are a little surprised by how real your next words feel. “We were best friends for a really long time before then – we still are. Paige is just…that kind of person that makes you feel like you’ve spent forever with her, you know?”

The club president hums, agreeing. She pauses before glancing up at you, studying your features. “What’s something that you haven’t told your girlfriend, but you would want her to know?”

You hardly need the time to think about your answer, responding, “That I love her.” The club president’s expression softens, a smile growing on her face. “We haven’t, um, gotten there yet, but I mean it. I wanna make it perfect for her. She’s given so much to me in the short time we’ve been together and in the time we were friends. And she just…she means everything to me.”

She smiles. “I think you guys are perfect for each other.”

Despite yourself, you smile, a blush spreading across your cheeks. “I think so, too.”

After your solo questioning wraps up, you meet Paige at your table and you offer her a bashful grin, similar to the one she’d offered you when she returned. You don’t have the chance to say anything else to her as the final round of eliminations are being announced. You and Paige are spared, which doesn’t surprise you, and the two eliminated couples take their loss with dignity as they exit. Paige links her hand with yours – final three. In third place, Team Parker. In second…Team Hayes, which means that first place can only be –

“Team Bueckers.”

You and Paige relax immediately, high fiving each other in celebration. What you’re not fully expecting is the tight hug that Paige pulls you into, whispering a fond good job into your ear, although you can’t help the way you soften, sinking into her embrace. She leads you to the center of the room to collect your goodie basket. The various club members send you off with their congratulations, too, and you pretend to not notice the slick wink that Madelyn shoots you as you and Paige walk out.

The night air is cool, making you shiver slightly, and Paige doesn’t hesitate before she’s sliding off her blazer and settling it over your shoulders. You smile gently at her. “You won’t be cold?” you murmur.

“Nah,” she promises, nudging you. “I can handle it. You, though? I’on know.”

“That’s no way to treat someone who just won you these spa coupons,” you say, reaching into the gift basket to wave said coupons in the air. “C’mon, I clutched up, you can’t lie. And to think you wouldn’t have even had a partner for this if you didn’t rope me into it. I think we played our parts pretty well.”

Paige laughs gently, a tinkling sound that carries over the drag of the wind. “You still don’t get it, do you?” she asks, but there’s no true offense behind her words.

You stare at her in confusion. “Get what?” you respond.

“Do you remember that question Madelyn asked you earlier?” Paige says, her steps slowing, tilting her head down to look at you. The street lights reflect off of her face so beautifully, the blue of her eyes illuminated by the soft light. You can’t help the way your heart constricts at the sight. “‘Who confessed to who?’” You hum, urging her to go on. “You remember what I said? That you were oblivious and I dropped a lot of hints you didn’t pick up on?”

The gears in your brain spin for a few revolutions before everything clicks into place. “Oh my God,” you breathe out. “Are you–”

“Confessing?” she says, her lips quirking into a smile. “Yeah.”

“You dropped hints before?”

“So many,” she confirms.

“Oh my God,” you say again. You stop in your tracks, prompting her to do the same. The expression on her face is endlessly amused. “You planned a huge romantic thing – this?”

She shrugs. “The contest was the club’s shit, but yeah. I planned on asking you to come with me to this. I didn’t actually care about the prize, but the coupons are pretty sweet, right?”

You shake your head, ignoring her rambling. “You planned a huge romantic thing, but I still didn’t get it at the end, so you told me straight up,” you finish, partly in disbelief. “You think you’re so fucking slick, don’t you?” you accuse, which just makes her break out into laughter. “You literally sat next to me and told me exactly how you were going to ask me out and I didn’t know? And not only did you do that, but you were right about it?”

“I know you,” Paige says a little smugly. “And I told you that I could be romantical.”

“You are such a pain in my ass,” you whisper, but her arm is slinking around your waist, pulling you into her body as she grins insufferably, and you let yourself be pulled, your hands resting on her chest. “You are literally so annoying.”

Her nose brushes yours as she inches a little closer. “You know what they asked me in the final round?” she says, her voice loud enough for only you to hear. You nod. “They said, ‘What’s something you haven’t told your partner, but you’d like to?’”

“Funny,” you say. “They asked me the same thing.”

She smiles at you. “I told them I’d tell you that I love you,” she confesses.

Your cheeks burn as you register her words. “Funny,” you say again. “I told them the same thing.”

Her expression shifts, something like relief flashing in her eyes, something tender in her gaze. “Did you?”

“Well, I told them that’s what I would tell my girlfriend,” you trail off intentionally. “Seeing as I don’t currently have one of those…”

“Don’t play,” Paige murmurs, squeezing your hip gently, drawing a laugh from you. “Be mine?”

“You gonna share those coupons?”

Her eyes are bright when she responds. “I’on even care about them. Just want you.”

“You’ve got me.”

That promise is all she needs. She smiles at you, happiness in her features, and she doesn’t waste any time before she’s leaning in fully, her lips finding yours. You’re eagerly responding, melting into her as her arm tightens around your waist. You loop yours around her neck, standing on the tips of the toes for better leverage. Before you know it, her grin grows too wide and the two of you are laughing against each other’s lips, the sound of your love and giddiness the perfect way to end a perfect night. If you had Paige Bueckers and her annoyingly charming antics to look forward to, then one thing is for certain – you couldn’t wait to see what she had in store for Valentine’s Day next year.

[sleepy055]

Shanks x fem!reader x Buggy ( Platonic Roger pirates x reader ) headcanon

Context : FEM!READER with healing ability No skin color ( no blushing etc... ) Reader is around the same height and age as Shanks and Buggy Mention of Rayleigh taking care of Y/n hair English is not first language Just some headcanon that I had in my head about how would life be on the Oro Jackson as a young girl treated like a princess ( for a different context you can always ask )

As being a young girl part of a pirate crew, everyone took good care of you. Even grumpy and meanie Crocus was nice to you. You were always put aside during the fight, they gave you the best food and White beard would even have a gift for you, even Big Mom tried to get you when she crossed path with Roger.

Rayleigh was your caretaker as this man is 100% girly dad material considering his relationship with Shaky and how close he is with the Amazon Lily women and girl (You probably became a sister figure to Boa and her sister later on)

Rayleigh would take care of your hair giving you cute haircut washing it with the best shampoo, he took care of your wardrobe and training as he wanted you to be able to defend yourself, if you wish to become a swordsman you will have to prove him your worth (you probably were able to make him lost his guard for a moment that impressed hi)

You hanged out a lot with Roger, he would also bring you into his shenanigans escaping from a group of lions while he laughed running really fast holding you in his arm. Help you prank Shanks and Buggy as vengeance for their own prank. Will come to bed and tell you a bedtime story of his legendary adventure as a rookie pirate, like his meeting with Brook. (He probably would have wished to do the same with his son :c)

Gaban would teach you tips and tricks of being in the life of a pirate. Being a big bro give you brotherly advice, he is always honest, telling you if he worried or mad at you for something.

Crocus is a strict serious man, but he has a soft side for you, he would teach a lot about medical knowledge to help your healing power. You serve him as an assistant helping him a lot in his work charge, he gives you rewards like candies or booze for your hard work. He surprisingly never speaks harshly to you.

Oden, when he met the crew he was curious as to why a young girly would be here, then you managed to help the people that were cut by Rayleigh sword during the Roger vs Withebeard fight. He was curious about your ability, asking you a question.

The people of the ship would bring you gift, cute dress, gift linked to your hobbies like book music instrumental or art furniture anything really that will make you smile

Withebeard would be so nice and sweat you always smiling and laughing for you and giving food even gift you sit with you to eat and even gifted you an accessories (will even laugh about adopting you which did not make Rayleigh laugh)

You get free hugs from Inuarashi and Nekomamushi !

Shanks x Reader x Buggy

Oh these two, the chaos. They would make you part of their shenanigans pulling prank on the other crewmate you will always be the one with the least consquence wich would make them jealous

They would also bring you to their fight," Y/n tell him I'm right ! "" Stop lying Y/n you know I'm telling the truth" when you usually did not even know what they were talking about.

Would try so hard to impress you protecting during fight or do a thing for you which you could use at your own advantage, making the crew laugh while they fight for who will cut the most fruit for you.

Whenever they talked about their future they wanted to make a crew with you and get many treasures but deep down they knew it was kinda more complicated than that for you as they knew that the adult of the ship made everything in their power to protect you from a life of a pirate.

You would go adventure with them trying to solve mysteries, steal from bandits, run away from monsters, you would heal a lot of their injuries and every time you would be the one injured they would lock in to take you out of danger and take care of you bringing you tot the other crying and worried about you.

They have an engraved memories of you in their head, the three of you lying on the beach looking the stars in the sky the wave of the sea it was such a moment of peace. Shanks x reader focused

He always tries to be flirting with you (at least he tries to copy Rayleigh charisma) would offer his hand when you leave the ship. Open doors for you, pose in front of you.

Decently put his straw hat on your head when you were looking at the horizon, saying you looked pretty wearing it.

The crew would notice and ship you so hard (especially Marco during Roger Withebeard fight) watching you sit next to Shanks smiling over two kids being cute.

The day Roger find you kissing Shanks (at age 13) he would be so shook and laugh happily that will interrupt the kiss, he would even harder while Shanks hold you while he blush. Buggy x reader focused

If you complimented him on his intelligence or his strength he will be over the mood, his ego being boosted (he deserves it)

One day when he did not wear his hat you told him he had beautiful hair would change him, he will start to show it a little bit more once adult then have longer hair as an emperor later on.

Will always be a big tsundere with you calling you an idiot, but you know damn he doesn't mean that as he blush.

He will sleep putting his head on your shoulder and will run away once waking up, realizing.

When he kissed you and Roger caught both laughing happy for the both of you, he screamed embarrassed which brought the other who were surprised by the scene.

(I know it wasn't great, but it was a first try =~=)

[yanderes-galore]

I saw Hazbin! I feel like I'm one of the few people who like Nifty. Can I get a Platonic/Romantic concept where Nifty is obsessed with keeping her darling clean and gets *really* upset whenever they get messy. And maybe a possible moment of the darling trying to calm Nifty by going, "hey me getting messy means you get to clean me again, right?"

Hm... Alright, I'll see what ideas I can do for this. Hopefully it isn't too short ^^;

Yandere! Niffty with Messy! Darling

(Short Concept)

Pairing: Platonic/Romantic

Possible Trigger Warnings: Gender-Neutral Darling, Obsession, Clingy behavior, Threats, Violence, Mature themes (It's Hazbin....), Dubious companionship/relationship.

Considering that Niffty is obsessed with cleaning... you're going to be in for a rough time.

She hates messes and seems to fixate on cleaning.

Even in places she shouldn't.

She loves cleaning, that's why she's so good at working at the hotel.

I don't doubt Niffty would find joy in cleaning her obsession.

It's not really something you'd consider a fetish.

She just really likes cleaning you.

She's quite intense with it, too.

Niffty would crawl all over her obsession to clean them.

Doesn't matter what you're doing around the hotel... She's on you like a rabid animal.

It's really strange to you... but like most hotel staff you probably get used to it.

Niffty is terrifying for anyone to deal with, honestly.

Well... Except Alastor....

She's known to be violent, in fact she loves it.

She's also quite masochistic.

She's not manipulative, although I would consider her possessive.

It doesn't matter how she views her obsession, either.

She's completely feral with them, especially when it comes to keeping you clean.

Speaking of which... Yes, she would despise you being messy.

After all, it's confirmed Niffty seems to have a form of OCD.

She'd spend a lot of time cleaning you, your room, anything that has to do with you.

I'm convinced you couldn't shower without her there to make sure you did it right.

Let's be honest, Hell is a dirty place.

It's hard to go anywhere without being covered in some sort of substance.

Which, if Niffty is obsessed with you, is a problem.

She's known to get irritable and violent when things don't go her way.

You best throw yourself in that shower quickly if you ever leave the hotel.

In fact, Niffty may just try to keep you in the hotel.

Since she makes sure the hotel is clean, you'll stay clean there!

I do agree one way to get her to calm down is reassuring her she can clean you again.

Cleaning seems to make her focus on something and calm down.

It's also a way for you to calm her down in general.

You can make her forget jealousy or murderous tendencies by allowing her to clean you.

In a way I'd say it's bonding between her and her obsession.

You'd be one of the only ones to keep her in check.

I'm not saying she won't try to stab someone over you... She probably will...

However, you can prevent some damage by distracting her.

Just be careful when it comes to getting messy... while you can usually subdue her...

Nothing's guaranteed.

[guardian-of-time-if]

There's so many Luk variations compared to other it seems like. How would a platonic marriage with Luk workout? I was aiming toward a marriage where they're not in romantic love but are still each other's support and confidants. Maybe sex, maybe not, but they're both here for the empire and they're clearly a united front who are comfortable with closeness without that expectation of anything more.

SUPER Sorry if this is like incredibly niche, but with all the Luk variants I was just curious what else is possible that I haven't come across yet!

Overall, I appreciate all the work you put into the writing and world building! I'm planning on joining the patron soon to try and see how Oren's been doing 🙏

Hi Anon!

Answering below the cut because it's kind of long.

There's so many Luk variations compared to other it seems like.

Yeah. It wasn't my intention, but with the arranged marriage and him being such a major character, it just kind of worked out that way.

How would a platonic marriage with Luk workout?

I think it really depends a lot of MC. Like if you have a high friendship with him, and aren't romancing anyone else then it really is like a two friends doing the best they can with the situation they were given. If you have a sexless marriage, then I think he comes to see MC more like a sister than anything else, especially with how long they have known each other.

He's also pretty protective of an MC he's just friends with, which is really interesting if you're in a platonic marriage with him, and romancing someone else. (Or even just having a high friendship with him and romancing someone else in general.) If you are romancing someone else, then it'll be a bit more awkward as he tries his best to help cover for MC while also keeping up the facade of their marriage. (If there's something more specific you want to know feel free to send me a follow up ask.)

If you have a low friendhsip with him, and end up in a platonic marriage, it'll feel a lot different. To be honest, I'm not sure I'll let this be an option, and probably won't make up my mind until I'm at that point.

I was aiming toward a marriage where they're not in romantic love but are still each other's support and confidants. Maybe sex, maybe not, but they're both here for the empire and they're clearly a united front who are comfortable with closeness without that expectation of anything more.

That's definetely possible, and I'm glad people are interested in exploring this route! It'll be a little easier to have this closeness, if you don't romance anyone and pursue a platonic marriage, but you should be able to get to that point whether you romance someone else or not.

SUPER Sorry if this is like incredibly niche, but with all the Luk variants I was just curious what else is possible that I haven't come across yet!

Don't worry. I'm including the option because I find it interesting, and I don't mind talking about a platonic marriage with him.

Overall, I appreciate all the work you put into the writing and world building! I'm planning on joining the patron soon to try and see how Oren's been doing 🙏

Thank you so much! I'm really glad you like the story. And thanks for even considering joining the Patreon.

[twiggies-draws]

Rate Your OC

tagged by @lizardperson :]

I'm too shy to tag anyone...

---

Brad!

art by gurepyon

Brad has a LOT of different versions that if I did all of them all of these would be 10/10 probably lmao. So for the purpose of this one, I'm going to go with one of my more 'go to' ones, the Pathfinder based one where he was from the Plane of Fire and was part of Ymeri's cult and hadn't resolved his connection with Ymeri.

compassion - 8/10: Extremely compassionate, he feels he has a lot of making up to do and also he just loves trying to help folk out. Unfortunately he sometimes does not always take the best route to help folk (ie, giving a kid a knife because he's encouraging her ambitious side) but, hey, he's trying.

bitterness - 7/10: He can get bitter very easily and hold grudges for a while. Even if he pretends things are fine he can sometimes let things stew, but he's usually open about little things he's unhappy about enough for any potential stewing to get nipped in the bud as needed. The reason this isn't higher is that he is very easy to appease for smaller slights.

happiness - 6/10: despite his demeanour he's actually miserable a lot of the time LMAOO. Like he's genuinely happy he's out and about and free and loves being able to see the sights and sounds and meet people but he's suffering a LOT of issues from his anxiety and paranoia especially since he's actively often actively fighting with issues with controlling himself sometimes. But hey all is good if he just pretends it's fine right? o7 Part of why he ends up doing stupid shit all the time is it makes it so he doesn't have to think about other stuff chasing that fun (and then after a while it became a force of habit lmao).

chivalry - 3/10: Hmmm... He can try sometimes. He might not use the right slang though and if it's too much effort he drops it.

pride - 7/10: He's insanely prideful, he hates being talked down to (despite the fact he puts up an act that makes him very easy to talk down to for the honesty reason below) but his ability to put it aside to keep things going smoothly rather than stop and make too huge a fuss of it makes this lower than it might be. Easy way for him to get a grudge tho lol.

honesty - 2/10: He gives the image of being very honest but he's only really super honest about less important things. Not liking how something looks, being upset about what someone said to him, etc. Otherwise, he's surprisingly very dishonest when it comes to certain things like, say, anything about himself. Or at any point he genuinely needs to be dishonest to get out of a situation. He's actually an extremely good liar and sometimes lies almost habitually. He manages to keep the image that he's easy to get info out of and easy to read by playing into that act for less important things, which makes it even easier to bluff and lie about other things he doesn't want to discuss.

bravery - 10/10: Dumbass does dumb things to save the day. [Exception: Anything to do with Ymeri and his home will make him turn tail]

recklessness - 8/10: Okay he does actually sometimes pause to consider the downsides to what might happen. He might not throw himself off a cliff. Emphasis on might.

ambition - 2/10: He's very 'meh, shrug' about a lot of stuff. Just goes with the flow and sees what happens and wants to chill and have fun.

loyalty - 10/10: You get on his good side (not hard) and you are guaranteed a personal flamethrower who is alarmingly willing to char people for you.

love - 7/10: Ohhhhh he craves proper love (romantic, platonic, anything) soooo bad. It took him a while to figure it out but once he got a taste he wanted MORE.

sense of family - 0/10: He was never really raised with a particular familial bond, and doesn't really understand it well.

attractiveness - 5/10: I think he's lame as fuck but it mostly has to do with his stylistic choices and dumb mannerisms. If he took off his fucking sunglasses he actually looks okay, I'm a sucker for horns. His Evil version while he was still in the cult gets higher ratings cuz he doesn't have that stupid smug smile and dumb getup. Also evil brad has tiddies.

agility - 7/10: He doesn't keep himself as fit as when he was a soldier, so he's lost a bit of it.

sex drive - 6/10: He doesn't really seek it out all the time but like, he absolutely will not say no in any normal circumstance.

[piracytheorist]

Is there a scene in the Spy x Family anime that you wish was in the manga, or vice versa?

Hmmm... honestly, I'm quite satisfied with what I've been seeing so far, considering I'm one of the very few that go anime-to-manga instead of the opposite. It's always a surprise when I read the respective manga chapter of the episode I just watched, and to see that something was added in the anime.

Of course, my top favourite addition is the over-the-top Loidman adventure in episode 5. However, I don't believe it misses from the manga; it's just as ridiculous (affectionate) as it is, the anime simply took advantage of its animation perks to bring it to a different level. Similar is the scene of Yor bringing Anya's gym clothes to her, I even remember watching it and going like "I wonder how that goes in the manga" and being surprised that it was an original part! Again, in this part, there was a lot of focus on the over-the-top action and movement, something that the anime can use much more easily.

So I don't think I have an anime-only scene that I miss from the manga. As for vice versa, I wouldn't say it's the lack of a scene, more like how they make some expressions less... passionate.

In the manga, Loid here looks nearly desperate, surprised, out of his depth. In the anime, his expression is more neutral, more reserved, like he feels more confused than anything else. And the point of that moment is for him to actually feel out of his depth, until Yor offers a helping hand.

I'd dare say this is one of the worst offenders, if not the worst offender. I understand why the anime team avoided showing Twilight too worried for Nightfall, as they probably feared it would make audiences think that Oh No Twilight Doesn't Love Yor Because He Showed One (1) Iota of Care for Another Woman!! Is Nightfall Gonna Break Them Apart???!... which, let's be honest, is a totally valid fear to have. Endo makes it crystal clear that Nightfall has no hope as a romantic rival, but audiences can be really thick and stupid, especially when it comes to (even potential) love triangles.

Still, that "neutering" of his expression takes away from his characterization. Twilight is a deeply empathetic person, and seeing Nightfall so upset makes him truly worried. He is Nightfall's mentor and whether he has control over it or not, he cares for her feelings. And this can happen platonically, for the love of fuck, romance isn't the only nor the holiest of connections a person can have with someone else. So for the sake of "protecting" the audience's secure feelings for twiyor, they ended up making Twilight look like an ignoramus.

Again, I get it. But I can love twiyor and have my Twilight be empathetic towards people that aren't his wife or daughter, you know?

Another, subtler but still striking change. Look at that worried eyebrow in the manga, we only see half his face yet we clearly see how touched he is by (what he thinks are) Bond's motives. In the anime, this is really dulled down. It's only the barely visible blush that makes him look a little touched.

Overall, I believe the anime does a great job translating Endo's expressions, from the emotional ones to the subtle ones to the ridiculous ones. But if I were to be asked, I'd change those examples (there might be a few others, but these were the first that came to mind) and make them closer to the manga.

There are, however, a few changes in the pacing that hit the spot perfectly right. One example I'm thinking of is from Chapter 35/Episode 24:

In the manga, it's straightforward. Loid sees Yor's reaction to what happened, he's thinks of his mother, and he shares the memory with Yor.

This gif was sped up to fit in the gifset I made, but notice how there's pauses for Twilight to go from one expression to the other. There's even one moment of him looking to his bottom right, and there's a very interesting correlation to lateral eye movement here.

Per this graph, he's remembering a feeling/sensation. The feeling of calmness he felt in his mother's presence.

The anime takes time to show him go from realizing that Yor feels bad, to feeling guilty himself and wanting to placate her worries, to remembering his own feelings about his mother, to wondering if he should share that memory, to deciding to share it.

So I feel the anime team knows very well what they're doing, and they respect the original material enough to make additions that bring the story and characters to a whole new, precious level. But, I don't doubt that they're terribly overworked and underpayed, so sometimes things can slip through. I don't blame them, in any case.

Not directed at the asker, but if you feel like shitting on the anime, this is not an invitation to do so on my post. Make your own and leave me out of it.

(Anime only (or anime first?) fan here, don't spoil me for the manga)

[irishhorse-blog]

Well, okay then... here we go!

I most want to take care of Hobi. He's always taking care of other people. Someone needs to take care of him.

I want Namjoon to take care of me. He's big, strong, smart, wise, has integrity and has a poet's soul. He's perfect. (No, I'm not drooling. Why do you ask?)

The person I'd like to kiss gently on the forehead is JK. Or JImin. Or both.

I think Jimin probably gives the best hugs in terms of emotion, but physically it would have to be Joonie.

Yoongi feels the most like home.

Do I have any platonic biases? No. Am I supposed to? ;)

What do you think makes them unique/stand out? -- All of BTS are ridiculously talented, hard working as hell, caring and compassionate, smart as whips, creative, kind, and genuine. They stand out because everything about them is special, unique and truly them. There may be parts of the BTS brand that have been manufactured by the agency, and there are parts that they have to keep to themselves because they have that right to have their own lives and privacy, but otherwise they're exactly as they seem. What you see is what you get, and I've never heard anyone who knows them who's said differently.

Name 3 similarities between 2 of your biases. Well, I think all seven of our Tannies share more than 3 similarities, but these are things they all have in common: dedicated to their art, devoted to the people and animals they love, full of kindness.

Are there any general trends you notice between your biases? I think they're all getting tired of being under other people's thumbs (the agency and the government). They all seem to be yearning to live their lives on their own terms. Once MS is out of the way, there will no more leverage that can be used against them.

Is there a specific position (what they do or age) your biases tend to be? (Rapper, singer, dancer, leader, older in the group, younger, maknaes, etc.) Nope. If I'm honest, I have 7 biases, and if I'm claiming a bias, then at any given moment I'll also have 6 bias wreckers. Can't really pick a specific position other than "All". (I'm restraining myself from making this dirty. I'm working hard, here.)

Do you have an ult? If you do, who? If not, why do you think you don't have one? Jikook are my ult, with JK being ever-so-slightly ultier than Jimin. That shifts at a moment's notice, though. Just say these two are tied.

If you have an ult, how often does your ult change? The two ults are constant, but who's ahead in #1 Ult vs. #2 Ult changes all the time. That's why I keep them more or less as a tie.

What's the longest you've had one ult? Five years.

Any stories to share about starting to bias someone? I was watching "Fire," my very first BTS MV and gateway drug. JK and Jimin just really caught my eye in their dancing and their faces and their voices and... yeah. It was just a "click" moment.

Do you have any bias wreckers? Heh. See above.

What do you consider a bias wrecker? To me, a bias wrecker is someone who distracts/attracts me the same amount as my bias. The difference between my 2 Ults and my 5 bias wreckers is a matter of microns anyway, so it doesn't take a lot to wreck me. ;)

Are there any groups where you have multiple biases? BTS

Any groups where you have a hard time picking a bias at all? BTS!

Does your bias affect the way you see the other members of their group? (Send a group or random choice) Not really. I appreciate all of the members as themselves as well as for interactions with JK and JM. Their friendships and love for each other make me all warm-hearted and gooey inside.

Is there anything in particular that draws you into your bias(es)? I'm drawn to the light of their souls in their eyes.

Talk about one of your favorite features of a bias (Send a group or random choice) This is true for all of the Tannies. My favorite feature is kindness.

What are they passionate about and how does that make you feel? (Send a group or random choice) They're passionate about doing good and being good, both in terms of personal behavior and performance. I respect the hell out of that. Perform and exercise your talents to as high a level as you can, and be a good human being at the same time. Gold.

Any particular clips or pics that you find comforting of a bias?

24. Any favorite funny moments of a bias?

25 through 40 on next post.

Bias questions

(Could also be used for favorite characters, but kpop biases is where I'm starting this from.)

Who do you most want to take care of?

Who do you most want to take care of you?

Is there anyone in particular you'd want to kiss gently on the forehead?

Who do you think would give the best hugs?

Who feels the most like home?

Do you have any platonic biases?

What do you think makes them unique/stand out? (Send a group or random choice)

Name 3 similarities between 2 of your biases

Are there any general trends you notice between your biases?

Is there a specific position (what they do or age) your biases tend to be? (Rapper, singer, dancer, leader, older in the group, younger, maknaes, etc.)

Do you have an ult? If you do, who? If not, why do you think you don't have one?

If you have an ult, how often does your ult change?

What's the longest you've had one ult?

Any stories to share about starting to bias someone?

Do you have any bias wreckers?

What do you consider a bias wrecker?

Are there any groups where you have multiple biases?

Any groups where you have a hard time picking a bias at all?

Does your bias affect the way you see the other members of their group? (Send a group or random choice)

Is there anything in particular that draws you into your bias(es)?

Talk about one of your favorite features of a bias (Send a group or random choice)

What are they passionate about and how does that make you feel? (Send a group or random choice)

Any particular clips or pics that you find comforting of a bias?

Any favorite funny moments of a bias?

Share a favorite selfie of a bias (Send a group or random choice)

What do you share in common with your biases?

Tell me 3 fun facts about your bias (Send a group or random choice)

Do you associate any of them with a specific animal? (Could be official, fan designation or just what you personally think)

Do you associate any of them with something other than an animal?

Are there any songs that make you think of them?

Do you own any special merch of any biases?

Is there anything you want to own of your bias but don't?

How many photocards/album items do you have for each bias?

How many photocards/album items do you have for your bias wreckers?

Do you intentionally collect any of your biases? (Going out of your way to trade/buy their photocards and other stuff)

Have any of your biases motivated or inspired you?

Have your biases helped you with anything?

If you could meet 1 bias in person and have an actual conversation with them, who would it be and why?

Express how much they mean to you in one sentence (Send a group or random choice)

Express how much they mean to you no limit ramble as much as you want (Send a group or random choice)

[queer-lemons]

12-14, and 16

ooooh ty!!

12. what is intimacy to you? i think intimacy can be anything from casual sex to friends cuddling or watching a movie together. i would consider something 'intimate' if it involves physical closeness and comfort while having a shared experience! slightly bitchy version: i think you could fuck a stranger into next year in one night and never see them again and it still be intimate

13. have you ever confused platonic feelings for romantic feelings or vice-versa? oh when i was growing up i was constantly thinking my platonic feelings were romantic. i didn't get how i wanted to be with these people and see them and hang out all the time, but thinking about really *being* with them long term was so impossible to imagine. i didn't have great family relationships so friends were the biggest relationships in my life, which associated them with romance bc that's what i was taught was the Big Feeling! slightly bitchy version: when every person ever tells you that you will fall in love with a cute boy, you tend to assume that's the only outcome possible

14. do you think platonic feelings for someone else can turn romantic? that's about one of the only rom-com plots that makes sense to me lol. i've definitely had the opposite happen a couple of times. i have had 3 actual romantic crushes, one moved away when i was a kid, and the other two turned into much deeper platonic relationships. slightly bitchy version: god i hope not, that would suck. i could do loving FWB who are roomates. but i don't see why they'd need romance

16. would you die for someone? if so, who? i would die for a lot of people in the moment. if it was premeditated tho? i can think of... well. actually quite a few people. a lot of kids i think. and probably my friends. i do think there's a difference between "i will push you away from this bus right in this moment" and "we have to choose who will live thinking it through properly" lol. slightly bitchy version: the real question is who i'd kill for, and let's be honest, basically anyone bc i'm a control freak who loves gore <3

[juantheashura]

So I gotta ask and I don’t remember if anyone asked before, but was it originally planned for Ignis to always end up with Seeker or do it change overtime?

This is a bit complicated, but the short answer is 'Yes-ish'. Let me explain.

Ignis was always meant to be in love with Seeker. This has been the case since the very first draft I posted of the game back in 2021, one of the very first things you learn about her is that she is attracted to him, and he has yet to reciprocate.

And their relationship has always been an integral part of the story. The way Ignis and Seeker trust each other, the way they interact, and, being honest, and the way they both care for each other more than for the rest of the League combined has always been something I intended to be part of the story. Ignis and Seeker have the deepest relationship of the whole cast, they have changed each other, and, in more than one way, they complete each other. Ignis is the first light in Seeker's life since Victoria stopped being around, and Seeker is... probably the only reason Ignis is even around.

At the point the MC joins the team, I don't believe Ignis or Seeker could function without the other. They don't know how to not need each other any more.

There are two big reveals in Book 1 of AToH. One of them has to do with Aki and Forlorn, but the other is Seeker's, and approximately half of it is dedicated purely to Ignis's reaction, to her proving how inexorably the two of them are tied, and to showing that there exists nothing in the universe that will make them ever let go of each other.

And I made a mistake.

Originally, AToH was only going to have three romances: Aki, Latooni, and Nova. A lot has changed since that idea, but those are the three I always knew I wanted to write. I received a bit of backlash because of that, stuff like 'too few options', 'only one male RO?', and even complaints that Aki and Lat were too basic, or... too overused (I have played every game on Jason Hill's platform. There is no character in there like Aki).

I don't begrudge people who made those comments. Criticism is how authors grow, of course, and those comments helped me grow. I ended up creating Iris, expanding Mars' role, and sidelining Dark Star.

But I overcorrected. I began to consider if Ignis and Seeker's relationship couldn't be written platonically- after all, plenty of superhero stories make a big point of the bonds of friendship. Ignis and Seeker didn't have to be a successful Batman and Wonder Woman, they could just be Goku and Bulma, right?

Wrong. The more I thought about it, the more I realized the climax, the reveal, the characters themselves don't work without both being desperately in love. If I don't have Ignis and Kratis declare they love each other at the game's climax, then there is no point to writing the story. It took me a while to understand that, but I did, eventually.

But as you can obviously see, that didn't mean the MC's relationship with Ignis was scrapped.

And the fandom has a lot of takes about that. Some are subtle, some are not. Some are hostile, some are not. Some are rational pieces, others are impassioned comments.

But the one thing they all have in common is that they're wrong.

I am not writing the path as some sort of punishment, or exercise in hurting the reader. It's certainly not done because I want to scam whoever ends up reading the story, or because I 'don't understand what a RO is'.

I'm writing the Ignis RO because it serves the narrative. It is probably the path I spend the most time thinking about, it has the largest build-up, and it is the path that has the biggest pay-off in narrative weight.

If AToH was to have anything close to a 'canon' path, Ignis would be it.

I hope that answers your question. Thanks for the ask.

[thevoidspeakz]

Okay, major season 4 vol 2 rant here cuz I'm stupid and need to share my thoughts. Bare with me cuz these are my opinions and you can think whatever you want and it's okay!! I'm not here to fight anyone!!!

(And before you comment, I know I'm probably delusioning myself, I know I shouldn't get my hopes up, but y'know what fuck it if it's not canon in the end I'll keep being a byler truther fuck everything)

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

Starting off with the obvious; byler.

Being fully honest with you? We may still have a chance. I watched it with my mom and she actually helped me come up with explanations that still point to byler being endgame.

(before we get into that, I just want to say that a lot of the stuff mentioned, shown or implied by cast or writers, was marketing. I hate it but there's always money involved.)

The first and most compelling one to me being Mike's internalized homophobia. We all know about that, but that can very much explain his behaviors here.

My mom had a friend that only actually accepted the fact she was bisexual on her thirties. Everyone knew, but she just couldn't accept it, and she also grew up in the eighties.

I feel like it's really important to consider the way Mike is raised. His father is extremely conservative, his mom isn't very present in his life, and he has absolutely no other role models, it was the eighties. Understanding that, let's get into the van scene on episode 8;

So, here we have a couple of options:

1. Mike didn't notice Will crying at all. The way the shot was taken made it look like Will was completely turned around, and Mike couldn't see his face. The reason for Mike not noticing, which would be very uncharacteristic for him, could be the fact that he was genuinely worried about El (he doesn't love her romantically, but he still loves her a lot platonically.), and also just the fact that the Byer's house was shot up, and they had to bury a dead man's body. I find this theory a bit less compelling considering Mike's usual behavior, but then again his usual internalized homophobia also plays a part in this.

2. Mike did notice Will was crying, but didn't say anything about it. That may seem shitty as fuck (and it is tbh), but let's analyse this;

They were in the van with two other people. We all know Mike doesn't want to accept himself, so he most definitely would NOT want to have a heart to heart around other people. He's already struggling to open up to himself, himself alone, so imagine saying how you truly feel around others, especially that you're not so close with? It can't be easy. Either way, his internalized homophobia plays onto it like always.

Him not comforting Will does seem extremely ooc, but he's changed a lot. He feels like he can't just be there for his "best friend" without it being weird. Could he have brought it up later? Yes but I feel like that's a different problem, considering they literally barely showed up at all this season. They didn't have any time alone like on volume 1, only the scene on Hopper's cabin, but they used that to make Will plot relevant again. (because he's only important when he means something to the plot of course of course/s)

;;

Still on the same scene, we get Will lying to Mike that it was El that commissioned the painting (goddamnit Will Byers I love you so much my baby). In my opinion, and really, really just my opinion cuz there isn't anything really pointing to it, Mike would've known that wasn't true. He knows El doesn't even like DnD, and maybe he even noticed that Will was talking about himself, and not El, but didn't comfort him because... See above. (Also yes I am very upset that the painting wasn't the swingset and I am also very upset that neither Will or Mike got vecna'd but see my point about marketing (which was also brought up by my mom))

;;

Moving on to what I feel is what most hurt my byler heart: Mike's 'i love you ' to El. Shit, here we go again, I'm being so delusional but idfc anymore. Here is my *possible* explanation to that:

Spur of the moment. They probably thought El was fucking dying right there, his 'i love you' may not even have meant anything romantic (we see Eddie and Dustin saying 'i love you' to each other when.. yeah.). There's also Will pushing forward their relationship. This feels sorta like a hate crime, but I stopped to think about it and.. it didn't do anything. Sure, Mike's 'i love you' helped El fight back and whatever whatever, but she still didn't talk to him much after that. Their relationship didn't really chance much. Coming back to Will pushing forward their relationship, it may have made Mike feel the need to say it, cuz at this point Will was practically making him say it.

That last point might also explain why Mike's monologue was so fucking shit. It sounded fake, and forced, and nothing had been pointing to the reason he didn't say 'i love you' to El being that he was afraid of losing her. Nothing. If anything, they almost paralelled it with stancy, and we know that (at least back in the first seasons, now I'm not so sure :/) Nancy couldn't say 'i love you' to Steve because *she didn't love him*.

I still feel like that was like. Totally unecessary? They're making us doubt shit hard here, but I almost feel like they're doing that on purpose? I don't know, I'm delusional I'm sorry

;;

Some lesser points here.

I'm sad as fuck we didn't get a byler hug. They didn't parallel the hand hold scene either. Ffs.

Still tho, I feel like they might, they MIGHT do this on season five (I'm not putting my full trust on them anymore). Byler wasn't the only relationship with unresolved problems this season, Jancy did too. They're still lying to each other. I feel like the duffers are doing this to up the hype for the next season, again. There's money involved here and we all know that money's probably what they most care about 😐

Also, Mike and El didn't kiss once. Like not once. Idk that just. Feels important considering all they did was kiss on s3

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

Moving on from byler, and continuing with my marketing point, they like. Lied to us so fucking much.

Started off with saying Peter Ballard was Henry's real name, and then saying that we'll find out why Will was the first one taken, and why the UD is stuck on the day he was taken... Those were all lies. For marketing, most likely.

Do I think we'll figure that out next season? Yeah. I mean, they made it seem very much like Will is going to be very plot relevant again next season.

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

Everything else;

Honestly? I really liked it.

At least while watching, I didn't really get bored like I saw some people saying (then again, maybe I'm just weird).

Lumax made me so happy, and I'm so glad we got Jopper too!

Also the other character interactions like with Dustin and Eddie, and then Dustin and Wayne at the end :(

Fuck the duffers for making me think Robin's love life was destroyed but GODDAMN VICKY (idk how to spell her name I'm sorry) AND ROBIN ARE PERFECT FOR EACH OTHER AND I KIND OF LOVE THEM???? Idk I fell in love with Vicky's character from the start, even though she showed up for like 5 minutes.

Am I sad we didn't get ronance? Yeah, but at least she isn't the classic "sad gay pines for straight person" shit.

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

Final thoughts:

Was the way byler was advertised for vol 2 still queerbaiting? Yes and I'm still fucking pissed at that. I'm also pissed at how much we got lied to. Do I have my hopes up for byler? Nope, trust issues after today. Do I still have a tiny small insignificant slither of hope left? I hate to say it but yeah. If delusioning myself for the next year and a half is what I have to do to stay sane then it is what I will do. If I end up losing then well... At least I'll have my mom on my side. She's a queen. Love her.

I'm definitely way too damn hopeful about this but I am just self destructive like that I guess.

[weabooweedwitch]

not to be a debby downer and i'm sure everything will go fine and you'll have nothing to worry about but as someone who has had far too many bad experiences with men, do you have a plan for what you're going to do if it turns out your friend's intentions uhhhh extend beyond the bounds of a friendship if you catch my drift? I'm sure it will be ok and he sounds like a genuinely good friend but some men are dodgy out here and it can be especially hard to suss someone out online so it's always good to have an escape route mapped out in advanced yknow what I mean? (assuming you wouldn't be down for it lol idk your relationship)

Oh no for sure it is a perfectly valid concern and I don't blame you for being worried at all. Given my family history and background I myself am one of those "women should always be careful being alone with men" kinds of people

So uh this is something I have already considered because to be perfectly honest we did have. Some sexual tension in the past. And you know idk if he still feels any attraction to me. In the past it was just kind of being inappropriate with each other for a while but I eventually kind of started realizing "hey do I just get like unhealthy levels of attached to men who show me approval and such" and I kinda had a little baby crush on him and I wasn't exactly sure if that was like related to daddy issues but. That was in the past and im hoping he doesn't remember it but I think he'll probably be cool about it if he does but I hope he doesn't bring it up bc I'll be so embarrassed, I was a little wild back then emotionally and impulsively 💀

I mean I guess my overall stance is, if things were going good and he got a little flirty I would maybe be receptive to it but like it would be hard for us to have any sort of deeper relationship living in two different countries. Like ok so hypothetically we would bang or something but dating would be long distance and idk if my heart could take that so it's like is it worth sacrificing our friendship for something physical, I doubt I could be one of those friends with benefits, I have attachment issues that I don't think would mesh well, idk. Although to be perfectly honest going to see him isn't especially difficult, the expensive thing is mostly having to pay for a hotel while I visit because he has housemates, which, apparently Canada has one of the most expensive housing markets in the entire world and I think all of my Canadian friends either have multiple roommates or live with their parents which sounds scary haha, and we were randomly talking about US citizenship one day and how bullshit the process to renounce it was (I was speaking of it in regards to joking about moving to Europe) and he mentioned that it was a big reason he wasn't interested in US citizenship

So. I dunno. I guess my overall answer is "he's someone I trust and feel affection for at least platonically but I also recognize I have my own mental health issues and past trauma that can kind of affect how I interact and am influenced by men and maybe I should just avoid certain things entirely"

But until then he's asking if I would be interested in learning how to play MTG and he's asking me to bring soup to make into this dip and he bought some weed and it sounds like it'll be a lot of fun :) idk. I am mentally preparing myself for. Idk. Stuff. But there's no use making myself paranoid over it, and also my mom keeps trying to wig me out

We'll see fjdjfjfjf im probably going to intend to keep things chill and I don't have any fears of him trying to force me into anything but if things got too awkward like, I have my own motel room and money and can have the rest of my vacation by myself I guess

[asherlockstudy]

Uncomfortable close-up to their Valentine Newlywed answers

Since Rhett was a tad reluctant to compliment Link sincerely I decided to use my psychoanalytical skills (anyway whatever) and seek the underlying honest answers they wanted to give. This could be a bit much at times and perhaps you shouldn't read if you are not a Rhink shipper, that's why I used a cut.

"What he loves about me" Link's expression is a little confusing - maybe an attempt at doubt or self-deprecation but it looks to me more like the embarrassment of the blushing bride.

"I love your..."

Who wants to bet that the first thing that came to Rhett's mind was ass but then he changed it to the first word that came to his mind after ass? A-ccent. Like, there's just no case accent was the first thing he thought because Link's accent isn't even that strong at this point. When Link got surprised at that, Rhett simply replied that he was trying to find something funny. But even so, like I said earlier, Rhett does love Link's accent. I am sure he is fond of it, he finds it adorable. And let's not forget he said "there was so much he could choose from"!

Link looks disappointed that it's not his guess, his eyes. An interesting thing here is that although he used a personality trait for Rhett, he expected / hoped for this physical trait for himself. But don't feel sorry - Rhett has talked about his baby blues and has even gone to the ridiculous extents of planning to make a blog exclusively for Link's eyes. So don't worry; it is known that Rhett at least acknowledges the beauty of Link's eyes. At least. And Link was expecting this from a place of knowledge and not as an attempt to be silly-sappy.

Things Rhett thinks Link loves about him:

voice (Link will later say he loves his laugh and this is close, he's also enchanted every time Rhett sings so...)

height (Link once said he is attracted to "people of extreme heights")

hair (we know that)

beard (lie detector test)

giving spirit (lol totally)

creativity (they've talked about this many times)

eyebrows (if Link has said he likes Rhett's eyelashes then liking his eyebrows is certain)

Rhett was guessing from a place of knowledge too.

Rhett then said he loves stories of Link's grandma doing weird things with him and I don't like being the weirdo to spell out the weird thing but Rhett's interest in that is vaguely associated to his weird mind being always in the gutter. I don't mean it turns him on of course but he loves hearing weird stuff that border on creepy. You know it's true. Sometimes he's like that. Link took revenge for the accent joke with the psoriasis.

Wow we saw some Rhett teeth. Link answered sincerely with a super cute "I love your laugh" but Rhett just said "I love the sound your mouth makes when you don't chew". Oh well. Link regretted being sincere and Rhett, after some good laughter, defended himself by saying "he (Link) walked himself into it". This makes exactly zero sense and I am wondering whether he meant Link walked himself into it by choosing the vulnerable / sincere way. Or if he just didn't know what he was talking about.

Rhett then asks for the next answer to be complimentary. He then repeats he has strong feelings about Link's accent. Again, I believe this! In a positive light. IDK, I do believe this. Link said he has strong positive feelings for Rhett's car which I found weird like Rhett because I thought it was established Link has the better car of the two. Who knows, maybe he lied about the positive thing. Unless he connects it in his mind with memories / experiences.

Link's guess a little later:

Link: If I wanted to, I could easily... start over.

Rhett: Start over?! Like, whole life?

L: ...Yeah, just like, get a re-do.

R: Huh.

L: And I would be like "Really? How?"

R: Mmkay. I said "If you wanted to, you could easily kill me".

Okay, this gets a little deeper. I think what initially Link meant was a joke about starting over regarding his relationship with Rhett. Rhett didn't get that and asked him if he meant his whole life. Link considered that "mmyeah..." and realised it wasn't that far off from what he meant, all jokes aside. Link does wish he could start over and redo many things in his life. This surely has A LOT to do with their religious upbringing. And maybe how it affected Link's choices. Stevie's laughter is so out of place sometimes. Rhett does not laugh and tries to rush this moment. Rhett's answer about Link killing him is not exactly weird or offensive or mean as I saw some people consider it. It shows, maybe subconsiously, several things; Link's intensity, Rhett's pliable nature especially to Link and it might be more indicative of how Rhett feels about Link than anything else, at least in this video.

And then, out of nowhere, or maybe so it seems to us, Rhett goes ballistic against everyone. He starts complaining about those complaining when they didn't give each other heartfelt compliments. Link joked he agrees with them. Rhett attempted to let this slip although it angered him. The crew laughed with Link's joke, meaning they kinda sided with him, and Rhett turned basically mad at Link.

He accused Link that he did the same that day and Link entirely deflected the conversation. All I'm gonna say is that don't think they don't communicate with each other about how they approach certain situations. I wonder if at times they misunderstand each other or one changes opinion suddenly and leaves the other hanging. Link tries to stop Rhett from going on but Rhett is unstoppable at this point.

You might say Rhett was straight out mean right there and I sure was like "whoa where did this all come from, man" but mean is not a reasonable explanation. He was angry and his words show he is in a pressured state. Unless you tend to have mood swings, which Rhett doesn't really have as far as I know, you don't go from all cutesy and mischievous to furious in milliseconds. Except if there is an underlying suppressed cause. And you may ask, okay does he feel pressured to say a compliment to Link? Is this such a big deal? Well, yes and no. I don't think Rhett meant "we're not gonna hold hands" or "compliment each other" when we ask it. I think we know what he means. I think he's talking about the - well, in his words - elephant in the room. The actually serious consideration that there is something more there. The expectation that it might get revealed at any point - whether intentionally or unintentionally. Rhett loses control at that moment, which is why Link, who knows him well, warns him to not go there but Rhett still does. And again, you might say: well, no fan asked them to kiss or to confirm anything! We asked them simple stuff that can be normal between platonic friends too. Yes, but there is something we don't take often into account. The mythical crew. The mythical crew are actually the ones who monitor closely what the fans believe, want and prefer to watch. This means that the crew has to inform and discuss with Rhett and Link how much they are gonna please the audience and in what ways. Which means that a crew of 50+ people have an elaborate opinion on what fans think of Rhett and Link's relationship (next to their own opinion of course) and this has to be communicated with them face to face. In short, Rhett and Link have their privacy invaded not only by the fans but by their employees and, moreover, they are forced to always have fun with it and take it lightly. Again, you could think: well, they could forbid any rhink reference to the crew from now on. And you would think this WOULDN'T make the crew MORE suspicious at this point? All I am saying, they are fine when they make rhink insinuations / jokes voluntarily but most of the time is forced upon them by both the fans and employees and this can be uncomfortable at best if they are just friends or tyrannical if there is something more there that they still keep for themselves. So, Rhett's frustration comes from a deeper place than being expected to give a compliment. If I were in their place as I imagine it (I could always be entirely wrong) I would feel like a muppet trying to balance all my reactions towards thousands of people, with several dozens of them being paid by me to scrutinize me and order me how exactly to act!

There is a cut following Rhett's vent and you can see that Rhett is trying to calm himself down.

He speaks to himself, mumbling "yeah alright yeah ok ok" and by the expressions I can tell he acknowledges he lost control. That doesn't mean he regretted what he said - just that he said more than it benefits him to say and apparently he said a lot more in the unedited video. Kudos then to Link, who actively tries to calm his friend down and make him feel more comfortable.

This might be unpleasant to some but from his stance I conclude that Link agrees with Rhett or at least understands him. He was just wise enough to not say it out loud. Link first warned Rhett to not speak and then stayed quiet as Rhett was venting. After the cut, we see him trying to help Rhett calm down and relax and he characteristically invites Rhett to focus his attention on him and find something he really loves about him. This is not a complaint - Link is smiling and is warm to Rhett. What he essentially does is trying to help Rhett forget he is being watched by thousands and his every word is weighted, which of course is Rhett's main problem. He just says "forget about them and focus on me and just say something you love, it's all good". I just love Link here. He's supportive and caring.

The next question is what Link loves when Rhett blanks his blank and Rhett is trying to picture it-

I have no doubt Link loves that. The ear thumbing, I mean.

So, then I am adding the stills that redeemed Rhett in the fandom:

But not to be that person, it's obvious that Rhett plays it up a ridiculous lot. And not even to appease the angry fans but probably to make fun of their anger. That's why Link laughs with his face and his answer "I love remembering the time we met".

This doesn't interest me at all. Instead, I am much more interested in Link's nonsensical answer "I love remembering the time we died" because what?!?!?!?!?!?!?! Link tends to say occasionally stuff that doesn't make sense but I don't think he would pass on the chance to say something even remotely meaningful in an opportunity like this and especially regarding his relationship with Rhett. Link clarifies: "...when we died. This is heaven". There are two possibilities and only two: a) this makes ZERO sense and it's the worst and most pointless joke ever and b) this is symbolic or something only Rhett could understand. Rhett does not dismiss this as stupid or silly with his usual done look. He asks questions about it and they discuss at length about how it happened that they died and why they went to heaven since it seems they killed each other. Well, it's because they killed each other in the exact same time with a prod-like tool and they escaped Good Ol' God's (in Link's words) notice. Okay. I'm just leaving this here and you can all draw your own conclusions. Personally, I am torn between a symbolical death and rebirth when they left their religious selves behind and death being used as a well known old metaphor of a certain physical state. It would work even more if it was both. Or Link was just talking nonsense. Let's not exclude that. So yeah. That's all I had to say................

[kuinliekkienroihu]

I (crysuzumushi, haha) am working on answering your ask game prompts, you picked two of my very favorites, thank you! I'm gonna ask you to do Kaname too! And Byakuya.

Okay, thanks for the ask!! Sorry it took so long to answer, i wrote a novel. Also sorry for all the spelling and grammar mistakes, English isn’t my first language

Kaname:

1. Favorite thing about them

How he always seeks to act according to his sense of justice. Also he's one of the best written characters in the entire series. He's very complex, which makes him feel kinda like an actual person with understandable actions caused by his past. There are a lot more things, but i'm not good at putting things to words so yeah.

2. Least favorite thing about them

How underutilized he was as a character. I'm really glad there's more of him in cfyow, even though i've only read the first part

3. Favorite line

" I follow the path least soaked in blood. The path I walk is justice."

4. BrOTP

I have many, mostly Shuhei, Aizen, Gin and Sajin

5. OTP

-

6. NOTP

hmm, i don't like him and Aizen romantically at all, same goes for Sajin

7. Random headcanon

He has a plant garden in Las Noches in which he grows, among many other things, the ingredients for Aizen's tea, which is Kaname's secret special mix of herbs. Aizen really misses the tea Kaname made for him.

8. Unpopular opinion

He did nothing wrong, or rather, all he did was (more or less) justified

9. Song i associate with them

-

10. Favorite picture of them

This is my favorite too

Byakuya:

1. Favorite thing about them

Yes. I love every single thing about him. Even the things others would consider as flaws are perfect. I really like how calm and collected he is regardless of the situation, he's intelligent and calculating.

A very well written character with, in my opinion, the best character development. Especially his relationship with Rukia from ignoring her out of pain (since she looks almost identical to Hisana), protecting her to keep a promise, letting her be executed to keep another promise to genuinely caring about her and saving her life in many occasions, clearly regretting what he did to her and trying to compensate for his actions.

Kubo wrote his development extremely well, in the end of the series he's objectively a better person than in the beginning, but his personality didn't change much. He's still the same overly serious, stuck up asshole we know and I love him for it.

Another thing I love the most about him is the fact that he's another walking contradiction. But somehow, these contradictions make a paradox or a perfect harmony without cancelling each other. Kubo did an amazing job making him have many layers in his character. There's this line from a book (had to look it up, the book is called "the chrysanthemum and the sword") that the author used to describe Japanese people, I think I read that in someone's ig story and it got stuck in my head since it reminded me of Byakuya so much, and in my honest opinion, describes him rather thoroughly, especially second, third and fourth ones. His zanpakuto, which is one of the infinite reasons I love him, being fully portrayed by the second one "both militaristic and aesthetic" being combined into the beautiful but deadly weapon Senbonzakura is.

"both aggressive and unaggressive, both militaristic and aesthetic, both insolent and polite, rigid and adaptable, submissive and resentful of being pushed around, loyal and treacherous, brave and timid, conservative and hospitable to new ways"

When you think about it, he has the most fitting zanpakuto for his personality compared to the other shinigami and the way he uses it is one of the tiny details which make him, him.

His spot as a captain and the head of the Kuchiki clan is in my opinion fully earned (rest of the nobles (except Yoruichi) can go fuck themselves) (sorry Tara, ignore this please lol). He is hardworking and precise, almost workaholic, has trained hard from a very young age and puts duty above everything. But he still has a hidden "work mode: off" -side which we see occasionally as cracking a dry joke or the wakame taishi fuckery in general. Latter being, in my honest thoughts, hilarious and adorable.

There is a lot more but i literally can't list everything. This is already a hell of an essay.

2. Least favorite thing about them.

My answer is probably as you can expect: none.

There is one thing i don't really like, but it's about the writing.

!!TYBW SPOILERS!!

In the beginning of the arc i think that immediately releasing bankai, especially when he knew it was gonna be sealed, was out of character and i would have been very upset if he stayed dead, since the action which resulted in that was not something he would do.

3. Favorite line

“If it’s for the sake of my pride there’s nothing I won’t destroy.”

I know it’s from a filler but this line just sums his whole character, personality and motivations up so well.

4. BrOTP

I have so many, i want him to have friends lol. But to point out the most significant ones i'd say Rukia, Renji, Kenpachi, Toshiro and Ichigo

5. OTP

The only one i really ship him with is Nanao. Hisana is kind of “it’s canon and i’m fine with it.” I haven’t seen enough of her to form an opinion about the ship, but it’s obvious how much Bya loved her and it’s so sweet.

6. NOTP

Okay, i have never mentioned this before since i know many of my followers/mutuals ship them. Renji. The only ship I. Can't. Stand.

Like, platonically? Yes, they're bros. But romantically or especially sexually? No. Fuck no.

I don't care if you ship them, good for you, but please tag the stuff so it gets filtered.

7. Random headcanon

He sleeptalks a lot. And it's not mumbling, he talks the same way as when he's awake but it's absolute nonsense.

Byakuya, asleep: Do not eat the drawer.

Hisana, awake: *watches him in utter confusion*

Byakuya, still asleep: Give him a pink tricycle.

Hisana: To whom?

Byakuya: Head captain Yamamoto

Hisana: *trying not to laugh*

Another hc that i have is that he is a closet metalhead and likes especially power- and symphonic metal (this might sound very weird if you know nothing about this kind of music lol)

8. Unpopular opinion

His actions in the soul society arc were understandable. He was put between the bark and the tree (i hope you get what i mean) and had to choose from just letting things happen and going against central 46 and all of soul society (or at least that’s what he thought). Also the line he said to Ukitake, which is still easily in top5 most asshole things he has said/done, in my opinion shows what he thought of Rukia’s execution and why he didn’t do anything to prevent it. “Once you’ve let one of your people die.. ...two or three more make no difference.” Both of his parents are dead, Hisana is dead, Ginrei is most likely dead and he thought for 100 years that Yoruichi was dead too. I think Byakuya thought losing one more person he cares about couldn’t hurt more than it already has and therefore didn’t think it was worth breaking the promise he made in his parents’ grave and trying to save her. And that fucking breaks my heart.

9. Song I associate with them

I have a 6h long playlist which I’m not gonna post. Can’t choose just one lol.

10. Favorite picture of them

*digs through nearly infinite pinterest board, tumblr and phone’s gallery*

This is (one of) my favorite manga panel(s) of him. I love how calm but powerful he looks. The lines representing the heavy spiritual pressure. Like an inescapable doom approaching (which indeed was the case). And for some reason i love it. 

My favorite fanart, which i obviously can’t post since you can’t post others art so here’s the link: https://www.deviantart.com/keelerleah/art/Bleach-Byakuya-Looking-Back-127254804

and then one which I think is official art or at least an edit of it, if I’m wrong please lmk

[ahsxual]

Unbreakable Connection

Pairing: L!Joker x reader

Summary: You and J met each other coincidently and now, after a few months, you somehow managed to become really close friends.

Warnings: Swearing

Word Count: 1,8k

A/N: Soo this is a request from lovely @heavymetalnarwhal where J and the reader have a platonic relationship. They've become close friends after they accidentally met. J has grown and now he trusts her, her home eventually becoming his haven and in return, the reader can finally have someone trustful to talk to, and someone who can understand her and be there when she needs him most. So darling, I hope you enjoy this! <3

(I don't own this gif!)

On a specific day, you were in the mood for a night walk: after all, you weren't having a good day, so you thought that this was the best thing to do to get away from your haunting thoughts;

Your usual way of relaxing is staying at home while watching some movie, reading some book, listening to music... but that particular day you just wanted to do something different, what lead you to something you would never expect to happen...

While you were walking into some empty and narrow street near a port, you heard some uncommon noises... more specifically from people talking and moving heavy objects hurriedly, you supposed;

You were about to return to your home when you heard them, but since you weren't in a hurry, you let your curiosity take the best of you;

Oh, how simple choices like this could origin such a drastical change in your life...

You hide yourself behind a corner, where you could see what seemed like ten people moving huge boxes with a "caution" warning on it into a truck, all of them covered in familiar masks;

When you were about to remember where those masks were from, you suddenly saw the one and only prince of crime of Gotham city: the Joker, jumping outside of the high truck into the ground effortlessly;

You covered your mouth after releasing a loud gasp unintentionally, earning suspicious glances from some masked men... or should you say women?

The Joker has women working for him too?? you thought, surprised by that fact.

After that, you started to run as fast as you could to your house, concluding that you had seen enough;

Little did you know that the psychotic clown saw you from afar, following you discretely after, while his goons continued to work;

When you got home, you went to bed and tried to sleep, thinking on how bad and strange that day was;

Since then, everyday you had the feeling that someone was following you, which obviously made you terrified. You thought about calling the police, but what if all of this was just your mind tricking you? What if you made yourself sound like a fool in front of the authority, wasting your time only to get to see them laughing at you afterwards? Yup, that's how Gotham police worked... and it was completely not worth it;

When you got home and finally managed to calm yourself down, you opened the door and instinctively screamed once you saw the most wanted psychopath in the city, chilling out on your sofa like he was in his own house;

"W-what are you d-doing here??" you asked, trembling, shaking from the inside out of your vulnerable body towards his presence;

"Oh, you arrived! I ah... just couldn't wait to finally meet the ah... little kitten who was picking at what she... shouldn't. But curiosity sometimes it's stronger than our own safety, isn't that right, huh?" he calmly, yet dangerously said, getting up from the couch to approach you slowly. You had nowhere to escape: you knew if you tried, he would kill you right then and there, and you wanted to do whatever was needed to stay alive just for a few more seconds;

"P-please, don't k-kill me...!" those words were the only ones that could came out of your quivering mouth by your frightened mind.

He looked at you disappointed, however he wanted to ask you something that he didn't understand just yet. "How... all of you are so... predictable. <Please, don't kill me!!>... Really? That's all ya have to say in your defense doll, huh?" he tried to imitate a little girl begging for mercy, which would make you laugh if you weren't on the that exact position.

"I-I guess if you were me, you would s-say the same thing. I... I don't k-know what else to say to you..." really? Were you really justifying yourself and trying to have a decent conversation with Joker?? He then stared at you intensely for a few moments, like he was analyzing you.

"Well, I guess I have to ah.. agree with ya on that one." he said. "But I didn't come here to ah... have a chat while drinking hot tea with ya. I actually wanted to ah... ask ya something."

"W-what is it?" even if you tried, you couldn't stop yourself from stuttering every time you spoke.

"Why didn't ya tell anything to the men that eat donuts 24/7 with a pistol in their ass pockets, the so called heroes of this city about ah... what you saw the other night, huh? If ya had reported me, I would probably be in jail right now instead of having this little... shitty chat with ya." even you didn't know the real reason, if you were honest. Maybe you thought this city was already fucked up, so what's the point in trying to arrest him when there’re many killers, thieves, and who knows what out there? You're just trying to live a quiet life... and if you did denounce him, you probably would be his next brutal victim once he lays his eyes on you again;

"I-I don't know... I just... want to live a quiet life. Let's be realistic: you probably would get out of the prison soon, so... it wouldn't make any difference, I guess..." this time you managed to speak without stuttering so much, which impressed you. He seemed thoughtful about your answer: he was good at reading people, and you didn't seem the kind of person that just wants to live their life in the best way possible, only caring about money and fame, not giving a shit about others. You have your own world, your own perspective of life, your own space without bothering anyone, and he admires that;

He could tell you're a shy and introverted person, not having anyone truthful enough to really talk about what happened... and Joker liked that fact.

From that, he already could tell that maybe you were someone to trust... and that's what he was about to find out;

After that, he nodded, telling you there was a chance of him coming back, since he got interested in your way of being. He decided to spare your life since you didn't report him, making you feel utterly relieved for not telling anything to the police or anyone;

Days passed and he wouldn’t show up like he said, and if you were honest, you actually missed him: you didn't have any romantic intentions with him, no no no, yet you thought maybe he could understand you... and accept you, finally valuing your worth and see you for who you are, without judging or offering rude side glances like most people do.That's when once again, he managed to impress you.

"Ta-daa!" he loudly exclaimed, making you jump from your secretary.

"What the hell?!" you exclaimed back, angry ‘cause he scared you by coming out of nowhere... again. "What are you doing here Joker??" calling for his name sounded strange... yet familiar, like you already knew him for a long time;

"Ah... from what I remember, I said I would come back. Soo here I am!" he then laid down caressly on your fresh-made bed. "Ohh this one's good! How much ah... did it cost, huh?" he said happily, finally having a comfortable bed to lay on instead of the rigid ground where he uses to sleep... when he can sleep.

You were speechless, him being completely at ease, but you decided to respond him. "Uh... it cost around 600 dollars. I saved a lot of money to buy it, so please be careful." suddenly, he started to laugh at you, like you said the funniest joke he ever heard.

"600 dollars?? Are ya kidding? Ya could just have stole it! And there would be so much fun and adrenaline on it as an extra!" he admitted excitedly, sounding like a kid who had the greatest idea about something random.

"Well, I'm not an expert thief like you. And I prefer to be humble and pay for it, thanks but no thanks." you answered, returning to do whatever you were doing previously before he unexpectedly entered your room.

"Oh... humility. Where does that lead us to, huh? To people getting whatever they want from us? Playing us like their little toys? Thanks, but no thanks." he imitated you casually with his arms resting under his fade green painted hair, which made you laugh this time since, somehow, you didn't feel scared of him anymore.

From that day on, he would visit you almost every day: firstly you felt like he was using you just to get a place to sleep and to properly eat: he has people working and doing anything for him, so why would he need you? Some common girl who's life isn't that interesting? You sadly thought. But with time, you could see he actually enjoys your company;

You would even tell him your problems, when a day went wrong or someone would bother you... and in that case, the next day that same person wouldn't be alive to tell the story. You thought strange at first, not knowing why everytime someone was mean and rude to you, they wouldn't be alive the next day. But then you put all the pieces together... so from that moment you stopped telling him when someone messed with you, unless it was really necessary and serious;

Sometimes you would tell him he was your guardian angel, to which he made a disgusted expression, making you correct yourself to "guardian demon";

"That sounds so much better, sweet cheeks." he said before winking at you. Every time he did that, you would blush furiously and hide your hot face, since you were a very shy and timid person, specially around him for some reason. He loved teasing you just to see you embarrassed, but of course he respected you, so he never crossed the line;

And all of this leads to now, where J is practically considered your weird best friend, the one you tell everything, the one you can truly trust and ironically, feel safe. If you only knew that one simple walk would make all of this happen... how funny life can be, putting two completely opposite people together and create this unbreakable connection between you two... like they always say, it's just destiny doing his work.

[act-addict-actors-matchups]

@otomeramblings said,

I'm a girl, 23 years old, around 162 cm, with medium length dark brown hair (almost black) and brown eyes. I'm one of those people who are often asked "are you okay? Are you mad?" and no, more often than not that's just how my resting face looks lol

I'm a Scorpio and an INFP. According to my friends, I'm usually very sweet but no one likes to be around me when I get seriously angry ^^; I guess it's because i'm generally very soft spoken and I try to avoid conflict as much as I can, and when I'm upset is one of the times when I actually raise my voice. I have people tell me that I'm smart, but I just consider myself to be an overall average person. It usually takes me a while to fully trust someone but once they've earned my trust, I cherish their friendship for life.

I can fluently speak English and Spanish, and I recently got my English Translation degree. I love to read (both novels and manga) and to discover new music, I also really like dancing (I did ten years of ballet) and I recently rediscovered my love for drawing and writing.

Qualities I would like in a s/o:

-passionate, about anything, really. I'm usually very reserved unless I have something I really want to talk about and I appreciate when others listen, and for that reason I love to listen to people talk about things they're passionate about

-mature, not in relation to his hobbies bit more so in the sense that he can have a serious conversation when needed and take responsibility for his actions.

-patient. Being introverted and kinda awkward, I usually need time to recharge after being social and even while spending time together there will probably be silences when I think of what to say or even times when I'd just rather we spent it doing our own thing while being together.

Qualities I don't like:

-shouting. I hate it when people shout at me when they're mad because it makes me tear up immediately, I would much rather you tell why you're mad in a calm tone so we can work things out.

✧ The way I scREAMED when I saw your url 🤭 I love your writing so much skdhksdhksjd thank you for requesting a matchup. 😳💞 Stay safe! I hope all goes well for you!

I’d match you with: . . .

➜ HOW YOU TWO FIRST MET ; The blue sky was dotted with fluffy white clouds that drifted lazily in the gentle breeze while you were on your way to buy new drawing pencils. Your current ones were not exactly in the best condition after being used too many times. A sigh escaped from you as you fastened your pace. In all honesty, you would rather stay at home and maybe watch one of your shows but you knew if you didn’t go out to buy those now, you never would. As one particular building came to your sight, you suddenly stopped in your tracks. It was a flower shop. The vibrant display of flowers covered the table outside. Bold purple, soft pink and light lavender flowers sat right in front of you as well as some others you didn’t know the names of. The sweet smell of blossomed flowers filled your nose as you inhaled and exhaled. They were so beautiful that you couldn’t help but to reach at a lavender, the purple petals felt like soft velvet against your skin. The chime of the door opening ringed into your ears, drawing your attention away from the flowers in front of you. A man with a blue striped T-shirt, a pair of black pants and black leather shoes came out of the building with a bag you thought had flower seeds in it. A brown trench coat with a blue inner lining slung over his shoulder, beautiful, dark blue hair rustling as he gave his thanks to the employee before closing the door. The man turned around and you swear you stop breathing for a moment, because oh my god how dare someone this handsome come in to your field of view without a warning. After realizing that you’ve been staring at a stranger for a good seconds, you hesitantly looked away. But just your luck, while you decided that it was the time to carry on with your mission, you dropped your purse to the ground. You groaned before bending over to pick it up but to your surprise, you see another hand reaching over it? And most importantly, you saw that it was that handsome stranger when you looked up??? He gave you a kind but awkward smile as he hold out your bag to you. You muttered a “thank you” before grabbing it. After that cliche moment, there was an awkward silence between you and the man, but he decided to speak up to start a conversation by asking if you liked flowers. The conversation smoothly flowed from there. He just had that aura of gentleness radiating that you couldn’t help but warm up to the stranger, who you later learned the name of, quickly. He even offered to accompany you to the shop you were going, which you agreed if he didn’t mind. Your relationship steadily developed from there. To be honest, it wouldn't be obvious at all that Tsumugi has a crush on you. He's friendly and sweet to everyone he meets most of the time so nobody thinks twice whenever he's with you, except maybe Tasuku. His underlying feelings for you would show in the little things he does, the way his eyes shine whenever you laugh, how his ears perk up whenever he hears your name, how he somehow memorized all your favorite foods after you offhandedly mentioned it once before. For someone who majored in psychology, it’s kind of hilarious how dense he is regarding his own feelings. He would mistake those feelings of his as a weirdly strong platonic attraction for you and continue spending time with you in hopes to appease the feeling but be confused as to why he always felt unsatisfied. He finally realizes how smitten he is for you after a long internal monologue he had after he almost had a heart attack when you hugged him once for whatever reason.

➜ PERSONALITY COMPATIBILITY ; Tsumugi is the walking epitome of every single thing you’re looking in a S/O. You want someone passionate about something? This man literally couldn’t give up on his dream and love for the performance art. He’d be more than willing to talk about how acting involved a broad range of skills, including a well-developed imagination, emotional facility, physical expressivity, vocal projection, clarity of speech, the ability to interpret drama etc. He’d try bunch of different gestures in front of you and ask you which one you liked the best. He also absolutely loves it when you are the one who does the talking. His strength is CANONLY listening to others after all. He just gives off this aura that compels you to think that you can talk about anything and everything with him. Just like you, Tsumugi has a great need for harmony and dislikes any conflict so if there were to be any fights, they would be resolved in a day or two with the two of you talking it out. He majored in Psychology in university, and is very good at reading people so if you’re both in a social gathering and he senses you need to take a break, he will hold your hand and walk you somewhere with less crowd and noise. When you want to be alone, he’d give you the space you need and if you want to spend time he would be there. He is a pretty clueless baby at the start and would try to ask people for help on dating advice. He will however remember every single memory you two will and have made. You’ll never see him forgetting any milestones in your guys’ relationship. His way of saying “I love you” is through the flowers he picks and grows. As someone who can be shy to vocally express his love for you, he handpicks each flower based on their meanings with the hope that they could accurately convey the emotions he holds for you. The very sight of your smile as you watch each tiny plant grow kindles a budding warmth inside him, as if he’s a bee intoxicated by the nectar of your happiness. And to him, the vision of you happy is prettier than any flower in his garden, pushing him to always keep you bright and blooming.

➜ SHARED ACTIVITIES ; Tsumugi canonly moon/stargazes with Misumi so why wouldn’t he do the same with his S/O? It’s a cool, romantic and surprisingly unique activity to do together. There aren’t many activities one can plan for a date that are sweeter or more intimate than a night spent together under a beautiful, sparkling sky. You would ask each other questions about one another, without being afraid of letting the conversation slow down. This is a date to relax and linger over. If not that, I can totally see him taking you to a botanical garden. These places are beautiful and not too busy in general. Bonus points if you bring a camera and get some nice photos together as a couple. i’m so soft rn 🥺 But I feel like your most common date would be either tending the garden in the mankai dorm or just doing your own little things while being together. You might be writing on the table while he’s going over his script for the winter troupe’s newest play one more time or he might be grading his student’s test, since he’s a tutor and all, while you’re drawing. I see Tsumugi as someone who reads a lot so maybe both of you can read the same book together and discuss it afterwards. These types of dates are great for discovering how the other person views the world. One might learn that their significant other is passionate about a social justice cause, their favorite author, or their philosophy of beauty. These dates are great for sparking good conversations and they are introvert friendly. Or something even better: reading aloud. Reading out loud to each other can be incredibly sweet. And, as spiritual counselor Davida Rappaport says, "just the fact that you are both close and sharing space is ... a nice way to spend an evening."

➜ ZODIAC COMPATIBILITY ; Tsumugi is a Capricorn, his birthday being December 28th. When Scorpio and Capricorn make a love match, they get an opportunity to not only enjoy a loving relationship and learn the value of being a pair, but also to grow and mature as individuals. These two may be wary about sharing themselves with one another at first, and this emotional caution may dampen the initial impact of this relationship. These two tend to be a bit cautious (Capricorn) and pensive (Scorpio), and it takes a while for them to feel comfortable with a significant other. Though they may be shy of getting involved and not the quickest to trust and share, these two Signs will discover that they can have quite a profound connection — one of friendship and deep loyalty. What’s the best thing about the Scorpio-Capricorn love match? Their determination toward shared ideas and their strong devotion to one another. They can open doors to one another’s souls and show one another new ways of perceiving and feeling.