#as well as have cute interactions between a certain dad and his kids

[daegutowns]

svt as new dads

tags: dad!au, svt are new fathers with infants, mentions that the reader was pregnant, references to fem!reader, babies, i’m crying hot tears right now, urin drop it like hot hot, i’m a strong believer in svt’s families agenda

seungcheol: girl dad alert! cheol is a sucker for his kids, and you know it. your baby girl is going to grow up as a daddy’s girl no matter how hard you try to win her over to your side. cheol wants to spoil that baby silly. no worries -- he spent the entire time while you carried her making it the easiest time for you. no stress, no heavy lifting, no bad thoughts! “baby, you need something?” and he’s there. even during the early days, he always tells you to go back to sleep when the baby’s crying because he’ll take care of it. he doesn’t really trust the other members with his baby (because he watched them drop kick each other -- no way he’s going to let them hold his baby), but seeing you laugh and hand her off to them melts his heart even more than before. he’s been waiting for this moment his whole life. and he’s willing to put everything into taking care of you and your baby girl. 

jeonghan: he’s the type of dad that loves spending time playing with the little kiddies. his humor is sometimes right around theirs, so no matter what they do, he’s always giggling with them. it’s very endearing. your tired body spending time with your lovely husband who’s struggling but successfully entertaining a baby. this is your family, and it warms your heart. jeonghan might not know all the ins and outs of childcare, but he loves carrying the baby around and laughing at all the things your baby finds interesting. he just has a certain laugh that’s reserved just for them. 

joshua: another girl dad! he has been hoping… praying… begging, even, for a girl. he’s been preparing very meticulously. he learned how to braid hair, how to do pigtails, and how to color coordinate outfits. knowing josh, he’s pulled all the stops. after learning about your pregnancy, josh was the most excited one about it. every day, he goes to sleep with a smile on his face knowing he’s going to be a dad! he grew very close with his mom after talking to her a lot about how to take care of one and how he was as a kid. much to your surprise as well, josh also became close with your parent(s)/caregiver(s) in the same way. you just know you’ll find josh singing sunday morning to your baby girl more than once. 

jun: he hard carries your post-pregnancy days. baby crying? no worries. he’s already on it. many days, you find him sleeping on the couch with the baby in his arms. they’re both so cute that you fill folders full of those photos. a lot of times, seeing the baby sleeping makes him tired too. it’s cute because that baby gets the same droopy eyes as him, so it’s very easy to tell when they’re sleepy. the baby sleeps in a cradle next to his side of the bed. later on, sometimes you catch him eating some of the baby’s food in between spoonfuls of feeding them. you scold him every time (because “that food’s for the baby, jun. you have your own!”) but he just grins at you and continues feeding your kid. you just know the baby is going to be just like their dad. 

hoshi: this one is a bit funny. he loves babies and he’s definitely interacted with them before, but he’s never had to really take a good look at a baby. not gonna lie, fatherhood is a steep learning curve for hoshi. his first times changing a diaper (what am i supposed to do with this?), burping the baby (what if it breaks?), seeing you breastfeed (because what do you mean you have to pump? what about the baby?), and putting them to sleep really brings him more appreciation to you (who will end up doing most of the baby caretaking) and his mom who took care of him. to make it easier on you, he tries to do whatever he can. he lets you take naps throughout the day by playing with the baby and feeding with the bottles to give you the space you need. he likes talking and singing with the baby because it gives him time to bond. you let him decorate the baby’s room. it is tiger/jungle themed. the baby wears a tiger onesie. he teaches the baby how to horanghae. your baby is horanghae. 

wonwoo: he’s a dad who shows his love through his actions rather than his words. after finding out you were pregnant, he bought a lot of parenting books, took a lot of notes, and even studied baby nutrition so you can be as prepared as you can be. wonwoo is always overjoyed with the idea of being a dad. after you had the baby, his favorite activity is seeing how the baby loves when he laughs and they’re laying on his chest. the vibrations of his dad’s laugh soothes him into giggles and smiles every time. you tell wonwoo it’s because it was their favorite thing to hear while it was in the womb -- its own beethoven symphony. with his love of filmography and editing, that baby is going to grow up with a bucket full of flashdrives about their life. after all, there’s nothing more endearing to wonwoo than you growing as a mother and his baby, who has many more amazing memories to come. and he’ll be there every step of the way.

woozi: this is a dad who has been possessed by the ancestors to become a dad full of wisdom. you don’t even really know what happened, but you had a baby and now your husband walks around like the most dad-ful dad of all time. he likes walking around with the baby and multitasking. the baby carried with pats on the back while the other hand is still producing music… mark his words, this baby will be the next genius producer. he is enrolling that baby in piano lessons as soon as they can run around. but for now, he’s gained a lifetime of dad wisdom and even makes funny-not-so-funny dad jokes too. he’s truly just a born dad. 

dokyeom: he cried. seriously, every single big moment of this baby’s life, dk has cried. you’re pregnant? tears. baby is born? tears. baby is named? tears. announcing the baby to his family, your family, and seventeen? still more tears. dk’s baby is his lifeline, and he is obsessed with being a dad. he loves carrying his baby to the hybe building, because it makes him proud when other idols and hybe staff compliment him on how pretty his baby is. his answer is always, “it’s all from the mom,” but you can always tell he’s brimming with pride. but if you thought dk was loud, you’d be sorry to hear that your baby has inherited his very spacious lung capacity and vocal chords. good luck hearing ever again between dk and your baby. 

myungho: somehow, he makes parenting look so easy and cool. he likes when everyone in your little family is wearing matching clothes. he’ll buy himself and you a matching sweater. and then he’ll also get one for your baby, too. it always is such a hit whenever you all go outside together or meet the family. hao calls your baby his little bao bun, since their cheeks are so squishy like bao! sometimes he doesn’t know what to do with all of the cuteness overload. at the end of the day, he likes to sit there with a smile on his face and watch you talk to the baby as you put him to sleep. 

mingyu: there is not one person who loves being a dad more than mingyu. seriously, he is so in love with this baby. he is so in love with you for making this baby, too. the first time seeing the baby laugh make him burst into giggles so hard, and you’re glad you filmed it on your phone. mingyu is into scrapbooking, and he likes sitting with you at the table while your baby is sleeping to arrange the photos and create scrapbook upon scrapbook of your kid’s early days. mingyu loves playing with the baby, and you know he’s already plotting and scheming on ways to have more kids. the more the better for him. your family’s first halloween had to be a puppy-themed one for obvious reasons. mingyu screams girl dad, but you know he would love your baby regardless of if they were a girl or boy. (but he would be so happy doing their pigtails and buying them little bows for their hair.) mingyu loves when the other members come over and play with your kid too. his heart is just so full of love to give. 

seungkwan: another girl dad alert. but, he wants at least one boy and one girl. he’s very invested in the entire girl dad vibe. his idea of speaking with the babies is spilling tea with them. your baby is always so enthralled by it, like they know what he’s saying and they want more. it amuses seungkwan to no end, so he always looks forward to his nightly debrief when he comes home and he sits down with you holding the baby to spill the tea. he was always very nervous about holding the baby, because babies are fragile and get hurt easily and have soft bones and cry a lot and-- yes. he was definitely very nervous about being a dad, but he likes singing them lullabies to sleep and taking them on walks outside. 

vernon: honestly, he didn’t see himself as a dad until he became one. he was very surprised about the pregnancy (“oh, wow. really?!”) and he spent a lot of time bragging about how he was going to be a dad. he’s excited, and you can tell because he came home with some new idea or new item every day. after the baby is born, he found out that the baby loves seeing his facial expressions. sometimes, you can find the baby mimicking him, which is so funny. vernon enjoys the simplicities behind fatherhood, and always offers to help you out in many roles. he changes the diaper (though learning how to do it the first time was crazy), prepares the bottled milk, and reads the baby stories in his downtime. he loves the slice of life type of activities. 

dino: surprise, he’s a boy dad! he is always jumping off the walls about how he wants to teach his son how to dance, just like how his dad taught him how to dance. all throughout the whole process of pregnancy and birth and beyond, he was very attentive to what you needed. he made sure to pay special attention to the baby’s birth certificate, because you both didn’t need a lee jungchan junior. he likes playing with the baby and being someone you can lean on. just like his group calls him the super maknae and the future of kpop, you like to call him a super dad and the future of your baby’s childhood. 

[evereinefaust]

. . . ⇢ ˗ˏˋ 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐌𝐞 ࿐ྂ

Pairing: Selever X afab!Reader

Trigger Warning: Character death

Sypnosis: Being in a relationship with the half-demon known as Selever was a paradise for MC. All she could remember were the happy times the two of them bonded over the years. But, no matter how happy their days may be, every good thing must come to an end...

Word Count: 3,545

From the start, it was like they are fated to find each other.

"I'm back!" a certain teen shouted out, opening the front door to his abode.

"Ah, welcome back, Sele—my goodness! Why are you wet?" Sarvente stopped her sentence mid-way, surprised to see her son drenched from head to toe.

Rasazy looked up from the book she was reading, her stoic face examining her older brother's state. Seeing his annoyed face made a small smile appear on her lips. And just behind the boy was another person that caught her attention.

"You're also here, big sis [Name]," she greeted, her smile growing. Putting her book aside, she stood up and walked over to the duo by the front. She ignored her older brother and instead went straight toward the girl. "It's been a while. Do you want to read books with me? Dad bought me new ones."

[Name] can't help but internally squeal at her cute invitation, however, she had to fight her urge to just agree with the younger girl. So, instead, she caressed Rasazy's light colored-hair, eyes apologetic. "Sorry, Razy, maybe later. I need to take care of your older brother or else he'll blow a fuse."

Selever huffed and crossed his arms at her comment. Nevertheless, he remained well-behaved which is very unlike him. Rasazy pouted but still complied with her words. Their mother smiled at the interaction between the children. She trudged over to them and stopped in front of her son.

"So, what had gotten you in this situation this time?" She asked, pinching his cheek. Her hot-pink eyes glanced in [Name]'s direction, awaiting the explanation from the girl.

The [h/c]-haired teen let out a breath before answering. "As usual, Sel was planning trouble in school. He pulled a water-on-door prank and intended to have me soaked. Instead, I outsmarted him and now he fell for his own trick. That's why this guy was annoyed and grumpy and wet."

"Ugh, it's unfair," he groaned, rolling his eyes and slightly glaring at her. "If only your friends weren't snitches then I wouldn't be like this."

"Sucks to be you, then. My friends love me and want me out of harm."

The boy frowned at that, his narrowed eyes fixated on his lover who only put out her tongue at him mockingly. Meanwhile, the light-purple-haired girl frowned upon hearing the older girl's words and glared daggers at the back of her older brother's head. As for Sarvente, she could only shake her head at them.

"Alright, alright. [Name], dear, why won't you assist Selever and wait in his bedroom? I'll prepare snacks for you kids in the meantime," the woman suggested.

"Okay, mum. I'll take good care of your rebellious son," [Name] grinned as she proceeded to push the boy towards the stairs. Although Selever allowed the girl to move him, he still didn't stop cursing every now and then about her treating him like a child.

Once the two older teens were gone from the living room, Sarvente released a contented sigh. Her eyes were half-lidded and her gaze lingered by the staircase. She is truly glad to have someone like [Name] by her son's side.

The door creaked open and a certain silver-haired teen walked out of the bathroom. He was wearing nothing else but a plain white bathrobe loosely tied around his body and a white towel hanging around his neck. His pearlescent locks were still wet and it seems that he wasn't planning on drying them anytime soon.

[Name] glanced up from her phone and spotted Selever. Upon seeing him, however, she dead-panned. "Can't you at least try and dry your hair? What's the purpose of having a towel around your neck then?"

Selever turned in her direction and smirked. Sauntering over to his bed, he flopped himself next to his lover, leaning against her. His locks tickled her skin and droplets of water stained her clothes. The girl grimaced at her lover's actions.

"Sel, what is it that you want?" she sighed.

She knew Selever's behavior all too well—he only acts like this if he wanted something from her as compensation for feeling wronged. Although it was entirely his fault that he ended up like this, [Name] knew better than to argue with the man and instead would just give him to his demands. He acts like a child sometimes. Though, a spoiled one at that.

"Why'd you have to avoid my prank like that?" he asked, his tone sounding hurt.

The girl sighed. Carefully pushing the boy away from her shoulder, she ignored the wetness on her clothes and instead focused on her pouting boyfriend. A slight crease was in between his eyebrows, silver-colored eyes with a hint of pink contained sadness staring back at her, and his lips were downturned. [Name] sported a tender smile, placing both of her hands on his pale cheeks and caressing them with her thumb.

"You know why, Sel. Sometimes your pranks are too much. I had no idea what you had in your mind when you set up that prank so I had to be cautious," she explained. Gently pecking his lips, she continued. "Now, tell me—why do you want me to fall victim to your prank?"

Sleek strands brushed across her face as his head tilted slightly upward so their lips could touch once more. "I bought new clothes for you. I thought that if I drench you with water, you would have no reason to decline my gift as you often do. I really wanted to see you wearing it too."

The silver-haired man trailed off with his gaze drifting downward, a blush covering his cheeks and nose. It looked adorable on him. [Name] chuckled lightly and leaned forward, planting a small kiss on his lips. She pulled away first, a mischievous smirk spreading over her features.

"Well, I guess I can't say no to that now, can I?"

He grinned widely, his eyes sparkling with joy. "No, you can't."

The girl shook her head and chuckled. "Turn around. I'll dry your hair for you."

Selever obediently complied with her words. She took the towel hanging around his neck and began drying his silver locks. She hummed a tune that the boy loved dearly, making him close his lids and savor the moment between them. Her hands moved fluidly around his head, massaging his scalp in the process of drying his tresses. When she finished, she gently combed her fingers through his silky silver locks, making him sigh contently.

"There we go, all done~" she cooed. "Your hair is really soft after you wash it, Sel."

Selever turned around once more. His usual playful smirk emerged on his face once again, along with a pink tint dusting his cheeks. [Name] can't help but be mesmerized by a half-naked Selever in front of her. More so with his silver locks let down to dry more as they framed his lithe neck and his robe only mere inches from being removed from his milk-colored body. In all honesty, Selever right now looked really hot.

She wrapped her arms around his torso and hugged him tightly as she kissed his neck and shoulders. He responded by pressing his chest to hers, letting his arms wrap around her petite frame. Their breathing became heavy and they found themselves unable to hold back. A soft moan escaped his lips and he buried his face into her soft [h/c] hair.

"[Name], I love you so much..." he murmured, nuzzling the top of her head.

She giggled softly in response and tightened her grip on his muscular waist, inhaling his fresh scent. "You smell really nice." 

The two lovers stayed together and had nothing left to do but enjoy each other's presence. They spent most of the rest of their time lounging together in Selever’s bed, waiting until his mother calls for them.

Years passed and their relationship grew into that of lovers.

It was a fine afternoon. The sun is hidden behind countless clouds, the midday day breeze paying a certain duo a visit. It really lifts the girl's spirit to have lunch on the school rooftop, wherein no one is there to bother them. She let out a contented sigh, watching the fluffy clouds above pass by her line of sight, her hand fondly caressing her lover's silver locks.

[Name] and Selever are already done with lunch and are now loitering around the school's rooftop and away from the majority of the students. In the case of the girl, she usually spends her free time here unwinding and taking a nap. However, the same can't be said for the tall boy. Despite having his next subject period ongoing, he is instead here, lounging with his lover.

"Sel," the girl called, gazing down at the relaxed boy resting on her lap.

"Hm? What is it, kitten?" he opened one of his eyes and smirked, a mischievous glint appearing in his silver-pink hues.

The girl scrunched her brows and shivered a bit, before lightly slapping his pale cheeks. He yelped in response. "Your next class is already ongoing, why aren't you leaving?"

"But you're comfy~" he whined, pouting as he turned his head towards her stomach and snuggled against her. With his long and slender arms keeping a tight grip around her waist, the girl knew that she won't be able to pry the teen off her. "You are my new pillow, kitty."

Selever nuzzled his nose against her belly button, which made the girl giggle and squirm underneath him. He grinned, pecking the girl's belly, making her let out a squeal. Her hands flew up to cover her belly, trying to protect it. However, the only thing that came from it was another laugh from her, accompanied by Selever's own hearty cackle.

"Fine," she relented, smiling warmly at him. "But you have to promise me no more skipping class. If you do, I'll lend you my legs anytime you want to sleep." 

He leaned up and kissed her cheek, eliciting a few giggles from her before they both stood up. As soon as he stepped onto the concrete, however, he paused. [Name] fixed her clothes before facing Selever who was standing still in front of her. She tilted her head in confusion.

"Sel?"

Without warnings whatsoever, Selever closed the gap between them. Her [e/c] hues were wide at the sudden surprise kiss coming from her lover. A blush bloomed on her cheeks at his act, and when he pulled away, he gave her a cheeky grin, his canine showing.

"See you later, my pillow~"

And with that, the boy exited the rooftop through the stairs, leaving the girl alone. It took [Name] a few minutes to process what just happened.

"What the... that guy really," she let out a sigh, shaking her head.

They found love and happiness with each other.

"Stargazing was a good idea."

A certain pair of lovers stared at the starry skies. There was a moment of peace between them. They watched as the stars twinkled in the night sky, illuminating the dark. It was one of those days when Selever would take his beloved on the roof of his home, sitting by her side as they stargaze. Often, he would just look at the side profile of the girl, admiring her features instead.

"Stargazing with you is always a good idea," [Name] chuckled, glancing at the silverette, and smiled. She inched closer to his body and he instinctively wrapped an arm around her. "I just love being with you, Sel."

"Is that so?"

"Mhm."

Selever once more found himself staring lovingly at the side profile of his little beloved. Her long hair flowed freely through the soft winds, her innocent, [e/c] orbs glimmered while watching the stars, her soft lips parted in awe, and her [s/c] cheeks tinted pink. Her beauty was truly unparalleled. She is truly a masterpiece. 

"You look beautiful in the moonlight," he murmured, pink dusting his cheeks.

Facing her lover, [Name] sported a gentle smile amidst her blushing face. "You look handsome as well."

"Heh, I know that much already~" he tittered, his usual cocky smirk plastered on his lips.

She smiled fondly at her boyfriend. Even with his personality and attitude sometimes, she still loved him dearly. That's just one of his charms. Leaning against his shoulder, [Name] enjoyed the tranquil moment between them. Their hands interlocked as they continued their stargazing.

They shed tears and comforted each other.

"Oof!"

A body plopped itself on the torso of a certain teen as the silverette was taken aback by the force the girl put into the embrace. Her face was undoubtedly buried in his chest, her arms tightly gripping his rose-colored sweater. Selever rose a brow at his lover's sudden gesture, nevertheless, he slowly wrapped his arms around her petite body.

"[Name]? Is something wrong?" Selever asked, worried about her facing any troubles at school. He frowned. "Hey, you know you can tell me anything, right? Is anyone making things hard for you? Just tell me their names and I'll beat them up!"

He tightened his hold on [Name]'s shoulders. [Name]'s cheeks flushed slightly at Selever's warm touch. 

"There is no need to beat anyone up," she mumbled softly against Selever's chest, her voice slightly muffled due to the sweater. "I'm fine."

"[Name], are you sure you're alright?" He asked once more, the tone was genuine concern, one of which had never been heard before from Selever's lips.

In fact, the boy rarely showed that side of himself. It wasn't a bad thing, though — Selever was always the disrespectful and cocky one in school. But when he's with her, he usually revealed a different side. One that wasn't seen often. One that [Name] cherished deeply. The [h/c]-haired girl couldn't help but feel her heart flutter whenever Selever did such a sweet thing.

She raised her head a little so they could look at each other directly and gave a tiny smile as she took the chance to steal a quick kiss on his lips. "I'm really fine... I just feel a bit drained..."

At last, Selever released a sigh of relief. He was glad that nothing major seems to be troubling his beloved. His expression contained a rare tenderness as he glanced down at the [h/c]ette. Cupping her cheeks, he leaned down to place a loving and consoling kiss on her forehead. The girl closed her eyes, relishing the moment.

"Alright. Then tell me why you suddenly hugged me out of nowhere."

"I love your hugs," she responded, smiling innocently. "Is that a plausible reason?"

Selever noticed her playful tone, and he can't help but respond to it. Smirking, he then lifted the girl off the ground and hugged her. His arms wrapped around her thigh and his cheeks rubbed her stomach. [Name] was surprised by the act and emitted a cute squeal.

"Selever!"

"What's the matter? I'm giving you a hug, what more do you want?" Selever teased, planting a few kisses on her tummy. "Do you even realize how adorable you are?"

[Name] let out an embarrassed sound, her face flushed. "Ngh... Please stop saying embarrassing things." 

She didn't have a clue how to react to the praise he just said. In fact, she couldn't quite comprehend what the heck he just did. The taller male let out a chuckle as he leaned up and kissed her again, gently this time. Parting, his silver-pink eyes softened, lips contorted into a gentle smile.

"I love you so much, my princess."

They both believed that they were blessed with such a fate.

"How about a kiss?" [Name]'s eyes danced with mischief and she was grinning like the Cheshire cat himself, her hands clasped in front of her in an act that was as shameless as it was playful. Her cheeks were flushed, her lips swollen from their recent make-out session, and her [h/l] [h/c] hair fell loose around her shoulders.

"Sure. You've seen my mouth, now kiss it," the boy smirked, his eyes glinting with an equivalent amount of mischief. Licking his lips, he can't help but feel his whole face redden.

It was one of those days that the lovers were to have private intimate time with each other in Selever's room. [Name], as the voice of reason, would always anchor herself and her silver-haired boyfriend from doing naughty things. She acts as his leash that restricts Selever's suggestive advances. However, there are still occasions when she found herself submitting to his desires. And despite her better judgment, she released the leash that contained this beast, allowing herself to be controlled by him.

The girl didn't need to be told twice as she eagerly leaned down to meet her lover's soft lips. Selever was laying on his bed, with his partner on top of him. Both of his hands were caressing her soft skin, while the other was roaming up and down her body. He slowly slipped a hand into her hair to tilt her head down so that they could deepen the kiss. Their tongues met for just a moment before Selever pulled away from her lips, panting lightly.

"Selever. I want more," [Name] was pleading, her [e/c] eyes looking deeply at him.

The [h/c]ette's chest rose rapidly as she tried to catch her breath, and he had trouble suppressing the smile creeping onto his face as he observed his adorable girlfriend struggling so much to regain some control over herself.

"Please," [Name] mumbled after a few seconds, her tone laced with desire, causing Selever to chuckle.

His narrowed silver-pink eyes were glazed over with lust and adoration, yet he remained in the position he was.

"What do you want me to do?" He purred, his voice low and husky. "Do you want to cross over the line?"

[Name]'s face lit up with a blush and she let out a shaky laugh. "I do... but..."

As if sensing that her thoughts were running rampant through her mind and he didn't like it, Selever nuzzled his head against hers. "Hey, princess. No need to feel pressured — you can always say no. You shouldn't blame yourself because I've always been able to get you to do whatever I want. It's not your fault that I'm irresistible."

[Name] chuckled softly. She couldn't help but feel a little bit guilty for being unable to resist his charms. But she also knew that she wouldn't change anything about him. He was perfect the way he was. Seeing her relax, Selever pulled the girl down to him, letting her whole body rest against his. He wrapped his arms around her in a comforting manner, his hands soothing her arms.

"Thank you, Sel. You're such a sweetheart," she said, closing her eyes as his steady heartbeat lulled her to sleep.

[Name] didn't know how long they stayed like that, just cuddling with each other's bodies so close. 

However... all good things must come to an end...

He stayed rigid, standing in the middle of the field. White snowflakes cascaded down around him, piling up snow even more. His blood-stained jacket and pants stood in contrast against the pure blanket of snow. His arm limped by his side, the blood from his pale hands dripping down unto the snow. His gaze fixated on the fresh corpse in front of him, the sickly red hue surrounding it spreading outward and staining more the pure white snow.

"Selever!"

"Brother!"

Rushed footsteps approached the male. As three people arrived a meter away from him, they eventually halted. Sarvente's face paled at the sight, her hot-pink eyes wide as a saucer as she covered her mouth with her hands. Ruv was shocked at what his son did, a crease embedded itself in between his eyebrows as he clenched his fists. And as for Rasazy, a rare expression was plastered on her usually impassive face — fear, disbelief, and anguish.

After all, despite Selever acting like the jerk and rebellious teen that he is, they knew that he would never kill anyone. More so his one and only lover. The one he claimed as his dearly beloved. Yet... It was as if the world was already against him from the start. This only made the family confused and distraught.

"Selever... what have you done?" Ruv asked, taking a step forward.

At his father's call, the boy turned his head to face his family. Lifeless eyes stared at them, no emotion present on his face whatsoever. However, they noticed the evident stream of tears cascading down his blood-splattered cheeks. This made each of their hearts churn in pain.

Selever... was crying.

[fluffy-lovely-clouds]

well

I guess it's time I get this started

So here's the thing, I am a classic disney fan through and through. I am a lover of disney in general but those older classic movies hold a special place in my heart, hey I mean it's what me and many others have grown up on right?

The thing is, the community for the classic disney movies, such as 90s ones like Aladdin or Toy Story and yada yada just isn't as big as the modern community is.

Anddd, for some reason they seem to be the most prone to fetish content. Now I'm not a kink-shamer, but I still don't want to interact with that side of things cause I'm not like that, a lot of us get that right? Right.

Well, that's ALL I ever really see of these movies and it's sad, and disgusting when the characters are specifically kids or animals. I can't stand going on Deviantart for this very reason because it's full of content like that and the site doesn't do much to prevent it like at all.

It's gotten to where the fandom is almost nothing BUT content like that and I've finally gotten tired of it

So to hopefully help my mind forget all the... stuff I've seen from Deviantart, and who knows where else, and to just bring back some innocence and fluffy cuteness, I've made a whole lotta fluffy hcs for a whole lotta disney movies! Alright let's start this off

LET'S GOOO

The Lion King

. Simba

~He is such a big cuddler, just a big cuddly boi. It's pretty much canon. I mean how many times does he get nuzzled or hugged throughout the movies. Answer: a LOT

~Of course he is kinda smug sometimes and has a bit of pride & dignity and all that mess so he'll pretend he's too tough for a cuddle

But of course he won't stop you if ya lean in for one anyway

~You can't tell me he and Nala didn't get into tickle fights all the time when they were younger! Reminds me, he is canonically ticklish, ok he gets tickled in the Lion King 1 1/2

Nala always won the tickle fights, much to Simba's embarrassment. He is a big lee (yes I'm using fancy terms from the tk community cause I can't think of any other words lol)

~His spots are his belly, sides, and paws

~ He has a light, hearty laugh

~One thing, you tickle him and he WILL get you back. It doesn't matter if he ends up losing again or not, he just wants to make you smile ... and get revenge

~Somewhat? merciful. Just kidding he would know when to stop

~Idk what to say he's just very affectionate and loving. He is so sweet to his family, always wanting Nala and Kiara to smile

. Nala

~She's a cuddler too, just maybe not as much as Simba. She appreciates a cuddle, but other than with close family and friends, she only personally wants them at certain or rare times

~It's just cause she's a tomboy who would rather wrestle than hug. But like Simba, she wouldn't really stop you from hugging her if you tried to. She may be caught off guard by it though

~As said before, she would always win the tickle fights between her and Simba.

~I just don't see her as being very ticklish herself so that probably helped in winning lol

~Big ler, I swear she would call herself the ultimate tickle monster

Less merciful than Simba but she never goes too far. DO NOT try and get her back though cause it won't work and she will get you back... and it will be a lot less merciful than the first time

~She laughs right along with who ever she's making smile, whether by tickling them or telling them a joke, it doesn't matter how. Seeing others smile makes her smile. She has hearty laugh as well, just it's more feminine than Simba's duh

~As sweet as she is, she'll always be sassy. She could be cuddling Simba while they're looking up at the stars and it's all romantic and then throw off some sassy comment just because she can, though it's just to be funny

. Mufasa

~If you're not sad that he died 20 minutes into the movie then we got a problem. Look at him, he's such a good dad! Biggest cuddler ever. Ok, he would pour hugs and kisses all over Sarabi and Simba in the morning and throughout the day when ever he could. If you asked him for a hug he would be more than glad to give you one

He is too good for the world, .. and apparently Scar thought so too (guys I'm so sorry :''')

~Definately would get into tickle fights with Simba just about every time they spend time together

~Definitely quite ticklish himself. I thought he was canonically ticklish cause of the scene where he and Simba are running through the field and chasing each other. Idk I still count it

~Spot is his sides

~Big switch. He can barely take what he dishes out though

~Very merciful, as soon as "stop" is said he stops. He never wants to go too far or accidentally hurt anyone.

~He has a great big, deep laugh that when heard, makes most others want to laugh along with him

~He may be tough but he is one of the sweetest beings in the entire pridelands

. Scar

~Not much of a cuddler at all. If you asked him for a hug or a cuddle he would probably turn away from you in disgust. Closest thing to physical affection he had in the movie was when he was pretending to comfort Simba after Mufasa's death

~He's always had the same grumpy attitude ever since he was little, though he may have been loosened up a tad more back then

~Doesn't stop him from being ticklish though! As much as he hated it, Mufasa would always drag him into tickle fights when they were younger

~Surprisingly even more ticklish than Mufasa. He would always lose the fights, it not helping that Mufasa was the bigger and stronger of the two. (He is the only one that Mufasa does not show too much mercy to)

~Spots are his ribs and sides

~Big lee and he hates it. He is one for getting revenge though ... just like he's one for getting revenge on other things (I need to stop)

~Barely merciful at all. He won't stop until your on the ground almost passed out from laughter

~His laugh is like this low pitched majestic growl or cackle. That's the best I can explain it

~The hyenas once tackled him one day just to be funny and he lost it, laughing his head off. He waited for over a week before going back to them and of course chewed them off about how he could have swiped his paw once and they'd of all been on the ground dead, y'know if he had WANTED to

~He may be a bad guy but what a funny weakness

. Timon and Pumbaa

~These two love a good cuddle! Timon doesn't let his pride get in the way of getting a good hug from Pumbaa or Simba. Pumbaa definately wants or needs cuddles half the time, especially if he's upset. These two may be outcasts but they're nothing but sweethearts

~Out of the two, Timon may have a bit of an attitude sometimes but he wants nothing but for his family and friends to be happy, though he may be a bit hesitant to admit such mushy stuff

~Yes, they get into tickle fights. Mostly happens when they're fighting or fussing over something, such as bugs. But they'll get into them for fun too. Got into them with Simba a lot more after they took him in

~Both are quite equally ticklish, though Timon squirms around more. Pumbaa just kinda sits there and accepts his fate

~Timon's spots are his underarms and ears, Pumbaa's is his belly

~Both big switches. Will sneak up on their target before attacking. (Like them chasing after the vultures in the movie)

~Pumbaa is more merciful than Timon is but they both know when to stop

~Timon's laugh is a funny slightly high pitched cackle while Pumbaa's laugh is a lot more gruff

~Anyway, they're so silly

. Rafiki

~Y'all, he has probably got one of the biggest hearts throughout the whole movie. Definitely loves a good hug or cuddle, I mean just think of those scenes where he hugs Mufasa and Simba. He is very affectionate with most anybody

It wouldn't matter if he only knew ya for five minutes, he would already have his arm around you and would be telling you about some cool old story or teaching some life lesson

~Um have y'all ever paid attention to the majority of his dialogue? It's mostly crazy, funny, and contagious laughter. Though his family and friends are quite used to his eccentric laughter, someone new he meets will usually end up laughing right along with him the first time they hear him, even if they don't know what they're laughing about lol

~I've always pictured this but I imagine that when he was younger, he and Mufasa were best friends and would just goof around with each other (if you've seen or watched the Lion Guard, they would have a friendship equivalent to Kion and Bunga pretty much)

~Yes, even he gets into tickle fights. Most of 'em happened when he was younger and they were usually between him and a playful cub Mufasa. Even as they both got older though, he would every once in a while get a mischievous poke from the usually serious king when it was just them hanging out

~Quite ticklish and one of the only things that can push past his confident, eccentric attitude and get him flustered

Spots include his ribs and back

~He is a switch but ends up being a lee more than he'd like to be lol. Kinda hard to get the upper hand when your 3 foot tall and your being tickled half to death by a big 500 pound lion *cough cough* Mufasa *coUGh*

~It's who he's tickling that depends whether he's merciful or not.

Mufasa: no

Anyone else: yes

~His laugh, well his laugh is hard to miss in the movies. It's just crazy. Ok, he cackles a lot! It's very flamboyant and contagious in my opinion

~Best crazy monkey ever

.Zazu

~Not much of a hugger or cuddler because he's small and doesn't want to accidentally be crushed when trying to be hugged by a giant lion. Appreciates the thought and consideration of it though

Perching on someone's shoulder is something he considers affectionate though

~He may be snarky at some times, but he is very caring and loyal

~Like Rafiki, I can picture him having a cool relationship with Mufasa when they were younger. He woulda been the nerd of the group lol

Never gets into tickle fights much, again because he's small, but there was once when Simba got him after pouncing on him. He was a flustered mess afterwards.

~Moderately ticklish, like just enough to where he'll laugh a good bit

~Spots include under his wings and his neck

~Again, doesn't get into tickle fights much but when he does he's a switch. Can use his feathers to an advantage but will get flustered if you so much as look at him funny

~Very merciful because he's afraid if he doesn't show it, he won't receive it himself

~His laugh is a bunch of chortle and snorts, that's all I got

~He may seem snarky but I love him

Alright well then, here's the first bit! I intend to update this a lot whenever I do other movies but for now have this if ya want!

[walkawaytall]

Look, this post relies heavily on the idea that Anakin Skywalker shows signs of having borderline personality disorder. Do with that what you will.

When I see people romanticize the idea of Anakin Skywalker as a dad — as if the only thing standing between him and being a loving, protective father was the knowledge that his children were alive — I legitimately want to ask them if they know anyone who was raised by a father with untreated borderline personality disorder. Because, babes, lemme tell you, that obsessive love he allegedly has for Padme? In real life, that doesn’t translate to the kids. In real life, all that affection (and a lot of ire) is focused solely on their significant other (well, or whoever is deemed the “favorite person”. For us, it was a pretty classic story of my mother being the Best/Worst Person in the Universe depending on the hour and us kids being…physically present in the house, I guess).

I grew up with a father who demonstrably only cared about my mom. This isn’t the same as a dad considering his wife to be the most important person to him or his favorite person or whatever; that’s pretty normal and healthy. What I mean is that literally the only person that matters to my father is my mother and it is neither cute nor romantic.

What I’m saying is that, when I was 10 and my siblings were 8 and 3, my dad got a job in a different state and he moved to start work a few months before we did. The entire time he was gone, he’d call home to talk to my mom and never once asked to talk to any of us. My mom would have to prompt him. What I’m saying is, when my parents divorced seven years ago (all of us kids were grown), my mother made a condition of their reconciliation that he at least try to develop individual relationships with us, and that absolutely never happened. What I’m saying is, to this day, he mines my mother for information about me and my life and counts that as knowing me.

What I’m saying is, he seriously thinks that he’s only been MIA for the past six or seven years, but in reality, I’m in my mid-thirties, I lived in the same house as him for roughly twenty (20) years, and I have two (2) memories of him spending meaningful, individual time with me on purpose (and I’m being generous with the “on purpose” part — because one of them only happened because I got grounded last minute from going to the movies, so my mom took the other kids and he had to stay at home with me).

What I’m saying is, three years ago, I had to come to terms with the fact that the only way I won’t want want to scream or sob after every interaction with him is by having absolutely no expectations of him in regard to his relationship with me. This isn’t “the bar is on the ground”; this is “there is no bar”. Whatever happens is what he’s able to do in that moment, and I cannot treat this relationship like I would one with someone I can trust and expect certain behavior or care from. Every positive interaction is viewed as a pleasant surprise, not an indication of turning over a new leaf or evidence that I can trust that most of our interactions in the future will be positive. Because I can’t trust that. I’ve been given zero reason to trust that.

I’m super aware that the emotional reactions that Anakin Skywalker drags out of me are projection. I should probably talk to my therapist about it. I was floored on a rewatch of Return of the Jedi recently when I really processed how awful his final message to Leia is. (In case your memory’s fuzzy, the man’s dying words are “You were right about me. Tell your sister you were right.” Which I translate to: “Apologize? Why do that when I can instead just communicate that I always had good buried deep down without actually acknowledging the harm I’ve caused those allegedly important to me?”) And I know the only reason I had a strong reaction is because I identify with Leia as a character and that is exactly the sort of nonsense that I expect from my father. So, like, yeah, my baggage is showing. But also, uh…Anakin Skywalker would suck as a father if he didn’t sign up for Space Therapy at some point.

(Also, look, I know that people with BPD have experienced super crappy things — BPD develops as a result of trauma. And I also know that they can live totally functional lives and be good parents and that the condition is unfairly stigmatized. And I also know that claiming that any fictional character has any particular mental illness is a fraught topic at best. Buuut, I also have been the unfortunate recipient of the consequences of having an untreated/treatment-resistant father with BPD and whether Anakin is BPD-coded or not, some of his actions and attitudes are still super in line with my personal experience. You know, minus the genocide and stuff. And I’m just saying that the obsessively loving your spouse thing common with many males with BPD has a singular focus. It doesn’t translate to being a good dad.)

[upside-down-low]

respectfully, i disagree with the idea of the dad joke to joking about parentification pipeline, because it feels like it’s trying to tackle the two issues simultaneously—people not taking Jonathan’s parentification seriously and people wanting papa jon jokes—in a way that implies some kind of causation between them… but i don’t think that’s how they’re linked

Like i totally understand where you’re coming from, and these all do stem from the same root if we go back far enough (that is, the issue of people just not acknowledging or taking Jonathan seriously in general). But here’s how i think you might have to look at it to understand why people reconcile wanting to joke about Dad Jonathan to the party + still want his canon parentification taken seriously (or at least, it’s how i’ve understood it):

Why people want more dad jonathan jokes:

Mom Steve jokes typically comes from a place of lighthearted affection, as far as i can tell. people use it to create a stronger familial/platonic bond between Steve and the party; since most of the kids have parents who actually provide for them, Steve is essentially more of an older sibling figure for them, but is under the ironic ‘mom’ label most of the time because it’s cute, it’s funny

Jonathan possibly having been familiar with the party longer than Steve—Mike being Will’s best friend from an early age + growing up together, he’s been able to joke comfortably with the party at the end of s1, that kind of stuff; dad Jonathan wouldn’t be far-fetched

Why people want jonathan’s parentification to be taken seriously:

It’s a big part of Jonathan’s character that it directly influences his future plans (college), as well as being a serious consequence of the byers’ situation

It’s a big part of his complicated relationships with Will and Joyce

the subset of the fandom that tend to frame his decisions in a more self-centered light (particularly in s4) without taking into account the context such as the parentification and trauma

there’s people who kind of dismiss the byers’ circumstances in general

Other things to note:

There is a subgroup of the fandom that legitimately sees Steve as a parent (some to the point of saying he’s better than Joyce), and that’s how i can see why people start citing Jonathan’s parentification to compare the two—in a ‘if you’re going to call an older teen a parent, it might as well be Jonathan’ kind of way

another thing, i’ve seen a couple father’s day memes about the dads of ST and more people tend to make the effort to include Steve in that sort of thing, but not include Jonathan and whatnot, so that’s another kind of place where it can crop up

The fandom tendency to exclude Jonathan is unfortunately common, and that includes the tendency of some people who end up depicting steve (or perhaps eddie, in some cases) in a ‘better’ sibling relationship with Will than the one with his older brother

Jonathan apparently being only allowed to meaningfully interact with Will and Nancy and maybe Joyce (slightly rarer) in the show for some reason

Basically, the reason for wanting dad Jonathan jokes but also awareness of his parentification? I would say it’s wanting certain attitudes towards canon (treating Jonathan’s canon experiences and relationships as legitimate) and fanon (knowing he still has the capacity to be played with as a fandom character for relationship expansion and lighthearted situations, like any other char)

And how can people want these two things at the same time? Because they want to depict Jonathan as another older figure to the rest of the party who cares about them, while also wanting people to understand the substance of his char in the show as separate goals.

So it’s really not the idea of him being expected to literally take care of them (except Will, and El to an extent) akin to a pseudo parent that would more reflect textbook parentification, but of a way to imagine Jonathan being close with the party in an extremely strong platonic sense—like people do with Steve.

I think the overall motivation here is not so much wanting Jonathan to have a bigger burden of responsibility.

Instead it might be more like wanting Jonathan to also have a place in the found family dynamic with all the main characters that Steve is given in fanon, not just limited to only having a place within his own family

it’s so weird to me when people complain about the dad/mom steve jokes, and then go “JONATHAN is the dad, he’s had to take care of will his entire life” and it’s like… why would you want jonathan’s abuse to be a joke? like, yeah the mom steve jokes are overdone, and he’s more of a brother figure to the kids, but to complain that people don’t call jonathan dad and make jokes about him taking care of the kids, when that is literally the way he has been abused? he was parentified but you want us to laugh at it? get a grip

(it’s especially annoying because these people blame steve stans for this, when it was quite literally the duffers brothers/netflix that started calling steve ‘mom steve’)

[sparrowwritings]

Writing Challenge Day 1: Story

Masterpost -- Day 2 “Dad, I want a story.” Victoria huffed as her father settled the comforter around her. He chuckled and patted her head. “First you were thirsty, then you ran off when I asked you to change into your bedclothes, then you went and hid so that it’d take me a while to find you...and now you’re pushing back your bedtime even further by asking for a story? You’re really pushing your luck today, Vic.” She crossed her arms and huffed again, making sure to blow hair out of her face dramatically as she did so. "Just one, okay?” Vic looked back up at her father and gave her saddest, most pleading expression that she knew how to make. “Please dad?”

He gave a sigh and settled himself a bit better on the bed. “Do you have any requests?” Eyes sparkling, Vic sat up straighter. “Something you haven’t told me before!” “With lots of fighting!” Another voice chimed in. The two of them turned to face the doorway. Gibby stood there, blocking a little bit of the light with his scrawny body. His light brown hair was spiked in odd directions, presumably from the short amount of time he’d spent in bed.  He was wearing loose pajamas with little flames stitched on them. He grinned sheepishly at the attention. “You were taking too long, so I came to see what was going on. I want to listen too!”  Their dad turned his gaze from son to daughter. A dark eyebrow rose in a silent question. Victoria gave a deep sigh and flipped some of her cover over. “Well come on, we’re wasting time here.” Before she’d even finished her sentence, the boy had already scrambled on the bed and under the comforter. Once the children had settled down again, their father stroked his chin thoughtfully. “A story you haven’t heard before, and one with a lot of fighting...ah, I know. Once upon a time, there was a loyal knight--” “Daaaad!” Vic groaned. “All your stories have knights in them!” “Yeah, do something different!” Gibby chimed in.  "But what if the story really does have a loyal knight in it?” He pointed out with a chuckle. He was given a pouty glare from his daughter for his trouble. “Alright, alright, no knights. Is it alright if our main character starts out as one and then isn’t a knight after a little bit?” The children looked at each other with similar quizzical expressions and turned to their dad still wearing them. “This is a true story, and it involves a knight becoming the leader of an order.” He explained. Now this held the children’s attention. They’d heard plenty of their father’s made up tales before. True stories were rare and precious gems. Gibby’s hand found Vic’s without either of them looking away from their father. “I’ll take that to mean that you definitely want to hear it.” He laughed a little before settling into the cadence he used to tell stories. “There once was a loyal knight named Elyan. He was well trained for fighting, but he’d only been assigned to small jobs due to his age and inexperience.  “This all changed when the Mage Wars broke out,” The soft, lulling voice took on a deeper, more serious tone. The children squeezed each other’s hands at the shift. “While the bulk of the fighting indeed involved magic, there was a large part of it than involved physical attacks. Back then, mages were separated into clans instead of schools. Each one had a signature magical specialty instead of allowing their children to learn more than one kind of magic. These families also had the influence and money to hire fighters of their own to try to get rid of rival families. And soon enough, the families would target more than just their own rivals. “So when the Wars branched out from just mage against mage and were starting to affect whole kingdoms, Elyan was one of the first to volunteer to defend against this threat. It wasn’t easy. Not only did he have to face ruthless invaders...” He paused to glance over at his children. They were still fully directing their attention at him. “Elyan had to face against his own friends. Even his brother had decided that money was much more important than loyalty. He was in a losing battle, not knowing who to trust or who he was fighting against. “And then he met an Elven warrior named Pellinore.” Gibby tilted his head. Vic blinked, then furrowed her brow.  “Are you sure this is a real story? Pellinore doesn’t sound like an elf name.” Skepticism dripped from every word from Victoria’s mouth.  “Oh it’s real.” Her dad put a hand on his chest. “It happened about a hundred years ago, but I promise it’s real.” She continued to squint at him until he continued. “Pellinore was a fierce fighter. Hardly anyone could match his speed and accuracy. Elves rarely fought outside of their own forests, even a hundred years ago, but it was as if Pellinore had been born on a human battlefield. He and Elyan quickly became friends and together they defended the innocent civilians from the fighting. “What happened after isn’t all that interesting. There were some battles that the two ended up fighting in, but most of the Mage Wars were fought between individuals, and far away from the physical fighting. Soon enough, the major players in the Wars were destroyed by the magic they had so casually used to attack with. While the Council of Kings were busy putting together the measures to make sure that the Mage Wars would never happen again, they rewarded people such as Elyan and Pellinore with titles and a promise of lands. It was the first time in recorded history that an elf had ever been awarded a title.  “What kinda title did he get?” Gibby piped up.  “What kinda title did Elyan get too?” Vic joined in. “They both became Lords if I remember right.” Their father scratched at the side of his face. “Anyway, after they went to see the Council of Kings, Pellinore and Elyan sat down together and came up with a plan. See, they also didn’t want for there to be a huge war again, but they didn’t think that the Kingdoms were doing enough to keep it from happening again. Pellinore thought that a group should look after the mages and make absolutely sure that magic wouldn’t be used to hurt innocent people again. Elyan believed that there should be a group that would defend more than just their home kingdom from all sorts of danger. “From that talk came the formation of two of the biggest, still running neutral forces that the world has seen. Pellinore founded the Defenders of the Wall, a group that actively would fight the abuse of magic. Elyan made the Wandering Knights, a group of trained fighters who swore to protect the innocent from all dangers.” He grinned. “Which you know about, since I was a Wandering Knight myself.”  At the sudden silence, he looked back over at his children. At some point during his history lesson, the two had fallen asleep. This was hardly a surprise. Gibby and Vic were still holding hands, which was something of a shock. With a smile, he got up and readjusted the comforter to cover them. He then carefully made his way to the door, making sure that it opened enough to let the light in before he left.

[abugwritesstuff]

Prince and Consort Dad/Family Headcanons Pt 2

okay! this edition is for the non-valet characters- i've got one written up specifically for the valets (excluding violet because not a dad and jay because no) that i'll probably post sometime tomorrow. i will note that for this one i left out zev simply because i do not know anything about him, or at least not enough to write a headcanon about him.

this post includes dia, lance (i know those two are princes as well but i didn't want to include them with the previous post), aquia, the headmaster, and hawke. also if i've left anyone obvious out of these posts please let me know! i can always write up some more.

dia 

hahaha

okay so i have so many ideas about this

honestly i can’t pinpoint if he’s the type of have one kid, or like, several 

either way, i can imagine the first one as a complete and total mistake and entirely unplanned

dia had literally never thought of himself as a father, like it kind of hadn’t occurred to him that he could actually do that lmao. like yes he imagined himself marrying the mc but beyond that?? 

he wasn’t raised as a prince so the expectations that yeah, you’re going to have kids weren’t really there 

i mean he was raised basically as a girl so i feel like he may have missed out on certain conversations and expectations. like yes he knows the biology of it all but that wasn’t necessarily a knowledge that had, like, sunk in 

i also sorta feel like this pregnancy happens, like, while they’re still on the isle of colde so it’s just not great timing 

so for the first while there he’s in kind of a daze and it takes him awhile to wrap his head around it 

at first i can see him sort of panicking and avoiding the mc, then coming to his senses and apologizing and then being very clingy the rest of the pregnancy 

he just moves her into his room from then on 

dia just clearing mushrooms out of spare drawers for her things lmao 

like we already knew he was protective and clingy but her being pregnant just multiples this by a million 

this is mostly because he’s concerned for her well-being, not so much because of the baby, which is still kind of a foggy concept in his head. when was the last time he’d even *seen* a baby, let alone interacted with one? probably not since he was child 

he feels guilty about it all 

he’s always been a little snippy and sassy with people but this also gets multiplied by a million during this time

literally getting in between the mc and other people like a physical shield 

👿 don’t talk to my betrothed 👿

he’s the most reactive this way around the headmaster and the S ranks (but mostly fenn and guy). he has sort of a tacit trust of toa 

toa gives the mc herbal teas and tinctures and whatnot so toa is okay 🙄

as she starts to actually have a bump i think he spends a lot of time touching it 

he’s a touchy person with her as is but he just idly has his hand there all the time

he’ll just lie in bed and look at the bump like “baby. a baby. that’s a baby. my baby.” trying to wrap his head around it 

he thinks it’s quite cute actually. he likes it a lot. 

as she gets further along he teases her for waddling around, to which she retorts “well whose fault is that??” and he’s like “😔”

dia doesn’t know anything about birth

like he gets the general idea but barely

has to have the mc explain it and he’s HORRIFIED

promises to never get her pregnant again (maybe)

still feels guilty about it all, like his whole thing was trying to protect her and keep her safe and now look what he’s done 

there is reason for concern about the mc’s powers and giving birth (i imagine this would be the case no matter who she’s having a baby with tbh). like in the history of saligia someone with ancient magic has never given birth, let alone on the isle of colde. so unfortunately the headmaster is much more involved than dia wants him to be 

mc goes into labor and dia freaks the fuck out, jay has to go get help 

she gives birth in their room in dorm nivalis, and also the headmaster is there with a few of the S ranks 

dia makes them stay outside, except for toa who knows about medical shit and can work with the midwives 

dia almost faints and throws up but doesn’t 👊🏻 but he stays up by the mc’s head instead of looking down 

baby is a girl 

no weird magic shit happens much to everyone’s relief 

dia feels like he’s having an out of body experience 

looks down at the baby in mc’s arms and just kinda blinks at her and reaches out to touch her

she does that baby thing where they grip your finger really tight and dia just sort of melts.

from there dia is just like. infatuated with his daughter 

i feel like dia would babywear hahaha

got his kid strapped to him while walking around looking for mushrooms 🍄 

she also really looks a lot like dia so he’s carting around a little mini-me wherever he goes

dia and the mc resume classes and dia tries to convince the headmaster to let them bring her with them to class 

he says no 

jay watches her 

also it goes without saying but he sings lullabies to her OBVIOUSLY

mc has to get after him to stop magicking her to sleep though since he keeps using magical-ass lullabies 

“she’s not going to know how to sleep on her own 😒 you’re gonna make her an insomniac whenever you’re not around”

“well i’ll always be around 😤”

anyways 

if they have more kids it’s a good couple years before their daughter has siblings but i can see them mostly having girls if so

like they don’t have any more until they’re in akedia and trying to rebuild tristitas and whatnot 

baby girl is a songbird obviously 

dia gives her nicknames based off of this, throughout her whole life 

my little lark, baby bird, etc

mc banned mushroom nicknames because they were weird sounding

dia has a perfect understanding of his kids baby language. just like total babbling that nobody can understand but dia is like “mmm, yes, good point”

i think dia is protective and a bit awkward as a dad, probably doesn’t adjust especially well to his kids getting older and more independent 

like what do you mean. that’s my baby. 

i think the possibility of his kids ever being used for their abilities is one of his main fears so he’s pretty nervous to let them sing in front of others but also doesn’t want to restrict that part of them 

anyway dia is a cute dad

lance 

yeah lance puts this off as long as he can 

i think he manages to win the award of “prince with the actual worst father ever” so you can imagine that he’s not necessarily super keen on having kids 

he’s fantastic with them, like he is with animals, but isn’t like… sure about himself as a dad 

as long as his own dad is in charge of ira i think the idea that his kids could be utilized for magical weapons manufacturing scares the shit out of lance 

when they do have kids, they have three: a boy, a girl, and a boy. 

he’s very stiff at first 

like very caring and loving to the mc throughout that first pregnancy obviously but he’s uncomfortable around baby stuff

christoph is excited though and that sort of helps warm him up a bit 

hawke has no kids and isn’t super useful in this regard but he tries to encourage him too. 

lance stops smoking. he may not know much about kids and babies but at least he knows secondhand smoke is bad. 

lance is reads a lot of books about pregnancy, birth, babies, etc. like he may not feel prepared but he can at least try to get there, yknow? he tries to hide these reading habits from everyone but people know. 

he ends up being very helpful during labor because of this. 

midwife lance lol

him with his sleeves rolled up holding mc’s back up and encouraging her ☺️

once the baby is born and he’s able to see his kid, that switch kind of flips and like, lance is not a big crier, but he just holds his baby with tears in his eyes and just sort of blinks over at the mc with disbelief like “we did this??”

very hands on with the baby, anxious about hurting them at first and kind of unsure of himself but the things he feels like he has a good handle on, he will not allow anyone else to do

like if he feels like he’s good at like, bathing the baby? feeding them? yeah he’s doing that. that’s their time back off 😤

once they’re old enough he’s that dad that tosses his kids in the air and holds them upside down, shit that freaks out mc 

lance is a practical dad 

those kids know how to do a lot of shit- archery, swordsmanship, survival skills, first aid…

he’s anxious about teaching them magic but does eventually do that too 

he does not treat his daughter any differently from his sons, has the exact same expectations for all of his children- which is a purposeful choice because he does have a soft spot for his daughter much like lynt does

lance having to hold himself back from threatening anyone who breaks his daughter’s heart because she knows she doesn’t want him doing that nonsense but MAN he wants to beat the shit out of that kid i swear to god……

lance reads to his kids 

but he’s the type of dad to get to a part of a book and be like “…what? no. that’s stupid” and then make up something else even his kids are like “daaaaaddd noooo read the book normal 😫”

like roy, the family goes on camping trips and shit

going hiking as a fam and lance ends up carrying the little one on his shoulders half the time 

god i love every image i have in my head of lance as a dad truly 

so cute 🥲

aquia

i wish i knew more about him but

he’s a big sweetie pie in every route he appears in so i can’t imagine him being anything other than a kind caring sort of dad and partner

i think he’d be very nervous of somehow hurting the MC, would probably treat her like she’s made of glass while she’s pregnant

given that he’s essentially a “spare” and is also kinda bad at magic, i think this gives him more of an ability to lie low and stay out of the public eye, and to avoid a degree of scrutiny so they do have that advantage

mc’s magically abilities would be an issue, i think aquia would be highly anxious about guy telling roc about her. and additionally nervous about this baby being powerful and causing friction in his relationship with guy. i think they would perhaps work out some kind of agreement that the information is kept private in exchange for her loyalty or whatever. 

i do see their baby being a surprise of some sort, whether they’re married or not

like i said, he’d be a complete sweetheart- just anxious and desperate to do the right thing by her

remember too that both of his parents have sucked- his mother is awful and overbearing and roc is… roc. so i think he lacks an example of good parenting but despite this, has a natural knack for it due to his personality being kind and gentle 

my hunch is that avarian fathers are typically sexist and distant. aquia is not that. perhaps a bit nervous at first, but hands-on 

rocking his kids to bed at night, singing to them softly, giving them piggyback rides in the hallways when possible, etc

i've got an image of aquia encouraging his kids to "go say hello to uncle guy!" and guy being mobbed by small children (who love him for some strange, inexplicable reason despite him probably actively ignoring them most of the time)

that’s all i’ve got. he’s a good egg :-)

lou, the headmaster 

oh man

he’d be such an embarrassing dad, can you imagine? lmao

the dad jokes? oh my god

anyway

i’m not sure if the pregnancy would be planned or not, but he’d be surprised and happy regardless 

i actually don’t think he’d be terribly protective compared to some of the others, but i do think they’d probably keep the pregnancy under wraps for as long as possible 

i feel like the headmaster is such an enigma that once everyone knew that they were expecting, they’d be like “…he… he… can do that?”

just puzzled by the fact that this was even happening

he buys a lot of baby clothes 

he buys a matching outfit for himself and the baby 

i don’t think he’d be very helpful while the MC was in labor tbh. he gives me the vibe that he’d be frazzled and kind of squeamish and afraid, maybe

i think it’d be a boy. i really don’t think he’d care about gender or sex or whatever though. he’d just be ecstatic either way. 

i think he’d honestly intend on being the one who does most of the infant care, like “oh go back to your studies we’re fine :)” and just tucks the baby inside his cloak and continues on with his regular duties 

he for some reason is extremely good at taking care of babies. no explanation for this at all, he’s just like an expert parent immediately.

would be the type to show off his son to people. like students ask how he’s doing and he’s like “oh yes he’s wonderful! *pulls baby out from inside his cloak*” 

i do have an image in my head of the headmaster teaching his baby to walk and it’s very cute

i feel like they’d have a lot of fun when the students go home for breaks or for the coldish cleanse 

like campus is empty so they’re having like family picnics and running around the place 

i’m not sure that they’d have more than one kid. if they did i think the age gap would be pretty significant, like ten years. 

he gives me kind of a head-off-in-the-clouds vibe so i think he’d be prone to flights of fancy, random impulse choices to do some extremely random shit with the kids

he’d plan pranks with his kids 

pranking the princes and other students and then suddenly you hear a bunch of child giggles from the next room

all in all he's a good, fun dad. i think it was alluded to that he's like a reincarnation of someone that mc was with in a previous life? so maybe some dad-knowledge is coming through from that life idk

hawke

okay this gives me massive feels

i think he’d have honestly sort of discounted the idea of fatherhood altogether at this point, whether he’d wanted it before or not. like in his mind, that ship has sort of sailed. 

he makes a lot of quips about being old so i can imagine he just doesn’t really have it on his radar until he’s together with the mc, where he’d probably just be like “i wonder if she’ll want them?”

i think he’d just be like, okay with the idea of it for her sake, but as a hypothetical. not sure he’d really ruminate on it all that much.

pregnancy is a surprise. very much an accident. when she tells him, he’s very shocked and taken off guard by it 

imagine the dial up internet noise playing in his head for a good few minutes 

he’d propose immediately, on impulse, as an honor thing, without really properly processing the news 

i think she’d accept but also be like okay woah are you good?? and he would not be good 

the actual news would hit him like a ton of bricks, might throw up 

i think he’d spend the next couple days just either sort of numbed out or frantic and guilty, a kind of whirlwind of emotions 

i think he’d really doubt himself and also feel bad that he’d both A) gotten mc pregnant and B) saddled some poor kid with him as a dad 

part of why he’d be more anxious about this than others is just that since he’s older he’s had more time to see what irian fathers’ parenting tends to do to their kids and perhaps reflect on whatever his own childhood was like. additionally he was former military and i can imagine that there’s probably a degree of PTSD or maladaptive coping that comes as a result of that, and he knows it.

weirdly enough (or maybe this is entirely predictable) i feel like fenn, lance, and violet (and maybe the headmaster for some reason) would encourage him and kind of get him out of the panic-state he’s in

granted some of this would NOT be good advice, but i think the encouragement would help

(as an aside i 100% ship him and violet. like tell me they wouldn’t be a great couple. you can’t. same with her and grayson also actually. there's potential there and she deserves the best. why am i talking about violet in the middle of this headcanon lmao)

additionally i think hawke would re-propose at a later date, try to do something more romantic. i think they’d get married probably sometime after the kid’s born, though

anyways, he’d be very attentive and scold her if she’d push herself too hard. once he’d mentally adjusted to becoming a dad i think he’d be pretty good, if a bit unsure

he does quit drinking, either altogether or makes it a very rare thing. wants to set a good example, y'know?

i think similarly to fenn, he’d kinda panic when she went into labor and violet would have to knock some sense into him 

given his past i think he’d be able to kind of buck up and deal with it. i can see him delivering his own kid, like catching it 

i can see the first baby being a boy

he would cry but try to be discreet about it, just turning away and wiping his eyes but they’re all red anyway

awkward at first but gets a good feel for things pretty quickly. he’d be competent at baby care things pretty quickly. it’s not that i think he’s had a *ton* of experience with them, but i can see him having had a variety of life experiences that probably make adapting to this new role easier for him than it would be for some others.

he does not baby talk to his kids. talks to them basically like adults, even before they can respond.

sometimes lacks a gauge for what’s appropriate for kids in terms of what they’re able to understand though

trying to teach fencing to a 3 yr old and mc’s like “ok let’s wait a couple more years on that one” 

i think they’d have like three kids maybe? there’d be a daughter in there i think 

lance is the kids’ godfather/unofficial official uncle. i don’t even know if they’d discuss this, i think they’d just know it was the case. 

i think he’d be a pretty affectionate dad, very fond of his kids and very patient with them 

the type to ruffle his kids’ hair and call them nicknames like “sport” or “champ” 

expects hard work and effort from his kids. he’d toss his kids into a pool in order to teach them to swim, toss them a sword and tell them to fight to teach them fencing

i think the only thing that would actually really frustrate him is if his kids are especially timid, or are unwilling to try their best 

but all in all he really is a pretty great dad despite his anxiety about it 

i love hawke sm 

give him a route PLEASE

hope you enjoyed! these are so fun, please tell me your headcanons too!

[wellthatsnogood]

Hello! Thank you for the cpr, we sure do need it! Maybe something with Yashiki mentoring Akira, where Akira comes to meet the cast of DM, i think that'd be super cute aaa they'd all be a few years older and stuff! It's pretty vague but I'm not good at imagining concrete scenarios;; i just want some dad kinda yashiki,,, bonus if mashita and yashiki are a couple

So maybe not exactly on topic but I had so many ideas for this prompt! I love writing interactions between Death Mark and NG characters, so I’ll probably be writing more down the road!

That said this was both super fun and somehow felt like punching a wall. I have to post it now or I’ll mess with it forever. Thank you so much for the prompt!!

Word count: 960

Rating: G

Warnings: None

Water dripped from the doorway to the ground, the irregular pattering on the concrete signaling an end to the day’s storm. A small break after a harrowing night. After all, bringing an umbrella had been the last thing on Yashiki’s mind. One moment he was reading more old tomes about seals and the next he’s on an urgent call from Mashita, rushing from the manor.

“What were you even thinking, ya brat!” Mashita’s the first to break the silence. He’s staring Akira down as the young man trudges over to his overturned bike. Yashiki could see Mashita getting more pissed as the kid ignored him in favor of checking the bike. Maybe another night he’d let the inevitably brutal lecture start, but not tonight. Not when everyone seemed worn so thin. Not when he knows Mashita’s worry turns his concern into biting words.

Yashiki put his hand on Mashita’s shoulder to stop him, squeezing gently. He received his own patented scowl but answered with a gentle, pleading look. After a tense second Mashita huffed and shook off his hand. “Whatever. I’ll be in the van, it’s too damn cold and damp in this alley. Give me the keys.”

“Thank you.” Yashiki smiled and handed over the van keys. He watched Mashita give another quick glare to Akira before turning away.

“Don’t take too long old man. And don’t be too soft on him either.” Mashita waved over his shoulder as he walked out of the ally. The silence grew again, only slightly changed by the scraping noise of Akira righting and checking his bike.

Yashiki had to admit, he’d been surprised at just how well Akira took care of the motorcycle when they met two years ago. For him to let it lay on the ground in an alley was definitely abnormal. It was no wonder Mashita had called when he spotted it abandoned on his way home, voice as close to panic as Yashiki ever heard.

Pushing the thoughts away he quietly walked up to the boy, observing the way he tensed up despite Yashiki’s best efforts to be silent.

“What? Think I can’t handle getting chewed out?” Akira asked, back turned. He crouched down and started poking around the bike, seeming determined to look busy. “Wouldn’t be new. Probably one of my more deserved lectures.”

Yashiki sighed. “So you know going into a haunt alone was stupid? That you easily could have died?” Yashiki was certain there was a mild shake in Akira’s hands. “That you likely would have if Mashita hadn’t seen your bike.”

He waited for Akira to say something, or at least look at him but it seemed the bike was still more interesting. Or at least it was a convenient distraction. He let the silence grow heavy again before breaking it with a sigh.

“Can you at least say why you went? I know you’ve handled ghosts, worse ones too, but. Look, take it from me. A martyr complex only hurts everyone around you.”

This time Akira actually stopped, shoulders hunching up for a second before the fight drained out of him. He suddenly looked exhausted. “I know okay? I didn’t come here on purpose. Just heard some weird shit and went poking around. Thought it would just be some punks hanging in an ally or something.”

Akira stood back up, finally turning to actually look at Yashiki. The kid looked tired and frustrated, his scowl somehow deeper than usual. It made Yashiki feel a bit bad to be honest. “Quite the mistake. Maybe you’ll pay more attention to the articles on early haunting signs I gave you.” He smiled, trying to pass it as a light rib but Akira’s mood didn’t change at all.

“Sure.” He shoved his hands in his pockets and shrugged before turning back to his bike again. “Can I go then? Or you have something else to say?”

The response had Yashiki wanting to pull out his hair. He never wanted kids, felt he’d be terrible at it, and this awkward mentorship arrangement really felt like a cruel joke. “Akira. Just… be careful okay? You’re my responsibility and,” he paused, long enough for Akira to look back at him, “I worry alright?” The words felt clumsy but right. Akira gave him an odd look before looking away quickly.

“Yeah, okay old man.” He poked at his bike again. “I’ll be more careful, and uh, I’ll pay more attention.” Akira hopped on his bike, checking that the engine started before turning it off again. He leaned against the handle bars, looking back toward the building. “You should be more careful too though. Old men like you and that detective should be retired. Don’t want to find a new mentor for this ghost stuff.”

Yashiki smiled again, nodding even if Akira wasn’t looking. “Don’t worry, I’m sure we’ll be stuck with eachother for a while.” The distant blare of his van’s horn broke the moment. He jumped, looking over his shoulder and trying his best to ignore Akira’s snicker behind him. “Yes, well, I guess that’s all. Wouldn’t want Mashita to lecture both of us.”

Akira laughed, engine starting again. “Sure. I’ll see you guys back at the mansion.”

“Don’t take the long way. I’m sure you’ll still have to face Mashita’s wrath for this, and waiting will just make him simmer.” Yashiki stood back, letting Akira drive out of the alley. He shook his head, hearing the horn blare again, sure that Mashita just saw Akira pass by. He’d do his best to calm the detective down on the drive, though to be honest he wasn’t going to be the best voice in this situation.

Mashita would just have to live with being cursed by self sacrificing idiots it seemed.

[fayeimara]

Miya Osamu || Little Delights | First Meeting

SUMMARY. Osamu can't help but be intrigued when his daughter starts bringing home delicious desserts prepared by her best friend's mother.

PAIRING. You x Miya Osamu

GENRE. Fluff <3

WARNINGS. Suggestive content

Haikyuu! Anthology Series | It's Fate When Your Kids Are Friends

OSAMU | First Meeting > Second Date > Third Time's The Charm > Four Is Our Family

Osamu's made it just in time, right as the bell tolls to signal the end of his daughter's second day in her new school year. Standing back as a swarm of kids rush out of the brick building and into the arms of their waiting parents, he takes a moment to breathe and relax. Juggling his burgeoning restaurant with being a single parent isn't an easy job, but he wouldn't trade it for anything.

He stands taller than many of the other adults around him and it's evident his little girl has no problem seeking him out as a black, red, and grey blur races towards him, a thrilled, "Papa!" reaching his ears and splitting his mouth into a wide, happy grin.

His arms are already open in a silent but enthusiastic response as he crouches down and then the bite-sized impact of his daughter is rocking him back on his heels, his reaction overly exaggerated as he pretends to almost fall over from the small force of nature that's all Miya Izumi.

Standing back up, Samu catches sight of another little girl who was trailing behind, wide eyes studying him before shifting to Zumi, his daughter turning back around to wave at her, proclaiming the girl as her 'bestest friend in the whole wide world'. The girl returns Zumi's enthusiastic wave with a quick raise of her small hand before her attention is caught by a pretty young woman, her own wide smile replacing her previously hesitant expression as she's warmly enveloped into welcoming arms with kisses peppered on her cheeks and forehead.

Her delighted giggles reach Osamu and his daughter as they turn around, hand in hand, to walk back to his car, small interaction soon forgotten as his little munchkin lists off the snacks she's looking forward to having on their return to his shop. She won't be able to finish half that list, he bets to himself with a quiet chuckle at his daughter's inherited exuberance for food as he securely buckles her into car.

It's not until they reach his second pride and joy, Onigiri Miya, that he finds the first little surprise tucked away in Izumi's not so empty lunchbox. When he inquires about the remarkably delicious looking set of biscuits he certainly didn't pack for her that morning, his daughter's response is that it's a thank you gift from her bestest friend, Reina, for the lunch she'd shared with the girl on her first day.

Well, a six year old certainly didn't bake these from the looks of it. It's only confirmed by his first taste, the texture and flavour beyond even most consistent home bakers, let alone a young child. Right? But a more pressing thought flags his attention, first.

"Did your friend not have her own lunch?"

"She did! We split because hers wasn't so good, even though her mama put so much love into it. But the treats were so much better so we decided to go halfsies and have best of both!" His daughter giggles with the oblivious sweet innocence of a child.

"And what about today?"

"Mhm. Same. But I liked the chocolate brownies yesterday much much better!"

Samu chuckles at her excitement and can't help but tease his precocious daughter, "Oh, and was it better than papa's food?"

Zumi's eyes widen as she contemplates the question with all the adorable seriousness she can muster, but loyalty must break free and run because her reply is, "Almost! So close, but I love papa's cooking more than anything in the whole wide world."

It seems the whole wide world is the current standard of measurement for first graders, but he appreciates the heartfelt sentiment behind her loving words.

After another moment of consideration, Osamu settles on the thought chewing at him and decides that tomorrow his daughter won't be giving up a portion of his food which she loves so much. No, she'll have double the amount to do with whatever she may please.

So briefly, that he doesn't even ponder on the sudden image, he's reminded of the warm reunion he witnessed between the little girl and the woman who he'd assumed was her nanny, but concludes is probably the girl's young mother. Based on the number of treats Zumi brought back, Samu's certain the woman had to have thoughtfully made extras of these baked goods for her daughter to have more than enough to share with friends and then some.

Well, it's definitely no skin off his back to make his daughter even the slightest bit happier by being able to help her share her savoury little delights with her new bestest friend.

It's on the third day of your daughter's return from her new school year that you're able to confirm that something is indeed amiss. The previous two days, the small portions of her lunch left uneaten were questionable, given her voracious appetite, however, when she returns with the lunch you made for her today still sitting wholly untouched in her cute little lunchbox, you finally sit her down to ask about it.

Her response is far from what you expected, "My friend's papa made extra lunch so we could both have something yummy to eat!"

You press your lips together to hide your amusement as you teasingly inquire, "Oh? Is that so? And I guess that means mama's food isn't so yummy after all."

Her eyes widen in dismay and mouth opens in an immediate denial that you know would be a lie to soothe your feelings. Even at such a young age, your beautiful baby girl is truly a kind and compassionate soul, she would dutifully eat anything you prepared no matter how lacking the meal might be and never utter a word to tell you the obvious truth.

Before she can manage to find the right words to faithfully express how much she loves your cooking, you lean in to kiss her on the forehead and pull back with a laugh, gathering her in your arms for a warm hug. "Oh baby, I'm so sorry I can't make you the food you deserve. But please don't ever feel the need to say otherwise to spare my feeling, okay? You should always be honest about what you like or don't like."

Her little arms find their way around you as she snuggles in, voice soft and words like a wise, old soul when she denies, "But your food is made with so much love mama. Zumi says some people are just better at other things. We both think you make the best yummies."

"The best yummies, hm?" You think about the various baked goods you add in to balance out for the healthy but tasteless lunches you're able to prepare.

They are indeed good, but baking has always been something that comes more naturally to you than cooking. An interesting distinction not many people might accept, but for you the former has always been an effortless science whereas the latter is more of a difficult art.

"Well I'm really glad you like those, but we do need to figure out what to do so you're not picking at your friends' food or going hungry."

She pulls back to send a serious look your way, exclaiming, "But I'm not picking at it, I promise. Zumi said her papa made extra just for me!"

You take a moment to consider her words. She made a similar implication in her earlier statement, that her friend's dad had made extra for them both. What does that mean? Did his daughter ask him to because she was sharing her food with Reina? Or did he somehow grasp the situation and is simply being generous?

A warm burn threatens your cheeks as you consider the awkwardness of accepting such a gesture from a complete stranger. While you appreciate the kindness of Reina's friend and her dad, it still somehow feels like a terrible imposition, as if you've burdened them somehow with your lack of skills to keep your child happily fed.

It's not like you can't cook good, healthy food. You're just painfully aware how bland the food you make can be, unless you spend three times the amount of time as anyone else would need to in order to prepare similar meals. But... studying the smile that's on your daughter's face, you can't help the twinge in your heart that reminds you how much more her happiness is worth than your pride.

You won't assume this will be a daily occurrence and you'll continue to make your daughters lunches so she never goes without, however, it'll be no extra trouble for you to make double the batch of baked goods than usual. After all, you usually account for the fact that she'll be sharing with friends and classmates anyways.

However, you're now determined there will be enough delicious snacks for Reina to share not only around at school, but also some treats for her sweet friend Izumi to take home for her generous parents. Perhaps, you think, it might be prudent to include a short message, thanking the man for his thoughtful effort.

Silent gratitude isn't very much to anyone ~ (So I hope you and your family will accept these.) Thank you for your kindness, Miya-san.

Osamu blinks, unaware of the small smile that curves his lips as he reads the delicate, handwritten note carefully wrapped around one of the cupcakes Izumi brought back home today. There are only three of the original twelve left, apparently, but the one he's just bitten into is as incredible as expected.

If he's correct in his assumption from the note addressed directly to him and included with today's delightful treats, then the little girl's mother has picked up on his small action and is returning the gesture to convey her thanks. The thought is confirmed by his daughter explaining that one of each of the three cupcakes is for their family.

Three for their family? Hm. Well, it's just him and Zumi, but he's sure his brother will be all over the remaining offering when he visits tonight. If there's any left for him that is. Probably won't be, it's really just that good and anyways, he doesn't need Atsumu nosing his way into this simple exchange as it is.

The following day, Friday morning, Samu pens back his own note, assuring the woman that no thanks is necessary. There's no reason for her to express her gratitude over what's really such a simple action for him.

That evening, he and Zumi enjoy some quality mochi delivered in a white, rectangular box with a pretty decently hand-drawn background scene at a spring festival on the cover. Two little girls, one that looks remarkably like his daughter and the other like her best friend, hold hands in the centre of the street dressed in traditional yukata and sharing a box of what he assumes is mochi.

As they much into the chewy treats, he watches and listens as his daughter points out the bright colours she and her friend chose to fill into what was apparently initially a blank canvas for them to colour on. Her delight at having a pink and grey yukata, even if only in a drawing, prompting him to make a mental note about looking into the clothing and any upcoming festivals.

Osamu makes a point of saving the box, childlike scribbles over the simple sketch leaving a warm feeling in his chest and a slightly wider smile gracing his mouth.

The response he receives the Monday evening (from his penned message the Friday before) is enough to prompt a full smirk that, this time, doesn't go unnoticed by him. The woman showed an interesting sense of humour and gracious acceptance with the first cupcake note. Then, a sweet and thoughtful disposition with the drawing included as part of the soft treat for the girls Friday.

But now, Samu sees a challenging firmness in her reply to his easy brush off of her thanks, delicate lines yet again adorning the small card carefully tucked into a pretty red ribbon that's tied around and decorating another white, rectangular box.

Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it ~ So please accept this gift without concern.

Sitting inside are four differently coloured, rounded treats that look familiar but he can't place off the top of his head. A quick search identifies the delicate confections as macarons, the colorful delights an absolute wonder as the airy crunch of the top and bottom shells simultaneously give way to a firm filling with the first bite, the sweet flavour almost dissolving on his tongue.

He and Zumi finish the box off in minutes, three of each flavour included to a total of four different flavours, so both he and his daughter each get seconds of their respective favourites.

The next morning, filled with anticipation at what new surprises you might include with the goods you send today, he's fully aware of the grin that stretches his face as he writes out a note of his own for you to receive later this evening.

The macarons were inspiring. Izumi and I definitely won't turn away any gifts you'd like to send our way. I wonder... what other surprises do you have up your sleeve? I sent a little something your way to inspire you too. - M. Osamu

The neatly written note returned, once again, on the back of the small rectangular card you'd last sent, brings a warm smile to your face. The various onigiri that came along with it, apparently with specific instructions communicated from Izumi to Reina that today's additional quantity is set aside for you specifically, stretches the amused curl of your lips into a delighted grin.

You split each of the four different types of rice balls with your daughter, listening to her input on the delicious food as she points out her order of most to least favourite. Although there's not a single one you wouldn't eat on any given day if given the choice, the food is simply divine.

Your note the following day is a compliment to the chef, with a cheeky inquiry as to what deities one must pray to in order to make food like that. His response is a swift rebuttal asking what cruel gods bless some with the skills to cook but others with the skills to bake, ironically echoing your own thoughts from the previous week.

So goes the back and forth for weeks, notes getting cuter, sassier, and more personal as jokes, challenges, and encouragements alike are enclosed among the lunches of two excited little girls, their own bond strengthening with this unique camaraderie between their parents, until you feel the peculiar sense that you know the man on the other end, without ever even having actually met him.

Then, one day, three weeks into the first exchange, you receive a note that makes your heart beat in your throat at the unspoken challenge which raises the stakes of the now familiar routine. It's a simple response to your unassuming request for the onigiri recipes you initially received as the first returned delight, a meal you and Reina have been craving since the first taste.

I can do one better and teach you. xxx-xxx-xxxx. - Osamu

There's no reason to be shy or hesitant, is there? After all, it's a kind offer that will only serve you and Reina well with your future attempts at her lunches. You can't count on Miya Osamu's kindness forever.

Fingers still shaking, you dial the number enclosed within and find the call picked up before the first ring even finishes.

"I wasn't sure ya'd actually call."

Oh, wow, that's a voice to melt hearts alright. You're still smiling as you immediately reply in beat, with the easy familiarity of your shared repartee over the last few weeks, "With an offer like that, how could I not?"

He's quiet for a second and you start to lose your smile, suddenly worrying that perhaps you've acted too familiarly with a man that's all but a stranger and offended him. But his next words, slowly expelled in a lazy but thoughtful drawl, have your heart beating fast for an entirely different reason, "I had a feeling ya'd sound as pretty as ya write."

Now you're the one that's silent but it's entirely because you're at a loss for words, this quietly charming man having stolen them right from the tip of your tongue.

A low chuckle breaks what you realized was actually somehow still a remarkably comfortable silence and then his delicious voice reaches you again, "I hope I didn't scare ya voice away. It'd be a shame now that I've only just heard it."

Okay so he's maybe much more of a flirt than the subtle hints you'd noticed over the notes, but then again, they were delivered through your daughters as messengers so it would be reasonable he would have toned it down. Then again, what kind of man flirts with a woman he's never met previously? He doesn't even know what you look like. Have you captured his interest solely through your mutual correspondence?

You almost snort, catching your thoughts and feeling like you're the main character to some historical romance. Maybe during a world war era. Mutual correspondence. Right. What are you even thinking? He's got you flustered already.

"Funny. I would never have imagined you would sound so pretty from the way you write." You're tempted to arch an eyebrow with your audible smirk but then you remember that it's not like he can see it.

"Ya think my voice is pretty, do ya?" His tone is full with soft satisfaction, "Maybe ya can tell me if it's better in person."

"And here I thought the offer on the table was for learning a delicious recipe."

You swear you hear the smile in his response, "Sounds like yer in either way."

"Sounds like I am." You concede in mock resignation but you're painfully aware that your words and following sigh sound more like a promise.

You and Reina find the charming storefront quite easily from Samu's instructions. It's finally the weekend, several days since your first call with him, and your handwritten notes have now upgraded into convenient, daily text messages.

He's definitely confident and teasing but not quite the overt flirt you briefly considered he might be from a few days ago. In fact, he's more calm and grounded, even if he can be a smooth talker, but you've quickly found that what came across as flirtatious was actually just him being honestly direct. Which is both exciting and flattering enough to make you nervous for this first real meeting today.

A soft chime sounds as you open the door to usher Reina through before following her in yourself. The first thing your eyes land on is a small girl running to your daughter like a heat seeking missile and the two collide in an adorably sweet hug, somehow understanding each other while seemingly talking simultaneously.

With a small smile on your face, you take a moment to survey your surroundings and find your bearings in this unfamiliar space. It's not an overly large area, focusing more on a cozy, comfortable atmosphere emphasized by the deliciously welcoming smell of various foods that make you feel right at home.

Your eyes run over the bar with stools lined against it before you do a double take, finally noticing the dark haired man that's leaning with his arms crossed against a door frame beyond it, watching as you examined his space.

He must be able to tell he's slightly startled you as an amused smile stretches his lips and he dips his head ever so slightly in greeting. "Welcome to Onigiri Miya."

"Thank you for inviting us, Miya-san." You bite your lip at your automatic formality, already certain what he's going to say next.

And he doesn't disappoint, eyebrow arching as he uncrosses his arms and, finally, steadily makes his way towards you, "I already told ya to call me Osamu. Or Samu."

Now you're smiling again because the situation is definitely out of the ordinary, the level of familiarity you feel with a man you're seeing for the first time can only be considered unusual. You take a moment to study him as he stops just before you, tall build with broad shoulders and a handsome face that looks like it belongs on a heartbreaker not a homemaker.

Your fingers itch to push back the locks of his hair peeking out from under his dark cap and falling over on side of his forehead, if only to have an excuse to run your hands through it. But that's definitely not appropriate no matter how comfortable you might already feel with this easygoing man.

"Right... Osamu, then. And of course, you can call me Y/n."

"Yer name and looks suit ya, just like yer voice and handwriting." He's got a small smile on his own face now and you're not sure if he's aware he basically just called you pretty. He doesn't really seem to do this on purpose, from what you've gathered.

You beam at him regardless and volley back, "Well, I can say the same for you too."

And for a brief second, that small smile splits into a quick grin that stutters the already erratic beat of your heart. Oh yes, this man is certifiably lethal in all the best ways.

"I'm happy to hear it. Now, let's sit ya down with the girls while I grab some things."

Izumi has already led Reina to a table by the window and Osamu gestures their way as he moves to lock the door behind where you came in and then moves off to the kitchen behind the bar again.

You notice with a little apprehension that the girls are sitting next to each other on one side of the booth still giddily talking together (although not over each other anymore) about friends and weekend plans and such, but you're not going to be the anxious oddball that separates them for seemingly no reason. Even if you're already sure of the overthinking you'll be doing at the thought of Samu sitting next to you in the booth.

He doesn't seem to think about it at all as he easily slides in, smoothly setting a plate and a tray with cups, glasses and a couple pitchers on the table just as you feel the left side of his body line up against your right. Okay, yeah, because this is totally normal for you. Not.

You hope neither he and especially not either of the kids can tell you're flustered, even as you feel the heat creep up your neck and flirt with your cheeks. Yup, normal day, normal day. Just a regular day with a new friend.

"Here ya go." You just hold yourself back from jumping when he hands you a cup from the tray and then leans over to pour what looks and smells like tea from one of the pitchers. If you're not going crazy, he's pressed even more against you for those long seconds, completely in your space even if it's not unwelcome.

He either knows exactly what he's doing or he's just one of those people that's never paid mind to polite social norms and rules of conduct that many prefer. While you're calming yourself down, he's already poured the girls juice from the second pitcher into their glasses and set out quarter plates in front of everyone.

You finally focus enough to take in the still steaming gyoza on the plate he'd placed down in the middle with confusion and ask, "I thought we would be making onigiri and eating it for lunch?"

"Of course, but I couldn't put ya to work on an empty stomach."

"Mhm." You give him a dubious look, you might have mentioned your early breakfast in one of your texts to him this morning, but you have a feeling that this is also an effort to make you and Reina feel comfortable in this space together instead of getting right into the cooking lessons planned for the day.

It's an incredibly thoughtful effort and that warm flush is threatening you again so you choose to tease him and deflect instead, "Somehow, I feel it's more about your empty stomach but okay, let's go with your version instead."

You lose the fight with the flush and flutters when he chuckles at your sassy retort, especially since you literally feel the vibrations melt from his body and into yours with the way he's still somewhat pressed into you. Does the man not have enough space in his own booth? Actually... you notice you can move closer to the window yourself since there's quite a bit of space on your side too but, then again, it would be a little obvious to shift now.

The girls pick up the fried dumplings by hand with happy exclamations as they bite right into theirs, you and Osamu following suit but not before placing another two on the plates in front of each of them and then splitting the remaining ones between you.

With a dip into the soy and vinegar sauce (chili excluded for the girls), you quickly bite into the first one and savour the sudden burst of flavour in your mouth. Oh wow, yes, this is exactly what your cooking is missing. This addictive, tasteful quality that makes you want multiple helpings of whatever's being served.

With a glance from the corner of your eye to the right, you meet Osamu's eyes studying your reaction and decide to ask the question on your mind, "You made these yourself right?"

"I did."

"Okay, they're hands down the best gyoza I've ever had." You compliment him genuinely before giving in to the urge to  tease him yet again because the flutters are back, if they ever even left, and you can't have him knowing just how much he affects you, "But who ever heard of serving gyoza in an onigiri shop?"

He must catch the light, teasing tone because he just smirks and throws right back, "Well if they're as good as ya say, maybe I should expand the menu."

"Oh no, don't do that!" You laugh with wide eyes, "Then Reina and I will never find space when we try to come back here during regular hours! Actually, I'm sure you're already always packed, hm?"

"Some days and times less than others, but there will always be space for the two of ya whenever ya want to visit again."

Oh yeah, it's a losing battle, the flutters are a full on tsunami of feelings now. Just push it away and chill. But then he adds, "And I can teach ya this recipe too. Anytime there's something ya like or want to try, just let me know. I'm sure we can make an amazing cook outta ya yet."

Your mouth drops open followed by your blurted question, "Why are you helping me so much? I'm sure this is a lot of time and effort for you too."

You hear the girls' conversation pause as they pick up on some subtle change in either your body language or demeanour, but Osamu's calm eyes just meet your wide ones, his lips sliding into a soft smile, as he simply answers, "Because I like ya."

You feel like you're back in grade school because you want to ask if he means that he 'like' likes you or just... likes you. But there's no way you're going to ask that question, not only because it feels a bit asinine but because that's not a conversation to start in front of both of your daughters.

You look over to the girls who are watching with beaming smiles, maybe happy their parents are good friends just like the two of them, and you return their wide grins with a reassuring one of your own before looking back into steady grey eyes. "Well, I really appreciate your help. Thank you, Osamu."

"I'd say no thanks needed, but I've been down that road before." Another quick, heart-stopping grin graces his face, this one almost as roguish as his tone is playful. He's definitely referring to your initial correspondence when you made a firm point against his initial brush off, as if his actions in making extra lunch for your daughter to enjoy wasn't incredibly thoughtful and certainly out of his way.

"Well you certainly catch on quick. Let's just hope I can say the same." Your playful smile turns into a grimace at the thought of how difficult it might be to actually improve your skills. Maybe it's just a question of talent? Maybe you're just never going to be able to reproduce food like him.

But he glances over to catch your frown just in time and reassures, "I know what I'm doing. Soon enough, you will too. Just say you'll keep supplying me and Zumi with yer baking every once in a while when ya don't need us anymore."

You know he's probably joking with the last part but you hadn't planned on stopping. You love to share the goodies you bake with the people in your and Reina's life, it makes the two of you pretty happy so you're sure Izumi and Osamu will be able continue enjoying your baked goods to their heart's content.

"Izumi will definitely get her share of sweets and snacks every day." You send a smile her way when she hears you and bounces excitedly in her seat but then you force yourself to drop it and face Osamu with a challenging look instead, "But you... well, I guess we'll have to wait and if you're as good as you say and maybe then you can get some too."

He places a closed hand to his chest as if he's been struck, the girls laughing at his overdramatic reaction, but his widening smile gives him away. You look at each other for a suspended moment, with shared amusement but also the teasing heat of something else reflected in his achromatic eyes, which makes you certain he picked up on the unintended double entendre in your words.

"Sounds like a promise." Then with an arched eyebrow at the empty plates and cups in front of everyone, Samu asks, "So shall we get started?"

You agree, helping him clean up the table and he takes the opportunity to help you and Reina familiarize yourselves with the kitchen. The rest of the afternoon is spent in an equally easy cadence as he does indeed walk you through the steps of making his recipes, flavours included.

He starts with the simplest option, yaki onigiri, which is just fried rice shaped in a triangle or oval, and then demonstrates how to make and add a few of your and Reina's favourite fillings in to change and enhance the flavour. The girls enjoy making their own mini rice balls alongside the two of you and the time flies until you're all back at the table and having the onigiri you've just made for lunch.

You can't deny there's an improvement already but your little rice balls are still nowhere near the level of skill and flavour of Osamu's, even though he and the girls all assure you that you've done a great job. You accept their compliments with a smile and the determination to keep at it on your own time until you improve even further because Reina deserves better than even this.

By the time you finish eating, the girls are unsurprisingly tired out and choose to stay at the table to watch a Disney movie with Izumi's iPad. You can't help but smile in amusement while watching Osamu grab the thing from behind the bar, tapping away on the clunky looking device which is perfect for Izumi with a thick, pink rubber cover protecting it from grade-schooler level damage.

After the movie's been set up for the two worn out little munchkins, you and Osamu head back into the kitchen for him to show you how to make the gyoza and the next hour slips away with more teasing jokes, increasingly heated looks, and slightly bolder touches.

You can close your eyes and now know the feel of Osamu's hands on yours, demonstrating how to properly fold and pleat the wrappers. You can still feel the heat of his chest brush your back from when he leaned around you to pick up an empty bowl to place in the sink, and you're pondering on what feels like a heated brand on your hip where he lightly curved one hand to shift you over.

You can't deny your attraction to the man, a slow fall that you should have seen coming from the excitement of receiving his words every day until you were eagerly expecting the notes, to this first meeting where he's everything you expected from reading between his lines and even more.

Since the girls are pretty much full, you and Osamu clean off the new batch of gyoza between the both of you - him more than you, which you tease him about again. All the while, you're panicking about this new realization of your feelings, given that you're seriously crushing on a man who might only mean to help as a newfound friend and maybe you're the one reading too much into his interactions.

It's not until you've helped him clean up, collected the girls, and are watching him lock up the shop that you get some semblance of an answer.

"Thank you again Osamu. This was not only very instructive but Reina and I had a great time today."

He's holding Izumi's small hand in his, similar to Reina's in yours, and his other hand stretches up to rub at the back of his head, his arm bent at the elbow. When he speaks, it's not a direct response to your gratitude but a question instead, sounding somewhat unsure himself for the first time today, "How about next time we have a date that's more fun than instructive?"

Your jaw almost drops in surprise but you quickly collect yourself because he's still looking a little worried, maybe because he thinks he's overstepping by calling this a date or maybe because he's not sure you'll want another one even if you do accept that.

Your smile is quick to light up your face and, with a light squeeze from Reina's hand to yours accompanied by her and Izumi's giggles, you happily reply, "Just let me know when and where, and it's a date."

He grins again, the third time today your heart stops at what you're sure is usually a rarer sight since bodies aren't always dropping to the ground around him (that you've heard of). "I think I might already have something in mind."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah, but let me look into it and get back to ya."

"Sounds like a promise."

With your final reply, a borrowed echo of his words to serve as a temporary goodbye, you and Reina split away from Izumi and Osamu. Heading for your car with once last look behind you, you're pleasantly unsurprised to find a flash of gunmetal grey also glancing back your way. Later that night, finished with your and Reina's joint skincare routine and having tucked her into bed, you find the expected message waiting for you.

A/N: Okay wow I had SO much fun with this one! I hope you all do too <3 It's not triple edited per usual so please do let me know if you catch any errors or issues. No promises but probably dropping Atsumu’s First Meeting next ;)

Taglist: @yatoatyourservice, @crayonwriting

© 2021 fayeimara. All rights reserved. Please do not repost, modify, or claim as yours.

[izzyinarchive]

discussing the final season of carmen sandiego

*spoilers* umm....so yeah, i finished watching carmen sandiego, and i’m left in a state of perpetual sadness and despair. i feel like the ending of the show wrapped up wayyy too fast, and kind of left off on a bit of an unsatisfactory note for some of the characters. although i love the large and diverse cast of carmen sandiego, one of the drawbacks of having all those characters and arcs and storylines makes it harder to cram in a satisfying conclusion for everyone in a twenty-minute episode. so here’s what i would do if there was more time. 

let’s start off with the threads that i think were tied off pretty well: 

julia & chase devineaux: i wasn’t really a shipper of julia and devineaux but i actually really enjoyed their relationship throughout season 4. we see a lot of character growth from devineaux in the way that he interacts with julia and the world. julia pushes devineaux to become a better person, to see things with a broader perspective and from other people’s points of view. and he does really change a lot into an understanding person instead of the overconfident, arrogant detective we first saw him as in season 1. in addition, he also grows to respect julia as a person and partner, and it’s completely adorable how he looks at her while zari tells julia that they’ll follow her lead. also i love how he keeps wearing his lucky cat jacket from san francisco in season 4.  

el topo & le chevre: okay, i was pretty much shipping these two the minute they showed up on the screen together. you can tell how much they care about each other throughout the series. whenever one of them gets hurt, you can really see how they prioritize each other over whatever thing vile is planning. when things are good, they’re so sweet and they have so much fun together. and they take dumb cute selfies. they’re so, so adorable, and this season definitely brings the shipping fodder. and they end the season moving on from vile and running a food truck together. the only thing i’m mad about is that we definitely needed more screen time from them. 

shadowsan: i didn’t like shadowsan in season 1 but over the course of the series he really went through a lot of major character development and i love how he’s now basically a grumpy dad figure to carmen. the season ends with him finally reuniting for good with his brother in japan, and it’s a satisfying conclusion for his arc. i also love how he was the one to help carmen in the finale when she’s struggling with the brainwashing thing. which is way better than the brainwashing being resolved by some bs like true love’s kiss. (also carmen and gray are way too hurt and they’re super not ready for a relationship.)  carmen sandiego is a show that emphasizes the importance of family with this father-daughter duo, and i think that’s something really valuable. also i’m interpreting that shadowsan isn’t permanently moving to japan, but rather just visiting his brother. he’s still definitely going to be there for carmen going forward when she needs him. 

player & carmen’s friendship: i love this show for having a male/female friendship with absolutely no romantic feelings going on. it’s a solid friendship, and depicts a wholesome, supportive relationship. absolutely no qualms here.

and here’s all the stuff that needs expanding/fixing: 

tigress: i actually really love tigress as a character, and i personally think that there should have been more of her in the series. i would have liked to see more depth and motivation to her, since she has a lot of character potential. i don’t really know how i would rewrite tigress’s arc, because it’s virtually nonexistent and there’s not too much to go off of. i don’t think she needs a redemption arc, but i would give her more of a spotlight. (also low key fictional-crushing on her.) i would like to include sort of a tigress-centric episode, which can also generally be more expansion on the inner workings of vile.

cleo & saira: villain couple. villain couple. they need to be a villain couple, enough said. i would rewrite season 4 to have include an emotional downbeat moment in which saira struggles with being able to fit in with society and humans and being completely awkward at it while cleo, in all her regal and ettiquite-esque manners, tries to help. this wouldn’t really help with the main plot, but it would be humanizing and provide character depth. i feel like this could be the b-plot in the tigress episode somehow. 

coach brunt: you don’t betray family. at this point, coach brunt has lost the daughter she raised, who, in her mind, has basically backstabbed her entirely. coach brunt was also betrayed by shadowsan and left for the police to find, and in season 4, malestrom basically abandons her to drown. and it’s highly likely that somewhere in her backstory she’s been betrayed many times, likely by her own blood family, which would provide context for why she’s such a loyal person to vile, who she thinks of as her found family. in rewriting season four, i’m adding one extra episode that’s solely on the backstory of coach brunt. in this episode, we would explore brunt’s upbringing and the first time she is betrayed by someone she considers family. in my opinion, coach brunt was likely pushed to fall by another influence, but she also makes the conscious choice to choose revenge over moving on. potentially, we could also explore brunt’s budding friendship with the mechanic, who we never see again after that one episode, as well as a reflection upon this from her adult self. 

gray & the freaking mind control thing & his moral struggles: *sighs* i can see what the show is going for, but i really just don’t see it in the execution. the way that gray struggles with morality is like it’s an on and off switch. he’s either graham, basic civilian, or crackle, basically evil. in that one episode, he flip flops between being overly heroic, even taking out time from his day to specifically track down a random kid to return his wallet instead of just dropping it off at the police station or leaving it where he found it. and then the flip side is like he’s just robotically relapsing into stealing mode, where he just suddenly has to impluse to steal literally anything. i feel like this flip flop wasn’t really a good portrayal of his struggle and didn’t really demonstrate many active choices made by him. and the way that he’s just like “i’m actually just evil” when he confronts carmen at the lab is just super one-dimensional. i just don’t buy it that he flips to vile so quickly in the span of a few episodes. i feel like there should have been more active reflecting and the decision should have been dragged out longer. 

also it’s revealed in the finale that gray also changed his crackle rod to not go beyond a stun, and i think this was a nice touch, because it demonstrates his aversion to murder, which calls back to the first caper, in which he’s confronted with killing the archeologist at the excavation site. but he doesn’t end up having to make that choice, because carmen stops him. but this time, it’s his own choice to take that step away from vile ideals. i don’t think gray is ever going to be a “hero” of the traditional sense or have a complete redemption arc, because it just doesn’t fit him. to be honest, i don’t know what the future will hold for gray, but i definitely think of he will fall somewhere along the lines of red x (teen titans) or catwoman’s (in certain comic runs) gray morality. (and i think the way gray returns to vile kind of screws this up.) he’s still going to steal stuff sometimes probably, but he’s not going to straight up murder people. he would probably be the type to work for himself alone mostly, but be okay teaming up with the good guys sometimes. definitely no joining evil organizations tho. 

gray & carmen & the “i know you’re in there somewhere fight:” i definitely ship these two, but i think they’ve got a long way to go before they’re really ready to admit their feelings for each other. i’m happy that the “i know you’re in there somewhere fight” didn’t culminate in a kiss scene being the thing that snapped carmen out of the trance. because that is just so cliche and not the message of the show. instead, it’s shadowsan who does. and that makes sense going along with the themes of family. i think the issue with this i dislike how there is no more elaboration after carmen supposedly kills gray. this is her best friend. i would imagine that the reaction would be greater, since he was also her friend and teammate during the months they were both working under vile. and then when carmen’s brainwashing wears off, she agonizes that she killed her best friend. but that’s it. the “i know you’re in there somewhere fight” is the last screen appearance of both of them together. then it’s directly cutting to taking down vile. there should have been a hospital scene where carmen rides with him in the ambulance and talks to him as he’s unconscious, and leaves behind a note for him to read when he’s awake. 

i just really think there should be a “heart to heart” scene somewhere in this finale where they confront their feelings (not romantic stuff, but more about like shared trauma at the hands of vile and their broken apart friendship). this could happen at that sydney cafe. both times carmen and gray go on a “date” she leaves him sitting there alone, bewlildered. i think the finale should include a scene of them leaving the cafe together and then walking away and waving to each other. this shows development in their relationship, and that they are now closer, but it also visually shows that they still have differences as they walk away with a sort of two toned kind of environment angle that shows the different paths they have chosen. (and carmen calls him gray. and he doesn’t correct her.) it’s more of a see you later, than a goodbye though. we’re also getting rid of that part of when gray says he doesn’t want to complicate carmen’s life in the hospital scene. instead, he’s going to ask for a sheet of paper on which he will write an indiscernible letter to carmen. (the same letter will be seen in at the carmen brand outerwear hq a few scenes later for continuity, but unopened at the time, as if carmen’s not yet ready to read it. i feel like both of them need to heal a bit on their own before they’re ready to reconnect. gray knows he has hurt carmen in the past but he also knows it will hurt her if he disappears without a trace, so he’s leaving her with the choice if she wants to see him again instead of making the choice for her.)

ivy & zach & found family: carmen leaves a note behind for ivy and zach and leaves to find her mother. i feel like this did not handle team red’s found family very well. basically, the whole show is setting up this importance of family, especially found family not blood family kind of narrative. vile blood runs in carmen’s veins but she chooses to do good and find her own family. ivy and zach both choose carmen, their found family, over their racing career. i think that they should have stuck together, and when carmen goes to find her mom, they would have been totally onboard dropping her off at the airport and saying a “see you soon” or actually driving her to carlotta valdez’s house in lydia (the car). i just don’t think that splitting them up via a note is really a satisfying conclusion to the whole found family aspect. and in that time skip carmen really should have stopped by to say hi to the zach and ivy and the acme squad instead of maintaining the air of mystery. that would have definitely pushed the family feel, instead of the mysterious loner archetype. 

that time skip thing: yeah, no. this part was completely not needed and unhelpful. instead, we’re going to have carmen hug her mother at the airport, and go to visit all of her friends and found family, especially shadowsan in japan and ivy and zach in presumably boston. and the time skip will be a few onths not two effing years. i think it’s natural for them to grow apart a bit and pursue their own personal goals in life after vile’s gone, but they’ll definitely be staying in touch and reconnecting and seeing each other pretty often. and lastly of all, carmen will meet gray at the cafe in sydney.

basically, this is how i would redo the episodes for season 4. 

episode 1: the beijing bullion caper. (this episode remains as is for the most part, i would like more expansion on lady doksu and shadowsan's past since it seems like their pasts are more tied together than is revealed)

episode 2: the big bad ivy caper. (this episode remains as is for the most part.)

episode 3: the robo caper. (the scenes in which carmen first meets the robot and ivy runs it over with a truck can stay the same. where we start to deviate is with gray’s story with a revised, more complex, and in depth view of his moral struggles. instead of being unaware largely as gray flops between graham/crackle, he’s going to be a lot more aware. he’s still going to rob the house, but instead it’s because he feels hopeless that since he was previously a criminal, that’s all he’s ever going to be. gray doesn’t want to be a civilian, and feels like the only thing that he can do instead is be a part of vile. however, when he sees carmen again, he’s going to realize that if she got out of vile, then that means he has a chance to get out of it too. gray comes to a crossroads of deciding between carmen and vile, good and evil. 

episode 4: this will be the episode that concentrates on tigress, with a cleo/saira b-plot. most of this episode will take place within vile, and give more insights on the workings of the organization. 

episode 5: the himalayan rescue caper. (this episode is going to get a real makeover. with the insertion of episode 4, this creates more actual space between the last time we see gray grappling with his big choices, which makes it feel like more time has passed. so it actually feels like he had more time to think. carmen’s still going to try to rescue gray, and the part with player can stay the same. as gray is manipulated by malestrom, i think this episode should further emphasize how vile manipulates their recruits and amp up the shittiness of how malestrom is acting. i think malestrom should say something along the lines indicating that vile is gray’s only family left, this is what he was born to do, he belongs with them, and make up a bunch of bullshit lies about carmen. malestrom will portray this stuff as the “truth” and then say something like “we told you to the full truth, while carmen was hiding your past from you. didn’t you say you wanted to piece together more of your past?” (which gray did express interest in a previous episode.) since more time has passed, malestrom will play the “if carmen wanted to rescue you, she would have done so already. she abandoned you.” card. of course, it’s not easy to get into a super advanced vile facility, so instead carmen’s going to be having more struggles with getting in, which is the real reason she’s taking a while.) i want to keep the scene where he says that his name is crackle, not gray and not graham. i think this scene is particularly painful because graham/crackle is kind representative of the two sides of good and evil that gray thinks he has to choose between. gray will accuse carmen of abandoning him, both in the present but demonstrating that he’s still hurt by the time when she first left vile, and all those times when she kept secrets from him and disappearing in sydney. carmen asks him to leave with her, but instead of him being like “i’m bad, and i was always a villain,” he’s just going to be hurt and feel manipulated and be so conflicted. i feel like gray would choose vile, but not because it’s where he belongs but because he’s afraid of being brainwashed again if he doesn’t agree and because he just wants to know the truth, which vile happened to tell him first (and carmen had been hiding it from him for a while). why would it make sense for gray to willingly side with vile because he’s “throughly bad?” actions speak louder than words, and it’s clear that he’s definitely not evil enough for vile. 

episode 6: the vile history caper. (we’re just going to keep this episode as is for the most part. but like more el topo and le chevre moments.) 

episode 7: this will be the coach brunt backstory episode, piggybacking off of her hurt feelings about maelstrom’s intended betrayal. 

episode 8: the egyptian decryption caper. (this one is just going to be as is for the most part. the cleaners kidnap carmen, but we’re going insert one more painstaking scene of gray learning of vile’s plan to kidnap carmen. he’s not going to know they are planning to brainwash her. he’s going to feel conflicted and try to protest, but then realizes that now that he’s stuck with vile, if he goes against them he’s probably going to get brainwashed himself. and the brainwashing was really traumatizing, so it’s understandable he’s really afraid of it happening to him again.)

episode 9: the viennese waltz caper. (mostly just keeping this episode as is, but more worrying gray scenes. i feel like he should have had a bigger reaction to seeing carmen so unlike her personality. carmen’s lack of empathy should have pushed himself to question if vile is really a healthy place for anyone if they’re so willing to brainwash his best friend in a greater capacity. i think gray should recognize how bad the situation is but he still won’t act upon it since he’s trapped in the nostalgia of their old squad and since he’s been abandoned by carmen before, he’s too afraid that reversing the brainwashing will result in a repeat of her leaving him again. and he’s still afraid of the brainwashing.) 

episode 10 + 11 + 12. the dark red caper. (yeah, this episode is kind of just way too quickly wrapped up. i’m going to expand this into a three parter so we have more time to focus on everyone. basically, we’re going to expand this for the angst. and because this is the last season and i need more content. i feel like we can follow the general plot trajectory but with more nuance and include the improvements i wrote above about the finale. absolutely pushing the found family trope to its limits, and less vagueness since there’s not going to be another season. oh yeah, and the scene when carmen fights shadowsan, i feel like they could have amped up the emotional stuff and make it as much as about him being her dad figure as the doll because #foundfamily. and also the extra time gives more space for all of that other stuff like endings for all the characters, and more team red found family, and a bit about the non-jailed vile operatives, and the acme team, and also maybe a little infrastructure rebuilding montage, and also that carmen and gray moment.)  

basically i just want a satisfying ending for gray, and i love him, and he can’t just stare out of the hospital bedroom and agree to stay out of her life while melancholy music plays. 

[kaypeace21]

Will’s fear of clowns

*Ps -not mine. this is a submission from an anon. tw: for s.a. It’s an interesting submission. ANON-please make a tumblr account already . I’m begging you XD

Hi! It’s me, Lonnie Meth Anon. Back with more depressing thoughts about Lonnie!

I just read your post on Jonathan’s ab*se at the hands of Lonnie, and I second it all. It breaks my heart. But it also got me thinking deeper about Will’s fear of clowns. I think you’re right that part of the horror for Will is that the clown attacks in bed. The bed is, obviously, like you say, a common site for s*xual assault. (Doesn’t El’s picture of “three legged Brenner” also have a bed in it? In a picture with not much else?) The fact that Will needed Joyce to sleep with him for a week suggests he was specifically feeling unsafe in bed, or at night. 

But maybe it’s not just the location of the attack in Poltergeist that Will found so harrowing. Maybe it’s the combination of that location with the fact of a clown being the attacker. 

I think Lonnie might have dressed up as a clown for Will’s birthday one year, and something happened. 

In this instance, I don’t think Joyce would know what happened. I think the incident in her mind would be something like “Lonnie dressed up and Will was scared of the costume”. She might even have thought it was cute. Just a typical little kid fear of something mundane. When she teases him about Poltergeist, she doesn’t actually say the movie was the START of his fear of clowns. Just that he was afraid of that particular clown. The general fear of clowns could have been an older one, going back to when Will was even younger.

Maybe Will even liked clowns, before whatever happened with Lonnie turned them into a source of fear for him. Will has a lion plushie (lions are commonly found in the circus) and the circus seems like the kind of vibrant, colorful environment full of outcast, that a young gay kid would really enjoy. If Will did like circuses and Lonnie poisoned that for him, that’s just another reason to hate Lonnie. But it definitely seems possible. 

Lonnie is a deadbeat dad in general, but we’ve seen before that he’s capable of faking the “family man” act in front of Joyce and their neighbors. We’ve also seen that even though he treats Will horribly, he would also try and keep Will on his side with father son bonding activities, like baseball. And Will’s birthday is one of the few occasions Lonnie makes a half-assed kind of effort, even when there’s nothing directly in it for him. He sends that card, even though it’s late. Maybe Joyce made called him up and made him send it, but she always seemed happy to keep Lonnie out of the picture. She didn’t even want to involve him when Will went missing. And we know Jonathan would never try and facilitate more interactions between Lonnie and Will. So it seems like Lonnie did this of his own accord, when he realized he’d missed the day. Kind of weird. And it’s classic abuser behavior, to make contact on an anniversary date, reminding you they exist and you can’t escape them. Reminding you to keep quiet. Or hoping you’ll miss them, remember the “good times” when they made an effort, and let them back into your life. (Ugh.)

So, anyway, back to my theory. Young Will likes circuses, and the Byers family are poor, so they can’t afford to take him to one, or throw him a party at an ice cream parlor or a bowling alley, like other kids. It makes sense that they would have a party at home instead, and that the family themselves might dress up. We know Joyce made Will’s Ghostbusters costume in season two, and a clown is a pretty easy costume. Most of it is just make up. It’s possible the whole thing was Joyce’s idea, and she made the costume, and Lonnie just went along with it to look like a good dad in her eyes. 

Remember how we see Bob (Will’s new father figure) dressing up in costume for Halloween? Joyce loves it. This is a thing good dads do, to have fun with their kids. That’s also the same episode we see Will scared by a guy in a clown costume, and Jonathan is hyper-protective of him that night. School is okay, but he doesn’t want him trick or treating. (Like he knows that school is a safe environment, but in other contexts, costumes and parties might be a trigger for Will.) Jonathan is convinced to leave Will and “let him have fun” and what happens? The clown attacks. Later that night Jonathan goes to a costume party himself, where he finds Nancy upset and takes her safely home.  Maybe this is how Will’s birthday party ended - with Jonathan finding Will upset, and trying to comfort him. The whole night could be playing out like a parallel to that birthday party, from Jonathan’s perspective. 

What actually happened with Will and Lonnie is up for debate. It’s possible there was a s*xual assault, and that’s why the clown scene in Poltergeist was such a trigger for Will. Or maybe Lonnie thought circuses weren’t “manly” enough for his son to like, and actively tried to scare Will, so he wouldn’t like them anymore. It’s hard to know. Something would have happened though, and probably something pretty formative, because the fear of clowns lasts a long time. 

Something else interesting is that when Mr Clarke is talking about the Upside Down in season one, he uses the metaphor of the flea and the acrobat. Acrobats are a main act in the circus, and, well … fleas. Flea circuses. That’s a thing. Maybe it’s a hint that the trauma that created the Upside Down was circus / clown - related?

Kali, El, and their gang wear clown masks too, when they’re going to confront their childhood trauma, and the child-like Alexei is surrounded by clowns when he is killed at the fair. 

Clowns are just so associated with birthday parties and little kids, that it doesn’t seem like a coincidence to me they’re Will’s biggest fear. Especially as the show keeps dropping hints about Lonnie and Will’s birthday. It feels like there’s more to the story. I have a horrible feeling SOMETHING happened. 

RESPONE (kaypeace):

I think it’s very possible-that maybe he did dress as a clown for Will’s birthday and something happened. We have alexi (paralleled to Will) playing carnival games with kids. Then he's attacked by the Lonnie-look alike : and alexi looks at his wound then stares at all the clowns laughing around him. Joyce and Murray find Alexi bleeding/dy*ng next to a clown statue. As joyce looks in horror and Murray says to her, he was “only gone for a second” (which sounds like something you’d say in relation to a kid you were supposed to watch-running off ). We also had sarah at age 7 die while wearing a gown with clowns on it (Will: it was a 7 the demogorgan it got me). Death of innocence symbolism? Hopper also describes his depression as a cave- he goes through the carnival ride where it mentions a "cave of horrors", which had decor of a tiger and a clown painting. So yeah... whatever happened probably isn't good. So- there may be some symbolism there in relation to Will’s past. Not only because (like I and you have mentioned before) Lonnie is highly associated with birthdays. And canonically we know he mentally scarred jonathan on his b-day. But also, s4’s ‘victor creel’ may be an easteregg to the xmen character victor creed- who had a tradition of tra*matizing family members specifically on their bdays

As another alternative:I could also totally see Lonnie “ruining” circuses for Will because it’s not “manly” to him. Like how Jonathan liked thumper the rabbit-from the film bambi. in the film, Thumper is bambi’s bff, and the hunters are the bad guys who k*ll Bambi’s mother and terrorize all the wildlife. SO yeah- making Jonathan become a hunter, and k*ll a rabbit ,despite this fact, is really messed up. And shows Lonnie has already tried to ‘ruin’ things the boys like. By mentally scarring them in one way or another…

I also mentioned how Will’s bday could even be a trigger for jonathan in a diff post.

if the s4 bts calender hinting it’ll be near Will’s bday and easter it could be relevant to Jonathan.we know in s1 el has tra*matic flashbacks when seeing certain things- coke, closet, cat, etc. And Will in s2 has his ‘anniversary effect’ where memories flood back based on the time of year.But like … Easter has bunnies - could seeing rabbits jog stuff up for Jonathan? El seeing a cat made her have a flashback of brenner trying to make her kill a cat. Would Jonathan seeing like Easter bunny decor jog up a flashback of lonnie making him kill a rabbit? (It happened on his bday too). So Will’s b day being around easter would only fuel that memory. (heck even popped balloons may trigger gunshot symbolism idk). And then for Will there is clowns that could be a tr*gger at a party.

The flea and the acrobat analogy (in relation to Will and circuses is very interesting) and could be foreshadowing- it’s even a title for an episode so I feel like it’s narratively an important hint to …something. similar to a s1 ep being called “the bathtub”.  Also, Will was compared to a circus flea- which were placed in an enclosed space, where heat was applied as they jumped  and tried to escape the increasing temperatures as they burned .Which could relate to my theory about Will having a se*zure due his body overheating due to Lonnie injecting him with m*th.

 If Will’s bday is in s4- I feel like Lonnie will come back in some capacity (flashback or literally). The ‘sorry, I forgot you b day’ card from Lonnie in s2, in Lonnie’s shed Joyce mentioning Will’s b day, the rainbow ‘happy birthday cup’ placed next to Will at Mike’s -while Will explains the supernatural, Lonnie already tra*matizing Jonathan on his bday, etc…

[familyofpaladins]

*puts idea of lmk x bnha crossover into your brain :)*

(Just imagine the kids interacting aaaaa <3<3<3)

@berryblu-arts thank you for this ask, it brightened my mood and also apparently I have more thoughts on this than I realized lol

Sutsjgdkgxfjsutd HONESTLY I WAS SORTA THINKING ABOUT THIS THE OTHER DAY

When I drive to work I listen to music and theres certain songs that I have amv ideas for (which will never happen because I dont have the skills/tools to make them😔) for mha, and not that I've got lmk brainrot , I'm going "oh this song works for lmk too" 👀

Specifically like, Izuku and MK are very similar. Regular Kid given extraordinary power by a person who they've looked up to and admired for years. Then being trained by said person, who as best as they try, not necessarily the best teacher (not that they dont care or arent trying. Just . Miss some points on teaching their protege). The Dad and Son type relationship between them.

So like, if Izuku and MK met, they'd start talking about their experience and be like !!!!! SAME!!! *spiderman meme*

Also, Izuku has his notebooks and MK has his biography of Monkey King, and they'd share those and point out how well drawn things are and how detailed everything is. Itd be very cute .

I think MK and Denki would also get a long well. Like they'd both have that excitable-enegry-with-no-focus thing, and I think they'd like playing video games together.

Tang and Izuku would start to share interests and knowledge and it's just an hour of intense mumbling as they share all the information in their brains.

Izuku, MK, and Tang are the ultimate fanboy group.

Ppffffff Red Son and bakugo would get on like a house fire hdjshdskals. They'd immediately fight each other after they both call each other "peasant/extra!". Everyone else is gettign along fine, but these two are just starting fires and exploding stuff in the background ("How DARE you call Me an Extra! Do you know who I am?!" "Why would I know some random extra loser!!! And I'm no PEASANT! IM THE MURDER EXPLOSION GOD-" )

Now Red Son and Aoyama, now THEY would get along I think. Idk why, they just do.

Mei would be best friends with Mina, they have the same energy and they would be absolutely unstoppable. Imagine them going to the mall and/or arcade. Someone separate them now before they take over the world.

Actually I think Mei would get along great with all the girls. Mei and Tsu like each others blunt honesty. Uraraka and Mei would also be very good friends, cheerful and bubbly, but with that hidden murderous determination. They get into a friendly sparing match. Kirishima would also join in.

If mineta tried anything with mei she would absolutely yeet him across the room with no remorse. But possibly before anything would happen, she'd give him the Dragon Death Glare and he'd be terrified to approach

Momo would have a lovely tea session with Sandy, and they talk for like. 3 hours straight just about tea. Sandy also provides some good advice for her about anxiety and stress and self worth.

Todoroki spends most of the day in Sandy's house petting all of the cats. But I think he would also listen to any stories that Tang tells. (Todoroki after listening to Tang tell stories about Monkey King and MK: .... is MK monkey king's secret love child?") He and Red Son might also have a heart to heart about meeting angry fathers' expectations, and how they're trying to be better. Also Fire Powers (TM)

Sandy also tries some anger management with Bakugo. It is about 30% successful.

Pigsy and Bakugo actually get a long great (theres a lot of yelling, but that's just how they communicate to each other), because they have about the same temperament and bond over cooking (and kicking the others out of the kitchen when they start to be disasters). Satou also gets to stay in the kitchen and helps make noodles and actually teachers a dessert recipe to Pigsy.

All the kids just talk a lot about what powers each of them have. And quirks vs being a demon/descended from dragons/random kid given a punch of powers from ancient being. "So you have dragon powers but can you turn INTO a dragon?" "If you can make extra hands can you also make extra feet??" "What's the heaviest thing you can lift?" Are you actually turning into flames or just transporting with flames???" "Who Has The Hottest Flaaaames!!!" "Holy crap MK has a lot of powers" "kinda like Midoriya" "wait I thought you guys said everyone only has one quirk" "... uuuuuhh its complicated???"

Aizawa walks in and is just like... goddammit not more over powered teenagers. But then also adopts them. Aizawa's quirk doesn't work on MK and co (because their powers arent quirks), but his Glare does get them to stop whatever they doing, so its basically the same.

(Funny bonus: when I first watched the show, when macaque's big shadow form thing was first shown, my first thought was "Giant Evil Monster Aizawa")

[azenkii]

 ATLA Fic Rec 

because I've been spending way too much time reading it. Btw, this is a rec for gen fics and zukka fics.

Note: an asterisk after the description means that the fic or series is incomplete. (Sadly, this is a lot of them, but I'm pretty sure most of these fics are still currently updating.)

GEN:

Anything by MuffinLance is a must-read. my personal favourites are Salvage (where Hakoda ends up with one (1) grumpy new prisoner/crewmate/adopted son) and Little Zuko v the World (where Zuko is 12, and it's adorable).

The Family You Choose by TunaFishChris is a god-tier platonic soulmate au about zuko and the gaang, so like...go read that right now

The kintsugi series by discordiansamba is an AU where Toph's parents hire Zuko-as-Lee to be a bodyguard for her, and I love it so much. It has some of the best Toph-and-Zuko sibling bonding I've ever seen. *

Dragon Moon by Satirrian is a Dragon! Zuko AU and it's incredible. It also features Bounty Hunter Zuko, so do with that what you will. *

The What We're Given series by Haicrescendo is *chef's kiss*. It's an AU where Zuko flipped his father off early on into his banishment and started living his best life with Iroh. Enter the Gaang. Shenanigans ensue. *

The Internment series by Hannahmayski is another Zuko breaks free from his dad early AU, and it's also really good. Basically, Zuko was never given the option to capture the Avatar, making his banishment indefinite. He sails around with his crew fighting the Fire Nation and it's great. *

The best way to solve your problems (is to help someone else) by hewwodarkness is an AU where kids start disappearing in Ba Sing Se during Book 2, and Zuko takes it upon himself to do a little vigilantism. It's fantastic. *

The Blue Spirit AU series by H_Faith_Marr is an AU starting from, surprise surprise, the Blue Spirit episode. The Gaang takes in Zuko without knowing who he is, and the Power of Friendship™ goes to work on Zuko. *

The the first rule of earth kingdom fight club... series by ohmygodwhy is an AU where Zuko, among other things, fights in underground cage matches, meets Toph early, and realises that his dad might be wrong. It’s pretty funny and really good. *

The The Non-Existent Twin series by FoiblePNoteworthy is hilarious. It's an AU where Zuko poses as his own twin, Li, and the Gaang buys it hook line and sinker. *

The Guilt (The Jet Adopts Zuko AU) series by FoiblePNoteworthy is also really good. Like the title says, it’s a Zuko joins the Freedom Fighters AU. *

The new ways series by blueseam is just a Zuko and the Gaang bonding fic, mostly set in the Western Air Temple, with a side of Zuko not taking care of himself and the Gaang stepping up to the job. If you’re like me and am an absolute sucker for Zuko and the Gaang, go read this.

The Family Matters series by WinterSky101 is a really good fic if you’re looking for Hakoda and Zuko. That’s all I have to say: Hakoda and Zuko.

a nation, held by snowdarkred is a GREAT Fire Nation & Zuko fic - set before and during canon, not after it. Go read it, right now.

Notable mentions: a lot of works by naggeluide are gen and pretty funny, though if you don't headcanon any of the characters as LGBT+ you might not like some of them.

ZUKKA:

anything by Haicrescendo and dickpuncher420. For Haicrescendo, my personal favourite is the Carry On For You series, and for dickpuncher420, it’s love language.

sirens & sleepless nights by Satirrian is a modern AU that just borders on dystopian. Ba Sing Se has been overtaken by the Fire Nation, Zuko is a soldier who broke away from the Fire Nation and got shot for it, and Sokka finds Zuko on the street and brings him inside. It’s amazing, go read it!

do you take this jerk to be (your one and only) by jatersade is a fic that I’m 90% sure is on every zukka fic rec list, and it deserves to be. It’s an arranged marriage AU where Zuko is engaged to Yue, and Sokka is his cultural guide. *

midnight runs and other things by isamagicdragon is a modern AU where Zuko keeps sleepwalking into Sokka’s apartment. Shenanigans ensue. Also, top-tier Zuko, Mai and Ty Lee interactions. *

Unchained Melody by avocadolove is another fic that I see a lot on rec lists, and it 100% deserves it. It’s a long fic (as of now, it’s at 63.8k) and is an AU where Sokka, after getting taken to the Spirit World by Heibai, ends up as a ghost that only Zuko can see. Ft. great enemies-to-friends-to-lovers and an incredible plot. *

Ozymandias, King of Kings by Think_of_a_Wonderful_Thought is SO good. It’s an AU where, instead of being banished, Zuko was sent to work in a coal mine/prison, which eventually becomes the target of a Water Tribe raid after Aang’s return. It can get pretty dark, so watch out for that, and it’s really long (as of now, 168.8k). But trust me, it’s worth it. *

Heart Beat Here by thefangirlingdead is an adorable Modern AU oneshot where Zuko, while shopping for engagement rings with Katara, freaks out when Sokka lies about where he is. It’s a happy ending, don’t worry. One of my favourite fics.

feels like we only go backwards by oldpotatoe and A Certain Slant of Light by JustGettingBy are both amnesia fics where Sokka loses his memory several years after the war. They’re both so, so good. A Certain Slant of Light is finished, but feels like we only go backwards is not.

reality strikes, so bring back the night by zukkababey is a time-travel oneshot where Western-Air-Temple Sokka wakes up in the future to find his older self married to one (1) Fire Lord Zuko. Fluffy and funny. 

maybe i just see you (in everything) by epicbubbles is a really cute Modern AU oneshot with love confessions and just fluff all around. 10/10 go read it!!

it’s the illusion of separation by argentoswan is a fic that has legendary status and it absolutely deserves it. God-tier Modern AU where Sokka ends up working at the Jasmine Dragon alongside his former high school bully, Zuko. (Kind of) enemies-to-friends-to-lovers, and it’s just...SO good. *

say you like your shirt soggy by crosspin is a reallyyy nice 5+1 fic. It’s Modern AU, and it’s pretty short (3.7k), but the amount of yearning that gets packed into that 3.7k,,,,*chef’s kiss*

and they were roommates by flydunes is another Modern AU where sokka puts up an ad for a roommate. Zuko moves in, and Sokka gets a crush. It’s just good vibes all around :) *

like blood from a stone by catalinacat is a Soulmate AU that took a completely different direction with the soulmate trope. The summary does a better job of explaining it than I can. *

absence of heat, excess of destiny by theycallmesuperboy is one of the best soulmate AUs out there. it’s not too long, only 4.3k words, but it covers the entire series and then some. Seriously, go read this.

it isn’t strange, but it’s true by theholyterror is a 5+1 post-canon fic with some of the best pining I’ve ever seen, ft. Ambassador Sokka and Fire Lord Zuko. The 5+1 is times Zuko went out of his way to touch Sokka.  *

like the sun inside of you by ofherlionheart is another post-canon fic, and it’s incredible so far. the first chapter alone is 23k, so it’s already a decently long read. *

the stemverse: earth science zuko au series by acezukos is a REALLY good Modern/University AU. So far, it only has one work (earth system history) but that work is already *chef’s kiss*. The series is incomplete, but earth system history is complete!

rebellion’s such a hushed affair by zeitgeistofnow is a fantastic Modern AU that, like sirens & sleepless nights, borders on dystopian. Actually, I think it is dystopian, but it hasn’t been tagged as such. Anyway, 10/10, go read it right now immediately

Mark Time by foil is a Modern AU where Sokka ghosted Zuko years ago, and they get brought back together by Aang and Katara’s wedding. It’s really good, but the fic has some pretty heavy content, so make sure you read the warnings. *

That birds would sing and think it were not night by HisMomoness is a Modern AU that has Zuko tutoring Sokka, with absolute top-tier pining. Like, seriously, the pining is insane. Superr good

this love burns so yellow (becoming orange and in its time, exploding) by meliebee is one of the best post-canon fics I’ve ever read. It features a civil war in the Fire Nation (that gets resolved about halfway through) and some great Toph and Zuko interactions, as well as some Grade A pining. 

boy problems by burnt_oranges is FANTASTIC post-canon and has sokka and zuko in an accidental arranged marriage, plus some attempted assassinations. It’s great.

zuko vs the homie sexual agenda by parmigiano has Zuko and Sokka pining for each other in Ikea. Do I need to say more?

Friendship Bracelets by peachcitt is a Modern AU best friends to lovers. Pretty short (4.9k), but the pining is immaculate.

isn’t this the vision that you wanted by nebulastucky is INCREDIBLE, I read it recently because it just got completed and it’s *chef’s kiss*. It’s post-canon ft. mutual pining and some reallyyy good ‘and there was only one bed’ scenes.

Real Slow and no one knows anything but us by surveycorpsjean and quidhitch respectively are two of my favourite post-canon Ambassador Sokka and Fire Lord Zuko fics. Go check them out!

The Duke’s a Hazard by naggeluide is a really nice AU starting from the Western Air Temple, where the Duke decides that Sokka and Zuko are now his new parents. They bond over coparenting, and the (kind of) enemies-to-friends-to-lovers is really good. Plus, it’s funny.

Those Who Favor Fire by CSHfic and VSfic is a really good fic of the Spymaster Sokka AU. If you don’t know what that is, it’s an AU where Sokka fakes his death and goes undercover in an organisation that wants to kill Zuko.

Fics I added after posting (so far, all Zukka):

The Road Between Action and Inaction by Donvex is a fic that I can't believe I left out the first time?? It's a modern hitchhiking AU and it's great.

Rituals of the Ocean Floor by Donvex is a nice one too. It's only around 2.2k words, but it's a Fox Spirit!Zuko and Sharkman!Sokka AU, and I just really like the writing style.

by the stars above, i knew we were in love by theycallmesuperboy and The Fate of Nations in Our Hands by sapphic_ambitions are both top-tier post-canon fics. Be warned: by the stars above is a liiiittle bit angsty.

blue's clues by parmigiano is a really good Modern AU where Sokka, a university student journalist, gets ahold of the phone number of the Blue Spirit, a new campus vigilante. He ends up talking to the Blue Spirit to get an interview out of him, and it's really cute!

Honourable mention: the Avatar Zuko series by the_cloud_whisperer is one of the best series I've ever read, and it's really long - it got completed about a month ago, with 493.6k words in total (415k if you ignore the extra work made up of author's notes). It develops all the characters really well, especially Lu Ten, but the main ship is Zukaang. Personally, my biggest problem with Zukaang is the age difference, and Aang is aged up to be Zuko's age (or older, I think? I don't really remember) in this. I kept reading it because the plot was too good to give up, and I do highly recommend it, but yeah.

I’ll add more fics if I remember them, but this is what I had bookmarked. Also, shameless self plug here because I also write ATLA fic @ azenki on ao3

[fallencrowkarma]

First day of B day was amazing, my English 4 class was amazing, I wasn't afraid to interact with them for our "get to know you bingo" because none of them knew me so I knew they didn't instantly hate me like at my other school.

On the bingo was "someone who knows at least 2 languages" we had 2, technically 3 kids. I say technically 3 cuz everyone counted me as speaking more than 1 language since I'm currently learning 6. I'm not fluent or even proficient but I'm still learning- one of which... is Swedish...

It gets better.

There's a kid in my class who's from Sweden... and speaks Swedish as a first language (he also speaks French fluently, his mom is from France and dad is I think from Russia, he grew up in Sweden), and his English is really good.

Well when I got to talk to him and he puts his name on my bingo paper he starts talking to me like "So you're learning Swedish?" Because when I introduced myself (that was one of our activities), I included me learning 6 languages, listing them being Japanese, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Swedish, and Icelandic.

I was like "yeah but I can only say 1 sentence and it's about my cat-" so he asks me to say it- I was nervous cuz.. talking to a native speaker while just learning the language is nerve wracking but he seemed proud of me and I did it right!

He was also telling us about Sweden and its history, I asked if it was true it's one of the safest countries for the LGBT and he confirmed that, also confirmed that certain parts of the year it's still day light when it's supposed to be dark- I had so many questions I feel like I was overwhelming him or something

He also confirmed that Swedes are kinda shy so you heard it here folks- lmao-

Anyways- 2nd day of school down, 1st day of my second set of classes, and it was amazing! 1 teacher doesn't care if you're a few minutes late and only makes you get a tardy slip if you're 30 minutes late cuz the school is gigantic and stuff

So yeah, how's your day been lmao-

It's Always nice to have a fresh start in school.

I cant Imagine learning so many languages at once, i can't even stay focused enough to learn one lmaooo But It's cute that the swedish Kid was so encouraging!!

It being day light When It's supposed to be dark reminds me of Here as Well. In the height of Summer it can be light Out Til Like 9-10 PM and in Winter it gets Dark between 4:30-5 pm lmaoo

I'm glad to hear school is nice so far. I Hope it stays that way!

My days been a mess lmao Family stuff ykyk. But It's Not my First rodeo with that so i'll be fine dhdhfbf i'm also counting down the days til Christmas cuz my best friend will visit for 3 Weeks! Shes coming all the way from Trinidad and im excited!

[mageofseven]

What about the brothers reaction to MC wanting a baby? Like, how they would respond to it, feel about it, deal with all the intricacies that comes with a planned pregnancy and think when they see their children for the first time?

Okay, so I've obviously written about the Brothers becoming parents before, but it was always more of an accident.

Planned pregnancy though? Coming right up!

Oh! And I kept the pronouns gender neutral for this, but since it involves pregnancy, MC is afab, I guess the term is? Not fully sure.

Also, unlike my main series for this, there are no complications for these pregnancies so the brothers don't have to worry about MC as much.

~

Lucifer:

Honestly...the anxiety this man feels is hard for even him to hide.

He loves MC; his Heart is everything to him and the only one that he's ever felt he could lean on emotionally. They are there for him when he'd usually have no one and because of that, he doesn't want to deny them anything as long as he can help it.

However...parenthood is a daunting thing to him. He is already a father, regardless of whether he or Satan acknowledges it, and with the direction his relationship with his son has gone, he honestly feels like a failure as a father

So to have another child to risk hurting in the same way he has with Satan? The man doesn't feel okay with the risk.

It takes a lot of comfort from MC to get him to agree to it

And from then on, he prepares.

To start with, he takes some time off of work and RAD for them both.

It's not just for the baby-making activity, though of course they do plenty of that while his brothers are at school.

It's also time for the two of them to just be together and enjoy themselves. He takes them out for lunch, watches any movie they wish, cuddles with them on the couch or bed, even dances with MC in the music room to one of his safer records.

This free time is not just to start the path of parenthood for them; it's a romantic time to enjoy themselves and express their love for each other more openly and freely without worry of his brothers interupting or Luce needing to get back to work.

When they offically discover that MC was pregnant, the anxiety crept back up in him, but his Love's excitement and smiles were enough to push it back.

Despite always having a heavy work load, the oldest made it a priority to have the nursery done very early on and stocking up certain things like diapers, clothes, and toys.

His anxiety pushed him to make sure everything was perfect, but MC had to pull him aside a few times because Luce, they are only three months along, chill dude, you have time.

With time and more reassurance from MC, his anxiety really did fall, though didn't completely disappear and hovered over her as much as his work allowed.

When MC went into labor, he had everything under control. He called the doctor and kept calm as he watched over his Love.

When he held his daughter for the first time...it was as if everything shifted inside of him. He was less worried about failing her and more concerned with making sure he doesn't.

He vowed to make sure Ksenia always feels safe, valued, and loved.

Mammon:

Um...have you seen his bank account, MC?

Y'all are nowhere ready for children, financially speaking.

In truth, Mammon does want kids; he's a very family oriented demon, even if his family doesn't see him that way.

But damn, he really has to get his shit together in order to be a good dad.

After hearing this Human beg for it though, how could the second brother say no?

Before they actually start the whole baby-making process though, the man has a debt to deal with now that he can no longer justify staving it off.

He managed to pay off a huge chunk of it by stealing from the demon lord's castle but after getting punished by Lucifer and facing a disappointed MC, he decided to pay off the rest and start saving up in a more honest way.

Honestly, it wasn't his preferred way of making his Grimm, but MC went on and on about morals and what they'd be teaching their child if they found out their dad was selling other people's shit so they could have him or her, and a lot of other guilt-tripping that the Avatar of Greed gave into. Man, they haven't even made the freaking kid yet and he already has to get his act together...

Debt gone and a decent start to his savings later, the fun part actually begins--making the kid! The demon couldn't help but gloat to his brothers about much he was getting laid, which was embarrassing to MC but hey, it's cute seeing the human's cheeks all red so no drawbacks for the Greed demon.

Once discovering MC is pregnant...well, Mammon is one of the brothers who hovers over his human, though he denies it the whole pregnancy.

When his Human went into labor, it was the kind of thing where the man pretended to be calm, but was obviously freaking out and eventually he fainted.

He woke up though and just in time for his Human to push out their daughter.

Cassia...just one look at his little girl and he knew that all of his hard work before and the self-improvement he's been trying to do...he knew it was all worth it.

Leviathan:

Boy choked on his chips when MC asked him for a baby.

Like what did he just hear???

His Henry wants a baby--with him of all people??

Yeah, I mean, he is their boyfriend, but still, the Avatar of Envy felt like this must be bad judgement on the human's part.

I mean, he's a dirty otaku. The demon doesn't even understand why they'd date him, but wanting a kid with him?

There's also the fact that...well, what it means to be an otaku. Having a kid doesn't exactly fit in with his shut-in lifestyle.

Basically, it left him feeling as if he doesn't deserve to have a kid with his Henry and that he wouldn't be good as a dad anyway; being a shut-in otaku is all he knows at this point and since being dad kinda requires you to, ya know, not be that and putting your kid first, he really has no faith in himself.

But MC did and honestly, that meant a lot to the Envy demon.

Things weren't decided in that moment. Knowing that their boyfriend was overwhelmed, the human simply asked him to give it some thought and told him that they'll love him regardless.

The man let it sit with him for a couple weeks and everytime he saw a kid in an anime or saw a commercial for some kind of toy, the otaku wondered 'what if'. What would it really be like to be a dad?

It was anime that finally made him cave. Seeing families and parents interacting with their children in them, it really did tempt the man. He recognized that it was fiction and being a parent wouldn't be exactly like that, but still; it made him wanna try.

Seeing MC's face light up when he told them he'd do it honestly made the man feel good about himself.

When MC becomes pregnant, he doesn't necessarily hover; he doesn't feel the need to always be around them or limit what they can do. He's simply more touchy-feely, surprisingly enough. Not in any inappropriate way; just more hugs, hand holding, cuddles. He just insists on more closeness than before, which MC has no complaints about.

When MC went into labor, he was a bit panicky, but pulled through. Unlike Mammon, he never fainted and was able to give support to his Henry through the process.

Holding his son just felt...surreal. Like, how the hell did this happen??? I mean yeah, he knows how, but still, it's just unbelievable. He has a son. He's a dad.

Levi honestly never thought his life would be brought to this point, but looking down at Kai, he was glad it was. In that moment, he was anxiously optimistic about their future.

Satan:

....

Yeah, MC, sweetheart, this man doesn't particularly like kids...

It's not necessarily a hard 'no' though.

After all, Satan doesn't like saying no to his sweet Kitten if he can help it.

The two spend a while discussing it, going over all the prep work they'd need to do, the finances of the situation (like, both in regards to their own finances and literally showing them statistics of how much Grimm demon parents have to spend on average for their children from birth to adulthood), and about how their life will change if they take this step. About the sacrifices they'll have to make and the new responsibilities. After all, the couple won't be able to just focus on each other anymore; their routines will have to change, their be energy put towards caring for the child. Their whole lives will have to revolve around them.

The human accepted all of it though and was ready for the change.

So the blonde agreed, despite his own feelings on the matter, feelings he never thought to speak up about before and after hearing MC's request, doesn't want to.

The couple didn't really set time aside with baby-making in mind and try to rush things. They simply slept with each whenever they just happened to be in the mood for it, like always, but stopped using the runes on they commonly put on MC for birth control.

Essentially, they just went through their days as normal and just let things happen at their own pace.

When MC became pregnant, the Wrath demon had to admit, their excitment was contagious. Seeing them happy...it really felt good to the blonde, despite his own feelings on it all.

Satan wasn't the type to hover, not really. He looked after them, giving little reminders of what they can and cannot eat in this condition as well as when they needed to take certain vitamins, but otherwise, things continued on as usual between the two.

Though his feelings about becoming a parent never completely changed during the pregnancy, seeing his Kitten's belly grow and them look forward to this child more and more as time went on, it did give him the feeling that he made the right choice

And when he felt his child kick inside MC for the first time, the realness of it all really put a crack in his mentality.

Their baby...this was a being who sparked such joy in his Kitten and that was enough for the Avatar of Wrath to start to love his child, though he didn't recognize that fact at the time.

When MC went into labor, he kept them calm and comfortable. Walked with them when they wanted to walk, which he read was good for helping labor along, and gave encouragement whenever his Kitten needed it.

When his daughter was born and he watched his Kitten hold her close, crying happy tears, the man couldn't even describe what he was feeling within himself.

When MC asked if he wanted to hold their daughter, Satan declined. Not out of rejection for Amelie but...was it really safe for him to hold a being so delicate?

"Satan..."

With his Kitten insisting with such a cute, sad face though, how could he not?

Extra carefully, he took his daughter into his arms, causing the small baby to whine and reach up her little hands at him.

This. This was the moment that he realized that despite his original bias that he really did love his daughter.

Amelie was a gift that he never knew he wanted; knew he needed. Thanks to MC though, she's here and with two parents that her more than anything in the three realms.

Asmodeus:

Asmo is a brother that I can honestly see things happening either way: with MC bringing up the idea to him or Azzy bringing the idea up to them.

Asmo loves babies--at least, I see him as someone whose mostly good with them and likes the idea of them. He can't handle things like diaper changes or anything gross like that, but he finds them adorable.

And what would be even cuter than a baby? His baby. I mean, how can you carry genetics from this man and not be gorgeous?

Luckily, MC agrees. The two don't stop to talk about anything practical with the subject. They want a baby so Azzy has the two of them start making them right then and there (well, after Lucifer scolds Asmo for trying to do so on the living room couch and the couple retreats to his room).

The first of the brothers to be genuinely excited when MC ends up pregnant and not be overshadowed by anxiety.

Very touchy-feely during his Dolly's pregnancy, more than usual. Especially once MC starts to develop their cute little belly.

Lots of kisses and talking to their belly, even long before the baby has developed enough to hear him.

This man just has too much love for his child and can't contain it all till they're born.

When MC goes into labor, he's not too anxious, but he feels bad that his Dolly has to through such pain.

Very good at comforting the human during this time. Gives lots of kisses and encouraging words, telling them how well they're doing and how their baby just can't wait to meet them.

Cries when he first holds his son. Sees Liam as the most perfect and sweet being to exist, only tied with himself and MC.

Beelzebub:

Let's face it; Beel was the one who brought the topic up. This family man got baby fever and immediately ran to Muffin for help with it.

Like, I can literally see him rushing into the kitchen while they're on cooking duty and MC smiling and asking if he'd like to taste test, only for him to blurt out that he wants a baby, as if it was something as simple a cookie or a new shirt.

After MC gets over the shock of such a request, they sit down with Beel and actually discuss such a big step.

Regardless of whether MC had thought about it before this moment, how could they say no to this big sweet man who has an endless amount of love to give?

After agreeing, MC has to coax the man away because he gets a little too excited and wants to start right then, but the human still has to finish dinner.

After dinner though! Baby making time!

Becomes insanely happy when his Muffin ends up pregnant. This man literally couldn't stop smiling his cute freaking smile even if he wanted to.

Doesn't really hover over them while they're pregnant; there's honestly little to no anxiety in this man over his child or worry about the pregnancy.

He does, however, do practically everything for them. Let him carry that bag. It's fine. They don't need to be carrying something so heavy. Tired? It's okay, go rest; he'll cook dinner instead. Feet hurt? He'll carry them home so they don't need to walk anymore.

Just a reminder that this is all done out of love though and not anxiety. He's not worried about anything going wrong; he just loves his Muffin so much and is so grateful that they're willing to have his baby.

Finding out that MC was carrying twins just made him even happier. MC had no chance of breaking free of his bear hug (which of course, he was very careful not to squeeze their belly so it was more a side hug).

Spent a lot of time during the pregnancy snuggling up to MC's belly. Anytime the two of them laid down together, he did it. Whether on the couch as they watched a movie together, or in bed together at the end of their day or as he laid with the human as they took a nap. He'd nuzzle their belly and speak soft, sweet words to their babies.

The only time this man shows any negativity about this pregnancy is when his Muffin goes into labor. As it progressed, part of him felt guilty since they were in this pain because of him. He loved their twins and wanted them to be born, but hated that MC had to cry and scream and writhe in pain to make it happen.

When it was finally over and his girls were in the world, being fed by his Muffin, this man couldn't stop watching them. His daughters. Daughters. Devil, they were so perfect to him.

And that was the day where he felt his life could never get any better. His Muffin had just perfected his life with their loving heart and hardwork and the man honestly couldn't be happier. Arsenia and Anais are exactly what he's been missing in his life and his love for them is immeasurable.

Belphegor:

MC...sweetie...this man doesn't like kids at all 😔

After having to deal with Satan as a kid, he has long decided that he doesn't wanna deal with them anymore.

So when MC brings it up to him and asks their boyfriend for a baby, he honestly will not be able to understand why they'd want one.

Yeah, Belphie loves MC, but this would still be a very hard 'no' from him.

Honestly, the only way MC would be able to get a baby from him would be by reminding him of the Incident™️, of him murdering them, and essentially being like 'a life for a life'.

Belphie holds a lot of guilt within him for killing them and whether he realizes it or not, a part of him has been desperately searching for a way to atone so he doesn't have to feel bad about it anymore.

So if this is the way to do it... he guesses that he has no choice.

It's honestly sad. MC really wants him to want a baby too, but can only hope his feelings will change down the line.

When MC becomes pregnant, he understands even less about why they'd want this. Each day, he hears his human in the bathroom, dealing with their morning sickness, and wonders why they want a baby so bad even when they're making them puke their guts out every morning.

Still, he takes care of them. Belphie is a lot of things, but an asshole isn't one of them. He wasn't just gonna knock them up and let MC suffer through it alone. Even if they wanted this, it doesn't change the fact that they're still his Human and that little gremlin making them puke was his kid so he's gotta take care of them.

Doesn't sleep as much as he used to while MC is pregnant. Tries his hardest to stay awake and help them out when needed.

Mostly only naps when they nap and as MC gets farther along, they need plenty of naps.

Finding out MC was pregnant with twins...devil, the man felt like he had the worst luck. He groaned and with it, he hurt his Human's feelings on accident.

He wasn't trying to ruin this for them. He wanted MC to be happy, really he did; all he could think about when he heard the news was how much extra work it was gonna be though. I mean, one baby already demands a lot of time and energy to take care of, but two? Ugh...

Kinda hovered over them during the pregnancy. He just wanted to make them as comfortable as he could, despite the fact that he still for the life of him couldn't understand why they'd choose this for themself. Puking, back pain, exhaustion, weird ass cravings. How was this worth it to the human?

He wanted to understand, but he couldn't and since he couldn't, all he could do was accept it and try to lighten it all for them, if he can.

When his kids kicked for the first time, MC's eyes lit up before they quickly stopped and grabbed their boyfriend's hand.

"Belphie! They kicked! They--" He watched the light drain from their eyes as they deflated. "Oh...sorry, I forgot for a second..."

God, this was the last thing he wanted. The seventh brother put so much effort into trying to make them happy, but they still think he cares so little about something that made them happy, just because it's about their kids?

"Show me."

MC raised an eyebrow.

"Are your sure?"

Belphie sighed.

"Just let me feel it, Butthead."

The human brought his hand to their belly, watching him closely. When he felt a kick, the man's eyes widened.

He didn't really say or do anything at first.

"Belphie?"

He took his hand off their belly, but never let MC's hand leave his. He squeezed it.

"You don't have to avoid things like that with me, Dummy. I'm glad they're healthy enough to do that."

And that was the truth. Belphie was glad his kids seemed to be doing fine. I mean, they're strong enough that he can feel their kicks so that must be a good sign

And most importantly, he wanted his Human to share with him the moments that make them happy because that's the point of all of this; to make them happy.

Devil, was this man anxious when they went into labor. Not that he let MC see that, of course. Like he tends to do with a lot of his emotions, he bottles them up and just focuses on helping his Human.

When his children were born and he watched MC hold them so close, so lovingly...he honestly didn't know what he was feeling, not fully.

All he knew for sure was that these three were depending on him and always would.

It took him a year or two, but he did end up bonding with his kids. Judas and Lilith...being their dad was different than he thought it would be. It wasn't always easy, especially with how much Lilith misbehaves at times, but these are his kids and they love him without limit. The Sloth demon had to admit, such love was just contagious.

The four of them were actually happy. This wasn't just some obligation he had to fulfill anymore; this was a life he enjoyed living and he honestly couldn't remember the last time he could say that before his twins.

[smallcrystals]

what are your favourite character/story tropes?

oh god, here we go

classic friends to lovers bc there is SO MUCH you can do with that, especially if you know your characters really well

enemies (to friends) to lovers when done right. i've read a few fair share of stuff where imo the relationship between the characters don't leave much room for any type of love to grow or that what they argue over doesn't seem to fit their character properly. but when it's done right, oh my GOD it's so GRRRR /pos

lovers to exes to best friends is also a favourite of mine which i don't think ppl tend to delve into that much. it's probably because people like writing ships they actually ship. while that is true for me, i also like writing relationships that don't work out. maybe i'm mean idk lmao (BUT THEYRE BFFS IN THE END COME ON)

friendship group of misfits, i love me a good group of friends that are just weird. in case you haven’t noticed, they're weird. they're weirdos. they don’t “fit in” and they don’t want to fit in. have you ever seen them without— (/c)

corrupted hero, especially if the villains are queer <3 i love a backwards arc and seeing a character completely lose their sense of morality. i don't like seeing it irl of course but when you can see a character change so horribly (probably bc their "good" life fucks them up so badly they are really left with no good choice) it's sometimes satisfying

mentor & mentee, i've always wanted a grown up to look up to and i have a couple(?) in my life right now that i appreciate a lot. but i love this trope when they both learn something from each other, mainly bc of their possible age/generational difference

morally grey characters, they're just so interesting??? seeing how their past and their environment impacts them as a person and what exactly led to the manner in which they make a certain decision is sometimes so heartbreaking and realistic, you know?

mutual pining/seemingly unrequited love, my friend jinx reminded me of this i can't believe i forgot, i will lay down my life for this, i will go down with this trope ITS SO GOOD

(queer) coming of age/queer awakening, i'm such a sucker for these 😭 they're so nice to read !!!! those moments of euphoria when the character is able to do what they've always wanted for themselves – can u tell i'm an empath lmao

(proper) miscommunication, because it's rarely ever done properly where the issue is an actual issue but no one is in the wrong/multiple ppl are in the wrong. all i can rlly say is write teens like teens. and i don't mean "write them like kids" or "write them like adults" i mean write them as if they are growing people, people who don't fully understand their emotions yet but know that not every situation has one person to blame. but that's a rant for another day lmao

popular kid x bookworm/(popular) nerd, everyone must know how insane i am for this one, it's so trashy yet 1) i've experienced it myself irl and 2) if done right without all the toxicity it can be a really cute read!! if people actually develop the characters properly and make them unique then maybe people would actually like it more idk (looking at you wattpad grrr)

royalty, specifically royals of colour. enough western white royals please. show me a kingdom with issues the place the kingdom inspired by has, show me culture and artistry. show me any religions and everything involved, the nuances and the exceptions, show me all of that

extroverted & introverted, with it's twists ! give me the twists and the complex characters !!!

introverted & introverted, because THEYRE SO CUTE PLEASE :((

cold exterior warm interior father, this is literally blaze sentry. LITERALLY my oc for flash's dad. he's a ceo and an architect who's been through a lot in the past but your opinion of him rlly changes when you see him interacting with his family, he's warm and loving and refers to his younger ones as "baby" :(

magical high school, because i'm me <333 this is such a guilty pleasure because i love learning about the world and the magic system. but i also wanna see more from it (mainly teens acting/being treated like teens but again i digress)

fixing relationships between siblings, this is probably bc of my relationship w my own brother but seeing issues between siblings (typically those of colour too) is nice to see finally. to have it developed and talked out and improved

so those are the ones i can think of at the moment!! there are so many i'm so sorry lol

honorary mentions!!!!

childhood friends to lovers, it's not smth i will write often but reading it? GIMME IT NOW. it's so warm and cute and just seeing them grow up :((( im AAAAAA

this might be an asian thing, but if the little age gap between the main character and their friend/partner (like a few months) and the older one likes taking care of the younger one, i love that <3 AND I ALSO LOVE IT when the younger one finally is like let me take care of you now >:(

crime aus, links in w corrupted hero ish, but you know, be gay do crimes !!! these idiots are always so smart and skilled and i always read this knowing i wouldn't be able to do half the shit they do

entire family is good looking, absolute classic, but make them all poc next time :)

futuristic/android aus, this is more of a recent enjoyment but there's so much you could do here !!! whether it be angst, friendship, romantic feelings, idk it's so cool!!!