#and you will have hilarious fights over what skills are cheating

[makahimetenshi]

Two separated ways - Chapter 2 - Arthur Maxson x Female Sole Survivor x Paladin Danse Fallout 4 Fanfic

Like with my Mil vidas contigo Jotakak drabbles some of this shortfics are going to have a storyline or continuation, well, this one is the second part of the first chapter

If you are very very very delighted with one fic and want a continuation I didn’t write or post you can donate me at least $5 bucks, most of this fics have next chapters I don’t finish because lack of motivation but hey a $5 is a $5, I see a few reviews and comments that fics that are abandoned months laters receive comments of wanting to know what happens next. Here it is, I finished my handling with you all, enjoy the fic

Here she was this time…taking the call

-Greetings Sentinel

Silence, until she reunited the courage to speak.

-Its been more than a year since the last time we talked –a groan could be heard, oh gosh, she fucked up early didn’t? But this was strange! Talking back to him in good terms…

-I believe it had my reasons –for a lawyer sometimes Nora had some very poor communicative skills, didn’t make her any favor.

-You didn’t let me explain at all –what the fuck did she say?

-I caught both of you in the act there’s nothing more to explain –oh my gosh she expected this call to be difficult, not hilarious- your excuses were terrible that day –what a nerve to respond all offended even when she bring the subject

-Its not like that…-uhhuhuhu what was that?

-There I was stopping by DC to give my hard working wife a surprise and what do I found? It was so difficult taking Arya back to the Commonwealth in the same day without a proper excuse, without letting her know, she wanted to also surprise you –of course a 3 years old baby wouldn’t understand that her dad found her mom cheating on him with his best friend- She was so confused and I couldn’t explain properly because even I didn’t understand why

-What do you want Arthur? –responded an annoyed voice, the man clapped his hands a few times laughing, yeah, triggered her, oh the hypocrisy. Deep down she knew she fucked It up badly by cheating on him.

-First of all how are you? –now she groaned outloud, he was playing with her mind.

-I don’t have the energy to deal with…-there it was a chance.

-Speaking of energy –silence, she was hearing him- how are you?

A pause, she was thinking on what to say.

-Working, don’t you read the reports?

-The elder of DC summarize them for me every time we spoke –truth is he didn’t want to read things she wrote, because he will read it with her voice in his head and…it hurts.

-So you know I want to take…

-Its funny to me how im the elder but you are the one always thirsting for more power –she sighted, he was playing with her, of course.

Some will say they get married to each other for thirst for power, him for the power of the commonwealth she posses with the minutemen, vault 88 and the raiders and she for the power he had over the rest of the world that wasn’t…the commonwealth were she awakes. But Arthur didn’t believe it that way, she didn’t need him to achieve more power, she work that ass for every project and conquered place.

-Don’t be funny, it’s a good acquisition

-I don’t doubt it

-I didn’t think it could get worse than the institute fight, I read about of years of fighting and inside me all I could think of if it was really that bad and here I am, stuck, barely doing any progress since months! –for a leader, she gets frustrated too easy

-Institutionalized work takes…more time, are you really figuring that now?

-I was some kind prepared I was a lawyer so I deal with burocracy before –she chuckled- but its not the brotherhood fault, you know I don’t really do…team work –giving her the title of sentinel was a mistake, it was a permission to do basically dangerous solo work.

Doing solo work she banged his best friend.

-This is normal, the fight against the supermutants took 20 years until we had a hero, the commonwealth spend nearly 100 years terrorized until you appear –maybe she wasn’t the hero that place needed. Nora was the hero of the commonwealth already, she cant take more positions even if she wanted to do it all

-Have you ever been in Pittsburg?

-Whats that? –there was silence in the call for a long time until…

-The pitt –she clarified and Arthur get it. Of course, for her it was Pittsburg, a pill hard to swallow,j ja, pill.

-Oh, I never been personally there but I hear…

-It’s a shit hole –spit the woman at the other side at the call, the man stood in silence- a truly shithole

-But you want to take it

-Only for the forge, its operative and in relative good state, enslavers used to make caps out of it, the brotherhood could make such a good use of it

-I agree –he heard from the other elder some of…the problem with that place and how the operations were taking a lot of time

-Sometimes I think if it wouldn’t be better if we just…-she stopped in her place, maybe at the other side of the call, her eyes were watering.

-Come on –he encouraged, there wasn’t any type of correction to be made between them in this subjects, they could talk free, this was something he can only do with her...

-If the brotherhood just wipe the place and take it by force –silence, again, he didn’t disagree tho.

-We kinda did almost 50 years ago

-Left the work undone, a brotherhood soldier left behind after a landslide take the power to survive between the raiders and made it a city of slaves, the slaves freed themselves with the help of the DC hero and he... helped them kidnap a baby from her parents to sacrifice her as an experiment to create a cure for the CDT cancer

His chest ached.

For Shaun Howard, Noras son.

For Arya Maxson in his chest, also for Shaun Maxson.

-Just because she was special doesn’t it? –he hear about the liberation of the slaves, almost 20 years ago- had  natural immunity from her parents –from his dad, the brotherhood soldier Ashur.

-My history of kidnapped babys repeats…all over the country –he could hear how heartbroken she was.

-Her parents were enslavers Nora –still, it hurts to even think of, on someone snatching Arya or Shaun from his arms.

-I know –she sobbed, making his heart hurt, never liked when she cried, he gets emotional too- the city is an anarchy  now and its difficult…to manage…they don’t let us help

-Oh the justice arm of the brotherhood is always difficult to impart –when did someone proclaim Nora ambassador of new lands?

-They think we only help because we want the forge –Arthur raised an eyebrow

-Can you blame them?

-Well no but we will manage the city better than them! –he laughed a bit, this were the type of conversations they had when they were married…a shadow of darkness covered him, he missed this…he hated to lost this forever, they truly match each other

-I don’t doubt it, its hard and slow to win the peoples hearts specially if there’s interest in between

-Well nobody paid the DC hero a shit and still they let him help –taking the forge does sound like an awesome idea, he can only dream with the possibilities. Ammo, amors, guns, shields, fortifications, tools, gates, parts…

-Im coming back to my first question, how are you doing? -silence, maybe she didn’t understand

-Well the air is toxic but there’s pure water in DC and to be fair we had the brotherhood supply’s of caned water

-Nono –he stoped- how are you doing?

-Oh

She stopped, and even in the call can hear her accelerated breathing.

-Did you know Pittsburg from before the bombs?

-Yeah –she sighted- lived there in my childhood, didn’t find my old house tho, now in that place theres a huge crater full of toxic yellow water

-Shit –awsome news for someone depressed- You know there’s a thing we as Maxsons share  from even before the bombs dropped, being liders and  use the power for good, im happy you still decided to take that forge despite the emotional weight it has on you

-But im no Maxson –the man raised an eyebrow confused at the comment.

-We are married, but you must be referring to your surname Howard right?

-No, I had a surname before being married to you two, the surname I got from my father and I share with my 8 brothers –oh damn no he didn’t sign up for family trauma chat today, Danse set him up in this shit! He wasn’t emotionally prepared for it! He was prepared for some other type of down chat!- I shouldn’t be a leader, I was the last sister of my family, the last in the heritage order, the only girl of the family, I should marry happy because my brothers were going to carry the weight of my lineage

-The unique daddys little girl? –well that explains a lot.

-Suck a bag of sand dicks asshole –spit annoyed Nora on the microphone, making Arthur laugh low- I never believed I was going to be able to come back to my childhood home…and I wasn’t, its gone –Arthur sighted, tired. This was energy consuming.

-But despite everything im glad you are a leader, im glad you are a hero, even if it take so much to arrive here

Silence at the other side, Nora will always remember a life  long long gone.

-I wouldn’t want to take Shaun and Nates life to be here.

Hypocrite cunt. Arthurs blood boiled at hearing that.

-You have Arya, and OUR Shaun, OUR babys

-Its really necessary that every comment I do you take it to that place? –say Nora tired and that make the man angry, how did she have the nerve to even be upset about it

Uhhh what was that?

-Maybe you need a reminder that you have a daughter who knows and misses you –a lot of emphasis in the knows, it wouldn’t be such a problem with Shaun who barely spend any time with her.

-You know what Arthur? –the tone in his name take him out of place- im going to take the forge and rename it Arya Maxson so I can shut your goddamn mouth –the man chuckled and kick on the floor, that’s not what he meant.

-Your daughter doesn’t need a forge, she needs you –Nora was getting pissed off, she didn’t want to talk about this today, she wasn’t even sure why she accepted to do this, just because Danse ask for it…

-Im not doing okay –said Nora wanting to change the subject to the first theme- Im doing awful here, its been an awful pair of years –her voice brokes at saying that out loud- I hate this place, and if I hate this place im sure im going to hate every other place in this world! I hoped that if I go out of the Commonwealth at somepoint it would get slightly better but it gets worse everyplace I go! Theres a fucking camp of slaves here!

-Well –he had to be firm on this- you need to accept that is not going to get ever better, no matter how much any of us work for it, get your shit together.

-Its hard as fuck for me I wake up from the cryo pod into a endless nightmare! I cant walk around in this place without an scort and a power armor, I refuse to move in the subways because half of the city is collapsed

-Oh stop wining my entire childhood was like that, the DC hero used the brotherhood signs in the metro just fine and he was a vault dweller since born –Nora stop in her place, right, he did it just fine.

-You don’t get it I been in this city before for vacations, this was the capital of my country, the country Nate fought the war, you are American because you were born in this land but I –she was interrupted, Arthur speaking on top of her.

-Well swallowing mentats and pooping them in little balls like a mole rat will not change reality-silence on the other side- you have that special tune in your voice when you are in mentats, its funny and sad

-I do it to be more perceptive of the danger around, this place is far more dangerous than the commonwealth

-Guess what honey? –he spit that honey with a laugh, but he wasn’t laughing, he was pretty damn serious- its not going to get better, get over it –Nora sighted at the other side of the line, he could tell she was annyoyed.

-You are insufferable when you are not getting pegged

Arthurs blood boiled to his face all red , pissing the shit out of him at being so disrespected and called out about that private subject.

-You cant say that to me! I not taking this from you! Taking the chance to go away from our childs and fuck Danse as soon I was  out of sight! –his tone raised and there was anger in his voice

-Ohohohoho –she say loud laughing and playing with him, clapping her hands- you know what honey? –ohnonono don’t say it- get over it!

Fuck no.

-I swear if we weren’t married…!-he was so pissed off he felt the veins in his hands inflate.

-Well you haven’t asked me the divorce! –oh the audacity, Arthur bit his tongue in fury, pressing his theets with force against it.

-And you neither –he laughed clenching his theets making himself hurt- im not dealing with your crap today, I don’t have the energy –oh using her own lines against her was a classic- cut yourself with the mentats a bit and face the reality, being delusional isn’t going to help you.

-Why do you care about what is going to help me or not!? –oh the screams, another classic, didn’t miss this drama at all.

-Oh no you are not making this my fault again, I did nothing!  -how can she be such a bitch?

-Then you are not going to –he interrupted her.

-I have the obligation to care because of our childs! –she stopped, silence- the childs you abandoned for another man! Because Arya misses you! –even if he cared for her deep down bellow all the pain, because he kinda still love her for being an amazing catch, the hate for her treason was bigger and a fresh wound

-You don’t know what im going throught! –she replied without having a better excuse to say, there wasn’t really a better excuse for cheating him more than the fact that she fall in love with Danse while being working alone again.

-Oh nononono, you dont know what to do with your life or what the hell you want! –he scream so loud that his throat feel dry on the back

-I just wanted to be a lawyer! With my baby, my new kitchen, my air conditioner, my retired  husband, our new car, in our beautiful neighebourhgu, with the new pavement we pay high expenses –she was being delusional, always dreaming about having her old life back, that was the ghost of her existence, not the institute, not Shaun Howard, not the old society, her old life.

-Well tell the other victims of the fallout that! –he screamed and she shut the hell up, then, heard a scream of rage, and some other things hitting and crashing in the room. For a moment, the chaos take him out of place and froze him, getting concentrated, focusing on the sounds to calm his temple, even if they were sounds of anger and destruction –Nora- he called- Nora –again, she seemed to be throwing and kicking stuff in the room- Nora are you alright? Are you alone!? –well maybe she wasn’t the one throwing stuff, maybe she was in danger or…

-Im going to take that forge to shut your goddamn mouth Maxson! –she scream and kick the place where the microphone was-causing a loud noise that make the man eyes shut in disconfort just wait for it! Tell Arya that mommy is coming and  getting a new place in Pittsburg just for her! –welp if she called him Maxson the thing was serious- And im cutting off with the mentats when you are done with the buffout!

-I use it to train and maintain my…-interrupted again by another scream, he was getting tired.

-Nono you use it to work out abs faster! –like old protein powders and old magic pills to loose weight, she always laugh for his excuses about it.

-You know what sentinel!? You are dismissed, calls out! –he cant take more bullshit and disrespect for today, the only reason he didn’t discipline her in brotherhood law was because they were still married.

-Fine! Suck a bag of sand dicks Maxson! - The call was ended from the elder side, Nora scream of frustration and kick again the table where the phone was.

They were without a doubt still resentful with the other, no one forgives a shit, dreaming about a good relationship was nonsense at this point.

Arthur thought in his place that maybe if she wanna kill herself it wasn’t that bad, but his dad side correct him, no, Arya would be crushed, despite everything she was still the mother of his babys, and their daughter loves her mother a lot. It was convenient but no good, but frankly, he already expects and planned how to handle the situation if Nora…perish…

2 more years passed until he and Arya received an invitation from the Sentinel to inaugurate the new Brotherhood forge named Arya Maxson located in Pittsburg, not the pitt, Pittsburg.

[chaoticgoodthief]

Hahaha thank you so much... those two swaps were my favourite as well and were honestly the most challenging of the lot!

Oh, and I guess the note count on this thing that means operation part two (canon meets au) is a go! I schemed over it a bit but here are my thoughts + minor ship teases because I'm me (under the cut since this is going to get Really Long)

Hero:

Swap Hero: Instantly bonds with him over shared experiences in the Construct. The two of them both probably spend the majority of the meeting trying to control the sheer chaos of it all, but likely try to find a way to keep in touch afterwards

Swap Hunted: Has to keep him from trying to manipulate Broken and Smitten. It's very exhausting work and Hero was grateful, although also very shocked, when Opportunist actually helped keep the other voice under control.

Swap Opportunist: Actually gets along really well with him. The sincerity is nice, even if the accuracy that he is able to mimic Opportunist's way of acting is rather concerning.

Swap Skeptic: Without the theatre kid way of talking that Smitten has, it's hard not to notice how toxic of a relationship he has with the Princess. It's just like the Deconstructed Damsel again...

Swap Smitten: Is just so pleased with him because this one gets it. Thankful that at least one version of Smitten actually realises just how messed up the whole Damsel situation is. Even if hearing him talk normally is... rather weird.

Swap Stubborn: ...Yeesh. That's really weird. Finds it hard to get used to someone looking almost exactly like Stubborn act so ... defeated. It's actually really scary.

Swap Broken: A small, half-dead Stubborn that somehow still thinks he can take you in a fight. Still weird, but in a nice way. At least he seems happy.

Swap Paranoid: Actually a lot more comfortable with him than with a lot of the other Swap Voices. He may be more serious and emotionless than Paranoid but doesn't have Cold's tendency to throw himself in danger for no good reason.

Swap Cold: Can't help but find him hilarious. What can you say? When someone makes fun of you for being frightened of a ghost and their alternate universe self is that terrified of anything supernatural it's hard not to find it a little bit funny.

Swap Cheated: Sees way too much of the Razor in him for Hero's comfort level, made only the more disturbing by the realisation that this is Cheated with Contrarian's personality. To say Hero is concerned by this would be an understatement.

Swap Contrarian: Acts like a bully, but at least Swap Hero is able to control him and he does seem genuinely apologetic when his insults hurt deeper than intended.

Hunted:

Swap Hero: Is still so similar. Needs to eat and rest more. Still a mother hen.

Swap Hunted: Not to be trusted and lacks herd instinct. A disgusting parasite in the flock. Needs to be kept under a watchful eye.

Swap Opportunist: Friend??? Greets Hunted back properly instead of with confusion???? Flock mate??? Flock mate???

Swap Skeptic: Lacks basic instinct. A little lost chick that imprinted on a cat. Immediately sits on him like a hen over a foreign egg and protects.

Swap Smitten: Wounded animal. Approach slowly and with caution. Do not make sudden movements.

Swap Stubborn: Another one in desperate need of preening. A little chick that got pushed out of its nest before it could fly.

Swap Broken: Terrible insticts. Would sit on and protect but still sitting on Swap Skeptic. Sits on both.

Swap Paranoid: Strange but good. Lacks instinct but makes up for it in skill. Respect his choices and he will respect yours.

Swap Cold: Has strong flight instincts. Has strange rituals that seem to keep him calm but no clear reason of why. Approach slowly.

Swap Cheated: Should not be allowed access to metal claws. A small, mean trickster that rarely knows when to quit. D o not approach.

Swap Contrarian: Barks like predator but smells like fear. Possibly wounded? Attacks in a way that does not hurt Hunted but hurts flock mates. Maintain safe distance.

Opportunist:

Swap Hero: *Corporate wants you to find the difference between these two pictures meme*

Swap Hunted: Refuses to believe that this is what the other voices view him to be like. This shady version of Hunted waltzes into Opportunist's group of unwitting puppets and take control of their strings? Not under his watch.

Swap Opportunist: Finds his alternate self really weird. It's one thing to see someone you know acting like someone else, but it's another altogether to see yourself acting like someone else. What do you mean, alternate version of him? That is a bird.

Swap Skeptic: Uncanny Valley Vibes TM. Can not understand how the other voice is so damn trusting of the princess. Like seriously, Opportunist will admit that he has trust issues but that guy? That guy has the opposite of trust issues to the point that it wraps right back around to being an issue again.

Swap Smitten: Opportunist could tell him that the sky was blue and the other voice would suddenly decide that the sky must be anything other than blue. But it's not just Opportunist! Swap Smitten does that to everyone! He loves it.

Swap Stubborn: Doesn't know what to make of him. He's just so ... dead. It's creepy. Tried to have a chat with then other voice just to try get a clear read on him but eventually just gave up because nothing he said could get a reaction.

Swap Broken: Got punched by him for being annoying and totally deserved it as well. Stays far, far away from the other voice now.

Swap Paranoid: Respects his ability to take control of a situation, even if he doesn't respect him as a person. Come on, it's like the guy has eyes on the back of his head or something!

Swap Cold: Pathetically easy to scam. Would spend his life savings on trying to ward off non-existent evil spirts easy to scam. Forced to realise just how convincing the other voice's ... well, paranoia can be after off-handedly mentioning the Witch to him.

Swap Cheated: Wishes he would stop trying to stab Opportunist when he's not paying attention! Geez, come on, there isn't even a good reason to stab him! It's like he's just doing it for fun! No, don't laugh, it's not funny!

Swap Contrarian: Finds out that he has a really short temper the hard way. He said ... things about Opportunist and his relationship with Smitten that don't deserve repeating and refused to apologize until Opportunist honestly apologised. It was awkward.

Skeptic:

Swap Hero: Extremely interested in the similarities and differences between the two universes and trying to get a better understanding of the Construct through cross-examination. He just happens to be the most through way of doing this.

Swap Hunted: He is a lot more cunning and calculated, accurately assessing which Voices are most prone to manipulation and acting accordingly. He seems to listen Stubborn and Swap Broken the most, but more out of fear than any sort of comraderie.

Swap Opportunist: Understandably difficult to communicate with. He seems more empathic, conveying sympathy for the Thorn and guilt from the Wounded Wild. When under any perceived attack, he acts like Opportunist as a defence mechanism.

Swap Skeptic: Lets Stubborn try punch some sense into his alternate self and is actually disappointed (but not surprised) when it doesn't work. Seems that he has had Skeptic's trust in the princess ramped up to an unhealthy extreme ... strange.

Swap Smitten: Doesn't even manage to ask more than one question before he asks one back. They get along quite well until he reveals that he trusts nobody. Not the Narrator, not the princess, not the other voices, not even the Long Quiet itself. Then Skeptic finds himself it the weird position of being called "too trusting" by a version of Smitten, of all voices.

Swap Stubborn: Finds him extremely annoying because he just won't answer a single question properly. From what he managed to gather from other voices, Skeptic believes that the main cause was viewing the mutual death as a defeat rather than as a challenge.

Swap Broken: Although lacking the physical abilities that keep his universe's Stubborn going, he is powered by sheer spite and determination to a point that he can actually win more times than he loses.

Swap Paranoid: Skeptic's questions are all rebuked with an "It doesn't matter" or "You should stop concerning yourself with that". Decides that even his universe's Cold easier to deal with because at least he still cares about something.

Swap Cold: Struggles not to get pulled into his superstitions and absurd theories because he just keeps making sense. The Narrator is basically a malevolent spirit possessing them. If the Construct is manipulated by perception, there's no reason why good luck charms wouldn't work. They end up spiralling together, and the world ends /j

Swap Cheated: Believes him to be mimicking the Razor's personality as a coping mechanism. He's not wrong. But he's also stabbed now, so you win some and you lose some.

Swap Contrarian: Acts like a caged animal, snapping at anyone even remotely perceived as a threat. Always genuine in his apologies when he goes too far, but never seems to be able to change.

Smitten:

Swap Hero: Seems uncomfortable with Smitten's adoration of the princess. Maybe Smitten just hasn't found the right way of talking in a way he can understand?

Swap Hunted: Why everyone seems so determined to keep him away? Surely no voice can truly be as awful as everyone claims! Other than Cold. Cold can go just into a dark pit and die a slow, boring death.

Swap Opportunist: Is a lot friendlier! Just no fear at all, does not mind head pats and cuddles. But Opportunist is who he is and Smitten would never dare ask him to ask for anything more.

Swap Skeptic: Doesn't know why everyone else acts so strange about the him! He's just really passionate about his lover and not good at expressing it! They bond over their mutual unwavering love for their respective princesses and the world ends /j

Swap Smitten: Alternate him seems to not like him very much... he can't understand how any version of himself could hold that much hate for his precious Damsel. Surely Smitten can convince him of her good intentions! (Spoiler alert: No.)

Swap Paranoid: He acts too much like Cold and Smitten acts too much like Swap Skeptic for them to get along. Not really much more to say about it.

Swap Cold: He's... cute. Despite looking like a spitting image of Cold, he acts nothing like the other voice. Fidgets, rambles, jumps ten metres in the air when a twig snaps, twitches, stares up at you like a whimpering dog in a thunderstorm. Can Smitten keep him? Please?

Swap Cheated: Smitten keeps falling for the his exact same trick every time and gets stabbed. Pattern repeats until Opportunist finds out and drags that bleeding idiot away.

Swap Contrarian: Cusses Smitten out for bringing up the topic of the princess and storms off.

Stubborn:

Swap Hero: The only way he can tell the difference is that only one of them looks at him like he's a complete stranger.

Swap Hunted: Punted him like a football for refusing to take no for an answer. Now he's trying to kill Stubborn. Seriously, if Hunted didn't catch on to fact that he poisoned Stubborn's food, Stubborn would be dead.

Swap Opportunist: Skittish little guy that always seems to run away when Stubborn approaches. A lot less annoying than his counterpart.

Swap Skeptic: Wants to punch some sense into him. Tries to punch some sense into him. Failed to punch some sense into him and so just avoids the other voice because the others are right, that is super weird.

Swap Smitten: Gets along surprisingly well with him despite his tense relationship with his own universe's Smitten. They bond over the idea that Swap Skeptic and Smitten are both very deluded and need to wake up, even if they do disagree on how that should be achieved.

Swap Paranoid: Deserves to be punched and wishes he wasn't so damn good at avoiding being punched. That's pretty much all there is to it.

Swap Cold: Nicknamed him "Twitchy" after getting a full-on panicked lecture about why breaking the mirror is a horrible, terrible, no-good idea that needs to be erased from his mind right now. Secretively wants someone to please get this poor thing some anxiety meds or something but wouldn't dare say that out loud.

Swap Stubborn: Refuses to even talk to him. It's so weird and generally just depressing.

Swap Broken: Scoffed at him at first, unable to believe that someone this pathetic could possible be like Stubborn. Then just gets absolutely decked by him, laughs, gets back up, and begins pummelling him right back. The world ends /j

Swap Cheated: A rough start, but gets along with him pretty well once Stubborn realises that the he finds stabbing and being stabbed fun. Then they immediately start pummelling each other. The world ends again /j

Swap Contrarian: All bark no bite, leading to the two getting along horribly. Only made worse when he gets pissed off from it and begins making all sorts of crude remarks. Punches him, which shuts the him up... for all of ten seconds.

Broken:

Swap Hero: Hates Broken.

Swap Hunted: Really nice, actually bothering to talk to him and give him things to do.

Swap Opportunist: Keeps trying to preen Broken... Broken already gets this enough from Hunted. Broken's feathers are too ruined to fix, why do they both do this?

Swap Skeptic: His relationship with the Prisoner is like Broken's one with the Tower... but seems to get extremely upset at the comparison. Maybe best to leave him alone...

Swap Smitten: Hates Broken.

Swap Stubborn: ...Is like Broken. He understands how it feels to just see a completely undefeatable force and just give up rather than bother try to win. The two are the only ones able to make each other smile. They're just vibing.

Swap Broken: Hates Broken.

Swap Paranoid: Hates Broken.

Swap Cold: Cares too much about trying to break curses. If you're cursed, you're cursed. There's nothing you can do about it.

Swap Cheated: Only stabbed Broken once before getting bored. Something about it not being funny when there wasn't a reaction. Broken likes him.

Swap Contrarian: Is a different type of angry than Broken is familiar with from Cheated. But also seems to hate him less than Contrarian. He doesn't understand why.

Paranoid:

Swap Hero: WHY DOES HE KEEP LOOKING AT PARANOID???

Swap Hunted: Doesn't trust him. Refuses to let anyone get tricked by him if it's the last thing Paranoid does.

Swap Opportunist: Mutual distrust TM. Paranoid is sure that the uncanny ability to mimic Opportunist's personality can't possibly be a coincidence and he must be hiding something.

Swap Skeptic: Would not survive a day with the Nightmare. Absolutely pathetic. Has zero fear of the princess no matter how Paranoid tries talk some sense into him.

Swap Smitten: ...Called Paranoid too trusting???? Implied that none of the other voices or even the Long Quiet should be trusted??? And everyone thinks Paranoid has issues????

Swap Stubborn: Stubborn with depression. Not much more to say here.

Swap Broken: Broken without depression. Not much more to say here.

Swap Paranoid: Paranoid actually gets how this happened. Shutting off emotions because the fear was just too much to deal with and he had a job to do. The two of them actually get along pretty well.

Swap Cold: Gets along with him too well. The two would spiral if put in the same room with each other, with each one's own fears causing the other one's fears to skyrocket. The world ends /j

Swap Cheated: Knife dodge extreme mode. Luckily for Paranoid, this game is perfect for someone who spends every other second glancing over their shoulder for unseen monsters!

Swap Contrarian: Surprisingly, is one of the few Swap Voices that Paranoid can respect. A reasonable level of trust, a clear hatred of the insanity of the Construct, and no tolerance for pristine-blades-for-hands.

Cold:

Swap Hero: Same voice. Still so emotional about things that don't matter in the end.

Swap Hunted: Cares too much about surviving. Why put in so much effort trying to avoid the inevitable?

Swap Opportunist: Flighty and fearful. Also trying too hard to escape death.

Swap Skeptic: ...Boring. Everything interesting about him carved out and now all that's left is an obsessive Princess-pleasing shell. Not even interesting like Smitten in the Burned Grey.

Swap Smitten: Claims himself to be suspicious of everyone and everything around him yet trusting others enough to share his advice on distrusting everyone. And by sharing that advice on distrust, he is unintentionally saying that himself and the advice he offers is untrustworthy. A surprisingly interesting mess of contradictions.

Swap Stubborn: Boring. Has embraced death and yet somehow made it dull in the process.

Swap Broken: The only interesting thing about him is how many different things he manages to pick a fight with. If Cold could feel emotion, he would almost be impressed by the sheer range of ways he could die.

Swap Paranoid: The most boring possible option. Managed to turn off his emotions and yet... somehow managed to become completely dull in the process.

Swap Cold: What. The. Hell. Cold has no opinion on him. (spoiler alert: Cold meeting Swap Cold probably one of the few times anyone saw such visible emotion from Cold.)

Swap Cheated: The most interesting person here. Actually knows how to keep killing and dying in amuzing ways. The two get along like a literal house on fire. The world ends /j

Swap Contrarian: Surprisingly annoying, even able to make Cold wish for him to shut up. They end up fighting like cats and dogs, each one throwing more and more hurtful insults at eachother ad naseum. The world ends /j

Cheated:

Swap Hero: *Corporate wants you to find the difference between these two pictures meme*

Swap Hunted: Holds his cards way to close to his chest to be trusted. The same slimy cheater as Opportunist and Cheated hates it.

Swap Opportunist: Weird. So very weird. He's... actually trustworthy? Very open about his intentions and only acts deceptive when put in a situation where he believes that trickery is the only way to survive. It's a nice weird, but still weird.

Swap Skeptic: A bit too open with his intentions, honestly. There's only so many times you can hear someone repeat their entire personailty in a few sentences before it starts feeling like you're talking to a cardboard cutout of a person.

Swap Smitten: Refuses to trust even the ones that are shoving their cards in his face??? What is wrong with him? He has the answers being told to him and still just doesn't listen? Trying to convince him of anything is like telling Contrarian what to do!

Swap Stubborn: Could... probably cheer up a bit. Even Broken is less dejected than him. And that's saying something.

Swap Broken: Very, very clear about his intentions and that he'd beat Cheated up if Cheated "tried any funny business". Cheated would be offended if he didn't see alternate him's way of acting. Honestly, very reasonable and generally less miserable.

Swap Paranoid: Bluntly honest and has a surprisingly no-nonsense personality. Plays a killer game of poker and doesn't get bored as quickly as Cold does. Cheated doesn't get why so many Swap Voices hate him.

Swap Cold: Well... at least he isn't a chronic liar like Cold? Horribly unlucky to the point that even Cheated can win almost every game against him and blames it on a ghost curse. Cheated ... decides that it isn't impossible for his superstitions to be true after that.

Swap Cheated: Alternate him is far too much like his princess and it gets them into the exact same type of fight that Cheated had with the actual Razor. Everyone was hurt in the making of this video.

Swap Contrarian: ...The other voices are right, Cheated is a sore loser. The two of them flutuate between getting along like a house on fire and hating each other's guts.

Contrarian:

Swap Hero: ...He still likes Contrarian! Contrairan was expecting the worst with everyone else so different but Hero is still Hero and not something horrifying like Hero with Narry's shining personality.

Swap Hunted: Seeing Opportunist run around trying to actually stop others from getting betrayed was peak comedy and nobody can tell Contrarian otherwise.

Swap Opportunist: Keeps chirping and Hunted keeps chirping back. It was funny at first but now it's just boring. He barked at them and now feels bad because of how badly he scared them.

Swap Skeptic: It was pretty funny to see Skeptic practically pop a blood vessel trying to talk some sense into his alternate self. Contrarian had never seen the voice look so close to strangling someone else to death before.

Swap Smitten: Absolutely hilarious. First Skeptic and then Paranoid! Saying the exact same thing with the exact same reaction from the other voice! Contrarian nearly bust his gut laughing at the absurdity of it.

Swap Stubborn: ... It was a bit funny to see Stubborn screaming at himself? (It wasn't funny. Just really, really sad.)

Swap Broken: Really easy to mess woth, but there are immediate consiquences to messing with him into the form of pain. Funnier just to watch him pick fights with everyone in a five metre radius (that isn't Contrarian, of course.)

Swap Paranoid: It was funny to see Stubborn try and fail to beat him up. Wasn't nearly as fun to mess around with as Cold though...

Swap Cold: Phahahahaha- the look on Cold's face! Contrarian wishes he could have taken a picture because the sheer amount of confusion and disgust was priceless! Contrarian's never going to look at Cold without imagining Swap Cold's cute face and wide eyes hahaha

Swap Cheated: Contrarian... isn't like that? Is he? Is that how everyone sees him? Just some dumb, one trick pony that everyone tolerates but nobody actually enjoys the presense of? It ... can't be. Can it?

Swap Contrarian: For an alternate him... he's really easy to mess with. Has an absurdly short fuse and it shows. He seems... almost jealous of Contrarian? Even when everyone takes him seriously instead of just being a joke to laugh at? It's weird. He's weird. Contrarian's going to annoy him.

That's everyone? Phew, that took a long time! Hopefully I didn't miss anyone but if I did please let me know!

STP Voices Personality Swap

Inspired completely by @remaking-machine's awesome AU! I decided to put my own twist on the idea and see how it turns out! (ramble under the cut so that my mutuals don't have to watch me go insane, as per usual)

Self-imposed rules:

Personalities swaps must be based off of this line (or at least my interpretation of it) to force me to think more about how that would even work:

Princesses must be kept as close to canon as possible. I would give a good reason but honestly, it's just more fun that way

Ok, without further ado, let's get started!

Hunted (swapped with Opportunist): Will be on whatever side keeps him alive. Will be completely on board with defeating the Beast since he knows he will die if he doesn't fight her. However, he drops all pretences the moment they aren't in danger of dying. All the other voices actually like him up until he drops the helpful act, which at that point they all immediately hate him for deceiving them. For the most part, acts similar to his canon counterpart but a lot shadier in a way that nobody else seems to notice.

Opportunist (swapped with Hunted): Treats the Witch like an ambush predator and thus always is correct about her next move. False bravado comes off like a prey animal puffing itself up to be more intimidating. Genuinely looking out for your survival, but generally disliked by the other voices for his flighty nature. Does not trust Thorn, but empathetic towards her pain. Generally acts very different from his canon counterpart, but his facade is a nearly eerie replica.

Skeptic (Swapped with Smitten): An seriously unhealthy amount of trust in the Prisoner and only the Prisoner. If she told you to stab yourself he would agree with her because he's that sure that she has a plan. Completely distraught in the Drowned Grey route because he knew she had a plan and it's all your fault for not believing in her like he did. It's actually creepy how easily Skeptic falls down the exact same path as canon Smitten after a personality swap. I love it.

Smitten (Swapped with Skeptic): Serious trust issues after being stabbed to death by the princess and locked away by the Narrator. Rather than you being the one to ask questions in the start of Chapter II, he will ask them before you get the chance. Since he will force you to grab the knife, there is a much higher chance of getting the Burned Grey route. Can be calmed down if you manage to get him to put his trust in the Damsel, but manoeuvring away from Deconstructed Damsel is also a lot harder due to his insistence to get answers. Somehow even more sceptical than canon Skeptic.

Stubborn (Swapped with Broken): Most downtrodden of the lot because of just how exhausted he is from the seemingly endless fighting. Even getting with him to the cabin is a pain due to his refusal to Do This. All the other voices think he's annoying and whiny, with only Contrarian vaguely getting along with him. Interrupts the Narrator's "You're here to -", with "Die. And die. And die again. And if we're lucky... die quickly." He's just as bad as canon Broken and it's so funny yet so sad at the same time.

Broken (Swapped with Stubborn): He's not physically strong in the slightest and failed to kill the princess once already, but this time he's going to win. Comes off as a yappy chihuahua trying to fight a lion. Again. However, he's actually on friendly terms with a good few of the other voices due to this. The Tower is vaguely amused by him up until the moment that he actually wins. And then? Then's she's pissed. Would be great friends with canon Stubborn, but only after proving himself in a fight.

Paranoid (Swapped with Cold): Turned off his emotions to focus on getting everyone out alive (think MoC Cold). Clipped, clinical tone for everything, including the Survival Mantra. Thinks the others don't appreciate him enough for the sacrifices he made in order to keep their body working. He is right. Completely numb to death in the MoC route to the point he doesn't even bother to use the Survival Mantra anymore, not that it matters at that point anyway. Very similar to canon Cold, but more apathetic than bored.

Cold (Swapped with Paranoid): Extremely superstitious, believing the princess to have cursed him with her death, which is only amplified when she returns as a ghost. Urges you not to touch the mirror because you might break it, begins talking about finding an exorcist if you let the Spectre possess you, refers to the Narrator as a malevolent spirit (I mean.... he isn't wrong), the whole shebang. I'm not going to lie, this one is honestly one of the funniest to me. Do not put in the same room as canon Paranoid. It will not end well for either of them.

Cheated (Swapped with Contrarian): Over the course of interacting with the Razor, he quickly starts just messing around after realising nothing he does matters. He treats the situation less and less seriously, to the point that he's making actively dumb decisions just to see how everyone reacts. Throw the blade of the window? Sure, why not? She'd kill us even if we had it! Throw her out of the window she's she's a bunch of blades now? Sure! Why not? She'll just come back, right?

Contrarian (Swapped with Cheated): Tried to get out and now look what's happened. Actively bitter about being trapped into a set path and determined to make it as much of a hell for everyone else as it is for him because of it. Curses like a sailor and is generally just So Done With This. He's not trapped with you. You're trapped with him and he will make everyone knows that. Will still try to make it up to the Stranger, the Hero and the player for his actions later on but does not hesitate to berate you for leaving him behind in the Stranger's cabin. Honestly, he's probably the closest to canon. Spicy Contrarian, if you will (get your mind out of the gutter not like that)

Hero remains the same, but his opinions about all the others are... very different, to say the least.

Phew, that was a lot of fun! Maybe I'll come back with a part two for SwapAU meets canon!

[sabraeal]

Suzuri and obiyuki modern double date. ;w; maybe a gaming night and wine with dinner at obiyukis home, or Suzuris. :D

Shirayuki smooths the gauzy layer of her skirt, her palms sticking unpleasantly with her sweat. Her heart flits in her chest, beating triple-time, threatening to flutter right through the gaps in her ribs if she lets it.

Obi buzzes the box before laying an arm on the wall and staring at her. “You look nervous,” he observes, the corner of his mouth canting fondly.

“I–I am,” she admits, shuffling her feet on the stoop. “I’ve never done this. A–a double date, I mean.”

He lets out one of those sly chuckles, the kind that rumble in his chest and make her toes curl in anticipation. “Yeah, I didn’t think you meant a foursome or anything, Doc.”

“Obi,” she whines, twisting in anxious agony. “Don’t tease me.”

“Okay.” His smile fades from his lips, but not his eyes. “What’s the problem? What do you think is going to go wrong?”

“I don’t know.” Even just telling him make her heart return to it regular rhythm, though it doesn’t help how her stomach twists. “I just don’t know how to…act I guess?”

He blinks. “Around Yuzuri and Suzu?”

“No, like…” She huffs out a sigh, hating the way she can be so smart and still lose her entire vocabulary. “I know how to be around Suzu and Yuzuri, but I don’t know how to act when I’m being…” She flicks a glance up at him, before telling her feet, “When I’m being Shirayuki and Obi, and they’re being Suzu and Yuzuri.”

“You’re worried it’s going to be different?” It’s not judgemental, the way he asks, just curious.

“I just don’t know what the expectations are,” she says, wrapping her arms around her shoulders. “Should I be – flirty? Or, am I – am I allowed to kiss you? Do I sit in your lap? I don’t – I don’t know how to do…this. Be a girlfriend in front of people.”

“Shirayuki,” he breathes, and there’s something in his voice that makes her look up, makes her look into those gold eyes that made her knees weak right in front of her dorm so many years ago. His palm cups her cheek, thumb rubbing along her cheekbone. “I think just being you is enough.”

“Obi.” Her voice is stronger than it’s been anytime in the past half hour. “Can you kiss me now?”

His fingers are brushing just over her belly, mouth open and wanting against hers, when the door clicks open.

“Really?” Yuzuri says, incredulous. “Right here, on my doorstep? This is where you two want to make out?” She blows out a breath. “No wonder you two didn’t come up for air for a whole weekend.”

Obi, to her surprise, goes a shade darker. He’s blushing. “Well, next time open the door faster,” he grumbles, slouching past.

Shirayuki hovers awkwardly on the stoop, watching as Obi disappears inside.

Yuzuri whistles. “Dang, girl,” she says, impressed, “if someone kissed me like that, I wouldn’t kiss and tell either.”

“Ughhh,” she sighs, covering her face with her hands. “Don’t start.”

“Settlers of Catan?” Suzu hisses, incredulous. “That’s the only board game you’ve ever played?”

“And Monopoly.” Shirayuki mulls the question over. “Actually, I was really good at Sorry as a kid too.”

Yuzuri slings an arm around her. “You poor, poor little forest nymph.”

Suzu pinches the bridge of his nose with a groan. “Okay, that’s it. I’m getting out Tales of Arabian Nights. I just – wow.”

Obi grins, leaning over to whisper in her ear. “Don’t tell him I’ve only played chess.”

“So there’s no difference who I pick?” Obi asks, strangely uncertain.

“It’s just aesthetics,” Yuzuri assures him, “you literally just pick your skills out of a bag.”

He hums,  eyes darting between the figured in each hand.

“Aladdin is very you, man,” Suzu ventures. “You know, the scrappy street-rat thing. I bet Aladdin can throw a punch, you know?” He thinks about it for a moment longer. “And he gets Jasmine, so like, total plus.”

“Yeah, but Ali Baba is a master thief,” Obi argues, no heat in his voice. “He has forty thieves, Suzu. Forty. Thieves.”

“Oh man.” Suzu sits back. “That is a good point.”

Yuzuri stares, uncomprehending. “I did mention this is all aesthetic, right?”

“Okay,” Suzu starts. “You’re encountering a –” his fingers run down the matrix – “an evil sorcerer.”

“I seduce him,” Yuzuri says, no hesitation.

“What?” He stares at her. “The evil sorcerer?”

“I have been lost for four fucking turns,” Yuzuri snaps, finger tapping the board. “There is no wizard dick I will not suck to get out of this.”

Obi flips through the book, stopping when he reaches the right paragraph. “Do you have magic?”

“No.” Yuzuri leans over, trying to peek. “I have appearance though.”

Obi hums, non committal. “The evil wizard is offended by the offer of your powerless form, and he – oh, oops. You’re cursed.”

“What?” Yuzuri grabs for the book. “No way. I AM SUCKING THIS WIZARD’S DICK, AND HE IS GOING TO TAKE ME TO BAGHDAD.”

Obi shrugs, letter her take it from him. “Looks like this wizards doesn’t like getting his dick sucked.”

“Okay, babe,” Obi says, staring down at the matrix. “You run into a…lonely efreeteh.”

Shirayuki traces the name on her board shyly. “What’s an efreeteh?”

“It’s like an efreet, but female,” Suzu offers.

Yuzuri rolls her eyes. “Yeah, real helpful.”

“It’s a fire spirit,” he amends. “Like a genie, but no wishes.”

She stares at the figure of Scheherazade, and wonders what a storyteller would do. “I, um…help her?”

Suzu flips through the book. “Okay, so the efreeteh had some curse on her, yadda yadda yadda, you have – storytelling? – so you tell her a story and –” He blinks. “Her misery is lifted, and she wants to marry you.”

“Oh.” She pictures, for a brief moment, Kiki made of fire. “Sure, okay, I guess.”

“I mean you can’t actually,” Suzu tells her, and for no real reason, her heart sinks. It’s not like Kiki-efreeteh actually exists, but…

“What?” Yuzuri frowns. “Why not? The efreeteh asked!”

“B-because she’s a girl.” Suzu takes one look at her face and flails for the rule book. “It’s a rule.”

“It’s a stupid rule,” Yuzuri snaps, folding her arms under her chest. “We shouldn’t use it. If Shirayuki wants to marry her hot fire babe, let her marry her hot fire babe.”

Suzu hesitates, thoughtful. “Yeah. Okay. That is a stupid rule, never mind.” He turns to her, smiling his wide goofy smile. “So how about it, wanna marry a fire babe?”

“This is bullshit,��� Yuzuri shrills, hands posed over the board like she would like to scuttle the whole thing, just like her ship last turn. “I have been riding every last sweet wizard dick, trying to get out of this hell hole that is –what, Australia? Am I in Australia? – but you go on a ship once, and now you’re fucking married to a mermaid princess?” Her hands tense into claws. “This game is sexist, man.”

“Because you’re not winning?” Obi asks, giving Shirayuki a sideways glance. She smothers a laugh in his shoulder, letting his arm curl around her.

“Exactly.”

Suzu frowns. “But I’m not even winning. Shirayuki’s got the most points.”

Yuzuri throws her hands up in the air. “YOU MARRIED A MERMAID.”

“Being married to a mermaid is such a drag man,” Suzu says after his ship to Indonesia is scuttled by yet another storm at sea. “I mean it’s bad enough that you have to travel back to visit them after you reach a city, but I gotta keep traveling back to the ocean, you know?”

“Oh my god.” Yuzuri rolls her eyes. “You are in the Valley of Diamonds, cleaning fucking house. I am curse, maimed and grief-stricken, and somehow you dragging your ass back to see your wife is some hardship?”

“She’s in the middle of nowhere though,” he protests. “It’s inconvenient.”

“If I was not maimed, I would be sending Zumurrud to come kick your ass I swear to god.”

Shirayuki’s efreeteh wife is based more centrally, but she can’t disagree with Suzu’s assessment that it is a total hassle. Especially since she’s supposed to be eating cuisine in cities, so after every meal she is hiking it back to Mecca, hoping that her children come out beautiful.

“Wow, how terrible,” Yuzuri drawls. “Here I am, sex-changed, possessed, and insane, but you’re right, having sex with your fire babe is way worse.”

The turn after Suzu is named Vizier of Spain, Obi very quietly marries a princess who allows him a chance at the Palace of a Thousand Doors. He gets a pile of gold for his trouble, and a wife.

“Suzu, piety is fucking cheating and we all know it,” Yuzuri snaps, a few turns later, when he ends up inside the Leviathan. “You prayed to Allah and you found a ship with a crew inside a whale.”

“Listen, your strategy was to seduce wizard dicks, mine was to pray to Allah for all my problems.” He shrugs. “Both valid ways to play.”

She lets their bickering fade into background noise when Obi’s turn comes around, leaning into his side and giving his thigh a squeeze. “Where are you going?”

“Well,” he starts, pressing a kiss to her forehead. “I just left a city, so…back to my wife.”

“Oh no,” she laughs, “that’s a pain.”

He shrugs. “Nah, I don’t mind. It’s better than the game letting you just ignore your family.”

She considers the point, thinking about how he’s been to at least three cities in a the past few turns, silently and happily heading back to Cairo each time. “Yeah,” she says, pressing closer. “I guess you’re right.”

Suzu scores enough points to win the same turn as she does, and it’s a mad dash back to Baghdad to claim victory. She thinks she’s going to lose – she’s all the way in Korea, and he’s in Italy, but at the last second his piety fails him.

“What do you mean I need appearance for Allah to save me!” Suzu shrieks, leaping up from his seat.

“HA!” Yuzuri’s grin is feral. “Where’s your god now, Suzu?”

Shirayuki shuffles Scheherazade’s pawn the two spaces she needs for victory and grins.

“You know,” she says, staring at Yuzuri and Suzu’s dismayed faces, “I’d always win Settlers of Catan too.”

Obi chuckled, pressing a kiss to her temple. “That’s my girl.”

[trash-gobby]

Lost Boys: Marko Headcanons *UPDATED*

Pairings: None.

Characters: Marko, Paul, David, Dwayne, Laddie

A/N: Wanted to update these cause I wasn't super happy with how not-detailed I was. Probably will keep updating things if I'm not happy lol

RATING: PG

Warnings!: None.

✨ Has a lifetime ban from Walmart (don’t ask).

✨Non-binary and goes by any pronouns as long as your polite about it.

✨Calls themself the gender gremlin.

✨ Jewish and likes encouraging the gang to have Shabbat dinner on Friday. Everyone enjoys this and it's a fun bonding experience.

✨Isn't super observant, but still likes lightly celebrating some of the holidays and being involved in community activities.

✨By far the biggest hoe of the group and is not ashamed.

✨Loves frequenting bars and picking up whoever seems interested for a night of fun shenanigans ;)

✨Skilled artist and sewer (made their jacket themselves).

✨Also into sculpting and wood carving. Has created a lot of cool stuff that decorates the inside of the gangs cave.

✨Definitely has a collection of nude sketches they’ve done of various lovers from over the course of many decades.

✨Actually has almost no brain cells but is a sweet boi (not an innocent boi though).

✨Has dyed their hair more then one colour in the past.

✨Is closest with Paul because their high energy natures just match together so well.

✨May or may not have a bit of a crush on Paul which depending on how things go, could develop into more ♥️

✨Would actually make a pretty decent stand-up comedian.

✨Usually the mastermind behind all the pranks them and Paul do.

✨Braids Paul’s hair while the gang is relaxing.

✨If twerking was an Olympic sport, Marko would have a gold medal.

✨Has challenged Dwayne to a dance off and lost spectacularly.

✨Has a collection of pet rocks who all have their own unique names and personalities according to Marko.

✨Cheats at every board game, even if it seems like you can’t cheat, where there is a Marko there is a way.

✨A bit of a kleptomaniac (weirdest thing they’ve stolen is a cardboard cutout of David Hasselhoff).

✨Can be pretty lazy on off days, and enjoys just hanging around doing nothing but chatting shooting the shit with the boys.

✨Calls Laddie “little Dwayne” and “Dwayne Jr.” as a joke (Laddie loves it and Dwayne pretends not to like it).

✨Has very little self control.

✨Impulsive decisions are part of what makes up Marko’s everyday life.

✨This can sometimes be an achilles heel for him, as it can lead to him having fights with the other boys about making certain choices without getting their permission (if it includes them of course) or gets everyone in deep shit.

✨Thinks ghosts are bullshit, but really is into astrology and horoscopes. Loves reading everyone's weekly horoscope super loud, finding their reactions hilarious.

✨Has a collection of cool socks. Favourites are a pair of rainbow socks.

✨Cannot play any instrument particularly well, but is a very enthusiastic tambourine boi.

[sindirimba]

Booker!!

yes!

favorite thing about them i quote this a lot but it’s because it kind of just fits with how i see him: whatever works. i like his adaptability. he’s a forger, he’s the tech guy, he’s the gopher. he struggles with the world he’s been forced into but he still fights, however he can. gun out of ammo? headbutt. can’t kill yourself the old fashioned way? listen to what the CIA guy has to say. his adaptability hurts him but it helps him, too, and it makes him as important a part of the group as all the others.

least favorite thing about them he (and copley) really should have come clean, like, as early as after the killing floor. it was a sloppy plan and it was obvious they both realized this early on, but he just soldiered on through. long term planning isn’t a depressed person’s sharpest skill, i have to say.

favorite line “I felt her die,” okay sorry my favorite quotes keep going back to nile and booker in some way but well, you know. their stories were intimately intertwined in the story, so. i liked the way he said this, and the fact that he was so shaken by his first new immortal dream, how heavily it affected him, the way he grabbed his own neck. amazing.

brOTP well, with joe, of course! but also a little bit, copley? i’d love to find out more about how they got back into contact, how that conversation went, whether they were ever friendly or commiserated about being widowers. maybe they can forge something like a friendship again some day, or maybe not. but i like to think they could.

OTP nile, of course <3 see nile post for my little ramble on them, etc etc.

nOTP again, just like with nile, basically everything. but in particular: andy/booker & joe/nicky/booker. no ty. also, at this point in the fandom, just out of spite, booker/therapy, lol.

random, i don’t ship it at all but i appreciate the booker/copley shippers for the name ‘bopley’ being so fucking hilarious

random headcanon okay most people accept that he’s the tech guy, but i definitely like to think he’s more than that, he’s a nerd. he can code, he got into computers and the internet way early on, he obviously texts just fine, he’ll use emojis with nile and mostly understand what they mean (and when he doesn’t she teases him about it so it’s a win-win), he has a cache somewhere full of old motherboards he’s sentimental about. nerd <3

unpopular opinion this is hard because so many people are so wrong about him in so many ways 😔 and i’ve bitched about most of them. hmm. just plucking randomly out of the giant cauldron of bad booker takes, that he specifically intended to get the others captured and tortured. i mean i feel like it’s obvious that’s not what the plan was, and that it spun rapidly out of his and copley’s control (in a way they should have but didn’t anticipate). but for some reason there’s this persistent hot take that he deliberately was like “(rubbing hands together villanously) bwa ha i can’t wait for joe and nicky (and andy i guess) to be TORTURED i’m gonna love it so HARD”. also that his shooting of andy was like, particularly heinous. was andy headshotting nile attempted murder? stop.

song i associate with them mark lanegan - “borracho”

Here comes the devil prowl around One whiskey for every ghost And I'm sorry for what I've done 'Cause it's me who knows what it cost It breaks and it breeds and it tears you apart It bites and it bleeds And this desert turns to ocean over me

favorite picture of them this is kind of cheating bc it’s two pictures but i had trouble capturing the exact moment so:

that “so about those samples” expression

thank you 🖤 love talking about the best boy

[hiccanna-tidbits]

The RotBTD+ Gang Plays DnD! (Feat. my ships, sorry not sorry XD)

So highkey I’ve actually been wanting to do a “The Gang Plays DnD” type post for AGES now, but then I saw @hobie-brown and @ohlooksheswriting-wips do DnD AU posts for RotBTD, and then I was like “Ah shit, I really should finish mine, eh?” So thank you to both of you for inspiring me to get off my ass and actually write the post!!!

Hiccup DMs. He comes up with this super complex plot revolving around dragons (because of course) where the party has to dismantle this society ruled by evil knights who want to genocide all of the dragons. Imagine his chagrin when the party wants to do nothing but fuck around in towns and aggravate NPCs 90% of the time.

They usually end up playing at Jack’s apartment, mainly because Hiccup’s dad doesn’t really want a bunch of loud nerds yelling about 20-sided dice in his household while he’s trying to work, if he can at all help it. Jack’s sister regularly barges into their living room and roasts the fuck out of Jack and his friends for being such damn nerds and eats all of their DnD snacks they’ve set out. If they’re in the middle of a combat session, she always gleefully proclaims that they’re all going to die. While Jack is annoyed by this, the rest of the party finds it deeply hilarious.

Jack Overland plays the absolute mayhem warlock Jack Frost, who got his powers through making a deal with the archfey Prince of Frost and has absolutely no qualms about being an evil god’s mortal Sower of Chaos. He spends the vast majority of the campaign doing such useful things as creating ice slicks under annoying NPCs and freezing people’s drinks. He also plays a Tiefling because absolutely no one can talk this boy out of playing the creepy demon race.

Rapunzel plays a woodland nymph druid who is also the party healer (because of course she is). Her name is probably Sunlily or something else suitably hippie-esque. Whenever there’s downtime (or whenever the rest of the party is also dicking around, and she can get away with it), Rapunzel likes to go into the nearest forest and pick the best berries and nuts for the rest of the party. She also loves baking fruit pies and cooking the best nymph food for her companions when given the chance. Definitely the party Cinnamon Roll (every party has one!). She often will turn into cute animals to distract the guards while the party infiltrates a building.

Merida’s character is the party archer and general ranged weapon master, as well as a raging lesbian. Hiccup learns very quickly that any male NPC who tries to flirt with her will very quickly get impaled with an arrow. She can’t ever decide if she wants to be a ranger or a rogue, so she multiclasses in both for flare. She also plays a Tiefling, and continually insists that her character is both scarier and sexier than Jack’s. In combat, she either Leeroy Jenkins her way in with a sword and just starts slashing every which way, or just shoots 90% of the enemies with arrows before the fight even starts. There’s really no in between. She can get away with this because she’s highkey one of the party tanks, and consistently deals a shitton of damage.

Anna plays a human bard, basically having read over the class options and going “Wait, in this one I get to make stylish medieval music??? And wear dramatic and garish outfits and a dumb hat??? And cast wacky illusion spells??? And do silly little magic tricks??? And INSPIRE EVERYONE??? Hell yeah, I’m in!!!” She mostly uses magic attacks in combat (definitely favors Tasha’s Hideous Laughter), but occasionally when she’s out of spell slots she’ll just take to slamming enemies in the face with her lute. She also has WAY too much fun with Vicious Mockery, let’s be real.

Elsa, upon hearing Jack’s character concept, rolls her eyes so far up in her head she can see her damn brain, and vows to play his concept, but serious–solely out of spite. She rolls up a super OP elf Chaos Sorcerer, filled with lots of brooding angst about how uncontrollable her winter powers can get if she isn’t careful. She combines it a bit with Storm Sorcerer so she can create literal blizzards, and Hiccup ends up allowing it just because he thinks it’s cool. Although Elsa’s character is undoubtedly aggravated by the rest of the party’s antics, she starts becoming grudgingly protective of these idiots and can deal some pretty crazy damage when her companions are threatened. She also contains one of the party’s only brain cells.

Eugene of course plays dashing rogue master thief Flynn Rider. Although his high deception and lockpicking skills certainly come in handy, he’s the most chaotic neutral fucker you’ve ever met and will take any excuse to rob NPCs blind or cheat them out of every cent they have in a tavern card game. It’s nigh impossible to get him to cooperate with the rest of the party much of the time, and often Elsa’s character has to either bribe him with some of her family’s gold or threaten to freeze him to stop him backstabbing one or more party members. Eugene’s character forces Hiccup to add in many more heist plotlines than he originally intended. This delights Eugene immensely, and sometimes he goes a bit crazy planning elaborate heists.

Moana plays a sorcerer water genasi. She can control any body of water, but she has a special affinity for controlling saltwater (i.e. the ocean lol). She also requests an animal handling bonus, but only with marine animals, solely because she thought it would be funny. She’s also an ex-pirate who robbed a lot of wealthy merchant ships and freed their slaves back in the day, which Merida thinks is incredibly badass. Moana tends to get bored and unengaged when there are no bodies of water to play around with, so Hiccup ends up having to add a lot more lakes, rivers, and oceans to the campaign than he originally planned on. Moana also takes a sailing skill, and thus the party often ends up traveling by boat. Typically Eugene and Rapunzel will infiltrate and hijack it, and Moana will sail it. Moana probably contains the party’s only other brain cell.

Astrid plays a gigantic berserker orc barbarian who is never without his trusty axe. Astrid is hands down the party’s top tank, and unquestionably deals the most damage every combat session. Much like Merida’s character, Astrid’s character is absolutely a shameless power fantasy. Hiccup pretty easily picks up on this, but is too polite to say anything about it. Jack also picks up on this, but is hardly as courteous as their DM, and teases Astrid mercilessly. Astrid is not amused.

Rapunzel requests that her weapon of choice be a frying pan, her justification being that her character found a discarded one at the edge of a human village outside her woods and mistaked it for a highly-dangerous human weapon. Hiccup is like “…you know what? Fuck it” and rolls up stats for a goddamn frying pan. Jack has nigh-endless admiration for Rapunzel for choosing such a goddamn memey, absurd, yet oddly effective weapon and it definitely makes the poor boy even more smitten with her than he already is.

Eugene and Merida have a bet going on who can sleep with more sexy barmaids. Merida is currently winning, much to Eugene’s chagrin. She’s not even inherently better at seducing NPCs, she and Eugene have the same charisma stat–she just consistently rolls better than Eugene. Eugene is incredibly salty about this.

Anna and Elsa want to be sisters in-game as well, but neither want to change their race–so Anna decides her character was adopted. Hiccup and the rest of the party go along with it, mainly because there’s something deeply hilarious about a regular human bard being adopted and raised by a family of high-powered elf ice mages.

Astrid is absolutely the sort of player who tends to get bored and restless outside of fights, and tends to fidget and twiddle her thumbs waiting for the next combat session. Jack picks up on this, and purposely does more roleplay for longer just to piss her off. He’s also just a very dramatic fucker and highkey loves roleplay.

When she’s not causing mayhem around the town or sleeping with hot women, Merida tries to entertain Astrid between combat sessions by offering to spar with her. Unfortunately, this does not usually end well for poor Merida, as even the most hardcore and badass of tieflings is prone to getting dumpstered by an 8-foot-tall barbarian orc with an axe. Astrid is, nonetheless, grateful to have someone to fight.

Rapunzel, Elsa, and Moana will humor Hiccup and attempt to actually play the main plot. Meanwhile, Jack, Merida, and Eugene are a DM’s worst nightmare. They constantly derail the damn campaign to fuck around, cause mayhem, and do inane shenanigans in every. Damn. Town. They go to. Anna is kind of a wildcard–she’ll typically go with whatever group looks like they’re going to be doing something more interesting. Astrid will go along with whichever group is more likely to get into a fight–which, often as not, is Jack and his posse of terrible Chaotic Neutrals (who have definitely pissed off a number of NPCs into attacking them).

As the campaign goes on, Elsa and Eugene become the beleaguered Party Mom and Dad. Both are quite aggravated by this–especially poor Eugene, who just wanted to play a morally-gray charming rogue who stole everything and got away with it and then accidentally ended up caring about these idiots he got stuck with.

Anna initially joins the campaign because she has a planet-size crush on Hiccup, and inevitably is the one who dragged Elsa into it too. Being the hopeless romantic that she is, Anna writes a love interest into her backstory. Hiccup eventually has the party run into said love interest, and Anna is overjoyed. He starts flirting with her as the love interest, and it’s easily the best 30 minutes of Anna’s life.

Moana and Elsa also give Hiccup pretty detailed backstories, and he works in little subplots for them. Moana gets to bring water back to a dying part of the jungle in the middle of a draught, while Elsa gets to go on a whole sidequest to explore her family history and how they came to be sorcerers.

Jack, Merida, and Eugene also give Hiccup fairly elaborate backstories, but Jack’s and Merida’s are like 99% memes and Dumb Shit. Hiccup tries to give all of them backstory-related plot hooks, but inevitably any hooks he provides are either stabbed, robbed, or frozen. Honestly any plot hook offered to these 3 will be all but spat in the face of and tossed off a cliff.

The one relevant part of Eugene’s backstory is that he and Rapunzel decide they used to be partners in crime before the campaign started. Rapunzel would infiltrate and scout out places he wanted to rob as small, unobtrusive animals (her preferred Wild Shape is a chameleon) and later distract the guards as a bunny or kitten while he went in and took every gold coin in sight. In return, Flynn Rider would bribe builders to not develop into Sunlily’s forest. Rapunzel and Eugene partly came up with this For Funsies, but also it was Rapunzel’s sneaky way of tricking Eugene into having prior connections in the party so he’d be less likely to betray them. It works pretty well–although the entire party is protective of Cinnamon Roll Sunlily, Flynn is certainly especially protective of her.

Astrid does the absolute bare minimum as far as backstories go. She is literally just here to smash stuff, slice people, and beat some fuckers up.

Rapunzel has a backstory, but she’s typically so invested in the main plot and the other party members that Hiccup rarely needs to bring it in to keep her engaged. She’s highkey the party emotional rock, and probably the only one keeping them all together.

On that note, Rapunzel’s character is the ONLY one who can get Jack’s character to take the plot even REMOTELY seriously. Like he’ll be dicking around in the nearest tavern challenging the nearest orc to a drinking game, and Rapunzel will come in and ask him to help them on a Main Plot Quest. And he’ll be like “come onnnnn I’m having funnn” and she’ll be like “Jack pleeeeeease?” and you just. Can’t resist Sunlily’s puppy dog eyes. At all. Also, whenever Sunlily is genuinely threatened, any silliness immediately goes out the window and Jack Frost is OUT FOR BLOOD.

For better or for worse, Rapunzel is not immune to being looped into Jack’s shenanigans. Occasionally if either Merida or Eugene have a particularly hare-brained scheme she’ll go along with it, but by and large Jack is the most successful in convincing her to temporarily abandon the plot and cause mild mischief with him. They once wasted half a session creating an elaborate “ice theme park” for some squirrels in the forest.

Hiccup tries to get Merida to play the main plot by eventually having there be no more sexy female NPCs to seduce in the towns they go to. Unfortunately, this backfires–Merida just hooks up with Moana’s character instead. When asked to roll for how good the lay is, Merida gets a nat 20–and thus her character and Moana’s character end up hooking up regularly throughout the rest of the campaign.

Hiccup introduces a few Wise Old Mentor-type NPCs to guide the party throughout the campaign. While Rapunzel, Elsa, Moana, and Anna actually try to listen to them and take their advice, Merida, Jack, and Eugene absolutely refuse to take them seriously and mercilessly play pranks on them.

At one point, Hiccup gives the party the option to attempt to tame a group of wild dragons and use them as mounts. They all have to make animal handling checks. Anna, Rapunzel, Elsa, and Moana pass. The rest of the party fails, with Jack and Eugene crit-failing. Hilarity ensues.

Hiccup ends up bringing back Anna’s backstory love interest as an NPC regular. Anna thinks he’s just being a good friend and a good DM and trying to incorporate her backstory as much as he can, but really, he just wants an excuse to regularly flirt with her. He hardly has the balls to out-of-game.

Merida comes out as gay toward the end of the campaign. Everyone in the group is extremely supportive, of course, but everyone is also like “Merida…with the amount of barmaids you’ve banged…and the amount of times you and Moana’s character hooked up…this isn’t exactly surprising.”

Hiccup actually finds a way to use Jack and Elsa’s same-concept-opposite-execution characters to the plot’s advantage. He decides one of the main villains will have a prophecy saying he’ll be taken down by a powerful ice mage. The party manages to fool this guy into thinking this ice mage is Jack, and sends Jack to fight him. As soon as the villain sees Jack, he’s like “WHAT??? THIS clown???” (word has absolutely spread throughout the land of Jack not using his ice powers for anything besides mildly annoying trolling). Naturally, the bad guy lets his guard down after thinking he’s going to fight this literal joke, and then Elsa crashes in from the side and absolutely dumpsters him.

Jack tries to defeat the final boss by just annoying him so much that he leaves. Unfortunately, he just annoys him so much that he attacks Rapunzel’s character. Jack’s just like “oh HELL no” and attacks with absolutely nothing held back. Turns out he’s pretty terrifying when he’s not using his magic for Dumb Antics.

During the final boss of the campaign, the Big Bad tries to one-shot Moana’s character, and Merida’s character super theatrically jumps in front of her to take the blow instead. Rapunzel just barely manages to heal Merida’s character, but it’s a really close call. During all this, Merida is like “ah shit...maybe I’m NOT just in this to get fantasy-laid.” After the fight’s over, her and Moana’s characters have a big dramatic love confession and share a Big Damn Kiss in front of everyone. It’s pretty epic.

After the final session of the campaign, Merida drags Moana outside Jack’s apartment and sputters and trips over her words for a solid minute before she finally gets out that through all this nonsense...well...maybe it’s not just in the game that she thinks Moana is hot. Moana just gets this HUGE grin on her face and says “c’mere, Leeroy Jenkins” and just pulls Merida in and kisses her. Cue the rest of the party barging in on them. Merida and Moana freeze, and there’s a moment of terrified silence...and then the entire party starts cheering them on like “took you long enough!”

The entire rest of the party could detect the sexual tension. Literally all of them.

But Eugene is like “HA, THIS MEANS IF WE DO A SEQUEL CAMPAIGN I’M WINNING THAT BET! BECAUSE YOU’RE GONNA BE DATING MO’S CHAR AND THUS NOT ABLE TO SLEEP WITH ANY MORE BARMAIDS!”

By the epilogue session, Jack and Rapunzel are dating. Merida and Moana are also dating. Hiccup and Anna STILL haven’t figured out why they’re so prone to spending half the session flirting when Anna’s love interest shows up, and Hiccup STILL hasn’t figured out why he likes to have Anna’s love interest show up so often. Bless their souls. Maybe they’ll figure it out next campaign...?

Damn I actually really like this...maybe if people like it I’ll do some incorrect quotes or a drabble or something??? Or maybe some HCs from next campaign???

[whitleyschn33]

Whitley for the Ask game? (If someone's already asked for them, then Ruby?)

Someone else asked for Whitley, so Ruby it is!

What are my top four favorite non-romantic relationship dynamics for them?

Pre-V6 Qrow: I will never not love Ruby’s reaction to seeing her uncle in a fight with Winter being “Kick her butt, Uncle Qrow!” No questions, no concern, just “kick her ass!” Their relationship, especially in V3, is just incredibly adorable on every level. Her tackling him to say hi, eagerly asking for stories about being a huntsmen, bragging about what she and her team have been up to and being “almost huntresses themselves” - and one of my favorite jokes from RWBY is “they don’t give out medals for ‘almost’”/“They do and they’re called silver!” Like, objectively that’s not the most hilarious thing, but it had great timing and always makes me smile when I think of it. Ruby modelled her very fighting style after Qrow’s, and it’s clear to see that she adored him and really looked up to him as a mentor figure and family, despite not technically being related. I really wish we had gotten to keep that relationship going forward, with Qrow training with Ruby at Haven, the two of them having more fights together and showing off their student/teacher relationship, and Qrow acknowledging Ruby’s skills and how she’s grown, even recognizing when she’s reached his level in the very far-flung future, but that ultimately Ruby is always going to be his pipsqueak niece.

...We don’t talk about their relationship in V6 and beyond.

RNJR: I’m just going to cheat a little here and say the group dynamic of Team RNJR as a whole because damn it, I love found family. Ruby and Jaune already have a really strong relationship built on being two awkward kids that ran into each other on the first day, talking about their struggles as leaders, just generally being a really supportive and cute pair, but Ren and Nora only add to it - Ruby worrying about Ren during Kuroyuri, Nora being protective when Tyrian shows up, all three of them instantly going on their guard when Oscar shows up asking about Ruby. It really makes them feel like they’ve bonded a lot between the end of V3 and mid-V5, and I would really enjoy seeing their closeness again. We almost had it in V7 with the rally with Penny thrown in for added bonus... but then Renora drama happened. Damn.

Oscar: Look, it’s ship-baited all the time for a reason. It’s cute as fuck, two awkward kids that clearly like each other and both being in positions of leadership, though not voluntarily in Oscar’s case but still has others looking to him like he should know what to do. I don’t ship it romantically, not because I have any problem with it, I’m just more invested in Pre-V7 Nuts and Dolts and have lost all respect for Ruby as a character currently, but I do find Ruby’s supportiveness of Oscar in V6 endearing and their talk about Penny in V5 interesting. I would like to see more of that.

Yang: LET THEM ACT LIKE SISTERS, DAMN IT. Tbf, I’ve heard decent things about their talk on the stairs in the episode I just didn’t watch from Volume 8, but I really miss their earlier dynamic. Play fighting at Beacon initiation, Yang looking super proud of her sister as a leader and cooing at how pretty she looks at the dance, Ruby knowing exactly what’s going to set her sister off in the Vytal Tournament, that little “I love you” as Ruby walks away after the Fall, the way Ruby suddenly looks so scared and anxious about leaving Yang behind when they reunite only to be hugged - give me more of that, please.

What season were they at their best and why?

Oooh, that’s a hard question. I think I’m going to have to go with Volume 1, though, since it’s just the season where she has the most going on. She’s a girl that suddenly gets skipped ahead two years and doesn’t really know how to make friends, and wants to prove that she belongs there, making her a bit reckless. She’s also given a position of leadership over her own sister and a girl that won’t recognize her authority at first, and has doubts about if she’s suited to the role she’s been given. There’s a lot of things to work with going forward with Ruby developing from an awkward weapons geek that can rush into things to a confident leader that’s earned the respect of her older classmates.  Honorable mentions would be V3 and the Apathy episodes of V6 - I really liked her characterizations there.

What season were they at their worst and why?

V8 - is this even up for debate? I could rant for ages, but this has already taken me too much time between classes. To squish it down - this girl refused to let thousands of people, two of the four objects needed to bring about the end of the universe, and one of the keys to said items get out of the way of the immortal space witch on the premise that they couldn’t just leave a few thousand people that Salem ignored anyway to die... and then didn’t do anything to help those few thousand people or the thousands of trapped people, instead sitting in a comfy mansion for hours letting hundreds of other people fight and die in her place trying to protect the people she wouldn’t let leave. And she’s supposed to be the hero. Fuck that.

How would I rank their outfits from worst to best?

Ruby’s outfits are probably the most consistently good across the field - like, I don’t think there’s an outfit of hers that I outright dislike. Remind me if I’m forgetting a major outfit, but from Worst to Best, I would probably say V4, V7, V2, and then V1 as my favorite~

Which Hogwarts House would I sort them into (optional; what would their wand be?)

Gryffindor is really the only option for her house; I could see her being a Quidditch star as either a Chaser or a Seeker, putting her speed on a broom to the maximum effect. As for a wand... my gut impulse is to say Red Oak with a phoenix feather core, though I could also see Larch and English Oak.

What do I think this character would be like if they were on the opposite side (good characters are bad, bad characters are good)

V8 already gave us that though

I’m creatively bankrupt and honestly can’t think of much, but I would love to see her lean in more on the Grim Reaper angle - maybe as an assassin or a Torchwick-like gang leader? It could be fun~

If I suddenly had control of RWBY, what would I want to do with this character after the events of V8?

Have it turn out that the last two volumes were some kind of horrible nightmare she had on the plane to Atlas and immediately start rewriting the Atlas arc.

Honestly, I’m not really sure if her character can be salvaged after just how much the past two volumes have beaten her down in terms of likability for me. I don’t really want anything to do with her anymore - if I watch V9, it won’t be for her, it will be for Vacuo. Maybe have her be confronted with an objective outside view of her actions, have someone lay it all out and hit her with just what she did and the chaos and death she’s arguably responsible for. Let Ruby realize that’s she’s made mistakes, that she was wrong. Let her realize that, and try to be better. Let. Ruby. Grow.

[unreasonablebehaviour]

Pls take this random assortment of dsmp “hcs” (which is actually just me rambling out my ass but we love to see it//)

—————

- Sam just like gets really fuccn energetic in a thunderstorm... like just hyperactive but also like v strong..... also immune to electrocution :)

- He’s also like all creepers are, shit terrified of cats which is v funny considering he’s sorta friends with ant

- Even funnier if u want to take the ‘canon’ fact of ant being a whole ass 20 feet tall

- Speaking of ant and this absolutely isn’t a hc but I just find it very funny that people draw humanoid versions of all of the non human characters EXCEPT for ant who I have only ever seen drawn as a cat ghgh

- Bads skin colour is deadass vantablack like if he holds his hand in front of his face it just seemingly vanishes and you can’t pick out where his hand ends and face begins

- I want him to look terrifying.... like absolutely massive a complete unit of a man, sharp ass teeth, sharp spikes and horns, sharp claws, white glowing eyes........... but he’s just like “owo” at all times ghgh

- Skeppy has chronic pain from the diamonds growing inside his body and out of his skin... sometimes he ramps up how cheerful he is to try and hide how much pain he’s in that day

- Ranboo’s body is longer on his enderman side and so he physically can’t stand up straight unless his shorter leg is on a slope

- He’s half silverfish... mainly cause I think that’s funny like hehe both those and endermen are linked to the end/stronghold and can break blocks

- This does also mean he joins bad and skeppy in the ‘help I am v spiky’ club tho

- Also also like absolutely none of his clothes fit cause his limbs are so disproportionately long so rip his ankles in the tundra I guess

- Shortza supremacy

- Sapnap... blaze boy..... I want him to steam when he angy...... v warm to the touch and all of the dteam lay on top of him when it’s cold lmao

- George is like some weird ass mushroom man.... like he looks completely human for the most part but he’s not he just never tells anyone cause he has the mentality of ‘well no one ever asked?’ Or ‘it didn’t seem important’

- When he’s in danger the surrounding plants try to help him (like lmao there’s a war goin on? Nah just take a nap and miss out so you won’t get hurt :) )

- Imagine how much funnier the lmanberg saga would be if schlatt just looked like his profile icon rather than his mc skin.... just cute tiny sheep man in a sweater... I think it’d be like that one gif of the teddy bear slamming its head onto the table to acquire angy eyebrows

- Dreams has symmetrical white patches down the front of skin... kinda like vitiligo but not? Like deadass pure white

- I also kinda just imagine him having creepy solid black eyes ghgh (haha it’s cause he’s possessed)

- He’s immortal and kinda just snapped tbh like half the reason his actions are so manipulative, selfish and drastic are both because he’s so desperate to have control over things in his life and because low-key he kinda hopes that people will find a way to kill him off or get rid of the thing possessing him (I just want a happy ending :( make him not evil pls my poor heart can’t take a non happy for everyone ending//)

- Puffy is fluffy :) I will not elaborate further

- Revived people have creepy blacked out maybe kinda glowing eyes.... paler skin.... scars and phantom pains from their injuries....

- Phil just deadass found Wilbur hiding inside a fridge and took him home with him... wil just assumed the fridge was his mom and Phil found it too funny to correct him

- Tubbo is a moobloom hybrid and all the bees love him ok 💛

- I think it would be funny if dream just deadass can’t see shit through his mask rap considering all the feats he has done

- Phil is v old and ‘wise’ but is also fairly detached from reality as a result cause he can’t really remember what earlier parts of his life were like to understand how other people act

- I also think it’d be hilarious if he ironically had like 0 life skills... cooking? He’s shit at it. Sleep schedule? Never heard of it. Taxes? Isn’t that a state?

- The floors in the tundra trios homes are constantly being ruined by techno having hooves and Phil and maybe ranboo having claws... like u no how u can like dent and scrape a wooden floor with heels? Kinda like that

- Speaking of those three I also think it’d be very funny if they all collectively became useless or started fighting in the presence of a gold block cause like 👀 ‘oo gold/hehe shiny/hold block’ mentality

- Quackity can shapeshift.... but he’s like a ditto and always has the :] face.... mmm also maybe keeps any scars he has

- His ability to control this decreases the more he dies

- So like u could he talking to him and just suddenly he looks like someone else or like a weird mishmash of people and just hasn’t noticed lmao totally not freaky at all

- Literally non of the tundra trio are equipped for the weather like u have someone from the hot af nether, bird man who’d realistically be prone to hypothermia and someone who’s allergic to water like lmao why do yall live here what is wrong with you

- I want niki to just be very exasperated by this fact

- I want her to bake goods for her friends... tailored to their tastes.... cheer up food :)

- Also i forget when she changed her skin but I think it’d be very funny if she dyed her hair pink as an intimidation factor to tommy cause she knows he dislikes techno

- Puffy ily but I do not trust you with Tommy after the disaster that was bbh and skeppys relationship counselling

- The concept of the totems being foolish’s children is very funny to me like just the implication that he just leaves his kids in random chests for people to steal and that when they witness someone die they just explode with revive energy or something like w h a t

- Ghostbur either isn’t actually Wilbur and is just some entity pretending to be him hence the ‘poor memory’ OR him and limbo Wilbur are two halves of one entity

- I just find it v sus that he’s the only ghost that’s ever shown up... and regularly at that

- mmm tubbo hard of hearing.... relies on reading lips the best he can when to help clarify what people are saying but he can hear people well enough if they raise their voice quite loud

- cursed hc but what if ash and Zachary were somehow michael decendants and they like porkums cause he’s either originally a family friend or he just reminds them of stuff

- Ok half of these aren’t even hcs anymore and is just me rambling but who let Karl be in charge of the time travel he has such strong himbo energy

- That being said villain Karl when 👀//

- Why is tubbo like one of the smartest most accomplished people on the sever... he’s like 17..... like my man has been president, developed a new form of fast travel, has a family, developed a nuclear weapons program by himself, launched a man into space, developed a whole town and more .... like who let him have this much power he can barely read//

- I think it’d be funny if techno was just really bad at strategy games..... like ok technically he’s not bad at them but like he just spends 4 days analysing every last minute detail every round to optimise his chances of winning//

- I feel like people don’t give Jack enough credit for the fact he cheated death using nothing but spite

[multiverseoffandoms-blog]

Infatuation // G.W pt.2

A/N: this is the second part to my George Weasley x reader series. It’s significantly longer than the first one — which you can find on my page (I’m working on updating the masterlist and links. I do all these on my phone, so there are some errors. 

Warnings: build up to smut? Fluff, my poor writing skills.  Pairing: Fred x female!Reader, George x female!Reader

Tag list: @pigwidgexn @xuckduck @is-it-really-a-secret @asluttybisexual

You couldn’t contain your amusement as you watched the twins, the pair of them encouraging cheers from their peers as they ran into the room, a vile each in their hands. They each ran around the room, collecting high fives and cheers from everyone present. Fred skipper over to you, smiling sweetly at you as he planted a kiss on your forehead. Behind him, you didn’t miss how George rolled his eyes at the two of you.

It had been close to a week since the incident, and if you were honest with yourself, you had to admit that you had been emotionally torn since. Once you left the library, you practically sprinted to the Gryffindor common room before locking yourself in the dorms for the rest of the afternoon. You had decided to tell Fred, and so you’d threw on an old sweater, before making your way to the Great Hall. You were late for dinner, and so expected to receive a few lingering stares from students.

As you had approached your table, ready to take your seat, you stopped abruptly when you noticed Fred.. laughing. Beside him, sat in your usual spot, was Angelina. She had positioned herself almost on top of him, her body meeting his side every time she giggled.  You weren’t mad, how could you be? You and Fred weren’t even “official”, but to think that you were sat in your room worrying yourself about how he would feel about the incident with George, all the while he was down getting friendly with some chaser. At least you were going to tell him, he seemed like he had no intentions of letting you in on whatever he had going on.

Huffing out your annoyance, you straightened your back and held your head up, stalking towards the pair who hadn’t even noticed you. George had noticed though, and even as you stood a few students back, you could see him visibly tense at the sight of you.  “Come off it Angelina, he’s not even that funny,” you snapped as you reached the pair, shoving yourself down between Fred and George. George’s arm bumped against yours due to the small space you had crammed yourself into, but your annoyance was far more greater than your infatuation with the twin right now. With your back to George, you set your eyes on Fred.

“I’m late, what — not even 10 minutes, and already you’re filling my position with knock off versions of myself? Harsh, Freddie. Even for you.” You were ware of how dramatic you sounded, but you had always been honest with Fred, and right then it honestly felt like he was betraying your trust. You reached across the table, scooping Ron’s cup from beside his plate before bringing it to your lips, sipping to calm your nerves.

“Hey!”  “Not now Ron.” 

Fred turned himself to you, his conversation with the girl beside him forgotten. 

“Y/n, hey! George told me you weren’t feeling too well and-and..” you waved off his excuses, passing Ron back his cup before reaching for a bread bun to add to your plate.  “Honestly Freddie, I’m not concerned. Although, If I knew you would be so quick to change your mind on me, then perhaps I would of chosen a different brother to have my arrangement with.” You told him with a shrug, absentmindedly stabbing your fork into vegetables that sat in your plate.

Both George and Ron were shocked to hear you say what you did, the statement catching them both by surprise as they choked on their drinks, mixtures of saliva and beverage dripping from their lips as they raced to wipe theirselves clean. You laughed to yourself, reaching out and patting George on the back.

“You okay George?” You teased, smiling sweetly over your shoulder at Fred who seemed to be unbelievably annoyed by your confession. He held your stare for what felt like forever, an uncomfortable silence falling over your friends. After nearly a whole minute, Fred caved.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered in your ear as he leans into you, kissing the corner of your mouth. You hmm’d in response, not fully letting the matter go but deciding to move on from it for the time. Conversation soon started back up, and soon it was like the disagreement didn’t even happen.

Under the table, you felt the small tremble of shaky fingers brushing against yours.

George.

Somewhere in your argument with Fred, you’d decided that you weren’t going to tell him about his brother, which was probably why you decided to link a few of your fingers with his instead of moving away. You could see his smile from the corner of your eye, but he bit his lip and dropped his head to hide his ever growing smirk.

-

“Ready Fred?” George asked his brother, the both of them leaving Hermione's side.

“Ready George!”

The two shook their viles, before linking their arms together. “Bottoms up!” The two boys pocketed their viles, cheering loudly with everyone when the potion didn’t reject from their bodies. You watched from beside Harry and Ron, your own shock apparent when they jumped over the age line. You clapped along with everyone else, cheering for them both as they tossed their parchment into the goblet.

Suddenly, a rumble sounded throughout the room, tall blue flames erupting from the fire, whirling around before smacking into Fred and George, throwing them out of the ring and across the floor. You laughed loudly, unable to contain yourself as you watched the hairs on their heads turn from orange to white, the two morphing into old men versions of theirselves.

You couldn’t think.

You couldn’t even breathe, as you doubled over into fits of laughter. Tears were streaming down your face as you watched the boys fight on the floor, their grey hair and beards flying wildly as they shoved each other. You had never seen something so hilariously funny. Sure, you had suspected that the consequences of the ageing potion would be great, but never would you of guessed that it would be this amusing!

“Get your brother, Ron.” You say, distracting him from his chants as he encouraged his older brothers to fight.

“C’mon y/n, really! You can’t honestly expect me to interrupt this?” While you did admit to Ron that it was absolutely hilarious, you warned him about how upset Molly would be, had her sons been expelled and no one stepped in to help.

“Bloody hell!” He groaned. The two of you excused yourselves through the crowd, while Harry did his best efforts to divert the students elsewhere, telling them that that’s enough entertainment for them today.

“Both of you, get up!” You called over their shouts, reaching down to grab Fred by his sleeve, yanking him backwards as best you could. Ron held out his arm, helping George to his feet. The two boys dusted off their robes, each one shooting daggers at the other.

“You two look ridiculous!” Ron laughed at his brothers, causing bickers of disapproval between the three. You sighed, rubbing your hands across your face. Honestly, how could Molly deal with these human headaches.

“In all fairness, I did tell you it would have  repercussions George.” You say, covering your mouth when you met his eyes to stop your giggles. “So it’s really your own faults.” You shook your head, reaching out to toss his grey hair.

“Although, you do make a cute little old man.” You added, smiling sweetly as you watched George blush at your comment. He shook his head, scratching the back of his neck and giving a cough to clear his throat.

“Wait, you told y/n about the potion before you told me?” Asked Fred. He was frowning down at you, and you could practically hear the gears in his mind turning as if he were trying to run through every scenario on why you knew first.

George went to speak first, but you cut him off before he said something no one could take back.

‘Couldn’t have Fred knowing you were considering letting George between your legs,’ you thought - cursing to yourself.

“Yeah! I ran into him in the library the other week when I was looking for books for charms class. I wasn’t feeling well and that’s when he told you, and so you decided to try and replace me with Angelina,” you hoped that would be enough to shift Fred’s questioning eyes off his brother, and it was.

He groaned, slouching his shoulders as he pouted at you. “I thought we were past that!” You shook your head, laughing at his childlike behaviour.

“Not even close Freddie, come on — let’s go find Snape, I’m sure he’s got a potion that’ll fix up this disaster you got yourself into.” You shoved Fred towards the exit, but not before checking over your shoulder to see George mouth a quiet ‘thank you’ to you.

-

It took nearly two whole hours — and a lot of pleading with the potions professor — before Fred and George were back to their normal selves. Snape had lectured both boys, reminding them that if they had of paid more attention in class, they would of understood how to correctly make the potion they had attempted.

You decided to leave out the part that they had used the potion to try and cheat their way into the triwizard tournament, deciding that they’d already suffered enough.

Still, Snape gave them both a weeks worth of detention and another scoulding, before mixing up a rather stinky concoction to cure the boys of their sudden old age. 

“Thanks again, for helping me.” Fred called from the bathroom joining off the boys dorm rooms. You were sprawled across his bed, head propped up on his pillows as you kicked your shoes off your feet, settling in comfortably.

He’d decided to have a quick shower, as if to try and scrub himself clean to make sure there were no more wrinkles or age spots littering his skin. You had spent majority of the time giggling at him, the imagine of his old body still fresh in your mind. He complained almost the whole time, but as soon as he started to see his features start to morph back to his own, his mood brightened.

Fred joined you back in his room, wearing nothing but a towel lowly around his hips. His hair was still damp, and the veins popping along his arms seemed to only become more prominent as he lifted his hand up to run it through his hair, pushing it back from his eyes. The movement caused small water droplets to fall from his hair, sliding slowly down across his chest and — relatively toned — stomach, before absorbing into the towel. 

It was if suddenly you forgot what words were, your mind turning to mush as you stuttered over yourself, scrambling to sit upright. You watched wide eyed as he kept his back to you, reaching down to pull his draws open to retrieve a fresh uniform from inside. His back muscles twitched at his movements, and you were sure you had drool on your chin.

“Holy shit Freddie,” you called, shaking yourself out of your daze. You didn’t have to see his face to know he was smirking. He was cocky, there was no doubt about it. He spun on his heals, resting himself against the set of draws as he gripped the edges in his hands.

You wondered how his hands would feel, gripping your throat like that.

“Like what you see, do you sweetheart?” He teased, running his tongue along the front of his teeth. Fred was a flirt, the whole student body at hogwarts knew that. He spent more time flirting with you than either of you did doing anything together. And while you two hadn’t slept together, the two of you took advantage of the comfortable bond yous shared and did everything other. You weren’t a virgin, but you definitely didn’t go around giving it to whoever asked for it.

You decided to play with him, opting on not giving him full satisfaction of the effect he could have on you. You shrugged, giving him your own flirty smirk when you met his stare. “It’s alright, I guess.”

He raised a brow at you, tilting his head and analysing you while he stalked his way slowly over to you. Fred stopped beside his bed, where you sat patiently, anticipating what his next move would be. He reached out, gripping your jaw between his thumb and fingers before giving you a small pull upwards, signaling you up on your knees.

He kissed you harshly, almost possessively. Your mouth melted against his, your fight for the game suddenly gone as your tongue met his, his sweet taste filling your mouth each second he held you to him.

Fred pulled back, leaving you short breathed and flustered as he chuckled to himself, rubbing his thumb along your jaw. “Mhm, no one does it for you quite like me darling.” He stated, falling his body horizontally across his bed, his feet planted firmly on the floor.

You were astonished, he’d had it over you without even trying. Catching him by surprise, you moved forwards to bring yourself into his lap, straddling his waist. Fred held his composure, pushing himself up onto his elbows, the tips on his fingers brushing against your knees.

Just like George did..

“And is that what you think Freddie?” You asked sweetly, shifting your hips slightly to brush against his growing bulge. He groaned beneath you, falling his head back with a whimper. You tsk’d, pressing your hands to his chest as you kissed along his neck, nipping the skin there, leaving a trail to his ear.

“Do I do it for you? Or is that why you were hitting on Angelina?” You laughed in his ear, knowing that your accusations would annoy him. As if on que, he shot his arms up, wrapping a hand around your neck before pinning you down on the bed. He grinned down at you, shaking his head and leaning in to give you a quick kiss.

“You like her, don’t you?” You pushed. You slid your hands up to link behind his neck, playing with his long hair. “Guess I don’t do it for you, hey Freddie.” He rolled his eyes, finally, he was about to play your game.

“And so what if I like her to? It’s not like we’re together. We’re just messing around,” he told you. You knew it was true, it had been a mutual idea to not take your relationship to that level. Some lines can’t be crossed back over once you take that step, and you didnt want to lose a friendship over something that wouldn’t work.

‘George would work,’ you told yourself. In a sense you knew it was true. You had a connection with Fred, but your attraction and common interests with George made him a more compatible match.

“Don’t tell me you’ve gone all soft on me now?” He asked, leaning down to bump his nose with yours. “I like what we have. We can keep doing it, I enjoy being the only one who can rile you up,” he slipped his hand underneath your top, fingertips tracing patterns over your stomach as they moved up your body.

His head fell to your neck, his lips leaving open mouthed kisses along you. Fred Weasley, the nerve of him to think he could get away with having you both. Like it wouldn’t be a completely selfish act to keep you to himself. You frowning, pulling his head up to brush your lips against his.

“I’ve got a secret,” you mumble, meeting your lips with his in a few sloppy kisses.

“Tell me, baby.” His voice was a whisper, eyes fluttering shut as he let his body enjoy the sensations of your mouth against his, your hands on him.

You moved your lips from his to his ear, the thrill of your confession stirring butterflies in your stomach.

“George actually does it for me.”

His movements froze, his body going stiff as he pulled back to look at you. You couldn’t recall a time you’d seen him look so blank, face vacant of any expression as his eyes bore into yours.

Perhaps that wasn’t the best idea..

-

The sun had begun to slowly drop for the night, the last remaining rays of sunshine trying to peak through the growing cluster of grey storm clouds that were quickly filling the sky. The rumble of the storm brewing bounced around the forests trees as a few stray raindrops fell from above, splattering theirselves against your hogwarts school sweater.

You smiled at the feeling, the rain being one of your most favourite things, before turning the tip of your wand upwards to cast a shield above you, the drops of rain reflecting off it in small spots of blue. The forest around you seemed to release a calming  aroma, as if they were almost happy that they had been gifted with a storm.

You sat by a small abandoned dock by The Great Lake, still surrounded enough by trees and bushes to stay hidden if anyone was to wonder by, but out enough to be able to see all of hogwarts and its beauty. The raindrops fell peacefully into the lake, and you tilted your head in amusement as you watched the surface of the water ripple with the movements below it.

This was probably your most favourite place to come and be alone. Luna Lovegood had shown it to you in your forth year. She had sat with you after you received a rather upsetting letter from home, and told you that this was the most beautiful place to come for comfort.

She was right.

While you hadn’t seen many of the magical creatures that inhabited the lake — a few sea turtles here and there — there was one being that always seemed to make your visits interesting.

It’s eyes watched you from just below the waters surface, small bubbles bubbling around it as if it knew that made you laugh. The Giant Squid lifted one of its tentacles above itself to protrude just above the waters surface, and you laughed lightly at its demanding behaviour.

You reached down beside you, grabbing another bread roll before standing and throwing it out into the water. Your aim way off — an indicator on why you never made the quidditch team — but the lake monster stretched his limb to catch the bread before it hit the top of the water.

It was past cerfew, you knew as soon as you headed back to hogwarts you would be in all types of trouble with the headmaster. But after your argument with Fred, you couldn’t stand to be there for longer than you had to be.

Or really, not much of a fight at all. He hadn’t even spoken to you. You frowned as you remember how he moved away from you, like your hands had suddenly burnt his skin and he couldn’t stand it. He seemed to look right through you while he stood by the end of his bed, before he focused himself onto you.

“Get out,” he’d whispered to you, and you knew you had upset him. You tried to reason with him, moving to stand on your feet in front of him and place a hand on his chest, but he avoided your touch with two steps backwards, before barking at you to leave once more.

You shook the thought from your head, before sitting yourself down on the damp dock. Did you regret what you said? Absolutely not. Over the past week or so you had made time to analyse everything to do with George. From the pranks on each other in your second year, him carrying your books to each class for you in third, being the one who comforted you when you were sad, being the reason you laughed. He was possibly the greatest friend you ever had.

But, a small part of you had always wondered about more with George. Only recently had you let that idea bubble in your mind.

You loved Fred, you owed it to yourselves to give it a try to see if you’s were ‘the ones’ for each other. But you felt as though your bond with Fred in a way pushed you closer to your attention for George.

You loved Fred; but you weren’t in love with Fred.

“You’re more difficult to find than I expected,” you squealed, your fright scaring the squid to swim off as you jumped to your feet, spinning around to face George.

He stood by the bay, his head wrapped up in a beanie you were sure Molly sent him. He was wrapped in a cosy jumper, the same charm producing a shield from the tip of his wand to.

“Merlins beard George Weasley! You can’t just sneak up on people like that!” You scolded him, crossing your arms across your chest as you frowned at him.

He chuckled at you, taking a few steps up the dock to join you, leaving an arms length between the two of you. You forced your eyes off the ground, bringing them up to look over his face, allowing yourself a sad smile as you seen his awkward emotions.

“What are you doing out here George? How did you even know where I was?” You questioned, trying to shift some of the awkwardness settling between the two of you. You had never been awkward around George. Has Fred told him what you said? Had he told Fred about the stirring feelings you both shared?

George reached into his coat pocket, pulling out what looked like a map with a sheepish grin on his face.

The Marauder’s Map.

“I uh.. I borrowed it off Harry when I heard that no one had seen you all afternoon. Figured why not right? I’ve already got a weeks worth of detentions, why not add another week when we’re caught out past cerfew?” You couldn’t help but smile at him, his body relaxing as he realised you weren’t upset about him finding you.

The rain had settled, and you lowered your wand to shove it into your pocket, keeping your hands there as you kicked at some dirt on the dock.

You noticed George’s feet come into sight, and you allowed yourself a quick peak up at him.

“Do you want to talk about it?” He asked. You shook your head, mumbling a ‘not particularly’ with a half shrug. Off behind you, you could hear the stirring splash of water, and so you linked your arm with George, pulling him to the edge of the dock.

“Wha-“ you smacked his chest, bringing your index finger up to your lips to tell him to be quiet. The two of you stood in a comfortable silence, both watching the wafers surface break open, to be met with the familiar eyes peeking back at you — and now George.

It was only small, and you were sure he thought he’d played it off smoothly, but you felt him take a step backwards at the sight of the giant squid. You turned to look over your shoulder at him while you linked your fingers with his, holding his hand to pull him back closer.

“It’s alright, he’s just curious.” You told him. Not many students had the pleasure of seeing the squid, he was a nervous thing who was frightened away by sudden movements. George swallowed his nerves before calming beside you, watching as the squid lifted one of its tentacles out of the water.

You extended your hand, giggling like a kid when he extended forward, placing some pebbles into your outstretched palm. He sunk back into the water, turning to look at George once more before spinning around and diving into the lakes dark depths.

“He likes to give gifts for the bread I give him,” you told him when you noticed that he was frowning at you curiously.

“So you’re friends with the lake monster.. wicked.” George laughed from beside you, and soon you joined him, shaking your head at the boy. He always had a way of making you smile, even when you felt low.

“I think Fred and I are done with it, whatever ‘it’ was,” you told him once the two of you fell back into silence. You could tell by the way his body stayed tense that he was unsure of his actions, his hand even hesitating before he placed it against the side of your face — rubbing your cheek tenderly.

His brown eyes scanned over your face, trying to look for any emotion that said you regretted it. You didn’t.

“I told him that it’s you,” your voice was barely above a whisper, your eyes anywhere but his as you felt the heat rising up your neck and tinting your cheeks. George inhaled quickly, a small grin threatening the corners of his mouth, but he composed himself and opted on pulling you into his chest.

You wound your arms around his waist, holding his body close to yours as you relaxed into his warm embrace. George tested his head in the top of yours, giving you a small peck for comfort.

It felt good to hug him, to tell him that you think you’d upset Fred, to feel okay as he held you against his chest. His racing heartbeat calmed you in a way, and you were sure he could feel yours that was beating just as fast. George pulled back from you, reaching down to cup your chin in between his thumb and pointer, tilting your head up to look into his eyes.

“Fred has always been.. attached, to what he enjoys. He might be upset now, but he cares about you and I know he wouldn’t be able to live with himself if he stayed mad at you and denied you what you want.” 

You chewed your lip between your teeth, holding his gaze. “And how do you know what I want George?”

He didn’t speak, instead sunk his head to mold his mouth against yours, his lips moving almost desperately against your own. Your reaction was instant, pushing yourself up onto your tippy toes while you knotted your hands in his red locks. Your teeth clashed against his as you pushed against his lips with the same force he was, a soft moan falling into his mouth as his tongue met yours.

He fit perfectly against you, it was beautiful.

George groaned, his hands squeezing yours sides and bunching your clothes in his hands, his cold fingers slipping under along your lower back to pull you impossibly closer to him. Your stomach was in butterflies as you slid one hand from the back of his neck, dancing it along his neck to place it against his chest.

You detached your lips from his, your breaths coming out in pants by his ear as he dropped his head to the crook of your neck, sucking and biting little marks all along your exposed skin. It didn’t take him long to find your sweet spot, sucking harshly just below your ear — surely leaving a mark — as he drank up your whimpers.

“G-George..” you whined. You knew you probably sounded pathetic, standing here begging for him.

“How do I know what you want, love?” He whispered into your ear, goosebumps erupting over your body. “Why don’t you tell me? Tell me what you want.”

You nearly turned to mush right then and there. In front of you, the usual shy boy that you were so interested in, was speaking to you in a way that had you rubbing your thighs together, the pool between your legs certainly soaking into your panties.

You pushed against his chest, causing him to take a step back from you. The daylight had nearly completely disappeared, so you strained to see his face, but you could tell he was confused by your actions.

“It’s you George.. it’s always been-“

“What are you two kids doing out here so late!”

You practically jumped into George’s arms with a scream, relaxing a bit when you felt him hold you tighter while he shifted you behind his body; one hand wrapped around you, and the other coming forward to draw his wand on who had interrupted the both of you.

It took a moment to adjust your eyes to the sudden light that was now surrounding you, but it didn’t take you long — with the help of Georges ‘lumos maxima’ charm — you soon realised that you’d been caught by Hagrid.

“On my life Hagrid, you scared me half to death!” You shouted, taking a step out from behind George, who had lowered his wand when he realised there was no immediate danger.

“You should think yourself lucky that it was me who found you. You know what sort of creatures lurk out here in the night!” His voice boomed, the light he held shining on his face to allow you to see his disappointment.

No actually, the mythical creatures had actually slipped your mind, and you were embarrassed that George had that effect on you to have you forgetting how dangerous it could be.

“We’re sorry Hagrid,” George spoke for you, his hand staying comfortably in yours. You watched Hagrid drop his eyes to your entwined hands, before shaking his head with a roll of his eyes.

“Well, best be getting you two back inside then.. before someone catches you. Come along.” You sighed, resting your forehead on George’s arm, allowing a quick laugh between the two of you. George extended his arm with a slight bowl, gesturing for you to lead the way.

“After you, m’lady.” He said with a wink.

[deborahdeshoftim5779]

BBC Merlin 4x05: His Father’s Son

Here's a round-up of my main observations from BBC Merlin's "His Father's Son" (4x05).

1- MERLIN AS A KNIGHT 

I have to admit that Merlin as a sorcerer and trusted adviser appeals to me the most, but I did write a lengthy post analysing how Arthur had turned Merlin into an excellent fighter. This refutes claims that Merlin gave more to Arthur than he received in return. 

At the beginning of 4x05, we see Merlin selected to play a new role: that of knight. How did this come about? Arthur Pendragon is best known for his skills as a warrior, but he deserves more credit for his military tactics. These destroy the popular yet false idea that he is unintelligent. More on the latter in a forthcoming post.  

One of Arthur’s favourite tactics is using decoys. Previous examples of him using decoys include: The Castle of Fyrien (3x07), when Arthur used Merlin as a decoy to entrap Cenred’s soldiers; Aithusa (4x04), when Arthur used himself as a decoy to get Sir Percival to safety; Arthur’s Bane Part 2 (5x02), when Arthur uses Merlin as a decoy to enrage the slave traders before they escape-- by far my favourite example. 

All things considered, I don’t think it takes long for Arthur to choose Merlin. Furthermore, this decision may have taken place before they reached their selected location, as Agravaine later mentions a previous attack by Caerleon on the border. This choice demonstrates that Arthur has higher confidence in Merlin's abilities than he does of in his knights-- else he would have chosen them. We must conclude that Merlin is Arthur's best fighter, though at first glance, we wonder why an unarmed man follows trained knights into battle. 

Merlin is sharp, fast, has high stamina, and is incredibly resourceful. Most of all, however, he is incredibly brave. In fact, when rewatching 1x02, I was surprised to see Arthur acknowledge that Merlin was "braver than you look." This despite Arthur’s frustration that Merlin did not try hard enough during practice ("Come on, Merlin: I've got a tournament to win!"). 

What’s more, in that same episode, Merlin complains about his first day, but later on, we see his fascination wth the ongoing tournament. Then he admitted to Gaius that working for Arthur (in the context of said tournament) "isn't totally horrible all the time." It took one day for him to change his opinion! 

Sure, Merlin would continue to treat the fighting as pointless violence, and Arthur as having nothing more in his head than a desire to knock "the seven bells" out of other people (3x04). However, even in 1x02, when he applauds Arthur's fighting, his actions tell a different story. We associate this habit of liking something whilst pretending otherwise to Arthur, yet Merlin has it as well. 

As I have said before, Merlin and Arthur have profound differences, yet are profoundly alike. 

2- MERLIN AS A SERVANT 

It comes as no surprise that Merlin would return to serving after the beginning of 4x05. However, what that change represents sets the tone for this entire episode: Arthur dismissing Merlin's counsel repeatedly in favour of listening to his uncle. 

When Arthur says, "so please, stick to what you do know," you have to wonder whether Merlin remembered being entrusted with the role of knight. Now, Arthur puts him back in his place. 

Here's another example: "My conscience is clean, which is more than I can say for my room, so just... do your job, will you?" Yet just yesterday, that job involved Merlin risking his life against enemy forces by dressing as a knight. 

By the way, you can tell that Arthur doesn’t believe his own excuses, because he keeps using the passive voice to justify killing Caerleon: “...a show of strength was necessary… an example had to be made… My conscience is clean…” 

Merlin’s face after Arthur claims he doesn’t need anyone is self-explanatory. 

3- NEW THOUGHTS ON ANNIS

Is Queen Annis a good person? Actually, no. 

First of all, she knows and approves of her husband invading foreign kingdoms to plunder their wealth. Such invasions naturally cost not only the lives of Arthur's men, but her own, too. 

Furthermore, despite accepting Arthur's offer of a fight by single combat, she is prepared to cheat by enlisting Morgana's power. Perhaps if Arthur had died, too, she would have felt some remorse. Yet she still takes a monumental risk with Arthur's life in blatant violation of the knight's code. One has to wonder about her reaction had Camelot plotted against her armies in the same way. 

Then we have Annis calmly ordering Merlin’s execution without giving him a chance to explain himself. The lack of emotion in her voice suggests she has done this before. 

Speaking of cruelty, Annis’ champion seems to enjoy inflicting pain on his enemies, yet the Queen claims that he “served my husband well.” I dread to think what she means by “served”. 

I will also note that Queen Annis disdains magic, referring to Morgana as “witch”. As I have said before, Uther did not begin prejudice against magic; sorcerers were disliked and feared elsewhere, too, including by those who disliked Uther. Many sorcerers caused this prejudice by engaging in manipulative, violent, and wicked deeds. 

Examples include High Priestesses using Fomorrohs to enslave people’s minds (4x06); Cornelius Sigan using his power to change day into night and acquire vast wealth (2x01); sorcerers using special blades to murder people (3x04), and so on.

None of this takes away from Annis’ complexity, nor does it undermine her immense humility when she accepts defeat and withdraws from Camelot. After all, much of Annis' rage and desire for vengeance stems from intense grief over Caerleon's death, so we can assume her marriage was a happy one. 

Forgiving the man who destroyed her domestic happiness (as well as leaving her people without a king) shows tremendous nobility on Annis’ part. I think Arthur sees that, for he is always humble and respectful before her. 

4- LONG LIVE THE KING 

Few people respect Arthur more than Merlin. So when he doesn’t join in with cries of “Long live the king!”, you know something is wrong. 

5- CONTROL YOUR FEAR 

Episode 4x03 has a hilarious scene where a drunk Arthur claims he isn’t even a little bit scared, because, “I’m a warrior. You learn to control your fear.” Then Arthur walks smack bang into a pillar. Never fails to make me laugh. Minus the drunkenness, Arthur was telling the truth about controlling his fear.

You can see this at least twice in this episode: first, when he sees how many men Annis has brought against Camelot, and secondly, when he sees the size of Annis’ giant. In both cases, Arthur harnesses his fear into determination, which is another sign of a great warrior. 

Next up, we have a fascinating scene where Arthur watches his men joking by the fire. It's a great way of showing Arthur’s care for these men, as well as his guilt that impending war will end their lives. In a sense, Arthur has to control his fear yet again. 

6- TRUST IN MERLIN 

After the above scene, Gwaine asks Merlin if Arthur is all right, and the fact that Merlin can describe Arthur's feelings without even questioning the King once again shows the unique nature of their friendship. Merlin sees Arthur's expression, and he just knows. And Gwaine knows that, hence why he does not question the King himself. 

Listen to the silence after Merlin's response. Nobody questions Merlin's judgement: they just reflect. Given the way Arthur has repeatedly dismissed Merlin's advance in favour of his uncle, I think he could have learned something from his own knights. 

I wonder whether the knights would ask Merlin something about Arthur in this way, whenever the king was absent. In ancient kingdoms, kings had advisers, and in order to earn the monarch's favour, you spoke to the latter first. Did Merlin ever play that role for the knights?

7- MERLIN’S IDIOCY 

Now, I have a problem with Merlin telling Arthur that 1)- he would have taken any other option but to face war with Annis, and 2)- his decision to kill Caerleon “was made in the best interests of Camelot.” 

Sorry, but it wasn’t. Merlin knows that. I understand that he has to rally Arthur’s spirits so that they can win against Annis, but I am glad that Arthur knows full well he has done wrong. Both Merlin and many fans do not give Arthur enough credit for recognising his own errors. 

However, even these foolishly optimistic statements pale in comparison to Merlin's reckless and self-righteous interference when Arthur negotiates with Queen Annis. I burst out laughing when he trips and falls headlong into the tent, a metaphor for his impetuousness.  

Merlin eavesdrops outside Annis’ tent, gets caught (so he didn't conceal himself), and then has the audacity to say, “Sorry about this!” to Arthur! Not only that, he got angry over being called a “simple-minded fool”, when he couldn’t even walk in a straight line to follow the king, got himself caught and almost killed by enemy soldiers, and made Arthur look as though he were double-crossing Annis! 

I completely agree with Arthur’s anger: “Oh, I was being kind, believe me: you almost got me killed in there!” Correct. Merlin simply could not trust that Arthur knew what he was doing, and decided to interfere. Instead of apologising for getting Arthur into trouble, Merlin remains on the defensive, claiming without evidence that Arthur was “doing a pretty good job of that yourself!” 

This is untrue. Arthur surrendered himself to Annis’ men. The most injury he received was a slap. He asked a favour. That isn’t risking your life. In fact, Arthur was trying to save lives, and if Merlin had been listening properly (or just stayed in bed), he would have seen that. Only after Merlin’s sudden entrance did Arthur face serious danger from Annis. 

Now, Merlin’s explanation for this is, “I’m your friend! I was looking out for you.” I don’t doubt it. But once again, Arthur is right: “I appreciate that in your very confused way, you’re only trying to help, but please: don’t do it again.”

Condescending? Of course. But this time it was Merlin who provoked him into this anger. 

8- MORGANA 

Despite all her power, Morgana still has to defer to non-magical kings and queens. After all, she requires their military assistance to take over Camelot. 

You can also see how Queen Annis detects Morgana’s hatred, greed, self-righteousness, hypocrisy, and bloodlust. In one glance, Queen Annis begins questioning the wisdom of working with a sorceress she does not trust, not least on account of Morgana being a sorceress. 

In fact, Arthur’s prowess as a warrior impresses her more: “You have as much to lose as I if Arthur wins…” Fascinating scene. 

9- THANK YOU, OLD FRIEND 

It’s ironic that arguably the best scene in 4x05 begins by showcasing Arthur’s cynicism. No guesses why Arthur did not tell Merlin about breaking off his relationship with Gwen earlier. That speaks volumes. If he had told Merlin, I think they would have had an argument similar to that of 4x11. 

Only when Arthur realises that he may die does he ask Merlin to pass his ring onto Gwen with an apology. You can see the guilt etched onto his face as he refuses to make eye contact. Interestingly, Merlin does not ask any further questions. 

Arthur’s entrusting Merlin to look after Gwen in the event of his death says a lot. For example, that ring is technically royal property, yet Arthur gives it to a servant for safe-keeping, rather than his next-of-kin, Agravaine. Despite claiming to need his uncle’s advice, Arthur will not trust Agravaine with such duties. Has Arthur made a medieval will or testament? Obviously, I have no idea, however, this episode already shows Arthur’s reliance on Merlin to deal with family matters. 

Another interesting aspect to this scene is Merlin’s silence after Arthur makes an indisputable point. This dispels any idea that Merlin’s advice was always correct. On several occasions, Merlin had to defer to Arthur’s judgement, because he saw the truth and wisdom behind it. “I don’t know what will happen. But for the first time since I became king, I know in my heart I’ve made the right decision.”

Got to love Arthur’s half-amused, “You’re not about to start crying on me, are you?” He expects Merlin to be either in good spirits or confident, because that is how he, too, remains confident. Arthur is an optimist, yet Merlin becomes a pessimist, so the king must pull Merlin together with light and yet serious teasing. 

Needless to say, Arthur calling Merlin “old friend” implies that they have been friends for a long time. So why do some fans still think that Arthur had trouble admitting that Merlin was his friend? Also, the word “old” in this context can imply reliability, constancy. Arthur chose that word to describe Merlin’s value, as well as the length of their friendship. 

The great thing about Arthur is that while he makes some serious errors, when he does repent, he does so well. Not only does Arthur graciously thank Merlin for his concern, but he makes it clear to Agravaine that he relies on Merlin’s judgement prior to entering battle. This supports my earlier statement that Merlin is Arthur’s best fighter, as well as right-hand man; Arthur does not leave for the fight until Merlin has confirmed his readiness. 

On top of this, Arthur later admits that he might be a cabbage head. “I should have listened to you, Merlin. Just this once, I think you were right-- even if you are the worst servant in the five kingdoms!” 

By implication, Agravaine is wrong. Arthur won’t say that, of course, but we saw Merlin’s sound advice competing with Agravaine’s lies for this entire episode. We can only conclude that regardless of what he says, Arthur trusts Merlin more than members of his own family. 

And this is a theme which will continue and grow for the remainder of Season 4. 

FURTHER POINTS:

Merlin’s fighting skills

Paradoxes of Arthur and Merlin’s friendship

[known-as-naya]

What’s your favourite thing about the Klebekah dynamic and your fave scenes? What was it that drew you to them

Thanks Yuki for asking this, it took me hours to think of all my fav scenes but it was worth it lol ❤️

My fav thing about the klebekah dynamic:

So, klebekah. I simply love them if it isn't obvious by now lmao, their codependent and dysfunctional toxic relationship fascinates me so much. They're litteraly the most important person in each other's life and I love that, I love how they understand one another with just a look, I love how they never gave up on each other for a thousand years despite all the betrayals, I love how they adore and worship one another, I LOVE THEM.

Rebekah was the person klaus loved the most in the world (besides hope ofc) it's actually funny how most of the fandom doesn't realize the impact she always had on him, she was his humanity for a thousand years, she was his constant (along with Elijah ) and he was hers, and as we saw on the show Rebekah was the person he showed affection the most.

As for rebekah, Klaus was the man she ADORED since she was a little girl, he was her big brother, the person she wanted to be like when she gets older, her protector, soulmate and best friend. Rebekah was the only person who never actually tried to change him, she loved him as he is during a thousand years and I LOVE THAT.

-The thing that drawn me to them:

Are a lot of things but THE CHEMISTRY was what made me fall in love, fun fact: but the first time I discovered klebekah I was watching a tvd scene on YouTube a couple of years ago and coincidentally it was their 3×03 Chicago flashback scene with Stefan, and I thought they were a sort of threesome of something lmao and when I knew they were siblings I was shocked but continued to ship them anyway cause why not.

What are your fav scenes ?

Oh boy, this is a very DIFFICULT question cause I practically love all their freaking scenes, but I eventually have to choose so there you go:

-I'll begin with tvd:

-There's 3×03, of course, THIS WHOLE EPISODE IS FULL OF INCEST. the "I'm not your girlfriend", the "choose him or me" Klaus' jealousy, the eye sex, the daggering session, the hand holding, EVERYTHING SCREAMED KLEBEKAH. This ep was such a strong introduction to their strange dynamic.

-3×04: my fav thing about this ep is Klaus taking rebekah to shop and being a child about it. He was so done with her already but at the same time so happy to have her around again. I loved the surprised expression on Stefan's face the whole time, he was not used to this side of Klaus, he was not used to Klaus being wrapped around someone's little finger. I loved their little conversation when she was trying that dress and she said something about women in the 21th century dressing like prostitues and that she got dirty looks for wearing trousers and then Klaus said you wore trousers so women today could wear nothing. Lmaooo it was hilarious.

- 3×15: "I hated you when I learned that you killed our mother but after a thousand years together as a family you're the only one who never left me "

" Aren't we a pair ?" THIS MF LINE GETS ME EVERYTIME. I don't have words to describe what it does to me but I love this scene and the fact that Klaus thought that rebekah was going to show him her torturer's skills makes it better.

-3×18: " you destroyed our family" "I wanted a family they just didn't want me, and now that we're unlinked we're no longer responsible for each other" "so are you leaving ?" "As soon as a get my stakes I'm gone..... I'm gonna make a NEW FAMILY of hybrids" "and if I choose to stay ?" "Then you're just as pathetic as Finn " THIS WHOLE scene was a masterpiece, them looking at each other like that makes me wanna give them a hug:

-3×20: it wasn't really a klebekah scene cause it was Esther in Rebekah's body but the way Klaus smiled at her and agreed to go to the dance JUST for her melt my heart.

-3×22: oh gosh this one, breaks my heart but love it so much " how dare you save Caroline over me ?" " You left me !" "it's always been me, not Finn not Elijah no Kol ME, I LOVED YOU through everything and you don't even care " and then he chokes her and say something he -IM SURE- regrets immediately "you know something rebekah you're right I don't care, from this moment on you're not my family you're not my sister you are nothing " and then he breaks her neck. I HATE THIS SCENE BUT I LOVE IT. these two needed couple therapy. Klaus was horrible, she watched him die, she mourned him, her heart broke. He could've told her about his plan tho ? I'm still wondering why he didn't but I guess he was just being an asshole as usual and took her as granted. And him saving Caroline over her was not it.

-4×04: the flashback hunter scene "YOU TRUSTED HIM OVER ME " "WHAT DID HE PROMISE YOU " "TELL ME REBEKAH " it was like he caught her cheating on him lmaooo. On the same episode there's the famous line "laugh at the girl who loved too easily but I would rather to live my life than yours Nik, no one will ever sit around a table telling stories about a man who couldn't love" the way he looked down after her saying that breaks my heart, cause Klaus could love, he LOVES her, then he daggers her -cause he's a paranoid bastard- and he cries about it.

-Let's switch to TO scenes:

-1×02: this episode is one of my favs but the best scene was when Klaus was choking Hayley after he learned that she wanted to abort the baby then, rebekah slammed him against the wall (it was hot tbh lmao) and she said "it's okay to care, it's okay to want something that's all Elijah was trying to do all he's ever wanted for you, all we've ever wanted." The way he looked her deep in the eyes gets me everytime, he was trying so hard not to cry. Then they sat together, exhausted, and Klaus told her about his plan -that involved giving Elijah to marcel lol- and if she doesn't like it, there's the door.

-1×03: one of my fav episodes too and it has so many good klebekah scenes, “that depends what plan you mean love my plan for global domination or rebekahs plan to find love in a cruel cruel world”  then she giggled and threw a pen at him so lovingly lol. They were teasing and all flirty with each other in front of Hayley and they acted as nothing happened the night before and Klaus never gave Elijah to marcel, after that they teamed up and everything was going fine but Klaus happened. then there's the masquerade ball scene when Klaus called rebekah " you really are a hideously evil little thing aren't you "

and them being jealous watching marcel and cami dancing. later in  this ep theres the famous “you disgust me” scene, the tension was so thick i acually thought they were about to kiss and have sex on that damn piano lmao but klaus as usual disapointed rebekah, she trusted him against all her better instincts and he choose to act against her back cause he thought his plan was smarter.

-I'm not sure in which episode this scene is but I remember Klaus telling rebekah "you were quite resourceful today..... sometimes I think I don't give you your due little sister" it was so cute cause Klaus knows that he doesn't give Rebekah enough credits, and she was so happy to hear him say that.

-1×14: the famous "YOU CANNOT HIDE FROM ME REBEKAH" this episode had me crying the first time I watched it, Klaus was so angry, disappointed and hurt, he could not believe that his baby sister did this to him, that he was in denial for almost a century and he for that she must pay. "Rebekah would not call my father no matter how angry she was " "enough of your lies" even after seeing the truth from the source he still couldn't believe it cause he loved her so freaking much and he thought she did too.

Then them fighting and Klaus getting turned on by her beating his ass up

-1×15: this mf scene.

The kiss, THE FREAKING CLOSE TO THE LIPS KISS. the sexual tension in this scene was HUGE, Klaus finally "set rebekah free" and he was DRUNK doing it. "We don't have to run anymore, we've found a home" and the look on Rebekah's face is priceless, she was shocked and almost guilty cause at this time she has already called mikeal and Klaus was a little too late.

Also in the same episode, THE BLOOD SHARING. Look at them just look at them.

-1×16:

THE BABY MIKAELSON FLASHBACK !! OMG, this scene melts my heart. "Don't be afraid I won't let it hurt you " "will you stay with me till the storm ends ?" And he did stay with her no matter what. I love this scene cause it shows how close and protective they were of each other since forever. Then he gives her the wooden knight so she can be brave. I'm soft.

Then there's this one too ! I love how Rebekah was actually the only one to ever stand against mikeal, she even tried to kill him, just for Klaus. So much devotion.

I'm still not over this one, the hurt on Rebekah's voice as she says those words, Klaus's tears, the whole episode was so angsty but this scene was IT. and then he realised what he did to her, that instead of protecting her he was hurting and suffocating her so he did something he's not used to do, being selfless, and he let her go.

The 1×22 scene: LITTERALY on top of my fav scenes list ! Klaus giving hope to Rebekah proved how much he trusted her "there's no one I would trust more with my daughter's life" and the fact that she came back just for him (and hope) proved that she never really wanted to leave, she just needed a little freedom. Then when he handed her the little toy I WAS IN TEARS OKAY, it was so soft. They were so happy and relieved to see each other again.

-2×09: "if anything goes south I'll be there to pull you out" "you and I on the same team it must me Christmas" he promised to protect her at any cost and she knew he will. Them teaming up against Esther was so great, then the "take me instead" , Klaus was WILLING to sacrifice his immortal life for REBEKAH, if this isn't pure love then I don't know what it is.

-2×17: another episode losing his shit because his wife-sorry sister is in danger. He let Freya enter his mind just to save her (and he was so suspicious about it cause he didn't want her to know his strategies but in fact he was just afraid she'll know about his questionable taste in woman lmaoo)

And this mf scene is so cute, look at their smiles, the forehead touch, his hand on her neck, here on his arm, FOR YOU FOR NOW. I can't believe this is actually canon.

-2×22: "family tradition!" "Minus the family."

"Well, you're here."" In the skin of your choosing, no less."

"Well, poor you. Because that body is such a hardship."

"You would hand over your crown? And do what?" "Raise my daughter... with the help of my sisters. One big, happy family."

" Now, that does sound grand-- minus the giant, Elijah-sized hole in the room. And, whilst your sisters raise your child, what will the child's mother be doing, exactly?"

"This, dear brother, is not what happiness looks like."

This scene was so important, Klaus was wrong and he needed someone to remind him that what he did was not necessary, that he hurt most of his family, and rebekah was there for that. He wished she'd stray with him to "raise" his daughter but after this scene we see Freya offering her Eva's body so she leaves.

-3×09: "you're always leaving" "and I always come back" THEN THE DAMN HUG. their hugs are always so good, the way they close their eyes and hold each other tight and they seem like they never want to let go of each other. Then she has to leave and make Elijah dagger her without telling Nik, cause she wants Nik to be happy for once.

-3×22: "wasn't you who once told me I could talk my way out of hell " and then they smile affectionately at each other and HUG tightly. After this he took her hand and they both walk to their possible end, and she watches him getting stabbed by marcel after she was forced to say all those things she did and didn't think. The whole trial scene was a masterpiece. I love it.

-4×02: this EP was full of klebekah soft scenes. There was the reunion HUG . the way she runs to him the second she sees him and the way he reaches to her and hugs her tightly to his chest.

The kiss on the cheek after "thank you for not abandoning me" and the way he smiles at her was so SOFT OMG.

-4×03: the goodbye hug "Nik you do not need me anymore, I know that I'm your fav sibling and of course I adore you" "you were the only one who never treated me like s misfit, for centuries my only place was by your side...." AND THEY HUG TIGHTLY AGAIN. this was the first time Klaus let Rebekah do whatever the hell she wanted without fighting or daggering and it was revolutionary to her. (The fact that she's his fav sibling and she KNOWS it makes me so happy lmao).

-5×01: their phone call about Elijah. They were both so lost and devastated without him it broke my heart. "How does he look?" "Happy.."

-5×08: "ah Nik always so dramatic"

They were so happy to be reunited after 7 years of being apart, look at them hugging each other so tightly. I LOVE this scene.

-5×12: then there's the goodbye scene, Klaus gave her the cure so he can make up for a thousand years of hurt, "live the life you've always wanted to live, MY SISTER" the way he looked at her so proudly, so in love makes me cry. In my opinion he gave her the cure so they can reunite again in the afterlife. Both him and Elijah can't live or die without her, they're supposed to be together, they're meant to be together and the cure will bring her to them, to him, again. It was such a good scene, the hug, the last glances, everything.

And that's it!!! I'm sure I forgot some other scenes but those are the most important. ❤️

[dreamylyfe-x]

of all the things they could make mickey and ian fight over, why are the writers going with 2 so OOC storylines in the final season? the show never framed ian as seeing mickey's illegal income as not "real" work before. and mickey was never the slacker type, so why now? and mickey would never vague about monogamy. i'm so confused. if they gotta fight, why not over something in character and meaningful. this just feels like writers being mean to the fans, making us sit thru all this nonsense

Hey! Thanks for the ask. Made my (very weird and stressful) day. 

I’m going to be disappointing right off the jump and say that I don’t actually think any of this is OOC, per say. But. In GENERAL. Shameless is not the show it was. I think this is very normal for long-running shows. Take Friends: When you get into the back half of that show’s extensive catalogue, is starts to feel like the characters are a Xerox of a Xerox. Early season Monica is a bit OCD, and a clean freak who loves to be in charge -- but she’s also warm, and hospitable and emotionally available to her friends. Late season Monica is often a coked-out squirrel-woman who loses her mind if someone moves a pillow. That’s quality isn’t out of character, but it’s no longer being balanced with the warm and supportive woman we initially met. I think a bit of that might be “we already know you either like or hate Monica, so we’re just giving you the stuff that’s funny and/or dramatic. We got 22 minutes and six characters and we don’t have to build that other shit anymore.” 

I think that’s happening with Mickey and Gallavich. And I don’t think that’s weird for a) a show that has run this long and b) a character who was gone and then returned. They are giving us a Mickey that has always existed -- unbound by traditional manners, aggressive, blunt and obsessed with Ian Gallagher -- but we aren’t getting much of the Mickey who curls up with Ian at the worst time of his life and kisses his forehead. We aren’t getting all the verbal confirmation of Big Feelings they gave us when he came back in season 7. We aren’t seeing Ian and Mickey as a team, which is a big part of their mid-seasons dynamic. I think that makes people feel like these arguments are OOC, when they’re arguably reasonable issues, but aren’t being given a ton of nuance, or balance. 

Aside: There’s some balance in how the actors are playing the intimacy and the physical affection. The little touches and kisses are appreciated by me. 

So to dig into the OOC stuff -- first of all, it makes total sense to me that they’d have issues about the role crime plays in their lives together. I love that Ian never gave a damn that Mickey is a straight up criminal. But every time Ian lost Mickey, it was because the law intervened. When Mickey is not incarcerated, he’s with Ian. Ian is no longer 16, no one is a juvenile offender, Mickey was given a devastating sentence in season 6 -- 16 years -- Ian was 18! That was his entire living memory, if not more. They are married now, against considerable odds, and I completely understand why Ian doesn’t want Mickey to risk going back to jail. 

Likewise, I get why Mickey doesn’t want to do what Ian is doing. Mickey does not have the temperament for minimum wage jobs. He has a longstanding history of thinking it’s absolute bullshit to work hard for no money. Particularly when he’s smart enough, skilled enough and ballsy enough to make a LOT of money in an afternoon just by spotting an opportunity. 

Mickey has never SAID this on the show, but in canon we have seen him go to prison four times. Once, because Ian’s unhinged spurned groomer shot him; once because Mickey CHOSE to headbutt a cop so he could go to prison and avoid his dad; once because Mickey was consumed with a need to avenge Ian; and finally because Ian got himself tossed in prison, so Mickey CHOSE to join him. If Mickey has confidence that he won't go to prison if Ian isn’t a factor... Not the craziest idea. 

So -- writers spitballing ideas for Gallavich conflict? I think that’s a pretty good one. Two clear sides that both have merit. I’ve already written a bit about my thoughts on the monogamy issues... first, I’ve always figured they were monogam-ish, to reference Dan Savage. They are faithful to each other while they’re together, and when they are separated (usually by prison!) they aren’t. This isn’t the first time Mickey has voiced a lack of interest in being monogamous -- most notably “Great. Now we’re in a horror movie.” Mickey isn’t a traditionalist and I don’t think he feels like this is a make-or-break issue. But MOSTLY? 

MOSTLY. 

I really and truly believe what I’m about to say... 

Mostly Mickey wanted to do what Ian wanted. 

If he legit didn’t want monogamy he wouldn’t have tried to cheat of Ian’s paper. He didn’t like that “write it down and flip the paper” game. He wanted to match Ian’s answer. So he took a guess and he was wrong about what Ian -- who had literally just told him he found the concept of the rest of his life overwhelming -- had written. 

This is my head cannon: I think he liked that Ian wrote down monogamy. This is not my head canon: they are SUPER sweet to each other in the next scene. I am not convinced that the monogamy debate is going to be much of a thing beyond that scene. And I understand that, for a lot of people, that scene was extremely unpleasant. To me, personally, it made sense for it to come up. But I think it’s settled. I think they’re done with it. 

The one place where I’m like “What is this?” is the slacker stuff. I mean, I can meta why Mickey might be afraid of failure or whatever, but it’d be mostly head cannon. They haven’t given us a ton to build on there. The best we got is “Stop disappointing the people you love!” being what motivated Mickey to do something he didn’t want to do. But Mickey was right, if he thought that interview was going to be a disaster. Mickey knows himself and he is painfully aware of his limitations. 

As for why are the writers DOING this? Well. Ok. Here’s what I think it is: 

1. Story is conflict. So they needed one. And “struggle to adjust to marriage” really isn’t a bad one. Specifically, figuring out how to be married when you have no role models and have a few social strikes against you is a good one. 

2. The writers are amused by Gallavich fighting. They think it’s entertaining. And while there are a lot of people out there for whom Gallavich is EVERYTHING, Shameless’s viewership is also made up of people who think Frank is hilarious. No one ever send me an ask about why Frank is hilarious. I will not be able to figure that one out and the research might kill me. We definitely don’t all agree on what is and is not funny. 

3. They’re going somewhere with it. At least a little. 

I don’t KNOW three is true, but here’s something I believe about John Welles. I think he’s a biiiiit of a sap. I think he probably wants to leave each Gallagher with something nice. I don't think his plan it to send everyone off on an ice floe to freeze to death. So I think (hope?) that what we’re going to see is three (maybe four?) episodes of Gallavich At Odds and then I think we’re going to move into them trying to work together to make lives together. And they will probably still fight, because that seems to be part of the Xerox of a Xerox of Gallavich. I’m sure many people will find that cringey and problematic and annoying -- but I also bet we get a few moments we love, here and there. 

I don’t think they’re trying to be mean to the fans, but I think it’s serving 8 characters ... Nope. 9. (I forgot Frank. I always forget about Frank.) ... and we aren’t going to get the depth and breadth we want. And most of that will be on the side where we see Gallavich loving each other, because at this point they expect us to KNOW that. And some of it’ll be Mickey’s internal life because they tend to focus on the Gallaghers. But I do fervently hope we get a little more of that other side of the coin. Because I absolutely agree that one side is more fun than the other. 

[char-lotteral]

I agree with Kishimoto never trying to use the girls. The hate they get is not fair. I used to defend Sakura back in the days because I hoped kishi would do her justice. When shippuden started I WAS SO HAPPY because I thought this was the start of something great for Sakura and the girls but NOOOOO. Every time, Sasuke showed kishi turned her brainless. If you compare Naruto's actions and Sakura's actions to sasuke, you'd see they're completely different. What's up with that weird fake love confession scene 😭? It makes her look like she was manipulating Naru. JEEZ.

Also he literally had badass Tenten and Temari with cool useful abilities and he didn't use them ?! TF ?! Thank god for modern authors who treat their characters with respect :)

okay2 you know how i am with these longass rants so click readmore and brace yourselves

The way I see it, Sakura's character development in shippuden was always one step forward, two steps back. She gets this really badass scene (like her fight with Sasori and those cool ass medical skills) but is then regressed back into a pining girl in love every time Sauce is on screen or Kishi just throws her in the background YET AGAIN.

I love Sakura's abilities actually. Her brute strength, intelligence, vast knowledge and skill as a medic nin. But what I dislike about her character is how kishi handled her feelings for Sasuke. Naruto and Sakura's obsession with Sasuke was so???? huh??? it was so damn toxic and i never once understood why both Nardo and Sak were so obsessed with him. They were a team for one year???? I mean its great that they care about him alot but Sauce's feelings were kinda valid. His freakin clan died. Id go batshit crazy against my own village too. BUT BESIDES THAT. Both Nart and Sakura's Sasuke obsession was so annoying. 80% of shippuden was literally Keeping up with the Uchihas or Naruto yelling SASUKEH. BUT what irks me so much is the fandom's double standards with both Naruto and Sakura. "Oh Sakura shouldve gotten over her Sasuke obsession" but then turn around and call Naruto's obsession cute and gush about how he's so in love with him!!

Hot take but the only reason why sasunaru is "the most developed ship with the most chemistry" is because theyre both male characters.

I guarantee you if Naruto was a girl and SHE would be the one to have this unhealthy obsession who was chasing around Sasuke, the fandom would shit on Naruto just as much. And if Sasuke were a girl, Sauce would be sidelined like the rest of the female cast and Naruto would have another male character to have a "brotherly bond" with, because thats the only bond Kishimoto is actually good at developing. Yey for male characters having all the screentime and cool assets <333

And about that confession scene, I get her intentions. I really do. I understand that she did that in order to bring him home and that she cares about him but honey, w-why?? Why lie to him about your feelings?? Supposed he DID believe her, then what? then what kishi???? huh??? Some of her fans point the blame on Sai or whatever but I personally dont see why that scene was at all necessary. Maybe to establish Naruto's feelings for her wasnt all that serious? or his maturity? idk man. That scene was such a clusterfuck.

In the end her development in The Last and in Boruto was immaculate. She had one of the best glow ups in the old gen and ironically enough, her character wasn't butchered in Boruto. She got badass scenes she was cheated from in shippuden. I also love how she's finally getting the spotlight she deserves. Unlike the other konoha 12 :,)))

Okay onto the next female character that Kishi completely wasted. My baby. My light. 🙈 AAAHHH HINATAA.

I DONT EVEN KNOW WHERE TO BEGIN OKAY2 DEEP BREATHS.

Let me just establish this real quick. Hinata's goal was to get stronger because of Naruto, her goal was never to be with Naruto. She wanted to become someone who is worthy enough to stand beside him, someone whom he can consider as an equal, as a partner. She NEVER once said "marrying Naruto-kun is my all time goal UwU" (if youre one of those weirdos who interpret her character that way, youre immediately invalid, go take a hike)

I personally dont have anything against their crushes but to the point of making their personalities revolve around these guys every time theyre onscreen is so fucking frustrating. And with the way he writes their dialogues is so.damn.cringey. Like that one scene in the war arc with Tsunade and Madara

"I mAy bE a WomAn but I aM nOt WeAAKKKK"

BAAHAHAAHHA WHAT?? Everyone else gets coolass monologues and one liners but thats the best you can come up with Kishi?????? Hilarious.

If im being honest. Hinata's character is actually kinda well written. Not well executed. Dear God no. But with the way he set her story, her personality, her chracterization. She's honestly one of the best written female characters on the show. IMO. By Kishi's standards of writing women ofc. She's hands down one of the most complex characters. Her shy personality wasnt out of the blue, it wasnt a cutesy waifu trait. Her abusive upbringing made her that way. Her trauma turned her that way. So yeah, sue her if she looked up to Naruto as an inspiration when everyone else in her family treated her like dust. Shit on her for having Naruto's love light in her dark when her own damn father wouldnt even look her in the eye and her entire clan shunned her because she was "weak." She doesnt owe her family shit so idgaf what they do with the Hyuga clan. Neji and Hanabi aren't included btw

Im not gonna deny that her role in the show was only as the love interest but tbh for a love interest, Im glad her character wasnt so one dimensional. It just pains me SO MUCHHH how fucking wasted she is. Every time she's with Naruto, they always make her into a damsel in distress. They always feel the need to turn Naruto into the heroic prince. How cute.

LIKE THAT ONE SCENE IN THE LAST WHERE SHE'S THROWN IN THE CAGE?? WHY??? LET NARUTO AND HINA FIGHT THAT FREAKING ALIEN GOD TOGETHER. QUIT WITH THE TOXIC MASCULINITY. WE GET IT. NARUTO'S STRONG. GOOD FOR HIM. NOW LETS SEE HINATA THROW HANDS AND PUT NARUTO IN THE CAGE GODAMMIT

Hnggggg dont get me started with her role in Boruto. She's as relevant as a damn houseplant in the manga. They made her into an invisible trophy wife and "the mc's mother" and we all KNOW what happens to the shounen mc's mother once mc is in need of character development :) Quit putting her in the background. Give us that scene where she won against Hanabi DESPITE being retired for years. Give us that scene where she trains Boruto. GIVE US ANY FIGHT SCENE OF HER WHERE HER POTENTIAL ISNT WASTED WTF?¿

Now if you say that Hinata didnt have development. YOURE INVALID. She came from an abusive household, the shyest girl in her class, her insecurities got in the way of her own confidence, had difficulty of standing up for herself now became a loving mother of two, has the guts to kick her husband out of the house(with whom she couldnt even keep eye contact with when she was a kid) became the strongest hyuga, most supportive wife and mother, and has given her kids the comforting childhood she never had as a kid.

She has one of the most beautiful stories in the show and if you think her personality is only Naruto-kun and big boobs, then im sorry that you cant appreciate such a heartwarming story.

And I agree, killing her would honestly make me feel more at ease than continue to see her suffer because of godawful misogynistic writers. But at least let her die in an epic fight. Please. PLEASEE. She got nerfed so bad, i feel a physical pain every time i think about it

Okay what else. I think Ino got pretty good development. Another wasted potential in shippuden but she's doing good for herself in Boruto. I dont know what Temari is up to. They basically made her into another classic angry mom who beats up her husband for comedy trope. Haha very funny and original! Im not sure with her career, im not that invested in the anime.

Tenten??

oh G O D Tenten. The dirtiest of all. Her jokes about her screentime is so mean and i hate that its true ahsjhs. She was the only female character in OG who's goal wanted to be as strong as Tsunade but what did Kishi do to her?? Sidelined. Forgotten. Irrelevant. Like every damn female on the show :D

Konan shouldnt have died. I blame plot armor. I know in my heart that Konan wouldve kicked Obito's ass if it weren't for Kishi's boomer mindset.

Tsunade had so much hype when she was introduced but died down in the war arc. Madara wiped the floor with the kages. Holy shit. Not only that, but yipee! Naruto is there to save the day AGAIN!!!!

AND UGHHHH If the female characters were given proper treatment then maybe MAYBE all the endgame couples wouldve made fucking sense????¿¿¿

I think that ends my rant. Im not sure how the female characters in Boruto are handled. Except maybe Sarada (she's pretty well executed in the manga imo). But arguably they are sooo much better handled in Boruto than how the old gen girls were. And thats because Kishi isnt anywhere near the new gen female cast. I cant formulate a solid opinion with the other new gen female cast since im not entirely invested in the anime. Not ashamed to admit that I only watch it for the sunshine moments and for Hinata :DD

[yakumtsaki]

What’s up Sophie?

-Oh nothing much, just looking up at the indifferent Heavens, searching for a reason to not end it all after getting beat up by fucking Miss Havisham. How could God forsake me so??

Idk Soph, I mean God works in mysterious ways. Except when you have no body skill points and start fights with people way fitter than you, then the ways God works in become a little more clear. 

-That’s it, I’m going outside and waiting for a satellite to hit me!!

Counterproposal, you go upstairs and sleep because we have your UUU pledge bs do-over tomorrow, and we’re so behind schedule it’s not even funny. And after you SHAJAR is pledging which I just know is gonna take at least 5 tries so there’s really no time to waste. 

-Ugh Shajar this, Shajar that, I don’t want to hear about that turbocuck anymore! 

Then marry her and I’ll never bring her up again!

-Gotta side with Sophie on this one, Shajar is GROSS. Yuck!

Oh wow well now that Boring Brunette Dude has chimed in that changes everything. Literally who even are you.

-Hey Frances, I admire the fact you walk around so confidently despite being the biggest pussyboi the world has even known. Good for you!

-Oh my, how nice! 

Now that wasn’t so hard, was it? Right? Sophie??

-First I’m losing fights, now I have to compliment fucking Frances Worthington, what’s next? Living in a hippie commune?? Just let me die by crepe suffocation.

Ok well as much as I’d love to devote even more time to this Havisham-induced identity crisis, I really need to focus on pathologically unlikable Shajar’s pledging attempt, so.. stay strong?

-JUST LEAVE ME ALONE I HATE YOU I HATE EVERYTHING I WISH I WAS STILL A TEEN TOWNIE

Ngl to you Soph, I too am starting to wish you were still a teen townie.

-So one of my family’s favorite games is making appointments for x-rays we don’t need just so poor people can’t have them! HAHA

-Oh haha that’s hilarious, Frances!

Shajar what’s.. happening.. you’re actually doing great? This is the first time you’ve gotten someone to like you?? Maybe there’s hope for your ridiculous popularity aspiration after all. 

-I just want to get the hell out of these dorms, I can’t deal with Gross Hippie Dude’s stink anymore!

-Oh dear lord, how can someone stink this bad?? I’m gonna vomit all over this terribly decorated dorm!

HEY it took me like 10m to decorate this masterpiece, show some respect. Also this would be a lot more convincing if you hadn’t autonomously cheated on Frances with this freakshow the other night. 

-It was the moonlight!

Does the moonlight have stink covering properties I’m not aware of?

Heather Huffington passes by and I have Shajar greet her in case this Sophie racket doesn’t work out, which is looking increasingly likely. 

-WOW what a great pairing!

Ikr???

-I was joking, what a fucking disaster in the making. 

Ti-Ning I’m truly getting tired of your shit, this is all gonna work out just the way I want it to!

WHY TF ARE YOU TWO SLEEPING IN THE SAME BED

-Why not? 

-We’re besties!

KILL ME. SHAJAR I THOUGHT YOU GOT OVER THIS

-What? Can’t I just recognize that my sister’s boyfriend is a fine piece of ass without you making it weird??

Oh God this is how it starts, this is what happened with Gunther and Brit last gen, they were always like ‘platonically’ alone in bedrooms and then one day BAM. IT’S NOT HAPPENING AGAIN DO YOU HEAR ME FUCKERS? I WON’T LET YOU

-I for one hope Shajar gets with Heather, because oh man! Now that would be a ménage à trois to remember!

...it really is too bad Jojo took the cowplant with him when he graduated because I know what I’d be using it for. 

-NO NO NO, you can’t just book x-rays you don’t need, what the fuck??

-EXCUSE ME?!

-Those are just for broken bones and shit and widely available, you need to book MRIs, everyone knows those appointments take way longer to get! 

-Ohh..that’s actually a good point.

-You’re so lucky you met me, bro, I’m really good at spreading misery.

Yea no arguments here!

-So, girls, I don’t know if you’ve noticed by my attire, but the main reason I’m here is to snag a rich old professor that can promptly die!

-Dream on toadface, huhu! The old professors are MINE 💗💗💗

-Ok that’s it..

Sophie?

-My hatred cannot be contained any longer!!!

Was it ever contained to begin with?

-You and me OUTSIDE RIGHT NOW HAVISHAM

WHY. Why would you attempt this AGAIN

-I really thought it would work this time!! :(

Why would it?? Note the simultaneous fight cloud inside which is..

..Shajar and the cheerleader! Man, both you and Sophie really have trouble with the concept of ‘don’t attack people with more body points than you’.

-I thought my hatred would carry me through!! :( 

Omg Sophie.. Literally STOP.

-NEVER!!!

-GO VEILFACE, FUCK THESE LEGACY BITCHES, WALKING AROUND LIKE THEY OWN THE PLACE

-I’M NOT ASSOCIATED WITH SHAJAR GODDAMMIT. OH FUCK, SHE’S HITTING ME WITH HER SOMETHING BORROWED

-THAT’S RIGHT, I BORROWED A BRICK FROM THE WALL

-Man, it’s so hard to concentrate with this absolute carnage outside and this guy’s sexy moves in front of me.

HMM I wonder, say you get on academic probation and then kicked out of college, would this be enough time for Cyneswith to get over you??

Maybe we should stop studying >:)

-Lol nice try, but there’s no stopping the Don Oatesmeal train! 

I hate you so much </3

Since it’s the day before finals, aka the one day each semester where we’re studying, it’s time to focus on the only two people this generation who should actually be in college:

Suffice it to say they have led different lives since coming here.

Angel gets an A and everyone else gets cucky Bs once again, except for Sophie ‘Brainchad’ Miguel, who gets Dean’s List this semester too despite not studying more than the rest of these losers. Sophie you are an ICON

-Not even these 3.5k aspiration points can fill the Veilface-Corpse-shaped hole in my heart >:(

-Look at her, dancing like an idiot, not aware that my fists of fury are silently waiting to sneak up on her and KICK HER ASS 

-I CAN HEAR YOU, BABYHANDS

-😞😞😞

Walk it off, Babyhands!

One last aesthetically pleasing game of catch, and we’re off. 

-CATCH IT OATESCUCK, CATCH IT

-I AM!!

-NOW THROW IT AT THE CHEERDLEADER AND AIM FOR THE NOSE

See you at the UUU house!

[devintrinidad]

Hey there! Just wanted to let you know CAW White has had it's first 6 chapters translated by tumblr littlecookiecat. Also have you ever checked out the anime 86/Eighty Six? It's currently at 5 episodes of 2 cour show and based off a light novel series (10-ongoing). It's not like Akudama but for some reason I think you might like it. It's mystery dystopia scifi where the main character starts off naive and discovers how much more twisted the world is. But she keeps fighting to change things.

Oh my gosh! Hello, hello, hello! I read the first six chapters and my gosh, they were so incredibly well done! For the most part, the characterizations that were theorized and were part of fanon for so long actually hold up??? 

Like, I was so scared a couple years ago when I started characterizing and writing the WBC squad as my own that it would all fall apart if there was more interactions and dialogue from these characters, but so far??? I’m amazed??? geeze, the fandom was so young, but the headcanons everyone had really live up to the expectations and the reality of the manga. 

Anyway, some observations I made:

(SPOILERISH???)

Band Cell is so adorable and cute! I thought that he was going to be some sort of tsundere, but he’s actually so earnest and kind! I really like how his innocence and naïveté mirrors that of AE-3803, which is pretty ironic given the fact that White definitely follows canon. It’s a good mirror of each other and while canon showcases AE-3803’s growth, I really want to see Band Cell grow as well.

Also, I love his uniform! You can tell that he’s a neutrophil because the design is almost identical to that of mature neutrophils, but the differences really add to the newness and innocence of the character. The short sleeves and those shoes??? Really adorable and heights the differences in both height and attitude.

Speaking of attitude, I find it hilarious that Band Cell is nowhere as bloodthirsty as his superiors—yet. It seems to be a culture shock for new cells everywhere to be concerned over immune cells (neutrophils especially) going bloodthirsty over perceived threats.

The chapter where there the WBC squad play tag is so cute!!! It makes me think of the training that the white blood cells undergo in the bone marrow. I think I’ve read in a fanfic somewhere that both white and red blood cells would share a few classes together because they both would be traversing the body for their own areas of work. Hehehe, I guess that’s disproven now given the fact that Band Cell really needs to work on his navigational skills.

ALSO! WBC Squad bribing Dendritic Cell??? Hehehe, called it! (Not really, but do I have a fanfic where U-2001 teams up with Dendritic Cell over blackmail, hahah!). 

Speaking of U-2001… MAH BOI ISN’T HERE!!! I MEAN, THERE ARE HINTS OF ANOTHER CELL, BUT IT COULD EASILY BE ANY OTHER CELL, BUT MY HEART OF HEARTS KEEP TELLING ME IT’S HIM WHENEVER I SEE A NEUTROPHIL WITH A BUZZ CUT!!!

*coughs*

Justice for my boy 2001.

And, of course, the boys…

2626: My gosh, he’s so adorable! He’s more subdued than the others, but he’s just as mischievous as 4989. I love the fact that even though bacteria tastes bland no matter what you do, he still insists on cooking it. He’s also really nice and kind, a good balm towards 2048’s too cool/too suave for you nature, 4989’s chaotic feralness, and 1146’s dad energy. Definitely team mom if 2001/1146 aren’t taking up that role.

4989: Maybe it’s just me, but he hasn’t been improvising weapons? Like, that’s one of the signature things he does? I read the chapters once recently, so maybe I wasn’t paying too much attention, but I don’t think he’s been experimenting. I saw Band Cell throw a “caution” sign at a bacterium, but nothing more. Other than that, he’s very mischievous and the baby of the group if Band Cell wasn’t there. I like that tidbit where 1146 and him are the messy eaters, ahahah!

2048: Chubby baby boy who probably still is insecure over his appearance as an adult. He’s overcompensating, but he’s also cute and charming! Definitely one of those fanon characterizations that still somewhat hold up to this day. I also like the fact that his relationship with Band Cell kind of mirrors that of 1146 and 3803. The whole knowing each other when they were younger, that kind of thing. I love how 2048 is so tsundere towards Band Cell, but gives in eventually. 

1146: Utter. Perfection. He’s there for his junior and he’s willing to support him and make sure that he’s safe at all times. Not once has he berated Band Cell for incompetence or for being too cowardly or slow. He’s so awesome and I really, really hope that 3803 comes into join because I bet she would be so proud of 1146 for being so supportive of Band Cell! I also love the whole bridal carry thing. Both cells aren’t embarrassed by it and honestly, I want more of that in media in general. That’s some good stuff. Platonic bridal carry.

Some other notes:

Naive and Band Cell need to be best friends. Or shipped. Whatever happens, happens.

I also think that Band Cell and AE-3803 would bond over being newbies together??? Please, add in AE-3803!!! It would be so great!

Platelets are forever cute and I found myself laughing when they accused the neutrophils of cheating in their game of tag. 

The bacteria that attacked Band Cell before the bridal carry was startling similar to the bacterium that attacked 1146 and 3803 when they were kids… CINEMATIC PARALLELS!

And… hmmm… That’s about it, I guess. I’m really looking forward to new chapters and for more lore about the body!

In response to the rest of your message...

I actually heard of 86! I’m not sure if I’ll get around to watching it. Right now, I’m actually watching Shadows House (super creepy, super dark slice of life and definitely a dark horse this season). I plan on binging Mars Red and Odd Taxi once their episodes conclude, though. Is 86 any good? It’s been recommended by a couple of anitubers that I watch, but I haven’t found the appeal yet. Maybe I might watch it once the season is over, who knows... 

Anyway, thanks for the message and I hope that you have a wonderful day! :D

EDIT: BY THE BY... IS IT JUST ME... OR IS BAND CELL REALLY SIMILAR IN APPEARANCE TO HACKER FROM AKUDAMA DRIVE??? PLEASE DON’T TELL ME IT’S JUST ME!

[lewa358]

Game Retrospective: The Outer Worlds

Fallout: New Vegas was a blast. It had gripping worldbuilding, solid characters, and meaningful choices.

But like…it was also, you know, complete shit. I’m sorry, it was. It beats out the first _InFAMOUS _for being the single ugliest AAA video game I have ever played, the combat was a ridiculously clunky mess, and so damn much of the game is just dragging myself at an achingly slow pace across a wretchedly dull landscape while doing nothing but holding down W. and Cazdors have my permission to go to hell.

I believe these two contradictory elements to be true, and I can’t explain how. New Vegas was one of those games I liked experiencing more than actually playing, for want of a better word.

I bring this up because it is basically impossible to talk about The Outer Worlds without mentioning the Fallout games, and New Vegas in particular. Like New Vegas, Outer Worlds is a sci-fi first-person RPG with combat primarily—but not exclusively—relying on chipping away enemies’ health bars with guns (and sometimes melee weapons). You have a selection of companions to choose from—two at a time—and quests to complete, perks to earn, choices to make, blah blah blah.

And of course, both New Vegas and Outer Worlds are made by the same studio, Obsidian, though with nearly 10 years between the two games’ releases I’m not sure how many of the actual people in that studio were involved in both games.

So naturally, it’s inevitable that I compare the two. But I seriously wasn’t expecting Worlds to be this much better than Vegas.

The environments are bright, colorful and surreal! Combat is…mostly very easy, so it’s not intrusive! Because the game is kind of a budget title, the environments are nowhere near as expansive as those in Vegas, but that just means that there’s much less empty nothing in between locations! And even then, the terrain is just a lot more varied, with hills and valleys, and there’s this cool mid-air dash you can do that keeps you moving.

And in stark contrast to, say, Xenoblade Chronicles 2, all these improvements are very much not at the cost of what made the earlier game so engaging. Outer Worlds’, well, worlds are a blast to envelop myself in. The entire game is a shamelessly brutal satire of unregulated capitalism, with corporations acting as governments and demanding an almost religious reverence for labor and The Brand, even as the colony crumbles all around them. Each of the locations explores this in different ways, from the MSI’s flailing attempt to unionize to Edgewater’s blatant depiction of resource scarcity.

And the writing is phenomenal. I kept sending screenshots of dialogue to my sister, because there was so much that I thought was insightful or just plain hilarious. Despite how limited the character creator can be (why is long hair out of style?), every person feels distinct and every dialogue tree feels meaningful, reinforcing the game’s key themes while working excellently on their own merits.

The companions are a blast, too. There’s no romancing them in this one, so their quests are all about character growth without any uncomfortable expectations of a sultry reward—and they’re great. Tripping out with a vicar to have him confront the contradictory nature of his religion. Helping some idealistic kid come to terms with the unfortunate reality of his revolutionary ideals. Helping a mercenary lay her companions to rest. Cheating some scummy “parents” out of money they own illegitimately. That robot is cool too I guess.

But Pavarti. Pavarti! Her one dumb sidequest is so simple, but so shamelessly earnest and optimistic that I immediately fell in love with it. Just…how many games have you acting as a wingman for another character’s romantic exploits, helping a character achieve their best selves without immediately jumping into the protagonist’s pants—or for that matter, anyone’s pants? How many games have a romance subplot that checks off not just one but two letters in that LGBTQA+ acronym? How many games can even attempt half of these things without coming off as pandering or saccharine, especially in a world as snarky and cruel as Halcyon?

That’s enough coherent gushing. Here’s some extra bits I thought were neat:

No lockpicking or hacking minigames! As long as you have enough picks, and your hacking skill is high enough, you just hold down a button until the thing opens.

The game’s approach to stealth is…interesting.

On one hand, you have the whole thing where you crouch-walk around enemies until a meter over their head fills to indicate that they see you, and unlike, say, Deus Ex you can’t just stealthily pick off enemies one by one. You either sneak around or fight, and all the stealthy approach will do if you can’t or won’t completely avoid enemies is let you get the upper hand.

On the other, you have something particularly genius: if you find a particular organization’s keycard, you can disguise yourself as them when walking into restricted areas. This happens automatically, as soon as you walk past a “RESTRICTED AREA” hologram, and then a meter appears, showing how long until your disguise disappears. In a final twist of brilliance, the meter only goes down when you move, so moving around in these areas is about careful planning more than speedrunning.* The combat is fine. I was way overpowered well past the halfway point, to the point where this game’s equivalent of Deathclaws took me seconds to annihilate, often without a scratch, and my companions yelling about how my weapon was ineffective (due to its elemental affinities, but again, I was OP, so it didn’t matter). But I’ll take “dull” over “fucking cazdors” any day of the week. That, and the final area was oddly difficult considering how breezy the rest of the game was.

Look, man, I loved this game. It might even be one of my favorites ever. I truly do not care that the game as a whole feels a little cheap compared to, say the PS4 God of War, or that it lagged a little bit throughout my whole playthrough. When it came to the parts that mattered, it succeeded with aplomb.

Playthrough notes:

Played on  PC via Game Pass.

Playtime: about 30 hours

Completed the game and seemingly most sidequests, including all companion quests (but not that one modeling sidequest). Sided with Phineas but used a smaller portion of the MacGuffin.

Source for images is the game’s official website, except for the skeleton guy in the hat, that was my screenshot.