#and you can see both her loving him taking initiative later in inviting her to his bed and pulling her on top of him

[rrottentothecores]

listen big brother is great for someone like me with an obsessive personality bc you get to spend 24 hours being hyper parasocial with people who are at the same time very aware you’re watching and also frequently forget you’re watching, and also they cast suuuuuper hot singles and then dare them not to talk on live tv ajsjs

if i’d been more active on here and less on twitter last year i would have rambled about my favorite couple being sexy then too but twitter is a hellscape so you’re stuck with me writing horny think pieces because LISTEN

we know i love power dynamics and i love complicated dynamics and this weird “hot girl teaches nerd how to flirt” thing seems vanilla except she’s teaching him how to flirt in a way SHE likes and what SHE wants is for him to be blunt & sexual, but also she really likes that he is uncomfortable but interested at the same time, i literally get to watch a pretty ivy league cheerleader power bottom manipulate this pasty dude with a farmer’s tan into being her switchy nerd boyfriend those two are my IDEAL ROMANTIC PARTNERS and i get to watch them cuddle together and then spend half the night uncomfortably blinking and shifting bc they clearly want to fuck but they can HEAR the camera zooming in to see if they’re doing hand stufff under the blankets ajsjs

[httpknjoon]

mister cute guy with the white jacket | myg

plot | that one time popstar yn surprised everyone by inviting her live band's bass guitarist with her on stage for a performance.

w.c | 2323

pairing | bass guitarist! yoongi x popstar! reader

genre | fluff (?), enemies to lovers

main masterlist

DAY 32 of Love Is... On Tour

"Please wear this tonight."

The tour's wardrobe supervisor knocks on Yoongi's hotel room door. Almost instantly, when he opens the door, he is handed a white denim jacket with a customized design on the back, bedazzling with rhinestones. It shows his initials in the middle of what seems to be an arrowed heart.

"Oh, is it a new outfit or something?" he asked since the live band members already had their two sets of costumes that fit the aesthetic of your tour.

Instead of answering, Paul pulled down his dark shades and looked at Yoongi in an are-you-seriously-asking-me-that mode. But Yoongi's expression didn't change. He still has the same unaware look that tells your tour's wardrobe supervisor that he still hasn't got the memo.

"You didn't hear the news?" Paul asked him.

"What news?" Yoongi replied, scratching the back of his head.

The corners of Paul's lips pulled up like he was suddenly excited. But he bit it off before it even turns into a full smile. Yoongi squints his eyes at this. Why is he trying not to smile? What was the news?

"You should talk to Cal before the rehearsals."

They were on their way to the arena for the soundcheck for tonight's concert, Yoongi had the jacket folded in his arm, when Fred, their drummer, took notice of it.

"That's a nice jacket you got there," he said, scanning it.

"You didn't get one?" Yoongi asked, getting more confused.

Fred shook his head and asked the others if they had their own jacket. But everyone said no and went back to doing what they were doing.

Arriving at the arena, other live band members began warming up their instruments on stage while Yoongi immediately searched for your personal assistant. He just needs to know why he is getting a jacket because he also learned the other members were not.

It is a little strange because he surely is not your favorite person here to make Cal get him a customized piece of clothing. Ever since he got abruptly signed up for this tour, you two barely had any interaction without having petty disagreements or bickering over little things. You two just see things differently, it's obvious to everyone. But Yoongi needed the gig and you needed a new band after your last one suddenly left. So you two still work together, just more civil with each other.

"Hey, Yoongi." Art, the tour manager, was the first person who greeted him when he got backstage to search for Cal.

"Hi, Art. Have you seen Cal?"

The older guy looked around behind him, "I think I saw her in the catering area— By the way, tell the guys to eat before soundcheck,"

Yoongi nods his head, "Okay, thanks."

He walked forward, looking for that area. After passing by three dressing rooms, he finally spotted your assistant lined up to get food presumably for you and herself since she had two plates on both of her hands. He walked up to her side.

"Hey, Cal. Can I ask you about something?"

"If it's a yes or no question, sure. If it's a long conversation, wait for me after I feed YN," she replied, before turning to the catering staff to tell them your specific menu.

"Okay, is— Why do you have to feed her? I'm sure she can—"

"Oh, cut it off. YN's been feeling under the weather since last night and she needs to take a rest. She's not eating anything but I need to make her so she has energy for later." Cal is quick to cut Yoongi's pettiness, sounding like your mother for a moment. "What's the question."

Yoongi, who feels a little guilty now, cleared his throat before asking, "Is this jacket mine?"

"Yes," Cal replied before walking after getting your food.

He followed next to her as she walked back to where you were resting.

"Why do I get one?"

"Because she wants you to wear it for tonight."

"And why?" Yoongi asked again since he feels like he is not really getting a more helpful answer to his concern.

Cal stopped in front of your dressing room, where your name was printed on a piece of paper that was taped on the door. She looked really busy and hurried.

"Lemme just take care of YN quickly. Then, I promise I'll talk to you in an hour." she sighed. "Now, can you open the door for me first and then come look for me here after soundcheck?"

Although dismayed that he didn't get any explanation, Yoongi opened the door for her to let her inside your room and left to do the sound check.

Before the soundcheck began, one of the staff members said that you would not be able to do both the soundcheck and rehearsals today since you were feeling unwell. That's when Yoongi knows that you need to rest badly. Because in almost five weeks of touring, he has already seen you practice with a portable heating pad when you were having cramps or do a soundcheck with a cooling pad stuck on your forehead.

You love performing and being on stage, Yoongi can see it. So he cannot help but wonder how you are right now.

"She picked you for that."

Just like she promised, Cal talked to Yoongi to explain about the jacket before the dance rehearsals. They sat on one of the thousands of empty seats in the arena while the stage was being set up like a dollhouse.

Yoongi sips in his iced coffee, "For what?"

"We asked her if she wanted to do anything special tonight. She said she wants you as her partner for Bed Chem."

What? Yoongi stopped and slowly put down his coffee to look at Cal. What partner? You already have one of your dancers for that. Plus, he had seen that performance every night. Why would you want him there?!

Cal watched as his expression changed from plain to confused to shocked. He was speechless but his head was exploding with loud questions. So before he can say anything, she explains further,

"We thought that it was going to be fun. She wanted to start a small concert surprise tradition, where she would have an unexpected guest to go with her on stage for that song. For now, we thought of doing it one by one with the live band since you guys are earning some fans in the audience too since this tour began."

That's right. Ever since they got this gig weeks ago, every band member's social media following doubled— tripled in Yoongi's case. He was surprised to get a lot of attention online that they occasionally talked about on Twitter and TikTok. He has seen fan cams, which he finds a little weird but flattering at the same time.

"Don't worry, there will be a rehearsal for it later. Someone will tell you what to do and one of the dancers will stand in for YN. So you will know where to stand and all." Cal added.

Yoongi was silent, staring at the stage in the distance. He chewed on his lower lip, contemplating if he should do it.

"But if you don't want to do it, it's o—"

"I'll do it."

As soon as he agreed to do it, Yoongi joined the rehearsal for the Bed Chem performance. He rolled his eyes to his band members who came to eat their lunch while watching him on stage. Of course, they find it funny knowing that you two don't really get along.

"Is he going to dance?" Noah, their lead guitarist, asked for fun.

Seeing how terrified Yoongi was by that idea, the choreographer immediately denied it and just directed him to his points and what to do. To conclude it, Yoongi can just say that it has a lot of touching.

Next thing he knows, people are filling up the empty seats in the arena and Yoongi is putting on his white jacket before getting on stage. Yoongi still hasn't seen you all day. He heard from two staff members that you were mostly asleep in your bed all day and only got up to get ready for tonight.

"How are we doing, Chicago!"

Yoongi watched you from behind while you greeted everyone on the center stage after your first two songs. You were just as lively as your normal state, totally opposite from what he was told earlier today.

"I was in a sheer dress the day that we met..."

Six songs into the concert, the song he had been dreading waiting for began playing. You were on the bed where the performance would take place. You are now wearing a pastel pink sheer babydoll dress over your sparkling bodysuit, with a glittery garter strap on each thigh.

Fans sing along with you while Yoongi continues playing with the band. He tried to stay focused and not feel nervous about what was about to happen. His stomach is twisting and all he can do is to play the right chords in his guitar. But the feelings heightened even more when he was quickly shown on screens when you sang the lines:

"Who's the cute boy with the white jacket and the thick accent? Like ooh..."

Considering that this is the first time happening on the tour, the audience was surprised at first. Screaming. The, they were curious why did the camera swiftly focused on him. Then they resumed one vibing and singing along until...

"Who's the cute guy with the bass guitar and the big bad mm? Like ooh..."

Your fans squealed as soon as they realized that you changed certain words in the song lyrics, obviously pertaining to your bass guitarist, Yoongi. Then, you were walking out of the curtains around the bed.

It's hard to act like he doesn't notice you when there's a spotlight following you in every part of the stage you walk on. Yoongi tries to focus on playing his bass guitar but he can feel you walking in his direction. The cheers got louder. Yoongi doesn't like how warm he feels at the moment. You just did a few walks in front of the band before you went back on the large bed on the stage to do your choreography with your dancers.

"And I bet we'd both arrive at the same time, and I bet the thermostat's set at six-nine, and I bet it's even better than in my head..."

Just a few lines before the last chorus, the bit they rehearsed for began. Your dancers ran to him like they were encouraging him to go to where you are, on the bed.

"How you talk so sweet when you're doin' bad things, that's bed chem..."

Then, they pulled him with them on the edge of the bed. They leave him alone just in front of the curtains. At this point, the audience was truly engaged and loud.

"Are you free next week? I bet we'd have really good-"

That's his cue. Ignoring the heavy thumps in his chest, he slipped slowly between the curtains. He is on his knees as he gets closer to you while you look directly at him singing the last runs for the song.

Ha (make me go), ha And I know Ha (make me go), ha And I know

Your vocals play in the background while you two begin acting your little bit. Just like what he rehearsed with one of the dancers earlier, you ran your fingers in his damp, jet-black hair. Your index finger then traced down to his next and played with his silver necklace. You two simply look at each other deeply, aware of the fact that the temperature is indeed getting higher.

Fuck, it's too hot in here, Yoongi thought. And you look so good under this red light they put you two into. He mindlessly tucked a few hair strands covering your face behind your eyes. Although it's not in the bit you were told, you just let him. It's fine, it's just hair.

Ha (make me go), ha And I know Ha (make me go), ha Ooh, oh, baby

Just when Yoongi began removing his guitar strap, the curtains began closing. The fans went crazier. With only your silhouette seen from the outside, you lay on your back while he began removing his jacket. The instrumental is slowly fading out. And when he's about to be on top of you, the lights dimmed down.

Behind the curtains, you lay under him. Both his hands were on each side next to your head. The lights were already down but you two can still see each other, the fans' cheers are still dying down on the background.

"How are you?" he asked, breaking off this strange tension between you two. His deep voice didn't help the tightening feeling blooming in your chest.

"Hmm?" you simply hummed, not really knowing what he's talking about.

"Cal said you're not feeling great this morning." he explained.

No one's really doing anything. You're still under him and he's still on top of you. And you are not really annoyed by it.

"Oh, uhm, feeling better now, I don't know, maybe because of the adne—"

"143 seconds left. Get ready for costume change. Kim's waiting outside the curtains."

A voice in your in-ear monitor made you pause. Suddenly, you snapped out of it. You remember there was a concert going on and the stage manager was waiting for you to get you backstage.

"O-kay. Costume change. I need to go."

Yoongi backed up as you quickly got up, leaving him alone. Still in the dark, on his knees, his mind went blank for a second.

What the fuck was that?

He shook his head, snapping out of it, before picking up his guitar and going back to his original place.

note | first yoongi fic after so many years! how was it? thank you so much for reading 🤍

PERMANENT TAGLIST

@dunixxd @cixrosie @jksjx @embrace-themagic @buttvi @starbtslove @missseoulite @vanntaesworld @kenqki @imajinthis @stopeatread @seolaquotes @greyrain23 @chimchimmarie @petalsofink @jayhope88 @moonchild1 @laylasbunbunny @nikkiordonez12 @misshale21

[piastree]

Take a Chance with Me | OP81

oscar piastri x reader (fc: huh yunjin)

— Part 1

Next Part

Summary : Y/n's mistakenly takes someone's drink at a party. Despite the initial embarrassment, they engage in light chit-chat and discover a sense of familiarity. Oscar introduces himself, and they exchange greetings, marking the beginning of a new chapter in their story.

Notes: hiii! this is my first writing, if there are any grammatical errors or some other mistakes i wanna apologize in advance. I hope you like it and have fun while reading this<3 lemme know if you like it thankyouuuu

Y/n chuckled when she remembered how embrassed it was when she took the wrong glass and sipped it like nothing was wrong. But she could feel the confused look from someone beside her. "I'm thinking you might have grabbed mine by mistake." She glanced to her side, wondering if the words she had just heard were indeed meant for her.

"Huh?" She finally turned to fully face that man. He chuckled at her puzzled expression, but eventually, with a raised eyebrow, he pointed to the glass she was holding. "Oh my goodness! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to take your drink." Her eyes widened in shock, and her heart raced as embarrassment flooded over her. He held back his laughter. "No worries. I can take another one," as he said, he cracked a grin like a friendly cat. His eyes squinted playfully, giving off a vibe that was both laid-back and amused. "Let me grab you another one." "No need for that, I-" Ignoring him, she sauntered away to fetch a new drink, intending to replace the one she had mistakenly taken from him earlier. It didn't take long for y/n to return. Once she returned, they engaged in light chit-chat, chatting about who invited them to the party. It wasn't until later that she realized the guy she'd been talking to looked kind of familiar. "So, which friend brought you here tonight?" she asked. "Oh, just through some mates, racing circles and all. What about you?" "Just here with a friend. By the way, you seem oddly familiar. Have we met before?" "I get that a lot. Maybe you've seen me on the street or something."

She just laughed, shrugged it off, and took another sip of her drink. At the same time, he shot her a cheeky smile, sneaking a few glances while she checked out the scene around her. After a bit, he decided to break the ice, "I'm Oscar, by the way."

"I'm y/n. Nice to meet you, Oscar."

With a cheerful smile, they exchanged a warm handshake. It marked the beginning of a new chapter in their story.

oscarpiastri

liked by yourusername, landonorris, mclaren and 365,288 others

oscarpiastri Wowee… that was a cool weekend 🧡

view all 3,637 comments

user just calm down bro, it's your first season💀

user our starboy!! so proud🧡🧡

user what an incredible talent boyyy!

yourusername such a fake rookie

oscarpiastri i like to keep things low-key🤭

yourusername can't wait for another surprise then

user lmaooo

user your pace and overtakes are 1000/10 🔥👏🏻

yourusername

liked by oscarpiastri, yourbff and 1,288 others

yourusername camera crumbs

view all 101 comments

yourbff MYY GIRLLLL<3

user cutiesssss

oscarpiastri those flowers have nothing compared to u

yourusername lol you're making the flowers jealous, i'll let the garden know it needs an upgrade😂

user what oscar is doing here????

user did i miss something??

user OSCAR?!!?????? FLIRTING TO A GIRL???

yourusername chill guys he likes to joke around😂😂

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bring it home, boy!

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landonorris where is the cheer for me??? i thought we were friends yourusername lol we are! yourusername goodluck lando! i'd love to see both of you on the podium<3

yourusername

tagged: oscarpiastri, landonorris

liked by oscarpiastri, landonorris, yourbff and 14,555 others

yourusername P2 and P3, boys!! Enjoy your moments. What a day to remember 🧡

view all 957 comments

user CUTEE OUTFIT Y/N!!

user and now lando also here? who's she

user wow oscar put earmuffs on her??

user at this point i won't believe if they're just friends

landonorris oh now i'm your friend?? cool thanks

oscarpiastri stop overacting💀

yourusername should i post a whole photo dedication for you?😉

landonorris i'm not looking for trouble

user what is that mean landooo?? bcoz someone must be jealous?😂

user look at how oscar defending her lol

oscarpiastri you owe me a drawing of a four-leaf clover on my helmet

yourusername stay tuned for some top-notch artistry<3

user oscar indirectly said that y/n was his lucky charm!!

"Can't you stay for one more night?" Oscar asked. He walks over to y/n who is arranging her luggage a little hurriedly.

Y/n smiled before saying, "work can't wait. But I promise I'll come another day."

"Okay, i'll counting the days until you return."

She laughs, then stands up and pulls Oscar into her arms. "You're doing a good job. Keep going!"

"I'll miss you." He hugs her tighter, as if he's not willing to let her go.

"Me too."

They fall into a moment of silence, soaking in each other's warmth before having to go back to being apart for a period of time they don't know how long.

She never expect the party that night to lead her into a complicated situation, where she has to love someone who is out of her reach. Remembering how stupid she was that night for not recognizing Oscar right away when his face looked so familiar, and how Oscar didn't say anything until she finally realized.

"Oh! I have something for you."

She opens her bag and takes something out. A bracelet with a four-leaf clover. "I don't have the skill to draw, and I wouldn't risk making your helmet look ugly."

Oscar takes the bracelet and immediately puts it on. "I can't agree more. But it's more than enough," he replies mischievously while laughing. He is so happy to see the bracelet now neatly wrapped around his wrist. "Thank you."

"Your lucky charm when I'm not around."

yourusername

liked by landonorris, oscarpiastri, yourbff and 16,581 others

yourusername life lately😴

view all 1004 comments

user syntax error babe my brain stopped working when i saw u 

user i just can’t get enough of this hair omg

user me too! so gorgeous😭

yourbff red y/n is too legendary

comment liked by oscarpiastri

yourusername is this genuinely a compliment or a subtle jab?

yourbff lmaoo babe😭

oscarpiastri wish u were here

yourusername me too</3

user oh you are not with oscar rn :(

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oscarpiastri

liked by yourusername, lewishamilton, charles_leclerc and 221,681 others

oscarpiastri A second reason to smile 😁🏆

view all 2564 comments

mclaren what a weekend!

user this man’s gonna be world champion one day🙌

comment liked by yourusername

user i refuse to believe you’re a rookie man

yourusername me too

user y/n camping on oscar's comment section

yourusername my driver of the day!❤️

oscarpiastri ❤️

user what's with the red heart???

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yourusername also congrats to lando!! proud of both of you🔥👏

landonorris thankyou, y/n! btw come to the race, someone is missing you

user man is so wHIPPED

yourusername p.s hope oscar recovered well after lying on the floor

comment liked by oscarpiastri

yourusername added a story

someone is smiling ear to ear @/oscarpiastri

yourbff lmaooo he looks so happy yourbff he's completely in love with you yourusername grateful is an understatement<3

landonorris his eyes speak love lol yourusername shut upp lando landonorris glad both of you finally opened up about your feelings yourusername thankyou 2 u❤️

user his emotions are written all over his face

oscarpiastri

liked by yourusername, logansargent, landonorris and 540,188 others

oscarpiastri thanks for mistakenly grabbing my drink. Grateful for every twist of fate that brought you into my life🍻❤️

view all 5555 comments

user spill the tea we want to know more about the storyy!!

user my oscar and yn cutie<3

user hope for your happiness, oscar and y/n!❤️

landonorris how long did it take you, mate?

yourusername felt like forever

oscarpiastri you have no idea

yourusername but it was worth the wait

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oscarpiastri ❤️

yourusername thankyou for never telling me you are oscar piastri the mclaren driver of formula 1😒

user NOOOO SHE MUST BE SO CLUELESS

logansargent he is the worst

oscarpiastri u know i didn't mean to keep it a secret, babe

user THEY ARE SO CUTEEEE

yourusername

liked by oscarpiastri, charles_leclerc, georgerussell63 and 85,128 others

yourusername love you always, Oz! May the four-leaf clovers always on us🍀❤️

view all 6514 comments

oscarpiastri love you too, always🍀❤️

comment liked by yourusername

thankyou for reading! don't hesitate to give me a feedback❤️

[heliianth]

when you say that nanika is a reflection of killua’s “worst traits”, what do you mean by that exactly? :O

genuinely asking bc i’m super interested and curious !!

ok so.... while trying my hardest not to be reductive, Killua and Nanika occupy very similar social spaces. But before we can get there, I kind of want to lay down the groundwork first.

Here's Illumi (un)helpfully expositing Killua's self-image—the one he spends his entire arc desperately running away from—for us:

Killua's narrative has a lot to do with dehumanization and questions about nature—whether somebody can choose who they are or whether their circumstances decide for them, what makes a human being, all that juicy stuff. He's almost a soft launch for what the series forces us to consider later in the CAA, which is so rife with questions about instinct, nature, humanity, and evolution that trying to navigate its character web without running into a Killua foil is like trying to walk in the rain without getting wet.

Nanika is, like the ultimate escalation of this same thing—when it comes to Killua and questions of nature, she's the final boss. Nanika (or, our initial impression of her, what we are invited via framing to think first) is almost a manifestation—a literalization—of what Killua is scared of being.

I say that because, like... what is Nanika? What do other characters see her as?

Nonhuman

Extremely dangerous by nature

Valuable due to the services she can provide

Ostracized by both the Zoldyck family (Killua is singled out as the golden child) and the outside world—meaning, not entirely belonging to any defined social group, and unable to fully fit in

A dark counterpart to a comparatively sweet, bright, and innocent personality (Alluka)

All 5 of these points hit very literally onto sore points of Killua's psyche. At least subconsciously, in some way, these are all things Killua thinks about himself; he recognizes them in Nanika because the way his family reacts to her is the way "outsiders" react to him. And he ends up dehumanizing her the exact way he dehumanizes himself—we know because he ends up unintentionally using Silva's words of being his son (positing Killua as an extension of himself, indicating similar mindsets) as an appeal during negotiations:

(Some English translations don't even use Nanika because it literally means "something")

That's what I mean when I say they occupy similar social spaces, or are part of the same social group. And Killua treats her accordingly—as in, he projects:

(elaboration on that last example here)*

Killua even ends up projecting traits onto Nanika he isn’t self-aware enough to realize he has.

For example, Killua thinks of love as a very lopsided and conditional transaction in which, due to his negative social identity group, he needs to perform something adequately in order to earn. And he assumes Nanika thinks the same way:

This aspect of the way Killua treats his sisters is consistently tricky for me to articulate because Killua doesn't end up treating her meanly or even think of Nanika poorly because of these projections—a lot of this is subconscious, Killua doesn't even realize he's doing it at first—which is what you might expect from someone who recognizes reasons for self-hatred in someone else.

I think this is simply because, at the end of the day, all of these negative assessments are still about himself—only about only his own emotions, his own internalized judgement. It’s not at all about Nanika. She's still a separate entity, someone in need of Killua's protection, so Killua can't hate her like he hates himself.

*In fact, Killua wants the best for her, wants people to love her as a part of Alluka which can be good, like he sees his own ugly traits. He even refuses to take advantage of her dangerous abilities, like he doesn’t want his own to be taken advantage of. Its projection of what he wants for himself onto Nanika—acceptance and love even if she is some Inhuman Dangerous Thing.

I can sort of infer this because Killua becomes confrontational with Illumi specifically when it comes to denying Nanika/Alluka personhood in a way he only does when Illumi is denying Killua personhood, which implies to me that Illumi doing it to Nanika/Alluka vicariously feels like another personal attack (which he can actually retaliate against now without that fuckass needle in his brain).

And just in case you weren't convinced, we do know this is projection because Killua kind of just admits it (lol):

I want to yap a little more about this but I'll put it under a readmore because it's kind of off topic. So if you just wanted answers for why I think Nanika is such a strong parallel to Killua, then you already have them lol

This scene (the one pictured above the readmore) sometimes cracks me up because of Killua’s reaction—the way he immediately slaps his cheeks and blames everything on Illumi. It’s a sort of comedic reaction to such a heartfelt (and extremely brave) ultimatum on Alluka’s end. I’ve seen some people think it’s just Killua wanting to defuse the argument, to get Alluka to listen to him so he can start to apologize correctly. But I don’t think that’s true, I think this reaction and the way he immediately brings up Illumi is a genuine realization on his end—after all, Illumi's name or presence is kind of a visual, verbal, and narrative shorthand for Killua's insecurities and the self-image he's clawing himself away from.

Up until now, Killua's never really thought about Alluka and Nanika as their own people, whether that be them separately or even just Alluka by herself. He never gave them real agency; not because he’s physically carrying them and not because he's not asking what they want, but because he’s just projecting that hard. Alluka is also tangled up in his feelings about his childhood (and Gon, as another facet of his projecting and also just as a consequence of the reason why he's rescuing them in the first place), and Nanika seemed to give her so much trouble—in the same way Killua’s own undesirable traits give him trouble—that I don’t think it literally ever occurred to him that Alluka could have a different opinion than he does.

I think Killua assumed Alluka would react to the news of Nanika needing to go away the same way he reacted to the news of him needing to leave Gon—with pained acceptance. That situation is a direct parallel to the dilemma of putting Nanika to sleep. But instead Alluka YELLS at him, and it forces him into realizing that his idea of his sister(s) was wrong. They aren’t the same person as him, his projection was unfounded, and he hurt them because of it.

Which is why he only realizes that his fear of Illumi was influencing the way he was acting then, because now he can actually look at them and see anything but his own reflection.

These pieces of dialogue: “I've been afraid of Illumi for so long... I got scared... and said some horrible things to you,” really do kind of say everything don’t they? He saw Nanika just like he sees himself, he wanted for her and thought about her this way for everything: both the good (wanting her to belong somewhere, to be safe) and the bad (the dehumanization, the deprioritization).

Killua can recognize that now, and apologize for doing that to her. For being a bad big brother.

And not only does doing this help him actually empathize with Nanika and Alluka as people whose experiences are unique from his, but Alluka’s reaction also demonstrates to Killua a self-love that isn’t reliant on the outlier model established in the Hunter Exam by Illumi and reinforced by Killua throughout the CAA (particularly echoed in the "You are light" scene, in which he directly steals 眩しすぎて out of Illumi's mouth).

As a side note, these two chapters are named Light and Darkness and Light and Shadow respectively—Gon being "light" (the novelty, the outlier) both times.

Alluka loves Nanika—her “darkness”—enough to cut off the outlier (Killua) if he doesn’t love her the same. Seeing someone he puts in the exact same ingroup as him so shamelessly love Nanika, in whom Killua recognizes things he hates about himself, actually gets through to him (whereas Gon’s previous affections couldn’t because he saw Gon as so fundamentally different).

It’s extremely important that Killua asks for this forgiveness. In the hospital, when he was talking to Gon through the window, we can see Killua knows the importance of apologies. He failed Gon, so saving him would be Killua’s apology. And Gon failed Killua too, so saying “sorry” would be his apology for that. It’s less about roles now, not about values or groups—less about Killua being useful and Gon being light—it’s more about actions.

For Alluka and Nanika, “big brother” was the role he felt guilty for not fulfilling—a catalyst for his projections onto them. Now he’s confronted with real proof of this failure and he doesn’t end up breaking over it like he might've before. Instead he apologizes because, due to Nanika, he knows Alluka loves unconditionally. And he trusts her, trusts her judgement of him, and trusts that he’s lovable enough to be accepted by her despite his failure.

—

Overall, I think it's really important that Nanika is introduced to the audience as a scary unknown, and that our first impression is slowly dissolved over time. It's a pervasive pattern in all the characters meant to ask questions of nature—Killua himself, the Chimera Ants, Palm, even the Phantom Troupe. Togashi is, like, deeply concerned with humanization and I think it's awesome because you get these narrative threads like the one with Nanika and Killua, where his doubts about himself and his own ability to love or be loved are narratively answered via giving or receiving compassion for/from someone else. In this way Hunter x Hunter tells us that proof of humanity is the capacity for connection. And isn't that something to think about?

[trashytoastboi]

Hi Toast :) — Dialing 📞 ☎️ for Sugar Daddy Lucifer please <3 It can be either HCs or scenario! I’m totally okay with either and preferably with She/Her pronouns 🎀 I’ll be waiting if you choose to do this :3

Hi bean! Thank youuu- This was an amazing request to wake up to! I went for headcanons because I felt I could include a bit more of how I see Sugar Daddy Lucifer, also I wrote with female reader in mind but since no pronouns were mentioned it works for gender neutral as well.

3K Permanent Event! Dial A...

Sugar Daddy! Lucifer x Reader

🎶 You had doubts the first time you decided to use this mystery service. An ad popped up for it while you were scrolling through Devilgram. You saw their list of services and some even sounded intriguing. You genuinely didn’t expect someone to answer. There on the other end; was the operator who easily led you through the prompts, and even the listings of people they had. You ended up choosing Lucifer. Honestly you went into this thinking it was going to be a joke, so when he showed up for your date you were surprised. 

🎶 Lucifer’s first impression was a great one. He is courteous, gentlemanly, polite, charming and easily carried the conversation when you stuttered from being overly shy during your first meeting. He waited until you got a little more comfortable before discussing things like your allowance that he’d be giving you. You honestly thought the sugar daddy thing was a joke- it was not. When Lucifer told you the amount he’d be giving you every week you genuinely had to ask if he made a mistake in adding an extra 0 at the end.  

🎶 As if the weekly allowance wasn’t enough he often surprised you with gifts, ranging from expensive things, to paying for your meals or sweet treats whenever you had a craving and telling you to spoil yourself- at his expense and he felt a surge of pride whenever you did. Lucifer often told you he has so much money that he doubts he could spend it all and so even if you wanted expensive things, it barely put a dent in his finances. 

🎶 You’d see him quite often, one thing you could call a condition, which wasn’t at all bad. Lucifer wanted you to go on a date with him, once a week and more if both your schedules would allow. He’d like to take you out to whatever restaurant you wanted to try, sometimes he’d be in the mood to go watch an opera if there was one performing at the theater. Sometimes he’d invite you for something quieter, just the two of you and he’d be the one to make dinner and say it’s to spoil you (He’s very much a softie for his sugar baby and wants to provide in any and every way.) 

🎶 Without fail every time you saw Lucifer he had a new gift for you. He knew your tastes perfectly, sometimes he’d buy you something that he felt you’d look absolutely gorgeous in, other times it was something that you’d been looking at. He truly pays attention to everything you like and encourages you to talk about yourself more. He loves seeing how you light up when talking about the things you like. 

🎶 Lucifer is the avatar of pride, and he takes pride in being able to give you everything beyond your wildest dreams. He wants you to always feel and look your best. Hell, half the time it’s something silly and you’d tell him that you don’t need it but he’d always follow up with the question “Do you want it?” It started with an allowance then evolved into Lucifer telling you he’d handle all your living expenses, after all the money he gives you as an allowance should be for you and the things you want. 

🎶 One thing you came to learn later on in the relationship is that Lucifer is a very affectionate and sensual man (demon). He enjoys your affection, he doesn’t outright ask for it and more hints towards wanting you to initiate it. If you’re the one who holds his hand first or kisses him first, he can feel himself falling deeper and deeper for you. It’s interesting he didn’t realize how lovely you’d be and thought it would be a casual relationship not knowing that the longer he knew you, the more in love he fell. 

🎶 He intentionally made more time for you, working a little harder to clear up time so he could have two dates with you a week instead of one. If he really wasn’t able to get away he’d enjoy just hearing your voice, sometimes when he’s working he’d call you just to hear your voice. Lucifer loves being able to hear you talk about your day, something you did or saw today. It makes him happy. 

🎶 He raised a problem. An issue you’d never think you’d hear someone bring up as an issue but here you are. With Lucifer, who sincerely hopes and pleads that you’d spend more of his money. You’re smart and you don’t squander it, he can appreciate that but he’s asking you to just buy whatever you want without considering the price tag. There’s been too many incidents when he takes you shopping and you shy away from something after seeing the price. (He buys it for you anyway) 

🎶 Out of all your previous partners, Lucifer is the most confident and self assured. Lucifer also taught you that someone can genuinely be confident without being conceited or arrogant. He knows what he wants and it’s attractive to you who really has never seen those qualities in the people you’d previously dated. Maybe that was the appeal of an older man after all.

[kidnappedbycartoons]

Back on my Zutara tip again

You already know why I'm here. Zutara is on my mind. I know a lot of people talk about the Southern Raiders episode when it comes to them, and I get it. It's another one of their big moments. It's a pivotal point in their relationship. You cannot talk about them without talking about that episode, literally impossible. But, I want to focus on the little details after that episode. Because they are just as important to the ship as that episode is.

So, the next episode after is the Ember Island Players. Besides, what I find so funny about this episode is how, we are able to see how close Zuko and Katara have become, but at the same time we are seeing the distance between Katara and Aang. I laugh.

So, I'm trying to figure out why Zuko specifically wanted to sit next to Katara. No this might be small to some other people, but I see the interaction between Zuko and Aang about the whole seat thing, as a demonstration of the maturity difference between the two. At first, Aang tries to get Zuko to give up the seat ("I wanted to sit there"), but it's literally not a big deal. And Zuko tells him this ("Just sit next to me. What's the big deal?"). Like Aang, baby, you can handle not sitting next to Katara for a few hours. And then he sits down and he's sulking. Like...it's really not a big deal.

Besides that though, we are able to see just how comfortable they have become with each other. She's joking around with him, teasing him about the actor's portrayal of him. Katara even checks up on him after seeing the scene between him and Iroh. There's clearly no bad blood between either of them. And, I'm not going to comment on that stupid play, because we all know who the writers were targeting. And, I don't see anything wrong with the Zuko and Katara inching away from each other and being a bit uncomfortable with the actors romantic scene. Because, they just became friends, y'all. Let's give them time to chill. But you see, that's the beauty in this. We are seeing the two of them become more comfortable, more open, more friendly with each other as these episodes progress. There is such a clear development between them.

During Sozin's Comet, once again. Zuko and Katara have gotten closer, but Katara and Aang don't seem to be on the same page as much anymore. We see them arguing much more in the later half of book 3 than we ever did throughout the whole series. But funnily enough, while Zuko and Katara were on opposite sides for the majority of the series, they are closer than ever during the later half of book 3.

Anyway, I just love these episodes for these two, because we really see the trust between them. Like, it's in the little details. Katara is the one to invite Zuko into the group hug. Katara is the one that initiates teasing with Zuko, by bringing up the baby picture that she thought was him but it was actually Ozai. When Zuko tells Katara to let Aang go, she does. She listens to him. She trusts his advice. Katara is the one to ask him what to do after Aang dips out on everyone. You just know for a fact, that book two Katara would have never done any of this. That's what we call development. For some reason, after the Southern Raiders episode, there's this silent trust between the two that is just so amazing to watch. There was a bond built there. Really, the bond was built back in the catacombs, but then it got destroyed in the catacombs, but then it got rebuilt in the Southern Raiders episode. Love to see it.

We all know the scene where Katara reassures Zuko before he goes to talk to Iroh. But, like I said, it was give and take between these two. Zuko had Katara's back when she went to confront her mother's killer, she has his back when he's going to reunite with his uncle. We see the two of them have each other's backs, be each other's support. One person wasn't carrying all the emotional burden in this dynamic, both of them did. Also, I just love how the first person Zuko thought of to help him with Azula, was Katara. There was no hesitation at all. He knew what Azula was capable of, but he also knew what Katara was capable of too. He knew who to have by his side. And that's trust.

During the battle with Azula, not even, before that. Zuko could tell that Azula is not all the way there mentally, so he chooses to take her on by himself, instead of putting Katara at risk of being severely hurt. Zuko taking that lightning bolt for Katara was important. This has been said before, but it had to be her. It couldn't be anybody else on the team. It was her, she was the first one in the team that he connected with. She was the one that he had to work overtime to gain her trust. She was the one that felt the most betrayed by him after what happened in the catacombs. It could not be anybody else. It would not have had the same impact if it was anybody else. Literally, imagine somebody else on the team in Katara's position, would it really have hit the way that it needed to? No. Zuko literally risked his life to save her without even a second thought.

And after she healed him, the intimacy between them was something different. The softness in his voice as he thanks her, the tears in her eyes, the gentleness with which she held him. Do y'all see it? Something that's just very interesting with Zuko and Katara is the balance between them. Like, it's a clear cause and effect between them, if that makes sense?

Zuko apologizes to Katara and then she offers to heal his scar. Zuko betrays Katara's trust, she is rightfully upset with him, he works to earn her trust. Zuko has Katara's back as she goes to confront the source of her trauma, she has his back when he's preparing to go face Iroh. Zuko takes little lightning for my girl, Katara heals him. You see what I mean? Both of them are putting an effort in building this relationship. The bond between them is also an integral part of both of their stories. Now, I'm not saying that Avatar should have ended with the two of them getting together. I am on the side that says that the ending of the show should have been the team looking out at the sunset, not a make out session between a twelve and fourteen year old. But, what I am saying, is that the potential is there. The ingredients are there. There is something magical between these two. And if not just the fans, but the voice actors, and some of the writers could see it, I don't know what to tell you if you can't see it.

[shalomniscient]

HI SEV! i’m the anon who cooked up that whole milf reader rahu idea thing AND IM SO GLAD U LIKED IT HAHSGAATA i was honestly shocked you chose to write a whole MEAL for that tho (appreciate and love you 🫶🏻)

but now it got me thinking…….how would reader’s son react to his mother dating his teacher? 🤔 i feel like he’d flip tf out cus i imagined him and rahu having a somewhat close relationship kinda like a friendship

(also i plan to req a lot more if thats okay! so can i be 🕯️anon? :3)

hiiiii !! ofc u can be 🕯️anon, glad to have u here !!

me personally, i view it through the lens of what would be funniest, and for me it manifests as reader's son is a little bit of a brat in university. he's a conventionally attractive young adult (he gets his looks from his mom) who by extension is popular, which is a quite a feat given his niche course. also a party animal, so people know his name around campus. hell, he might even be part of a frat LMAO all that combines into a young man with maybe too much of an inflated ego, who thinks he can get away with slacking in class. rahu doesn't stand for that shit, so the next time he turns in half-assed work she smacks it with a flat D, even after he submitted an appeal saying he was sick (he was hungover, rahu saw him passed out on a bench outside a frat house while she walked back from campus to your apartment).

so now he's beefing with the TA. which isn't ideal, because everyone else loves the TA (they think she's super fucking hot). he calls his mom, reader, to complain about her but she just laughs and tells him it's about time someone made him work a little. he's annoyed, but his mom sounds... happier? so he lets it slide, because despite his outward persona he loves his mom more than anything. which is also why, when she invites him over for dinner, he drops all party plans and heads right back home.

he helps reader in the kitchen as she preps for dinner, all the while talking shit about the new TA. there's an amused, knowing smile on his mom's face, and he feels a twinge of suspicion but ignores it. but when he turns around after washing his hands, who does he come face to face with?

the fucking TA.

rahu does her best to school her features into a poker face as she watches her most annoying student cycle through the five stages of grief at light speed. reader laughs from the dinner table, then calls them both to eat. it takes a while before he recovers from the initial shock, and for the rest of dinner he can't look rahu in the eyes.

of course, reader talks to him about it later, on the apartment balcony. it's a lot to take in, but in the end, he just asks his mom if rahu makes her happy, and when she answers yes, with a smile on her face he hasn't seen in years, there's not much he can do but accept it, really. despite it all, he wants her to be happy—and if that annoying TA is the one who gives that to her, then so be it.

but that's my take. yours is also very fun, methinks. it's a lot more dramatic i think, and rahu would be more careful around him even when they go out for drinks and such. she'd watch her words a lot, and make sure not to mention you too much or he might realize something's up.

i think in this scenario, the news would break by accident. maybe he decides to visit reader spontaneously one evening, and he lets himself in (because he has the keys) and who does he see cuddling his mom on the couch? rahu. like you said, he flips out initially, feeling a little betrayed and a little confused because his friend ?? has something going on with his mom ?? what the fuck ???? though i think it ends the same way, with reader talking to him privately and him relenting in the end because rahu makes her happy, and that's all he wants for his mom.

in both cases though, things get a little awkward between rahu and reader's son. but they work through it, both for reader's sake, because at the end of the day they both love her.

[lurkingshan]

A Time Called You: A Great Reminder to Go Watch Someday or One Day 

This past weekend Netflix dropped a new kdrama called A Time Called You in its entirety, and I became particularly interested in watching it as soon as I realized what it was: the Korean remake of Someday or One Day I knew had been in the works for awhile. If you’re not familiar, Someday or One Day (SOOD) is a beloved 2019 Taiwanese drama that is widely considered to be among the best dramas the country has ever produced (there is also a 2022 film version of the story, but that’s less relevant to this post). Now, I love Korean dramas, and I know that countries remaking each other’s best shit is very common in the Asian media landscape, but I couldn’t help but feel protective of the original work and a bit resentful of the choice to adapt something that was so original and unique and specific and put that generic kdrama sheen on it. Taiwan has a small film industry, and this is one of its jewels. We didn’t need Korea’s take on it.

And having watched the adaptation in full now, I am feeling pretty justified in that initial feeling. Let me just say upfront: A Time Called You (ATCY) is a perfectly good drama with a solid cast and competent storytelling. Had I seen it absent the knowledge of what it was adapting, I probably would have liked it a lot. But I have already seen and loved Someday or One Day, so I feel compelled to break down why it is the better version of this tale, both for my fellow SOOD devotees who are wondering how this adaptation stacks up and for folks who have only seen the kdrama in the hopes that you’ll decide to watch the original. As usual, I did the most, so reader be advised that this is long (tagging @troubled-mind as promised and @smittenskitten because I saw you were looking for a comparison of the two dramas). TL; DR: if you liked ATCY, or have seen neither version and are wondering which to watch: go find Someday or One Day, because it’s an overall superior and more satisfying execution of the same story.

The Vibe

Let’s start here because it’s the most obvious and immediately striking thing as someone who has seen both versions. SOOD has a bit of a rough and unpolished feel, which makes it feel more grounded in reality (important when you are getting into fantasy elements like time travel but you still want the characters to feel like real people). We open our story in 1998 in a record shop with a young girl playing Last Dance by Wu Bai and China Blue, a 1996 mando pop rock ballad, and thus setting the tone—this will be a somewhat raw and bittersweet story about grief and hurt and longing that will invite us to wallow in our feelings. And that melancholic vibe stays throughout the drama, even in the explicitly happy scenes, because you are always aware that the joy you are seeing has already been lost. 

By contrast, ATCY feels… emotionally flat. Don’t get me wrong, it is a very faithful adaptation. The early episodes are practically a shot for shot remake of the original drama. But it’s too polished, too shiny. The filmmaking is bog standard kdrama fare; everything is soft focus and warmly lit and too beautiful and consequently nothing feels real. It feels right in line with the standard aesthetics of recent mainstream Korean dramas, and that choice undermines the emotional weight and grit of this story.

A great example of this can be seen in the way the two dramas handle the iconic scene where our female lead runs in the rain, looking back over her shoulder to smile in delight at the male lead before continuing on her way. This is a moment of realization for him about his feelings for her—one he will later immortalize in a painting that becomes part of the mystery of the past she is trying to unravel. In Someday or One Day, this scene takes place on a regular street, in the utterly mundane surroundings of their everyday lives as they walk home, and she runs down the middle of the road as puddles gather in the uneven pavement; in A Time Called Love, they are in a picturesque park for this scene, surrounded by green and encased within a grove of giant trees, and she runs right down the middle of a tree lane that looks like it came straight out of a fairytale. One story is very much about a love grounded in a reality we can recognize; the other is pure fantasy romance.

The Music 

I already mentioned the song that anchors the Taiwanese drama above. Last Dance is hugely important to the story, both thematically and as a plot device, and in its ability to set the mood and tone of the drama. 

The Korean remake similarly uses a real 1996 ballad as its main song and time travel mechanism: With My Tears by Seo Ji Won. And, uh, the vibe is a bit different. 

Discerning listeners might recognize this as one of the many classic love ballads performed by our favorite doctors by day, rock stars by night over on Hospital Playlist. It’s a perfectly fine song. But it sets quite a different tone for our story, doesn’t it? It also is meant to be a song that a teenage boy is hankering to listen to on cassette, and listen, I wasn’t living in Korea in 1996. I have no idea how culturally accurate that may be. I’m sure there were in fact baby Lee Ik Juns running around trying to get their hands on this cheesy love song. But the edgier sound of Last Dance definitely sounds more in line with something the teenage male lead would listen to and what the music is meant to convey. And frankly, since we hear this song about 30 times in the drama, it matters that Last Dance is just an objectively better song. 

And that’s just the tip of the iceberg, because beyond the classic song each version chose to use as its centerpiece, there is also a stark difference in the quality and tone of each drama’s OSTs. Here is a compilation of the Someday or One Day tracks, including the utterly gorgeous main theme by Shi Shi. The music is hugely important in the Taiwanese drama and is used to set the mood as well as emphasize its themes, and the tracks feel specific to this story.

And here is a compilation of A Time Called You OSTs.

If you’re familiar with kdrama OSTs, you will recognize most of the artists on here, as well as some new covers of old songs. And again, the vibes are quite different. Whereas SOOD was very intentional and specific in its music choices, ATCY just sounds like every other kdrama. There is nothing on this tracklist that stands out or evokes the kind of feeling that the SOOD tracks do.

The Main Couple

The name and timeline situation in this show makes this section unnecessarily difficult, so let me just make a little reference sheet here: 

Someday or One Day

Alice Ke plays Yu Xuan (2019) and Yun Ru (1998)

Greg Hsu plays Quan Sheng (2019) and Zi Wei (1998)

A Time Called You

Jeon Yeo Been plays Jun Hee (2023) and Min Yu (1998)

Ahn Hyo Seop plays Yeun Jun (2023) and Si Heon (1998)

All of the actors here are seasoned and very good at their jobs, so I am not casting shade on any of them—they are executing their performances based on writing and directorial choices. But I cannot deny that the Taiwanese version of these characters are more compelling all around. In SOOD, the main characters have a real spark; despite the melancholic undertone of the story, there are moments of genuine joy and when they connect with each other, you feel why this bond is strong enough for them to find each other through time and despite all the trauma they endure. In ATCY, however, the characterizations are muted.

This is most evident in the difference between Quan Sheng/Zi Wei and Yeon Jun/Si Heon. Greg Hsu plays Zi Wei as magnetic, playful, mischievous, utterly lovable, and very intense about his feelings for his lady. He has a real joie de vivre about him that clearly brightens up Yu Xuan’s life considerably, and his devotion to her is not just shown, but deeply felt. Experiencing their memories, you understand immediately why Yu Xuan can’t move on from his death; he was the joyful, relaxed counterpoint to her more ambitious and serious personality. Si Heon, though? He is a nice dude and a generous partner and he is very good looking. But he doesn’t have the playfulness or the intensity that his Taiwanese counterpart does. His personality is just more moderate all around. One great example of this: upon discovering that he has traveled forward into the body of the person that would become Yu Xuan/Jun Hee’s boyfriend, Zi Wei (in Quan Sheng’s body now, are you still with me?) actively decides to find her, love her, and try to solve this time loop quagmire they are in; Si Heon (in Yeon Jun’s body) waits for a moment of fate to give him a sign, and only makes the decision to pursue Jun Hee after running into her by coincidence.

Similarly, Jun Hee is not quite as spunky and sassy as Yu Xuan and Min Yu is not as dark and awkward as Yun Ru; when Jun Hee travels to the past and takes up residence in Min Yu’s body, the differences between the two characters she is playing are not as evident. In SOOD, I could tell at a glance who is in Yun Ru’s body; in ATCY I need more context to be sure. Where Yun Ru had more of an edge, Min Yu simply reads very shy. It’s not as compelling. One scene that really stands out as an example of this: when Yun Ru is pretending to be Yu Xuan in 1998 and looks in the mirror to practice smiling, it looks downright creepy and sinister; when Min Yu is masquerading as Jun Hee and looks at herself in the mirror, she just looks awed and happy, if a bit awkward. It’s subtle, but it changes the way you feel about the characters. 

The difference in Jun Hee and Yeon Jun’s characterization also affects the couple chemistry, which is just not nearly as strong in ATCY. The characters are more muted and thus the expected sparks are more like smoldering embers. The relationship feels cozy and warm and nurturing, but it doesn’t feel vital. It doesn’t feel like the kind of relationship you would fight through time or break the rules of the universe to return to. I recall gasping or crying or laughing out loud throughout SOOD because I was constantly taken aback by Greg Hsu’s arresting presence and the chemistry he and Alice Ke generated was just emotionally riveting. When Yu Xuan told Zi Wei (as Quan Sheng) that they were officially together, that man literally jumped for joy and shouted out his love for her; Si Heon (as Yeon Jun) reacts to the same moment with a quiet smile and a hug. When Zi Wei saw Yu Xuan in Yun Ru’s body again in the finale, he knew instantly that it was her and the smile overtook his face as he reached for her; Si Heon initially called Min Ju’s name before getting closer and taking several beats to realize it was Jun Hee (ruining this iconic moment is perhaps this remake’s greatest sin against romance, my god). 

Everything between the couple in SOOD was just more, both in happiness and in despair. I liked Jun Hee and Si Heon, and Ahn Hyo Seop and Jeon Yeo Been are very competent actors whose performances I have loved in other dramas, but they didn’t achieve that level of chemistry here, the writing and directing choices worked against them, and I didn’t feel that same desperation for them to figure this out that I did with Yu Xuan and Zi Wei. 

The Story 

The Korean version is a very faithful adaptation overall (I haven’t mentioned Jun Jie and In Gyuk because his character and story is more consistent across the two shows), but does make some small tweaks to the story, some of which seem to be out of necessity due to a shorter run time (one episode and a couple hours total less than the Taiwanese original) and some just… because? The shorter amount of story time does lead to them having to cut corners on some aspects of the mythology and time travel lore, making it all a bit less clear for folks who don’t already understand what’s going on, and they put in a few nods to typical kdrama tropes like amusement park dates and hand of fate stuff that we really didn’t need—they are already trapped in a time loop together, we get it!

ATCY also messed with the timelines and ages for reasons I don’t really understand and that don’t really track. In SOOD, Zi Wei traveled forward from 2002 to Quan Sheng’s body in 2010, met Yu Xuan, and then died in 2018. In ATCY, Si Heon traveled forward from 2002 only to 2007 and did not die until 2022—but the relationship dynamics are all the same. It made sense for a young couple who had been together about 7 years and who were in their mid-20s to be having the kind of relationship problems they did—fighting about prioritizing careers and time abroad and whether it was time to get married. But a couple who has been together nearly 15 years? Who are in their mid-30s? They would have already been married probably and had a couple kids to boot. The choice to change the timeline like this had me scratching my head and accomplished nothing for the story. 

But neither of those things are the change to the story that is weighing on me most. That occurs in a very small and brief backstory for the real Yeon Jun, where the drama introduces an original character who has no counterpart in SOOD: Tae Ha. 

In SOOD, the real Quan Sheng is a closeted gay teenager who meets a tragic end: he confesses to his crush, gets brutally rejected, then gets bullied when the crush tells others about his sexuality, and ultimately decides to walk into the sea in an attempt to end his life, a choice that leaves his body in a coma until Zi Wei’s consciousness takes it over. In ATCY, this backstory changes and Rowoon is brought in for a brief but impactful cameo as Tae Ha, Yeon Jun’s cram school friend. We see that the two have mutual feelings for each other but are both struggling to confess. One day as they are driving together, they finally explicitly acknowledge their feelings, holding hands and smiling at one another—and then immediately get hit by a Truck of Doom (easily one of the most tired kdrama tropes), Tae Ha dying on impact and Yeon Jun ending up in a coma with Si Heon’s consciousness eventually taking over his body like in the original story. 

Now on first glance, you might be inclined to give the show some credit for including a new gay character and giving the original Yeon Jun a happier experience with his crush. Explicit gay representation? In a mainstream kdrama? Still very rare and a big deal if done right. But if you think for a moment longer you’ll realize we can’t give the show credit for this, because this is a textbook execution of the Bury Your Gays trope and the narrative punishment that befalls gay characters who act on their attraction. Essentially, what the Korean remake did here was reveal these two characters are gay, killed them both immediately after they decided to pursue a relationship with each other, and then had the het male lead character take over the body of this gay man and use it to enter into a relationship with a woman. Some aspects of this plot were present in the original tale, but this choice to add an additional gay character only to kill him and tie it to their moment of acknowledging their mutual attraction? Made it significantly worse. It was badly done and I will not applaud the drama for representation when they did it in such a cruel way. 

The Ending

SOOD ends on a hopeful but somewhat ambiguous note, with Yu Xuan in 2020 finding a way to go back and save Yun Ru (and Jun Jie by extension) and then breaking the time loop, sacrificing her relationship with Zi Wei in the process even as it breaks her heart (because the only way for them to meet and fall in love in 2010 was to stay in the loop). She sacrifices their romance, and all their memories together, because it’s the right thing to do—she inadvertently destroyed Yun Ru’s life with her time traveling, and she couldn’t live with that knowing there was a way to fix it. We are left with a broken time loop, original teen Zi Wei meeting child Yu Xuan again in 1998, and the hope that they will find a way to make their fates align again and be together without time travel complications. It’s just the right bittersweet touch to end the story on; their previous relationship was lost and their sacrifice was real, but there is hope for another version of a happy life together, someday.

By contrast, ATCY goes for a more explicit happy ending: Jun Hee makes the same choice to go back and save Min Ju, and to break the time loop and sacrifice her relationship with Si Heon, but in ATCY we then jump forward to 2011 to a happy epilogue to see Si Heon and Jun Hee meet as adults. And look, I love a happy ending! But what I said above about the sacrifice Yu Xuan and Zi Wei made in SOOD really resonating because of its bittersweet ending? That’s absent here, because ATCY decided they needed to put a bow on it and reassure us they would get back together. ATCY was just never willing to let us stay in the grief or commit to the darker and sadder aspects of this story, and as a result, the whole thing loses some of its impact.

[macolethings]

Hi! I know you've seen the little 10 years of clexa kisses thread going on and I would love to see your favorite kisses that you've written for these two! ❤️‍🩹😁

Hey Anon! I meant to answer this during Clexa week, but I was traveling and it was tough to do on the phone. (Also, it seems the small bit of work I did do got deleted.) I love getting asks, so thank you!!

Since I already posted first kisses, I'll skip those. These next two are from my Sonraun series. They're important because both of these kisses help move Lexa and Clarke to the next phase of their relationship. I'm also a sucker for how playful Lexa is in both of these moments.

Kiss #1 - This happened after their first kiss, after a day date Lexa planned for the both of them. What I love about this is seeing Lexa's vulnerability, and her hesitation to show Clarke the affection she wants. But, in doing so, Clarke gives her permission to do so whenever she wants, and I think that means a lot:

Lexa walked Clarke to her room, taking the radio from her guard when they reached the tower and carrying it the rest of the way up. Clarke openned the door to let Lexa in, shutting it before setting the ipod on her night stand as Lexa placed the radio on the desk.   “Thank you for carrying-” Clarke stopped mid-sentence, startled to turn around and see Lexa standing close to her, rubbing her hands together in the front of her body again.   “What’s wrong?” Clarke asks, noticing that something was bothering Lexa.  Lexa looked up from her hand and took a breath to steady herself. “I’d like to kiss you, Clarke.”  If Lexa hadn’t been so nervous, Clarke would have chuckled at her worry. But she had worked hard to be someone Lexa was comfortable enough with to be herself around, and laughing would not set a good precedent for any future times Lexa may need to be vulnerable with her.  So instead, Clarke smiled warmly. “I’d like you to kiss me, Lexa.”  Clarke thought she would have to be the one to initiate the kiss, but the permission was all Lexa needed. Lexa moved into Clarke’s space, tugging her slightly by the arms, and pulling her into a kiss. Clarke sighed at the feeling of Lexa’s lips on her once more. This time, the woman moved with more confidence, even placing a hand against Clarke’s face and pulling her in closer.  Clarke took a risk and opened her mouth, inviting Lexa in. There was no hesitation as Lexa parted her own, pushing Clarke further by exploring her mouth with her tongue. The kiss was gentle as first, but heat was growing behind it. A slight moan escaped Clarke’s lips thinking of the things her and Lexa could do if she could only get them to her bed.  When Lexa pulled back just far enough to switch sides, Clarke was brought out of her brain fog and remembered she was all sweaty from the morning workout, and this was not how she wanted to be with Lexa.  “Don’t you have a meeting to get to?” She asked after pulling herself away.  Lexa put rested her forehead against Clarke’s, her smile matching Clarke’s. “I am Heda. I could have Titus cancel it.”  Disgusted at the thought of the man, Clarke responded, “please don’t mention him when you’re kissing me.”  “Well, we are not kissing anymore because you stopped us.” Lexa teased.  Clarke rolled her eyes, before pushing her back a bit. “Just go before you get me into trouble. I’ll see you later?”  Lexa chuckled. “Maybe for lunch tomorrow? After my meeting, I will be with the nightbloods the rest of the day.” She gave her one last kiss on her forehead, and walked to the door.  Before she could open it though, Clarke wanted to be sure Lexa knew where she stood with her. “Oh, and Lexa, you can kiss me whenever you want. You don’t have to ask.” Lexa blushed, smiled, and headed out. 

Kiss #2 - This second one was when we finally got some Clexa sexa (I didn't coin this phase, but I'm using it). We get to see what Lexa is like when she can take the reins, and doesn't feel like she has hold back her feelings.

When she arrives at Lexa’s room, Clarke can see she is visibly upset. Her shoulders are tight and her hands rest on the top of her head as she paces, but Lexa deflates when she sees Clarke.  “Lexa? Are you okay?” Clarke asks, wondering what is wrong.  But Lexa doesn’t answer, she just walks up to her, somewhat hesitantly, puts a hand on her neck and waist and kisses her fiercely. She pulls back way too soon for Clarke’s liking, but smiles before resting her forehead onto Clarke’s.  Clarke revels in the fact that Lexa is vulnerable with her, and even more so that she is able to so easily calm the woman down. “Hi.” Clarke breathes out. “Heya, Klarke.” Lexa doesn’t bother to move her head and Clarke melts at the feeling of Lexa’s thumb brushing her cheek back and forth.  “Not that you ever need a reason to do that, but what was that for?” “I need a reprieve from the day and you are the perfect escape.” “Do you want to talk about it?” Clarke asked. “I don’t want to talk at all.” Lexa says before claiming Clarke’s mouth with her own, again. There is a current of want behind the kiss that has never been there before. Her stomach swoops as she’s backed into the door she just came in through, strong hands holding onto her waist.  Clarke doesn’t hold back the moan as Lexa’s tongue traces her lips, asking for permission, which she grants immediately. Their bodies are flush and a flame simmers low in Clarke’s stomach as Lexa presses further into her, deepening the kiss.  Lexa doesn’t hold back, her emotions completely taking over. For weeks she has been inside her own head, planning, thinking. But here, in this moment, all she can feel is Clarke, and it’s the only thing she wants. She lowers her hands under the hem of Clarkes shirt, lifting it just enough to feel the bare skin under her fingers. Trailing her hands slowly up and down, she removes her mouth from Clarke’s lips only to place them on her neck.  “Lexa.” Clarke manages to breathe out in a whisper. It’s not a question, she just can’t think of anything else at the moment. Her thoughts rest only on the woman who has her pinned against the door, who is holding nothing back and doing wicked things with her mouth and tongue as they move up towards her ear.  She feels a strong thigh slot between her legs, her head falling backwards onto the door with a loud thump. Warmth caresses her ear, “I want you, Klark.” Clarke’s knees buckle at the words, gasping as she inadvertently drops further onto the thigh.  “I’m yours.” she declares, holding back the three additional words that would solidify that statement. Clarke realized she was in love with Lexa as she slept on her chest, wrapped in her arms, that night a week or so ago.

[blueaetherr]

can you write about mbappé where he’s out and sees a fan wearing a psg jersey with his name, she noticed him staring, just smiled at him and kept walking but that somehow made him want to get to know her. he stopped her and she told him that she hates attention so he got her number. you can decide on the ending:)

just for you

pairing: kylian mbappe x fem!reader [she/her]

warning(s): none

summary: the one where natural attraction occurs between two individuals

The evening was young when the house party began. Casual and comfortable too, as young adults moved freely in the home to do and say as they wanted, conversations both intellectual and easy present to accommodate everyone's interests. Food laid out neatly, everyone vibing with the current tunes playing and discussions in session. It was safe to say that the party was moving smoothly, and it remained the same as Kylian arrived later on.

To protect his peace he would never admit it but Kylian loved house parties. As much as he loved football—dedicating his life to perfecting his craft as a profession—he, too, as big as he was, understood that sometimes he needed to step away from the sport for his own well-being, to destress and unclog his mind from the worries of tomorrow. And attending house parties was the perfect alternative, something familiar and cosy he could always ease into.

Heading out of a room, somewhere deep in the house, Kylian noticed something from the corner of his eyes. A PSG jersey, more specifically someone wearing his PSG jersey. She seemed to be in pensive thought, just casually in her element as her focus remained on the art hung up on the wall to inspect it, unaware of the presence inspecting her from afar. Until she was.

Noticing such presence from afar she turned towards Kylian with a blank stare. "I-I'm sorry," he stumbled, taking a few steps back. He had been so lost in his gaze, innocently observing her for no apparent reason, that he had forgotten how he might be received. "I wasn't trying to, I just came from—"

"Don't even worry about it." Suddenly, the blank stare turned into a timid smile, one friendly and rather inviting. "I mean while you're here, you might as well..." she added, waving Kylian over.

Initially, Kylian was careful in his steps towards her. He didn't know if he should invade her space considering he'd failed to respect it not even a few minutes ago. But the more he moved towards her, her smile failed to fall flat, failed to show any signs of discontent and discomfort towards him. So eventually he found himself standing beside her, and let his eyes wander to the art piece she had been inspecting. Instantly, his face screwed up. "Oh, I get what you mean."

The young woman shook her head, almost in disappointment. She folded her arms. "I'm just confused. Like what exactly am I looking at here? Like, I get art can be perceived all kinds of ways or whatever, but nothing comes to mind with this." She turned to Kylian, hopeful. "What do you think?"

Kylian huffed and thought for a quick moment. "I don't know. I mean it's—" he had to chuckle a bit. The artwork spoke to him as abstract and surrealistic but even he didn't know what he meant when he said those words, so did his opinion really hold any weight? "I have no clue."

"You think our party host knows what it's all about?" She wondered, inspecting the art further.

Again, Kylian had to laugh, covering his mouth with his hand. He knew the host, his friend, prioritised the appearance of the artwork in his house over its meaning. "I don't think he understands any of the art pieces he owns."

Then this—a moment of bonding over unjustifiable art—led to the pair sharing a conversation, shifting between intellectual and easy. And it was here where his initial thoughts were proved wrong. Sharing names Kylian came to learn that he was speaking to Y/N, someone who enjoyed art but not enough to pursue it as a profession. Instead, she was an explorer of activities and knowledge; she liked to do and learn new things on the regular.

Their conversation didn't carry much substance to it, simply just casual talk, laughter and opinions yet Kylian found himself engaged. From the moment he noticed Y/N from across the hall to where they were, he was there openly tuning into her words, her hand gestures as she spoke rather freely and watching out for all her reactions to everything he said to her.

The conversation, this person he was sharing it with, it was the exact thing that Kylian searched for whenever he wanted to step away from football. Y/N offered him something familiar and comfortable and friendly even though she had been just a stranger not even an hour ago.

From a moment of silence, quite from nowhere, he mentioned, "I think we should hang out more." It was something Kylian chose to say, with confidence and hope because he chose to believe there was something for him and Y/N. Friendship, partnership, simple mutuals—he didn't know exactly what but he didn't find any troubles in that uncertainty. The possibility of something was what kept the hope alive.

Y/N glanced at Kylian and nodded, her eyes going round. "Yeah, that would be nice," she said with a low voice before her eyes diverted to the pool, the two having chosen to settle by it not too long ago.

His smile faded, his expression soon dulling. "You don't sound too thrilled by that."

"That's not how it is, believe me. It's just..." She shook her head before exhaling deeply, trying to gather her thoughts, "Just look at it from my perspective, okay? You found me in peace and quiet, Kylian. We're having a conversation in peace and quiet. You think we would still have that same peace and quiet if we went back to the party, if we left this house? I enjoy my peace and quiet, I really do."

Kylian couldn't help but understand her words because Y/N was right. This wasn't the first time someone rejected his friendship or want for something more because of his notability– either they wanted him because he was a football player or they didn't want him because he was a football player. 

And this was why he always wanted to stray away from football sometimes—he wanted to get away from the very thing that negatively affected his chances of truly connecting with others beyond football. It was unfair, of course, but that was just how it was and he couldn't do anything to change his situation.

"You could still have that," that peace and quiet, Kylian assured, "with me, you know? And I know that's hard to believe..." he shrugged, "but I can make things happen."

"You would do something just for me?"

"Just for you," he said smiling as he knocked their shoulders together. 

The truth is, Kylian was someone who always strived and worked towards everything he wanted in life. Not by force, but with grace and quality. And that was the same thing he wanted with Y/N—he wanted to experience her conversations, enjoy her friendship, have her company when he could—all there was to offer.

What he enjoyed, what he appreciated the most were familiar and comfortable and friendly people and things, and Kylian would rather not let that go for an inconvenience that he could probably work around. So yes, he would make things happen just for her.

Y/N nodded slowly, taking in his words. "How about this... I'll give you my number and we go from there?" She offered as the corners of her mouth lifted. 

Those words, Kylian's words, were spoken with care and dedication and for that, she was willing to give this person a chance at whatever it was to come for them. 'Cause the way he felt about her was mutual. She enjoyed his conversations, his laughs, his love for football, so much so that she wouldn't mind coming back to him sometime after this very house party.

So Kylian beamed, his grin reappearing upon his face. "Of course. Whatever you want to do." 

Maybe it didn't seem like much, but it was much more for Kylian. For him, it was hope, an opportunity for everything he could have with Y/N. And whether or not they would go far or not didn't seem to bother him that much. 'Cause the chance to have Y/N in his life—the chance to have Kylian in her life—seemed like a blessing in itself.

And checking his phone when he was about to sleep later that night, he let himself experience a second of delight.

y/n: don't think i saw a single art piece in there that i liked... fancy going to an art museum sometime 👀

That's why he kept the hope alive; they would soon find one another again.

[gareleia]

THE KNITTING SAGA BUT HERMES IS A DUMMY

update: my co-writer friend FINALLY got a tumblr account, so I can tag them now!!

previously: part 1 part 2 part 3

next: part 5

m'kay, so, we've talked about Athena & Telemachus' issues. now let's touch on Hermes, because a Diva™ like him deserves his own post. and also because this had been sitting in my notes for so long i've genuinely forgotten about it (i'd say that it's what translating a musical does to you, but honestly my attention span is just shit)

now, as much as I love Soft Boi!Hermes, I even more so love prankster Hermes who doesn't really recognize personal boundaries or the meaning of 'too far'. he's the guy who'll commit to the bit so far, he'll commit mass murder with a Tee-Hee and genuinely wonder what has got everyone so upset.

kid!Telemachus, holding a cup of poison: grandpa, are you sure it's a good idea? I'm scared… Hermes, laughing his ass off in the corner: of course I'm sure, champ! it'll be hilarious! good ol' game of Ithacean Roulette! now dump it into the wine, let's see who we'll get this time!

at the same time, he's not selfish. he's very keen on doing things for the people he likes, and he cares enough to know when someone is distressed. he, as a god, is just so removed from traditional human morality that casual acts of cruelty are perfectly acceptable to him, while, for example, breaking an oath is a horrible sin.

think blue and orange morality stuff.

telemachus, outraged: …murdered his own family, can you imagine? hermes, equally outraged: I know, right? he gave a blood oath and broke it! disgusting! telemachus: why is that your only concern?!

but don't worry, helping to raise Telemachus and hanging around the same people consistently makes a real boy outta him gives him enough time and insight into humanity to start understand mortals better, and, as consequence, adopt some of their values.

especially the concept of spousal loyalty. Hermes is a patron god of thieves, and at the time taking someone's wife was viewed as an act of theft (because women were property, yeeesh). which is why to him Penelope's situation was less of a tragedy and more of a "well, my dumbass great-grandson Odysseus should've seen it coming. snooze you lose! ¯_(ツ)_/¯"

that is, until he gets to know her better. and suddenly she's not a prize to be won or a challenge to conquer. she's a smart, capable person that commands respect from anyone who's got a shred of self-awareness. she's got gentle hands, and a radiant smile, and a spine of steel. Penelope looked Hermes dead in the eyes and told him serenely to keep being a good influence on her son, she does not deserve to be reduced to a token and given away to the highest bidder.

hermes, initially: well, penelope's a rich, gorgeous, basically single queen. I'd steal her too, if she was my type. hermes, 10 years later: she's the smartest, ballsiest human woman I've ever met and if she only wants her Ugly Ass Groom then she'll fucking stay single until he comes back.

unfortunately for everyone else, Hermes cannot step in to protect her, because Zeus and Poseidon are both pissed off at Odysseus already, and if either of them notices Hermes (and/or Athena) interfering with mortals on Ithaca, they might take it as an invitation to follow suit, and then it'll be Troy Story 2: Electric Boogaloo.

so he stays his hand, and hangs around Telemachus discreetly, mostly posing as a human. for a god of liars, he's surprisingly bad at blending in for long periods of time. Hermes thinks he's an awesome conspirator. meanwhile little Telemachus didn't even realise it was a secret.

the only people who don't know that [insert alias] is a god in disguise are the suitors, who are notoriously either too stupid, too overconfident or too busy drinking to connect the dots. the exception is Antinous who pretends to be oblivious and makes sure the gods don't see him as a threat to their beloved little pup (otherwise he'd have killed the prince long ago).

the suitors, however, unanimously agree that they hate this weird annoying stranger, and try to get rid of him in increasingly elaborate ways, from poison to stabbing to wild animals to dropping pots on his head.

spoiler alert: it doesn't work.

hermes, next day: *comes back every morning like nothing had happened, whistling cheerily* suitors: WHY WON'T YOU DIE?!

eventually Antinous convinces them to give up so they don't piss off Hermes.

years pass, Telemachus grows. Athena teaches him strategy and arts of war. Aeolus gradually comes out of the hiding and becomes the resident lovable comic relief side character. and Hermes? he teaches the kid all the good stuff.

and it's not just lying, okay? (though it's a significant part of it) music, diplomacy, geography, street smarts, some history. he's a worldly god, had observed and been a part of countless cultures. above all else, he knows people. he may not really understand them, but he knows how to get what he wants from them, how to find common ground and how to spin things to get along with practically anyone.

and girls. Hermes helps Telemachus with girls.

because he's the cool uncle figure that Telemachus admires, the kid trusts him enough to ask the god for advice when he starts growing older and gets his first crush in his early teens.

and, on one hand, Hermes is ecstatic. on the other one…

telemachus, blushing and stuttering: there's a girl I met, she's so pretty, and cool, and, and, and how do I talk to her, do I just come up and say hi, but what if sh- hermes: … hermes: *blue screen of death* hermes: MY BABY-

it's the first time he truly starts to grasp how short the kid's life will be. because in the blink of an eye he turned from a newborn to an adolescent, and soon enough he'll have his own family, and Odysseus was already a king himself at this age, and Hermes is not ready this can't be it he can't just grow old and die

so anyway, he pushes the thought aside and pretends it never came up at all (because that always works, and bottling shit up never blows up in anyone's face, right, Athena?)

he gives lots of advice, from useless macho stuff to golden nuggets like "be yourself" and "show her respect". and, of course, he cheers from the sidelines, hiding 'inconspicuously'.

and it goes surprisingly well. the girl appears to find Telemachus' awkward attempts at flirting sweet and charming, and the boy is on the cloud nine.

but Hermes isn't. because, unlike the prince, his judgment isn't clouded by a puppy crush and he can see that the girl is actually a lying bitch, who's playing Telemachus like a fiddle, hoping to become the next queen of Ithaca. and he won't stand for it.

except Telemachus, for some reason, doesn't seen thrilled when Hermes tells him to dump the girl?? he flat out refuses to believe that, because love is blind and so are sheltered insecure teenage boys.

so Hermes, in his infinite wisdom, decides to prove to his naive little charge once and for all that the girl is just using him and doesn't actually love him. now, what's the first example of true selfless love from a woman that comes to mind to the god who had spent the last few years hanging out with the royal family of Ithaca? right, Penelope. and the one thing that characterises Penelope is her unconditional loyalty, even into the face of countless threats and temptations.

hermes, to himself: so, if I show the kid that the bitch will leave him as soon as she finds a better prospect, he will definitely admit I was right all along! and dump her! it's a perfect, easy, foolproof plan! I am so smart! what could possibly go wrong!

another spoiler alert: everything goes wrong.

the girl does happily jump into his arms as soon as he hints that he's a god/demi-god/just a cooler prince or something. she does it right in front of Telemachus, in fact, so there's no way he'd be able to deny the obvious.

on the bright side, Hermes immediately outs her as a lying bitch and publicly shames her, embarrassing her family and ruining her prospects of marriage and causing her to suffer for the rest of her life ('disproportionate revenge'? what's that?).

on the down side, for some unfathomable reason, Telemachus doesn't seem very grateful??? what???????

hermes: and so, AS ALWAYS, I was right. telemachus: hermes: but please, hold your applause! telemachus: hermes: I did it all for you, out of the goodness of my heart! telemachus: hermes: and please, don't apologize! you were wrong, I get it! no need to- telemachus: *bitch slaps his smug face and runs away, hurt and betrayed* hermes: *shocked pikachu face*

thing is, Hermes doesn't understand what he did wrong. in his mind he did a rather good deed: showed the liar's true colors, and spared the kid a lot of heartache down the line. he doesn't understand the feelings of betrayal from having someone he trusts explicitly outing him as a naive fool in front of everyone he ever dreamed of earning respect from. doesn't get the pain of having been cast aside by someone he liked in favor of a god, with whom he could never compete. can't imagine living in the shadow of someone he had never even known and being constantly reminded of all the ways he's lacking.

telemachus: I'm not a stupid child, hermes. I could've handled it. hermes: but you didn't listen to me, maybe you'd have never seen it on your own- telemachus: and maybe I would've. maybe I would've had the opportunity to find out myself, and maybe I would've learned from it, but you never gave me that choice, did you?! did you think i'm that dumb?! hermes: oh, come on, kid, you're not dumb- telemachus: THEN WHY DO YOU TREAT ME LIKE I AM?! WHY DON'T YOU EVER TRUST ME?!

aaaaand there's the core issue. Telemachus had spent his whole life being babied at best and looked down upon at worst. constantly compared to Odysseus and his more vicious peers, always shielded from making tough decisions and proving himself. he feels like he will never amount to anything, because no one ever lets him really try. as soon as it looks like he's going to make a mistake, someone (usually Athena, Aeolus or Hermes) swoops in and 'fixes' everything for him, just like they used to do when he was an accident-prone toddler. which he isn't anymore.

and Hermes doesn't understand that. to him, ten years is basically nothing. the kid can't have changed that much in ten years. because if he did, then he'll change a lot in the next ten years, and the next, and very soon he won't change anymore, because ten years are nothing and so are human livespans.

ten years are nothing, because to admit otherwise would force Hermes to face the fact that Telemachus, no matter how precious, is just as mortal as any other human. which amounts to basically losing him already. and Hermes can't.

he held that boy as an infant. he fed him, helped to teach him walk and talk and make silly faces. he can't lose this child to time, the one thing even gods can't really protect humans from.

Penelope finds Hermes sitting on her balcony with the most human expression on his face she'd ever seem him wear. he's lost, and confused, and full of regrets, and kind of terrified. in that aspect, he reminds her painfully of her husband.

hermes, mumble: he's growing older penelope, sighing: I know hermes: he's not a baby anymore penelope: believe me, I know hermes: but... what do I do now??? penelope: you let it happen. not much else you can do.

she talks him through it.

hermes, rambling: but I will lose him. I'll lose him if he grows old and dies. this is why I don't get attached to mortals, you die too soon. he can't die now. penelope: he's not going to die now. he'll become the king first, he will find a good wife and have children and grandchildren. he will become great, greater that I and his father could ever dream of. and he'll be happy. don't you want to see that? hermes: I do, but- I don't want him to grow up! penelope: then you finally know the biggest joy and the deepest pain of parenthood.

it doesn't fix his fear. doesn't fix his pain, either. but it does help fix his attitude.

because she's right. Telemachus is growing old, and he can't shelter and protect the boy forever. soon he'll become a man, then an elder. and there's nothing Hermes can do about it, short of dragging the prince to Olympus and begging Zeus to grant him immortality, which will never work.

Hermes and Telemachus make up, of course. the latter knows, deep down, that the former is just trying to take care of him. they make up and forget the fight - at least, the boy does.

Hermes will always remember.

and he will count every day, every wrinkle, every grey hair.

the joy and pain of parenthood indeed.

[sebastianstansqueen]

Lost In The Shadows: Part Nine

/N: Hey guys, been through a lot for a bit, start giving me Ideas for what type of series you want to see next, i'm curious and finished writing this one so lets see if I can start getting parts out more frequently, If you want to be Tagged, either send an ask or comment on this or click on Taglist open.

Wordcount: 2,414

Warnings: slight angst, Sharon, and fluff, if I forgot anything let me know please!

Masterlist // Series Masterlist // Taglist open// 

Tags: @cherryblossomsky - - @babylooneytoonz - @wonderlandfandomkingdom - @miraclesoflove - @amelia-song-pond - @leyannrae - @avengerlex - @pineprincess - @nik2write - @dorothea-hwldr - @rosie-posie08 - @scxrletrecsmarvel - @sebsgirl71479- @missvelvetsstuff - @hadesownhell - @casa-boiardi - @winterslove1917- @hallecarey1 - @ash-craze - @barnesxstan - @unaxv - @bethexo07 - @itsmytimetoodream - @sebastians-love -

Y/n wiggled around the kitchen as she worked on making breakfast, she was no expert when it came to food, but she was trying. She had music playing kinda loud but not so loud that Bucky would hear from the master bedroom. She was trying multitasking on pancakes, eggs, and bacon, her current least favorite of the three was the bacon with grease popping up, freaking her out every so often. So as she moved about listening to the music while making sure the food didn’t burn, she missed Bucky’s initial entrance. “You know how to cook?” He joked tilting his head, with a little laugh, Y/n hadn’t heard his morning voice before but she liked it.

She laughed along with him.“Sort of. I’m trying, and possibly failing.” She looked at the food, removing the pancake that just finished cooking. 

Bucky moved across the room standing near her grabbing one of her cooked pieces of bacon and eating it. “A little over cooked but whatever.” He shrugged off. 

“Blame it for that, the oil kept on popping out at me!” She blamed, soon begging to laugh at her fake whining.

Bucky laughed with her. “When’s your next day off?” He leaned against the counter looking at her as she finished up the food. 

“Sort of whenever I want, but I got to go in today.” She explained as she began dishing up food for both of them. “Why?”

“Well, since we’ve gotten back, I’ve had time to finish my car, and I wanna take you on a drive.” He smiled up at her. Y/n nodded along, liking the idea of it, they sat at the table, continuing to talk for a bit, until Y/n got up to go get ready for work. 

Bucky had been in the middle of working out when Steve texted him. ‘I’m having a barbecue tonight, around six, do you want to come?’ 

Bucky obviously wanted to go, he hadn’t seen Steve since before the wedding, which had been a while ago. Bucky was an instant replay, while Y/n was usually so busy it sometimes took hours to get a reply, and he didn’t want to call because it probably wasn’t important enough. He sighed, deciding to just try and call her, and if she didn’t answer he’d completely understood. The phone rang for a moment, it took a moment for her to pick up but soon her voice rang out through the speaker. “Bucky?”

“Hey, sorry for calling, but um my friend Steve is having a barbecue today around six, I want to go, but I wanted to see if you did too.” He explained in a rush, even though their relationship had gotten better, Y/n still was very much the same when it came to work. 

Y/n’s eyes widened not expecting the sudden invitation, she turned to look through a two way mirror where she could see one of Rumlow’s guys, that Andy had found dealing something on her territory, completely covered in his own blood if he was gonna keep siglent Y/n wouldn’t take it easy. She looked down at the clothes she’d chosen for that day, her white shirt was possibly completely destroyed but it didn’t matter she was going to be burnt later that day, she looked at the time, three hours till it started. “Uh, Yeah I’ll be home soon.” They said bye before ending the call. Y/n walked back into the room where two of her men stood on either side of Rumlows guy. “You two finish this up, if he doesn't talk, by two, chop him up and throw him in the hudson.” She ordered, before marching out of the dimly lit building. 

Y/n made her way out to The SUV, she began texting Andy telling him she’d get her car tomorrow, updating him about Rumlows guy, and explaining she was leaving early, which seemed to have shocked Andy, because his caller ID had popped up. “When do you ever leave early of your free will?” He asked with exaggerated shock, right after Y/n put him on speaker.

“Relax, Bucky’s friend is having a barbecue, he wants me to go, and I need to get cleaned up, before.” She explained shortly, well yes it was that, but she was secretly happy to spend more time with Bucky, she typed away at her phone getting something sorted for later.

“You don’t seem like the type to go to a barbecue, the last however long I’ve known you not once have I ever heard a word about a barbecue till now.” He began teasing her.

She rolled her eyes with a playful smile tugging at her lips. “I’ll talk to you later. Go check on the guys at the warehouse later.” 

“Okay, talk to you tomorrow bye.” He said into the phone before ending the call. 

When Y/n got home, she immediately made her way up to the shower in her bedroom, she used a light purple loofa to help wash away the blood and other grime that might have gotten on her, as she did so soon the bathroom doors opened and her eyes widened, connecting with blue ones. “Sorry!” Bucky said immediately, walking out and closing the door. 

Y/n laughed lightly before calling out. “Bucky, it’s okay, just grab what you need.” There was so much fog around the glass of the shower that she probably looked like a human shaped blob on the other side. 

“When did you get home?” Bucky asked as he opened the door and quickly went to grab a few things. 

“Not that long ago, I needed some time to get ready, work was dirty today.” She shrugged while saying it, continuing to scrub, Bucky made a sound of understanding, before he left.

She wrapped herself in a towel, moving into the bedroom, she found a box sitting neatly on the made bed, she opened it finding exactly what she had expected. Most of her clothes weren’t for being out in the heat for too long, usually she’d be switching from air conditioned building to air conditioned building, being outside wasn’t something she didn’t usually do, save for when she had gone on vacation with Bucky. She pulled out the outfit, first pulling out the plain white shirt, followed by light pink shorts, and lastly white tennis shoes, she blow dried and straightened her hair, before applying some make up. 

Bucky felt still slightly embarrassed after walking into the bathroom while Y/n was showering, as his brain continued to fester on his embarrassment he heard the clearing of a throat, he turned to see Y/n, she looked different, good, but different. For instance she seemed shorter  because of her not wearing her heels, he’d seen her a few times barefoot or in flats on rare occasions but it still took a little getting used to. Then his eyes shifted up to what she was actually wearing, the shirt and shorts were something he couldn’t imagine being in her wardrobe but she still looked gorgeous. “Ready to go?” She asked, looking at him. 

He nodded. “Y-yeah, how do you look better than me and we’re going to my friends barbecue?” He joked as he led the way towards the garage, he wouldn’t miss this chance to take Y/n, in his car. 

Y/n smiled and thanked him for the compliment, she took him in form the moment she saw him, with light blue jeans, a white tank top and a tan verging on white button up shirt over it with the sleeves rolled just above his elbow. As she realized they were making the way towards his car her brows furrowed. “Really?” She asked with a smile.

Bucky nodded with a smile of his own. “Yeah, you ready for speed?” He opened the passenger door for her. 

“I guess.” She shrugged, Bucky soon got into the driver's seat and pulled out of the garage. She’d speed after shoot outs and other work related things, she’s never just done that for fun though. Before Y/n had married Henry, she was a law abiding citizen just like most of New York, and until finding out what her father actually did for a living, she thought she was just an heiress. 

“What happened today that caused you to get dirty?” Bucky asked, knowing it could have been a million different things. 

“Drug stuff.” She said as if it were casual, then she sighed and shook her head. “Brock Rumlow is trying to sneak stuff under my nose.”

“Whos, Brock?” He asked with furrowed brows looking at Y/n swiftly before shifting back to the road. 

“Brock owns a drug cartel, and he wanted to become a partner of mine, but I shut it down, I don’t trust anything he’s got here.” She stated seriously. 

“Is he dangerous?” Bucky asked, Y/n caught the hit of concern in his voice. 

She shook her head. “I don’t think so, possibly just stupid, but if it does turn out to be dangerous, you’ll be like second to know.” She promised.

Soon they pulled up to a set of three story brown stones, her eyes scanned around just for safety, before following Bucky up the steps to the front door, after he knocked, the door opened a few moments later, a blond on the opposite end, Y/n remembered him from the wedding. “Hey.” He greeted Bucky, and then turned to Y/n. “Hello, Mis-”

She cut him off. “Please, if you're a friend of Bucky’s you can call me Y/n.” She smiled, holding out her hand. 

“Okay, uh I’m Steve, it’s nice to officially meet you.” He shook her hand as he spoke, soon letting it go before greeting them both in, first thing he did was introduce them to his girlfriend Sharon. “Sharon, this is Bucky, and his wife Y/n.”

“Bucky, nice to meet you, I’ve heard so much about you from Steve.” She smiled, shaking his hand, then she turned to Y/n.

“Hey, Little sister.” Y/n smirked looking at the woman who looked nothing like her, pulling her into a hug, usually a display of affection but this was anything but. 

“You have a sister?” Bucky, and Steve seemed to have said at the same time. 

Y/n pulled out of the hug first putting on a fake smile, showing Sharon the mood to put on. “Yeah, we’ve been out of touch since mom died.” That wasn’t a lie but it also wasn’t the full truth.  “Well, Steve, now that I know you're dating my sister, I’ve got to know everything about you.” She smiled, leading the blond to his backyard, to talk in private. “So, Steve, what do you do, to afford this beautiful home?” She asked standing beside him at the grill. 

“I’m the captain of a police precinct.” He told her honestly, making her nervous, wondering if this was a trap to arrest her, he clearly knew who she was. “Don’t worry, I have a rule with Bucky’s family, that I’ll follow with you, so long as I don’t see you do anything illegal I won’t arrest you. Is, Sharon, apart of the-”

“No, well, I don’t think so, I haven’t talked to her in a while so your guess is as good as mine.” Y/n shrugged, her eyes soon followed as Sharon and Bucky marched out of the house, Y/n’s eyes were glued on her sister not sure of what she intended. Y/n wasn’t going to be the one to break Steve's heart, but Sharon was certainly very deeply involved in the business, so Y/n didn’t understand why she was here playing a cute little girlfriend wearing a white sundress.

The barbecue went well, Y/n chose to minimally talk to her sister, and Bucky could tell something was up, so he knew to ask  about it later. Y/n stayed until Bucky wanted to go, she could tell he was happy, and comfortable with his friends, and that made her happy to see, and she wouldn’t take it away. A few of them had come up and told Y/n about Bucky being an idiot in high school, while protecting Steve from bullies, some of them making her laugh.

 Steve said bye to Bucky, while Sharon seemed to not want to look Y/n’s way, not wanting to attempt the facade of happy sisters. As Bucky pulled away he looked at Y/n, who looked at ease, and happy. “So what's between you and your sister?” He asked seemingly out of nowhere.  

The question had taken Y/n off guard, she hadn’t realized Bucky had seen through her facade. “We’ve never gotten along.” Y/n rolled her eyes, lulling her head to look at him. “And when mom died when she was eight-teen she ran off, which now looking at it I should have probably done the same thing.” Then she sighed feeling bad, she didn’t want to hurt Bucky or Steve, he genuinely seemed nice. “Look, Bucky, I didn’t want to say anything to Steve because we barely know each other, but I would suggest him try to leave Sharron, I think she is up to something.” She spoke honestly. 

Bucky’s brows furrowed. “She seems nice, what would she be up to?” Y/n looked at him as if he were joking. “You do know what I do to make money right?” She rolled her eyes. “Fine, ignore what your wife is saying about her sister, whom you just met.” She looked out the window, her mood dampening from his dismissal of her warning.

“It’s not that I’m ignoring what you're saying but do you even have proof?” Bucky asked, looking at her for an answer for that. 

“No, but I know my sister, I think better than you.” She rolled her eyes, shaking her head, once again. Then as they continued driving, in a stuffy silence, streets passed by as lights in the dark night and as they pulled to a simple stop at a light, still not even close to home, a low beet began to sound Y/n's brows furrowed as she began to look around the vehicle, for the source of the noise, it soon sped up and as soon as the light turned green and Bucky pressed his foot on the gas everything went black. 

[verdemoun]

Hi can I just…can I just ask about Molly in the modern au I know she’s a content creator (and we’re married obviously) but also like…who went to get her when she died? How does she interact with the gang initially after being so convinced that everyone was laughing at her? And most importantly to me do her and Sean ever reconcile?

i got you boo

It was Bessie, Grimshaw and Arthur who went to get Molly. Arthur, because she actually liked Arthur and considered him a friend, Bessie, because Bessie was the only one who actually knew how to drive, and Grimshaw, because both she was the only one where Molly was 'disposed of' and the guilt of hearing from Arthur that Molly wasn't actually a rat and she shot her so blindly for Dutch was killing her.

They didn't find her, and therefore assumed she hadn't been timewarped and Grimshaw just sobbed. She felt so awful and honestly survivor's guilt that it wasn't fair she was getting a second chance when Molly was denied one because of her (believing she wasn't timewarped because she was burned, not buried).

In reality, Molly had already been found stumbling around the forest by a lovely couple who ended up taking her in for the first few months of her timewarp adventure mentioned here.

They thought she had escaped some really bizarre twisted cult considering how little she knew about modern era but the gentle support they offered as a result was everything Molly didn't realize she needed. They paid for her to go to counselling where she got to work out a bunch of issues as a result of the gang experience and supported her financially until she was ready to go off on her own. She adores them very much and stayed in contact with them forever and they are very proud in an almost paternal way of how well she's doing given what little they understood about her past.

Sean was the one to figure out she WAS timewarped months later because of how much her social media was blowing up and the fact he was excited to reach out to her immediately made their dynamic so much softer. 'hey it's me deadeye macguire you're here too!! we're here too!! how you been the gang went looking for you we didn't know you were here what's going on!!!!'

It came just in time because Molly was actually starting to think maybe she was crazy and the timewarp didn't happen and everything that happened in canon was a delusion. She has her own life now she isn't going to throw it away to be the forgotten VDL anymore but also seeing the gang and all the 1899 gang are happy to see her?? They've all had time to think about their actions towards her and are sorry??

She thought she was overthinking she's getting apologies for things she didn't even realize were issues. Arthur being so sorry he didn't do more to protect her in Beaver Hollow. Hosea for letting himself get so distracted by the Plan that he didn't see the impact Dutch was having on her self-worth despite being a fellow lover of Dutch van der Linde. Grimshaw pulling her close and the stoic old witch crying because she's so sorry she killed her and also didn't do enough to help her when she knows what it does to someone's mental health to be in a relationship with Dutch and feel yourself being thrown away. Kieran just being happy to see her because he was a decent person to her the whole time!!

Very cathartic and she keeps in contact because 1899 is just a shared trauma at this point but she's also grateful she gets to be her own person and have her own life. She lives in a significantly bigger city and is still upper class and sometimes snobbish but much more empowered woman who knows her rights and what she wants than just class privilege girlie.

Her vibes still irk Sean but they dm regularly just because Sean is also one of the more competent with modern technology esp in early days. It was always Sean having to send her invites to hang outs because none of the more senior members of the gang knew how to.

Molly also hates the British and the day Sean found out he practically welcomed her into his home like a brother in arms. She still finds him annoying but she has more of a tolerance for him the same way he has more of a tolerance for her. She occasionally flexes her wealth to buy him treats from Ireland even though the postage is insane and he knows and appreciates it.

[midokai]

👫 yuuuuupp grabs you

send a 👫and i’ll write four headcanons i have about our muse’s relationship!

im beating you to death with a stick btw

i. i’ve said this before but n realized his feelings for her were FAR past the realm of platonic before he decided to leave for two years straight and though he leaves damn near immediately he hesitates for a while because of it. he’s almost certain that she doesn’t feel the same way because when they’d first met and for some time after that she was very … antagonistic towards him and while at this point she’s mellowed out and they are genuinely friends he’s never once entertained the idea of her possibly reciprocating his feelings, at least until that moment. he considers confessing to get it off his chest before he disappears and he nearly does, goes over to her place and everything and psyches himself up to do it while he waits outside but he never does quite end up knocking on her door to tell her goodbye, he simply leaves and doesn’t speak to her for an entire two years after. he writes her a letter at some point but it gets ripped up by one of his pokémon while he’s asleep and he takes that as a sign that it’s a lost cause.

ii. at the beginning of their relationship it was definitely lackluster in the affection department, not because he didn’t like her as much as she liked him, the opposite actually, from the start he was infatuated with her he was just … too embarrassed to show it. while usually they would spend lots of time together, as friends, prior to dating, once they make things official n makes himself very scarce and very hard to find because for a long time he is insanely shy and awkward. she’d be able to reach him through the xtransceiver, it’s not like he’d ignore her and he’d respond to texts and the like but god forbid she wants to see him in person and hold hands or something because then he’d make up some excuse like he has to be home all day to do something. if she decided to invite herself over and say it’s fine they can hang out at his place he’d just make up some lie on the spot like his apartment fucking exploded or something and then get mad at himself later on for saying something so stupid.

iii. after jumping over that hurdle though and after maneuvering better through his First Relationship Ever he’d become incredibly outwardly affectionate, both physically and vocally. he’s the type to get her a bouquet of flowers weekly, one where all the flowers have been personally picked by him and put together with the help of his pokémon, the type to write long winded love letters and to hide them for her to find herself later once he’s left her place. he’s incredibly romantic after he gets over the bashfulness of dating someone for the first time and he would definitely call her pet names i think, like, “pumpkin” and stuff but only when his pokémon aren’t around because cannoli has a tendency to look at him in disgust when he does it. she’s got him whipped, whatever she wants, she gets, even if it takes a bit of whining from her she’ll always get it from him Eventually. he lets her do whatever she wants, literally.

iv. that’s his wife i fear. he has full intentions on marrying her at some point and he knows that she’s the one from the very start. his confession for sure takes place on that ferris wheel he’s so obsessed with and i think that he’d pick the same location for the proposal just because it kind of makes their relationship come full circle. of course he’d take her somewhere more romantic afterwards but the initial proposal would take place there because he’d find it meaningful. cannoli would be there 100% too, as at that point she’s essentially their daughter and she’d want to witness something so important. even though they wouldn’t be married Yet he’d immediately start calling her his wife opposed to his girlfriend.

[overlordneon]

could you tell us more about ur zutara kids

lol I can always talk about any of my steambabies because of love them.

Under the cut what I have for them so far. Kinda long.

So the twin, Ran and Shaw were both happy accidents, and at the time Zuko and Katara weren't even married yet. Katara had stressed about giving the news to Zuko for days and she knew it was something she needed to tell in person. Zuko was genuinely SO happy to hear the news.

Still, after some long talks over it, they decided to give the kids a chance at peaceful childhoods before having to deal with the consequences of their royal lineage. So, while Zuko covertly spent some time there to help with the newborns, Katara pretty much raised the twins alone with her family in the South Pole for the first few years of their lives. Meanwhile, Zuko publicly announced the existence of his children, though didnt reveal who/where they were and dealt with the social backlash of it largely alone- with some needed support from the Avatar.

Ran and Shaw only barely knew of their father. Whatever their mom was willing to tell them, she always seemed to speak so sweetly about him and their adventures together with her brother and friends. The outside of Kataras family no one else in the SWT had any idea who the father wad but when Ran showed signs of firebending, it became pretty clear where he was from. So Ran grew up as a little bit of an oddball, being the only firebender in the whole SWT. Shaw grew a knack for healing just to deal with any accidental burns Ran would give herself while trying to practice it.

They didn't have a proper introduction to the guy until they were about 5 years old. Zuko had to spend a month there for a diplomatic summit and took the chance to give his kids as much attention as possible. Ran especially, as she finally had a real firebending master to learn from but he also showed Shaw about Firebending puppetry. Shaw pretty much fell in love with the technique and worked out how to translate it into waterbending on his own. Their time together was short but it was all they needed to love their dad.

Now it was a waiting game for their time their dad would visit, the twin both competing to improve their bending and impress him. They loved their mother, uncle and grandpa but it was hard to feel complete after their dad would leave.

At about 6, Katara was pregnant once again with their baby brother Yuka. The initial outburst from the twins birth died down significantly, and Katara finally saw it was time to ask the twins what they wanted to do. They could try and live openly as a family, but their lives would change drastically. The kids agree to it and they have an official ceremony in the Fire Nation to introduce the kids, including a newly born Yuka. It's a rough transition at first when they start living in the Fire Nation. During the summers they still return to their home in the SWT.

At the age of 10, the twins were invited to see the Sun Warriors and learn more about the master who they were named after. Here was when Zuko got Druk as well.

About two years later, the twins start to branch out. Ran decides she wants to train with the Sun Warriors and Shaw spends time in the North Pole. Yuka is still too baby to go anywhere yet, but spends a lot of time with Iroh and even takes up archery while his siblings are gone.

As they all grow up there is this ongoing question of who would be "next in line" as Shaw wad technically born first but the Fire Nation might still have a hard time accepting a waterbendong Fire Lord. Zuko and Katara both figure they'll deal with it when the time comes.

But uhh that's all the backstory I have for them so far. I'm happy for the chance to blab about my headcanons.

I leave off by adding that Teoaangji and Sukka are both canon in this timeline and both have kids of their own that are all cousins. Tophzula is also canon but I don't think they have children yet.

[iguessyouregonnamissthepantyraid]

What's Loki's relationship like with each of the other Guardians? Feel free to rant, I can't get enough of them anyway 😆

oh holy shit they finally added a readmore button on mobile 🙌

okay so. going one at a time:

loki and peter's bromance has gotten the most screentime so i don't need to delve super deep into it here, but like, in my head, peter is basically the guardians' tendency to adopt strays all condensed into one person. he's the entire reason they're like this. i've said this before but i never intended for ohtmb to become a full length story, let alone a series, until peter grabbed loki by the arm, looked me in the eye, and said "this is my friend now. no take backs" and he just??? made him a guardian of the galaxy???? meanwhile loki is completely stunned that anyone other than his brother might genuinely want him around. hell, he barely believes that thor does! and peter keeps proving, over and over again, that he likes loki and he wants him to be a part of the team. (it's worth mentioning that between being a thousand years old and the magic powers, peter just thinks loki is so goddamn cool. loki does not know this.) that initial invite -- "i'm not a part of your team" "yeah, but you could be" -- that was the first time anyone other than thor asked him to stick around, it was the first itsy bitsy crack in loki's armor, and that kind of thing sticks with loki for a while. also, as evidenced by the frost giant reveal, peter is the guardian that loki is most likely to turn to first, mostly because he has the excuse of, like, y'know, he's the captain. of course i'd go to him first no it's not because he's my best friend shut up

for gamora, in my universe loki didn't know she was the daughter of thanos until later - she was already taking every excuse she could find to be away from thanos by the time loki fell into his hands, so ohtmb is genuinely the first time he ever sees her. he was a little miffed that she hid that from him, but like, who is he to judge people for keeping secrets? gamora was the second person to invite him to join the guardians, which was the first time he actually started to believe they might mean it, and she was the first person to offer him genuine advice on how to move forward after thanos. loki deeply, deeply respects her. she's definitely the guardian whose opinion he values the most.

i've said this before, but i love to think of nebula and loki's relationship as basically ron swanson's "i once worked with a man for three years and never learned his name. one of the best friends i ever had." they do not talk about their feelings they do not talk about their traumas they barely even TALK except to ocassionally ask if the other one wants to spar, and yet. and yet. they get each other so well. loki's almost on a level with gamora in terms of understanding nebula, and in some ways he even relates to her *more* than gamora does. he will never ever ever say this out loud because he likes keeping his insides on the inside. either way, nebula is the easiest one for him to quietly share space with. they're both bringing that "i can just be in the same room and that counts as hanging out" antisocial cat energy to the table

now, mantis! loki is, like every single other guardian, extremely protective over mantis. she has that sort of childlike innocence that none of the others (except for groot, the actual child) have, despite her having a whole heaping pile of traumas to rival everyone else's. and all of them, loki included, knew her for just a few days before they were like "i guess i have a baby sister now" and they never questioned it. the empathy throws another curveball in there: loki is so unbelievably guarded all the time, and being anywhere near mantis is deeply unsettling at first. no one is allowed to know what he's really feeling! and obviously he learns to trust her eventually, enough that touching her is done with barely a thought anymore, but a part of him also recognizes that it's.... kind of a relief? he's spent so long hiding and lying and keeping his feelings under wraps that it's become a very difficult habit to break, even when he wants to. mantis helps him get around that without actually having to do anything. (she can sense that and is very pleased by it. she likes helping her friends, and it's always a relief for her when her abilities can be used for something good.)

drax is a fantastic exercise in loki shedding some of that high-and-mighty attitude because he's been forced to recognize that someone lacking intelligence (or at least the kind of intelligence he's used to) can still hold a lot of value anyway. drax gently getting information out of that little kid while loki's in the background like ????? was so important to me. he's smart in a way that loki could very easily dismiss, and not too long ago he probably would have, but he doesn't. also, drax was loki's first encounter with genuinely wanting to help someone when it had no benefit for himself, just wanting to save them, and then not being able to. he still feels some kinda way about drax losing his leg. anyway, he and drax get along shockingly easily on a day-to-day basis, mostly because even when loki does bring out the barbs and say something nasty, 99% of the time it goes over drax's head and loki doesn't even have to bother feeling bad about it.

oh, groot. groot groot groot. loki absolutely loves being the fun uncle who's constantly helping this kid break rules. if someone tells groot he's eating too much candy and he's gonna make himself sick, loki will magic some into his room because come on, fuck the system, and besides, if he gets sick, he gets sick! then he'll eat less candy anyway. (he firmly believes he is the only one who does things like this for groot. he is incorrect.) there is also a part of him, a part that he doesn't let himself dwell on, that recognizes that groot is the only one among them all with a lifespan even approaching loki's. again, he doesn't let himself think about that very much, but the thought's... there. he'll address it eventually, maybe.

okay so you know that trope of, like, constantly bickering friends who you swear must hate each other but then the minute shit goes down and they need to work together it's like OH. oh i see. they're exactly the same brand of insane, that's why they're friends. that's loki and rocket. they're always either furious with each other and at each other's throats, or they're in cahoots and everyone else needs to start running. (side note: if loki was around for the gotg3 plot he would have gone the classic survivalist route a la hela, being like "no we CAN'T fight the high evolutionary he's too powerful and we will all die, we'll find some other way to help rocket" right up until he sees what the high evolutionary actually did and then he's just like. hm. okay. i am going to turn all of his internal organs into snakes or die trying. how fast can we get there)

last but certainly not least: loki didn't know what to make of kraglin at first, since they barely interacted outside of loki knocking him out that one time, but he knows that for some reason he's sort of unexpectedly... comfortable? around kraglin? like it's just easy to be around the guy. he doesn't know why, they've barely even spoken to each other. but then one day they got very, very, very drunk together by accident on a foreign planet when they were between missions, and kraglin awkwardly held his hair up while he puked into a trashcan and then he started filling the silence with some dumb stories from when peter was a little kid, and loki had this drunken moment of clarity like "ohhh. he's a big brother. that's why it's easy to be around him" and he absolutely 100% never revisits that thought while sober.

anyway, that's everyone! i love this dumb giant space family! thanks for the ask, this was a fun one to answer, and as you can see i took the "feel free to rant" very literally ;D