#a romantic relationship between them is definitely uh not great

[out-of-the-loupe]

Don't hide your excellent points in the tags, OP

Todd confirmed the bombing of shady sands happens after new vegas so that means lucy was there around 2282 which means she was definitely most likely born around 2277 according to her apparent age in the flashback which puts her around 19 to 20 years old in 2296 during the show, like i said before...

[suzukiblu]

Day eleven of “obligatory sugar baby Kon” behind the cut. tw: implications of past grooming/abuse and the inherent problems that causes for someone who was in that situation and hasn’t processed it trying to have a relationship with someone actually age-appropriate. prev: (( chrono || non-chrono ))

“Uh–is it?” he asks, not really sure what else to say. Or more like, not really sure what else to say that would not sound both desperately, desperately horny and desperately, desperately weird. 

“I dunno,” Kon replies, giving him a quick, sheepish little smile. “Just makes me feel good, that you think I’m worth, like–taking out and showing off, or whatever. Like–without the S-shield on, even.” 

“The S-shield would definitely make date night a lot harder to enjoy, yeah,” Tim says, torn between wanting to kiss him and wanting to dissolve the entire entertainment industry and all of Kon’s previous romantic interests in acid from the ground up. Slowly. Kon blushes again, his smile widening. 

“And, uh–and that,” he says, glancing sidelong. “And that you wanna hang out with me without anybody interruptin’.” 

I want to hang out with you until I overthrow Gotham AND Metropolis and then I want to install a zeta between them and the biggest beachfront property you’ll let me buy for you and any little Kon 2.0’s you let me make you, Tim’s most insane self thinks and his slightly more rational current self does not say, because he has at least some small and tiny and miniscule scraps of self-control. 

Like, barely, and only lasting until the fifteen-year sidekick-to-supervillain plan goes off, but still. 

“I definitely don’t want anyone interrupting, no,” he agrees instead, and Kon beams at him again and then ducks in and kisses him again–just a quick little peck, but definitely still a kiss. Tim, belatedly, realizes that Kon might actually be getting more up in his space than he was before the whole . . . script issue happened. Just–standing closer, and leaning in a little more often, and things like that. Not in a demanding way or anything; just like he wants to be there a little more often. 

Like maybe he’s a little more comfortable being there, now. Or like maybe he thinks he can do it without anything being–expected from it, maybe. 

Tim doesn’t even know if Kon’s doing it on purpose or not, but he’s definitely noticing a difference either way. Just–there is very much a difference there to be noticed. 

He is definitely, definitely not going to be able to find out who any of Kon’s exes are before he goes supervillain. That’s just not going to work out for his timeline at all. 

Also Bruce would absolutely get upset if he found out about whatever he ended up doing about it, and he’s an emotional support sidekick, not, like, an intern or whatever. He is not here to cause problems, he is here to facilitate Bruce’s mental health, help him manage his paranoia, and minimize the amount of overkill beatings of petty thugs and small-time criminals. 

Admittedly Bruce managing his paranoia is not going great, but it’s a process, alright? He’s doing his best here. 

“So like, if we do go shopping again, wanna pick something out for me to wear for you next time?” Kon asks, still beaming at him. Tim’s brain attempts to reboot a couple dozen times before he manages to remember how to string a coherent sentence together. 

“Yes,” he says in an almost normal-person voice. Maybe. Theoretically. He . . . hopes, anyway. “Uh–yeah. That sounds, uh–like something I would like to do.” 

It’s a little harder to focus on the supervillain thoughts with Kon both wearing that expression and actually asking him to buy him something–especially specifically something he wants to wear for him–so that’s helpful for keeping to his timeline. But also, uh–embarrassing, kind of, because usually Tim is better at thinking than he currently is being. Like, his normal thought processes are a lot more involved than Kon’s so hot and Kon’s so CUTE and hurr durr pretty boy. 

He definitely still wants to ruin some people’s lives, but first he wants to get Kon dinner and dessert and buy out a boutique or four for him, and just like, a small suburb. Or town. City. Tri-state area. 

And also to pick out something for him to wear “next time”, since apparently Kon still wants there to be a next time that he sees Tim Drake and also just like . . . just the whole thing with the picking out something for him to wear thing, because Tim only has so much self-control, alright? He is doing his best here, but he’s only an emotional support sidekick, alright, he’s not made of stone. 

Seriously, Kon asked him to dress him and asked him to buy him something. Tim is not actually sure if he’s more thrilled about actually getting Kon to specifically ask him to buy something for him or frazzled over Kon offering to let him pick out something for him to wear. Just–god. Tim is just not even–Tim does not know what he’s feeling right now. Just–whatever it is, he is feeling it. 

He wonders if it would be, like, a little too pathetic of him to maybe get Kon another crop top. Or, uh, a little too thirsty of him. 

. . . probably, yeah. Probably definitely, in fact. 

. . . . . . but like, if Kon sees one he likes, it's not like Tim's gonna say no or–

Anyway. 

[edwinspaynes]

My Case for Why Only Romantic Payneland Would Feel Truly Satisfying

Last night, I made a poll about whether people would be satisfied with QPR Payneland. I was curious where we stood on this as a fandom, and it's cool that it's about 50/50 between "either would be okay" and "I want them romantic."

Preface: I'm a monogamous biromantic asexual. If you were wondering. I have been in both a queerplatonic relationship (where I had a one-sided romantic crush on my QPP) and a few romantic relationships with both men and women.

Preface II: This post is not at all intended to be judgmental of any type of relationship. Poly people are awesome; aro/ace people in QPRs rock. This is specifically examining what is right for Charles and Edwin.

Preface III: I think that Edwin and Charles have definitely been in an unlabeled QPR since the beginning. They don't have the word for it, but it definitely is a QPR. They aren't romantically involved, but they make major decisions surrounding the other one and feel like they would wither up and die if they had to live in separate places.

This was great up until now, I think. A QPR is very valuable, very special, and very beautiful. It's meaningful and has served them wonderfully up until this point.

But it isn't sustainable for these specific characters.

The Need for Exclusivity in Both a QPR and a Romantic Relationship

I think that with no other external factors impacting my media needs, I would be okay with an exclusive QPR Payneland.

@tumblerislovetumblerislife astutely said:

I do not think that there is any world where they're suited for polyamory - this is honestly my biggest nope-out of fics and I deeply, deeply hate it for them.

This is because:

They already feel like a Pair Set to me that cannot be separated or infringed on by anyone else, and

In the end, it would never be fair to a romantic (or other platonic) partner because they would unplug anyone else's life support to charge the other's phone. No one else would ever be the priority over the other, and if they did, that would be OOC.

Even if they decided to date someone else now in the short-term, like Crystal or the Cat King, it's necessarily temporary. It's to Figure Things Out. There is an expiration date. And whether that's due to a romantic or a platonic bond between Edwin and Charles, their bond being stronger than any other is the reason for that expiration date.

So polyamory feels extremely disingenuous to their characters to me and is imo extremely OOC.

Authenticity to the Story

Edwin is currently, in the explicit canon, essentially Charles's QPP who has a one-sided crush on him. That is the explicit canon. It's not a fun place to be, no matter how much your QPP loves you - I have Been There.

Edwin is not unhappy or dissatisfied with the current situation, and he knows Charles loves him. But it still is kind of a sucky place to sit.

Luckily, the love does not actually feel one-sided! Charles reads as a character that has always been romantically in love with Edwin, probably long before Edwin fell romantically in love with Charles, but he neither has the self-awareness nor the words to describe it.

Charles touching his heart at the end of episode 8 makes it clear that he is beginning to have his Big Epiphany. I wish the show wasn't canceled because, uh, I want it.

This obvious two-sided romantic love makes a future QPR feel inauthentic to me. I think both characters would feel like it was the wrong shape for the relationship after they both had their epiphanies.

Other Media Considerations

I understand that a lot of people, it's important to have an explicitly-labeled QPR in a show. I do not disagree with this! I think we need WAY more QPRs in media that are explicitly labeled as such and treated as valid. I just don't think that it's right for Charles and Edwin.

I've explained why this is true from a character perspective; but let me also talk about how relationships like theirs are treated.

I'm personally sick of the "bond-beyond-bonds relationship that remains purely platonic." We saw it with Destiel onscreen because of the rancid queerbaiting in Supernatural; we saw it in Johnlock as a direct result of similar, albeit less magnified, queerbaiting.

This is, to me, the exact type of relationship that a QPR between Edwin and Charles would be.

It would be different. I know this. There is no world where DBDA is queerbaiting us; we have a gay MC and tons of queer side characters.

But to me, platonic Payneland being endgame would still feel like a betrayal because that endgame would feel like something adjacent to the endings of other shows that have queerbaited in the past. I feel like a huge appeal of DBDA is that it's beginning to right those wrongs and heal those wounds, and I firmly believe that's one intention of the show. It would feel unkind to the bulk of viewers for them not to end up together.

I think that the show ultimately was going to make them romantic endgame. It just didn't have the time to before getting the axe, which SUCKS.

So yeah. These are my personal thoughts. I hope I've articulated some of the things that a lot of you think.

[frvnkcastles]

Could I please request one where reader is dating Frank but kind of waiting for the other shoe to drop, wondering when or if Frank’s going to break up with her constantly since her last boyfriend (and several ex “best” friends) left/ghosted/broke up with her unexpectedly for no reason so she doesn’t know why and worries about her body/everything she wears and everything she says and does and is trying not to do anything wrong so Frank doesn’t do the same to her but Frank of course catches on, finds out the problem and makes her see different and that’s she beautiful and worth staying and being cared for even though it’s hard to believe because no one has ever chosen her and wanted to stay before…

Thank you, I love your work ❤️😊

I CAN SEE A LOVE RESTRAINED ➵ F. CASTLE

Summary: You’ve been hurt one too many times, and letting Frank in isn’t as easy as you’d like it to be.

Warnings: Abandonment/trust issues, body image issues, angst, hurt/comfort, reader is friends with Matt, feminine nicknames, language

Word count: 3.2k

Author’s note: Thank you so much for the support, anon! I definitely understand this feeling that you described and it really sucks. That said, I’m positive people will appreciate you and see how wonderful you are, don’t give up <3

It was fair to say that your past relationships, romantic as well as platonic, had left their mark on you. You were a naturally affectionate and loving kind of woman but being left on multiple occasions had hardened you, made you more reluctant to share the love that you had within you. It was a natural reaction — you just didn’t want to get hurt again, and so, you settled for keeping people at a distance, never really allowing yourself to lower your defenses enough to let anyone in.

That proved to be extremely hard when you met Frank. He was handsome and intriguing, not a very talkative guy but he had effortlessly made you smile and laugh, regardless. He had been reserved about you, too, mostly because he wasn’t looking for anything casual nor serious, and he certainly didn’t trust Red to find him the kind of company he liked. But when his friend of sorts had insisted on introducing you to him, annoyingly persistent, he had caved in and figured it couldn’t hurt to give a chance to the person Red spoke so highly of.

”How come you ain’t together if she’s so perfect?” Frank had questioned, fully suspicious of Matt and his intentions, but the man had quickly laughed him off.

”I don’t think we’re meant to be anything more than friends. But she’s a wonderful person and I think you’d hit it off. I’m not just doing this for you, I think she could use some company, too”, Matt had explained, not entirely acting with your blessing. In fact, you had no idea what he was up to, but he knew you well enough — you were getting lonely whether you wanted to admit or not, and despite their disagreements, he knew Frank could be worthy of your time.

And that was how you ended up shaking Frank’s hand in your favorite bar where you never went to find company, just a drink after a long week. Matt had known you’d be there and more or less shoved Frank inside, and as annoyed as he was, Frank couldn’t deny that the sight of you immediately made his heart skip a beat.

”Did Matt put you up to this?” you asked eventually, well-aware that the two of them worked together often. It wasn’t frequent for Matt to set you up with anyone, but he was the only thing common between you and Frank, and you weren’t stupid.

Caught, Frank chuckled. ”Yeah, yeah, he did. I ain’t gonna lie, I had my reservations but uh, talkin’ to you… I don’t regret comin’ in here. You seem real sweet”, he admitted, his eyes lingering on your figure. Not only did he find you sweet, he thought you were absolutely gorgeous, and he fucking hated the fact that he was going to have to tell Matt he had been right.

You blushed at Frank’s words and shrugged. ”Thanks, but I—I’m not really looking for anything right now. You seem great too, don’t get me wrong”, you gave him a half-apology, chewing on your lip nervously. He was charming, you had to give him that much, but you really weren’t up for having your heart broken yet again, and so, you found it best to keep Frank at an arm’s length.

”Hey, I get it. Can’t say I was expectin’ anything much when I walked through that door but I guess you kinda got me rethinkin’, ’s all”, he nodded in understanding before licking his lips and taking the plunge. ”Maybe we could get another drink sometime? No pressure, no expectations. Just hangin’ out, I guess”, Frank went on, a hopeful look in his eyes, and it wore you down.

”Sure”, you swallowed, feeling familiar anxiety rush in your veins as you agreed.

But like he said, there were no expectations. It could just be two friends grabbing a beer, nothing more. So, you gave him your phone number and hoped for the best.

You met up a couple of times after that. Frank couldn’t believe he was being so forward and that he really was so into you, but it was a fact he couldn’t deny. He had a strong will and good self-control, but he found himself losing all of that around you. Previously used to solitude and being wary of new connections, he now felt hooked on you, needing more and more even if he was willing to do it on your terms.

He could tell you liked him back, though. As much as you tried not to, you couldn’t help it. You started to feel less lonely and he occupied your thoughts on a daily basis, and it scared the shit out of you. You weren’t ready to fall in love again, but it seemed your heart wasn’t waiting for permission.

A few weeks passed with you getting to know one another, and one night, he was walking you home in the dark night, far too protective to let you make it all by yourself. Once at the door of your apartment building, you both lingered, not quite ready to say goodbye, but unsure what else there was left to say.

”I had a good time, sweetheart. I’m glad you ain’t sick of my clingy ass yet”, he joked, and it made you smile nervously. You were mere inches away from each other, his taller build towering over you with his fingertips brushing against yours. Your heart was hammering in your chest and you could feel the undeniable tension in the air, and so could he.

”Of course, not. I like spending time with you”, you whispered, quiet but close enough for Frank to hear. His heart soared at your words, flattered and honored that for someone who chose her company carefully, you had given him the time of the day.

His eyes fell to your lips, and when you didn’t pull away, he made the move and leaned in. Right before his lips could graze yours, though, you ducked your head with a swell of panic in your chest. It was all too real suddenly and the idea of moving from a mutual interest to something concrete terrified you.

”Shit”, Frank breathed out, squeezing his eyes shut. ”Sorry, I shoulda asked. Just thought… Doesn’t matter. Didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable”, he added while stepping back, and in an instant, guilt and regret took over your body. Seeing the rejection on his face hurt worse than the risk of letting him in, and that was enough for you to know that kiss or no kiss, you were in too deep.

”No, I’m sorry. It’s me, I—I just can’t. Sorry”, you repeated before turning your heel and rushing inside, too embarrassed to stay and look at Frank’s hurt face any longer.

He frowned at your words, but let you go. He had pushed your limits enough for one night, but even if he didn’t stop you from running indoors, he couldn’t help but get stuck on what you had said. It wasn’t that you didn’t like him back, something else was holding you back, and that caused worry to flare up in him. Clearly, someone had hurt you badly, and he felt pure anger at the simple thought of it.

That same night, he tracked Red down, itching to pick a fight, but mostly he wanted to find out what was stopping you from going all in. He could sympathize — after all, he had closed himself off to relationships after Maria, and even now, when he had grown so attached to you, he struggled with that little nagging guilt in the back of his head that didn’t want him to move on.

”She ain’t ready, Red. Wanna tell me what happened or should I punch it out of ya?” Frank grumbled as he joined Matt on the rooftop, an unhappy look on his face that only deepened when he saw the mysterious smile on his friend’s face.

”You weren’t ready, either”, Matt retorted before sighing deeply. ”She’s been hurt a lot, Frank. Every guy she’s been with has broken her heart. It’s the same with best friends, too. Everyone leaves her. So, yeah, she’s careful about who she lets in”, he continued, causing the anger to fade from Frank’s face. At least Red had stayed, but he knew he wasn’t the most stable presence, either. He didn’t think he himself would be, for that matter, but he wanted so badly to prove to you that he’d stick around.

”She don’t deserve that”, Frank grunted, unable to understand why anyone would turn their back on you. Sure, you were stunning in a way that took his breath away, but you were also a good, caring person. You had such a big heart and you were an excellent listener, not to mention how funny you could be. And even though you knew who Frank was and what he had done, you had never judged him.

”I agree. That’s why I wanted you to meet with her. Platonic or romantic, I knew you could appreciate her for who she is”, Matt explained, and sighing, Frank couldn’t deny that he had been right. He thought you were amazing, and he really wanted you to know that.

So, the next day, he made his way to your apartment. He was uncharacteristically nervous, his usual cool demeanor cracking under the pressure of the situation, but he was good at concealing it. He stood on your doorstep, calm and collected, and once he had knocked and you opened the door, you couldn’t have suspected he was feeling troubled in any way.

”Frank”, you exhaled, honestly surprised. You were sure that your refusal to kiss him would have pushed him away, but here he was, and you reluctantly felt relieved. You had given him enough reason to walk away, but he kept showing up, and it gave you hope.

”Red told me about your shitty exes. I want ya to know that they’re assholes for leavin’ you like that and that… that I wouldn’t do that. I know I come with a lot of baggage, but I swear to you, I’d treat you right, sweetheart. Shit, you really… you really got me, y’know? I really care about you and I wish I could make you less scared ’cause I know you care about me, too”, he rambled, calling you out in a way that maybe you needed to be.

Gulping, you nodded to confirm he was right. ”I do care about you. I wish I didn’t, but I do”, you confessed, sending his heart reeling. ”I just don’t want to be let down again. I really can’t do it again”, you pointed out, not sure if Frank would get it, but he did.

”I hear you, sweetheart. It ain’t the same thing, but I know loss, and I don’t wanna go through it again. Maybe we could learn to trust again together. I know it’s fuckin’ scary to let your guard down, I sure as hell have a hard time with it, but you make me wanna try”, he shared, his voice so soft and careful. He wasn’t used to opening up about his feelings, but he knew you needed honesty, and he wanted to give it to you.

”Okay. I… I think I can do that. I want to trust you”, you told him, sparking a smile on his face.

Hesitating, he stepped closer to you and took his hand in your own. ”Can I kiss you?” he asked in that low, husky tone of his, full of want, and it sent a shiver down your body. You nodded, and he broke into a grin, cradling your face in one massive hand and dropping his mouth to yours. It was slow and careful, just testing the waters, but you could tell he was holding back, and it made your stomach do flips. He really wanted you, needed you even, and that felt so good.

He was willing to take things slow. However you wanted him, he was yours. And sure enough, you fell into a comfortable rhythm with him, both of you head over heels for one another, and Matt was pleased whenever you two showed up to a night out together, Frank’s hand protectively around your waist. The three of you began to spend more time together, allowing Frank to see the more carefree, relaxed side of you that Matt brought out, but you also dedicated plenty of moments to just you and Frank. Right before your eyes, you built a relationship, and you were so happy with him.

Nevertheless, there was something of a dark cloud above your head, invisible to Frank but so heavy on you. Your mind fed you constant worries and anxiety — since everyone else had left, surely Frank would do the same. And without even fully realizing it, you began taking great measures to avoid such a fate.

”Which one do you like better?” you asked Frank, holding up two dresses that were casual enough for your movie date, but too important for you to make the decision on your own. You had become highly worried about everything you wore, always wondering if Frank liked what you had on or if he was ashamed to be seen with you. Maybe your body wasn’t good enough, to begin with.

”Why’re you askin’ me, sweetheart? You’ll look stunnin’ either way”, he chuckled, not really seeing the point, but his answer didn’t satisfy you.

”Pick one. Please?” you pleaded, desperately wanting his input, and it twisted his face with surprise.

”Uh, alright. The one on the right”, Frank chose, and instantly, your stomach dropped — you had thought the one on the left was better. But it mattered to you what he thought, as you certainly didn’t want to give him any reason to leave you, and so, you put on the dress he had pointed out.

You picked at it the whole drive to the movie theater, uncomfortable with how your body looked in it and convinced that Frank was seeing it, too. You felt insecure and you wanted to cancel the entire date, but you didn’t want to upset him, so you swallowed it down.

”Somethin’ wrong with the dress, baby?” Frank noticed your compulsive touching at the clothing, and feeling exposed by his question, you gave him a weak smile.

”No, no, nothing. It’s alright”, you insisted, before swiftly changing the subject. Still, Frank didn’t forget about it. If anything, he was starting to notice a pattern of you seeming so uncomfortable in your own skin, leaving him stuck between wanting to reassure you and fearing he’d only be creating a problem by bringing it up.

He picked up on the anxiety that followed you pretty easily. But it wasn’t until you began putting yourself down out loud that he cut in.

”Hey, bring me that black shirt f’me?” Frank called out from the bathroom where he was brushing his teeth, preparing for the day ahead of him. You reacted to his request as quickly as you could, digging through his designated half of the closet to find that one button-up you loved to see on him and hastily carrying it to the bathroom for him.

You handed the shirt over, and you instantly clocked the look on his face. ”Oh, shit, I shoulda specified. The other one, sweetheart. This one got all torn up from that one asshole’s knife the other night”, he corrected you gently and with care, but it hit you straight in the heart, making you feel like you couldn’t do anything right.

”Sorry. Sorry, I—I’m stupid. I don’t know what I was thinking”, you stammered, turning around to go back to the closet, but Frank stopped you with a grip on your wrist.

”Hey, you ain’t stupid. It was a mistake. Where’s this comin’ from, huh?” he glanced you over with concern, hating the sound of you criticizing yourself like that. He saw no need for it, and the way you jumped to it was something he wasn’t going to look past.

You shrugged, trying to move on from it, but Frank wasn’t that easily convinced. ”Look at me, sweetheart”, he demanded softly, and shyly, you brought your gaze up to his. ”I don’t like you speakin’ that way ’bout yourself. You didn’t do anythin’ wrong, yeah? It ain’t a big deal”, he promised, and his attempts to reassure you got your eyes to sting with incoming tears.

”I just don’t wanna do something to make you leave me”, you whispered, wiping your eyes to avoid him seeing you cry. ”Sorry”, you added, and shaking his head, Frank pulled you in, his head tilted down at you. He was so close, you could sense his warmth and his stare, and you felt so vulnerable in the small space.

”There’s nothin’ to apologize for, sweet darlin’. Hey, listen to me. There ain’t a thing you could do to make me leave. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, ’m here to stay. I wanna be with you. The real you, includin’ every little thing you think I couldn’t love. I do”, Frank started, staring you down and trying to make you see he was completely serious. He would have never done anything to hurt you on purpose, and he wished he would have had the words to convince you.

”You really mean that?” you asked weakly, trembling from anxiety. You really wanted to believe him, but it was hard to unlearn everything you had grown so accustomed to.

”I mean it, baby”, he swore, leaning in to kiss your forehead. ”Is this why you keep bein’ so careful with what you say around me? And why you ask me what you should be wearin’?” he wondered, and embarrassed to admit it, you nodded.

”I just want you to still think I’m worth it”, you sighed, breaking Frank’s heart.

”Clearly I ain’t been very good at this boyfriend thing, ’cause I never want you to doubt how I feel ’bout you. You’re fuckin’ gorgeous, and I adore everythin’ you do and are. Can’t think of anyone sweeter and kinder than you. You’re the best thing to happen to me in a long while and I… I love you”, he told you, sincere and full of feeling. His words made your eyes widen, and for a moment, you were at a loss for words, but eventually, the right thing tumbled out of your mouth.

”I love you, Frank”, you smiled, unable to hold back the joy you felt upon hearing that. ”I’m always the one to love more. To get more attached. But you… you really care about me, don’t you?” you spoke in amazement, starting to see that he was serious about you.

”You’re goddamn right I do. And you’ll always be worth it to me, pretty girl. Nothin’s gonna change that”, he emphasized, his dark eyes filled to the brim with something fiery. For the first time since you had met him, you trusted in him one hundred percent and didn’t let the inevitable anxiety and doubt shift your faith.

As he leaned down to kiss you, passionate and needy, you felt like you had found your happy ending. And for once, you had hope, and thought that with Frank, you actually had a chance of healing.

[buzzyb33]

Being in a relationship w memeulous would be a good idea for headcannons love you byeee

Prompt: in request-!

Warnings: some suggestive content, swearing, mentions of height

Obviously- he couldn’t tell the public that you and him were dating, you were a mutual of James Marriott due to you and Jago (James’ drummer) were close growing up both playing drums.

You two met through said which was fun, you two were close before you moved back to London causing you to get even closer, little coffee dates.

“George would you rather be your ideal intellect or be your ideal heig- i start as I sip my coffee.

“Height- look at me Y/n!” He whisper shouts with a grin.

I laugh.

He asked her out around 2 months later and did it with a nice bouquet of blue lilies.

He knocked on her door and she opened it as she rubbed her eyes, she was fully dressed just no makeup and her hair wasn’t done, showing her light freckles may be ironic- but beyond all the odds, she’d never looked prettier.

I smile as I see him.

“Hi george- we didn’t have anything planned today did we?” I say as I Lena on my doorframe.

“Uh, no- but.. I have something to ask.”

My smile wavers at his nervousness.

“Will you go- on a proper real date with Me? You know..” he said and sheepishly brought the lilies from behind his back.

Her cheeks flushes and she grinned.

“You remembered by favourite flower? Oh george! Of course!” I giggled and take the flowers out of his hands gently.

He smiled and I tell him to come him and put the flowers in a vase.

“You-“ he exhaled.and smiled.

“Yeah cool.” He tried to keep his calm but could hardly contain his smile.

Their dates were great, clearly they were meant and happy for each other.

At the start of the relationship the two were still a bit shy with each other, holding hands in public was their only form of PDA.

Though, further on into the relationship George asked you to move in with him, you could trial it for a bit.

After passing the honeymoon and awkward phases of your relationship you two were romantic best friends.

You found out pretty quickly George’s love language was gift giving, while you’re was quality time.

When you two were out before you were holding hands, something you just started doing in public, and his face was red.

“George you okay?” I ask quietly.

He nods and pulls his hand out of mine before wiping it on his chest then putting it back in mine.

Another time, me and George were making out in the comfort of our apartment and I exhale as his mouth goes to my neck.

“George- I have my train to get to-! I have to go meet James..” he mumbled something as he nibbled my neck, me holding back a whine.

“Alright- okay..” he murmurs as his eyes flick between my eyes and neck.

“Have fun.” He smiles and kisses my temple.

I don’t think much about his actions as I’m on my trainer to Brighton; my mind drifts into the fact I haven’t really told James how me and George are dating- same for him, even though he introduced us.

As I get to his apartment- he starts his stream and he starts talking about how his chat should of drew me.

I move my hair out my face and look at James as he talks.

“Neck- chat what are you on about? Neck-“

He looks at me then his jaw drops.

Y/n! You have a hickey!” He jabs my cheek and my face turns a shade of crimson.

He muted his stream and laughs at me.

“Who gave you that? Do I know them?”

I put my face in my hands and sit on his floor.

He unmutes his stream and says I’ll be with them in a minute.

As he ended the stream he laughed again and leaned against the door frame.

“Well, thank you for coming.” He clicked his tongue.

“Who gave you the hickey?” I push his chest and scoff.

“Thank you for having me- I need to go do… things.” He rolls his eyes as I tie my laces.

“Was it George?”

George definitely did that on purpose.

“Can we get matching pyjamas?” I ask as I go into his office as he edits a main channel video.

He doesn’t hear me and I notice he still has his mask and glasses on, I sigh and pull his hat off his head, massaging his scalp lightly.

He turns to face me and smiles.

“Fix your posture, love you do this all the time..” I say softly and he leans back in his chair and looks at me.

I smile and pull his glasses off then his mask.

He exhales and relaxes in my touch as I massage his scalp, his eyes closing gently.

“Mmmh- thank you, n/n.. I- I do love you..” he muttered as I smiled.

We didn’t say that much.

“What did you say- earlier?” He questions as I sense his drowsiness.

“We should get matching pyjamas, I think that- would be cute for us..”

He smokes and nods, already almost half asleep.

“George get into bed..”

He groans and opens his eyes, he saves whatever editing he’s done and drags himself out of his office into his room. (He had a three bedroom apartment and when I stayed I shared with him)

“I’ll get a drink then be back.” I say as I go to get a bottle of water, as I come back he’s already fast asleep.

I smile and climb into bed with him, his arms instinctively going around my waist.

And finally, George definitely calls you short arse to make himself feel better at his 5’8 stature.

A/n:

Can you tell I struggle with boyfriend headcannons? Anyway thanks for the request!! I have a josh fic out soon maybe earlier than next week and TWO tobi ones so!

Requests are open!

(Masterlist)

[catras-breakup-song]

i’m not gonna lie… i’m lost here. is this supposed to be an 4nt1/cr1t1c4l post? if so, i genuinely don’t understand the point being made.

is it that playful banter is a bad thing? is it that being too hands-on violates unspoken boundaries? the message is so unclear to my autistic ass…

oh, wait, OP provided tags:

so aside from the fact that they are absolutely not sisters by default, least of all canonically (even if you do interpret them that way somehow), nor was it ever intended by nate stevenson, i’m still having trouble figuring out how this is problematic.

in which ways is lighthearted touch totally contradictory to passionate kissing/caressing? why can’t partners who are dating do both, especially in different cultural environments such as the horde where intimacy is discouraged and friendly sparring with familiar peers is a safe expression? if it’s so different, what are we as the audience supposed to interpret from their style of physical affection by the final season? side note, but aren’t we supposed to consider the latest version of anything in general as the most accurate?

now i have a question lol, did you take this moment literally at her word, and all the other times she repeated it?

also, my friend just pointed out that this is the classic homophobic talking point of "they seem to just be very good friends! they were roommates!" lmao. i've never agreed with accusing anyone who cr1t1c1z3s catradora of lesbophobia, which i'm not doing necessarily, because that's simply not how it works, however i found this funny and partially true so i'm keeping it in.

the lip bite was included unintentionally 👀

anyway, as i’ve discussed on this blog before, i’m very arospec and it’s inseparably intwined with my identity itself; i also project that onto catra. something we often bring up in that community, is romance-favorability (as its own spectrum of range all the way to blatant repulsion btw) — which is a personal preference that’s defined as exactly as it sounds like and occasionally revolves around fictional depiction as separate from one's own reality — and arguably more importantly, amatonormativity — which is an arbitrary set of rules for romantic expectations set up by an alloromantic society. this is typically thought of as common denial of the idea that someone could actually want to separate themself from needing a life partner in marriage, but can very much be applied to an annoying list of what draws the line between romantic & platonic relationships. that line is very individualistic and is to be decided on such a level only, and it doesn’t even get into what queerplatonic means, a concept saved for another day!

my point is, the OP seems to be trying to claim that catradora objectively cannot be read as romantic because their dynamic growing up & early-on in the story doesn’t perfectly meet socially-constructed standards of what that should look like. i say we need to eradicate those standards altogether! it’s up to catradora to decide what they are, if anything specific at all, not us as the audience — assuming they could’ve had the words at their disposal to knowingly describe it. going back to my earlier paragraph above about how limited they were in the fright zone, i’ll borrow a quote from a comment i made on one of my recent reblogged posts (which is a great meta on how their mutual desire was uh... definitely not platonic):

"Catra and Adora’s desire for one another is shown in a variety of ways, mostly indirect. There are a lot of glances - until season 5, not the kind of open leering at one another that we’d seen between other characters. Mostly it’s fairly playful - wiggled or cocked eyebrows, glances at each other while smirking, that kind of thing, or really intense and somewhat angry glares when they’re fighting."

it's really bothering me that i can't recall where i read this from before, but someone analyzed before how, growing up, catra & adora didn't have a good sense of how to label their relationship with accurate terminology despite being subconsciously aware that they, whether they knew the other reciprocated or not, loved each other "like that." unfortunately, they couldn't further explore it because such love & affection was seen as a punishable weakness in the horde, so they resorted to the only safe option they seemed to have, which was subtle body language and play-fighting as [testudoaubrei-blog] described above.

also, since this screenshot is included in that post... i would be amused to read an explanation of how THIS LOOK from catra is "platonic with a capital P", because i'm not even sure if it's up for debate to be quite honest with you:

ESPECIALLY with the "i always have!" line (which 4nt1s like to doubt, but i don't care, it's official!):

[antimony-medusa]

Trying Hard Not To Smile Though I Feel Bad

“You know, that’s something,” she said. “Ranboo’s supposed to be following Niki’s lead, right? Well, if she thinks it’s a good idea, that’ll work. They can date when she starts dating.” “But–” Ranboo cut himself off in horror. He glanced between his family members. “Uh, can’t I date when I’m on the dean’s list instead?” He didn’t say 'that might be more achievable' out loud, but he definitely thought it. “No, when Niki thinks it’s a good idea to date, you can follow her lead,” one of his moms said, nodding. “Like a double date,” his other mom said, glancing up at her wife. “Like a double date,” she agreed, nodding. Niki laughed a little incredulously. “That might not—happen? I’m pretty happy with my life as it is, actually.” Ranboo’s mom grinned, the corners of her green eyes crinkling. “Sounds good to me,” she said. “You can go on dates when Niki does.” “Great,” Ranboo said. They laced their fingers behind their back. “Fantastic. I think this is a great plan that will not have me die lonely and alone.” OR: Ranboo isn't allowed to date until his sister does. Which is bad news for his future romantic prospects. Fortunately, he has a plan to fix this.

Status: 4/4 chapters, updated 30 June, 16,254 words

Fandom: Dream SMP

Rating: Teen Audiences

Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply

Characters: Niki | Nihachu, Cara | CaptainPuffy, Ranboo (Video Blogging RPF), Toby Smith | Tubbo

Relationships: Niki | Nihachu & Ranboo, Cara | CaptainPuffy/Niki | Nihachu, Ranboo/Toby Smith | Tubbo, Ranboo & Toby Smith | Tubbo & TommyInnit

Tags: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - 2000s, Inspired by '10 Things I Hate About You', Sibling Love. Comedy, Anarchist Syndicate is a Book Club (Dream SMP), Anarchist Niki | Nihachu, Ranboo-centric (Video Blogging RPF), Wealthy Ranboo, Niki | Nihachu-centric, Fake/Pretend Relationship, But neither of them actually know

And here it begins, the first of two fics I wrote for @mcytblraufest! This one is fully written, and is going to be coming out in daily chapters, so Strap In Guys. A Lot Happens.

This fic is based on some fantastic art by @ks1971, and was betted by @droidofmay— thank you for being a wonderful and generous team. I had a wonderful time taking the movie 10 things I hate about you and jumping off in my own direction. My first time writing puffychu, and the first time I'd done beeduo in a WHILE. Anyways I'll let you get to the fic— I hope you enjoy!

[oldhalloweentape]

🪨Venture (OW II) x (gn) reader headcanons⛏️

(Start of Romantic Relationship Pt. III Edition!)

(Not my picture!)

(Finally on Pt. 3!!! It’s only been a couple of days since I first started this but I digress— Anyways a friend of mine, @goohts helped me figure out some ideas for this one, and I’m extremely thankful to her for it!)

Warning!: A small nsfw mention!

(Pt. I) (Pt. II)

- To start things off, baking, everyone likes to bake right? Well uh, if you decide to bake with Sloane, you obviously have to handle the oven part… And the ingredient part.

- If you don’t, things may get… Messy, you see they don’t really know a whole lot about baking at first, so they’ll try to wing it and assume crap. Bites y’all in the ass if you don’t thwart it in time.

- Imagine having to stop them from dumping a whole cup (not even a measuring cup, a drinking cup) of baking soda into the mixture, trying to protest against this, claiming that, “It’s called baking soda— so, there should be a lot of it right?” No.

- Besides that, they’re a great helper nonetheless, quickly learning from their mistakes and even getting pretty good at it the more you guys do it.

- I can imagine them making a cake like the mud cake Max, from Max & Ruby, makes but with crushed up Oreos, gummy worms, rock candy, etc.

- Looks a little frumpy cause they’re just too excited to take the time to decorate it, tastes great nonetheless.

- Also, a serial batter licker, you have to stop them from doing it almost every single time you have to give them a spoon or a whisk.

- Don’t want them getting salmonella after all, though they probably think it’d be a thing they’d die honorably for, that or between your thighs but like—

- I think they’d consider baking as a personal bonding activity between the two of you, and even if you don’t know how to— That’s cool! They don’t know either! You can learn together!!

- They definitely devour everything you make for them, if you char it— They’re used to eating rough stuff anyways, and leave NOTHING on that plate, that goes for more than just baking.

- Prefers sugary things, if that wasn’t obvious already. Brings a little baggy of candy with them wherever they go, preferring gummies.

- If you ever made them gummies yourself? They're already planning where to propose to you in their the second you give them the bag and tell them they’re homemade.

- Anyways, outdoor dates again with this one, cave exploring. Oh they’d just love to do that with you, probably suggests such a date like that when you both are celebrating your 6th month anniversary together.

- To say they’re excited is an understatement, traversing underground, being in the presence of rock various and unique rock formations that took years upon years to be where they are today and see it with you?? Oh yeah they’re living the dream.

- They’re constantly fighting the urge to break away from the group and run around, see everything the cave has to offer. It’s like seeing a kid in a candy shop and be given unlimited access to it I swear.

- Excitement aside, they make a point to make sure you’re ok all through out the trip, giving you whatever you request. Just making sure you’re well hydrated or comforting you if you start feelings a bit cramped in there.

- Always makes sure you’re up for it beforehand, wanting you to have as much fun as they are.

- They take so many pictures in sections where it’s permitted, and a lot of them have you as the main focus or in the sidelines, naturally.

- That scrapbook I mentioned earlier is jammed full of so many photos, you have to get another one or two in like a year after getting the first one, can’t properly close by the time they’re finished with it.

- Again, they genuinely want your relationship to work, and they just want you to reciprocate. I mean, what is a serious relationship without that after all?

(Sorry that this came out a bit later than it usually does, just going through some life junk.)

[fangirlanxiety74]

HIII as a fellow ted enthusiast I love seeing people talk about him lol. How do u feel about the portrayals of his relationship with Ellen and what’s your favourite dynamic?

I think. The way his relationship with Ellen in the Radio Drama makes the most sense to me. Or at least the Book. I still don't know what is going on with the game, I never will.

The game, to me, is like the fnaf books are to the fnaf games. There's bits of truth in there but god it's hard to tell what is.

Lemme answer before I go off track UH

I think the relationship of them both. Hating each other and yet still needing each other, relying on each other, caring for each other in their own fucked-up way is what makes the most sense for me. Obviously, this is more true on Ted's end than Ellen's, but it still stands.

It's not a good relationship. It's not a healthy one. He's awful to her, but like. We see so little of how their relationship works in real life, because let's remember: We're seeing it all from his perspective. And the story is only a few pages. There's so much we won't ever know about them, so we can only guess from the context clues, yk??

But clearly, she cared, at least somewhat for him. And as much as he hated her, he clearly cared, at least somewhat, for him. Or the scene in the ice caves wouldn't have happened.

Ted would've killed himself over her if he really, genuinely did not like her.

Plus I think the scene in the radio drama where he can only sob and ask Ellen to hold him, who obliges... Idk. There's something so human and tragic about it. It's definitely my favorite portrayal of them.

As for dynamic, uhh... Dynamic for them? Platonic. Basically as I described above. In general, like, between characters? Ted and Ellen, still. Ted and AM are great, and I ship GorriTed, but... God I think there's something so fascinating about Ted and Ellen's relationship. If I understand foils correctly, I think they pull it off well. Especially when you put it in a platonic lens instead of a romantic one.

I wanna say. If there ever came a day when they all escaped. When they were all free of AM, and could live their lives normally. I don't know if they would ever stay in touch. I think it'd end up like Diana and Bojack's final scene in Bojack Horseman. They say their goodbyes, but they never reach out again. Because they know they will make each other worse if they ever stayed together. Does that make sense???

The found-family in me wants them to be friends. But the human in me wants Ellen to find peace, without him. She would never be happy if he stayed in her life. And he would never be better with her in his.

Also, please, if you read this; explain more what you mean by dynamics I do wanna answer!!!

[ai-the-broccoli]

DN ask game: 11 (lawlightmane), 24 and 25, please!

thank you for the ask!!

11. what do you think about (lawlightmane)?

I love them!!!

in terms of comedy, their yotsuba arc shenanigans were some of my favourite moments in the show. like I know how much this phrase gets said but seriously. world's worst toxic polycule. I always love horrible polycules in fiction, they're great fun (see gramarye ot3 and matt-juan-celeste-adrian from ace attorney; I ship the first one, and the second one is just so intriguing in terms of how fucked up it was. dysfunctionality, obsessive hatred & rivalry, murders, suicide, accidentally-implied grooming, dependency, untreated dpd [this one is like strongly implied in canon] and probably also bpd, npd and who knows what else mixing together in the worst way possible, the mysterious relationship between a codependent lesbian [strongly implied] working for years - in the role of his manager - with the womanizing bisexual male actor she fucking hates, the guy just having spy cameras installed all over his male rival's home for some fucking reason......... oh wait) but also! in this case they are like... surreal in such a nice way because of the contrast??? like it's so incredibly toxic and yet here they are. having the most godawful first date (canonically addressed as a date) in the animated sitcom that is called Death Note Yotsuba arc. love to see it. okay how do I explain the appeal here? uhh basically it's kinda like. gap moe.

now comedy aside (but also sorta combined with the comedic aspects; mainly I mean "moving onto it as a serious thing"). MAN. lawlightmane is just fucking insanely good in general. like it's like. it's many things, it is EXTREMELY compelling and an incredibly intriguing dynamic that is full of potential for many things. iirc after I first watched DN and got obsessed with it badly, I made a tierlist and on the topmost tier I put lawlight and lawlightmane (lawlightmane wasn't even an item on the tiermaker I was using, so I just uploaded a screenshot to use myself). both because it was very funny as World's Worst PolyculeTM, and because it's genuinely great. and now my opinions on all of those characters and relationships are much more developed, I think I definitely appreciate it more seriously on a whole.

regarding each respective one-on-one relationship involved in lawlightmane...

well I am. obviously majorly incredibly into lawlight as a ship (beloved otp-tier ship, and maybe somewhat on that tier across fandoms too; I think it's my top favourite canonically-m/m ship rn [maybe tied with another 1-2, but not necessarily]). not sure I need to elaborate since I mean it's lawlight, it's really good

and then law/mane [censoring since this is... negative-ish? so I'm not putting it in the ship tag]. uh full disclosure I have no interest in law/mane if light isn't involved in the picture sorry. (at least rn I've never seen anything that's convinced me) I can see the appeal, and I can also see why some people don't like it, but for me it's really just... well it's just not much my thing lol unless it's a lawlightmane-related situation. OH also personally I can't see it as a romantic thing per se, like my brain just really doesn't compute at the idea of "L is in romantic love with Misa" or vice versa even in an AU. but as for any sexual aspect, it's just a plain "this isn't my thing" situation (as in I'm not interested but the idea doesn't make my brain automatically go "???? [error 404 does not compute]" as a romantic depiction may). their dynamic also doesn't grip me like yagamane (also non-romantic -ish ship for me) does, so yeah, overall I can't say I ship it outside of shipping lawlightmane! HOWEVER as a dynamic it's pretty neat within lawlightmane too.

EDIT (before posting the draft): I woke up today and was about to add "actually I think for a ship such as law/mane, what would probably at least slightly convince me of it has be something thematic probably, so if anyone has any ideas related to how they thematically complement each other or such feel free to send them my way, I like that sort of stuff" but then as I was brushing my teeth my brain filled in the gaps vaguely myself. it's something related to gluttony/hunger/appetite etc. and uh... okay I can see it now ngl lmao. that being said even in that vein I still just like them in lawlightmane for the time being, what changed was that I now have a better feel of their dynamic within lawlightmane if that makes sesne.

moving onto yagamane. man I LOVE yagamane and their whole... *gesture vaguely*. I personally definitely don't see it as a... idk, relationship formed of mutual genuine romantic and/or sexual attraction, but like, it very much doesn't have to be. it's super appealing in the way it's sooooo fucked-up in all sorts of ways, including thematically, mutually, and it's incredibly compelling to chew on. I also love both of them as individual characters (extremely obsessed with light but also really love misa and find her fascinating to think about) so that helps.

anyway lawlightmane really is very good, imo. I love it, thanks for asking anon

24. any headcanons you want to share?

let's see, what have I not mentioned much here yet?

Matsuda has indeed sort of had a crush on Light

Soichiro considers himself a straight man but is not one

The Shinigamis technically can have sex despite what the author tells us, but they are largely asexual or at the very least on the ace spectrum

Kiyomi doesn't canonically present butch but she should be. in an AU where she lives to the future

Misa doesn't die after she attempts suicide near the end in the anime canon

Light should take to gambling, c'mon you know he has JUST the right personality for that shit, go for it Light, develop a gambling addiction instead of a serial killing one! you can do it!!

nsft-related:

weirdly to me Mello is mostly a dom except for when it's with Near. though I haven't thought about this extensively so my opinion can change

I'm not a 100% strict lawlight top/bottom purist per se but I'm sorry I completely can't digest a relationship where Light is exclusively or mostly a dom and a top while L is exclusively or mostly a sub and a bottom. I respect your (general "you"; as in whoever is reading this, not the anon) opinion if you do, and it's fair, but I just can't see it, it doesn't work for me. the dom part is more important than the top/bottom part for me also.

on that note my opinion is that Light TECHNICALLY can dom, especially in relationships with people other than L, but. he's actually just... not into it. he thinks that he is, but it will just turn out he isn't. he'll get the instant powertrip high over it for a very short period of time at first, and then he just. loses it, the high fades quickly and he gets bored as fuck. and he isn't into it at all and finds that he wants to be the sub to some other person actually. which in itself is something he'll find extremely humiliating but that's good too

anyway it's nearly a fandom consensus at this point that Light has a praise kink I think lmao. that I do agree with. I will propose that we also assign praise kink to Matsuda and Soichiro; it's already been done (well, one by someone else and the other by yours truly) and I think it makes sense tbh.

... actually on that note. my personal hot take is that we as a fandom should very much consider applying the "like father like son" principle to nsft involving Soichiro Yagami, in connection to Light Yagami (<- you must understand that I have a lot of those takes because the first DN fic and currently my only DN fic I've published off-anon is in fact a soichello fic. it is only natural)

also yes I think Kiyomi should be a dom and has S tendencies

Misa definitely gives sub energy. though I wonder if she can also dom

25. ramble on about whatever you’d like to

lately I've wondered briefly if MikaMatt (as a romantic? ship and/or as a platonic ship) would be good solely because I put them in the roles of Iino and Ishigami respectively in the Kaguya-sama AU (Iino and Ishigami are canonically subtextual love interests to each other, and they're a fun duo even though I don't particularly ship them romantically). however I still do not understand Matt much sadly so this might be as far as it goes [-> note: if any Matt fans see this and want to fill me in, feel free!! I'm always interested in hearing more]

speaking of Mikami. I def like mika / light casually but I often wonder how come I don't actively like it more considering my OTP in mgrc has the whole... god thing, as a major major major draw for me (see: my current blog header title is a reference to that ship). that being said I do get it because mika / light is different from hime / san in various ways outside of it so it tracks

Light should become friends with Chika Fujiwara (he'll hate her but hey. it's fine) and get into board games and card games, it will save him (maybe slightly. sort of. it will help a little at least.)

okay anon so. I'm going to take a wild guess here and assume that you're at least to some degree familiar with the J-drama adaptation (maybe you've watched some of it?), but if not you can still read this part I suppose.

it's so funny that every other adaptation of DN just gets progressively gayer and gayer because dude literally what the fuck was going on with j-drama lawlight lmfao

the fucking shower scene (and everything about it), the ??? scene where L hooks Light to a polygraph??? (no like what the fuck was that really. it's not as infamous as the shower scene, but the blatantly textual sadomasochism is extremely in your face in that one), and the whole blue sceneTM, and then Light practically kissing L's cheek after L's death, and everything else

with that being said. hmmmmmmm. anyway moving on to my feelings about the j-drama in general:

I liked it overall! some stuff in it are very nice. and I like the characters too, but definitely not as much as the canon counterparts.

importantly I absolutely have to see the drama and each character and each relationship in the drama as like, a whole separate thing from the animanga canon, because if I viewed it as an adaptation they would come off as awful whereas as its own thing it is nice.

I like j-drama Light a lot! ...but not even nearly as much as animanga Light, sorry. I have to see him as a whole separate character 100% (that way he's funny and cute-ish, and I can appreciate him), otherwise I can't enjoy him at all because I'll just be thinking "where's my beloved amazing perfect Bad NPD RepTM :( they nerfed him and now he's not relatable anymore" the whole fucking time <- wow this is very normal and doesn't say anything about me at all. dw about it

and on that note. ngl I have to complain a bit. so I've seen more than one person say that j-drama is so much more ""human"" than canon Light, and I mean, that's a fair opinion!! I get what you mean and I totally get where you're coming from. that being said... I'm sorry I don't agree and I'm not sure I like what that implies either. I know that compared to animanga Light, j-drama Light possesses various traits that are societally more associated with "humanity" but y'know what idk. I don't think that's true. to me animanga Light Yagami is extremely human. I think it is an incredibly human wish to desire to become a god, also

personally I don't think j-drama Light is a better person, if he commits the same atrocities as animanga Light and just simply feels worse/feels more empathy/feels more guilt or whatever about it. I strongly believe that your actual morality is determined not by what you feel but by what you do, like, someone who keeps doing bad things while feeling the societally expected level of bad for it is hardly a better person than someone who does the same things, no more, while being unable to feel as much [insert expected feelings] over it (but still doesn't do more bad things than the previous person).

anyway back to the j-drama. basically I like it, and I def have many fond feelings over it personally, but the watching experience wasn't as good as anime DN for me, and there is more stuff that I dislike. and also I can't compare it to animanga DN too much because as an adaptation per se it doesn't work at all imo (but as its own thing? it's fine and I like some stuff in it quite a lot).

anyway I think that's all on my mind for now!! thank you for the great questions, I had fun writing this

[gothmiqote]

dt spoilers kinda, varha/estinien stuff ofc ofc but it's msq plot related naturally :p

estinien being only Sort Of around for this expansion kills me lmao like he on the periphery and whatever it is he’s doing intersects with varha when it counts (fighting the cyberpunk army in the desert etc etc) he’s also just like. ostensibly doing who knows what the fuck between appearances?

after the events of ew those two were definitely around each other a Lot (seeing her friends disappear one by one like that will apparently lead to some nasty separation anxiety, who would have guessed) & getting on the separate boats to go west is probably the first meaningful amount of time they’ve been apart since. to a degree she’s like it’s fine I’ve got this handled, although I don’t uh. Think he told anyone Where he was going? so she probably knew he was going to be away for a bit but not how long exactly or even really where (which she actually is cool with for real, they’re both kinda Like That TM so it’s normal). So yes, she’s very much starting to feel the yearning & the pining & what have you by the time they randomly cross paths in the throne room again.

But thEN he just. Walks out? Just says some complimentary words and fucking Leaves? I like to think he’d end up stopping by her inn room or whatever later on but based on how he was for the entire expansion I don’t even know if he would actually stay the whole night 💀 which is frustrating for her but at this point nothing super weird. Or so she thinks anyway because some point after Krile pulls her aside and is like Hey is everyone cool? Like are you good? Because Varha considers her one of her closest friends & she likes to torment Estinien psychologically for sport she knows them pretty well. To which Varha is just ?? Of course we’re good why wouldn’t we be good? But it makes her think anyway. It does Not help that Wuk Lamat flat out asks if she knows who he is personally, because the greeting she got was apparently the kind you’d reserve for acquaintances.

By the time she’s on the mini road trip with Erenville she’s trying Very hard to not think about her relationship because she’s keenly aware of how good she is at making herself quietly spiral & twelve help her, they see him and he does it again. Says some weird shit to her and fucks off into the sunset. Shout out to Erenville for not commenting on the weird vibes that were absolutely happening here. & it’s at this point she’s also starting to get kind of upset for real? Tries to back track mentally between the moments of dealing with an active crisis and no, she doesn’t think she’s done anything wrong, he didn’t seem to like her any less when he left—but that doesn’t mean things don’t change, & for all she knows maybe he’s just decided that she’s become more trouble than it’s worth to know her intimately like that (she wouldn’t blame him, she’s aware of her baggage). What kind of send off is ‘go do what it is you do’? No ‘good luck, stay safe’ or anything even remotely close? She needs to be focused on current events so she makes herself tunnel visioned but it’s still on her mind.

Meanwhile this man decided after getting paid for keeping Wuk Lamat’s dad entertained he wanted to plan a little romantic wilderness excursion in Tural. It’s literally the exact opposite scenario she’s been dreading and picking up on, they both like ‘camping’ (for lack of a better term) & this is a new area to explore, he thinks it’s a great idea. And it is! A similar trip was the catalyst for the getting together in the Steppe, albeit that one was unplanned & nothing was official until after she got back from the first, but still. Unfortunately he’s just so singularly focused on this plan (he’s looking for some decent locations when they run into each other outside of the city) he’s legitimately unaware of how he’s coming off in the present. In his mind he’s just in a good mood, & will at some point let her know what he’s been quietly putting together for them. He just wants some sort of concrete plan in place before he stops being cagey. Like he’s just in a good headspace in a relationship he’s actually very happy in & that’s manifesting in ways that make sense for Him once you know what to look for. It’s like being around your crush, except you’ve been serious about each other for the better part of the last few years now & also you never really learned how to flirt ‘normally’ (I feel like Aymeric probably tried to help with this at some point in the distant past & eventually just gave up to let his weird friend be weird. Sometimes that’s as good as it gets) because you’ve never been much of an extrovert or particularly socially gifted, so it usually comes across either insanely awkward and/or painfully earnest when you do give it a shot. All that to say, he’s doing his best, it’s just filtered through his methods every single time.

And to be fair to him also, she’s competent as hell. He had zero reasons to think she’d need any more help with the contest stuff, his presence would 100% just be overkill. He’s not saying this because he feels like it’s objectively obvious. Unfortunately it is Not, she is fully not getting this impression from any of his actions & ultimately just ends up stewing quietly over it. Initially she’s annoyed but over time gets progressively more sad lmao. If you click on him before one of the few trials you can run with npcs he’s like “I saw a big lizard, I’m going to hunt it later” which is so very baffling to her. AGAIN no real commentary on her actual situation or that she might not come back through that portal. Run the lizard through a translator and he actually meant something to the effect of I know you’ll take care of this, so I’m not worried, & as soon as you do come back we’re going to grill that lizard meat for dinner. In HIS mind this is what’s coming out of his mouth in fewer words. She’s just tired lmfao.

Once everything is taken care of & there’s some downtime she’s finally able to pull him to the side and ask what his deal has been lately, has she done something without knowing, has she been pulling away unconsciously etc etc etc. His turn to be confused now. This legitimately only becomes a miscommunication issue because every single conversation got cut short until this one, which of course gives him ample time to explain what’s actually been happening & also no, he’s definitely not bored or unhappy or anything like that, he’s been enjoying the opportunity to try and orchestrate something nice for her (even if the execution wasn’t. The greatest) and honestly didn’t realize how it looked from the outside. He was very much talking her up at any given opportunity each time someone asked about her, to the point where it was inevitably deduced that his descriptions of the Warrior of Light were apparently a good deal more personal than other accounts. She’s effectively been on his mind in some capacity since he got here.

& She feels extra dumb for getting upset at all, because that’s actually incredibly sweet and it makes perfect sense when you lay it all out that way, in hindsight she didn’t need to get worked up and just feels weirdly guilty now. Varha has been in a small handful of situationships, she’s never actually been important enough to anyone for them to go out of their way for her like that (she’s never even really had friends up until recently, it’s all uncharted territory), she does not know how to properly interpret it when people just decide to do things for her because they like her. She reacts like an asshole (in her own opinion, literally no one else thought that she was anything aside from maybe a bit Off since she internalized everything so much). This does not make her feel particularly good either, she has unfortunately looped back around to kicking herself for missing the obvious.

& Estinien, being himself, is still not the best with words when it comes to this sort of thing. Because he knows he didn’t actually do anything wrong here, so he’s not experiencing misplaced guilt, but she’s clearly still upset on some level for misreading things and he doesn’t like that for her, especially when this conversation is almost definitely taking place on the sidelines of a post-battle celebration back in the city. He’s not coming up with anything directly helpful to the situation. He’s task-oriented, hardwired to look for solutions. The one he comes up with on the spot here is:

“Do you want to hunt the lizard together?”

Long pause. Yes, she does. She wants to hunt the big lizard together very much. It sounds like a good way to kick off a small wilderness excursion together. The big lizard does not fix her pre-existing self worth problems, but it’s definitely effective for the immediate situation (which is about the best he can hope for right now). Problem solved-ish, she seems happier & now they can bond over the big lizard hunt together. He’d honestly just be pleased to spend time together doing whatever but this is probably the best outcome of that whole situation. (Also he Does end up kissing her right there, partly to get people to stop pestering her with questions but mostly because he wants to.)

[palettepainter]

I know in the ROTTMNT fandom some people ship Donnie x April, which is all fine, I don't doubt there's clearly a chemistry between them in the show.

Personally, even when I first watched some of the older TMNT movies when I was younger with my cousin I never shipped April with any of the turtles, even now I don't really and prefer viewing their dynamic as siblings

BUT!! If I were to ship April with one of the turtles in Rise specifically....how hilarious would it be if it was Leo??

Hear me out here: Leo in the show is so smug, he's shamelessly smug. If he found out he had a crush on April, he would be so needy for her attention, he'd do flips and spins and all sort of cocky, arrogant stuff in an attempt to make her think he's so cool, which he of course is. Meanwhile, April just rolls her eyes at him., but Leo see's the smile tugging at her face and considers it a victory. Also, April in this show is just as sassy. Can you imagine these two trying to out sass the other?? How sly and smug they'd both be, neither backing down from this fun competition they've crafted. Eventually Leo decides to test his luck and throws in a flirt, one which can easily be mistaken as a throw away compliment, but when April actively engages back?? Meeting his confidence equally?? Leo is hooked

And more so, can you imagine Donnie's utter horror when he finds out his twin is dating his beloved best friend??

Uh excuse me Leanardo what do you mean you're dating my best friend? No. No no no that's not allowed, you're not dating her. Why? You know why Leo you'll corrupt her! Donnie acting like an overbearing, protective mother whose baby can't possibly be dating when April and Leo announce the news (he most definitely threatened Leo with lazer cannon or something and constantly gives him the warning 'I've got my eye on you' face when he catches the two being ooey-gooey romantic. Has probably spied on their dates to to make sure Leo is treating April properly). I can see him never truly chilling out even if the two have been dating for years, with how close Donnie is shown to be to April in the show he probably considers her the second most important person in his life next to his family.

Donnie, the most dead serious he's been in his life with fire in his eyes: You had better be prepared to commit to this relationship with April 'Nardo, because there isn't a country on this planet where you will be able to seek refuge from me if you mess this up.

Leo, who has been dating April for two years now: Uh-huh yeah that's great bro whatever makes you sleep easier at night

I don't think I'm gonna make art of this ship cuz I still prefer the found family sibling trope April has with the turtles, but I just think this is an interesting dynamic that I haven't really seen anyone explore, despite how Donnie x April is fairly popular ship,

[tombstone-pisa]

Shortly after the twins made their relationship romantic, they attended a con and did an interview panel. They're fairly famous even outside of Unova so there was a lot of attendance!

Most of the questions were normal stuff about pokemon and battling or about things like their favorite food. But one person talked about how the subway bosses are famous for their teamwork and being a great team... so they asked about the relationship between the two of them, how close are they. Yknow that kind of thing.

Poor Ingo panics a little.

Ingo: He uh. He is. My.. my funny little guy

Emmet: *laughing* Ingo is my right arm hand man. My silly rabbit.

Because of Emmet's save, it was treated like a joke. But in private Emmet DEFINITELY teased Ingo for it.

[neriyon]

Hey look, an idea I stole from @zylphiacrowley (chain of idea stealing haha), feat. very startled Hawu'li. More details for each relationship under the cut for anyone curious.

Tataru: She and Hawu'li are very close friends, all the way from the first days he spent with scions. They like to hang out, talk (mostly gossip) about stuff over tea, and while other scions take to Tataur's big moneymaking plans with a healthy dose of caution, Hawu'li is always ready to go do anything she asks. She's also the one Hawu'li usually goes to when he needs some advice or just someone to listen to his woes.

Y'shtola: I've mentioned this before but she reminds Hawu'li of his older sisters. They used to be on purely professional terms up till ShB, and have since made steady progess to become friends. The two of them can usually be found reading books in a same room or chatting about Y'shtola's research (Hawu'li is always curious to learn more).

Lyse: I actually first marked her as a friend, but then remembered Hawu'li is a Gridania starter so uh, family it is. Lyse has kinda decided to take the role of a caring big sister/mother figure by herself - despite being only 2 years older. These two lively idiots (affectionate) do get along well, and occasionally send letters now that Lyse is busy with Ala Mhigo stuff.

Estinien: "Boyfriend of my boyfriend" haha. They both date Aymeric, so they are part of the polycule together, despite not having too much romantic feelings towards eachother. They do trust and appreciate eachother a lot, and are in some sort of friends with benefits status. Hawu'li's can be a bit much for Estinien at times, but it's pretty common to see them sharing some casual contact which Estinien seems to like after spending time alone. They also share the single idiotic braincell over money related things (do not let them to the market without supervision!)

Thancred: Kinda between close friends and regular friends tbh. I feel like Thancred would get annoyed by Hawu'li's energy levels, but he'd also be smart enough to just dump the catboy on someone else when in need of some peace and quiet. Hawu'li finds him pretty nice and trusts him a lot, but does not really appreciate that Thancred prefers to keep him in the dark about most things - meanwhile Thancred feels he's a good kid but a bit too young and airheaded to be trusted with everything.

Ryne: Cat sees teenager, cat adopts teenager. While not as close as with twins, Hawu'li happily treats Ryne as part of the family and takes care to check in on her regularily after ShB. He often brings her gifts and books, staying over for some coffee and biscuits to talk about how scions are doing. Ryne tends to come to Hawu'li about any relationship troubles, and when she and Gaia start going out he's the first one to hear about it (and congratulate them, haha)

Minfilia: This is an intersting one, since Hawu'li usually befriends everyone quickly (if they want to be befriended). But somehow Minfilia's position as the leader of Scions made Hawu'li kinda hesitant to bother her too much, so kinda like with Y'shtola, their relationship stayed pretty professional. In hindsight, Hawu'li definitely regrets he didn't get to know her more.

G'raha: Boyfriends! As close as can be, spending lot of time together. Reading, talking about anything interesting they've learned, visiting new places, going on dates… pretty much anything. G'raha has great tolerance for Hawu'li's clingyness and doesn't mind some pda, so Hawu'li tends to stick to him a lot. Also just cat things: they will often knock their heads together and even start playfighting every now and then.

Alphinaud: Little brother! While more snobbish during ARR, Hawu'li does see some of himself in the boy, and does his best to keep him safe and help him however he can. Likes to gently tease Alphi (usually with Alisaie), but will be uncharacteristically ready to throw down with anything threatening his lil bro (he may or may not have growled at Fourchenault when he was talking about disowning twins).

Alisaie: Little sister and partner-in-mischief! Like with Alphi, they are very close and protective of eachother, with the exception that Alisaie seems as ready to fight to protect Hawu'li as he does to protect twins. They often tease Alphi together, or go channel their excess energy in some friendly sparring. Or run off to see who can climb some trees faster.

Urianger: Hawu'li likes him a lot, but unfortunately can only understand him like 30% of the time. However he's just happy to sit there listening anyway, and usually Thancred or Y'shtola know to check if he actually got the important parts. They like eachother's company, and somehow just hanging out with Urianger seems to calm Hawu'li down a lot, which has been a godsent to everyone.

Krile: Still a pretty new friend, but one that Hawu'li is eager to get to know more. He is however tiiiiiny bit nervous about it, since Krile and G'raha are clearly close, and he really really really wants to get well along with his boyfriend's close friend. Krile thinks he's a nice lad, and hopes he'd relax a bit and drop the random bouts of overly polite behaviour.

[nettleshuttle]

Who do I ask about, who do I ask about... decisions, decisions...

Alright, throw me your thoughts on Juudai!

so, moving on to jaden!

fav thing about them: i actually wrote a separate post on that recently, but the pure, childish, selfish enjoyment of dueling as his chief driving force is what i really like about him. dude literally duels to the death with envoys of hell and goes like “that sure was a fun duel!” — and i respect that. on a more serious note, it fits his personality and motivates his development very neatly: the way he loses all excitement about duels when he is forced to play at too high stakes, which sets off a lot of his mistakes and leads to the miserable jaden/yubel fused entity…….. poetic. while we’re at it, that final duel with yubel was fantastic and forming jaden/yubel as a consequence, someone who is theoretically both still jaden and definitely not jaden anymore, very powerful and very confused, was also great.

least fav thing about them: the whole neo space chosen one bullshit seemed rather redundant and introduced a needlessly stupid arc with visits to space and what not?? i mean it’s gx, okay, but that was still hugely farfetched, even taking the context into account.

favorite line: i already brought up the “gotcha! that sure was a fun duel” quote and i feel like it’s really iconic for him, so yes. then maybe less of a one-liner, but what he says to chazz during their society of light duel (that stuff about how losing can be painful and that he apologizes because one of his friends went through all that and he never even noticed) also lives in my head rent free + is a great step forward in his development. lastly, it’s not even his quote, but the line “control the winds; there’s nothing that cannot be surpassed” is just peak jaden for me and i love it.

brOTP: jesse? i like them also as a romantic ship, but they’re great friends, especially with all the similarities and parallels established between them.

OTP: definitely chazz, it’s not even the yugi-kaiba relation analogy, but there’s just something about these two that makes me feel like they have the ultimate dynamic. still, the fact that jaden acts like a solid 80% of all characters were his boyfriends will never be not funny to me and i like the general uh relationship confusion that this all causes.

nOTP: no strong opinions here, but i kinda dislike shipping him with the kaiser or syrus. just very unfortunate combinations, romantic-wise, if you ask me.

random headcannon: i wrote a fic where jaden can’t really sleep during stormy nights because the sound of thunder gets to him and it just stuck with me and ever since. besides, i see him as extremely touchy feely clingy with all his friends, equally so with closer and more distant ones, but that’s at least half canon.

unpopular opinion: i disliked the supreme king jaden plot part — i get that he snapped hard after all that happened in that spirit dimension, but this whole situation seemed very exaggerated and didn’t really stick together plot wise either.

also i don’t know if that’s unpopular, but jaden’s ending in gx is probably the best i could have thought up for him myself. 100% satisfied with how his story was closed.

song i associate with them: the first opening, “fine weather rising hallelujah”! for non-op ones, probably either “new divide” or “burn it down” (linkin park), but that’s referring rather to jaden/yubel or his whole character arc, not the careless s1 vibes.

favorite picture of them: unspecific, really, but i remember liking this one from meeting jesse quite a lot.

[honuofhawaii]

Im not alone in this desire!? Like I see Ilsa and Ethan as queer platonic partners and Ethan and Benji as more on the romantic side of things (though they could be in another qpr, I just operate under the assumption that alloromantic people generally desire romantic relationships and I don’t headcanon Ethan or Benji as Aro) and I think they have potential for romantic chemistry. There something about how Ilsa and Ethan have a high level of proficiency in similar skills, their equality as field agents and this inherent trust they barely needed to develop that feels so queer platonic. As much as Ethan will always be worried and be protective of his team, Ilsa is someone he can trust to protect herself and protect others. Example with Dead Reckoning spoilers at end of post. 

He absolutely trusts Benji with his life even when Benji’s hype has him going “uh you sure I can do this, please remember I am a human” He and Benji have complementary skills. Benji can work in the field, but he will always have a better awareness of technology and how to use it. He can accomplish the main mission while Ethan causes the risky distraction, or make the riskier play. 

I think about the scene in Rogue Nation where its Ilsa with a gun, Benji strapped to a bomb and sitting on a pressure sensor, and Ethan with a bunch of account numbers memorized and a stone cold poker face. In my mind, when Ethan squeezes Benji’s shoulder he really wants to kiss his forehead. The nonverbal communications! The interactions there, Ethan has multiple goals, the first of which is to stop the countdown, which he does by proving he memorized at least one account and claiming he has the only copy of the disk. The second is Benji’s escape. He gets Lane to release Benji by telling Ilsa to shoot him if Lane’s men don't let Benji go. He gives Benji the phone and Benji gets away from danger. The third goal is to get both himself and Ilsa out of the cafe. I love the scene bc he just stands in front of her while she shoots, and they work around each other. It's great. the Fourth goal is getting Lane into the open and following Ethan into a trap. 

Anyway I don't know if Ive managed to get across my thoughts...ive mostly been pointing at things and being like “do you see what I mean”...but I think I can sum up as Ethan loves his team and he loves them in different ways and it might be correlated by how he pulls them close/sends them away depending on the situation. On another note I think he considered Luther his brother, they've been working together for years and absolutely trust one another’s judgment. 

Id be curious about your thoughts. I would love to see more casual intimacy between Ethan and Benji. I have no idea what relationship I think exists between Ilsa and Benji, but Ethan definitely has two hands and is capable of a range of desires for different types of relationships. 

Spoilers for DRpt1

The moment when Ethan is given the choice between Grace and Ilsa, he keeps Grace close bc she needs his protection, and tells Ilsa to run bc he trust her to protect herself.

End of Spoilers

thinking about the bit in DR1 with Ilsa and Ethan on the balcony and how I stg (would need to watch the movie again to confirm) before the scene cuts he moves to kiss her hair. Absolutely wretched over this because I love it for them so fucking much and I wish so badly that Ethan and Benji could also have that kind of casual intimacy on screen. For their sake. And for the purposes of my Queer-Platonic Polyamorous Agenda. It isn’t going to happen fine whatever catch me in the corner imagining what we could have in a perfect world (Ethan and Benji casually holding hands)