#and not to be mean or anything because it's makes me sad too but i think that if there's like cameos of the OG characters

[icarusredwings]

Do you guys ever think about dementia Charles seeing Pietro and getting sad or becoming really happy because his poor mind connects the dots that he's Erik? It dosn't compute that this wouldn't be Erik because hes too young to be Erik rather assuming that he is young Erik and not exactly having the logic to understand that they are so differently aged.

"Oh! My old friend, you've gotten a haircut. Quite bold of you. It makes you look much younger."

".. yeah, yeah, old man.." he mutters, trying to avoid him best he can, but sometimes, when the others are busy, he can't stand to leave him alone. Coming to sit with him just to litsen to him gab about random nonsense, talking so fondly about his X-men and memories dear to him.

"Do you remember?"

"Do I remember what?"

"When Jean got her first bad grade and she cried to you about how cruel I was to her." He chuckles softly. "And all she got was a B-"

Pietro stares at him like he's crazy. Jean cried to his father? But why? He had his own children to take care of. So why would he treat her like that? It makes him a bit angry. "No.. I don't. What else?"

"Hm?"

"What else happened? With jean and my da- erm. Me."

"I believe it's Jean and I." He corrects his grammer, making the younger man roll his eyes in annoyance. Once a professor always a professor I guess.

"Sure. Jean and I.."

"You acussed me of being too hard on her, but when I explained it, you laughed... I haven't seen you laugh like that in so long.." It's sort of now that Charles remembers what's going on. Who he's talking to.

"..Im sorry. Who are you again?"

"Well you like to call me speedster."

"Pft. No I do not. Mr. Maximoff.. you've grown so big since the last time ive seen you."

'You just saw me yesterday' he thinks but makes that awkward smile and nods. "Yup.."

"Youll have to forgive me. Im not always.... here."

"I know.. are you alright?"

He shrugs in his chair. "About as alright as anyone could be in my situation." Ah yes. The paralyzed old bald man who was losing his mind still had jokes. Funny. But sad. He remembered him being so similar and yet.. so different.

It's not long before Jean comes to give him his medicine again, convincing him that it was for the kid's saftey. "You don't want to hurt them. Do you, Charles?"

"No... but I'm not that gone yet. I can decide when it's best to take my medication."

She smiles so sweetly at him. "Professor, you made this time schedule yourself. Im just doing what you told me. You always knew best for us."

"Oh.. well, alright then."

Before Jean can walk away, He stares at her.

"....Why did my father like you?"

"Excuse me?"

"Charles... he said.." He trails off, not sure how to say it without talking too quickly.

"He said you cried to my father. And.. he defended you."

Jean tilts her head. "I wouldn't say defended. I was just a child having a fit." She admits then shifts, looking at the walls as if remembering.

".. He was here a lot.. and then he just.. stopped coming. Im sorry. I don't know why. Like I said I was just-"

"Didyoureadhismind?"

"Uhm.. just a couple times."

"Jean used to con you into getting her ice cream." Charles smiles, closing his eyes, reminiscing.

"He.. got you ice cream?"

Jean's not dumb. She understands his frustrations, glancing at the old man and then to Pietro again. "Like I said.. I was just a kid.. I was just excited to be able to use my powers. I didn't mean anything by it. I didn't even know he had other children."

"...He never got us ice cream.. he didn't even bother sign my birth certificate.."

"Im sorry, Peter... Professor? Tonights dinner is potatoes gravy turkey with apple sauce. Remys making it so it might be a little spicy."

"Oh, that's alright. He means well. Erm.. thats the blue one right?"

Jean snorts. "No Professor. He's the card one."

"Oooh yes. Reeemmyy... right." He says his name slowly as if trying to connect 'the card one' to 'Remy' in his brain.

"...Bye Peter." She says, now awkwardly leaving.

"Remys that rat from the cooking movie" Pietro whispers and Charles' eyebrows raise. "Ahhh! Remy! That's right."

He might be an x-men. But he could still pull a little evil here and there.

[dissapointu]

For all the arcane characters.

Their s/o stood from them with a distant look well our body seems.. tense as well from they're perspective we almost like a statue. "S/o? what's wrong, love?" They asked almost like they were gonna reach out to 'comforted' us.

"I can't do this, this is too much" their s/o muttered while leaning or even stepping away from them, we seem.. almost scared or maybe petrified as we cover our eyes. Peeking though our fingers locking eyes with them with a look of fear or terror.

Basically write how their reaction to their s/o seems standoffish towards them or even afraid to look at them without a terror look in their eyes 🙏😔 (something they did made us afraid of them-)

OKAY ANGST QUEENS (AND KINGS), WE’RE GOING IN. how the Arcane squad reacts when their s/o looks at them like they’re the villain in the story (even though they probably kinda are, let’s be real).

Jinx

“Wait. WAIT. Don’t do that.” Her voice wavers, panic setting in like a storm cloud. Jinx is jittery now, her hands twitching by her sides because she doesn’t know what to do. “I didn’t mean to scare you, okay?! I’m not—I’m not gonna hurt you.”

She tries to laugh it off, but it’s hollow, her eyes darting everywhere except at yours. “You’re messing with me, right? This is a joke?” But when you don’t laugh, she freezes, like all the gears in her brain just stopped turning. “Please don’t look at me like that…” Her voice cracks, soft and broken. She’s shrinking into herself, more scared of you leaving than she’s ever been of anything.

Vi

Vi stops mid-step, hands raised slightly like she’s trying not to spook you further. “Hey, hey, it’s me,” she says, her voice softer than you’ve ever heard. Her brow furrows, and she looks so lost. “What’s going on? What did I do?”

When you step back, her heart breaks a little more, but she doesn’t move closer. “I don’t get it—why are you acting like I’m gonna hurt you?” Her voice catches, and for a second, she looks like she might cry, but she quickly shakes it off. “Just… talk to me, alright? Whatever I did, I’ll fix it. Just don’t…” She swallows hard. “Don’t be scared of me.”

Sevika

Sevika’s expression hardens the moment she sees you flinch. Not because she’s mad at you, but because she’s furious with herself. “…What the hell did I do this time?” she mutters, more to herself than you.

She takes a step forward but stops when you lean away. “Alright, I get it,” she says, her voice rough but quieter than usual. “But don’t think for a second I wanted this.” There’s a flicker of something vulnerable in her eyes as she runs a hand through her hair, looking away. “You don’t have to be scared of me. I’d never—I mean, I can’t—” She exhales sharply, cutting herself off. “Just tell me how to fix it.”

Silco

Silco’s entire body goes still, his hand freezing mid-reach. “…Is that fear I see in your eyes?” he asks, his voice low and controlled, but there’s a sharp edge to it—like it hurts more than he’s willing to admit.

He straightens up, letting his hand fall to his side. “I see,” he murmurs, his tone almost cold, but his expression betrays him. There’s a flicker of something soft, almost regretful, in his gaze. “Whatever I’ve done to frighten you… I’ll correct it. But you must tell me what it is.” He steps back, giving you space, though it clearly pains him. “I won’t hurt you. Surely, you know that.”

Vander

Vander’s heart sinks the second he sees the look on your face. “Hey, now,” he says gently, his voice thick with worry. “What’s wrong? What happened?”

When you flinch away, he freezes, his hands hovering awkwardly. “…Did I do somethin’? Whatever it is, I didn’t mean to.” His voice cracks, and he looks so… sad. “You’re scared of me?” He takes a slow step back, running a hand down his face. “I never wanted this. Just tell me how to make it right.”

Ekko

Ekko’s face drops like a stone. “Wait, what? What did I do?” His voice is a mix of confusion and panic, and he steps back instinctively, his hands raised.

“C’mon, you know me. I wouldn’t—I couldn’t hurt you.” He’s practically begging now, his eyes wide and pleading. “Just tell me what’s wrong. Please. I’ll fix it, I swear. Just… don’t be scared of me like that.”

Jayce

Jayce’s entire face falls, his usual confidence crumbling in an instant. “What… What do you mean, you can’t do this?” he asks, his voice soft and shaky.

When you step away, his hands drop to his sides, and he looks like a lost puppy. “I don’t understand. What did I do?” He’s desperate for an answer, but he doesn’t want to push you further. “Whatever it is, I’ll fix it. Just don’t look at me like that, okay?”

Viktor

Viktor’s eyes widen, and he takes a cautious step back, his cane tapping softly on the floor. “Please… tell me what’s wrong,” he says, his voice barely above a whisper.

When you cover your eyes, he feels like he’s been stabbed in the chest. “If I’ve done something to frighten you, I assure you it was unintentional.” His words are careful, measured, but there’s a faint tremor in his voice. “I would never hurt you. Please, believe me.”

Caitlyn

Caitlyn’s breath catches in her throat, and she freezes mid-step. “…Darling?” she says softly, her tone full of worry. “What’s going on? What did I do?”

When you refuse to meet her eyes, she looks like she’s on the verge of tears. “You know I’d never hurt you, right?” Her voice wavers, and she steps back, giving you space. “Please, just tell me what I did wrong. I can’t fix this if I don’t know.”

Mel Medarda

Mel’s calm facade cracks immediately, her eyes widening in genuine surprise. “I see,” she says softly, stepping back to give you space. “You’re afraid of me.”

Her voice is steady, but there’s a hint of pain beneath her composed exterior. “I didn’t mean to frighten you. I only want to protect you. But if I’ve overstepped…” She trails off, folding her hands tightly to keep herself from reaching for you. “I’ll make it right. Somehow.”

Ambessa Medarda

Ambessa’s jaw tightens, and she lets out a sharp exhale. “So that’s how you see me now,” she says, her voice low and gruff.

But when she sees the terror in your eyes, her expression softens, and she takes a deliberate step back. “I didn’t mean to scare you,” she says, almost grumbling like it’s hard for her to admit. “But if I did, then I’ve failed you. Tell me what I can do to fix this.”

Cecil B. Heimerdinger

“Oh, my stars!” Heimerdinger exclaims, his ears drooping as he takes a step back. “Have I done something to upset you? Please, do tell me!”

He looks absolutely heartbroken, wringing his tiny hands together as he tries to figure out how to make things right. “I would never wish to cause you distress. Please, let me help!”

Salo

Salo frowns deeply, his usually cocky demeanor dropping instantly. “You’re scared of me?” he asks, his voice quiet and unsure.

He steps back, his hands clenched at his sides. “I didn’t mean to—whatever I did, I didn’t mean it. Just tell me how to fix it, okay?”

Scar

Scar looks stunned, her mouth opening and closing like she doesn’t know what to say. “Wait, hold up. What did I do?”

She looks genuinely hurt but tries to play it cool. “I didn’t mean to scare you. You know that, right?” Her voice is quieter now, almost pleading.

Maddie Nolen

Maddie freezes, her smile dropping in an instant. “What? Babe, no—what’s wrong?”

She takes a cautious step back, her eyes full of worry. “Whatever it is, I didn’t mean it. Please, just talk to me.”

Lest

Lest’s expression doesn’t change much, but her eyes darken with concern. “I see I’ve frightened you,” she says softly, her voice measured.

She steps back, giving you space. “That was never my intention. Please, tell me what I’ve done.”

TL;DR: Everyone’s reactions are basically “PANIC MODE ACTIVATED,” but in their own unique ways.

[dixons-sunshine]

Girl Of My Dreams | Van x Fem!Reader

Summary: After being away at college for a few months, you come home to find your boyfriend more than happy to see you. However, something triggers a string of insecure thoughts, and it’s up to Van to ensure you that you are the girl of his dreams.

Genre: Slightly angsty, but mainly fluff.

Warnings: Swearing, allusions to cheating (there isn’t any because Van would never.), insecurities.

Word count: 1.7k

A/N: Requested by @cordelhya. This is my very first time writing for Van, so I hope I did an okay job. I hope y’all like this!

A small shriek left your mouth at the sudden, unexpected contact from behind. You were lifted off your feet and spun around, that familiar melodic laugh filling the air, making you giggle as well. When you were finally lowered back down to the stableness of the earth, you turned around and locked eyes with those stunning, cerulean-coloured eyes of your boyfriend of almost two years, a breathtaking smile on his face.

Before you could say anything, he leaned down and captured your lips with his in a sweet, tender kiss, his large hands coming up to frame your face. You instantly reciprocated, looping your arms around his neck and kissing him softly. You nearly melted in his embrace, his familiar scent, his familiar touch, just him in general reminding you just how much you had missed him. How all those months away at college had proven that distance indeed makes the heart grow fonder.

You were the first to pull away. When you did, you smiled up at the blonde-haired man, admiring him up close for the first time in—what felt like—forever. God, how you had missed him.

“Van,” you said his name softly, one of your hands sliding up his neck to cup his cheeks.

Van smiled down at you as he instinctively leaned into your touch, his ocean-like eyes glimmering in the late morning sun. “Hey, Babe,” he greeted you in a voice just as soft, his hands moving down to settle on your hips. “Welcome back.”

You chuckled lightly at his words. “Thanks. It’s great to be back. I missed this place.” A beat of silence, before you continued. “I missed you.”

Van smiled softly at that. “I missed you, too. So much.”

Despite not really wanting to, Van stepped out of your embrace and instead extended his hand towards you, a silent offer for you to take it. When you did, he gently tugged you, making you fall into step beside him as the two of you began walking along the waterbed. The casualness of the small gesture made it feel like too much time and no time at all had passed.

“This place sucks without you, y’know,” Van commented, nudging your shoulder with his. “There’s only so much the rest of these lowlifes can do to keep me entertained when you’re not around. It gets lonely.”

Despite the joking tone he used, you knew that there was an underlying sadness to his words. It was no secret to you that Van longed to be able to do what you had done; go off to college, meet new people, make friends his age, and all the other things that came with being an independent young adult. But he could not. Or rather, he was not allowed to. His father needed him, and Van felt obligated to stay.

You called Van every night. He would reminisce about joining you at college, and even talked about enrolling to go with you next Fall. However, whether or not that would become a reality, you did not know.

You cleared your throat, hoping to make your tone as light and joking as your boyfriend’s. “I mean, I’m not surprised. I am pretty awesome.”

Van laughed and nodded. “Yeah, and not at all humble, it seems.”

“Why be humble when I know I’m amazing?” you joked, your heart thumping against your chest as you saw the beautiful smile you put on Van’s face. “It’s ridiculous.”

“You’re ridiculous,” he retorted playfully.

“Yeah, and yet you love me.”

“Eh, temporary fit of insanity. Some counseling and I’ll be fine.”

You giggled and shook your head. “Now who’s the ridiculous one?”

Van hummed, pretending to think about it, before smirking. “Still you.”

He laughed when you lightly shoved his shoulder, moving closer to press a quick kiss to your temple, before helping you up the step and onto the wooden platform. He led you to the few lawn chairs right on the edge of the dock, before settling down onto one of them and watching as you did the same.

“So, give me the rundown,” he began, lounging back in the chair. “How’s college.”

You shrugged. “It’s fine. Nothing to really complain about, other than the fact that I’m getting sick and tired of having to hear the people in the dorm next to mine going at it like fucking rabbits.”

“I think you mean “fucking like rabbits”,” he corrected you jokingly.

You chuckled and nodded. “Same thing.” You followed Van’s lead and settled against the chair, allowing the hot summer sun to bake down on you as you enjoyed the company of your boyfriend after so long of not seeing him. “What about you? How—”

“Van! Hey!”

The sound of a woman’s voice cut you off. Looking up, you saw a brunette, wearing a tight crop top and shorts so short that it left almost nothing to the imagination, approaching you and Van. Or, more so, just Van.

Van sent the woman a friendly smile, looking up at her through squinted eyes against the sun’s rays. “Allie, hi.”

“Hi,” she greeted him, a girlish giggle tumbling out of her plush, red lips. “Sorry to bother you when you’re hanging out with your friend, but I just wanted to ask—”

The woman’s voice slowly faded from your ears. A frown tugged at your eyebrows, and you focused on the wood of the chair instead of the woman and Van. Unwillingly, nasty, unwanted, miserable thoughts plagued your mind, and you had to resist the urge to just jump up and leave.

There was no denying that the woman Van was talking to was downright gorgeous. There was definitely also no denying that Van looked like he had been sculpted by Greek gods. Back in high school, all the girls had wanted him. You had been one of those girls not so long ago.

You never fully understood why Van had chosen you, but you chose to ignore that voice at the back of your head telling you that you did not deserve hm. However, as you watched Van interact with the woman, all those insecurities came flooding back.

You had been away at college for months. You had not come back home for Spring break, meaning that the last time Van had seen you was around Christmas. He went half a year without being able to see you. Half a year… That was an awfully long time, and anything could have happened in that time. Anything...

“Babe? Are you okay?”

The sound of Van’s voice snapped you from your agonizingly cruel thoughts. You snapped your head up and locked eyes with your boyfriend, and your heart almost melted at the concerned look on his face.

You swallowed at the lump in your throat and nodded slowly. “Yeah… Yeah, I’m fine.”

“Where’d you go?” he inquired, motioning over to his own head to show you that he was talking about where you had gone mentally.

You shook your head. “Nowhere great,” you admitted softly, your eyebrows furrowing together once more. You did not really want to voice your insecurities to Van, but you knew that communication was important, so it was better to get this out of the way than let it consume you from the inside out. “Just thinking…”

“’Bout what?” he asked, leaning forward to see you better.

“Just…” you trailed off, taking a deep breath before continuing. “We haven’t seen each other in a while, and I’ve heard from some of my friends that their long distance relationships didn’t work out because of, well, lying and—”

“Cheatin’?” Van finished for you, a look of understanding crossing his features. He sat up properly, swung his legs over the side of the chair, and leaned forward to take your hand in his. He rubbed his thumb over your knuckles soothingly, a look of sincerity on his face.

“First of all, don’t feel bad for bringing this up, okay?” When you nodded, he continued. “Okay. I understand where you’re comin’ from, and I don’t blame you for being scared about this. I know we haven’t been together in person for a while, but that did not change the fact that I love you, and only you. No other girl exists to me like that. I promise. When I’m lonely and I miss you, you know what I do?”

“What?” you asked softly.

Van reached into his pocket. He pulled out his wallet and flipped it open, before showing you the small picture in it; a picture of the two of you together, in a photo booth, smiling brightly at the camera. The picture had a few crinkles in it, showing that it had been handled multiple times.

“I look at this picture,” he replied, a small smile on his face. “I look at this picture, and I remind myself that the wait is worth it. That I’m gonna see you soon and that everythin’ will be better.” He closed his wallet and slipped it back into his pocket, before looking back at you again. “I don’t think you realize just how much I love you, Sweetheart. Why would I want to lose you, the girl of my dreams, because of some meaningless fling? Not only is that fuckin’ stupid, it’s goddamn mental. I mean, have you looked at yourself in the mirror lately? I wanna know what they feed you at that school because you look good enough to eat.”

You giggled lightly at his words. “Yeah?”

“Hell yeah,” he agreed without a second thought. “I wouldn’t be surprised if you’ve got every guy at that school wantin’ you. But for now, and as long as you will have me, you’ll be my girl, and I will be your guy. Nobody else matters. Okay?”

You nodded, a soft, genuine smile on your face. “Okay,” you whispered. “I love you, Van.”

“Love you too, Sweetheart.” A few moments of silence passed, before Van tugged you up from your chair.

“Where are we going?” you asked in confusion, but allowed him to lead you away.

Van sent you a look you knew all too well, a look that had a shiver rolling up your spine. “You were right, though. You have been away for a while. It’s been a while since I’ve been able to properly take care of you, and I’m plannin’ on correctin’ that.”

You laughed and shook your head. “Then take me home, Van.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

[avidhousehusband]

Listen. My love for post Canon fiddauthor is not because I don't like college era fiddauthor. On the contrary, part of why i love it is BECAUSE of college era fiddauthor. Because I relate so hard to it.

I met my wife in college. We did everything together. She stayed in my dorm room when things were bad, and we bonded over our weird little interests between classes.

But we didn't date. For years. I loved her, desperately, and she loved me, but we didn't know that. We didn't think we could pursue those things. We were both in the worst years of our lives. (And I was a sad closeted bastard who was too afraid.) So we took care of each other any way we could without owning up to anything.

Even afterwards, for years we were roommates, in our tiny apartment. Shopping together, eating together, doing everything together. I was there with her when things got bad in the middle of the night, and she was there with me when I finally lopped off 30 inches of hair, and started T.

It took a lot of scary shit happening for us to realize what we were hiding.

So here we are. Married for 4 years now. We could have been happy and started healing back when we first met, but we weren't ready.

She wasn't ready when she was fresh out of the marine corps with the motorcycle and the hip flask, working as a bouncer for a shitty music venue.

I wasn't ready when I was dirt broke, working ring crew for wrestling shows on the weekends, as janitor at night, and barely making it through college as a closeted cadet by day.

But, like post Canon fiddauthor, we have now. Things didn't work out when we were young,

My wife has her first gray hairs, lingering pains from the hard years, but she's an academic, pursuing a masters degree, and building a career that she loves.

I'm balding, don't have a relationship with my family, and I'm starting to get lines from age, but I get good sleep, I spend every day with my best friend, and I have the opportunity to grow into an old man, something I never thought possible.

Long post, but fiddauthor means the actual world to me. It's why I hone in on it so much. It shows that you can still figure it out. That just because you stutter step in your youth doesn't mean your life's done.

[faiell]

yapping about fics and commenting

sorry to yap but work is boring today and tumblr isn't blocked on my work computer LOL

ok it's abt that post where the writer friend stopped writing because they weren't getting the comments/kudos they wanted.

i'm like. an overeager fandom person. like i cannot get into a fandom without wanting to meet new people and make friends. i love yapping about whatever silly gay idiots i'm hyperfixating over. i'm all about community, and sharing the joy of fandom, and all that fun positive stuff.

i don't post my art for stats but like. that means nothing coming from me tbh. i get stats. i can't accurately predict what would happen if i stopped getting notes on my art, but i would probably keep drawing and keep posting, just maybe less confidently, and less often. i recognize that stats make it much easier and while it’s not my primary motivation, it definitely motivates me to keep posting.

and yet. for years, i never commented on fic. i think i left kudos? and i saw posts like this all the time about how writers were so sad they didn't get comments. and i would feel super guilty about it all the time. but i still wouldn't do it! it sounds stupid, but i would feel pressured. if i liked a fic a lot, it felt even more difficult to comment, because i thought i would have to somehow give back to the author everything that fic gave to me. i wanted to craft the perfect comment that could perfectly encapsulate everything a fic made me feel. and that was way too much pressure so i would just not say anything.

when i got into drarry, i started reading a shit ton of fic. and i still wouldn't comment. i left maybe... 2 or 3 comments, maybe, i think. i can't remember. but i had a lot to say and i WANTED the writers to hear that i had read it and liked it. i just... didn't comment! u know what i did instead? i just fucking straight up DM'd writers on discord and started gushing to them that i liked their fic. somehow i was confident enough to do that, but writing a comment still felt like too much pressure. ?? i don't understand it either, but in my head it felt like a writing assignment, but when I was in DMs it felt more like a conversation and so there wasn't any pressure to make it "good"? idk!! it's very weird.

then i wrote and posted my first complete fic. just a oneshot, nothing special, and i was like. UNREASONABLY nervous about posting it. like. i am a confident person, okay? i was going to make a burner AO3 account and post it under a different name so nobody would know it was me, and then never mention it to anyone except MAYBE super close friends. i got talked out of doing that (thanks i feel a bit silly about considering that now). and then i received my first comment on it, which was basically a two-liner where someone said they liked it and thanked me for writing it.

and i was like. ??...?????? ???????? ...??!!! because i felt like... uncontainable glee? i was freakishly happy. the amount of serotonin those two sentences gave me was definitely unnatural.

is that healthy? idk. will it continue? idk. LOL. i hope so? but idk, some people said it wears off if you write/post for a while. but whatever, the fact that one little comment like that could make my entire day blew my mind. tbh i thought writers were just exaggerating when they said stuff like that.

ever since then i started leaving comments! that shit's easy! like what was i overthinking for? i'm such a fucking tryhard! all i gotta say is that i liked it, and even the bare minimum can bring lots of joy to someone.

so basically what im trying to say is that negative reinforcement doesn't do shit!! it just makes people feel bad about themselves. that post is nasty for guilt-tripping readers like that, and i bet you it's going to have the opposite effect (or no effect tbh).

YAPPING FINISHED. for now.

[pinkandpurple360]

I wouldn't blame anyone for finding Look My Way too Stolas-sympathetic and weepy but honestly I think on the whole it's way better than most of the songs he gets in the show

and that's because it actually has a narrative arc to it. Stolas reflects on his life, realizes he is the problem between him and Blitzo, actually shows some empathy for the armor Blitzo has developed as a result of being impoverished, then decides on an action: making amends for making Blitzo a means to an end. and it retains his original classist character by having the impish plaything line that the show whitewashed over

it still has the same problem anything Stolas related does in that it's hard to care about his repeated pleas for Blitzo to look his way, but it's a far more concise view of him as a character and crucially he actually shows some ability to self reflect in it and then take action based on his conclusions

ParanoidDJ released the original after ep6 but honestly it would fit perfectly in the show after ep7, where Stolas comes back in from the party. instead of getting drunk, maybe he stops and makes himself think about where things went wrong

instead the songs he has in the show are

Stolas Sings - immediately implies Blitzo lied to him, so no self reflection or introspection. It's set up he'll go to get a crystal but that isn't referenced in the lyrics, it's just a split second freeze frame when he chucks his book into view of the camera which is bad storytelling. It's all self focused self pity - he's the victim and that's that. no sign of care for what he's done to Blitzo or Via unlike Look My Way.

All 2 U - a breakup reflection where he does no self reflection or introspection. blames Blitzo for stuff he did (let him get too close/go on too long/fell too far). all self focused self pity - he's the victim and that's that

duet number - does say he maybe did something wrong, but it only counts if Blitzo didn't actually want him (then when Blitzo confirms that, he proceeds to...show no self reflection or introspection - just he's the victim and that's that, you get the idea)

the show numbers not only fail to move the plot forward, they don't move Stolas' character forward at all. Look My Way really sticks out as one of his numbers because it's basically the only one where he does explicitly say 'I'm in the wrong and need to fix things' where in the show it's always 'maybe I did something wrong, maybe, but you hurt me so you're more wrong and I'm putting off doing any self reflection on what my issues are until Tuesday - when I'll put it off again'.

he's far more proactive in LMW too - he doesn't sound like he'll just give up on making amends at the first failure. meanwhile Show Stolas has done only two proactive things when it comes to Blitzo onscreen: making the deal and breaking the deal. both things were done for his own benefit and he's now back to being passive and expecting Blitzo to be the one to come crawling back to court him even though Blitzo has every reason to think he moved on with the succubus dude to spite him in particular

This moment here

It wasn’t him feeling some guilt/remorse for how obnoxious and forceful he behaved, or sympathy for Blitzs unhappiness. He is thinking “Aww….he doesn’t love me, that makes me so sad. Poor me. I deserve love. I just want a lover.”

Well anon, the simple explanation LMW stolas is so different…..is, Vivienne/Sam Haft didn’t write that. They both do think stolas is the more innocent and more victimised party. That’s why before Full Moons confrontation, stolas has sung not one, not two but three sad ballads about his soft boy romantic feelings. And it’s why stolas’ personality was changed drastically between his nasty truth seekers self to his Ozzies bleeding heart self. To make you forget his 1-6 self ever happened and pity him.

While blitz was only allowed to smirk and make sex jokes in a verse of stolas’ third sad song. With the intent of making him look like the “real” pervert with a cold black heart. His verse in when I see him was intended by Sam to set up “that your first instinct is that it’s always (gasp) about sex (closes eyes solemnly)” line. Stolas is allowed to have an inner monologue, desires, worries, regrets and hopes. Blitz is only allowed say “fuck” “penis” and “im traumatised”** with an asterisk saying that makes him an asshole and not “baby” stolas’ fault. Spoken to you in apology tour dialogue delivered by the lovely: Vivienne Mayday aka Verosika Medrano.

Viv didn’t write look my way, and disagrees with the narrative.

She hates Octavia for not being more grateful to her father and thinks stolas deserves to be free from being her parent. So took his line about her out of the song. Twitter emboldened her to go through with this belief. So she took her line out of LMW.

She hates blitz for disliking upper classes, implies he’s “just like a supremacist” against princes for it. I think this also came from Twitter. You are NOT allowed to point out the racism of stolas or you’ll be branded a striker sympathiser.

She agrees with stolas fans that the real reason blitz doesn’t trust stolas’ gifts with no catch is nothing to do with stolas’ previous exploitative transactional actions….it is….because of his own mean imp father? Because Cash taught him love is transaction. A very convenient excuse Viv absorbed again, from Twitter and YouTube.

Cuz….it was cash. Not the sexual extorter who held his job over his head. That’s his soulmate cause owls only mate once via eye contact and die of broken hearts if they can’t have their mate forever. His 25 year long lust for someone he only knew as a child isn’t weird at all wdym. In fact all the bad stuff is Blitzs fault.

She absorbed all of this nonsense from Twitter takes, specifically the stolas stans, because she thinks putting fandom talking points into canon is a safe bet. The actual story is out the window, there isn’t one.

See how letting the stolas fandom twitter write your story for you makes for a biased fucked up victim blaming story that coddles a sexual abuser with “involuntarily celibate” arguments?

When she makes stolas reflect and take accountability, the reaction she wants you to have is “Poor baby stolas blames himself which shows what a good little boy he is! Even though nothing is ever his fault!” She just wanted to make money off of someone else’s work.

[jonathan-cranes-mistress-of-fear]

Genuine question, as someone who has characters of my own: how do I get over my embarrassment for having OC’s? I’d never make fun of someone for having them, but whenever it comes across my dash (especially if it’s ship art) I can’t help but… (for lack of a better word), cringe. I love people being creative but it feels like I can’t get over the backlash against things like that.

It's something you have to unlearn, and that's not always easy. I think as a whole, most fandoms are not OC friendly unless it's something like a videogame in which you create the main character from scratch. Most people will stick to already established characters, because that's easy to write. Very few are brave enough to make their own story.

Firstly, l'm going to discuss comics, this is a world of many worlds. DC as example has so many universes, and there's no way I could name them all. I think many of them are numbered, and fans who create their own usually make a numbered or named verse. Like, Codotverse! (if Codot can put his whole voice out there, you can do it too, btw)

Personally, I think the open ended-ness of comic worlds is a positive for fandom. It makes it so anyone can tell a story and despite it being fannon, it's really no less canon than what's in between the pages. Comic writers themselves can't get things straight half the time, heck I've been known to nit pick comics because they forget some fact about Jonathan that SHOULD be well known.

Now, lets talk OCs. The fact is, and this probably sounds mean, people would rather read about Scarecrow or Riddler then -insert Hench character for shipping here-

The reason is as stated above, it's easier to get into. They know what to expect. And unless this OC is someone you've been talking about for years and they have curated their own mini fandom within the fandom, most ARE gonna scroll by. That's sad, I know.

BUT that doesn't mean you should quit or be embarrassed about an OC. People can come to love them, but this usually takes effort and dedication on your part. You are the one and only author and content creator of this OC. Nobody else is gonna make content for them without insensitive. That means you gotta talk talk talk, and draw draw draw, then write write write. MAKE them care. People can very easily come to love and OC,. and i know this for a fact because I used to have my own and I always got asks, people wanted to draw them, or write stories, etc.

The thing is, you gotta embrace being potentiality embarrassing. If you don't take a step forward and put yourself out there, who will? This sounds very internal for you, and it's literally something that is taught to the youngins of fandom very quickly. Fandom, as a whole (think big here) will squash or despise anything that isn't palatable. And what is palatable? that changes often. Usually, fandom is a progressive space but that doesn't mean each and every sect doesn't have issues. Big issues that are spread between a lot of fandoms include misogyny and fetishization. This is why you sometimes see creators and fandom goers attacking canon female love interests and OCs. This is also why you see a huge influx of men being shipped together and any mention of either man loving or having a relationship with a woman is often erased. These two things go hand in hand quiiiite a lot actually. Just, a thing to watch out for and think critically about.

In the end, it boils down to making your audience care amongst a sea of easy to read and already palatable content. You gotta swim against the current. Make a space for yourself, provide something that doesn't exist yet. (for me, it was hi res comic scans)

Basically, don't let the haters win.

[beardedmrbean]

[Huey Zoomer Anon]

“If the department of education is destroy, kids won’t read!”-BITCH THE RUNNING JOKE IN THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY IS THAT AMERICANS ARE SO STUPID BECAUSE HOW SHIT OUR LITERACY RATES AND CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS ARE THE WORST IN THE FIRST WORLD!

Tumblr have a lot of people from different parts of the world here…but you seen how dense they are to basically storytelling!

I mean since l was 13 and got into stories discourse I go “How the fuck you got THAT interpretation?”

Than it got much worse…seriously these cannot handle complex shit

Also the department of education doesn’t mean it a free for all. And while it was bad with unhinged millennials on social media in the 2010’s

My generation comprehension skills makes me go “KILL THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TRUMP, AVENGE THOSE WHO WAS MADE STUPID BY IT! SAVE THE GEN ALPHA!”

It not going to be a mad max free for all y’all…but would love not to have 54% of the population unable to read past, 5th or 6th grade? Seriously how are we so stupid?

“If the department of education is destroy, kids won’t read!”-BITCH THE RUNNING JOKE IN THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY IS THAT AMERICANS ARE SO STUPID BECAUSE HOW SHIT OUR LITERACY RATES AND CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS ARE THE WORST IN THE FIRST WORLD!

There's a whole lot of irony involved in saying so many Americans are stupid and thinking we should keep the DOE which has been around long enough for us to be able to chart the downward direction we've gone in education since it was put into place.

Sometimes you have to try something different, because what's going on now is obviously not working.

Tumblr have a lot of people from different parts of the world here…but you seen how dense they are to basically storytelling! I mean since l was 13 and got into stories discourse I go “How the fuck you got THAT interpretation?” Than it got much worse…seriously these cannot handle complex shit

Sad part is even when things are spelled out for people they still don't get it at times.

That and things like people saying that Tolkien's works aren't Christian despite the man saying that yes they're Christian, or the students arguing with Ray Bradbury about the interpretation of his own book and telling him, the author, that he was wrong.

The arrogance is astounding, you can read it how you like but you don't get to tell the author they're wrong about their own book.

My generation comprehension skills makes me go “KILL THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TRUMP, AVENGE THOSE WHO WAS MADE STUPID BY IT! SAVE THE GEN ALPHA!”

Nothing wrong with baseline standards being given, everyone that graduates HS should have knowledge of XYZ isn't bad, but different districts should be given more of a free reign to adapt their curriculum to the students they have.

It's a thing that people closer to the ground need to have a big say in.

DOE says, all 8th grade graduates should be able to name the 3 branches of the US government and give a rough description of what their role in running the country is.

Then they leave it up to the various state and local governments and school districts to come up with how to accomplish that.

It not going to be a mad max free for all y’all…but would love not to have 54% of the population unable to read past, 5th or 6th grade? Seriously how are we so stupid?

I would like that fixed for sure, number is way too high.

Never figured out what that whole thing means since I know it doesn't mean that people are illiterate, not like everyone should be reading Tolstoy or anything like that.

If you can make it through the new Percy Jackson book without trouble that should probably be mostly ok for anyone imho.

Voter information packet comes out and things in it make sense you should be good really.

Or maybe that's just me

[ryomaandgundhamkin]

MASM SUN… YOU RUINED ME THIS EPISOde

okay you know what, I know nothing about masm so you can prove me wrong on anything I say, this is JUST based off todays episode.

I FEEL SO BAD FOR MOON NOW. But I’m not too disappointed about the whole thing, because that’s Sun’s choice. But it was so obvious how Moon was trying to prove his love for the first multiple minutes and Sun was STILL in denial. Like I get it- okay, yeah, he bullies you and hits you a lot, ok. I HAVE PERSONALLY NEVER BEEN IN LOVE SO. I can understand Sun’s perspective. And I don’t know what to think about Freddy’s advice… I don’t think Moon should continue to express his love by… well, hurting Sun.

Im glad that Moon confessed. But after all Sun had been through with him, he was just totally in denial, basically just trying to come up with excuses to prove to himself, and/or Moon, that he WASN’T truly in love, although he insisted. I can’t blame Sun, but I felt like Moon should’ve at least been believed the first/second time he confessed. He shouldn’t have to prove he’s in love with Sun if he really is. But I get Sun’s denial- I mean, Moon isn’t really the nicest to him, and him actually going and confessing after all that’s happened would definitely seem a bit suspicious.

Sun wanting to stay friends with Moon is valid. I’m guessing he’s mostly just wanting nothing more chaotic than what’s already happening- being that confession (or at least, he’s a bit stunned). But Sun believed what Freddy said- he really was in love, and had been for a while. Sun probably felt a little uncomfortable by the whole experience, seeing how the love is one-sided. “There’s nothing wrong with that, we’re still friends”; from what I can put together, he’s fine and has finally accepted the fact that Moon really is in love. I don’t think he wants to take their relationship any further than it is though. He doesn’t necessarily or intentionally try to make Moon sad, even if his INITIAL words are totally rude. I don’t think Sun understands Moon’s attempts at showing affection/love in the episode.

Sun totally has a fair reason for not liking Moon back, but I feel like he could have handled the situation (and his wording) in a better way than he did. I feel bad for Moon since he’s new to romance, I’m sure they both are. I hope Moon is nicer from now on though- I never expected to see this side of him that we saw in this episode.

[flonbowe]

OK SO AS IT TURNS OUT THERE MAY BE A BIT MORE TO SAY, SO UHHH HERES THINGS I MAY HAVE MISSED AND OR I JUST WANNA COVER MORE

AS ALWAYS, MAJOR BROTHERSHIP SPOILERS, ESPECIALLY RELATED TO ZOKKET

You have been warned

SO NUMBER 1: The Glohm Rays

Im just actually slow on this one my bad In the scene I got those Reclusa screenshots explaining who he is and stuff, it literally says he feeds off of negative energy. The Glohm Rays make people feel negative so Reclusa can feed. Zokket didn't just make the rays just because he's a hater, there was a reason for that too. That being said, how do we make up this void of evidence now? By showing off what I think is the ONLY time Zokket looks happy. This screenshot right here.

Zokket, doesn't smile so the fact that his eyes here are curved in such a way, while he talks about getting more Glohm to "Spur on the revival", while his plans are working out Me personally I think works just as well to show his sadism. (Btw this was from one of the expiring side quests, the one with Connie and Arc trying to get Chilliam's father to go to the wedding) NUMBER 2: Cozette and Reclusa I FEEL LIKE I'VE DOWNPLAYED COZETTE'S ROLE IN ALL OF THIS FAR TOO MUCH Like yes, Zokket and Reclusa are cool, but yknow who's body Zokket is piloting around? Who had to be manipulated and weakened by Reclusa into being a puppet body for Zokket? Who has to live with the knowledge of committing atrocities because she was taken advantage of? Cozette, Cozette, Cozette. Through out most flashbacks involving Connie and Cozette, there seems to be a very interesting consistency. half of the time, she's standing alone, and the other half of the time she's just following Connie around.

Her whole job as a Wattanist is to take care of the Unitree, a monolith to the bonds of Concordia. Its the most important job in all of Concordia, it keeps the world together, there is a lot of pressure on the shoulders of a Wattanist, pressure we see Connie feel through out the whole game, and how she keeps thinking of her mentor, Cozette. Her wonderful, capable mentor, Cozette. That however, doesn't mean Cozette didn't feel those feelings either. In fact, aside from Connie and the Bros once she's freed from Zokket, we don't see her interact with anyone else. This, alongside Cozette standing alone, and all that pressure, creates a very sad reality: Cozette feels alone. The pressure of her job, with everyone looking up to her, its a lonely feeling. She's the one who keeps the world together in a sense, and that pressure clearly gets to her, as seen by this line from her side quest.

This feeling, this despair, is something she doesn't want anyone else to feel or shoulder, especially Connie. She in the flashbacks makes sure Connie knows the importance of bonds, not just since she too will be a Wattanist, but because she loves her, and wants to make sure she feels loved, that she doesn't end up feeling like herself; Alone And that's exactly what Reclusa preyed upon. That's the weakness that let his powers corrupt her, Loneliness is what she feels, Loneliness is what she knows, and bonds haven't done anything for her, so Loneliness is Sublime. Reclusa is a monster, yes, but especially to Cozette. Reclusa took her weakness, and forced it to his benefit. Reclusa transformed Colette's despair and weaponized it by having Zokket control her, by buttering her up for his favorite play thing to take her body, her mind, the sacred knowledge of the Lighthouses, the Unitree, Concordia as a whole, and use that knowledge to try and destroy it all. This also creates an interesting dynamic with Zokket and Cozette, both are incredibly lonely, and potentially jealous of bonds, but Cozette has one thing Zokket doesn't: Someone to care for. Cozette, has Connie. Cozette is lonely, but not enough to harm others. Its a cycle of abuse. Reclusa takes his fury out on Zokket, Zokket takes his fury out on Cozette and the rest of Concordia, but Cozette, despite all of it, still chooses to love Concordia and Connie. Cozette and Zokket both looked into the abyss, but when it looked back. Zokket blinked. NUMBER 3: Ten SPEAKING OF THIS CYCLE OF ABUSE, THE EXTENSION CORPS! MORE SPECIFICALLY, TEN Becuase this twink has such an interesting hidden detail that really changed how I looked at his arc specifically, and his relationship with Zokket. In the Extension Corps's home base on Slippenglide, you can find logs from Ten, and they paint a very interesting picture of him.

Ten already mentions wanting to be in charge when we corner him, but this here expands on that. It shows a disparity between Ten and he rest of the Corps, with him not being as close as you would initially think. He's more selfish here, wanting to be the center, the focus of attention (he has a poster literally hung up of himself) He's the only corps member with a Solo boss fight He's the only corps member who actively Glohms people himself, almost Glohming Bowser if Zokket didn't stop him to go even further. He gets fussy when Ecks messes up his name, but Ecks doesn't when Ten does it back during the Sharpcask encounter. And with the comment about getting a war chest to fund his takeover, its implied he might have wanted to take over from Zokket, or just be in charge before Zokket came along. Its unclear when these logs were written HOWEVER It's not that simple either. The Corps (as shown earlier), still refer to Zokket as Master even when he’s long gone and assumed to be a fake person. The Corps get sad when Zokket misnames them, because they care for him. Not just as their boss, but out of some sort of genuine care for him. The Corps want him to remember them, they want to do good serving him, they want his validation, his praise. They work for him not because they agree with his end goal (no one but Shun even knew what that was either), but because they like the guy! It’s also for a more selfish reason, yes, they do just want his praise for them, but still, this is a core part of them that even gets filled by the time they realize they have bonds.

Especially for Ten

Ten's ambition, his need to be the big boss and be strong, seems to be out of a need to be seen, to be known, to not feel like nothing. This nothing gets filled once he realizes just how important Ecks and Shun are to him, becoming a pride for the Extension Corps, instead of just himself. It also results in their redemption But to think, if he didn't get this realization. If he had stuck more on his War Chest idea, if he had betrayed Zokket, he would of ironically become more like him than he realized. Throwing away his need for bonds and connections, and becoming all the crueler because of it. This again also furthers that cycle of abuse theme, Zokket abusing the Corps and Cozette specifically, with Ten being this close to perpetuating that cycle. (Its also kinda a unique spin on Fawful's arc, what if becoming the big boss wasn't what he wanted at all, but was a cover up for something deeper, but that's besides the point) ANYWAYS YEAH THATS ALL FOR NOW. Im not gonna say I have nothing more to say, there's prolly some other details im not aware of that make even more interesting revelations, but for now that's all I can think of. I LOVE THE EXTENSION CORPS, I LOVE ZOKKET, I LOVE COZETTE, I LOVE RECLUSA, I LOVE THIS GAME

MAJOR BROTHERSHIP SPOILERS, ESPECIALLY RELATED TO ZOKKET!

You have been warned

So they’re like, a toxic relationship right?/hj

OK JOKING ASIDE These two are very interesting to me, and since we've known about Zokket longer, I'll be talking about him first in this thread of reblogs and posts

Zokket

So to get the elephant out of the room, I earnestly don’t believe he is just Cozette brainwashed

Like Aside from small details like the body shape being larger than she is, Zokket's voice sounding very much so different in not just the voice bleps, but in his actual grunts and noises (Especially so before his boss fight), there's things like Zokket's personality, behavior, hell he's even flat out referred to as a separate person a couple times.

Cozette after being freed only ever mentions being under Reclusa's control, and putting on a mask to become Zokket. A mask that breaks once Zokket is beaten.

The way Zokket is defeated, the way the Glohn energy flees off of Cozette's body, coupled with the fact it was specifically a mask Cozette said she donned to become Zokket, tells me outright that Zokket isn't exactly brainwashing, but instead a type of spirit or possession used to carry out Recluse's will. Now All this to say Zokket is his own person, and a very interesting person. Unlike most other Mario characters, he's a very flat character. Intentionally so don't get me wrong, that's the point. He's focused more on numbers than people. He doesn't "misremember" names, he actively doesn't care. His first proper scene is him misnaming the Extension Corps multiple times, with him getting more aggravated the more they try to correct him. He visits Shipshape a couple times through out the game, and most of those visits usually end with him mocking the idea of having connections and overall being very bitter. He's a cold cold man, and even during his boss fight he revels in making the bros hurt each other. There's also some interesting extra details via hidden logs from Cozette while being possessed, and Zokket writing his plans through her body. Quoting from those logs "The egg says its name is Reclusa. Yes, it told me its name, and that makes sense. The egg speaks directly to my brain. The egg has also shared this important truth. Loneliness is sublime . The egg only SEEMS not to move. But it definitely speaks in my brain. I now know my only calling: the resurrection of Reclusa. Loneliness is sublime . All connections will be severed. Reclusa will rule a new era of isolation. Once I have completed my task, I, too, will know the bliss of isolation. Loneliness is sublime . Approximately 284 hours, 56 minutes, and 29 seconds until the resurrection. "Beyond the Glohmatic Ray" "I have distilled the isolate energy from Spite Bulbs. That will be the source for Glohm. I can then focus and amplify it through the Great Lighthouses..." "The So-Called Extension Corps." " I met these buffoons on Slippenglide Island and employed them as generals over my army. They are intensely incompetent but loyal. Do they seek glory, or are simply afraid? They will be superfluous after the rebirth. I will need some means to dispose of them" "Building an Army" "My soldiers, my hands in the wide world, are simply junk repurposed and rebuilt. I gave them language so they might cooperate., but it is absurd to see these junk piles speak. I cannot imagine a place for them in the new world after he is reborn. They will suffer. They may rebel and become ungovernable. No matter--they are ephemeral things." after Recluse was revived, Zokket intended to torture the Zok Troops, his minions, of which HE created. Zokket doesn't just hate bonds, but seems to actively wants to break them. He strayed from his goal of reviving Reclusa by using some of the Glohm to make handheld rays to make people miserable and hate each other, instead of just using the Lighthouses for Reclusa. He threatens the Corps when the revival is almost complete, which would have come to fruition anyway had they succeeded. Zokket seems to fully understand bonds, and despises them. He's not apathetic, he's actively resentful... Except For Reclusa Excluding voice clips, the only time he laughs, is here.

His only use of positive language, and its when he's dying, where he should be at his lowest. Instead, he gets excited, happy, happy to see his Great Inspiration finally return to this world. For a man who hates bonds, he seems to have a great deal of care for his master. A master he was willing to die for, who he was destroyed for. Not even Connie, who he can't forget because of Cozette's lingering consciousness, all Zokket can muster for her is remembering her name, unlike Reclusa. So Who is Zokket? Zokket is a very cruel, bitter person. He's distant and calculating, planning and very exact, very precise ways to revive his master. But he's also sadistic, planning misery for anyone and everyone involved in his plans, for the goal of isolating the world for his master, Reclusa. a master, who he has a deep level of fondness for, the only person he actively shows happiness towards, a person who he spends his alone time with, his purpose, his great inspiration. That's Zokket (At least, my thoughts as to who Zokket is)

[idk-i-want-mcl-content]

missing them

[deoidesign]

.

[sweetandglovelyart]

Knightfall in Dream Land - Page 6

Meta Knight begins his long fall to Popstar’s surface and passes by some familiar faces on the way down.

[ghosthoard]

PART 7

parts 01 02 03 04 05 06

After everybody but Time and Twilight had washed, the gruel was steaming and ready. 

All Legend can attest to was that it was warm. Watery, bland, and barely really food, but warm. 

“Come eat,” he said to the camp at large, tapping the ladle against the side of the pot because he guessed that’s just what people did. Wild would do it.

The youngest first, Time had insisted when they first became a group, not yet family. Wind had had a tantrum at that. Like being called young was a grave insult (Legend still remembered when he was that age, he probably wouldn’t take being treated like a kid well either). But once he ate a spoonful of Wild’s cooking, Wind hoarded that youngest privilege and bragged about it to everyone’s face like the brat he was. Since he was the first to get his food, he was also usually the first to get seconds which he could never finish and usually passed off to one of the others.

The kid came up to Legend, silent and gloomy and not as annoying as he should be. His eyes were still red.

He filled Wind’s bowl up to the brim. Youngest first. Then as he was passing it back and before he could say anything in an embarrassing attempt to comfort him, the sailor looked down at his food and said, 

“Ew.”

A laugh almost startled out of Legend, that one word settling his worries more than anything else could’ve. He smirked, genuinely delighted. “Alright, you cheeky little snot. No seconds for you.”

Wind left with his tongue sticking out. 

Four was next. The other night when he left the camp for privacy after tasting his pilaf, Legend wondered why he wouldn’t just split. He knew the four of them probably needed some time apart, it would personally drive him nuts trying to grieve while stuck with three other people.

Legend still remembers when he first met the colors. Seeing confirmation for the first time that the earliest of his nightmares was the young man he had unwillingly grown to care for like a brother had him falling into bad habits. He lashed out and threw insults and sulked and avoided Four as much as possible. It came to the point that Time told him to get it together. 

Four had found him trying to “get it together” on the roof of their inn that night. The fresh air and being away from the others for a bit was what had drawn him to the place, but of course his brothers couldn’t leave well enough alone. He heard Four carefully walk over to him and settle next to him. 

The quiet was a deceptive peace. And sure enough the little asshole broke it by saying, “You’re really easy to read, you know.”

Legend groaned, rubbing at his face and curling up. Maybe if he ran now he could escape this talk forever, live without his brothers reading him for filth for the rest of his short, miserable life. 

He could hear the grin in Four’s voice as he continued, “But maybe it’s just because I know Blue too well. You two are alike. Too cool to care, right? ‘Nobody will see how scared I am if they’re too busy being angry at me’, is the go-to strategy right?”

“Which one of you is talking right now?” Legend said from his huddle, “I’ll make sure to remember for the next time you split.”

Four laughed, bright and in the way Legend knew the smith’s nose was crinkling. “I’m just me right now. I only ever really hear the colors separately when they disagree on something or I’m emotionally compromised.”

“So that just means I can hit you now and be done with it.” 

“I’d like to see you try,” Four challenged.

Legend chuckled, untensing, letting the quiet settle more comfortably around them.

Eventually, Four spoke up again, carefully neutral, “If it makes you uncomfortable, I won’t split around you, I know it’s strange.”

Legend straightened quickly, snapping around to look at the smith, “No! No, that’s— that’s not the problem. It’s a cool bit of magic.”

Now face to face with his brother, Legend managed to catch the sad heaviness of Four’s face before he hid it with a cocky, self-satisfied tilt of his head. “Told you the Four Sword is impressive.” 

But Legend wasn’t having it, “Four, I mean it, don’t keep yourself from splitting because you think I’m uncomfortable. I’d like to know the colors better.”

For a moment, the two just looked at each other on that rooftop during a warm, summer night. Four seemed to be searching for something in Legend with that discerning gaze that made everyone rely on the small hero in one way or another, and Legend hoped he was making it easy for him to find it without having to come out and tell Four the truth of exactly why he was so bothered by finding out about the Four Swords magic. 

In the end, Four smiled wide, proving once again that having the hero’s spirit meant you were a menace when he said, “Aw, Hyrule’s right, you are a sap.”

And for that Legend had to jump him. Four kept laughing even when they both fell off the roof and into the hay down below.

To this day, Legend wondered if Four didn’t take him for his word, because the smith didn’t split even once since that first reveal, and god would he hate being the one keeping them all from spending time with their brothers.

“You sure you don’t want to split?” Legend said as he passed Four his food.

Four huffed and lifted an eyebrow. “So I have to experience your cooking four times? No thanks.”

Seems like his brothers wanted to fight today, huh? 

Legend pointed the ladle at him threateningly. “Watch it, or I’ll spit in your food enough for all four of you.”

“Can’t ruin something that’s already ruined,” Four said before hurrying out of spit range with his food.

Legend huffed, turning to the next person in line. 

It was Hyrule, still refusing to look at or acknowledge him.

The magical exhaustion seemed to be mostly gone now, Legend noted in his cursory appraisal. 

While he had been fighting with the porridge, Sky had forced Hyrule to take a green potion, and to Legend’s absolute shock, had even gotten the stubborn traveler to take two extra green potions to keep in his bag. He honestly hadn’t believed his eyes and almost let the porridge burn. What sort of magic had Sky used to convince Hyrule to accept two extra green potions after already taking one?! Din, if he only had Twilight’s dog ears he could’ve heard what they were saying, but now he’d have to try to get it out of Sky and the fluffy bastard would probably smile and play dumb.

Nobody could tell Sky no, while Legend seemed to only manage to make them more guarded. 

When handed his portion, Hyrule still managed a grouchy, “Thanks,” before running away, because Twilight had taught them all manners. 

“Thanks for cooking, vet,” Sky said when he came up with his bowl. 

Legend scanned him from the top of his head where his hair looked duller, his face gaunt, to his boots. More than exhaustion dragged at his brother’s body, he seemed on edge and ready to collapse. Looks like the wash didn’t really help with anything to Legend’s distaste.

Sky had been cursed with the possession of Wild’s cloak just as Legend had been with the slate. He recalled how while the group were arguing about whether or not they should be spending time fighting to open the portal or if they should go on foot to the Yiga’s main base, Sky said nothing. He did nothing but clutch Wild’s cloak in his hands, staring at the hatefully small portal. 

Cleaning up Wild with Warriors was something Legend had needed to do. To care for the dead just as he did when they lived. To make sure Wild was as comfortable as he could be. He couldn’t do anything about the sickly splotches of too big bruises and the frailness of starvation, but he could wipe the blood away, dress him in comfortable, warm clothes as Warriors worked on the mats and tangles in Wild’s hair just as carefully as he would’ve if he were still alive. 

If Legend had any say, Wild would be buried with all kinds of food with the best quality clothes and armor they could dress him in. But who’s to say what they do for their dead in Wild’s era. 

After they had stepped away from Wild, Sky had laid a kiss on Wild’s forehead then covered him with that same cloak. Laid him to rest. 

Sky’s been worse since he’s done that, but it’s not like cleaning Wild up had made Legend better either.

“Yea, yea,” he muttered as he poured Sky’s share and handed it over, “you won’t be thanking me when you taste it.”

Sky just smiled at him and left to go sit. 

Time at the very least was moving again. 

Taking his armor off always made him smaller, but he still managed to seem so big anyway in other ways, sturdy, larger than life.

When he first met Time, a small, young, basically buried part of Legend had peeked its head out at the nostalgic feeling of an older, father figure, and before he could do anything about it, that small part of him was warily but hopefully calling for "uncle."

But right now, Time wasn’t larger than life. He looked older than he ever did, the lines on his face deeper and heavier.

Adults weren't supposed to look that fragile. His adult only ever looked that fragile once.

Legend would never admit it, but seeing how defeated the old man looked while he sat vigil next to Wild had terrified him. Just as the wolf that refused to move from Wild’s side was still terrifying. 

He didn’t know what they would do if they lost Time and Twilight too. What did he need to do to help them? What was he supposed to say? He didn't know, and it was driving him crazy.

A warm, large hand reached out to squeeze his shoulder, solid and comforting and there. 

“Thank you, Legend,” Time said, actually looking at him, actually seeing him. 

Emotion swelled up, catching Legend off guard, and he quickly ducked his head to hide behind his bangs, wiping his eyes and composing himself.

Time gave him one last squeeze —it felt like a promise, a promise to be present, to be constant, to do his best— before leaving with his food. 

Warriors came up last, thinking he had subtly let everyone else get their share first.

“You didn’t burn it?” Warriors said with a stupidly fake shocked expression, a stupid hand over his stupid chest. “A blessing from the goddesses themselves?”

“I hope it’s stone cold just for you,” Legend scowled, being careful not to spill this idiot’s share.

Neither of them mentioned Legend’s red eyes or watery voice. Neither of them mentioned the bags under Warriors's eyes and the paleness to his skin.

Twilight doesn’t come up for his share. 

Legend inspected the remaining gruel. There wasn’t enough for seconds, but there was just enough for three more bowls. Enough for all nine of them. 

Legend served himself, leaving two servings, then settled himself beside Hyrule. 

There was silence while they ate.

First | Previous | Next

what should i name this fic? I've titled it dead wild in my google doc but i feel like that's a bit too spot on. Let me know if you guys have any ideas!

(dare I ask? would anybody like another part?)

CW: main character death, aftermath of torture, vivid descriptions of injury

They had been too late.

And isn’t that a hero’s worst failing, almost there, almost in time, almost saving the day. What was the use if after the victory, there was nothing left to salvage?

If only they had been quicker and smarter, they would have saved the day just like they were supposed to. 

But mercilessly, they had no do-over, and they had to face what lay before them in their failure.

Their brother hung from chains that pulled his arms harshly up to the ceiling, his toes just barely skimming the floor. Blood dripped, dripped, dripped—! Time ripped himself out of the spiral, closing his eye to it.  

Wild had been taken from them. The yiga had grabbed him and dragged him into a portal. By Hyrule and Legend’s quick thinking and skillful spell casting, they had stopped the portal from closing just barely until it stayed frozen as the size of a disc, enough for maybe Wind to stick his head in. 

It took them an hour, 33 minutes, and 42 seconds to figure out how to widen the portal enough for them all to squeeze through and land in the middle of a mass of shocked yiga. Another two hours, 16 minutes and 2 seconds for them to throw themselves into maiming, incapacitating, and killing whoever tried to stop them from finding Wild. 18 minutes for Time and Warriors to find Wild too late. 

The approaching sound of footsteps as the rest of his boys arrived turned him around just in time to see Twilight enter the dungeon with Wind and Hyrule. The man’s eyes searched feverishly around the room, first looking at Time, Warriors who stood further in, and then finally they landed on the hanging body and he froze. 

Nobody moved, nobody made a sound. It was a brutal precipice they waited on. Sky, Legend, and Four arrived before anything happened, for of course all of them had to be present to witness the fall.

“Get him down…” Twilight’s voice cracked the delicate silence. Echoing around the dungeon. He stormed toward Wild. “Get him down from there! Here, help me.”

“Twilight…” Warriors said, careful with his brother’s heart, “he’s—”

“His shoulders oughta be real sore, and we hafta to stop the bleedin’. Hyrule, you need to get ready to heal ‘im.” 

Hyrule twitched to life at the mention of his name, tears already flowing down his cheeks. “R-Right.”

“I got you, cub, I got you.” Twilight had cradled an arm under Wild’s knees, his other arm hovering, preparing to catch him. “Sky, cut the chains.” 

Time heard Sky take in a breath before stepping forward to do as he was told, his face stony. The hum of the Master Sword was hatefully calming and beautiful as he unsheathed it. The chains snapped with just one perfectly executed swing and Wild dropped into Twilight’s waiting hold. A whimper escaped someone’s mouth from the way Wild’s head fell bonelessly back, from how his arm fell limply at his side. 

Twilight hastily moved his arm from around Wild’s shoulders to support his head as he lowered him to the ground. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, must’ve hurt your neck” he muttered. 

Now laying on the ground, everybody got a good look at Wild’s face which had been hidden behind his hair. His nose had gushed blood, and it looked broken. Bruises colored him a deep purple, stark against his pale skin. One of his ears had been cut off, the other burned. His eyes… blank and unseeing and stained red from the blood that had leaked down from his head.

“Okay, Hyrule, come on.” Twilight was avoiding Wild’s face. 

Hyrule numbly knelt on Wild’s other side, staring with wide, pained eyes on all the damage, the blood loss, the sunken chest that told of shattered ribs and internal bleeding, the missing fingers, the exposed bones. He reached out. His shaking hands started to glow. He placed them ever so gently over his brother’s chest, feeling it crackle under his touch. They all watched as the healing light shone for a few— hopeful despite everything —seconds only for a sob to wrack Hyrule’s body and the light flickered before going out entirely. Hyrule collapsed on top of Wild’s chest, clutching at the blood soaked tunic, letting out heart-wrenching wails. 

“What… what’s wrong?” Twilight said, his voice rising, his breaths shorter, “Why did you stop? Why isn’t he healed?”

“It’s not going to do anything, Rancher,” Legend’s caustic (devastated) tone lashed out. “Hyrule can’t bring back the dead.”

Twilight flinched. “Th-Then, a-a potion. Or a fairy…!”

Seeing Twilight’s face twist that way as he tried to hold back tears, Time automatically went to him. Twilight’s eyes snapped on to him as he approached and never left his face as he lowered himself to his knees next to him.

“Time… Time, we have to save Wild. We have to do something.”

Time wrapped his arms around his pup and pulled him close. 

“Time, please.” Twilight shuddered in his arms as he begged. “He can’t be dead. He can’t be gone. He would’ve been alone and scared when he died. We weren’t there. We were supposed to save ‘im. He would’ve been waiting for us.”

“I’m so sorry, pup.”

Around them, the others were getting closer. Legend started rubbing circles into Hyrule’s back, his face crumpled in soul deep sadness. 

Sky had lifted Wild’s head up onto his lap, gently closing the boy’s eyes before starting to card through the tangled mess of hair and dried blood. 

Warriors had an arm around Wind’s shoulders, looking smaller and exhausted and ten years older as he took in Wild’s body like it was a punishment he was dealt. 

Wind was searching around the empty cavern with tear-streaked cheeks, hiccuping. 

“He’s skin and bones. How could they have done this much in so little time?” Four muttered in a numb grief. “It couldn’t have been more than a few hours between when he was taken and when we got here.”

“A lot can be done in an hour,” Time said. A person can be alive and then gone within a second.

“We should get out of here.” Legend said from where he had managed to bring Hyrule into a hug. “He doesn’t deserve to be here any longer.”

“No, he doesn’t.” Sky shifted, he lowered Wild’s head back down delicately as if he could still feel pain. Legend guided Hyrule onto his feet and out of Sky’s way. Sky got as far as leaning forward to lift Wild up when Twilight pulled away from Time’s embrace.

“Let me. Please.”

Sky nodded and stepped back. 

Twilight gathered Wild in his arms as he’s done millions of times before. He rested Wild’s heavy head on his shoulder then placed a kiss on his forehead. “Come on, cub, let’s get out of here.”

The shackles that were still around Wild’s wrists clattered as Twilight rose to his feet. 

“We’re getting those off,” he snarled.

Let me know if you want the next part~

[the-deadlock-south]

like, archives used to be THE BIGGEST overwatch event for me because it was the most we got in terms of in-game lore and i just genuinely enjoyed playing them (retribution, my beloved), but invasion? don't know her. i refuse to pay for it and not only do i not regret not getting to play it - i haven't even bothered to check the gameplay on youtube. this is how uninterested i am in the game these days. so yeah, the fumbled overwatch big time.

THIS IS WHAT IM SAYING THIS IS THE REALEST THING EVER

genuinely always felt like such a treat going to play the archive missions uuuggghhh i miss her so bad........ there will never be such a fumble for a videogame than ow this i'm absolutely certain

[skunkes]

.

denying so hard that there's a disconnect between what im learning within art, and other skills needed but it's undeniable that like. ill draw anatomy studies and faces all day but when i try to Make Something Else, Something Real, it's like all the information leaves me....

i always joke that ill be stuck on the foundations and fundamentals of art forever but it seems like its real because mechanical skill and comprehension of Structure is very much a different thing than. being able to connect a head and body in a streamlined way. good stylization. informed stylization. creativity. knowledge of composition, color and what makes a piece work.

i keep trying to make things and realize i still need more time in the fundamentals. more and more and its never enough....and then i forget em constantly !