#also gonna assume theyve known each other for a bit

[theadoptedhale]

@voxmcrtuis liked the thing x :3

goddamnit. 

his face throbbed & his head thrummed a relentless melody - he’d hit it hard after all. he should’ve known he couldn’t hide from hunters forever, but at least he’d made it out alive, mostly. he had several bullet wounds - silver, but he’d managed to retrieve most of the bullets before dragging himself to daniel���s place. now here he was, bleeding & scared to go home to find hunters had stormed the place & were waiting for him. 

“thanks. i’ll heal.. just .. not now.”

[chisatowo]

Thinks abt Dodie and Mase and goes feral

[marinetteplztakeabreak]

I need to share soft sign language buddies ninogami headcanon because they’re taking over my brain always:

(This got so long, so youre welcome if youre also starved for ninogami content)

Nino’s mom is Deaf , so he grew up signing as much as speaking. When he was younger he always signed as he talked.

It turned out he’s also Hard of Hearing, so sign language is way easier for him to understand most of the time.

However, though he’s great at making friends, he’s very awkward when it comes to talking about himself. So never comes up in conversation.

It’s not a self-deprication issue. It’s just a “thinking of things to say is hard and I’d rather have someone else do the talking” thing. He’d rather talk about anyone except himself.

Additionally! He’s great at helping other people, but he’s terrible at asking for help. He does not EVER want to be like “hey i cant understand what you’re saying, my ears dont work great,” its his worst nightmare

And it doesnt help that there have been a few cases of people being rude about it when he doesnt hear them after they repeat themselves. And possibly worse, there have been even more cases of people giving over-the-top apologies instead of just,, telling him what they said. So it’s not worth the trouble in his mind

with his few close friends who still dont know, it feels like its too late and it’d be awkward to bring it up, so he just… doesnt. He’s procrastinating on telling them he cant hear them

He stopped signing as much as he talked in middle school because strangers would always be like “woah thats so cool, how do you know sign language” and he’d just panic because he was an awkward tween, and he didnt know if he was comfortable telling them he was HoH, but ALSO just saying his mom was Deaf and not mentioning himself felt like directly lying by hiding information, so he just took the “lazy” way out and signed less in public.

Sometimes fighting the anxiety was not worth it so he just let it win in that case.

Nino is so nice and energetic and loves people, but he is way more introverted and anxious than his friends think.

But when they start to get closer, Kagami who is ever-observant, notices him signing a little bit, (not ever to her, not ever on purpose, but he’d sometimes sign a word he needed to remember while speaking or sign along to emphasize something)

and she luckily for his anxiety, she doesnt know how to have a normal conversation either.

Her (platonic as well as romantic) love language is studying and research, and Nino seems very cool and she likes him, even if she is awful at holding a conversation with him or doing anything to show it.

She thinks he’s so cool and such an amazing talented kind friend. She has so much love for him that she doesnt know what to do with it. So she channels that energy into learning to sign through the internet and whatever tools she can find

And then after a while of this, she’s like “oh no, he’s gonna think that’s so creepy, I cant tell him I know sign language or he’ll be so uncomfortable”

So, like a whole idiot, she hides that she’s learning sign language from anyone. Because OBVIOUSLY if word got back to Nino, he’d assume it was because of him and that she was a weirdo he shouldn’t be friends with

But also Kagami accidentally falls in love with sign language because she has undiagnosed autism. She always assumed that communicating was just going to be impossible no matter what, but as she gets proficient in sign language she’s like,,, oh,,, OH,, this is very nice

Even just signing while she talks makes it so much easier to keep words and sentances straight, but she only does it when she’s alone with her mother, who is literally blind and would never know.

They become closer friends in late high school, and by that time a lot of Nino’s anxiety has worn off and he’s become completely comfortable letting teachers know when he needs to hear somthing, and middle school feels like a distant dream

At some point, Nino invites Kagami to his house a few times, and he signs with his mom. Nino is like “I can interpret for you,” and Kagami is like “wow thanks, I’m so lucky, because I obviously do not know any sign language, why would I have learned it, and also for the record it is brand new information to me that you can sign,” and Nino is like “cool? Its not a secret but im glad i told you if you somehow didnt already know,” and Kagami is like, “yep :)”

But then eventually as they become really close, they are texting one night, (Kagami can still barely get out of her house, so they need to communicate remotely. And both of then HATE phone calls bc its so hard to understand whats happening, but neither of them have admitted this to anyone)

Nino admits that he likes using sign language better than talking, and he wishes he could use it with his friends, but he’d feel so guilty asking them to learn an entire language just to make him slightly more comfortable. He can talk and hear OKAY so he shouldnt put the pressure on them.

and Kagami is like “you could always ask, worst case scenerio they say no, and i dont think thats an unreasonable demand” and nino is like “it is though,” and kagami’s like “ok so haha funny story, please dont hate me” and nino is like, “…what.” And kagami confesses everything and nino is like “why… why would i hate you for that?” And Kagami is like “oh wait youre right im stupid,”

And then Nino’s also like “hey if YOURE more comfortable signing too, then why dont YOU ask your friends to sign for you. Do you see what i mean? It’s hard to ask-” and kagami is like, “as your friend i will prove it is not.”

So then Kagami ends up confronting Adrien and Marinette the next day and is like “Hi. This is a sign language dictionary. Learn from it.” And they’re both like “what?” And she’s like “oh wait sorry. Backing up. I’m autistic. I decided like three years ago. Forgot to tell you. And I need you to learn to sign a little bit so you can understand if i sign something at you. If you want, of course. Please :D.” And theyre like “ok sure yeah i can do that.”

(Theyve already learned and accepted that shes extremely direct in asking for things)

So then she texts nino and is like “i did it. Youre welcome.”

But anyway both of them are uncomfortable in crowds and parties: Nino cant hear anyone and Kagami tends to get sensory overload, so they start signing mostly in those situations, and then it starts to sink in that they’re allowed to sign whenever and that the other really IS also comfortable with it.

(Both of them are much more willing to make sacrifices for others than to try something new and intimidating for themself, so this is the perfect situation to trick them into getting out of their comfort zone, ironically by trying to be more comfortable in the long run)

so they will just sit together and hang out and have long conversations while just chilling somewhere in a park or at cafes or whatever. Both of them become chattier than they’ve ever been because talking and understanding is so much easier, and its addicting

And their close friends all become proficient enough in sign language to have simple conversations.

But also Nino and Kagami start sitting together automatically even in group hangouts, and they start hanging out more with just the two of them, and soon neither of them feel bad about asking to hang out in quieter places, because they can justify it knowing that it will also help the other one, and together that makes both of them also more comfortable asking for little accomodations from other friends, if only to prove to the other that they can do it too.

And Kagami has the lesser-known autism side effect where she makes WAY TOO MUCH eye contact. She’s aware of it but that doesnt make it go away. Normally she feels so awkward about it, and overthinks her gaze because she doesnt want to scare people away. But when signing, you literally HAVE to be watching the other person constantly, so she has an excuse to just be herself, and its so relieving

(and also its kind of fun to look at Nino anyway because he can get so animated and his smile is really nice and oh no she is in love a little bit)

And Nino always struggles because he emotionally ALWAYS needs to be the nice polite one. His anxiety sometimes gets the better of him and he’s constantly worried about sending the wrong signals to his friends and coming off as rude somehow. But with Kagami, he can literally just ask?? And she will tell him her honest opinion without making it weird. And its so comfy and so good and he really loves hearing her unfiltered opinions on so many things because she sees the world in such a unique way and she gets so passionate about such little things and then oh no, he is fallen for her before he can realize it

And they also learn that they’re both artists, they both love to just observe the world because even if they;re awkward, people are actually pretty great most of the time, and its fun to observe them and try to capture the world, and they just sit together and sketch, or they watch each other sketch, and the thing is, both of them draw ONLY FOR THEMSELVES, its not a ‘skill,�� and they don;t want it to be, its just private art for relaxation. Somehow, though, its okay if they share their art with each other. They can just sit in comfortable silence for hours while one of them sketches something and the other watches patiently

And they start to get more comfortable with one of their heads resting on the other’s shoulder as they watch them doodle, and sitting so close their legs press together, and soon enough their hands start brushing against each other’s as they walk next to each other and then all of a sudden they’re casually holding hands whenever they’re not signing because it’s nice

They try to share headphones so Nino can share some of his favorite songs and his compositions with Kagami. But try as she might, Kagami can not handle the sensory of only having one earbud in. Nino knows her tells by that point, and he’s not about to let her suffer for a stupid reason, but she REALLY does want to hear his music. They somehow end up with Kagami putting a pair of headphones around her neck and turning up the volume a little bit so she can hear, while Nino rests his head on her shoulder so he can hear just enough to know where she is in the song

And then he has to sit up and scootch away just enough to see her hands so they can talk about it, and they both pretend not to notice how nice it was to snuggle as they sign. Its fine, though, because now they get the excuse to just look at each other again and sign overdramatically with exaggerated facial expressions, and no one else around can overhear their conversation, and Nino likes to go a little over the top when signing onomatopoeia and acting out particular parts of the song rhythm that he likes, and Kagami laughs, and they both mentally save the image of each other in this moment the same way that they look at reference images for artwork, memorizing the lines of each movement and the things that make each smile unique,

and Nino also shows up at every single one of her fencing tournaments, and he sits as close as he can and signs encouraging messages to her from the crowd whenever she’s not actively competing, (that her blind mom can never catch, which is somewhat of a bonus to Kagami, because every element of their friendship that her mother cant interact with makes this more personal and special and HERS). Every little sign she sends back at him, even a simple thank you, always feels so good and rebellious and free because shes supposed to be focusing on fencing but shes deciding to care more about friendship. And even if she’s expected to leave immediately afterword, she’ll find every excuse possible to find him and give him a hug, which he’ll always accept even though she jokingly warns him shes sweaty and gross

And eventually they are special best friends and it brings them instant joy to see each other and theyre able to interact for no reason other than that they want to and like each other

(And then they kiss)

[linddzz]

Ok but I really want to know your new discoveries on your corals!!

Ok I gotta like, deflate the balloon of excitement I accidentally made because this isnt like a uh. holy shit a brand new never known thing before that there are gonna be papers on. I'm not even sure no one ever has documented it, that's just a fair assumption bc when I went to the project group chat and went "any of yall see this shit before???" so far the answer is "nope."

Which happens regularly with this project because we are housing a ton of corals that had never been kept in captivity before so at least every other week someone at some involved aquarium is like "hey uh any of yall seen this weird shit???" in the group forum.

So this was The Finding as it stands now, with responses to the report I put up (again more like notifying the Fish and Wildlife people running the project that "we got some stuff happening here") still incoming:

Two species being housed are Orbicella annularis (OANN) and Orbicella faveolata (OFAV). They look almost exactly the same until the colonies get MASSIVE at which point OANN grows in a bunch of big lumps and OFAV grows in lumps that sheet out past the rock at the bottom.

OANN

OFAV

(I'm pretty sure OFAV is one of the corals in my header image but cant say for sure since I can't see the polyps on it)

They're already known to sexually reproduce by spawning once a year, but most corals reproduce both sexually and asexually. Different corals have different methods to doing both though (corals are fuckin nuts).

Most of the species being held have been making gemma(e) for their asexual budding. This is like uh. Basically the coral makes a bubble of tissue that slowly starts to grow the calcium skeleton structure inside and when it's ready this blob of tissue and coral skeleton falls off and begins to grow a new coral. (Funny thing, I call it specifically a gemma because that's what the way smarter researchers have been calling the bubbles specifically when theyve been reported by various places. Looking up coral gemmae wont get much besides some places putting it under general budding, it is mostly a botany term tho.)

Yes it looks just as fucking weird as it sounds. Sometimes one of these bubbles will form and it just fills in and becomes part of the overall colony instead of dropping off. Sometimes the bubbles are a response to seal up an injury. Corals are weird.

Coral with gemma bubbles

Recently dropped gemma both in a cup and the same one under a microscope. You can kinda see how it's not super developed and organized yet and is more like a blob. In the microscope pic you can see white spike things that are partially developed calcium chloride skeleton crystallizing! Neat! Corals are fuckin weird!

This brings us back to the OANN and OFAV, where one of each of the colonies I have started dropping these in my tank instead.

So like, idk how well it translates in the pics, but these are fully developed polyp groups. Their skeleton bits are all there, there isnt any exposed undeveloped skeleton, and they dont have a visible "tear" where they were dropped from the main colony. When I hunted down the parent colonies the forming buds look like this. Not blobby big bubbles of primordial coral bits but little wads of more developed polyps. They also developed way faster (over a week or so without me noticing) vs the usual gemmae that are a bigass obvious bubble blob for months.

(As a cool aside; both pics are of the same coral. The one on the right was taken after I pissed it off by moving it around and the polyps closed up.)

So things that are of note right now is that budding was assumed to happen in this genus but so far no ones been able to say if it was observed and documented. The words "polyp extrusion" happened because that is a type of coral budding and I was going "hey is this polyp extrusion happening????"

So it's less "OH MAN NEW DISCOVERY" and more "oh! Neat! Cool!" With a big side of "FUCK I NEED TO MAKE A SET UP TO TRY TO KEEP TINY CORAL BUDS ALIVE"

[theelliottsmiths]

Which of the Ramm guys do you think would be the first to comfort the others if they were upset?

This is a really interesting question because I have arguments for and against every one of them.

Disclaimer: this is almost all based in either what has been said in interviews/the books, public/stage behaviour or conjecture based on often extremely vague history and simplified personality traits.

A lot of this is also based on stuff they did/said a decade or two ago. People change and mature and learn each other better over time. Also just a reminder, I do not know them.

But like, I'm still going to do it.

Paul

For:

Loves his friends super openly, doesn't care about how it looks and seemingly gives them any physical affection they ask for

Has strong feelings on how people should be treated and will get genuinely upset when bad things happen to people he loves, often directed at people (example: the Mutter making of)

Very emotionally supportive of them as a whole, especially Richard on stage

Schneider said once that he didn't like Paul at first but now knows he's a good man willing to help with anything

There's a decent chance he's someone who would rather fix the issue with logic and action, especially if he things the problem has a simple solution

He's very funny and, while he isn't as sunshiney as a lot of the community thinks, he does still have a cheering sunshine smile

Clearly genuinely wants everyone to be as happy as possible and does what he can

Against:

He's a bit of a dick and I don't necessarily trust that hed have the right things to say at least some of the time. Can be very blunt which, although usually useful, might not exactly help with the feelings stuff

He has a lot of trust issues which tends to impact how people handle other people's distress

Schneider

For:

Calm and collected, grounding (which is ironic considering he's so vacant behind his pretty little eyes). Does yoga, which could be helpful when the comfort they want is an action rather than sympathy

Sees himself as the peacekeeper who can help bring the band together when they're split on something

He's totally one of those people who like the physical stuff more than they'll admit

Against:

Can be, or at least used to be, kind of cold and disinterested. Theyve said he wasn't interested when they started in making friends, though obviously a lot of that has changed. Sympathy doesn't seem like his thing. He said he re-learned to love though so there's that.

They'd have to time it to make sure he was inside his head because I'm not convinced he can control it

He seems like one of the most 'normal' ones. This could have been a pro but consider that he has a super hard time trying to understand Till and Richard in particular, likely because they're probably ND and just work differently

Flake

For:

Absolute sweetheart, very soft spoken for the most part, which is usually helpful

Uncomplicated, according to him. Will simply make you a cup of peppermint tea and let you talk it out

Seems perfectly happy to cuddle the guys if they instigate

If it's Till or Paul he's known and loved them for so long he must know them better than his own reflection

Against:

Comparatively uncomplicated emotionally, according to him, meaning he might struggle depending on the problem. If it's Till diving into the very depths of his depression and trauma I do not think Flake would instinctively know how to help. Then again, it's been three decades. He's probably learned

Unlikely to take charge and seems reluctant to go for the hug himself

Richard

For:

Very sensitive

Super physically affectionate. If they need a hug he is absolutely there for that

Has a long history of issues and traumatic events including depression, drug addiction, abuse, basically fleeing the country etc so if it's a Big Thing he likely gets it

Against:

He tends to be a little self centred (not necessarily in a bad way) and seems to use personal experiences to relate to others, which isn't bad but it can make some people feel you're being dismissive or one-upping

Thinks in black and white, unlikely to be a grounding calming presence, may make it seem worse than it is

Has plenty of his own issues, depending on the issue it might upset him more than them

A bit of a loner. Learned from an early age you can't rely on anyone but yourself, which could potentially mean he has a hard time asking for and giving others help

Till

For:

Hyperempathy

Can take you into the woods for a few days to hide from your problems and kill things if that's your jam

Can threaten as a joke to beat someone up if the issue is a person

Reportedly a pretty good listener

Against:

He has a surprisingly simple worldview, nuanced advice seems... Unlikely

Seems to have almost no time ever so good luck catching and keeping him for long enough

It's pretty likely he'd just suggest getting drunk and finding someone to fuck

Almost always seems uncomfortable with physical contact with the guys, at least on stage/in public. I'm not at all saying this is why, but the way he approaches it feels so much like when you come out and suddenly you and others overthink physical affection in case it's mistakes for something other than platonic.

Might actually hit them

Oli

Honestly can anyone make more than the most basic watered down guesses? Like, even worse than the usual? Does anyone know anything substantial about him besides that his parents are close in age, he's a massive introvert, and he likes strange rhythms? I'm gonna try anyway because I sure do love giving my opinions

For

He seems super calm, like talking to a zen garden

His sports are probably a pretty good distraction

Can and will pick a boy up if necessary

I genuinely think the whole don't touch me don't look at me vibe is purely public and that he's more affectionate than we tend to assume

Or, at least, he will allow it when someone needs it eg. Richard who will melt down into Fleisch Tier mode of he isn't given some kind of affection every fifteen minutes

So, supportive when asked, but won't stick his nose in?

Against

May or may not be a human, may have a difficult time relating to humans

But no in seriousness, going off his general demeanor I'm not convinced he'd be able to fully empathise with a lot of the guys' issues? He supposedly grew up very differently (read: in a healthier environment) to, say, Richard.

If we were talking about them a decade or two ago I'd say he's a fair bit younger than the oldest of them and I don't know how his maturity and experience would have gone down. Then again, Till is very immature so it probably isn't that bad.

So I guess maybe Paul? He's everyone's best friend.

Thanks for the question, I mildly apologise for this being my answer.

[normal-thoughts-official]

Ok so I know some people in the fandom don't like talking about Magnus' past lovers because anyone that isn't Alec everyone just turns their heads but ok listen. Your last response about Magnus and queer history my head immediately went to Freddie Mercury and oh please I would like a little more insight on how they met and their relationship. The only thing we knew was that Magnus would go to his concerts and even drag his friends along. What I would give to learn more about them.

FUCK MY LIFE anon listen idk if you fully know what you're getting yourself into by asking me this because i am literally OBSESSED with Magnus' relationship with Queen and Freddie like im literally VIBRATING rn i was answering the questions in order but i just HAD to answer this one immediately because !!!!!!!!!!!!! fuck fuck fuck i love magnus' relationship with Freddie Mercury and Queen so much you dont understand, i have already made some posts and i still plan on making a playlist of Queen Songs That Remind Me Of Magnus but anyway hell yeah let's DO this

okay so first im gonna talk a little bit about how i view their relationship. now, they probably weren't in a very serious relationship, since theres this whole Magnus Locked His Heart Ever Since Camille thing, but Magnus and Freddie have SO much in common i cant really think this was just a fling, either. so here's what i think: magnus and freddie were good friends who sometimes hooked up and that definitely had chemistry to have something special, but it never happened because Magnus never fully allowed himself to give in to it and neither did Freddie - im assuming their relationship was in the 70s, since in the 80s Freddie met his husband, Jim Hutton, and at that time Freddie also had a hard time trusting and loving. also, Magnus was already in New York, so it couldn't have been too serious. but Magnus would go around to watch their concerts and every time he would find Freddie somehow (it wasnt that hard, really, you just had to go to the local queer scene) and they would sometimes hook up, sometimes just talk and enjoy each other's company, sometimes both. that's what i think it's most likely.

but the absolutely OFF THE CHARTS amount of vibing they must have done. i dont think you fully understand - unless you're a queenie trash bitch such as me - just how similar magnus and freddie are. here's a short, comprehensive list of Freddie Mercury Traits:

Freddie was seen and stereotyped as an overly sexual, lothario, diva and inconsequential kind of guy, and to some extent he put on this facade, but in reality he was extremely closed off and insecure and loving, and this was mostly a persona he put on to protect himself

Despite that whole persona, Freddie was an extremely compassionate guy who did everything he could to help others, particularly other queer people. His personal assistant, his chef, his chaffeur, all were other queer guys (sometimes his exes even) that had nowhere else to go and were in need of a job, and Freddie was just like "oh, would you look at that, you're hired now. I'm gonna pay you, hm, 3 million" it was so. When Jim lost his job Freddie hired him as a gardener. They literally met because they were talking in a club and Freddie was all like "lets all go to my house" and brought in a bunch of strangers to his home. That's the kind of guy he was. His house was always open as well

Freddie was loyal to a fault and a little bit too trusting, and was stabbed in the back a few times. The most well-known one is P*ul, who outed him against his will despite them having years of friendship, a blow that Freddie never fully recovered from, but there were others. Despite being a shy guy and reluctant to open up, he actually wore his heart on his sleeve and this sometimes ended up hurting him, a lot

Freddie felt absolutely lonely and like he was unworthy of being loved. This is not a secret, its a common theme in a lot of his songs, the most prominent of them being somebody to love. He wanted to be loved and taken care of but at the same time wouldnt allow himself

He was also very insecure. Jim says in his book that Freddie would frequently ask him, out of the blue, if he loved him, despite the fact that they were, you know, married (not in the paper, of course, but Jim bought him wedding rings and Freddie called him his husband, so i consider them married)

He was constantly scared of being an inconvenience. When he found out he had AIDS, his first instinct was to tell Jim that if jim wanted to leave him he would understand. Jim, of course, said that was bullshit and he wouldnt leave Freddie because of that

He was a perfectionist and always wanted to do his absolute best, nothing less. He was also a creative genius as we all know

He loved cats and would bring random cats into his home constantly

He loved fashion and pretty things

He was a queer, gnc man of color

He had a pretty protective side to him; queen's bassist, John Deacon, was extremely shy and said that Freddie pretty much shielded him from the press attention, and also helped him polish his song writing skills and always wanted him to do his best. After Freddie died, John quit the showbusiness.

I mean, remind you of someone? Holy fucking shit, i nearly lost my goddamn mind when they mentioned that he hooked up with Freddie, because they're so similar in their issues and insecurities and interests it's almost meta. I don't know if that was on purpose or not, but i thank the sh writers every day for that line tbh honestly i am so blessed

Unfortunately i think they might kind of be too similar - you get two very insecure, afraid to be hurt people who kind of have a persona together and it's kind of hard to have them have a meaningful relationship. But where Freddie was shy, Magnus was extroverted and easygoing, and there were always parties (something the both of them loved) and they had enough common interests to bond over. Also, they both couldnt help but wear their heart on their sleeves, even when they tried not to. And i mean, i am 100% sure that Magnus absolutely loved Queen, because 1- who doesnt? 2- the songs are so intense and heartfelt and beautiful and theatrical and that's right on magnus' alley; 3- the lyrics just speak to him, because there Freddie was, writing about wanting to be loved and fearing to open himself up, and there was also Brian writing all these songs about seeing your loved ones die, and Roger was a domestic abuse victim - there was just so much for him to relate too. So i can definitely see Freddie and Magnus staying up awake late at night, looking at the window and talking about themselves, their fears, the personas they have created and how hard it is to break out of them, when they were alone in a hotel room and everyone else who was at the party was gone. Just the two of them, having heart-to-hearts, then sleeping, but the next day the magic was gone and they were both back to guarding themselves - also, Magnus was avoiding getting involved with mundane men, if you go by my headcanon. so there was just too much holding them back

but it was still an important relationship that helped the both of them learn more about themselves and get a little more used to opening up and allowing themselves to talk about themselves. they didnt really break up as much as drift apart - Freddie had the band and Magnus was high warlock of Brooklyn and the political tensions in the downworlder community were high. But they both got their happy endings after all - Freddie met Jim and they were together until the end of his life, and Magnus met Alec, who will be with him for the rest of eternity too because i said so :) so its all good, in the end, and Freddie will always have a special place in magnus' heart, as both an amazing human being that he was honoured to meet and someone who was really, really important to magnus and that helped him become who he is today and be a little happier and more comfortable with himself

he still loves queen and listens to them constantly. sometimes its bittersweet to think about him, but most times its just good to hear these songs that mean so much to him and think of how far theyve both gone

[ravensroundofrobins]

Since most of y'all Don't seem to Know her.... Let’s DO THIS BRIEF HISTORY OF ROBIN!STEPH BUCKLE TF UP BITCHES

(Note: For the most part, Steph’s time as Robin is included in the War Games TPB, especially because it serves as a catalyst for said event. Highly recommended the read, but mind, like, everything about it) ((also also tumblr only allows 10 pics, so I'm cherry picking my fav panels/most important ones. + offering a bit of meta. take this with a grain of salt and Please read War Games and draw your own conclusions blah blah))

So to start with, a little Context to Steph’s Start as Robin:

Tim’s dad found out about his Robining & made him hang up the cape+mask. As any Concerned and Reasonable parent would. Steph is still operating as Spoiler at the time, despite many attempts by many members of the batfam (but especially Batman) to dissuade her from crime-fighting.

Due to a gross misunderstanding (as these things tend go in comics *sigh*) Steph, who is dating Tim at the time, sees a girl who was interested in him make a move & thinks that Tim is cheating on her. She channels this grief/mourning/anger into making her own homemade Robin costume and convinces Batman to take her under his wing (he sets the conditions that she must follow every order, with a ‘one strike, you’re out’ kind of policy). She undergoes an unspecified training period to get in Proper Shape For Crime Fighting and Batman starts taking her on various patrols and investigations.

During this time, she also teams up with Batgirl (Cassandra Cain) on more than one occasion (one of my fav panels below, just bc its so stylized lmao. its Cute)

During this time, in true Robin Tradition, Steph builds up quite the rapport with Batman, providing a lighter/comedic side and being a general breath of fresh air and foil to the Dark Knight. (just LOOK at this banter & Bargaining for the batmobile!!! a TRUE ROBIN)

There’s a couple cases that I won't get too far into (but one i want to briefly mention involves Zsasz and Steph going almost a bit too far when trying to subdue him. its a very clear parallel to Jason & serves as foreshadowing for how War Games will play out i.e., Steph’s fate) 

Now during this time, there’s an assassin/merc who is killing off teens who were suspected to be Robin (Tim Drake), which Batman catches wind of and the Dynamic Duo moves in to put an End to. (look at this smug lil robin, catching the Bad Guy™ off guard. ADORABLE)

Another thing to note now, is how Eager Robin is to jump onto the case and into the fray. and how carefully she toes the line when following/questioning batman’s orders. this is touched on many times often either with her able to juuuuust reason with the caped crusader enough to Bend his own orders or even to change his mind on occasion.

(a thing i want to note here with this panel and with this particular time in Steph’s career as Robin is that the writer had her referring to Batman as ‘Boss’. whether this was intentional or not, it most closely resembles, to me, Carrie Kelley’s mannerisms as Robin. i.e. another Robin that the writers may have been using as inspo/to parallel. Carrie’s time as Robin is also defined by Batman’s grief from losing Jason, and is given a very similar probationary status that Steph is given during her time as Robin. coincidence? maybe. but i think not.)

While they lose track of the villain initially, Steph’s quick thinking to place trackers on her is what saves the mission. at the Moment at least. Batman makes a decision to bring Robin along when tracking their prey, but orders her to stay behind in the batplane & ‘not touch anything’ unless ordered to do so. which is where we get the Defining Moment:

When Steph, against orders, jumps into the fray. its something to be admired, and very Typical Robin Behavior (bc where would they be if they weren't impulsive and, well, KIDS, amirite?) but unfortunately, her decision costs them the chance of apprehending the villain, and Batman stays true to his word...

and she's Fired (g o d I'm not the biggest fan of damion scott’s art but this look BROKE MY HEART. i can practically HEAR those choked back tears and see that quivering lip like... G O D BRUCE NO. GIVE HER ANOTHER CHANCE. ANYTHING ELSE THAN WHATS GONNA HAPPEN)

here’s where I'm gonna TL;DR War Games for y’all bc.... holy shit its a LOT. and Steph’s involvement really only begins it, and essentially ends it. (literally lmao. she's featured a little throughout but like. its a Crossover Event™ for a reason. everyone gets a little bit of the spotlight, which means a bit of shuffling around ofc) but Anyways

tl;dr - steph takes one of Batman’s contingency plans on her way out of the cave & implements it w/out being aware of a few Key Details. all out War breaks amongst the different gangs of gotham, with Batman & company trying to regain control of the city & maintain order. Black Mask resurfaces, catches and tortures Steph to learn details about the plan and makes his own grab for power (fun fact, for those of you paying attention to the Big Picture: this essentially sets up for his position later on in Under The (Red) Hood when Jason starts wrestling that control away from him) Steph manages to escape, Batman takes her to Dr. Thompkins clinic, and Leslie reveals that her condition is critical. bruce makes it back in time to be by steph’s side for this:

and then she dies ;-;

BUT THIS IS COMICS- so its revealed initially that Leslie withheld treatment to save Steph’s life to Make A Point and try to dissuade Gotham Youth from following Steph’s path. BUT-BUT WAIT THERES MORE BC THIS IS ~*C O M I C S*~ so its ALSO revealed later on that steph DIDNT die. Leslie helped fake her death and blah blah blah, Steph comes back, gets to be spoiler again, then batgirl and the rest as they say is history

anyways. STRAIGHT FROM THE BAT’S MOUTH THANKS. Steph WAS really™ a Robin™ and as much as DC wants to pry that from my gay goblin hands they WONT be able to. and anyways... She Earned It. okay. give this girl the Respect she deserves. 

(now since I'm a Shipping Blog™, ima add some thoughts regarding her parallel to other robins and how Theoretically a relationship with raven might work out)

Again, the biggest parallel that DEFINES War Games and Steph’s time as Robin, is that to Jason Todd. (fun fact/sidenote: they’re both Leos, so like. Another Connection btwn the two lmao) They’re both impulsive and eager to prove themselves, and follow Batman with unwavering faith and loyalty (up to a Certain Breaking Point that is). They’ve got especially cheeky attitude and flair for drama, and hey. Narratively speaking, writers seem to have a penchant for drawing a few connecting lines between them (again, by starting the WG TPB off with Bruce mourning on Jason’s bday & setting a Tone for the overall event. and then again, by having a major character for UtRH be the very same villain that killed our former girl wonder) 

Now with those lines drawn, and with an understanding of how Jason has interacted with Raven in-canon (with mostly cordial interactions and for the most part respectful analysis of each other’s abilities & strengths), & no known connection between Steph & Rae as of yet, we can really only assume a few things:

-like most of the batboys, Raven is very likely to get along with Steph and to respect her abilities given that Steph respects her in turn.

-Steph’s bright, extroverted personality could again work as a good foil/compliment to Raven’s more introverted/muted one.

-theyve got what i like to call the Bad Dad™ connection (with Steph’s being a former Gotham Rogue™, and Raven’s... well.. y'all Know) Steph’s already shown great Morbid Humor regarding this part of her life (shown in her interactions with Cass) and is very willing to bond with others over Sucky Parents

-while stephanie has a canonical Love™ of Waffles, and raven (at least in regards to her Most Popular fanon from the 03 cartoon) has a fanonical love of them as well. Hence, they ARE the Waffle Queens (embrace the ridiculousness, guys. DO IT)

-Since steph is not an Adopted member of Bruce’s family (& again, more often than not they have attempted to dissuade her from vigilantism) and similarly, due to Batmans Dislike of meta-humans/outsiders messing with Affairs in His City, as well as some of his canonical Distrust™ for Raven due to her mysterious background/nature. this could be another minor/potential bonding point between the two

-likely more??? its getting late, and not much else I can think of off the top of my head, but i might add more to this later. 

as a ship StephRae has as much potential as any other, and since there’s not a lot of canon to really go off, fans can really take it.... wherever and i think thats beautiful

[atlanxic]

ok so i actually have an extensive arc-v/zexal crossover university au that i’ve talked a lot about on my private twitter and on discord but i think it’s time to put it all on tumblr. i wanted to make this all one post but i actually feel like it’s too much for that? so here’s part one of..... five or so?

yuuto, shun, and ruri lived in the same apartment complex as children, theyve known each other literally forever.

in middle school, yuuto & shun both discover hardcore/punk music and spend a couple years being kind of awkward and terrible about it until high school hits and they kind of level out. ruri teases them a lot for liking that awful racket but eventually she gets into it too, mostly because her and shun are kind of inseparable for quite some time. the three of them go to the local shitty music venue just about every weekend. for the first year or so ruri insists shes going to keep them out of trouble but like i said, she gets more into the music after a while.

shun and yuuto both mosh, shun probably more frequently than yuuto. they show up to school with bruises pretty often and rumours are started that they get in fights a lot or that theyre involved in a gang. there are also rumours that theyre dating, which dont go over very well, and result in them getting in actual fist fights a couple times. they try dating for like... 3 months in grade 7, and then decide that its weird and they work better as friends.

yuuto wears his hair in a mohawk for about a year before switching to the spiky mess we know and love. towards the end of middle school, they meet kaito at a prog-rock concert, all four of them pressed against the front rails together kaito and yuuto hit it off immediately, and exchange phone numbers after the show. shun is immensely suspicious. they text a lot, and then they start hanging out, and then they start going out. shun threatens to beat kaito up, kaito is fine with it, yuuto is not. etc.

meanwhile, ruri and sayaka meet in class. it doesn't even occur to shun to be suspicious of her until he catches them making out. he yells about it, sayaka is understandably frightened. ruri tells him off for scaring her girlfriend. she stays angry at him for longer than she has before. he eventually gives in and apologizes to both of them, but in a kind of dickish way.

yuuto and kaito break up towards the beginning of 11th grade. neither of them are upset about it, they stay friends. it was mostly because kaito felt like he needed to focus more on school, now that he's getting into college prep-level courses. yuuto cries about it once, and it takes several hours to convince shun that violence would be neither appropriate nor helpful.

all four of them move to a different city for college. sayaka goes to school in the town they grew up in. her and ruri stay in touch, but after half a year they decide that the long distance thing isn't working out for them. they still hang out when ruri and shun go back for the holidays, and its fairly bittersweet.

yuuto shun & ruri dont realize that kaito is going to the same school as them until all four of them are present at a queer alliance meet & greet. shun glares at him across the room for a while before yuuto notices he's there and goes over to say hello like a decent person. yuuto and kaito immediately hit it off again. theyre both kind of "fuck you grew into yourself really well im Gay."

immm gonna say that in first year, yuuto & shun live in the dorms together. they eventually decide the res life is not for them but. apartment hunting when youre like 18 and moving out for the first time is a bit much, so dorms it is.

anyway, shun catches yuuto and kaito making out in their shared dormroom like 3 fucking days after the meet and greet. kaito's expression is one of fear and conveys that he knows full well that shun is 2 seconds from beating him up. yuuto is kinda pissed off about it. yuuto and shun have a long conversation that night about how protective shun is. they fall asleep in each other's arms.

kaito avoids them for a little while, but the next time they see him, shun makes a genuine apology. yuuto and kaito start dating again a few weeks later. ruri is surprised and delighted about it. ruri ends up dormed with rin in first year.

they get along reasonably well, but they dont get close until rin accidentally lets slip that she's gay, and then ruri is like "oh thank god, me too." the context is probably: that yuugo visits them like basically every other day, and is Really Obviously In Love with rin, and rin's affectionate with him, so ruri just kind of assumes theyre dating. and at one point is like, do you want me to go somewhere else so you guys can make out, i could hang out with my brother tonight its nbd. yuugo blushes bright red and is like aaaaa its not like that, like, exactly like he does in canon. and rin's like “lmao im gay. i mean. what.”

ruri probably ids as pan? but anyway, shes like "ohhhh cool me too.” they both kind of stare at each other while this new info sinks in, and then yuugo says something and the moment is broken.

this is still a bit before yuugo's gay crisis

[later, during yuugo's gay crisis about yuuya] [rin] yuugo you had a crush on a boy in /middle school/ [yuugo] no i didnt i had a crush on you [rin] you used to complain to me about how hot he was like every lunch break [yuugo] that doesn't mean anything? [rin] obviously it does? how are you only realizing this now

ruri discovers that rin's been wanting to go to queer alliance meetings but has been too shy about it, so she drags her along. and someone mistakes them for yuzu and selena. idk who it would be..... sawatari maybe?

sawatari is like, Flaming Gay, a legitimate twink despite iding as bi.

anyway theyre like, thats not us, youre mistaken, and sawatari, instead of fucking off, is like, "holy fuck you have to meet them, you look so much the same it's eery." sawatari drags them through the party for like 20 minutes before actually finding yuzu and selena, and he's like "look i told you."

and all four of them are kind of like "holy fuck???" they get a selfie together, its not very good because the lighting is terrible, and they spend the rest of the evening hanging out.

yuzu and selena had a class together and hit it off immediately, theyre already dating. theyre a bit surprised to learn that ruri and rin /aren't/ dating. rin blushes at the suggestion and gets raised eyebrows all around. the four of them become fast friends and start getting lunch together and studying together on a regular basis.

ruri and rin meet yuuya through them, and because yuuya is friends with Everyone, they become friends as well. which sets the stage for yuuya and yuugo meeting, and yuugo's consequent gay crisis.

shun, ruri, and yuuto as pakistani immigrants, they arrived when they were very very young but they get a lot of shit for it anyway, especially ruri, who wears a hijab.

i figure the commons would be mostly latinx/mixed. so like, yuugo, rin, and shinji are all latinx. i rlly like the concept of black crow with a bleached-orange hi-top fade and subtle freckles. yuuya, yuzu, and gongenzaka can pprrobably be white? dennis could be ethnically jewish & light-skinned. fusion dimension crew are mostly japanese, so sora, yuuri, and selena. i.. am not really sure about reiji? following the theme i guess white/japanese mixed. tsukikage is japenese & immigrated like within his memory rather than a few generations back, he's bilingual. jack is latino and white-passing.

i like the concept of shun as a veterinary student, partly because i think he'd follow his interest in birds if things hadn't gone horribly wrong and partly because i find the idea of this edgy asshole in scrubs really funny. yuuto takes social work and ends up with crow as a teacher. yuuya, dennis, sawatari, and sora are all drama majors. yuuri is in botany. reiji is a law major, as well as being on the debate team and the student council. he never fuckign sleeps. shun also joins the debate team, and they do Not get along, but since debate team is the yelling hobby anyway, thats fine. yuzu is in the music program. selena is in poli-sci. yuugo stays in engineering. i dont, know about the rest of everyone.

conceptually, this is a north-eastern reasonably liberal college town, featuring two colleges and a trade school. one college is for the arc v kids, the other one will eventually be populated with zexal kids when i get to know them. kaito starts in zexal school and transfers at the beginning of second year. everyone is in first year rn except reiji and tsukikage, who are in second year, and also are dorming together, and also are gay.

so now that thats all set up!! back to the plot!!

ruri and rin meeting yuzu and selena happens a couple weeks after ruri and sayaka break up. selena hears about it and is like, hey if you need a rebound i can hook you up with someone, and ruri is like. "i feel like itd be disrespectful to date someone else before im over sayaka, ill stay single for a while." she never actually completely gets over sayaka, but she does eventually get enough emotional distance to move on. every time she goes home for the holidays they have awkward not-quite-gay moments.

much like in sfu, sawatari is loaded and hosts house parties whenever his father is away on business trips.

once the 4 girls are hanging out on a regular basis, they all sort of get to know each other's orbital boys. like rin and ruri get introduced to yuuya and get to know sawatari better. yuuya's goal is to be friends with absolutely everyone, and they make good progress on it.

yuzu and selena get to meet yuugo. yuugo is starry-eyed at all four of them, but alas, they are all too gay for him. at one point selena slaps him in the face and he spends like the next two weeks thinking about it lmao

likewise, they all get to meet shun. shun immediately decides that he is going to protect all of them. rin finds it kind of cute, yuzu finds it kind of weird, selena is outright offended about it. they get along a lot better with yuuto, since yuuto is just, easier to get along with. he joins their lunch dates once in a while, as does yuuya.

selena and yuuri met in their high school gsa and relentlessly gossip about everyone they meet. selena introduces yuuri to the rest of the girls exactly once, it does not go well. probably kye gives them all backhanded compliments. shun hears about this from ruri later and decides that yuuri is his enemy.

the first time yuuya and yuugo meet, its because the girls have invited both of them to lunch. yuuya introduces themself with a firm handshake and a wink. yuuya flirts a bit throughout the meal, as they tend to do. yuzu tells yuugo after the fact like, "dont mind them, theyre always like that." yuugo tries not to think about it much.

the second time they meet is at one of sawatari's giant house parties. yuuya, being slightly inebriated, is even more flirtacious than usual. yuugo gets it into his head that this is some kind of challenge, and refuses to back down from yuuyas advances until theyre in a closet together and yuuyas hand is up his shirt.

the next gay he visits rin to have a gay crisis. ruri politely sees herself out so they can talk.

i want to say shun is having a similar crisis about having come very close to having a one night stand with reiji. not because it was gay but because he hates the guy.

rin is exasperated but understanding, she rubs yuugo's back and calls him a pathetic baby while he whines. by the end of their conversation, yuugo has accepted that he's bi, and additionally, that making out is Great and he should do more of it. rin is slightly worried and gives him a safe sex talk, he yells and covers his ears during the entire thing.

meanwhile, shun is like "i fucking hate that guy why was it so satisfying to bite him" and ruri is like "bro i love you but thats way tmi, please do not tell me about your sadistic hatesex kink or whatever the fuck it is youre trying to convey." yuuto, also present, is like "i cant believe you made out with that asshole, and you still have the nerve to get angry at basically anyone i kiss for no fucking reason." shun swears up and down that it will not happen again, and also says that he has already apologized several times for being possessive about both of them, please let him live it down.

(it absolutely does happen again.)

(the second time they actually do go all the way, it is the best sex of shun's life, and he's upset about it.)

[yuuto voice] you have a Problem, why cant you date someone decent and have vanilla sex like the rest of us

rin slowly develops a huge crush on ruri. when she tells yuugo about it, hes like "yeah she's really pretty i completely understand."

[isaacathom]

god im thinking about so many stories now... tdoc could be pretty fun, especially if the soul loss ‘mechanic’ is clearly established. youd get the one by accident (the mentor at the beginning who had previously killed a demon lord), then probably one of the protags later deliberately, because the reaction of a soul being spent would distract The Fuck out of the demon lord, and they were willing to pay the price if it meant the demon lord would die.

third time would presumably be the team up on the demon king where a group decide to all go together, hoping their combined soul will be enough to weather the impact killing such a powerful demon would cause. it does stand to reason that the impact of killing a demon king would be far stronger than killing a mere lord. so i feel like on the one hand, the team up should work, but kill all the participants, who get maybe a few moments in the aftermath to look at each other and the reinforcements and know they did it. like. demon lord saps more than half, right. lets say... 60, for sake of example. hence why tryig to kill a second one a) doesnt work and b) causes such a powerful reaction - you burn through your soul and it fucking explodes, almost.

so, say theres... 4 demon lords. and 3 heroes (as the 4th hero expended their soul to ensure the death of one of the lords, having killed either #1 or #2). each expending 60, they have 120. or if its 75, they have 75 of a soul. so either the king takes double, or the king just takes a full 1. if the former, the trio are dead no matter what. the reason they’re still able to kill the king is because of the soul reactions, which still deal damage, which means that the amount expended is... less? sort of? like, trio stabs, they get 30% in, n1 explodes and takes it to 40, they get 65 and then n2 takes it to 80, and n3 takes it home and their explosion seals the deal. all roughly simultaneously, but you get the idwa, right.

however, if we assume it only requires 1 full soul to take a demon king down, then the 120 version has a chance to make it if their souls are weighed as 1. which is also neat! thats the other hand! i like the idea of the trio surviving with the barest sliver of a soul each, dazed and in pain on the floor of this kings throne room, victorious and alive. unable to really appreciate what theyve done because theyre convinced its the end, that with each flutter of the eyelids the void approaches. passing out exhausted together at the foot of the throne, content in the knowledge that they won, and waking up confused some days later with no understand of how or why they were allowed to live. itd be guilt inducing a little, to know that if theyd teamed up with that 4th hero to attack the dragon, they wouldnt have died there, in that city that wasnt their home. but how would they have known that it would work? the choice to team up with pure desperation, the decision to injured warriors trying to gain something out of their seemingly inevitable defeat. their friend would not begrudge them the knowledge they had gained.

and idk! i guess it would depend on what kind of vibe the ending should have as to how fatal the attack should be. the worst ending, emotionally, is the one where only one of the trio makes it out, because while that makes sense if the final attack is viewed sequentially, like with the dodgy math above, it doesnt FEEL like that in the moment. so the survivor would feel like something is deeply unfair. and that stuffs interesting, but i feel like the survivors guilt-y angle can be explored just fine with the ‘trio survives and feels guilty about h4′ and its less... depressing overall. since killing the demon king shouldnt really be depressing. i feel like survivors guilt on that kind of scale is fucking depressing, if you catch me. it sort of sours that victory even more. if all three live, they can at least console each other. if only one lives, theyre alone in that experience. that fucking blows. i dont wanna write about. and while the ‘they all die’ ending is sad too, thats less depressing and more bittersweet. pyrrhic, etc. that feels like a sacrifice, done knowingly and with intent. not... by accident, or intentionally except one of you fucks up (sort of). right?

the two endings of ‘everyone lives’ or ‘everyone dies’ are good, i think. theres strength in both. itd be a matter of the tone of the rest of the story. and i feel like i gravitate towards sorta... lighthearted? not like joyous, at least two people are straight up dead here, but like... aware of joy. seeking joy. and that could go both ways for the ending! because there is a joy in victory, even if you don’t get to benefit from it. and the trio wouldnt, if they die there in an exhausted heap. but they won. and thats enough. and theres joy in that! theres a joy in knowing youve done well, and others are free. but the thing is that even if the trio live, they are convinced they wont. they all pass out on those stairs. i could even fucking fake out the audience by having the nex chapter from another character (preferably one who has been introduced previously as a friend or some such) a day after the kings death, where the trio arent mentioned until near the end when that friend goes to visit them. or something. it could be a fun fake out, but not purely for the sake of fucking with the audience, since it would mirror the assumptions the trio made when they committed to killing the king. they committed to dying together, successful or not, and they fully expected that they would never see the free world they made. they almost certainly imagined that freedom many times throughout the story, and especially at the end. the surprise is theirs as well. i think thats neat! though the fact the trio survived is probably telegraphed by the fact there is a chapter after their sacrifice at all? since ending on them collapsed at the throne feels like a fitting place to end it if they didnt make it. or even if they did! leave that idea hovering in the air. i dont know! i like the idea of exploring some of the immediate consequences of their success (such as the fact that island is almost certainly gonna vanish beneath the waves now) regardless of their fates. the destruction of the building they were in. all these bits. how everyone else finds out the demon king is dead, that sort of thing. that stuff is interesting, even if the long term effects arent going to be explored. the aftermath is interesting.

idk! i guess i just wanna explore what victory means? to both those who achieved it themselves, and those they did it for. so their ‘death’ would cover what they felt about their victory, their weariness and their elation, etc. and the chapter thereafter (essentially the last one) would be what the victory meant to their loved ones, regardless of whether they made it out. if the 4th heroes family/friends remain involved, including them would be especially important for highlighting the loss in winning, and even the friends/etc of the trio who did it, because even IF the trio made it out, theyre still out cold, souls and bodies drained. yknow? thered still be that threat in the air of will they die anyway? will all the soothing tonics and gentle hands in the world be enough? noone knows. everyones probably convinced that if they survive still, theyre at deaths door, hanging on out of stubborn desire to see their victory just once, but lacking the energy to make that happen. futilely trying to wake up. yknow? since many of those people would be familiar with the soul depletion thing, given the death of the mentor at the start of the story and the death of the 4th hero during its middle. noone has any reason to believe theyll survive, even if they really want them to. so if the chapter ends with that friends going to visit them where they lie in the hospital, sitting by the bedside of one and stroking their cheek and telling them gently of all the light theyve brought, and then that quiet soul stirs and gazes wearily at that friend, thats a surprise for everyone. it still means something. that the story would end very shortly thereafter, probably with a final line from the friend with some ~gravitas~ (like, yknow “you won. we’re so proud of you”, which i think works on a couple of levels) still leaves things open, its not unambiguously positive, but there joy there. theres satisfaction. theres a sense that no matter what happens to the trio, they Won.

god idk im just feeling gay as fuck thinking about the ending even though the friend is almost certainly not dating any of the trio, its just. the vibe. of adoration and respect. of that tenderness. god. its 1am it hits different at 1am to think about that kind of thing. god.

i gotta stop but this shit fucks