#and it's especially good if they're Weird about it.

[unopposablethumbsao3]

A lot of Richard Bashir's bluster and bullshit is an attempt to get people not to look too closely because of they do, they'll see there's nothing to him. In the early seasons especially, we see some of that same tendency towards (more justified) self-aggrandizement in Julian. Julian, who has only a few years ago learned that he's genetically augmented, and who now lives in fear of being discovered, of being revealed as a criminal, a few and a monster. Julian, who is all too familiar with the way Richard's behaviour keeps people at arm's length. Julian who, consciously or not, starts bragging like his father to make sure that no one gets close enough to realise that he's just too good to be true.

Julian, already steeped in self-loathing about what his parents have done to him, already "unnatural," who thinks of himself as the thing that lives in Jules's corpse, now feels like he's turning into his father. And he can't stop. He doesn't even know how, can't imagine how to just... become a different person all of a sudden.

And then Garak comes up to him in the replimat. And he's so taken aback and so out of his depth that he forgets to put that wall up--he doesn't brag or bluster at all. He's not smooth or practiced, he's awkward and a bit weird and very obviously freaking the fuck out and Garak... Garak's still talking to him. Seems absolutely fascinated by him, actually. And that's one of the first reasons they become friends, because in that brief conversation, Garak suddenly became closer to Julian than anybody else on the station, than anybody since before he'd found out what happened on Adigeon Prime.

But it turns out, that one crack in the veneer is exactly what he needed for the whole persona to crumble. He slowly starts being vulnerable and real with Dax, funny and weird with O'Brien. For the first time in his life he has an actual community, and some part of him can't separate Garak from that--Garak started it all, and now, no matter what happens, no matter where he goes, Garak always feels like home to Julian.

And that's why, when all is said and done, when the war is over and most of the station's crew have long since moved on, you'll find Garak and Julian on Cardassia. They're standing in their garden as the soft, warm light of the setting sun turns the ruddy walls of their home crimson, bickering about which vegetables are going in the soup they're making tonight.

[bigscotman]

Fic Series Idea: Jason and Dick both get de-aged permanently in public at Damian's 13th birthday gala.

They both get de-aged to their 13th birthdays and have their memories from then. Both Zatana and Constantine confirm it's permanent but they also say there's something weird with the spell, it's not a simple de-aging spell but they can't figure out what the difference does.

Exactly a month after they get de-aged they find out. All the memories of the month after their 13th birthdays floods into their mind and the scars and muscle memory appears on/in their bodies.

The 2 Robins think it's cool but are secretly kinda scared because by the time they get to their original ages they'll be completely different people from both who they are now and who they became because sure they'll have their memories and bodies and muscle memory but they'll also have the memories of growing up again.

The rest of the batfam is horrified because this means Jason is going to have to re-experience dying and the pit and everything else and Dick going to have to re-experience all the shit that's happened to him. Being the "completely emotionally competent" people they are they sorta just decide to ignore that and resolve themselves to be better this time round (for Bruce and Alfred) and be good big-little siblings (for the rest).

Damian is also 13 and while it's a little hard to get past the fact that his Akhi and Richard are now the same age as him they become a terrifying trio especially since they can now teach each other a lot easier since they're the same age. Dick teaches them acrobatics and gymnastics and Jason and Damian are having a much easier time picking them up than when older Dick taught them. Jason teaches them how to interact with the people of the alley, victims, etc. and the dirty tricks he'd pull when in a bind as well as general street smarts like places to sleep and how to spot safe and dangerous people etc. which allows Dick and Damian to become a lot closer to the people of Gotham than they were before. Damian teaches them a bunch of stuff from the LoA so Jason and Dick become more effective fighters sooner.

At the beginning of every month Dick and Jason sit down with Alfred for tea and talk about the memories and scars they got the previous night while Alfred reminisces about that time. Sometimes the others join but not often, the most likely to join are Damian or Duke with Steph second most likely.

Obviously they can't go out as Robin so they pick new identities. Jason starts as Flamebird and then changes to Phoenix when he remembers he died. Damian gives Robin back to Dick and changes his name to Shadow.

They also get some new teachers since all of B's training will eventually come back to them. Cass teaches the 3 stealth at Damian's request. Tim and Cass somehow rope in both Lady Shiva and Richard Dragon. Jason finds out about the All-Blades because he accidentally summons them when looking for a knife to cut some bread and his memories of the All-Caste come flooding back and then he begs Bruce to get them magic teachers and Damian and Dick join him, Bruce eventually caves and the 3 become the apprentices of the whole of Justice League Dark.

Also the All-Caste isn't destroyed in this timeline and Jason brings Dick and Damian to it. Essence may or may not literally pass out because of how adorable the 3 are and they get some training there too.

By the time they're all 18 they're 3 of the strongest people on the planet. Dick is their moral compass and has basically become Nightwing but better this time. Jason is both completely different and the same, he's by far the most brutal of the 3 and isn't afraid to kill but if Dick tells him not to kill someone then he won't because Dick is the best out of the 3 of them at telling who could actually change and get help (pedos and rapists are still fair game tho). Damian is as good at stealth as Cass and has an affinity for shadow magic, Jason's penchant for theatrics also rubbed off on him, he also isn't afraid to kill but only does so in the most dire of circumstances. If the 3 show up together you know it's some really big threat but everyone also relaxes majorly.

Damian is the tallest of the 3 at 6ft 5 and has a similar build to Dick but slightly bulkier. Jason comes next at 6ft 4 (yes Damian makes fun of him for it but they both make fun of B for only being 6ft without the bat suit) and has a more similar build to Bruce but slightly stockier with larger muscles. Dick is the shortest at only 5ft 10 and has a slim yet highly muscular build.

Damian is the one that thinks and acts the most like Batman or an assassin in the field mainly using gadgets and stealth. Dick acts much more circus acrobat like by using his magic to create trapezes and whips and ropes and stuff. Jason makes heavy use of magic and is basically what if Red Hood had actual magic rather than just the All-Blades.

[rockybloo]

I feel like bitchin so I'mma bitch bc I always see people going on rants on their Tumblrs and I'm long overdue for one. Anyways, this is a long one so be aware you are gonna be scrolling for a good bit if you view under the cut.

ANYWAYS, I know that that rude anon from last week is old news but their whole "I'm sad that Glitter and Guilt is a m/f relationship" thing is just a part of a never ending situation I am going to experience til the end of time (or til I stop posting stuff online) just because I focus on primarily m/f relationships in my art.

And they aren't even straight m/f relationships, which is what annoys me the most about comments like this. They're all bisexual. But because people see bisexual characters as better than straight but less than same-sex attracted orientation, I will always have to deal with these passive aggressive ass comments.

I dealt with this typa stuff SO OFTEN in my early days on Instagram, especially when I posted some of my gender nonconforming OCs like Danny (my pink demon man who dresses like a bimbo Barbie doll). It got to the point I stopped sharing him over there for a bit because I would get comments where people were hoping he had a boyfriend in the past, or they were disappointed I "never" drew any Sapphic couples because they mistook Danny as a woman in a pic where he was kissing Karrie.

And I get the whole desire to want more representation. Trust me, I'm bi, black, and nonbinary. I am NEVER going to get any type of representation outside of the indie artists I find in small niche circles online. I completely get the whole "m/f relationships are EVERYWHERE in mainstream media" mentality because I also agree but only to a point.

There's a ton of trashy m/f media, but there's also good shit when you dig because you can find people who don't just shove a guy and girl together and call that a done deal - they actually give them personality and chemistry and a fun dynamic.

I'm a firm believer that the gender of a ship shouldn't dictate if it's good or not. An interesting dynamic is what motivates me to care about a couple of characters dating. That's why it bugs me whenever someone suggests any kind of series to me and simply tells me "It's gay" before telling me the actual plotline. I WANT TO KNOW WHAT A SERIES IS ABOUT! DO NOT WASTE MY TIME!!! (Please do not pop into my inbox after reading this and suggest me stuff btw because I've never been a big suggestions unprompted person - I typically find stuff myself bc I have weird tastes ANYWAYS BACK TO MY RANTING)

When it comes to my art, I draw m/f relationships as a primary focus because it's fun to mess with gender dynamics and flip them on their head, as well as to give younger me the food I wish I had. Growing up, before I realized I was nonbinary, I rarely saw any black girls in loving relationships in animated series I enjoyed. And occasionally I would get flash banged with the long despised trope of "Disposable Black Girlfriend". So I never felt like m/f relationships were oversaturated in my eyes because there were barely any good ones that featured a black girl with a happy ending - which means from DAY MOTHERFUCKIN ONE I was starving for content.

So that obviously means that when I grew up and adopted my "Make your own food" mentality, I started cooking. AND COOK I STILL DO! Because in the end, I make all this food to please myself. OTHERS MAY EAT OF COURSE - I am always happy when people come to my restaurant to dine because they enjoy my meals, but I hate how every blue moon I will get someone who waltzes into my little eatery and tells me that they wish I cooked the meal they get from other restaurants.

Because it would be so much more productive to just go eat AT those restaurants since they already got the food you like.

Having people comment their displeasure about me drawing a guy and a girl together in a healthy (and occasionally insane) relationship is always baffling to me. It's never going to make me stop, it'll only make me draw more Red Beans or more Licorice. It's also so baffling because I know that if the tables where flipped - and I was drawing primarily same-sex bisexual couples (OR JUST SOME GAY OR LESBIAN COUPLES IN GENERAL BECAUSE SOME PEOPLE JUST DON'T CARE ABOUT BI FOLKS AT ALL), it would be so fuckin' frowned upon to comment "I wish you drew more m/f! 🥺"

But because I draw m/f bi couples, it's totally free game. IT'S DEF STILL FROWNED UPON but one is way more likely to make you look like an asshole than the other. Because even in cases where people have said they agree it's a dick move to complain about m/f from me, there's still that vibe of it being more acceptable just because of mainstream media having so many m/f couples and that being the standard of offline society.

But I'm not mainstream media. And I disagree with a lot of standards of offline society which is WHY I poke fun at gender norms with my OCs.

That's why getting a ton of new followers is such a "oh boy here we go" thing for me, because with old followers that have been around for awhile, they know what's up. They understand what I draw, what I write, and how my OCs typically behave. They get that my m/f ships have rabies.

But new followers don't know this. And this has led to some real big "OOF" moments. Like people calling Jack and Nana a "het" couple. Yes, I know that that's a term that doesn't JUST mean "heterosexual" and can refer to them being different genders. It still feels hella weird for me - it's why m/f is my preferred descriptor because it lacks that confusion.

New followers are typically the ones that leave the passive aggressive comments about me mostly drawing m/f. OFTEN because they think I am one of those artists who will draw whatever it takes to please my audience. BUT I AM NOT - THERE IS NO AUDIENCE INFLUENCE HERE ☝🏾

I am not a taxi where I pick people up whenever they call me and I drop them off wherever they tell me.

I am a roller-coaster. Specifically those ones where you can see the entire track layout in the distance so you know what you're in for. You may sit in the front or the back or somewhere in the middle but that is the last input you got before I take off at my own speed (that will be stated RIGHT on the warning sign you read as you walked in) and once I am done, you may get off and carry along your merry way through the rest of the park OR you may get on to ride again.

This entire passive aggression towards m/f ships is just so tiring to deal with because there will never be an end to it. Even after I post this, I know days, weeks, months, YEARS down the line - someone will see some Jack and Nana art, or some Bitterbat and Sweetheart comic, or ANY of my other m/f couples, and type up some comment about how they wish the couples were same-sex. Or someone will lament over the fact they thought a couple was same-sex but it turned out the dude was just hella feminine.

Because it just ain't enough to have bisexual characters that are dating the same sex because then people will call them "straight passing" and not count them as being queer. And having all my OCs being bisexuals ain't enough to mark me as a queer artists in some eyes because "making all your OCs bi is just lazy" and not me representing an aspect of myself that I constantly see sidelined online.

Me drawing bisexual m/f couples is viewed as something that can be tinkered and tampered with so I can be more appealing and inclusive to others like I'm some mainstream Hollywood series and not just some random person online who draw the fictional beings in my mind kissing each other whenever I got the crumb of free time. Primarily drawing m/f couples means I gotta just vibe whenever I see a moot or a friend post or reblog some weird sentiment referring to how lame m/f couples are and I just gotta HOPE that they aren't including bisexuals when they engage with stuff like that.

I'm in this weird space where I am wedged between "You're not a straight artist" and "You aren't drawing enough gay stuff" online.

And I'm fine with this since I've been online for over a decade at this point. This isn't a vent post, this is a rant. I don't need cheering up or comfort after posting this. This is just some real talk because I typically post lighthearted stuff since I like to keep my blogs positive.

But I also like to keep my shit honest and I think it's important to just state a piece of my mind. I wouldn't say I'm being vulnerable, this is just some insight to why I draw what I do and why I get so annoyed by certain interactions with people and certain sentiments online that are antagonistic of m/f ships that put them all down without hearing them out.

Blah blah blah I'm tired of typing and I've said most of the main points I've needed uuuummm

If you read this long have some m/f fluff

[writing-nothing-but-spilled-ink]

Alright part 2 cause I need the serotonin this will involve Damian

Eventually after hours of work and vigilante shit getting done Jason aka redhood finally has some time to stop by and check on his kids safe houses though strangely he can't find any of them in they're usually places which is incredibly odd until he starts hearing lots of cheering and cooing coming from one of the side streets that lead to a dead end on one side of the abandoned alley.

What he finds when he walks over are the kids his kids in a circle surrounding a bunch of stray animals and some clearly abandoned animals, now Jason knows for a fact that these animals don't live in this part of town he's not adverse to feeding strays it's just he usually would notice the animals especially if he sees them frequently around Gotham and these aren't exactly what he'd call native to this part of town considering some of them looked freshly cleaned usually the strays would have dirty and muck allover there fur and paws covered in mud and the toxic rock salt solutions that have. Been used to prevent ice from covering the streets..

Eventually the kids then towards him with big hopeful eyes and says can't we keep them can't you take care of them I mean you said you just got a new safe house for everyone and that weird guy with the suit has been helping you take care of us we promise we'd train them well and keep them happy and fed and we'll walk them every day before and after school, WE COULD EVEN TRAIN THEM TO HELP YOU TAKE OUT BAD GUYS ESPECIALLY IF ANYMORE MEAN MEN COME AFTER US AGAIN...

Jason is taken aback he's never been in this situation before hell he can't even imagine Bruce or even Alfred in this situation he tried to think of what they'd do if faced with this decision but honestly both those options felt incredibly heartless, with a sigh he slowly pulled out his vigilante specific phone and looked at the weather for this week of Gotham and when he found that it'll be below freezing temperatures he found he couldn't say no at least not tonight, and maybe this could teach them some responsibility, but now here's the trouble what does he do if they decide they want the same pet he can't imagine theyd be willing to share one and animals tended to choose there owners as well ..

Eventually hood just sighed and goes, "alright guys you may take them inside get them warmed up and I'll see about getting some animal food and dog beds and blankets as well as cat toys, at least for this week since this whole week it'll be below freezing temperatures, beyond that I'm not sure if this is a good idea we're already on thin ice as it is especially with Gotham child services if they think for even a second any of you are living in filth with no supervision with an animal at that, one that could be labeled as dangerous or disease ridden I'm not sure that even Harvey would be able to bail us out this time so I want everyone to treat the next two weeks as a trial run show me your all adult enough to handle pet ownership, we're not putting them back out on the streets and we're definitely not going to allow anyone putting them to sleep if we cannot keep them i don't want any of you to be worried about that."

"Suzy you've recently been diagnosed with asthma and whole I have had you tested for allergies and it's all come back negative I want you to understand that in some people animal hair/fur can trigger your asthma quite badly, if that starts to happen I'd unfortunately be forced to take it away and re-home it and I'm not saying this to be cruel I'm saying this so you understand that your health is more important than owning a pet even if we love them dearly, though if that's the case whoever we rehome it to I'll ensure you'll be able to visit from time to time alright".

Each kid scoops up an animal one of which manages to pick up a fairly big pitbull and awkwardly waddles up the apartment complex stairs every now and. Again tilting ever so slightly to the side due to the weight of the animal meanwhile the entire time the dog seems to be happily drooling with it's great big pink tongue hanging out, a bunch of the younger kids have chosen to take in the kittens who seemed to be at least a year old, he's seen enough of Catwoman tending to stray cats over the years to recognize the older cats from the younger ones, one kid in particular seemed to have a fluffy bunny in one arm and a pug in the other, vaguely Jason felt as if he just opened a can of worms he was not qualified to deal with.. As the last of the kids and pets went inside he heard a crunching come from behind but when he turned around he saw no one

"Hey Todd it seems your delinquents have found my friends, I was taking them out for some air but they got away from me and when I was about to go out and look for them father had informed me that there's a new case he must work on and while he does so he needed me to patrol with dick, I had each of them chipped with my own specially designed microchips and tracked them to this location and I noticed your delinquents have taken a liking to them, maybe we can come to an acceptable agreement, your delinquents may keep and even care for my friends in exchange you allow me to teach them about the animals and proper animal handling and maybe this way they'll finally learn some culture, and you don't tell father I was bringing more friends to the manor".

"first off stop calling them delinquents they're good people, not soldiers, not delinquents, and most definitely not unworthy simply because they were born of lessor means, you don't see me dick or Bruce calling you an irredeemable monster that only cares for perfection simply because ra's is your grandfather, I thought you would've known better by now especially living In a place like Gotham and interacting with the people here, maybe Bruce has already failed you if this is how you see others of lesser means, I'm sure he'd be disappointed and so wouldn't dick".

...

Damian is caught off guard by how valiantly passionate Jason sounds when talking of those of lessor means, Damian did feel a bit of shame wash over him for calling the kids delinquents but how could he not feel this way they were all covered in dirt and muck and seemed to do nothing all day but chasing after an idiot like the red hood and not taking any real interest in creating a lasting legacy, or taking proper. Care if there appearances, it was barbaric how carefree they were running around, showing all those emotions, that was a weakness, a thing that could easily be exploited and used against you why couldn't they see that, why couldn't they see by openly running wild they were leaving themselves open to be hurt, it's dangerous to be this loud to take up this much space, they lacked discipline and-,..

Jason noticed that Damian's mood seemed to have changed from snarky know it all to his fake Bruce face the type of face Bruce would use when he's thinking really hard about a case but can't seem to quite crack the puzzle, and the type that usually resulted in bruce pulling out his own hair due to the stress and trauma, honestly in this moment Damian looked like a blank sheet in a sense facially it's a face he's seen before on other league members when a single free thought or word out of turn would lead to a severe physical punishment. Finally Damian looked up almost looking like a sad scared child honestly like Jason probably did when Bruce first found him all those years ago stealing tires off the batmobile, and running around the streets,

"Todd I... Apologize, the- .. your acquaintances aren't delinquents, but they are disorganized, and it's barbaric, I am concerned that them being so open will only lead them to painful lessons later on if they're not careful, though I see now it is not my place to intervene or say as much, but I'd still really like to teach them how to properly take care of my friends I also have treats for them"-..

"it's fine, you may teach them how to care for the animals if you wish, but please try not to go on for hours about the history of how they got here or there ancestors, they're not like you, so keep it simple at least at first and then if they have questions answer them as they arrive, they don't have access to real school or top educations like you or dick did, what they learn is mainly thanks to me and Alfred and a program that's slowly being implemented by the locals around here, alot of them are former teachers, midwives, ECT before they had to quit there jobs or leave due to active threats to they're safety, and they're helping us establish a small school for basic education and educational skills they'll need later in life, also I'd like for you to be prepared as they may make fun of the way you speak and your accent as there's not alot of people around here that speak like you".

Okay but like imagine Jason Todd living in Crime Alley and he has numerous safe houses in gotham some of witch just aren't for him and in fact are apartment complexes that he bought out for cheap possibly due to a little life-threatening scare by Red Hood and any time he's in crime alley and he notices that especially in the winter months that the kids are sick or don't have a dry place to live he just starts setting them up in the apartment complex, and none of the kids ever talk about where exactly that complex is because they love redhood... Also, I imagine that once a week Jason makes like a really big dinner and he just goes outside and serves it to the kids around crime alley, the kids all love him and feel safe with him. I imagine it gets to a point where if the kids are in danger or are worried or scared they just go running over to Red Hood some of the kids have taken to calling him dad, uncle, and other various family references.. And one day on the way back to one of his safe houses he just hears one of the younger street kids yelling dad and he turns to where its coming from and theres just this small kid holding another small kid in his arms and red's just like what happened and the kid just goes shes sick and idk what to do and red just kinda sighs and goes yeah alright follow me kid and he walks over to one of his main safe houses puts his bike away and gets the kids into the car but before continuing to the doc office he calls out through crime alley of if anyone's sick yall better come here i don't wanna do numerous trips and suddenly theres a small group of kids coming out of the shadows and he ushers them all into the car drives them all to gotham general and the receptionist doesn't bat an eye at the gaggle of sick kids or the fact redhood is checking them all in because he and the hospital have an understanding so he gets them all treated and seen and has to sit in with every nurse and doctor, at one point he gets a call from bruce asking why he's not on protrol and jason thinking nothing of it just goes i'm busy im at the hospital have dickface cover my patrol and then he hangs up to speak to the doctors and check on his kids..

bruce shows up at Gotham general just to find red surrounded by numerous children with various flu's colds coughs one of them has pneumonia and was just diagnosed with asthma and he's just taking notes while there's one child in his lap crying cause she's scared and he's just rocking her gently while writing down various treatment plans for each kid and what safe house he's putting them in because he'll be personally taking care of them... and one of the docs spot Bruce and is like excuse me mr. wayne you can't be back here patients only and redhood can be here because he's there acting guardian which makes Bruce's brain short-circuit entirely

Also alfred 100 percent knows about this and has helped red set up the rooms for the kids and everything and some of those big family dinners Jason has for the kids yeah he's using Alfred's recipes

How Jason got guardianship of these kids is because of Harvey dent he got the proper legal advice from Harvey

[weirdthinkingdragon]

Stay Close

Slight yandere Dan Heng x reader

warnings: a bit of awkwardness? Slight fluff

Yandere Dan Heng using his Lunae form to keep a "dragon lover" reader close to him. You being from a world they're nonexistent to now seeing one that shouldn't be possible when you joined the express.

Like a moth drawn to a flame the first time you saw it you were beyond fascinated to the point everyone could tell. Yet you couldn't bring yourself to question him about it feeling it would be disrespectful since he seems so avoidant of talking about it after just a few questions you tried to ask him.

That also lead you to feel unbelievably awkward around him for a while since you've already talked about your love of dragons to the express... If you knew then you would have never said a word. How were you supposed to know there was a draconic type of human??

That lead you to research in the archives a lot to make sure there isn't anything else you should know about before it was too late.

With time things got back to normal and you started to drift away from Dan Heng. He's a guy who likes his space. Why bother him when you have Trailblazer and March to bother? Plus you're pretty sure you learned everything you wanted to know by then and your visits became less and less often.

Little did you know at that point Dan Heng didn't really like that. He grew rather used to your previous frequent presence in the archives.

What he really didn't like is when you got separated on visiting another planet. That alone wouldn't have been so bad if the person you were with trying to help the world didn't try to stab you in the back. Literally. He saw it happen and nearly lost his cool. He threw his spear just in the nick of time and punctured the person's leg, causing them to stop and scream in pain.

Obviously that startled you to turn around and see them running up and what happened.

After that there was a shift in his actions with you. Almost always in the same room especially if no one else was. Another thing you noticed was him more often in his other form. Man you want to touch his tai- no. Bad. That's weird.

It's like a train wreck no matter how hard you try to stop looking, you can't.

He knows you want to touch it. It's not hard to tell. Quite frankly, it's the opposite. It's to the point you don't even have to say it. But that's what he wants. He's willing to show this part to you alone just to keep you near if he has to. He knows you don't think he sees you looking while he's reading.

"You can try touching it, if you want."

You're shocked for a good minute, then apprehensive. You wonder if he only is saying that because your looking is pressuring him so you can stop, or maybe another bad reason you don't want to try to think about. "...Are you sure?"

Aeons, please just do already! This is more of a delicate situation though. If he wasn't as level-headed he'd have already impulsively pulled you to him with his tail and made you stay close as much as possible. "if I wasn't, I wouldn't have offered."

You cave and carefully do. It wasn't what you were expecting. it was more smooth, airy to the touch, and rather cool. Not cold, but definitely not warm either. Maybe airy wasn't the right word? Felt more like water itself but a bit more solid. So like soft ice and not nearly as cold.

You didn't want to stop touching it but didn't want to push your luck. That alone was enough for you to be happy with.

But it didn't stop there. More frequently you'd go to the archives again and he kept offering. Eventually one day he pulled you to his lap and rested his head on you while you held it. He wrapped his arms around you as well and let a mental sigh of relief. He's glad it's this way now.

This is where you belong with him. Whatever happens or comes for him, he cannot leave the express anymore. Not with you. Not with something as great as this.

He's never been more glad to have his other form than now. If it helps make you stay close, well then he might just have to start staying in this form more often. Even if around other people too.

[woman-respecter]

i think a lot of the issue with the trans men who are weird about feminism on here is that they seem to see EVERY post about "men as a class" as being about them individually, when it's like.... "if it's not about you, it's not about you" as you used to say. like idk. i know tons of feminist cis men who are able to see posts like that and recognize that they're not talking about them, even agree that men as a class suck in this particular way. because that's the issue, a lot of these guys if you say "well i'm not talking about you" will be like "that's because you don't see me as a man!" but it's not it. i also am not talking about my stepdad, my brothers-in-law, my male friends because they're not misogynists, and they're not doing whatever horrible thing i'm mad at men for. like i get (being a lesbian) that a lot of newly out lgbtq people are still very in our feelings about our identity and go through a period of being oversensitive about it, but i think when you're getting in the way of another oppressed group being able to talk about your oppression, you can grow up. like i get that especially newly out trans men are looking for a way forward to a non toxic masculinity. but like, you know, maybe not pooh-poohing every feminist post on here would help with that. i've never seen this issue with "demonizing all men and masculinity" that they seem to think exists on tumblr.

yes it's exactly that, esp the second paragraph. they want to feel they fit in with "all men" so they feel particularly offended by statements about "all men"

well the good news for them is that being thin skinned and anti-feminist sure does help them fit in with men as a class....

[laswells-ashtray]

How much Alerudy freak content do ypu have to give? The community is lacking. /np

Apologies, I've been meaning to respond to this and since you sent me this I've responded to other freak AlreRudy asks. I'm not gonna write a whole story but I am gonna explain more of their freaky behaviour.

Alejandro is weird about spit. He doesn't like getting spit on, in fact, that enrages him but when Rudy has him face down on the bed, working him open with two fingers and spits in his hole? With how close he already is, it damn near sends him over the finish line. It's degrading, it's humiliating and it almost makes him cum. Like most things Alejandro enjoys.

Rudy likes nibbling at Alejandro's ear lobes. Scraping his teeth over them, biting and sucking at them. He's weird about ears, we all have our things. But the sensation of having someone suck at his earlobes is wild for Alejandro, it's a confusing sensation at first. It sends a shiver down his spine and then Rudy scrapes his teeth over the soft flesh, barely allowing him time to adjust to the sensation before throwing him headfirst into another and it starts to feel really good.

Will sit with Rudy's knees bracketing his hips, one of the sergeant-majors hands cradling the back of his head as Rudy nips and sucks at his ears whilst the other hand palms at Alejandro over his boxers. Rudy can get off on just lazily grinding against him as they do this.

They sniff each other like bloodhounds, especially after the gym. Alejandro will lick all over Rudy's neck, doesn't care if he's damp with sweat that only encourages him. Something about Rodolfo under those lights, lighting weights when his tank is soaked with sweat and there's nothing but pure focus on the other man's face. Makes Alejandro wants to pin him down and lick his face.

I've said before that Rudy likes pain, he likes burning, searing pain right before he cums just to send him over the edge. He needs his vision to white out, ears ringing as his chest heaves and hips gradually still. Alejandro is more than happy to oblige because they've researched the best places to burn someone and how to heal it without potential infection. They've been doing it for a while, they know what they're doing.

But this just leads to cigarettes becoming a major part of their sex life and much to Rudy's displeasure, he struggles to watch Alejandro smoke outside of the bedroom without walking away with a hard-on. He's so used to watching his colonel lean back with a cigarette between his lips, one hand squeezing Rodolfo's hip as he gets the ride of his fucking life. When he sees Alejandro smoking in a normal setting? He thumbs over his clothes where he knows the old, circular scars reside on his body and tries to adjust himself in his pants without anybody noticing.

[singeds-subject]

ohhh finally someone put it into coherent words. i've been trying to find a way to verbalize all of these issues, and then some. it's just been insanely hard to find my words for it haha.

genuinely when jinx called sevika an ogre i was absolutely slackjawed. what an insane thing to include?? did NOBODY think for, like, a second or two before leaving that in???

there are some other smaller things i picked up on as well while thinking about all this stuff...

one, the way almost every disabled character is an antagonistic force at some point. most of our zaunite cast, salo, viktor, they all act antagonistically.

two, the way they frame sex work is... kinda weird? like... almost every shot we see of sex work happening in arcane, it's shown to be a fairly uncomfortable environment in one way or another. i mean, we don't ever see a protagonist engage with it either. there's that scene with caitlyn in the brothel, but she's just talking to that woman, they're not even doing anything. we namely see babette trying to hit on claggor, and lest acting as a spy during sessions with salo. speaking of lest...

three, gee i wonder why they cast a trans woman as the deceptive sex worker that we see spying on people and being a drug expert. i'm sure that doesn't fit any negative stereotypes. and i'm sure there's a good reason why we didn't get any other transfeminine characters besides this one. no biases here, no sir.

four, the way ambessa is handled feels a little gross to me too? especially compared to the other, much lighter skinned antagonist we got in arcane. silco largely does not conduct his violence himself, while ambessa often leads the charge for it, and actively advocates for it. they both are violent people, but the contrast in the way it's framed for them just feels weird. that's not to even mention that bath scene with jayce and ambessa... it feels so strange to me that they made the black woman so openly dismissive of a smaller, lighter skinned man's boundaries! that feels weird! i am very much white so i could be blowing this one way out of the water trying to find something to get angry at, but i can't get it out of my head.

i think what really put the final nail in the coffin for me was seeing that ekko had like, 700 words of dialogue in either season, while jinx had thousands in either. vi had like 5,000 in season 1, which dropped to around a fifth of that in season 2. take this part with a grain of salt, i could very well be talking out of my ass.

Now that arcane is over im seriously starting to doubt its “inclusion”

Mel being the disposable black girlfriend

Sky existing solely for the development of a white man (viktor)

Ekko and sevika both dedicating their lives to the betterment of zaun and getting absolutely 0 recognition and instead being favored for the white girl that didn’t even want the position (jinx)

Ekko having no personal development outside of jinx (white girl) and his only real purpose in arcane being to save the day and never being mentioned again

Silco being an antisemitic stereotype

Sevika being called an ogre by a white girl?????

Now that I’m actually looking at this shit, it kinda sucks. And when you consider the fact that the whole p/z conflict was thrown out the fucking window with the “both sides are bad” p.o.v + the fact that the whole reason the p/z conflict exists in the first place is because of ship angst, it feels like they never cared about any of it. The inclusion, the commentary, the mindfulness, it was all fake. Like damn. They really dont give a shit and never did. Its all just racism in pretty packaging :/

[mirensiart]

I’m obsessed with the concept of hyrule warriors happening pre lu and like, sometimes in fics war and wind won’t recognize time at first but i think it’d be funnier if they immediately know. The rest of the chain are wondering why the captain and the old man cuddle all the time but, hell, he’s the hero of time, who knows. Wind joins in and, alright, he’s the youngest, maybe he just wants a hug, that’s understandable, it’d probably set the example and let the rest of the chain join in easier. The chain gets to be affectionate with each other, Time, Wars, and Wind get to cuddle again, win win.

Also tho, I think it’d be funny if at some point before Wind shows up they’re all telling stories and and siblings come up and to keep the mood good(ish) Time takes his turn and he’s just like “ah, my big brother, Tune. A hero, like all of us, a skilled warrior and a pirate on top of that. I miss him” and then has to explain oh he’s not dead it’s weird time travel shenanigans, that’s just kinda par for the course at this point, no guys it’s okay and launches into a happy anecdote about them playing music probably. And they all kinda hope he’ll also get to show up, if not for the promise of another great hero, but for Times sake, their old man deserves to see his big brother again. And the Wind/Tune reveal happens and everyone sits there nodding like yeah to be fair, time traveling pirate hero, probably should have put that together earlier (how do you tell your other brothers three of you fought a war together but it was idk like a couple years ago for one, like 20 for another, and a couple months ago for the other. Also two of you have different names now. Funniest answer I think might be don’t but not out of secrecy, they just didn’t realize they had to. Maybe the reveal is one of them fucking up on the names one too many times and someone bring it up kinda worried. (“Look, old man, it’s okay to miss him but Wind isn’t Tune” “what the fuck I literally am” “what” “I fought a war and this is the respect I get” “language” “not now Wars, what does he mean?”)

(Sorry this is so long, had a captain it’s Tuesday kinda Tuesday too, and I’m recovering with comfort)

YES I LOVE THIS SO MUCH

I especially love the Wind+Time shenanigans like maybe time acts like The Responsible Adult and The Dad around the others, but he's a lil shit and acts like An Annoying Younger Brother around Wind which is hilarious out of context cause they're the oldest+youngest lmao

I personally think it's very on brand for Time and Wind to just go with it and not explain cause it's hilarious seeing everyone's reactions, they convince Wars not to tell too via blackmail

Also I don't know if you saw this drawing I did of Time+Wind older/younger brother dynamic lol but yes I'm super obsessed with it too

[shoggoth-the-bitch]

TMA monster AU, arguably a Somewhere Else AU kinda thing, that I'm probably never gonna make into a fic but I'm gonna throw out into the world.

The monsters are sort of like from Nightbreed, except they all have "masks" that allows them to hide in plan sight. They can be naturally born or a human can go through a change brought about by a bite or a cut or kiss or really anything that exchanges fluids. The change can take time, especially if the human is resistant/reluctant to accept the change but their environment and how the person is feeling greatly effects what powers and form they end up with.

Almost everyone who works at the Magnus Institute is some sort of monster. Instead of serving the Eye, they collect statements to keep track of those who have been infected and may yet go through the change. They don't go around stopping or even reprimanding other monsters for hunting humans or making them into monsters, that's not their business. They just process people, tell them the truth about what their becoming if they have to, and, very rarely, get in touch with whoever caused them to change because "this person is about to be trouble, so you either finish your hunt or get them under control."

Of course, something goes wrong in that there is one person who isn't actually a monster in the institute. Martin Blackwood. He faked his CVs just like in the original story, putting in so much detail about his expertise in the supernatural that those reviewing his resume assumed that he was just being not so subtle about being a monster. Elias doesn't figure out he's a human until after Martin had already realized that the institute was full of monsters but the strange part was that he kept coming back to work. Because his need for the job was greater than his fear of monsters.

This amused Elias so much he eventually sent him down to the Archives. Because while the library was public facing and keeping one's mask on is a necessity, the Archives were closed to the public and the staff down there never bother with their masks.

Martin thinks he'll be found out for sure, but much to his (and Elias') surprise, the rest of the team doesn't really bother to bring up the fact that he stays masked. Perhaps they assume he's ashamed of how he really looks, perhaps they think he's just forgetful and he won't remember to put it back on, perhaps they're just too polite to think it's their business how he looks. Whatever the case may be, they never bring it up.

Eventually Martin comes clean to the rest of the team, explaining the situation with his mom to all of them and how badly he needed a job. And obviously how much he cares about all of them, regardless of if their monsters. Naturally the rest of the team accept him.

Jon and Martin are also spending a good chunk of the story dancing around their feeling for each other. Then Jon gets even more spooked by the idea of being with him because something as simple as a kiss could change Martin and he could never do that to him. Eventually things work out and Jon's kiss is absolutely what brings on Martin's change and they get to be weird monsters together.

[moonpie016]

---

This song just fits this.

My goodness, they're simpler in design.

Good!

.....And so the rambling begins.

Which I would consider this a oc rambling, I don't know what these dudes are anymore. Except for Myst. But fun.

Though I already explained stuff here.

(If ya wanna read or re-read.)

The wall of words underneath.

⬇️

💛

Soooo.

Illy (she/her)

~~~~~~~~~~~~

First one up. Not much has changed honestly. Still trying to have some calculated way of thinking about things, either logically or critically. It's a struggle for her.

But likes using whatever knowledge she has to idk, rant? Spout random facts?

She's just minding her own business unless it IS her business. (Or nosy).

She has glasses now. Yay! Great! She can read without straining her eyes!

~~~~~~~~~~~~

💛

---

💜

Waxing (he/they)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I kinda stole the name Waxing from an old oc of mine, sooo that's his name now. Old oc has no name now. :]

A new thing (other than the headphones) is that the center of his hoodie can basically become or resemble a pit.

Because that's how any strong emotion feels. Usually negative ones. He hates it, Illy tries to make Wax calm down with reasons he shouldn't be anxious, but falls out the window.

💜

It only works if he's not too worked up. Man's eyesight is....ok. Not the best, because unlike his other part, he has to squint at most things. Like words on signs and stuff. Why doesn't he just copy his other half? Idk. He's stubborn. And character design reasons.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

---

❤️

Seeds (She/he/they)

Myst (she/her)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Imma just put Seeds and Myst together here.

Because they're basically one in the same. Yes, Seeds' jacket has stuff on it, I probably will draw something with more stuff on the jacket. (Because I didn't know what else to think of.)

The one side of his face is more expressive than the other. Mostly because each one of these guys looks upset every waking moment.

(They're not, they just look like that.)

But I guess it's to show being more comfortable in being expressive and just not feeling comfortable and trying to... understand the room. Confusion.

Is their goal the same as the album? No. They're all technically "whole", but don't understand anything about this life stuff. It's weird, tricky, and overall odd.

Living in a nice relaxing Void™ is all they know. But taking a step into unknown territory is the what they want, an adventure.

(Depending on whatever adventure really means to them. Or me.) Breaking out of this weird shaped shell. Because the world is scary.

Too much scary stuff that makes Wax retreat to his safe space, and essentially brings his other counterparts with him.

She's more honest and blunt about everything. Even when she's trying not to be. Her cold face, her voice. Always been how she's characterized in my head.

Myst doesn't like this because she knows that this isn't ok. But the others, especially Seeds and Wax just... don't do anything.

But, she and Illy continue to try and strive for new things. Even when the other two challenge them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

🩵

---

I really need to update tags on certain stuff.

Ok, I think I've ramble enough again.

But hope you enjoyed this... random redesign/ LORE (not really lore.). :3

---

[writing-nothing-but-spilled-ink]

Alright part 2 cause I need the serotonin this will involve Damian (this is part 2 to redhood taking care of the kids in crime alley)

Eventually after hours of work and vigilante shit getting done Jason aka redhood finally has some time to stop by and check on his kids safe houses though strangely he can't find any of them in they're usually places which is incredibly odd until he starts hearing lots of cheering and cooing coming from one of the side streets that lead to a dead end on one side of the abandoned alley.

What he finds when he walks over are the kids his kids in a circle surrounding a bunch of stray animals and some clearly abandoned animals, now Jason knows for a fact that these animals don't live in this part of town he's not adverse to feeding strays it's just he usually would notice the animals especially if he sees them frequently around Gotham and these aren't exactly what he'd call native to this part of town considering some of them looked freshly cleaned usually the strays would have dirty and muck allover there fur and paws covered in mud and the toxic rock salt solutions that have. Been used to prevent ice from covering the streets..

Eventually the kids then towards him with big hopeful eyes and says can't we keep them can't you take care of them I mean you said you just got a new safe house for everyone and that weird guy with the suit has been helping you take care of us we promise we'd train them well and keep them happy and fed and we'll walk them every day before and after school, WE COULD EVEN TRAIN THEM TO HELP YOU TAKE OUT BAD GUYS ESPECIALLY IF ANYMORE MEAN MEN COME AFTER US AGAIN...

Jason is taken aback he's never been in this situation before hell he can't even imagine Bruce or even Alfred in this situation he tried to think of what they'd do if faced with this decision but honestly both those options felt incredibly heartless, with a sigh he slowly pulled out his vigilante specific phone and looked at the weather for this week of Gotham and when he found that it'll be below freezing temperatures he found he couldn't say no at least not tonight, and maybe this could teach them some responsibility, but now here's the trouble what does he do if they decide they want the same pet he can't imagine theyd be willing to share one and animals tended to choose there owners as well ..

Eventually hood just sighed and goes alright guys you may take them inside get them warmed up and I'll see about getting some animal food and dog beds and blankets as well as cat toys, at least for this week since this whole week it'll be below freezing temperatures, beyond that I'm not sure if this is a good idea we're already on thin ice as it is especially with Gotham child services if they think for even a second any of you are living in filth with no supervision with an animal at that, one that could be labeled as dangerous or disease ridden I'm not sure that even Harvey would be able to bail us out this time so I want everyone to treat the next two weeks as a trial run show me your all adult enough to handle pet ownership, we're not putting them back out on the streets and we're definitely not going to allow anyone putting them to sleep if we cannot keep them i don't want any of you to be worried about that."

"Suzy you've recently been diagnosed with asthma and whole I have had you tested for allergies and it's all come back negative I want you to understand that in some people animal hair/fur can trigger your asthma quite badly, if that starts to happen I'd unfortunately be forced to take it away and re-home it and I'm not saying this to be cruel I'm saying this so you understand that your health is more important than owning a pet even if we love them dearly, though if that's the case whoever we rehome it to I'll ensure you'll be able to visit from time to time alright".

Each kid scoops up an animal one of which manages to pick up a fairly big pitbull and awkwardly waddles up the apartment complex stairs every now and. Again tilting ever so slightly to the side due to the weight of the animal meanwhile the entire time the dog seems to be happily drooling with it's great big pink tongue hanging out, a bunch of the younger kids have chosen to take in the kittens who seemed to be at least a year old, he's seen enough of Catwoman tending to stray cats over the years to recognize the older cats from the younger ones, one kid in particular seemed to have a fluffy bunny in one arm and a pug in the other, vaguely Jason felt as if he just opened a can of worms he was not qualified to deal with.. As the last of the kids and pets went inside he heard a crunching come from behind but when he turned around he saw no one

"Hey Todd it seems your delinquents have found my friends, I was taking them out for some air but they got away from me and when I was about to go out and look for them father had informed me that there's a new case he must work on and while he does so he needed me to patrol with dick, I had each of them chipped with my own specially designed microchips and tracked them to this location and I noticed your delinquents have taken a liking to them, maybe we can come to an acceptable agreement, your delinquents may keep and even care for my friends in exchange you allow me to teach them about the animals and proper animal handling and maybe this way they'll finally learn some culture, and you don't tell father I was bringing more friends to the manor".

"first off stop calling them delinquents they're good people, not soldiers, not delinquents, and most definitely not unworthy simply because they were born of lessor means, you don't see me dick or Bruce calling you an irredeemable monster that only cares for perfection simply because ra's is your grandfather, I thought you would've known better by now especially living In a place like Gotham and interacting with the people here, maybe Bruce has already failed you if this is how you see others of lesser means, I'm sure he'd be disappointed and so wouldn't dick".

...

Damian is caught off guard by how valiantly passionate Jason sounds when talking of those of lessor means, Damian did feel a bit of shame wash over him for calling the kids delinquents but how could he not feel this way they were all covered in dirt and muck and seemed to do nothing all day but chasing after an idiot like the red hood and not taking any real interest in creating a lasting legacy, or taking proper. Care if there appearances, it was barbaric how carefree they were running around, showing all those emotions, that was a weakness, a thing that could easily be exploited and used against you why couldn't they see that, why couldn't they see by openly running wild they were leaving themselves open to be hurt, it's dangerous to be this loud to take up this much space, they lacked discipline and-,..

Jason noticed that Damian's mood seemed to have changed from snarky know it all to his fake Bruce face the type of face Bruce would use when he's thinking really hard about a case but can't seem to quite crack the puzzle, and the type that usually resulted in bruce pulling out his own hair due to the stress and trauma, honestly in this moment Damian looked like a blank sheet in a sense facially it's a face he's seen before on other league members when a single free thought or word out of turn would lead to a severe physical punishment.

Finally Damian looked up almost looking like a sad scared child honestly like Jason probably did when Bruce first found him all those years ago stealing tires off the batmobile, and running around the streets,

"Todd I... Apologize, the- .. your acquaintances aren't delinquents, but they are disorganized, and it's barbaric, I am concerned that them being so open will only lead them to painful lessons later on if they're not careful, though I see now it is not my place to intervene or say as much, but I'd still really like to teach them how to properly take care of my friends I also have treats for them"-..

"it's fine, you may teach them how to care for the animals if you wish, but please try not to go on for hours about the history of how they got here or there ancestors, they're not like you, so keep it simple at least at first and then if they have questions answer them as they arrive, they don't have access to real school or top educations like you or dick did, what they learn is mainly thanks to me and Alfred and a program that's slowly being implemented by the locals around here, alot of them are former teachers, midwives, ECT before they had to quit there jobs or leave due to active threats to they're safety, and they're helping us establish a small school for basic education and educational skills they'll need later in life, also I'd like for you to be prepared as they may make fun of the way you speak and your accent as there's not alot of people around here that speak like you".

[lampochkaart]

1, 2, 3, 7, 8, 18, 19 and 20 for Kokichi for the character ask??? (Sorry if that's too many haha)

Woah, so many! Okay, okay, I don't mind👀

1. Why do you like or dislike this character?

I love him so much!! I really love how complex he is, how incredible charismatic and fun he is, how fucking smart he is... And I also love how flawed and biased he is. And how cynical and stubborn he is.

I absolutely LOVE the characters that are right and wrong at the same time. Kokichi often says something that is technically right, but at the same time his judgement is very flawed so it's impossible to completely agree with him. Or he's trying to do something good but the way he's doing it is... not great. Or has a good intentions but is being a complete asshole about it.

Like, for example, the situation with Maki. Yes, it's a good thing that he warned everyone about an assassin since they're in a killing game. But also he was trying to separate her from the group and kept needling her even when she wasn't showing any agression to others (and also she had plenty oportunities to kill, but made no move to do it). Only willing to see her as a threat.

And, of course, he's also a very tragic character. What's even worse is that most of it is self inflicted. He isolates, he turns people against himself, he cuts off every possible friendly connection he had. He spends so much time investigating, coming up with plans. And dies in a horrible painful way for the sake of a plan. The plan that didn't work. And he lied to such an extent that people doubted even the sincerity of his last words. Absolutely soul crushing (and body crushing SORRY)

10/10 angst, my heart is in pieces💔

He's both funny and entertaining and also very tragic and I love him for it

2. Favorite canon thing about this character?

Hmm... Hard to only choose one

Probably his insane acting abilities. How much he's able to control his emotions, how fast can he switch from one to another. How he's able to keep his face no matter how he feels

3. Least favorite canon thing about this character?

Difficult question, because I really like him. Even (especially) with his flaws

Uhhh... His bad CGs maybe? It's more of a problem with V3 in general (although some CGs from other games also have problems). But I'm just thinking about those ones from after trial 4 and they... look very weird. It might be becuase V3's production was rushed, but still

Other that that it's what I'm talking about in 19th question

7. What's something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you like?

8. What's something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you despise?

I'm gonna answer these two questions in a different ask since it would probably be pretty long answer and this post is already long enough

18. How about a relationship they have in canon with another character that you admire?

Oh, I'll take this as an invitation to ramble about Kokichi and Kaito!! >:]

I think Kaito and Kokichi's relationship is probably the most interesting in the game. They are polar opposites. They are two sides of the same coin. The are narrative foils.

It's so facinating to see their opposite ideologies clash. Kaito is an idealistic optimist, who wants to play the role of a hero, who values emotions over logic, who's willing to believe at someone simply because he wants to. Kokichi is a cynical pessimist, who likes playing the villain, who values logic over emotion, and who would rather lie, than let people get close to him.

Because of that they constantly get into arguements. And they're totally baffled by each other. Before they never met anyone like that, probably haven't even considered people like this real. How could someone be so cynical and distrusting? How could someone be so naive and trusting? They just can't understand each other's point of view because it's so different from their own. And that's just so fun to watch

But at the same time... They are very similar. Both of them are liars. Both of them are upholding an image, presenting themselves stronger than they are. Both are social, like to be around people. Both like to have fun. Both like to tell crazy stories. Both sometimes act "immature".

And also I like this little fact that a lot of Kaito's loved items are Kokichi's liked items and a lot of Kokichi's loved items are Kaito's liked items. So they even have a lot of shared interests!

It's very entertaining to watch them get into conflicts with each other. And it's because of all their antagonism throughout the game, that it's so cool to see them work together in Ch.5.

They're forced in a fucked up hopeless situation and they do their best to make the most use of it. They have a common goal: to end the killing game. So they put aside their differences and work together. They see each other in their most vulnerable moments. They hate it, but there's no way to avoid it. They put their trust in eachother. They switch roles. But at the same time the roles don't change. Kaito becomes a liar (but he was always one). Kokichi becomes a martyr (but he was always going to do that).

I love 5th case because it's not a murder out of malice, not a murder to get our and not an accident. It's an act of trust. They both put trust in each other. Even though they were pretty much enemies for a good part of the game! They both know they're dying. They both know that there's a high risk of the plan failing. But they still choose to do it. For a small chance of success. For a small chance of a happy ending. Not for themselves, but for their friends.

In my opinion Kaito and Kokichi have one of the most interesting relationships in DR. And I firmly believe that to understand one of them, you have to understand the other. Only then it's possible to see the full picture.

19. How about a relationship they have in canon that you don't like?

Kokichi's relationship with Kiibo. He's just constantly picking on him for no reason. The bit quickly becomes too repetetive and just unnecessary mean. Also to me it feels that a lot of things Kokichi does should have some kind of meaning behind them (sometimes even several layers of meaning). So I would've kinda expected that since Kokichi's doing this so persistently, he's trying to do something. Like maybe he's somehow trying to push Kiibo to accept his unique abilities and powers. And while that maaaybe kinda can be interpreted like Kokichi is doing it in the most weird awkward way possible. But still, it's a pretty big stretch. Without any actual payoff it's just Kokichi being mean to Kiibo and that's it. Just bullying the poor robot who wants to be treated normally

They could be friends if Kokichi was nicer to Kiibo. And I would really like them to be friends...

20. Which other character is the ideal best friend for this character, the amount of screentime they share doesn't matter?

GONTA!!!

Kokichi's friendship with Gonta is so so important to me!!

I don't know, I just think it would be so nice if Kokichi would hang out with Gonta and listen to him talk about bugs even though he hates bugs. And if Gonta would participate in Kokichi's pranks. I just like to think they would have fun together. They could've been such an cool duo if they weren't in a shitty stressful situation.

I like Kokichi being friends with Miu and potentially with Rantaro and with Kaito, but Kokichi's friendship with Gonta holds a special place in my heart<3

Thank you for the ask!!<333

[scribefindegil]

I love love love when there are two characters who have nothing in common except their shared undying devotion to a different character. Working together not because they care about each other but because they both care about this other character SO MUCH. Relationship defined by intense devotion but not to each other. It's sooooo tasty give me one million versions of this please.

[fairyroses]

He was about to kill you, Lex. Or divulge something you didn't want me to know.

— SMALLVILLE, "Forever" (4.21)

+ bonus from "Arctic" (7.20):

[ratislatis]

I'll find you. Wait for me.

hee hee hoo hoo AUUUUGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH PAIN PAIN SUFFERING PAIN IN ALL DIRECTIONS!!!! TO HELL WITH IT (LITERALLY)!!!!!!!!!