#and it takes me out of the arcane universe if that makes sense

[scratxhed-cd]

now that the excitement from the new-ness has worn off I can admit “Fantastic” is the most out of place song in all of season 2 and it hasn’t stopped bugging me since

[hauntingblue]

ARCANE EPISODE 7!!!!

MY GOD I WASNT READY FOR ANY OF THIS!!! WHAT WAS THAT!!!

Also ekko wallpaper I got with my fries lmao

[honey-tongued-devil]

▶[Arcane preference] reacting to you wearing their clothes [Jayce, Viktor, Ekko, Vander, Silco, Jinx, Vi, Caitlyn, Mel, Sevika, ]

If you know me, hello little deers, I'm back! If you don’t know me, welcome! Just a heads-up that I don’t use "Y/N," but rather the impersonal "you," and even though I talk about clothes, no sizes or weight are involved. Enjoy the read!

Jayce:

  - It’s not that rare when you’re together; he’s a real gentleman through and through. If it’s cold, he’ll give you his jacket, his scarf, anything to keep you warm  

  - But when you’re the one taking his clothes, it’s different  

  - When he sees you walking around the room in his shirt, just after waking up, something in his brain malfunctions  

  - It’s how it fits you, no matter how big or long it is, it seems like it was made just for you, to give you that look  

  - And to him, it feels like some kind of subliminal ad, as if the universe is making you so attractive in the simplicity of that gesture just to tell him he needs to hurry up and put a ring on your finger so he can enjoy that sight every day  

  - It’s hard for you to get anything done in the morning when he wakes up with those thoughts  

  - Those are the days when you stay in bed, cuddling under the covers, with him looking at you, hand on his cheek, getting more lost in you by the second  

Viktor:

  - For Viktor, the idea of a “little thief stealing his clothes” is an interesting one  

  - He’s never been a fan of tight-fitting clothes, plus, with his physique, it’s rare for anything to fit snugly anyway  

  - That’s why, except for his Academy uniform, the rest of his clothes are comfortable and at least two sizes too big for him, without mentioning Jayce's oversize ones in his closet  

  - What Viktor didn’t expect was that, once you started liking them, you’d just take them straight out of his drawer  

  - The first time he knocked on your door to ask if you’d seen his shirt —the very one you were wearing— he first stopped, confused, wondering how it had ended up on you  

  - And then, though he didn’t show it, he paused to notice with satisfaction how well it wrapped around your body  

  - Sometimes he pretends to forget his clothes at your place, just to see them on you, and to get them back with your scent on them  

  - For the nights when he feels lonelier  

Ekko: 

  - Communism  

  - There’s not really a strong sense of what belongs to whom at the Tree, although some clothes (jackets in particular) eventually get so personalized that no one dares to take them anymore  

  - The first time you grabbed Ekko’s jacket, it was simply because you were freezing, it was really cold, and he was resting, so he didn’t need it  

  - But when he saw you wearing it, his pupils dilated so much you could notice it despite his very dark eyes  

  - Ever since then, it’s him who gives it to you and insists that you wear it, because he likes it: there’s something extremely intimate and deeply personal about walking around with you in his jacket  

  - It’s like marking you as his, but really, also reminding himself of it  

  - And Ekko may be proud, but one thing you quickly and painfully learn in the alleys is to say ‘I love you’ before it’s too late, and that small possessive gesture makes him feel fulfilled because it’s like he’s telling everyone that he couldn’t live without you 

 

Vander:

  - Vander’s clothes have this super-secret ability to change depending on who’s wearing them. For example, what are shirts on him turn into dresses on you  

  - When you put them on, even just for the sake of convenience, you find yourself laughing in front of every mirror you pass by  

  - And if he notices, he can’t help but hug you from behind, leaning down to rub his nose against your neck, smiling against your skin  

  - “You know,” he says every single time, “it looks better on you than it does on me,” and no matter how false it might be, in his eyes, it’s truer than almost anything else  

  - After seeing you a few times in his grown-up man's clothes, he decided to dig through an old box to find the clothes from when he was younger and mend them before leaving them folded on your side of the bed, like a little gift  

Silco:

  - Silco’s strangest habit was the connection he had with his clothes: they looked like Piltover garments, except for the boots and the shirt under the velvet vest, yet they were torn, poorly mended, and worn out in several places  

  - Despite being the richest man in the undercity, he never changed them  

  - The only newer piece in his wardrobe that he used to wear was his coat, which was in perfect condition, scented with cologne, and lined with soft velvet that followed the direction of your fingers when you touched it  

  - Sure, there were ceremonial outfits, pajamas, and something comfortable yet always elegant, but he had worn them so little that they almost didn’t seem like his  

  - That’s why one day you simply decided you were bored, and while he was in a meeting, you could take the opportunity to try on the ones that fit you  

  - But that little fashion show from his wardrobe to the mirror probably took longer than expected, and definitely you were too focused, because you didn’t notice the tall figure watching you, leaning against the doorframe  

  - “Don’t take that off, I’ve got an idea or two,” his voice broke the silence, making you jump  

Jinx:

  - Her clothes are more like a flea market than a wardrobe: there are men’s clothes, women’s clothes, from Piltover and Zaun, intact, held together by metal staples, clean, splattered with paint, torn from explosions, some so small you wonder who they could even fit, and some so large that you and at least four of her father’s henchmen could comfortably fit in them with room to spare  

  - She’s the one who tells you to grab something from the pile the first time you ask to help her with her calculations and experiments, and in the end, you choose something comfortable rather than something intact or clean  

  - It took her a good half hour to notice, and then another hour to stop talking about it  

  - It was something she hadn’t done since she had a family, sharing clothes with someone else, and suddenly she realized just how much she missed it  

  - Every now and then, she’d give you oversized shirts on purpose, just to disappear under the fabric and snuggle up to you, where she felt sheltered enough to feel less vulnerable  

Vi:

  - Vi’s mentality was interesting because, by accident, if she noticed you were eyeing someone’s clothes with interest, somehow the next day those clothes would end up on your bed  

  - Vi would do anything for you; if it were up to her, you’d be dressed in pearls and gold, but neither the place nor her situation allowed it  

  - That’s why she never offered you her clothes: the older ones were tattered, barely definable as rags, which she stubbornly patched up every month  

  - The new ones were stolen, spoils from street fights, but they always came in looking battered and worn, or worse, stained with blood or strange substances, so they weren’t good for you  

  - When she saw you wearing a sweater from her wardrobe, stained and burned in spots, the first thing she felt was guilt  

  - She hated not being able to treat you the way she wanted to  

  - But from that day on, she made sure to at least wash her clothes before putting them away, and slowly she learned to love the clothes you stole a little more than the others  

  - That sweater, for example, she would defend it with her life  

Caitlyn:

  - Whenever you stayed over at her place, she always made sure to provide everything for you: slippers, socks, pajamas, anything you might need  

  - And it was always the highest quality you had ever seen  

  - So seeing you in her clothes wasn’t new, although she sometimes liked to have you try on things she didn’t wear anymore, partly because she couldn’t due to her important name, and partly because she spent half her time in uniform  

  - Those little fashion shows almost always ended with her on top of you, while you are very busy figuring out how to stay quiet so none of the servants, or worse, her parents, would catch you  

  - It didn’t matter if the clothes didn’t suit you, being able to see you in so many different lights made her fall even more in love with everything about you  

  - The final blow? One day she decided to look through the enforcers’ uniforms to find one that would fit you, and for the first time, she saw you in clothes that matched hers  

  - There was something about it that made her hope that uniform would change the chemistry of your brain too and make you join the force, just so she could spend more time with you, just so she could see you like that more often  

Mel:

  - For Mel, it wasn’t an event: she was used to everything, mastering her emotions, and seeing you wearing something of hers had only left her confused for a second, from which she quickly recovered, smiling at you  

  - “It looks really good on you, you know?” she had asked  

  - It didn’t bother her. Objectively, you seemed stupid borrowing those elegant clothes tailored exactly to her body  

  - It almost felt like heresy to wear the clothes of a goddess-like figure. But the goddess had sensed something, and she began buying and commissioning outfits for both you and her, matching, so you wouldn’t feel like you were missing something  

  - But there was one moment, a specific one, where seeing you in one of her dresses had left her speechless  

  - When you told her that the sweater was so beautiful it was almost a shame knowing she couldn’t wear it on the day you’d marry her  

  - And Mel Medarda came from a land of war, where it was hard to get attached to people, let alone objects  

  - Yet from that day, that piece of clothing became a constant for her, even if it meant layering or pulling it down to keep her shoulders bare  

  - Because it no longer just warmed her skin; it began to warm something deeper, something she hadn’t even realized she had  

Sevika:

  - Her clothes reflected her line of work: dirty, unpleasant, dangerous  

  - But despite that, she would drape them over you herself, no matter how worn they were: if she thought you might be cold, without a word, you’d find a sweater or hoodie on your shoulders  

  - And even though she’d glance at you from the corner of her eye, she wouldn’t stop watching you for a single moment when you wore something of hers  

  - It was a matter of homeland—there was no ownership in Zaun, not even last names, as even the family you belonged to was irrelevant compared to what you could do  

  - And the gangs, thugs, and troublemakers wouldn’t hesitate to steal what was yours  

  - But you were hers, and you couldn’t be stolen. And that shirt was hers, but she didn’t feel mutilated, like she normally would, when you wore it  

  - In fact, she loved it, opening her arms to invite you to snuggle up, holding you carefully so the prosthetic wouldn’t bother you, adjusting the clothing on you ten, a hundred times, almost unconsciously  

  - And when you wore her clothes, it felt like for a little while, you could wear her skin too, to understand her better, and she suddenly seemed more vulnerable  

[sleepyangelkami]

more vi plss!! (and reader is a pillow princess)

SAY IT .vi

𝜗𝜚 WORD COUNT - 1.5K

VI (ARCANE) X FEM!READER

𝜗𝜚 SUMMARY - vi calls you exactly what you are, a pillow princess and in efforts to prove her wrong, you only end up proving her right. but that's fine, because that was all she wanted.

𝜗𝜚 WARNINGS - smut, dom!vi, sub!reader, pillow princess!reader, fingering (r.receiving), praise kink, dumbification, dirty talk, alternate universe, petnames, intended lower case, nothing i write is ever proofread 🩷

it started off as a joke.

a simple joke that left your girlfriends lips. you'd been laying on your stomach across the sitting room sofa, words mindlessly falling from both your lips as you flipped through a magazine. she sat man-spreading across the arm chair, controller in hand. you always said she loved her video games more than you, but she'd always deny.

then you heard it, the joke spewing from her lips with a smirk on her face. "yeah, okay, pillow princess."

instantly, your head snapped up from your magazine. your glittery pen that you'd been circling clothing with dropped from your pretty fingers. "i'm not a pillow princess."

vi seemed to sense your distress. she set the controller down as the game conveniently ended. "well, i'm not saying there's anything wrong with it." she leaned back against the armchair, resting her hands behind her head. "i love that you're a pillow princess, believe me."

you wouldn't believe how many times she'd gotten off just by thinking about it. you were so good for her, so responsive. she hardly had to touch you and you were falling apart. sure, she loved watching your head between her thighs as you whimpered into her but there was nothing more she loved than watching you, hearing you. all of it.

you seemed butt hurt by the joke.

but vi swiftly changed the conversation, noticing the furrow of your brow.

vi knew how sensitive you were, how easily you took everything to heart and she didn't want you over thinking this. and her tactics proved right, by five minutes later you were showing her a pretty top you'd spotted on the coloured pages.

you didn't think much of it at first. in fact, for the next while, you didn't think of it at all.

perhaps you had too much in your head to contain so much information, you told vi that was why you talked so much.

it wasn't until vi had you pinned down against the bed, making out with you, that the moment popped into your head again.

you almost shut it out on accident, then it clicked. vi was kissing you deeply, her hands dragged at your hips, pulling and kneading the skin while you passed heavy breaths through your lips, kissing her back just as hard.

and suddenly, you had this urge to prove her wrong.

vi felt you shift, letting you take the lead.

she felt you turn you both over, you landed in her lap and suddenly, she was the one against the bed. her brows shifted in amusement. "what's this, baby?"

you shifted your hair to one side of your head so it didn't get in the way, you weren't really used to things like this. "jus' trying to prove something." you mumbled before reaching down and kissing her lips.

don't get me wrong, vi loved the feeling of you kissing her, whatever way you sat, laid or stood, on top or not. but she couldn't seem to shake the amusement as your mouth left hers, leaving a trail of kisses against her neck. "this have something to do with that joke i made before?"

your lips stopped momentarily at her neck, eyes gazing up. "'m not a pillow princess."

vi didn't understand why you were so adamant about it.

there was no shame in it. on the contrary, she adored it.

"yeah?" her brow cocked and she was looking at you this way that had you nodding, suddenly unable to speak. "y'sure, sweetheart? cause if i remember correctly..." suddenly, you were being flipped over again, beneath her all over again. "you quite like sitting there all pretty 'n taking it."

you could feel her hands trail down past your waist, kneading your thighs in her hands. "v-vi, 'm trying to―" you were cut off by the breath being caught in your throat.

vi's hand had trailed up your skirt, her fingers dancing over your panties. "you're trying to what, sweet girl?" you felt her fingers rub against your clothed clit. "c'mon, use your words f'me."

"vi!" you whined, feeling her fingers against you. she wasn't being fair, you were supposed to take charge but how could you think about anything when she was touching you like that?

a soft laugh left the girls lips as she pushed your panties aside, fingers gentle against your swollen bud. "love it when you whine like that."

you could only look up at her with your tinted hot cheeks.

she began to press gentle kisses against the nape of your neck, fingers trailing down to your hole, she rounded her fingers against you, collecting the trail of your slick across her digits. she made a fake gasp noise. "'n look how wet you are already." she couldn't help but smirk. "good girl."

two single words that set you off every time.

a gasp left your lips as she slipped her two fingers inside you at once. you suddenly moaned with pleasure.

vi was like a drug. every time she touched you, you found yourself addicted, begging and chasing for her to praise you. you'd do anything to please her but luckily for you, that meant just sitting there and taking it. you truly did wish you could be less 'responsive' but vi wouldn't take it any other way. her favourite thing to do was turn you dumb with her mere fingers, maybe even her strap.

your eyes fluttered shut in pleasure, feeling her fingers pound against your sopping cunt. "please, vi." you moaned out. "please don't stop."

"yeah? wanna be my good girl again, huh?" nudging your face with her nose, littering kisses on your cheek.

you could only whimper out with a nod. vi had this way of making you feel like you were high on magic. you couldn't help but want her in every way.

"then say it, angel." fingers pumping in and out, embarrassing squelching sounds bounced off each wall of the bedroom. "say you're my pillow princess."

she was met with a mere whine of dissatisfaction from you.

she feigned sympathy with a coo. "awh, i know, baby. my poor girl, jus' so mean, aren't I?" but the girl didn't care much for your whining and whimpering, she'd get you to say it before you came. "but you gotta say it, yeah? don't want me to stop do you?"

you pursed your lips closed. "mm-mm. please don't stop." you practically panted out, you could almost feel frustration build in your water line. "nnghh― please, vi!"

"four words." is all she whispered back, her palm grazed against your clit every time her fingers pounded into your entrance. "know you can say it, pretty girl. jus' need me to make you all dumb, don't you, baby?"

a whimper of her name was the only thing that left your lips, eyes screwing shut.

"close, sweetheart? 's now or never, baby. say it or i'll stop."

the feeling was knotting in your stomach, ready to unravel. you didn't want to but you knew better than to cum without following orders.

so you forced the damned sentence to pass your lips. "'m your pillow princess."

and a coo only fell from the magenta haired girl. "awh, know you are, sweet girl. see? my good girl always listens, doesn't she? huh?" vi tended to ask you questions while knuckles deep in your pussy, she knew you couldn't utter a single word. "you jus' need me to make your poor pussy feel all good, don't you?"

a breathless, "uh-huh." was her answer. "'m close!"

"yeah? gonna be good f'me 'n say please?" of course, vi had to make you beg for it.

"please!" you practically squeaked out as your back arched against the bed.

a chuckle left her lips. "you can do better than that."

and you really, definitely could. but vi had made you all dumb, exactly her plan. "please let me cum, vi. please, need it so bad. please." you repeated the word please in little whispers, unable to hold back the knot in your stomach.

"you're such a good girl, 'course you can cum, baby." she felt your spongy walls suddenly tighten around her fingers. "that's it, sweetheart, cum all over vi's fingers, 's a good girl."

vi pumped her fingers in and out of you, letting you ride out your high like she always did until you were squirming away from her.

she leaned against the bed with a self-loving smirk on her face, hardly glancing your way. you laid next to her, chest falling and rising as you panted out breaths. a beat of silence passed until you spoke up. "vi?" turning your head to her.

"yes, my pillow princess?" she teased.

instantly, a frown fell on your face as you crossed your arms over your chest. she wasn't being fair. "i was gonna say something, now i'm not speaking to you."

"oh, come on." she lifted your face by her thumb to make you look at her again. "no pouting or else i'll have to shut you up all over again."

an idea suddenly fell flat on your head.

your pout deepened.

vi only climbed over you with the smuggest of smirks on her face. "you dirty little slut."

main masterlist/vi's masterlist

[galactic-magick]

The Handsome Assistant: Viktor x Reader

Summary: You keep running into the handsome Dean's assistant, whom you find you have a lot in common with. You develop quite the crush, and things get a little messy when your friends find out about him.

Words: 3.2k

Warnings: some implied suggestive stuff, alcohol use

Author's Notes: Set before Season 1 Act 1. Just a warning, this is probably the most heavily self-indulgent of my Viktor fics so far. I’ve had ideas bouncing around my head for a long time about who I’d be if I lived in the Arcane universe, and I eventually just ended up taking inspiration from what I do in real life. So basically Reader works in human services and is similar to a social worker. I tried my best to write it in a way that makes sense even if you’re not familiar with that field.

Also, the roommate/friend characters are based on my besties irl, one of which is also my beloved tumblr mutual @ohboi , who has been dealing with my nonstop Viktor obsession for a long ass time now so shout-out to them lol. I wrote you living your dream in this fic as a way to apologize <3

-

It’s exhausting dealing with the powers of topside. There’s no sense of urgency here, no drive for real progress. You’ve attended meeting after meeting, maintaining composure every time they tell you your mission isn’t a priority, or that it will take decades to implement.

All you want is to help the struggling children in the Undercity. It’s what you’ve dedicated your life to, studying human services and psychology at the Academy and building your own grassroots group with a few others from your graduating class. You primarily advocate for better education, as the schools down there barely get any funding. The council doesn’t want to hear it, though, as it’s much easier to forget about the citizens below their feet.

It frustrates you beyond belief, especially since the first chunk of your life was spent in the Undercity. You lived the stark contrast between the two cities yourself, being granted countless more opportunities once your family moved to Piltover. It was sickening, and you felt so guilty with your new privileges when your friends back home still had none. But without those privileges, you wouldn’t have been able to attend the Academy and give back.

You resist the strong urge to scream after another failed proposal with the council. You prepared all of your points for weeks, fact-checking everything and making sure your ideas were plausible. The budget and statistics you wrote out projected exponential progress for both cities, as focusing on the new generation of Zaunites would encourage the next great minds and likely lead to collaboration on mutual issues. But of course, the council is not ready to contemplate such a future.

There was one factor that wasn’t usually there, though, a handsome young man sitting beside Professor Heimerdinger. He was furiously taking notes the entire meeting, looking back down at his journal anytime you made eye contact with him. Out of all the councilors, Heimerdinger seemed the most open to your ideas, but without a majority agreeing to cast a vote to actually change policy, nothing would happen.

You walk back down the long hallway, noticing someone in your peripheral vision.

“I’m sorry the council remains so stuck in their ways,” he says. “Trust me, I understand how hard it is to hold back your anger towards them.”

You turn your head, seeing the young man from earlier, “Who are you?”

“Viktor. I’m assistant to the Dean of the Academy,” he replies, leaning on a cane. “I quite liked your ideas. I think they could work.”

“I know they would work.”

You sigh, quickly realizing you’re projecting your feelings onto this stranger.

“Sorry,” you correct yourself. “I just don’t understand how they can just not care about the suffering down there. I’m from the Undercity, I’ve seen what’s happening there firsthand, and it’s only getting worse.”

Viktor’s eyes widen a bit, “I’m from the Undercity, too.”

“You’re from the Undercity and you’re the personal assistant to Heimerdinger?” you question, a bit shocked at the prospect.

“It’s really not that big of a deal, but yes.”

“What do you mean, not a big deal? I’ve never even met anyone else from the Undercity who got into the Academy.”

“I suppose we are a rare breed,” he says. “I imagine I never saw you there due to our differences in studies.”

“Most likely,” you shrug. “None of my classes were in the science halls, assuming that’s where you were.”

He smirks, “What makes you assume I studied science?”

“You just have that look about you.”

He laughs, “Well, you’re right. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised someone well-versed in analyzing humanity read me so quickly.”

“Don’t worry, you’re still mostly a mystery to me. I can’t read minds or anything,” you flash him a genuine smile.

There’s a beat of silence before he speaks again.

“I need to get back to my lab, but I do hope we cross paths again. I’ll certainly discuss your proposals more with Heimerdinger as well.”

“I’d appreciate that.”

He leaves in the opposite direction, his cane tapping the floor.

What an interesting twist of fate, meeting someone like you.

-

The second time you run into Viktor is at an Academy party a couple months later, something you both likely would’ve skipped if you could. It’s somewhat a recruiting event for new students, and several alumni were asked to represent their fields of study. It’s not that you mind talking with prospective students, but you know you’ll have to hold back a lot of your true opinions when doing so. If you go off about how the curriculum doesn’t cover enough about the issues in the Undercity, you’ll surely get a reprimand from your former professors. You could lose several connections and investors in your organization as well, something you’re not willing to risk. Instead, you keep a smile on your face, engaging in conversation politely and answering questions.

You notice Viktor sitting at one of the far tables, his eyes darting around the room. He has several contraptions set up, and occasionally people come up to ask him about them. He lights up when he speaks, his face making the cutest expressions.

You notice yourself staring, quickly turning your head towards something else.

That sconce on the wall looks nice, doesn’t it?

As the event slows down and the crowd shuffles out, you pack up your things and head to the door, glancing back at Viktor’s table for a moment. He’s looking right back at you, and your heels swivel promptly to go see him.

“Hey,” you say, shooting him a smile. “Nice to see you again.”

Shit, was he this handsome the first time you met him?

“You as well,” he nods, gathering up his own things scattered in front of him. “Did you find anyone to join your program?”

“A few, yeah. You?”

“Several. More than I expected.”

He huffs, soon realizing all of his tech and science displays were not going to fit in the one cart that was left.

“I can help you carry your stuff, the science wing isn’t that far from here, right?” you offer, shifting your things under one arm and grabbing some of his things with the other.

“You don’t have to do that,” he protests, but you’re already propping open the door and gesturing him to come along with a head tilt.

“I really don’t mind. Come on.”

You help him put things away in the different classrooms and offices, careful not to break anything. You’ve never been in this side of the school before, and it’s set up quite differently than the usual classrooms you were in. There’s much more going on than a usual lecture hall, tools and chemicals you don’t dare touch lining the perimeter. Viktor thanks you for your assistance as you finish getting everything in place, and you once again prepare to go your separate ways.

“Wait—” he says before you leave, pulling out his journal and flipping through it. “I wrote down a lot more notes that might be helpful for your project, I’ve been thinking about it a lot.”

He hands over the open page for you to read, and your jaw drops. It’s so detailed, every proposal you had broken down to its smallest pieces. He even laid out the budget and resource use and everything it would take to not only build and fund better schools in the Undercity, but also work on housing and overall infrastructure. He even has some theories scribbled on how to keep the air cleaner and fix problems with the fissures.

You can’t believe he’s been thinking about you and everything you said for all this time since you last met.

“Viktor, this is amazing.”

“I know it still may not convince the entire council, but I found your ideas quite inspiring. I hope my calculations can be informative.”

“They certainly are,” your fingers hover over the written words and numbers. “Thank you, Viktor.”

“Of course,” he grins. “I look forward to seeing what you accomplish.”

-

You find yourself running into him a lot more often after that, “accidentally” walking by each other’s offices at least once a week and talking long beyond what you probably should while working. Your soul feels so in tune with his, a phenomenon that surely shouldn’t be happening with someone you haven’t known very long.

Your conversations quickly progress to topics non-work related, his curiosity blooming with every little thing you share with him. Most days after work you simply can’t stop talking to each other, causing you to get home later and later until your roommates start to get nosy.

“I really have to go, Viktor,” you laugh, glancing at the clock that reads three whole hours past the end of your shift. You’ve been chatting about embarrassing Academy stories, reminiscing on both the stark similarities and differences between your experiences.

His eyebrows raise. “Shit, is it really that late?”

“Yeah,” you grab your bag with a sigh. “I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“Of course.”

-

“You already work too much overtime as it is! What’s so important that you have to stay late every single day?” one of your roommates, Eli, probes, clearly unsatisfied with the half-truth answers you’ve given so far. You don’t really want to tell the full truth just yet, that you’ve been talking with the most gorgeous man you’ve ever seen, and you don’t experience the passage of time whatsoever when you’re around him. That would sound ridiculous, especially since absolutely nothing will ever come of it. He’s a wonderful colleague, but you’d be foolish to ever expect anything more.

“There’s just a lot to do,” you finally say.

“You need a break, that’s what you need to do,” they emphasize. “How about we go down to The Last Drop tomorrow night? It’s been a while since we’ve seen our friends down there.”

You nod, “Alright, I’ll try not to stay late tomorrow.”

“You better not.”

They glare at you jokingly, and you let out a laugh and exhale of relief.

-

You finish up your notes for the day, whipping your head back and forth to check if the coast is clear. You know yourself and your own weakness—you certainly won’t get out of here on time if you run into Viktor for even a second.

But of course, like clockwork, his familiar tap on your leg with his cane greets you moments later, your heart fluttering to a discomposing degree. Him coming to see you is a routine now, and despite your promise to your friends you are aching to talk to him. You haven’t had a proper night out in months, why is it so hard to just leave?

If any of your racing thoughts are visible on your features, Viktor certainly picked up on them.

“Are you alright?”

“Yeah, just...long day,” you reply. “But my roommates are taking me out tonight, maybe that will wake me back up.”

“I won’t keep you long, then—”

He’s cut off by Eli calling your name, jaw dropped as they come towards you down the hallway.

“I knew there was something you weren’t telling me!” they chuckle in disbelief. “Working late my ass.”

“I was literally on my way home!”

“I just wanted to come check!”

Your face grows hot. It isn’t abnormal for your roommates to visit you at your job every so often, bringing you important documents you forgot at home or bringing you a treat on your birthday, but under the current circumstances you’re a bit mortified.

They reach out their hand, “I’m Eli, Y/N’s roommate. Who do you think you are?”

“Viktor.” he shakes it, surprisingly not appearing phased by their directness.

“Interesting,” they look him up and down, then turn to you. “So, he’s coming with us, right?”

“Oh, um...I didn’t ask—“

Viktor can’t help but smile at your flustered face.

“If I’m invited, I wouldn’t mind joining.”

-

“I can’t believe you.”

Mumbling under your breath, you enter The Last Drop. Viktor told you he’d meet you there in about an hour, which thankfully gives you some time for some drinks to numb your nerves.

“Look, I honestly don’t know why you didn’t just tell us about him. He seems like a good one.”

“It’s not like that,” you correct them. “He’s not into me like that. We just work on some projects together, that’s all.”

You order a drink from Vander at the bar, gulping it down a little too quickly.

“That kinda night, eh?” he laughs, pouring you another one before you have to ask.

“Yeah.”

You have a few more drinks and shots with your roommates and old Undercity friends, your mind and body entering such a daze that you almost forget Viktor is meeting you there later. You play games together and get teased about some of your adopted topside ways, and you even get back at Eli by pushing them to talk to Sevika, who they ogle at quite literally every time you come to this bar with them. It’s the kind of night where you can be free and careless, temporarily leaving your problems behind in favor of bad decisions.

You have to do a double take when you finally see Viktor arrive. He’s changed out of his Academy uniform, now dressed much more casually and much more like a Zaunite.

“It seems I’m a little late to the fun,” he observes.

“We’re just starting!” you beam, the drunk giggles taking over you.

“How many have you had?”

“I don’t know, like 7 or 8 maybe,” you shrug.

He lifts his cane against you and steers you away from the bar, shaking his head, “I think you’re done for tonight.”

“Fine,” you roll your eyes. “But not because you told me to, because I don’t want to throw up.”

He stays close to you while you stumble back to your friends’ table, chuckling at the slurred introductions you give him. They all accept him into their games and conversations instantly, and you quickly find out Viktor can handle his liquor a lot better than you. He puts all of them to shame, and they love finally having decent competition.

Your friends all whisper their approval to you throughout the night, even though you’ve repeatedly reminded them that nothing is going on. Although, you’re not really helping your case by zoning out every few minutes on his face.

“You have pretty eyes,” you say, staring until you realize what you just said out loud.

“That’s very kind,” he responds hesitantly. “But I’m sure your vision is a bit...tainted.”

“Alcohol doesn’t change color perception, dumbass.” you retort. “Besides, I’m sobering up a little.”

“Well then,” he smiles. “Thank you.”

You sigh, taking a sip of some water and glancing around the room. The bar is close to closing, and most of your friends have left.

“Have you seen Eli recently? I haven’t seen them in a while.”

He snickers, “You didn’t see them go in the back with Sevika?”

“They what?” you jump out of your seat. “Oh they’d better tell me everything.”

“I’m sure they will,” he laughs. “Do you need someone to walk you home, then?”

“Probably. Who knows how long they’ll be.”

-

The buzz has worn off quite a bit now, so thankfully you’re not tripping all over nothing and further embarrassing yourself. Viktor’s beautiful glow in the moonlight is more than enough to accomplish that, your gazes prolonging far longer than they should.

“Thank you for coming tonight, it was fun,” you say, fumbling for your apartment key in your pocket. “I’m sorry you had to see me like that, though.”

“Don’t apologize. It was very amusing.”

“Good.” you exhale. “Just ignore anything weird I said, okay?”

“I’m not sure that’s possible,” he smirks. “Now get some sleep. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

-

Sleep is certainly what you get, and the next morning before work is full of a head-pounding hangover and chaotic conversation. Your roommates Eli and Chanthou can’t stop laughing about everything that happened, and naturally you’re very nosy about the Sevika situation. Eli tells you every little detail of course, giddy and in disbelief that they managed to make-out with her all night.

“So? Are you guys going to get together again?” you ask on the edge of your seat.

“I hope so.”

“Looks like you both got what you wanted last night,” Chanthou adds.

“Guys, he just walked me home. That’s all.” You’re getting a little annoyed with the constant reminders that your little crush is not, in fact, reciprocated.

“You...don’t remember?” she looks at Eli, then cocks her head at you. “About halfway through the night you were all over him. We just assumed you guys finally confessed.”

You didn’t think you drank enough to blackout, but you definitely don’t remember whatever they’re talking about. Besides, if you really were doing that, why didn’t Viktor say something once you were sobered up?

And what, now you have to see him in the office today, having no idea what you said to him?

“Oh, fuck, guys. What exactly did I do?”

“I don’t know what happened after I went back with Sevika, but before I left you were sitting on his lap on the couch and playing with his hair—”

“WHAT?”

“Wow, you really don’t remember, do you?”

You groan, wishing you didn’t have to go in today. You have a couple important meetings though, so you’ll have to power through. You take some painkillers and grab your things, praying for the first time that you can get through the day without seeing Viktor.

-

Your headache refuses to lessen its throbbing for your entire shift, making the work you usually enjoy completely miserable. You snap at one too many co-workers and find yourself staring at the clock desperately. Why did you agree to drinking on a weeknight again?

Just as you dreaded, you run into Viktor outside, too obviously waiting for you to pretend to ignore him.

“Hey…” you avoid looking into his eyes. “How come you didn’t say anything about what really happened last night?”

“I...wasn’t sure you’d remember,” he confesses. “I suspected you blacked out when you said you didn’t remember seeing Eli leave. And I wasn’t sure you meant what you said anyway.”

“Please, Viktor. Just tell me what I said. All my roommates told me was I couldn’t stop touching you, which I am so sorry about—“

“N-No, don’t be. Everything was consensual, I assure you.” his face flushes. “You just told me you have feelings for me, that’s all. I was going to tell you last night too if you hadn’t said it first.”

Your eyes widen at his words, your heart threatening to leave your chest.

“But it seems you don’t remember, so I can still count this as making the first move, hmm?”

Shivers race down your spine as Viktor leans in, his fingertips grazing your cheek. His lips meet yours softly, your eyes fluttering shut as he presses deeper. His hand remains holding your face when he pulls away, scanning your expression for your reaction.

“I guess the feeling is mutual,” you chuckle, still a bit breathless.

“Quite so, darling.”

-

More Author's Notes: I have a bad habit of getting drunk around guys I like irl bc I literally can’t handle being around hot people sober so that's the inspiration for that situation lol. Also, a part 2 to this is already in the works, it'll be set during Act 1 and probably parts between 1 and 2.

[space-blue]

Ekko's device vs. Jayce rune?

Ok I'm not going to pretend to make sense of it, but let's talk!

It turns out the rune given to Jayce by Viktor in this timeline/AU is an acceleration rune.

We know this because Ekko says as much as he creates his rewind time tool.

And it leaves me to wonder if that isn't important?

Ekko just blew up an Arcane bubble-thingy within a hextech devide meant to "rewind" time.

Meanwhile, Jayce takes the Arcane rune seemingly from inside his wrist and places it inside Viktor's palm. And we now know it's an "acceleration rune".

So Viktor has this really cool 2D frame, and then every soul he has "corrupted" is summoned up and out of those runes :

But in the meantime, outside, they are frozen in place/time under the rune that expanded from Ekko's device, the one Viktor deemed impossible :

So basically I'm wondering WTF is going on, and how much of it could be a sort of matter vs. anti-matter situation?

Do they disappear because they are channeling an acceleration rune inside a deceleration rune zone? More importantly, is this scene ONLY possible in THIS life?

I think the RUNE matters. I think that Viktor has gone again and again to gift a rune to Jayce because in all universes he ends up alone and miserable as Jayce failed to stop him/kill him.

But in this one Jayce has an acceleration rune on himself, and Ekko shows up with a device INVENTED BASED ON THAT RUNE. A device Machine Herald Viktor thinks isn't possible.

So it may be that this is the only timeline in which 1/Hextech comes to exist and 2/ Viktor gets to end things in the battle in his REAL favour (by dying there).

Another point:

I think it's fascinating that he's not depicted with a Machine Herald look. It's likely he had it at the time, but has been in there all alone for god knows how long, and has just... chosen to de-evolve. He's gotten rid of the arm, the mask, the trappings. He has no reason to sport them, and they brought him no good.

I think it matters he appears like this to Viktor in particular, besides the fact it's probably just to not confuse the viewers too much.

[kaminocasey]

Personal Space

A/N: I saw art of Jayce invading personal space and realized that Jayce would have no concept of personal space. (Did you see the way that man laid his head in Mel's lap? The way he comforts Viktor?) Also please be gentle with me, this is my first Arcane/Jayce fic lol.

Summary: You really love your personal space, unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on how one looks at it, Jayce also really loves your personal space.

Warnings: Fluff, a little bit of angst. Jayce Talis has no sense of personal space. Kissing. Parties. Protective!Jayce.

Pairing: University!Jayce Talis x University!Reader

“It’s looking like it’s not going to be finished in time to show the professor…” Jayce grumbles to himself, looking up at the chalkboard full of equations and symbols that you don’t understand. 

You’re studying literature. Jayce is studying science. Opposites. Yet, you know what they say about opposites attracting. Like magnets. That’s you and Jayce. Though, you suppose Jayce probably wouldn’t understand that phrase unless it’s only referencing magnets. 

That’s the thing about the two of you. Before meeting Jayce, you couldn’t stand to let anyone in your personal space. You didn’t like people touching you but then this guy came along and it was obvious right from the start, he’s the touchy type. And suddenly, you found yourself not minding. 

“Look at this.” Jayce grabs you, pulling you in front of him so that his front is pressed up against your back. 

Gods, he’s so warm. You can’t help but lean against him as he rests one hand on your hip and then points to all the things on the chalkboard with the other, explaining every single point and fact to you. You have no idea what the hell he’s talking about, but it doesn’t matter. 

So much for personal space.

~*~

“Read to me.” Jayce walks into your dorm room late at night, finding you curled up in your bed, leaning against the wall, reading your book. 

Without an invite, he crawls into your bed and then rests his head in your lap, shutting his eyes. You can tell that he’s been in the lab all night by the way his body just slumps over your lap, his hand resting on your knee. 

“My roommate is sleeping.” You murmur, looking up at her across the room in her bed, her back turned to you as she faces the wall.

“She’s a heavy sleeper.” He shrugs.

You don’t say anything for a moment, earning a sigh from Jayce.

“Resa.” Jayce says your roommate’s name a little loudly.

Your head shoots up to your sleeping roommate’s form who hasn’t even so much as budged.

“See?” Jayce chuckles, glancing up at you slightly.

You let out a fake sigh, rolling your eyes and then start reading out loud. You get about a page in when Jayce pulls your free hand up into his hair, letting you know what he wants. Your fingers curl into his hair and start massaging his scalp. 

He lets out a soft groan and your hand pauses for a moment before he whispers. “Don’t stop… please.” 

You smile softly and start again, turning back to your book and starting to read out loud again. A few moments later, you hear soft snores. 

Later that night, as the two of you sleep, he has you pulled against him as he spoons you. You can’t help but think to yourself the next morning when you wake up before he does, who needs personal space?

~*~

Shelving books on the weekend at the library helps bring in a little bit of income for you to get by while at university. Sometimes, Jayce will come and keep you company while you do so. Which is how you find yourself in this situation.

“So, I was thinking we could leave from here and go straight to Claxle’s party once you’re off?” He gestures to the doors.

You give him a sour face.

“Don’t give me that face. Please.” He gives you a fake pout, making you roll your eyes.

“Don’t you give me that face.” You look down at the cart of books, trying to not give in.

At least not right away. 

Every time you pull books off the cart to put back onto the library shelves, he takes another step toward you, practically crowding you against the shelf.

Does he know he does this to you? Does he do it on purpose?

“I cannot think of anything I’d rather do less than go to Claxle Bogart’s party.” You whisper.

He chuckles. “Oh come on. The parties aren’t that bad.”

You raise your eyebrows in a “oh really?” Kind of way and he rolls his own eyes, leaning off the shelf and stepping closer toward you, forcing you to look up at him. It’s times like these when you’re reminded of how much bigger he is than you. 

“Jayce…” You sigh, your eyes looking up into warm amber eyes.

He sighs your name and it takes everything in you to not go weak in the knees. 

“I’m afraid I won’t be much fun. I just wanna go back to my room and read my book.” You murmur, pulling away to start shelving books again.

“That’s why we gotta loosen you up, sweetheart.” He teases you, grabbing your shoulders and forcing you to look into his eyes again. 

You can’t help but go warm at the nickname and at the begging eyes. Unfortunately, you know there’s no saying no to this man. You think he knows that, too.

~*~

There’s a band playing somewhere in the hall of this dorm that has the door open so the music can trail out throughout the party. This is definitely not your scene, but as Jayce guides you through a crowd of people, his hand on your lower back, you can’t help but lean into his side. When you look up at him, he’s just looking forward, unaware of the effect he has on you. 

“Do you want a drink?” He leans down, close to your ear.

The warmth of his breath sends goosebumps down your entire body. You nod, leaning against the wall, needing a moment to collect yourself. Watching as he disappears into one of the rooms, you look up at the ceiling, breathing deeply. The music still feels way too loud and you feel exposed.

The dress was Jayce’s idea. He had told you that you looked great and you thought maybe you could trace a hint of pink in his cheeks when he said it, but you’re not convinced that wasn’t just your brain hoping. 

You hear your name from an unfortunately familiar voice. 

“Claxle.” You sigh, rolling your head to look at the annoying host of the party.

He leans against the wall, invading your personal space in a way that feels absolutely wrong. This is way different than Jayce. Jayce’s presence is warm and sweet. This is cold and makes you feel like you’re being stared at by a predator. 

“You don’t normally come to my parties.” He takes a sip of his drink, his eyes never leaving you.

Your head turns toward the door that Jayce went in and you debate whether or not you should go find him. 

“Jayce convinced me.” You tell him.

“Talis, huh?” He smirks. “I always thought there was a little something something with you two. Then I figured maybe he was just using you to help him with his homework or something.”

You glare at Claxle. “Jayce is a scientist. I think he can manage his own homework. You know, speaking of, I think you’re the one who needs a tutor since you’ve not turned in an assignment to Professor Ulsa.” 

You give a polite and fake smile to let him know you’re done with the conversation. Unfortunately, Claxle gets a look in his eye as he looks you up and down.

“You do realize you’re wasting your time with Talis, right? Saw him cozying up with some blonde girl the other day anyway.” He smirks. 

“Okay.” You reply, refusing to give him any sort of reaction. 

Before Claxle can say anything else, Jayce finally makes his way back over, handing you a drink with a gentle “hey”. You smile up at him, ignoring the other guy. Claxle walks away without even acknowledging him. 

“What did Bogart want?” He asks. 

You shrug with an amused look. “To let me know I’m not your type and that you’re only friends with me so I can help you with school.” 

“What?” He glares, looking away into the crowd for Claxle. 

“Hey, it doesn’t matter.” You try to pull his attention back to you. 

Jayce’s gaze softens when he looks back down at you, nodding reluctantly. He’s normally so level headed, you’ve never seen him that worked up over something some jerk says.

“Let's get out of here.” He mumbles, taking your drink and sitting it down with his on a table so that he can grab your hand and lead you up the steps to the roof of the dormitory. 

He’s quiet for a while as he looks out over Piltover. 

“Jayce?” You tilt your head, watching as he’s leaning against the edge of the building.

He turns his head toward you and then slides his hand down to your hip, looking down at his own hand as he does so. This feels different than usual. 

“Why don’t you like me?” He murmurs, resting his forehead against yours. 

“What?” You ask, confused. “Of course I like-”

“No… that’s not what I-” He groans softly, clearly frustrated. “Claxle was wrong… you are my type.”

Oh.

“I am?” You can’t help but whisper, terrified that if you talk too loudly, this moment could be ruined or taken away from you. Or maybe you’re just too used to working in a quiet library.

“Of course you are.” He smiles that charming smile that makes your chest tighten. “I’ve only been flirting with you for the past two years.”

“Two years?” You ask, incredulous. “Why didn’t you say something sooner?”

He shrugs. “I’m shy?”

You playfully slug him and he laughs, pulling you closer against him. 

“I’ve been trying… I cuddle with you, I touch you…” He murmurs. 

“Jayce…” You shake your head, amused. “I thought that was just you being touchy.” 

“You didn’t notice I’m only that way when I’m with you?” He grins.

You shrug. “I guess not.”

“Will this help?” He asks, leaning down and brushing his soft pink lips against yours.

Finally, you think to yourself. 

His lips are just as soft as you’d thought they’d be. It seems like he’s been wanting to do this for just as long as you have.  

When he pulls away, you shake your head. “Need a little more help.” 

He chuckles against your lips before deepening the kiss, his hands eagerly finding your hips to hold you right where you are, holding onto you like you’re this man’s anchor. 

Yeah, you think, there is no personal space when it comes to Jayce Talis. 

And you’re absolutely fine with that.

[shadyr4m]

REWATCHING SEASON 2 EPISODE 7 OF ARCANE

+ some of my highlights and notable moments that I enjoyed bc people can’t understand media anymore

This is mostly an infodump of stuff I can fit into a twitter thread/didn't rly want to make into a thread. I'm not great at words so I apologize in advance, I am sure there are many people much better at analysis than I.

I want to start off by saying I am heavily invested in timebomb so this is very much going to be a ship analysis. If you're looking for someone unbiased i am very much not the person for that 😭

FIRST OFF:

The disc on the music box is adorable!!! It features au Powder (who I am going to refer to as just Powder for the duration of my analysis) and au Ekko

Compared to the normal Disc

This is very obviously because it takes place in a different universe, one without Vi or "Jinx".

The first scene starts off with AU Ekko writing in his notebook. (Cute mention is Powder's doodle in his notebook!!) Then we see flashes of the wild rune. This is when AU Ekko switches to canon Ekko.

Also one of my favorite silly images from this episode is this one.. Powder is being so adorable and Ekko is just scared out of his MIND. it's so silly.

In the Last drop, Powder asks Ekko. "What is up with you? You've been out of it all day?". One thing I noticed in my rewatch is that i think Powder is aware this Ekko isn't HER Ekko. This is just one instance of many that makes me think this.

This hideout seems so much more vibrant and loved, similar to Jinx's hideout after Isha. It's colorful. There are guard rails that I like to think was pushed by Vander. We can see Ekko's art scattered around. It just shows how much more support and family Powder has compared to Jinx, which i mention a lot.

Id also like to note Ekko being shocked au him went to powder for help. In his mind at this time he believes Jinx to be all that is left, no more Powder. Through out the episode we see that change.

Notice how Powder gets upset at Ekko in this scene. However, she doesn't react explosively like Jinx would've. She handled it in a way that shows she had support. She told him to leave instead. Again, the main difference between Powder and Jinx isn't only Vi but also the existence of multiple support systems that Jinx simply didn't have.

THIS FLASHBACK! Oh my god this flashback. The fact it happened after he upset Powder? I think it shows just how much he truly cares about Jinx/Powder. He remembers VIVIDLY the day that he thought he killed her. Jinx was his childhood best friend, and I don't think that kind of feeling ever truly goes away. He doesn't want to hurt any version of her, not even the alternate universe her. We see that showcased more later on. Also, random probably insane note. He is interrupted by small children playing, having fun. This isn't a coincidence, it shows he does miss the moments from when they were kids.

While talking with Heimerdinger, we see Ekko look at Powder multiple times. Watching her laugh and be expressive, he smiles. When she doesn't return it we see him get upset. Once more this brings me to my point that he doesn't want to hurt her. Considering he hasn't known this Powder very long you can see where I gather my point that he doesn't want to hurt her in GENERAL. Any version of her.

THIS SCENE!! He is such a bad liar it's adorable. This brings me to my earlier point, Powder knows what's up!! She suspects something 100%. He is talking about this dream her like it was real.

"You aren't the kind of person who helps other people with their projects. Your ideas change the world. I can't shake the feeling that that's who you're supposed to be."

Are you LISTENING TO THIS? He is obviously talking about Jinx. You can tell this by the first sentence because obviously Powder IS that kind of person. He's starting to see that Jinx is just a part of Powder, one that is unavoidable and that he unknowingly appreciates in a sense. Like two sides of one coin he can't see Powder without Jinx and that is good. I think it is here he realizes truly just how much he cares about Jinx.

This whole montage is beautiful but I want to zero in on two things. Powder's reaction to the notebook and how she looks at Ekko after. NOW THIS. This is the nail in the coffin for her. She knows that this is not her Ekko. She has fully gathered that he isn't from this universe.

Also heimerdinger totally knows how Ekko feels you cannot tell me otherwise. Pushing him to go to the party? yeah he knows what you are.

THIS WHOLE SCENE. I AM NOT ANALYZING THE WHOLE THING HERE BUT IT IS GORGEOUS. I saw someone talking about how it was animated on 4's to signify the way Ekko can only go back 4 seconds and I honestly shed a tear. THE SONG TOO? I encourage everyone to look at the lyrics because they're beautiful.

Okay now for my favorite part of this episode so much to dissect and i'm totally going to mansplain but yk..

"I used to dream the undercity could be like this" — That sets the tone for the whole conversation and just what world he is talking about. The canon one.

"But somewhere, I got consumed by all the ways it wasn't. I gave up on it. Gave up on YOU." — Heavy emphasis on this line. Once more he is talking about Jinx. He is talking about how he got so consumed by the way that Jinx wasn't good, and he gave up on her. Believed she was irredeemable. Powder showed him that Jinx is capable of love and happiness, it's just under that tough protective shell. The undercity in the metaphor is Jinx, from my interpretation.

"I promise i'll never forget this." — Now time for my insanity. He doesn't forget this. That's why he saves Jinx from ending her life in the first place. He remembers Powder and knows that with the right support Jinx doesn't have to be the way she is. It's not that she "needs to be fixed" she just needs to be LOVED, like Powder. He sees that now. He sees how in the au the love that everyone shares for one another shaped the undercity beautifully, and made everyone in it much healthier mentally despite going through hardships. That is beautiful. People with mental illness are not unlovable they just need more support, it can't be cured, or fixed just healed. Mental illness is always there it is how you DEAL with it that matters.

Nothing too major to talk about with the kiss. It's sweet I love it, but nothing too notable for me to say about it.

Finally, Ekko leaves the au. I have seen people say that this is a sacrifice, he could've had everything he wanted and he gave it up to save the people at home. But i take insanity to another level. I see this as him appreciating his home. He knows he can never truly love this Powder because she isn't the version he fell in love with. He learned to appreciate Jinx even through her flaws, and that while this world has everything he could want and more he can have that home too.

I am experiencing HEAVY timebomb brainrot if you can’t already tell. I was tired of people taking things in the complete wrong way with this episode, if anyone has different views pls tell me I love hearing how other people took certain scenes. there are a few scenes I love but I would’ve made this post way too long..

[xmalereader]

Viktor Targaryen x Male Reader

☆ — MASTERLIST — ☆

SUMMARY: An AU regarding The house of dragons and arcane, Viktor is the second born child of King Targaryen and king to be, but Viktor doesn’t want the iron throne, nor does he want to stay in Dragonstone.

WARNINGS/CONTENT: Fluff, family history, no incest, sibling bonding, slight sexism and misogyny, Viktor is a good brother, OC dragon name, high valyrian, Viktors mother, mentions of Jayce, Piltover is a growing kingdom, short interaction with reader, non accurate GOT and HOTD lore.

WC: 2.0K

NOTES: I don’t know SHIT about game of throne or house of dragons 😅 but based on the little research I did and very few random episodes hopefully I am able to make this story make sense. It won’t really fit within the GOT universe so don’t judge me for the changes I will be making! But I just had to write this because Viktor just reminded me of the Targaryens due to the white hair when he was inside the arcane.

Viktor Targaryen was the second born child of King Targaryen, brother to Rhaenyra Targaryen. Only difference about him was that both siblings had a different mother, same father. Viktors mother was a commoner, a low life, as one would say and yet, she found a way to capture the kings heart. Rheanyra wasn’t too happy about her fathers marriage thinking that the women was only seducing her father in order to get her way only to realize that she was a very kind hearted women who wanted nothing to do with the Iron Throne.

When she fell pregnant with Rheanyra’s new baby brother she at first didn’t like the idea of having a brother, knowing that he would be the one to take over the throne and not her. Just as her father had promised her she knew that the promise would be broken the minute her brother would be born, being granted approval as the new future king.

Only Viktor never wanted the crown.

When Viktor got older he would remember hearing the murmurs of the council discussing on who would take over the throne after his father passes. Many in the council wanted Viktor to take over, but even he knew he wouldn’t be a proper king. His sister was perfect for the throne, he’s seen the way people bend to the knee for her, even their dragons bowed to her. She was the rightful heir, not him.

The first time the council called for him to take the throne he refused. It didn’t matter if he was the first born son, the crown wasn’t his and he wouldn’t take it away from someone who it did belong to. Things didn’t get better for Viktor, his father continued to grow ill and his own mother passed from the grey mist, air that poisoned her lungs until she could no longer breath anymore.

The council continued to push him to accept the crown and each time he rejected it.

Rhaenyra had noticed her brothers anger and was the one to approach him about it. Finding him out on the terrace where he overlooked their people, a frown on his face as the moonlight shined down upon them.

“You’re angry.”

He’s quiet when hearing her words.

Rhaenyra lets out a deep sigh through her nose. The two already knew where this was going, no matter how hard she tried the throne would never be given to her all because she was a women. A women that couldn’t lead a kingdom to peace, but Viktor knows that she can. He’s seen it in her.

“The council wants me to claim the iron throne. No matter how many times I refuse they will never stop.” Viktor finally says and looks over his shoulder to find his sister, looking at him with an upset expression of her own.

“They won’t stop until you sit on that throne.”

“I know that.”

Viktor never liked the idea of being a ruler. Yes, he wanted to help humanity without being needed anything in return. If he could do that he would, but the council would refuse him and expect him to follow along the traditions, keeping everything in balance for future generations.

His own father only spoke to the people whenever they entered their castle for help, he was never out in the streets and facing the reality of their suffering. Viktor had seen it, he had seen the terrible conditions his people lived in and no matter how much he wanted to help them he wouldn’t be able to without claiming the throne which would restrict him from doing things his own way.

Which is why he believes his own sister could be a better ruler then him. She would follow the traditions while also finding a way to help their people in her own ways.

“You should be on that throne, not me.” Viktor suddenly says, catching Rhaenyra by surprise as she approached him, standing by his side. His eyes locking with hers. “You’re the rightful heir to the iron throne, they may not see it but I do.” He’s heard the councils murmurs and distaste about the idea of her being the one to take over when both he and his father knew that she was the rightful one.

“You know they won’t allow it.”

“You’re right, they won’t.” He gentle takes her hand into his gloved one. “If I’m not here.” He sees the look of disbelief in his sisters eyes, he has thought about this for a very long time. The only way he’d be free from the crown is if he left, disappeared from this place that he once called home.

“You can’t leave, you’re my brother.”

“A brother who is holding their sister back from claiming what is rightfully theirs.”

Both siblings have grown close throughout the years that there were times where they were inseparable always attached to the hip and helping each other out. He was there when his sister first bared a child, the fear in her eyes when she refused help from the maids, afraid of facing a similar outcome as her mother. He was always there for her just as she was for him the day he lost his mother, watching as they tossed her coffin into the sea where the ocean waters claimed her as theirs.

But now, Viktor has to be the one to make the hard choices.

Rhaenyra is at lose for words, unable to say anything. She can see it in her brothers eyes that there is no way in convincing him to stay. So, she gives him a silent goodbye. Her forehead is pressed against his the two taking in their final moment together before Viktor pulls away first, giving her a sad smile.

“ēva īlon rhaenagon arlī.”

And with that final goodbye he leaves his sister.

Escaping into the dead of night he mounts his dragon, Xanthus, and takes off. Disappearing from his family line and being known as the ‘The Lost Child’.

Viktor had no idea where he was even going, he had no plan nor did he know anyone that he can ask for assistance. He couldn’t stay where his name was known nor could he be close to his own home.

So, Xanthus flew them out far.

Far from home and across the sea to a whole new world that Viktor didn’t know existed. Viktor didn’t think that he’d find a place meant for him until he stumbled upon an island called Piltover. It was rather small, but decent. The people there lived comfortably, but of course they had a council of their own and when Viktor first made an appearance with his dragon the place grew in panic, bells ringing in alert from his presence and causing the whole town to go into lockdown.

When Xanthus lands near the bridge that connected two different towns he was greeted with soldier wielding their weapons at him. The threat wasn’t taken lightly by Xanthus the large golden dragon ready to strike them down with a simple command that comes from his rider only it never came.

It wasn’t until a short man makes his way through the crowd of soldiers, hands behind his back as he stares up at Viktor and Xanthus. The man had a brightness in his eyes that somewhat eased Viktor.

“Magnificent beast.” The man didn’t seem scared of Xanthus which caught Viktor by surprise. Everyone back at home worshipped their dragons like gods, knowing how dangerous and powerful they can be and how impossible it was to kill a dragon.

The large beast releases a hiss towards the man. “Gīda.” He placed a hand on the dragons neck, providing soothing rubs as he calms the dragon down from doing anything harsh.

“Magnificent.” He hears the man repeat in awe which has Viktor chuckling, letting go of the reigns and sliding off his dragon who stood by him in a protective way, ready to attack in case anything were to happen to him. “Do you say that a lot?” Viktor asks with an arched brow which has the man chuckling a smile on his face.

“Only when I see something very interesting.”

Viktor can only smile at the mans cheerfulness finding it quiet odd since he’s never been around someone like him before. That was the first time he met Heimerdinger, head of the council of Piltover. When Viktor first met the council he was surprised by how many women were involved, something he’s never seen back at Dragonstone. They held their heads up high and spoke with confidence, intimidation radiating off of them when asking him where he came from and why he was here.

At first he didn’t know if providing his family name was a good idea, afraid of them alerting his family, but when they heard the name ‘Targaryen’ it was unknown to them. A sense of relief washed over Viktor and for the first time ever he felt free from the bonds that his family name carried.

Viktor was lucky enough to stay, getting the councils approval as long as he maintained his dragon from causing them any trouble. Which then resulted into Viktor finding them a home for themselves. Xanthus hated cramped spaces and never stayed underground like he did back at Dragonstone he always remained above ground where he knew he could easily defend himself without feeling trapped like his brothers and sisters did.

The time he spent in Piltover resulted into him learning about their history and becoming Heimerdingers pupil, learning from the shorter man and providing his own assistance. He’s seen what Piltover is doing to advance into their future, providing their people easier ways to travel and transport goods which Viktor helped with.

Viktor doesn’t know how long he spent living in Piltover that with time he befriend a man named Jayce who wanted to do so much for the future. Not only had he met Jayce, but he had also met a young man who worked alongside the council. He was the assistant to Council women Merdarda he had seen him around but never really spoke to him until he caught him once with Xanthus.

He usually checked up on his dragon, caring for him ever since he was a hatchling and tightening their bond everyday only to be surprised when Xanthus allows another human to approach him so easily. Most dragons wouldn’t listen to anyone unless its a Targaryen member and to see this with his own eyes made him rethink his families history.

“He likes you.”

The man gasps when hearing Viktor, pulling his hand away from the dragons scaly neck. Xanthus lets out a small rumble in the back of his throat, shifting to lie his head on the grass below him.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to—“

Viktor shakes his head. “It’s alright, he usually doesn’t allow anyone to approach him unless its me. It caught me by surprise that he allowed anyone else besides me to touch him.” His own gloved hand trails down the dragons neck, stepping closer to the man who swallows nervously.

“I was curious.”

“Your curiosity can get you hurt,” His eyes trail from Xanthus to the assistant. “Or killed.”

“I have a strange habit of approaching dangerous things without thinking twice.” His words causes Viktor to chuckle, blue eyes locking with the mans, his hand not leaving Xanthus neck it always brought him a sense of comfort.

“You’re Merdard’s assistant?”

The man gives a cocky grin. “I am.” He responds back. “You must be Heimerdingers?”

Viktors lip twitch into a smile when hearing his question being thrown back at him.

“I am.” He confirms his words which has the other nodding along. A silence falls between them before the other cuts it first.

“I never got your name.”

The Targaryen turns to look at him. “It’s Viktor.”

[sherbertquake56]

okay I’m dropping some of my fable arcane au thoughts before the new episodes drop tomorrow even tho most of it is based on season 1 anyway—

so some basic taggings for you that I based the AU around:

1. Icarus as Jinx.

powder vs jinx is just the sherbert vs icarus name thing. toxic father. unhealthy relationship with sibling. a lil crazy and maybe evil. thinks that they are at fault for the things around them. lil bombs? nah- little SPLASH potions. hearing and seeing mylo and claggor? it’s Haley- it’s literally Haley—

2. Fable as Silco.

okay fable’s design WAS partially inspired by silco— they literally look the same— they’re both a man with two priorities: take over and make his own nation & care for child.

you know the ending scene of season 1? where they’re sitting at the table? THAT. With Jinx assuming that he’s gonna give her up to topside and him getting the first chance to talk and saying “her name is JINX!” i could write an essay on that for icarus. they’re so toxic and it’s so perfect. also that scene at the start of s2 ep2? YEAH THAT—

3. Centross as Ekko

This one is controversial and up to debate but i will die on this hill— SO THE S1 BRIDGE FIGHT. I am so willing to put aside any possible prison duo gay-ness in this AU for that rivalry/fight. they were friends!!! they were so good!! and now they wanna KILL EACH OTHER!! it’s great.

It’s also specifically thinking of Ekko’s tree home as solstice— older Ekko very much has the vibe of Violet specifically-

4. Arisanna as Sevika

I DONT KNOW WHY BUT IT MAKES SENSE TO ME. It’s specifically vexed Ari during the coworkers era but idk it just feels right— I look at her relationship with Silco and Jinx and go ‘hmmm this could be something’

[I will also say there is an argument here for swapping Centross and Ari tho— big tree city as Ari rebuilding the records goes hard, and angsty fighty toxic with jinx centross is also good— it’s like 50/50 for me]

5. Isla as Vander

LET ISLA BE A BADASS IN THIS AU. SHE DESERVES IT— something something raising vi and powder alone, something something the backstory with silco— there’s something there and it hits really hard in scenes where vi sees vander and helps her get back up— also I look at jinx and vander and I go “mmmm this is in fact how icarus sees Isla”

6. Rae as Vi

This was obvious given the above but LISTEN— in this ALTERNATE UNIVERSE OF EVENTS I think it would be fun- do I think that vi perfectly fits canon rae? no. But in this world it would KICK ASS. rae deserves to beat some people up— got kicked out of the overworld (zaun) by fable (silco) and had to go to the end (piltover) to get away from him?? rae end prince aus are already here so why not end rae also punching people huh??? also. gay people.

———

Okay— here’s where I need some help, thoughts, and opinions from you all…

1. Caitlyn.

POLYAMORY IS HARD TO TAG AND I DONT KNOW WHO FITS BEST?? For me, season 1 Caitlyn fits best as Caspian, but season 2 Caitlyn is more for Fenris— so I’m very stuck. yes absolutely give thoughts on this please—

2. Viktor as Aax (but how does that work)

Viktor absolutely should be Aax— mr. Scientist / lab experiment / turned religious figure vessel for god is CORRECT. But honestly the rest of Piltover gang is really hard with Rae as Vi— Jayce/Viktor/Mel is yelling at me to be the polycule but aGH— ya know??? very stuck on this so I instead look at the coworkers and go “mm good yes—”

Random other tags I think also make sense:

- Ulysses as that Telchin looking mf Stev— mans took out one lil medical device as his fish self and I said YUP

- The hexcore big orb thing underground as Quixis— big white glitch orb room make things go wack. couldn’t be easier than that.

———

Anyways that’s all— I’ve been rotating this in my mind for like a week and have had way too many thoughts about it thank you for your time—

[cyanide-mustard]

I don't have the words to describe (how much you mean to me) Chapter 1

Also on Ao3

One day a portal opens in Jayce and Viktor's lab and the pair becomes a trio.

A young woman falls through a portal into the Arcane universe. Bad news number one is she can't get back. Bad news number two is that she doesn't speak any of the languages in the Arcane universe. The good news is that Jayce and Viktor take her in while she learns Piltovan

Here's the link if you want to read it on Ao3 instead

“Jayce”

“Yeah Vitya?” Jayce answers while keeping his eyes down the project he’s currently tinkering on.

“Correct me if I am wrong but that glowing portal is not one of ours, is it?”

“What are y-” He stops mid sentence as his eyes follow where his partners are currently fixed on. A blue hue starts to fill the room as items all around them start to lift a little off the ground. Jayce himself starts to float out of his chair. He looks over at Viktor who wears a nervous and slightly curious furrow to his brow. Just as he is about to open his mouth a low buzz begins to emanate from the portal. Jayce and Viktor look at each other, more nervous than before as the buzzing grows louder into a full scream. The blue glow seems to burn brighter as both the men turn their heads and cover their eyes. Just as the portal seemed to border on all consuming to the senses, it stopped.

It took a second to adjust their eyes back to the slightly darkened room in the evening sun. But no screaming and blue light seemed like a win. Once their eyes finally adjusted, they looked at where the portal once was and now stood nothing. Jayce was the first to break the silence.

“What do you think that was?”

“I have not a single clue”

“𝝸𝝺𝝠 𝞔𝝺𝜓 𝝇𝞒𝝃𝝥 𝜩𝞀𝜓 𝞾𝝠𝞒 𝜩𝞖𝛴 𝝸𝝺𝜓𝞀𝜓 𝜩𝞀𝜓 𝝇𝞒𝝃𝝥 𝜩𝟇 𝛃!”

In their determined focus on where the portal used to be, the two men failed to notice the young woman standing on the other side of the room. The woman took deep heaving breaths, holding a screwdriver that once laid on Viktor’s work table, arms holding it straight out despite small trembles that seemed to go through her entire body. Her eyes focused on Jayce and Viktor, trying to hold onto an air of intimidation, but behind that thin layer, was a papitable sense of fear.

She spoke again, her voice quieter than the previous time but with a sharper edge.“𝝸𝝺𝝠 𝜩𝞀𝜓 𝞾𝝠𝞒 𝜩𝞖𝛴 𝝸𝝺𝜓𝞀𝜓 𝜩𝟇 𝛃?”

“Woah, put down the screwdriver. We aren’t gonna hurt you” Jayce slowly moved towards the woman with his hands in the air. As Jayce progressed forward, the woman pointed the screwdriver towards Jayce but only moved backwards, her body curling into itself as if to make herself smaller and less vulnerable. Her ripped clothes, lack of shoewear and trembling only made her look like a cornered bunny.

“Jayce wait a minute” Jayce stopped moving towards the woman as Viktor moved to grab the blanket that resided in the lab, one used during many late nights, where the men couldn’t find the energy to walk home. He walked closer, blanket in one hand, his cane in the other, which reminded him to keep a steady slow pace to prevent the woman from bolting. As he moved closer to the woman he raised his hand holding the blanket for the woman to take. She looked at him with apprehension before slightly lowering the arm holding the screwdriver and snatching the blanket from him. Jayce and Vitkor both took a couple steps back, enough space so the woman wouldn't feel trapped, as she wrapped the blanket around herself. She still held the screwdriver tightly but no longer at arms length, now instead by her side.

“𝝸𝝺𝜩𝞔 𝛃𝞏 𝝺𝜩𝝮𝝮𝜓𝞖𝛃𝞖𝝋?” she spoke again in a soft voice this time, nervous but no longer shaking with the same fear she once was.

Viktor and Jayce looked at each other.

“I don’t think she speaks Piltovian” Jayce was the first to speak

They looked back at the woman who seemed to be coming to the same realization as the two men.

“𝞾𝝠𝞒 𝛴𝝠𝞖’𝞔 𝞏𝝮𝜓𝜩𝝥 𝜓𝞖𝝋𝟄𝛃𝞏𝝺? Parlez-vous Français? 한국어?”

She seemed to be rattling off a list, looking for the correct answer on the two men’s faces, becoming more frantic every time there was no reaction from the two. They realised that she was speaking different languages. She even started moving her hands in a way that looked like something beyond just gestures and more like an organized sequence of meanings. Jayce and Viktor felt like they were back to their teenage years and just received a test they didn’t study for. Every answer, their silence, was a wrong answer, but the disappointment and desperation on the women’s face was worse than any bad mark the two could’ve ever received. Once she seemed to be done the list she yelled out “𝝇𝞒𝝃𝝥!!!” and sank to the floor.

“𝛃 𝝥𝞖𝝠𝝸 8 𝟄𝜩𝞖𝝋𝜩𝜓𝞏 𝜩𝞖𝛴 𝞖𝝠𝞖𝜓 𝝠𝝇 𝞔𝝺𝜓𝟇 𝜩𝜓𝞀 𝞒𝞏𝜓𝝇𝞒𝟄 𝞔𝝠 𝟇𝜓 𝞖𝝠𝝸” She mumbled under breath.

A moment later, Viktor moved to the floor and sat beside the woman, she lifted her head to him, eyes red with tears starting to form in the corners. Viktor’s preferred method of comforting others was not by touching them. He preferred to speak to them and soothe them that way, however given that he seemed to be unable to communicate verbally to the woman in a way she would understand, he decided to take a page out of Jayce’s book. He wrapped a hesitant arm around her shoulder, nervous she might be upset by his gesture, but she accepted it and leaned her head against his shoulder as she took deep calming breaths.

She lifted her head, calmer now as she spoke. “𝞔𝝺𝜩𝞖𝝥 𝞾𝝠𝞒” she bowed her head slightly to Viktor.

He seemed to understand she was thanking him then.

In the midst of all this Jayce, took the opportunity to grab a glass of water and snacks he kept in his desk for times he was hungry but couldn’t break away from his work. He moved closer to the pair on the floor, heart breaking at the lost look on the woman’s face. He offered the woman the glass of water and snacks, which she looked at cautiously, almost like she thought it was poisoned. In response, Jayce took a sip of the water and took one of the crackers into his mouth before putting them on the floor in front of her and giving a big thumbs up. She let out a small giggle at seeing his goofy display. Both men softened at her reaction. As she ate and drank a bit, the two men seemed to be having a conversation with their eyes.

When you work together as much as they do, your brain starts to be in sync with the other. They contemplated their next steps. If they alerted anyone else about her it was likely that she’d be locked up somewhere given that she couldn’t communicate where she’d come from and she’d most likely be seen as a threat given that she came through a portal. The two men could tell from their short time with her that she wasn’t a threat, merely a frightened and lost woman, not where she should be. However others might not see it that way. They decided that they would take her in until they could get across the language barrier or keep her safe.

Before they could continue their “discussion” any further, the woman cleared her throat and pointed at herself.

“𝝣𝜩𝟇𝜓𝞏” she said, both men wore a furrowed brow. She repeated herself “𝝣𝜩𝟇𝜓𝞏”

Realization came to the two men that she was saying her name.

Jayce repeated after her “Jaybs?”

“𝞖𝝠,𝞖𝝠𝞔 𝞈𝞒𝛃𝞔𝜓” She laughed softly “𝝣𝜩𝟇𝜓𝞏”

“James?” He repeated again

“𝞾𝜓𝞏!” She exclaimed.

“Your name is James” Viktor tried as well, leading to a big grin making its way onto her face.

“𝟇𝞾 𝞖𝜩𝟇𝜓 𝛃𝞏 𝝣𝜩𝟇𝜓𝞏”

She then pointed her finger at Viktor with a questioning expression on her face. “𝝸𝝺𝜩𝞔 𝛃𝞏 𝞾𝝠𝞒𝞀 𝞖𝜩𝟇𝜓?”

“My name is Viktor”

“Name is 𝞃ik𝞔or?”

“Viktor”

“Viktor”

Satisfied with her pronunciation, she turned to Jayce and asked the same thing

“Jayce”

“Ja𝞾ce𝞒”

“Jayce” he repeated again

“Jayce”

The boys seemed stuck on what to do next, thankfully James seemed to have more of an idea of what to do next. She stood abruptly, dashing over to Viktor’s desk, searching for something. She wasn’t calm but she was kind enough to not displace any of the objects on his desk in her search. She slowed when she found a pen but didn’t stop. Viktor walked over sensing what she was looking for next. He pressed a small hidden button on his cane which revealed a small hidden compartment. He reached in and held a small key in between his fingers. He placed the key in the lock on the bottom draw. As he pulled the drawer open Jayce’s eyes widened.

“You’ve been hiding new notebooks in here the whole time!”

Viktor reached for the notebook at the top of the pile and gently passed it to James. Viktor looked a little sheepish.

“You go through 5 notebooks a week, if I had let you into my stash it would not be a stash for long and I would being going out to get new notebook books every week like you”

“Jayce, Viktor” a firm voice spoke out beside them. While the two were going back and forth, James had drawn out a picture in the notebook. She presented it to the two.

“A library…?” Viktor looked up at her, “Why would you want to go there?”

“Library” James repeated after him. She then tapped her notebook and passed Viktor the pen. Confused on what to do next, she rolled her eyes and gestured for him to write on the page. He obliged.

“We can’t take her there now, the library is closed” Jayce looked out at mid summer darkening sky. “Even if it was open, she’s too noticeable with what she’s wearing”

At that moment James seemed to become aware that her less than put together appearance might draw some attention.

Jayce sighed before speaking “We’ll take her back to our house, I’ll go tomorrow morning to see if Caitlyn has any clothes that she can borrow, and then we’ll take her to the library”

James’ face lit up at hearing the word library. “Library 𝞔𝝠𝛴𝜩𝞾?”

Viktor began drawing their plan. He drew a stick figure in a house under the moon and another drawing of the sun out and them at the library.

Realisation made its way onto her face followed by a smile. “𝜩𝝺𝝺𝝺 Library 𝞔𝝠𝟇𝝠𝞀𝞀𝝠𝝸!”

Jayce grabbed the blanket dropped in James’ search for stationary and placed it on her shoulders.

“𝞔𝝺𝜩𝞖𝝥 𝞾𝝠𝞒” She said softly.

He felt a slight blush crawl up his neck as he turned around and finished packing his bag.

While James and Viktor stood waiting for Jayce, she passed him her notebook and pen once more and pointed to the first picture he drew.

“𝝸𝝺𝜩𝞔?” She asked

“What is it?”

She nodded

“House”

“h𝝠us𝜓”

“House”

“House

He wrote the word down underneath, as she then did the same but in her language.

Just as she finished writing, Jayce walked up beside them. They proceeded to walk home under the cover of night.

Translations:

who the fuck are you and where the fuck am I? = 𝝸𝝺𝝠 𝞔𝝺𝜓 𝝇𝞒𝝃𝝥 𝜩𝞀𝜓 𝞾𝝠𝞒 𝜩𝞖𝛴 𝝸𝝺𝜓𝞀𝜓 𝜩𝞀𝜓 𝝇𝞒𝝃𝝥 𝜩𝟇 𝛃!?, who are you and where am I? = 𝝸𝝺𝝠 𝜩𝞀𝜓 𝞾𝝠𝞒 𝜩𝞖𝛴 𝝸𝝺𝜓𝞀𝜓 𝜩𝟇 𝛃?, What is happening? = 𝝸𝝺𝜩𝞔 𝛃𝞏 𝝺𝜩𝝮𝝮𝜓𝞖𝛃𝞖𝝋?, You don’t speak English? What about French? Korean? = 𝞾𝝠𝞒 𝛴𝝠𝞖’𝞔 𝞏𝝮𝜓𝜩𝝥 𝜓𝞖𝝋𝟄𝛃𝞏𝝺? Parlez-vous Français? 한국어?, Fuck =𝝇𝞒𝝃𝝥, I know 8 languages and none of them are useful to me now = 𝛃 𝝥𝞖𝝠𝝸 8 𝟄𝜩𝞖𝝋𝜩𝜓𝞏 𝜩𝞖𝛴 𝞖𝝠𝞖𝜓 𝝠𝝇 𝞔𝝺𝜓𝟇 𝜩𝜓𝞀 𝞒𝞏𝜓𝝇𝞒𝟄 𝞔𝝠 𝟇𝜓 𝞖𝝠𝝸, Thank you = 𝞔𝝺𝜩𝞖𝝥 𝞾𝝠𝞒, James = 𝝣𝜩𝟇𝜓𝞏, No, not quite = 𝞖𝝠,𝞖𝝠𝞔 𝞈𝞒𝛃𝞔𝜓, Yes = 𝞾𝜓𝞏, My name is James = 𝟇𝞾 𝞖𝜩𝟇𝜓 𝛃𝞏 𝝣𝜩𝟇𝜓𝞏, What is your name? = 𝝸𝝺𝜩𝞔 𝛃𝞏 𝞾𝝠𝞒𝞀 𝞖𝜩𝟇𝜓?, Today = 𝞔𝝠𝛴𝜩𝞾, Ahhh = 𝜩𝝺𝝺𝝺, Tomorrow = 𝞔𝝠𝟇𝝠𝞀𝞀𝝠𝝸, What = 𝝸𝝺𝜩𝞔, House = 𝝺𝝠𝞒𝞏𝜓

[danse--macabre]

unpopular astarion headcanons r.e. mirrors and reflections:

while I love the memes around this, I don't think, unless you had a particularly charismatic tav/durge, the whole party would draw him / contribute to some kind of spell where he could see his reflection. Obviously there's room for difference given how many routes your playthrough can take, but generally: he's not universally loved in the same way Karlach is, he's not the heart of the party, he's mostly clinging to the edge of it (and that's fine!)

I think showing him his reflection would impact him deeply and therefore if it is done at the wrong time/place, he'd actually resent the person who did it. this is because you're making him appear vulnerable.

e.g. if the venue is too public, if the others could see, he'd dislike the fact that others can see a moment of vulnerability

alternatively: if your approval with astarion is too low, he'd automatically distrust it / question your motives. this is someone who simply does not believe that people will be kind unprompted to strangers (because doing so violates his worldview and in some ways makes his abuse feel crueller -- if no one cares, there's a logic to what happened to him, at least)

the more permanent the method, the more effort put in, the more likely he is to have mixed/negative feelings towards it. a sketch is a kindness, but not one that requires a great sacrifice or planning - it's easy to dismiss as a fleeting gesture (while he will keep it, obviously, to look at, because he's not that willing to believe his own bullshit).

in contrast, if a permanent method of showing his reflection was given - e.g. a charmed mirror that casts a spell - I think astarion, with a high approval PC, would feel on some level obligated to pay that 'debt' back. astarion strikes me as someone who distrusts thoughtful, non-flippant gifts because again, he's used to transactional relationships.

I also think it might strike at an insecurity: the knowledge that astarion lacks autonomy/independence to deal with his own issues by himself, and, with some bitterness, is dependent on the PC to help him. if you give astarion an enchanted mirror, he, on some level, feels he is dependent on your magic and your supply of magical items to gain access to an element of his humanity. that doesn't entirely sit comfortably with him.

the "best" way to deal with this? let astarion figure out how to handle this himself. for example: gifting him a 'mirror image' spell scroll or something similar. give him time to study the scroll and he'll find a way to cast that spell himself. mechanically, astarion isn't a wizard, but narratively, his default class is arcane trickster, he has access to magic, I don't think it is really that much of a stretch to believe he could achieve that. in general, I think handing astarion the tools to achieve his own goals by himself will be more appreciated than handing that to him on a plate.

however! counterargument to consider: it may be more valuable in the long run to confront astarion's fear of dependence and the sense of reliance that exists particularly in a tav run, where you the PC have 'saved' him without needing to be saved in return. he needs to realise that the PC isn't expecting anything in return for friendship/romance.

either way, i think showing astarion his reflection is going to be more fraught than one might expect - a generous gift, obviously, he will take (he's been poor and starving enough not to turn it down), but there might be some tension beneath any show of gratitude your receive (or he might feign disinterest, if approval/trust is low enough!)

[menofprogress]

Here are some of my hot (or maybe tepid) takes about arcane:

(Under the cut bc i got wordy lol)

-the show could have used another season or like at least 5 more eps per season. Thats not a dig at the creators bc we know they were already forced to cut stuff out, but imho it shows a little, esp in s2. I fully believe Sevika was one of the biggest victims here, i genuinely believe she had an arc in s2 act 3 that was fully cut. And her being one of the biggest defenders of zaunite independence also means that by cutting her they basically gutted that storyline.

-the sheer lack of time with some characters also means that i simply did not connect with some of them, which made their deaths kind of underwhelming. Like i gasped when loris, isha, elora and sky died, but i cant say i was actually sad. That might be a me problem, but i need a little more time and info on a character to feel literally anything about them.

-on the other hand: we need to accept that sometimes background or minor characters are just that. No they werent robbed, no they werent underwritten, theyre simply not that important and thats OK bc theyre characters, not real people. You dont need to give equal attention to all characters for it to be "fair". And i sometimes feel like ppl think they HAVE to bemoan this. esp when its a female character a lot of fans talk about "sidelining" or "theyre using them as a plot device!!" Buddy, sometimes characters are literally just there to move the plot along, thats not inherently a social justice issue. (Ive seen this the most with sky and lest and like.... sorry, they were never gonna be more important than this. They can still be your fave, but just bc you wanted to see more of them doesnt mean they were sidelined for nefarious reasons)

-however sometimes the problem isnt that a character got too little screentime. S2 is a perfect example to show you can do a lot of character work in less time (viktor, ekko) and little character work with a lot of screentime (vi, sorry). Viktor and ekko were missing for entire episodes and managed to have full character arcs and vi was kind of there the whole time, but stuff just happened to her? Like she does do a lot, she looks incredibly cool, i liked watching her scenes, but her motivations, her goals and her values are ALL over the place. I love caitvi, but it did kinda ruin vis integrity when she threw away core beliefs (she becomes an enforcer, she temporarily agrees to kill jinx, she participates in chem warfare against the undercity) for cait. Hmmmmm.....

-i wasnt that deep in the fandom in s1 so i might have simply missed it or i might just not be following assholes, but the "jayvik shippers hate mel" thing never made sense to me. NOT because i dont believe it, bc i sure as hell have seen enough mlm shippers be fully misogynistic or racist, but the way ppl (mainly meljay shippers lbr) talked about jayvik shippers being horrible to mel like it was this HUGE thing confused me bc i personally have seen like 2 fanfics where they horribly mischaracterise mel to be a viktor-hating bitch, but thats it? Like, was that an actual problem or was it ppl deliberately misunderstanding stuff? (One specific example: ive seen someone accuse jayvik shippers of being misogynists bc they accused mel of manipulating jayce and sidelining Viktor. Which is a canonical thing happening in the show. Like ofc you can word it in a way to make mel a horrid evil bitch, im sure there are ppl who DO hate mel and think she is an evil succubus, but this person in particular just seemed upset about the fact that ppl were talking about things that mel canonically did.) This is a genuine question, bc from my pov after s1 mel was one of the fan faves and jayvik wasnt THAT big of a deal until s2. I literally saw a hundred times more jayce hate than i did mel hate, but maybe thats not the universal arcane fandom experience? Like, again, i HAVE seen (for lack of a better term) fujoshis get wildly hateful towards female characters in the vicinity of their ship, i was just pleasantly surprised that the arcane fandom seemingly DIDNT. So the unrestrained resentment and bitterness of some fans after jayvik "went canon" caught me off guard.

-the reason i ask this: i saw a video where someone talked about some rando homophobic timebomb fans who apparently resented caitvi for getting a happy ending instead of jinx and ekko. So i commented "i s2g het-shippers act like theyre an oppressed group sometimes" to which another person responded "well jayvik fans were really shitty about mel, soo...." and i was so fucking confused bc what? The video wasnt even about mel or jayvik?? They just heard me make a snarky comment about het ships and immediately felt called out. But yeah thats what prompted my question.

-i dont get the thirst for the fish man. I get the salo thirst even less. I cheered when jayce bonked him.

-i actually dont want jayce or viktor to appear in future projects. While i love the idea of them being ~not dead~, i think any further canonical storylines about them would devalue the extremely emotional ending they had. Like, imagine if they only bring one of them back?? What then?? No, i actually prefer post-canon fix it fanfics in this case. (Cough cough esp bc this way i can still plausibly delude myself into them being actually canon and yall KNOW it probably would not stay this way if their story continues)

[twainxavier]

JOHN CONSTANTINE MEETS DBD TELL ME ABOUT IT BESTIE

Hey bestie!

Okay, so basically it's just this funny little thing of John spotting the boys whilst they're on a case and tailing them confused why two ghosts from different decades are hanging out together doing magic stuff like he does. I haven't worked out how it's going to end yet but it's basically just like a funny "Well I guess these are my ghost kids now" vibe basically XD

Okay, as for a snippet, here's one of my favourite moments so far:

After a few more random loops, it would seem that the two ghosts found what they were looking for, as they sped up their pace and started practically running. It was getting far more difficult to tail them, certainly without getting noticed. Thankfully, John wasn't an amature. He went a different route to the two ghosts that would still end up in the same area they were headed to, and once again thanked his knowledge of London when the two ghosts appeared again. Clearly they'd found what they were looking for as they began frantically searching around the little alleyway. John watched from a safe distance down a connected alleyway, thankfully hidden by the shit lighting. The 80s ghost was pulling a bunch of random stuff out of a backpack that probably shouldn't have been able to fit that much crap in it. So the ghosts had a pocket universe, interesting. The smartly dressed ghost started skimming through a book the other ghost had handed to him, which John recognised as arcane of some variety. They were still searching around, tapping bricks and listening to walls, when suddenly the 80s ghost yells out to the other. “I've got it, mate!” He then pulled a brick out of the wall and reached into the cavity. John frowned and leaned a little closer, curious to get a better look at whatever it was the two of them had been looking for. He watched as the ghost pulled a small baby doll out of the wall, small enough to fit in the palm of a hand. It reeked of evil. Even at this distance John could sense it, so strong it almost made him back off. The well dressed ghost flinched a little but then held out his gloved palm to take the cursed thing. “Right, let us put a stop to this, Charles.” The moment the object was in his hand, the ghost began reciting a spell that John was pretty sure he recognised. In fact, on closer inspection, he was pretty sure he had a copy of that book the ghost was reading from. The creepy little doll burned up in the ghost's hand, and he dropped it to the floor, watching it burn. “Well there we go, mate. Another case closed.” The 80s ghost grinned as he spoke, and then went over to pat his friend on the shoulder. “Indeed,” the other ghost responded. “And one less creepy baby doll in the world.” The 80s ghost laughed at that, and they turned and left the way they arrived. John followed again, even more curious about what exactly these two ghosts were up to. They were doing good, no doubt about that, but it didn't make John any less curious. Usually he was very in the know about these sorts of things, he wasn't sure how these two managed to slip past his radar. He continued to follow, until eventually the pair turned down an alleyway and walked straight through a wall. “Bugger.”

Okay so maybe it's more than just a moment but I love this whole scene sooooo yeah XD Thank you for letting me talk about this fic! I really need to get back in the saddle and keep writing <3

[love4evalu-art]

Oh my gaaaaahhh Viktor nuestro que estas en el cielo santificado sea tu nombre–

I watched Arcane Act III the same day it came out on Netflix. I can't get my mind off the last episode, more specifically the scenes with Viktor and Jayce.

I have a lot of things to talk about (coftimebombcof) but I'm going to focus on jayvik because this fanart is about them jajaja.

The whole scene, the animation, it was like seeing heaven itself. It was all so beautiful, so perfect and fluid. Viktor's expression when he realized things, the love in Jayce's eyes, the adoration in her words, it was the most beautiful confession I have ever heard in fiction. the revelation that everything, everything was about them even before Arcane began, with Viktor giving the gem to child Jayce, only reinforced in an extremely spectacular way that Jayce and Viktor are soulmates, beyond romance or friendship, they are destined to meet and feel love or fascination for each other in all universes, in all timelines.

There's something I read on Twitter that I really liked and I'm going to take it as canon; when Jayce hugs Viktor and shows him the truth with the visions, we're seeing everything, everything through Jayce's eyes, both us and Viktor. So, Viktor was able to witness Jayce's perception of him, noticing all the love and admiration that was directed at him.

For the first time in his life, and through Jayce's eyes, Viktor was able to see himself as something more than a sick man, destined to die and rejected by the world. For the first time, Viktor saw himself as a person worthy of love. And I think it was there that for once, he genuinely loved himself for who he is. So it makes sense that "only you can show me this" because it's Jayce who will love Viktor despite everything, who will understand him.

While on the other hand, it is Jayce whom Viktor, despite his physical changes, despite becoming almost a deity, whom he will continue to love and appreciate above all things, it is Jayce whom he will yearn for despite being detached from everything else around him (which can be clearly seen when seeing that even being a deity and within that celestial space, it is the blanket that Jayce gave Viktor when he woke up that covers his body).

Jayvik is one of the most beautiful and well-crafted relationships (couple, friendship, whatever) that I have ever witnessed in fiction, and I will be eternally grateful to the team behind Arcane for that. Thank you for letting us enjoy such beautiful soul mates.

Well, people, that was my essay about Jayvik, if there are inconsistencies it's because I'm writing this with google translate 🙏😌

[thenightfolknetwork]

I study maths at uni, and you would be surprised at how often all the arcane-looking symbols mathematicians manipulate cross into being actually arcane (in a thaumaturgically potent sense). It’s an absolute pain if you, like me, are from a genus with… shall we say intense thaumaturgic sensitivities. 

Things have been coming to a head with the graph theory class I’m taking this term. I absolutely love graph theory, in fact I want to do my thesis research in it someday, but my allergies have been getting so bad that I’ve been considering abandoning the field entirely. 

See, graphs, the formal mathematical sense, are objects  consisting of verticies connected by edges. These can be visualised by drawing a bunch of dots (representing the verticies) connected by lines (representing the edges). Many common shapes and symbols are visualisations of graphs! Take, for instance, the complete graph on five vertices (K5 for short). To visualise K5 you can draw your five dots equally spaced in a circle, draw a straight line between each pair of these dots, and… arrive at a little known symbol called a pentagram. 

Which is exactly what I did when working on a homework problem a couple of weeks ago. I was so focused on the maths I didn’t even realise what I had drawn until my hand started smouldering. I managed to put out the blaze, but not before my work was burnt to a crisp. I was working on the assignment the night before it was due- I know, I know- so I didn’t have time to rewrite it. Needless to say, my professor was not particularly interested in marking the pile of ash I turned in, and I was curtly informed that “I’m allergic to my homework” is not a valid excuse for failing to turn in legible coursework. 

I’m at an impasse. K5 is an extremely mathematically important graph- it’s the smallest complete graph that’s not planar. That is, you can rigorously prove it’s impossible to draw K5 without your edge lines intersecting, even if you are allowed to curve the lines however you want as long as you don’t lift your pencil. This results in K5 having some rather interesting pathological behaviour that makes it an important counterexample in many graph theory proofs …but I digress. Point is, that (quite literally) infernal K5 graph is ubiquitous in graph theory, and it’s far from the only thaumaturgically reactive symbol in the field. I’ve had some other near misses - once I even started to spark during lecture, though no fire broke out that time thankfully. The professor is getting increasingly impatient with me and has given me an ultimatum: get my thaumaturgic allergies under control or drop out of the course. I don’t know what to do. Please help. 

[OOC: thanks for bearing with the long mathematical infodump- I love your podcast, the premise leaves so much room for creativity and I have many thoughts about how the canon might tie into my favorite subject. It is true that mathematics historically could get weirdly occult-adjacent. In particular the pentagram, in addition to having interesting mathematical properties, was also the symbol of the delightfully bizarre secretive math cult founded by the Greek scholar Pythagoras- as in the Pythagorean theorem guy. I think in the MA universe there was definitely something liminal going on with the man. Also, for a proof that K5 is not planar- along with other graphs with certain properties- here’s a really cool open source resource! I do love graph theory a lot- this result in particular is really fun to play around with https://discrete.openmathbooks.org/more/mdm/sec_planar.html)]

First things first, reader – thank you so much for bringing me a question that reminds me how much I still have to learn about the world. I admit, mathematics has never been my strong suit, but I've always thought it was a fascinating field of study. Your letter makes me want to learn more!

Fortunately, your particular predicament is rather easier to solve than untangling the mathematical mysteries of the universe. You can deal with your thaumaturgic allergy on two fronts – both by treating the allergy itself, and by securing some additional support from your university.

For the allergy itself, it may seem obvious but have you tried taking an antihistamine before you start your homework? Thaumaturgic allergies function the same as any other allergic reaction, even if the physical response from your body is rather… different.

If over-the-counter antihistamines aren't effective, make an appointment with your GP. Depending on the severity of the allergy, they'll be able to explore treatment options with you or refer you to a specialist. This may include other medication or perhaps desensitisation therapy, where you will be exposed to gradually increasing levels of magic to build up your thaumaturgic tolerance.

As an aside, I must urge you never to attempt such desensitisation on your own. Quite apart from the health risk this poses to yourself, there is also the combustible nature of your allergy to take into account. Besides which, paying a magical practitioner to do random spells in your vicinity in the hopes of prompting a reaction strikes me as an especially dangerous way to waste one's money.

While you're pursuing the medical side of your issue, I encourage you to seek out proper support from your university. I'm pleased to say that your lecturer is thoroughly in the wrong here – being allergic to your homework absolutely counts as grounds for reasonable adjustments, including an extension on your missed deadline.

Your university should have a system in place for supporting students with disabilities and other additional needs. Get in touch with them at the earliest opportunity to talk through the options available for you. At the very least, they should be able to provide you with some thaumaturgically non-reactive writing materials with which to do your work.

Finally, a word of reassurance. Allergies can be extremely frustrating, and even frightening, especially when they aren't taken seriously by the people around you. But there are plenty of treatments available and I see no reason why this should get in the way of your chosen career. And if you do happen to make any breakthroughs in the wonderful world of mathematics, I'd love to hear – even if I might not quite be able to follow!

[For more creaturely advice, check out Monstrous Agonies on your podcast platform of choice, or visit monstrousproductions.org for more info]