#but do you know where it DOES win? COMMENTS! i feel like it attracts way more in depth detailed comments than anything else i've written

[quaranmine]

Maybe the people read all ur other fics while waiting for the next fire watch update? /gen

oh, that's for sure a better way of looking at it (even if i have no way to confirm.) i think people just don't leave kudos as readily on unfinished works, since you can't retract a kudos and people like to wait to the end to see if the liked it (personally i never cared about withholding kudos to the end but i understand the mindset)

TO BE CLEAR. i am not trying to be whiney or in need of comfort about this it's more just an observation lol

[rumisgf]

— ATTRACTIVE THINGS HE SAYS/DOES

includes: katsuki bakugou, denki kaminari, shoto todoroki

warnings: college!au, black reader obv, suggestive, she/her pronouns used once

KATSUKI BAKUGOU

you can try to get pouty or sassy with him if you want to, but it is not a game you will win. one thing he likes is checking yo ass (cs he knows you secretly get a kick out of it).

“fix that attitude ‘fore i fix it for you.”

and he does not let you smart mouth him at all. he’s the sassy one, not you babes.

“what’chu say?”

you start trynna cuss at him or give him more attitude? he’ll deadass look to the left, to the right, behind him, then look back at you and be like “oh, you talkin’ to me?”

“ay, watch yo mouth.”

possessive in not a toxic way but still obvious

he cares a lot about your grades and he’ll memorize your classes so if you decide to skip a day or two, he’s texting you making sure you at least did your work

and like y’all are still in highschool, he’ll deadass take your phone if you need to catch up and keep it in his pocket

“uh uh, yer not gettin’ this back until you finish. we clear, baby?”

unconsciously flexes his jaw when he stretches

digs his tongue into his cheek whenever he’s focused and furrows his eyebrows

bakugou manspreading. that’s all.

if he sees someone trying to flirt with you he will deadass laugh in their face

moves you out of the way by grabbing your waist

if he wants you to sit with him he simply pats the spot next to him (or sometimes his lap) and is like “c‘ mere”

if you couldn’t tell, yeah he likes to give orders (☺️)

speaking of orders, knows your food order from every place you like by heart

and is the one who sends your food back if they get your order wrong

“yo, excuse me! yeah send this shit back she didn’t want pickles on her shit.”

he actually talks to older adults very respectfully

as he got older, he matured and his manners towards his professors is definitely one of the things that swept you off your feet

DENKI KAMINARI

he knows damn well when you missed him and loves to be especially affectionate just to have you all shy under his touch and with his words

“hi pretty babyy”

“aww, am i making you nervous?”

“you miss me my princess?”

“you’re real cute, y’know that?”

when you achieve something like learning how to play a game he’s showing you or doing good on an exam he always says things like “see, there you go” “good job, baby ‘m so prouda you”

he’s very attentive to you, he lets you be clingy whenever you want

taps his pencil gently with his fingers or plays with his rings whenever he’s trying to focus hard on something

then when he’s confused he runs his fingers through his hair with furrowed eyebrows and his lips pouted up

always responds with “yes, baby?” whenever you say his name to get his attention

and to make sure he’s not neglecting you all the time when he sits down to play video games he has you either cuddled up in his lap, sitting between his legs on the floor, or laying your head on his lap depending on how he’s sitting

no matter who he’s with always greet you with “hi baby” or “hey babe”, he has absolutely no shame showing affection to you

definitely participate in all those tiktok slideshows where people show off they girlfriends

pulls you into his lap by the waist

<< his morning voice 33

getting to go to the gym with him or at least see him after he goes to the gym is a true blessing bc his messy hair immediately makes him 10x hotter

always hugs you tightly and wraps both arms around your body

and loves hugging you from behind

hypes up every post you make and spams your comments

SHOUTO TODOROKI

when he gets mad it makes you feel all hot, especially because it’s rarely directed at you

his voice. that’s all.

he’s so polite and treats you like the highest human being on earth (as he should)

“are you alright, my love?”

“i’m so sorry my angel, let me make it up to you please.”

“here, i’ll carry that for you love.”

“goodnight my princess, i’ll be dreaming about you.”

he hugs you with his whole body, making sure he can feel every inch of your skin pressed up on his.

and he makes you do it to, pulling you in by your waist flush against his stomach.

makes sure to hold your hand every time he’s walking you somewhere because your safety is a priority to him

always ask before he does things, he hates feeling like he’s making you uncomfortable. “can i kiss you?” “is this okay? “you sure you want to, lovely?”

contrary, to popular belief he’s way too good at eye contact

and then gets confused when you become all flustered even though he’s staring into your eyes as you speak

“what’s wrong? is there something on my face?”

but eventually you admit how nervous it makes you, and he takes note

so now, he especially looks you in your eyes during conversation

“hmm? go ahead sweetheart i’m listenin’.”

whenever he’s studying for an upcoming exam, he leans back more in his seat and when he goes to stretch, his shirt lifts up and reveals his lower stomach

he comes well dressed no matter how bad of a day he’s having or what time he woke up

whenever he walks in a room, trust he got that shit on (because he’s way too rich to be dressed like a fool)

his dorm is always clean: bed’s always made, has a specific shelf for school supplies, etc

him cursing. that's all.

whenever you fall asleep on his chest he holds you tight under his free arm with his hand over your head, just because he wants so bad to protect you

in general tends to be protective

keeps a hand on your waist at events, walks next to the road on the sidewalk and will make sure you dont, puts his hand in front of you if the car stops too hard, all that

© rumisgf

[hard-core-super-star]

caught myself [K.Bishop]

pairing: kate bishop x reader

summary: kate's competitiveness gets in the way of her seeing you for who you truly are.

warnings: technically none?; idiots in love; kate technically does knock R on their ass but no one gets hurt; yelena being an awful wingman; kate's sad puppy dog eyes; me feeling rusty af after writing so many serious essays

wordcount: 1.6k

a/n: me writing something else instead of focusing on the large pile of requests i still haven't gotten to? yeah, it's more likely than you think. i'll try to get into a somewhat normal posting schedule at some point if uni ever stops kicking my butt BUT FOR NOW, enjoy what was supposed to be a valentine's day special. also, don't worry, kissing in the crossfire part two WILL be happening!

* * * * * * *

You’re not sure what’s worse, being the newest member of the Young Avengers or being the member with the most obvious crush possible. It’s like the universe didn’t think you had enough difficulties getting used to life with your new team, it also thought you needed to juggle having the biggest crush on one of your teammates simultaneously.

Because fighting criminals daily isn’t hard enough, right?

You had tried your hardest to keep your massive crush on a certain purple-loving archer a secret but your plan had gone out the window the second Yelena figured out the hidden feelings behind your lingering stares. To say she didn’t understand your fascination with Kate Bishop would be an understatement but at least she tried to help…in her own, weirdly aggressive, way.

Her help mainly included making ridiculous comments at your expense. Comments that went completely over Kate’s head every single time and only led to awkward silences and unanswerable questions.

You thought the Russian was on her way to giving up and letting you handle your love life problems on your own but of course, when has Yelena given up an opportunity to embarrass someone she cares about?

It’s exactly Yelena’s love of embarrassing you that’s forced you into a situation you wouldn’t be able to get out of if you tried: sparring with the purple archer herself.

Training in the same room as Kate is already bad enough, especially considering her habit of wearing gray sweatpants and a tight purple cropped shirt, but having to spar with her? While she looks that good? And she has that stupid smirk on her face because she knows she’s going to win?

Nothing you could do could stop you from looking like a goddamn fool.

And that’s exactly what you look like right now.

It’s not bad enough that you can’t concentrate enough to anticipate her punches, you also don’t even know where to look because all of her is so damn attractive. It’s impressive and annoying all at the same time and it’s unfortunately taking up too much of your brain space right now.

You’re acutely aware of Yelena’s disapproving looks but you’re even more aware of the constant glares Kate throws in between rapid punches. Your brain may not be working well enough for you to spar correctly but if there’s one thing you can do, it’s dodge…which only infuriates the archer.

“Will you quit moving?” She huffs, only barely stopping her lips from forming a frustrated pout.

“What else am I supposed to do? Let you punch me?” You reply.

“That’d be a good start, yeah.”

“Ladies, quit chattering!”

You know Yelena is being annoying on purpose to get on your nerves but that doesn’t stop you from turning to glare at her. Your mouth barely begins to form around the complaints you want to hurl at her when Kate takes her opportunity.

It’s technically cheating, and it’s incredibly advantageous, but she’s not thinking about any of that. All she wants is to win and she doesn’t think twice. She swipes her leg under both of yours, catching you by surprise and instantly sending you crashing down onto the hard ground.

You don’t get a second to react before the back of your head makes contact with the floor. Large black spots fill your vision as Yelena starts throwing out curses at the startled archer. You barely make out the outline of Kate’s worried face before your eyes slip shut and darkness overcomes you.

You don’t know how much time goes by, or how many times Kate gets scolded in increasingly more aggressive Russian, all you know is that when you wake up…you’re not alone.

Your first instinct when your eyes open again is to sit up but a gentle hand pushes you back down before you get too far. “Don’t try to move, you’re gonna get a killer headache. Trust me.”

“Oh, I’m supposed to trust you after you knocked me on my ass?” You huff. It makes you sound more like a kid throwing a tantrum than an angry Avenger but you don’t really care.

“We were sparring, what else was I supposed to do?”

You don't notice the small grin that accompanies her recycled words, too upset and embarrassed about getting your ass handed to you by someone who's too lost in her own world to notice how much you like her.

“What else was I supposed to do?” You mock her. “Did you try not being a jerk?”

“That’s not fair. You’re the one who ignores me all the time but I’m the jerk here?”

Her words don’t catch you as off guard as the look on her face. You’re expecting to see flashes of the arrogant archer most of your teammates claim exists behind the usual warmth Kate so easily radiates. Instead of anger or arrogance, though, you come face to face with the most overdramatic pout you’ve ever seen.

And you suddenly understand why people say there’s a fine line between love and hate. Because it would be easy to think Kate Bishop is the most annoying person in the world if you didn’t also think she’s the most adorable person you’ve ever met…despite the constant ease with which she turns everything into an argument.

“What are you even talking about?”

“You don’t like me! And you don’t even try to hide it!”

All you can do is stare at her and wonder how the world’s greatest archer also happens to be the world’s most oblivious person. “You’re an idiot, Katherine.”

Her eyebrows crinkle in disgust but you’re pretty sure it has more to do with your use of her legal first name than the insult you push her way. “You sound like my mom.”

“You’re not helping your case.”

She opens her mouth to reply in an instant, a half-formed stupid sentence already forming on the tip of her tongue. You’re expecting yet another unnecessary argument to break out. Yet another reason for you to give up on all your attempts to build a bridge of thoughtful actions and sweet words that will lead you to who Kate truly is under the mask she so effortlessly wears around everyone else.

You’ve learned to expect anything from Kate Bishop. Especially the unexpected.

“I know. I’m sorry.” She adds the tiniest smile and most awkward shrug you’ve ever seen to her soft-spoken apology.

“What did you just say?” You ask, wondering if you hit your head hard enough to be imagining this whole interaction.

“You heard me,” she replies but her tone carries more traces of embarrassment than the cockiness you’re used to. “You’re right, I’m an idiot.”

You’re left dumbstruck, waiting for the other shoe to drop. There’s no way the archer can say those words without some sort of snarky comment coming after it. So you wait. Watching her with curious eyes that only fuel the nervousness bubbling underneath her carefree posture.

It’s strange to realize how little you genuinely know about her. Having a crush on her has ironically been the easiest part of everything. Sure, it’s awkward and annoying and ridiculous but believing you understand her is easier than accepting the fact that Kate’s never let you in.

So why would she start now?

“Are you going to say something?” The subtle crack in her voice reveals the truth she’s trying to hide behind her usual smirk.

There are so many things you want to say but you’re still a little lightheaded and the sudden change in her attitude toward you isn’t helping you keep yourself in check. “I like your smile.”

“Oh.”

You could easily dismiss her reaction as indifferent if it weren’t for the pink hue emerging across her cheeks. It’s subtle and warm and…real. Like her. And it suddenly dawns on you that you’ve never seen Kate Bishop flustered before.

Especially not from one of your compliments. It’s different…and you really like it.

“Can I ask you something, Kate?”

She looks away from you for a second, almost as if she’s scared of what you might say. Of the possibilities that lie in your unspoken feelings. “Sure, yeah, go ahead.”

Your mouth begins to form one of the many questions you’ve wanted to ask the archer since you met her but then her eyes find yours again and you get a glimpse into the fear-filled storm inside their depths.

It’s subtle but the armor made from cocky grins and imperfectly timed jokes begins to crack.

Which means there’s no way you’re going to spring such a loaded question on her just yet. As much as you’d love an answer to the one thing that’s been haunting you since you realized your true feelings for her, there’s no way you’d force her when it’s clear it’s been far too long since she’s let herself be vulnerable around someone.

So, you settle for the only thing you need right now: her.

“Can you stay with me?” You do your best to ignore the warmth that spreads along your face as the words slip out of your mouth. “Yelena doesn’t have the best bedside manner.”

A beat of silence goes by before her lips form a genuine smile. “Yeah, I can do that.”

Her eyes nervously flick around the room in search of somewhere to sit. You watch her for a few seconds before putting her out of her anxious misery.

“Kate…” You trail off, doing your best to hold in your laughter as you pat the empty space beside you. “You can sit here, I won’t bite.”

Your words are all it takes for her nervousness to turn back into her usual goofiness. “Really? That’s not what I’ve heard…”

“So you do talk shit about me!”

[totalswag]

Drew x reader: she gets hit on by a guy at some club, she is not interested so she rejects and the guy is a real asshole about it, saying awful things. It brings down her mood so she goes outside for some air. Drew goes out for a smoke and starts up a conversation with her, wanting to make sure she is okay

unexpected comfort — DREW STARKEY

authors note thank you for the request lovie!! i always enjoy seeing you guys send in your requests because it gives me more ideas, appreciate that. i hope you like this 🩷

summary a random guy tries hitting on you after rejecting him multiple times then he says awful things that bring your mood down.

warnings at a bar, drinking, cursing, smoking, rejection, random dude being an asshole.

You and your girlfriends agreed to go out to the bars tonight to drink and have some fun; nothing too serious. It’s been a long week at work for you guys and tonight should be fun.

The bar is packed with people; music is loud and energy is high. Plenty of people on the dance floor and at the bar.

Typically, you guys go to the bar first for drinks then go over to the dance floor where others were dancing and singing to music.

“This feels so great right now being with my girls” your friend Alyssa expressed, throwing her head back while laughing.

“So great!”

The four of you danced to the beat of the music enjoying yourselves in the moment. You shook your glass in your hand realizing you need another drink.

“I’m gonna get a drink at the bar, wait for me?” You tell your girlfriends, pointing to the drink in your hand.

They all nod, “if you need anything yell or call us over” Maria says giving you a thumbs up.

The bar area gives you a clear view where you guys were at on the dance floor. You let a sigh past your lips when you take the last sip of your drink.

As you make your way to the bar to have a drink, a guy approaches you with evident intentions. "Hey, gorgeous, can I buy you a drink?" he offers, flashing what he likely believes is a winning smile.

You give him a nice yet forceful smile. "No, thank you. "I'm good."

Please get away from me, you think to yourself.

He doesn't take the hint and moves closer, his tone shifting. "Come on, don’t be like that. Just one drink."

You step back slightly, your discomfort growing. "I said no, thank you."

You were starting to get irritated with this guy. What does no mean to him in his brain? It’s common sense. You know how to stand up for yourself in situations like this and won’t let him talk to you like this.

His expression turns negative. "Do you think you're too good for me?" "You're not even that attractive." The harsh comments sting, and your mood drops.

You pause for a second to process what he told you. You turn to face him, scoffing, "Listen, you little prick, I don't want to chat to you or have a drink with you. You simply cannot understand that no means no, and now you are saying these things to me because I refused your offer. So, how about you just fuck off?" You feign a grin before heading out the back door to catch some fresh air.

The guy gives you a perplexed expression, more surprised by your choice of words for him. He yells back at you as you lead father away from the bar.

The cool air felt good against your skin. Your hands search for your phone through your small purse to text the girls you went outside for fresh air and tell them what happened at the bar.

When opening the back door there's a sitting area for people to sit with string lights across the railing and a nice view of the city.

You lean against the brick wall, trying to shake off the encounter. Just as you’re starting to feel a bit better, you hear the door open behind you.

You look up and see a tall six-foot man standing in front of you. You could call him a gorgeous six-footer. You can't take your gaze away from him, and he notices every time you create eye contact.

He steps out and lights a cigarette. He notices you and smiles, acknowledging you from within. He walks over with a concerned expression.

“Hey, are you okay? I saw you come out here, and you seemed disturbed."

You acknowledge his concern and try to brush it off. "I am fine." "I just needed some air."

He takes a puff of his cigarette, his gaze fixed on you. "You don't look well. Would you like to talk about it?”

Before you could respond he introduces himself, “I’m Drew by the way” he extends his large hand out.

“Y/N and it’s nice to meet you Drew.” You smile while shaking his hand.

You find yourself nodding: "Some guy inside was being a real jerk. I turned him no, and he got really upset about it." Drew's expression darkens somewhat.

"I am sorry you had to cope with that. "Some guys simply cannot handle rejection." Drew sighs, shaking his head in disbelief after hearing you explain the situation.

“Yeah," you sighed. "It just really brought down my mood."

Drew looks up at you, frowning, “don’t let him bring your mood down. You’re beautiful young woman who doesn’t nedd that.”

He thinks I’m beautiful?

Drew takes a step forward, his presence soothing. "Well, he is an idiot. Anyone with half a brain can tell you're far too good for a guy like that.”

You chuckle quietly, his comments softening the blow of the previous encounter. "Thanks. "That means a lot." He smiles, a warm, sincere smile that makes you feel better right away.

To keep the discussion going, you two start talking about other issues; you tell him you arrived with your girlfriends, and he came with his buddies. He was respectful and asked you questions that did not make you feel uncomfortable.

“Would you like to go back inside? "Or maybe just hang out here for a while more?" He asks softly, dropping the cigarette on the floor, then stepping on it.

"Can we go back inside? My girlfriends are inside, and I told them I was going back. Can I introduce you to them?" You react with a small giggle and point to the door behind you.

Drew smiles and nods, "Inside we go," and you turn around and walk towards the entrance, with him following you.

When you open the door to loud music and people talking, you can sense Drew's presence near to you, his hands positioning themselves on your lower back in a courteous gesture that does not make you feel strange.

You scan the bar, looking for your friends. The jerk from earlier is clearly visible from the bar. You inform Drew that this is the jackass that went off on you.

Drew pauses what he is doing, "hey buddy, next time you speak to a woman like that again I'll have you wish you never said those words again, you got it?" His statements are severe and serious.

You couldn't believe what was happening. No man has ever done that for you before. You're the one who goes off on the guy and they leave, but this was unbelievable.

"S-sorry for what I said," the guy apologizes, his voice filled with terror. You give him a phony smile before walking away with Drew. 

"Thank you for that, Drew. You should've seen the look on his face earlier when I went off on him," you chuckle, patting his forearm.

Drew smiles, "Of course, and no woman should have to go through that." He needed to talk reason into him. "You ultimately stood up for yourself." 

That made you smile.

You spent the rest of the night with your girls, and Drew invited his buddies over to hang out by the booth area, where you all talked and drank together.

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[sgiandubh]

Do you think he does different types of promo to attract all the different crowds?

Dear Promo Anon,

Not only I think he does that, I also happen to think he (or anyone seriously hoping to sell anything other than snake oil) should do exactly that.

The problem is not the logical correlation between what you want to sell and the people to whom you want to sell it. The first problem is the lack of balance between your way of interacting with your different target groups, which could lead to a very fuzzy brand image. Both of your products and of yourself, who are their creator and main promoter.

Promoting a brand without a clear set of main ideas and values is very likely to have a negative impact on your sales. Show them biceps, sea, sex (?) and sun galore is all fine and dandy for the younger crowd (and the LGBT+ one, btw). But showing at the same time that you can be a gentleman (please, for the love of Saruman, get rid of those rings! that woman doesn't know what she's talking about!) should be at least on par with the Lustfest promise you ventilate to your other segment. Possible message being: working hard and playing hard - you can have the best of both worlds (or at least try).

The second problem is that S's brand is.. ehrm... way too personal. Too approachable (I already mentioned the Costco Hugfest) for a rabid fandom. That goes both ways, btw, because many (on both sides of the Great Divide) honestly feel they own a bit of S. At the same time, he is also JAMMF to many people in here, who imagine he has almost superhuman qualities (most probably not the case). That is exhilarating and empowering, until it's not. One or three or twenty faux-pas later, people will feel the savage urge to spit on the idol. A simple matter of collective instinct, but a very tricky situation for S.

The third problem are the side players. I am not talking about AN or CB or TMcG or the Fitness Harem. I am talking about the Trolls, who really don't do him any favor. Nothing worse for his brand potential than lascivious comments - let's suppose you are a major distributor's marketing expert and you land on That Blog, where the owner shares publicly her dream of licking her way from (how was it?) LHR to GLA to the Highlands to the ends of the known Universe, for a chance of God knows what. What would you write in that memo to the CEO? 'Yes, please: immediately place ALL his booze upfront near the cashier, because the man is an idol to a bunch of fifty-something women who dream the impossible dream?' You think I am exaggerating? Try googling for SRH tumblr and see the first results (😱). These people are visible and that visibility directly informs the interaction between SS and its potential business partners. Especially when your Partner Everyday thought blasting a sizeable chunk of OL's Tumblr fandom in Vanity Fair was a clever strategy for The Win - things like this invite (unwanted) attention.

I pleaded for diversification of the marketing strategy and for a more sophisticated approach and I welcome the change, Anon. The only thing I would like you to take home from this very long answer is simple:

Social Media is just Social Media. The glitz, the glam, the superficial stardust, the Truman Show where it never rains.

Real Life is Real Life. We only see glimpses, speculate on it, have a more or less educated guess and if we are lucky enough, some tidbits to chew on.

Progressively, the very unprofessional (bantering) Social Media strategy has been replaced with an account strategy based on product promotion. Convenient, when you do not (for reasons X, Y and Z) want to discuss what you feel is private and likely to remain so, for a while.

That's about it, Anon. If you still have questions, you can always pop in here. I promise I won't charge a retainer, out of my good heart.

[goldenheartstudios]

Why is Rai your favourite? :D

  That’s an excellent question my dear anon and I can answer this in a rant of itself!

  Ok first of all, this all started because I watched the show when I was a kid and it really influenced my taste of media on a deep level. The combination between western and eastern culture is like, the ideal content for me and many of the things I enjoy are this because of my adoration for the show and it’s vibes

  And this is one of the reasons why Xiaolin Showdown is my favorite cartoon, because it reshaped my interests at a very young age and I genuinely think I would be a different person if I didn’t watch it

  And this thing applies to my favorite character as well, aka Raimundo. Many of my favorite characters have something that remind me of him in one way or another, and Rai’s characteristics are something that I find myself gravitating towards more often, all because of Rai being my favorite character

  But how did he become my favorite in the first place? Well, I will start with his introduction

  In the first episode, we see him simply described as someone who likes to mess with others and is not fond on being told what to do because he likes to chill and have fun. For short, he’s a laid-back rebel

  At this moment, you don’t know much about the main characters, only the basics. So you can get an attachment to one of them later on, or be attracted to their concept because you like their personality

  And well, I didn’t have a special interest to Rai at that time, but I did like him because he was funny, simple as that

  The second episode shows more of him, where you get to see that he likes to make remarks on stuff and can actually be the voice of reason on occasion (example being him reminding Kimiko & Omi about Clay)

  But the third episode is when I started to get interested in him, when he betted on Kimiko’s favor for the showdown

  Because this not only serves as a subversion of expectations, it’s also tied so well with the previous episode

  Raimundo didn’t have any faith in Clay winning in the second episode, making it very clear by the way he was impatient and commented during the showdown. But at the end, he got proven wrong and congratulated Clay for the win

  And now with Kimiko’s showdown, where she shows signs of not having a chance of winning? He not only believes in her, he makes a bet where he’s confident on being proven right

  He learned, but in a way that it’s not shoved in your face, that it’s not commented on. It’s a neat portrayal on the show’s continuity, where there are subtle elements that tie the episodes together if you get the chance to see them in order

  The third episode shows how there’s something more to him, that he’s not just the standard troublemaker, which piques my interest on the boy

  And the more episodes I see, the more my fascination on him grows. He can be reckless but also wise, an idiot but also smart, an asshole but also considerate of others (just look at how many episodes he was shown to make fun of someone but then genuinely showed support for them afterwards-)

  Throughout the show he just keeps getting layers of characterization while he’s also going through his own character arc. You learn more things about him while at the same time you see him change and grow and it’s fascinating

  What’s even more interesting is that you see him changing without necessarily feeling it. Unlike other characters (like Omi for example), his personality doesn’t really change, but his level of maturity does, and you get to notice the difference once you compare him from the beginning to what he became at the end

  Which this makes it a delight for rewatch, because even if I rewatched the show at least four times, there are still things about him I just notice, because this boy is so full of layers you can mistake him for an onion

  Seriously, I once made a psychological analysis on him for college of 9 pages and I still could have written more about him

  And what’s crazier is the fact that there are still things we don’t know about him, like his family and childhood. Only thing we got are hints which can be interpreted however you like and that’s great, because it encourages creativity and you can go by personal interest!

  Personality wise, aside from liking everything about Rai for reasons stated above, there’s one core characteristic of him that contributes to my attachment: his kindness

  It’s unconditional, loud, but also quiet. It’s honest, simple, but also complex, buried in layers of emotions and fear of showing his vulnerabilities. And when it’s about the people he cares about, he can go to an extent of sacrificing his safety or even his life, but it’s not because he doesn’t see value in himself, it’s because he sees more value in others which makes it worth it for him

  This kindness in him is so so beautiful and it has so much potential for how dangerous it can be for him. Like, this kid is a goldmine for writing and analyzing, it’s insane-

  He’s one of the most developed and complex characters from the show and it’s proven by how he breaks the trope he followed at the beginning: if we were to put the main cast in the main tropes we see in teams, he would be the “lancer” because he serves as a contrast to Omi who’s the “leader” (as we follow his perspective and has the most common characteristics of the trope) and has the main characteristics many lancer-type characters have (Raphael and Knuckles being better-known examples)

  But here’s the thing

  He becomes the leader at the end

  Which brings a whole new perspective on his character

  Honestly, I could go on a whole different rant on its own about this incredible choice the show made to make Rai the leader at the end, but what I’m gonna say here is that despite following the trope of a lancer, Raimundo also has the characteristics of a leader that makes it harder for him to be categorized to only one trait if you want to describe him properly

  You can use characteristics like “laid-back prick” or “piece of shit with a heart of gold” to introduce him to other people, but if you were to describe him deeper, then you have to go on so many directions to do him justice, which for me it’s amazing

  And this, is why Rai is my favorite

[wedriftlikelonelyplanets]

githhhw verse, would they ever have a threesome? who would it be with? what’s the longest lando has teased oscar for?

OH MAN OKAY

None of y'all have asked the question I thought you would ask, but instead you come for me with the hard questions.

Answer below the cut, discussions of threesomes, D/s dynamics, orgasm denial

Would they ever have a threesome? The SHORT answer to this is probably not. I think they're both a little too psycho possessive of each other to actually allow someone to enter their dynamic unless it was in a more permanent capacity (read: polyamory vs just a threesome)

The LONG answer, while still probably not, is that there would probably be like...the right time, the right place, the right person could MAYBE make it work.

Now i was in the middle of writing a very long answer on why Lando would probably prefer the other person in the threesome took on a more submissive role, however, the more I wrote about it the more I was like...honestly, he likely wouldn't care about dynamic. I think he'd like to see Oscar whimpering because of him AND another partner domming him and topping him...and that's...hmmm yeah now I'm thinking thoughts.

Anyhow, if they did have a threesome, likely their third wouldn't be allowed to partake in penetrative sex with Oscar, but they'd likely be okay to fool around with other things.

As for whom...well...that's just it, isn't it? Oscar's always found Charles incredibly attractive, and probably thirsts after him still (he definitely followed Charles on instagram for the thirst traps). But Lando and Charles aren't....besties, that's for certain, so I think that this could end up being a little rancid in a bad way. (Charles tries to prove he can treat Oscar better, and Lando tries to prove he can't, and Oscar just feels kinda like a toy but not in the fun way in a shitty way where he doesn't feel like he has agency)

Max Verstappen would be an option, Lando trusts him, Oscar trusts him, but I feel like there would be some butting heads.

Possibly Logan Sargeant in that longing, long term best friend crush that you never made a move on, and now your best friend has a hot dom boyfriend that made it happen kind of way. It would probably be the least rancid of the three above, and honestly probably a little sweet.

Likely though, if any of this happened, thirds would only be allowed in voyeur-esque situations....(no comment)

AS FOR DENIAL....If you're referring to how long Lando's gone without letting Oscar come, as mentioned in "We Can Do This Shit Forever if it's Lust, Yeah," Lando threatens not to let Oscar come until he wins his next race. Which...canonically is Baku. Now, I'm a little nicer than Lando after the Belgian GP. Likely at some point during the current fic I'm working on "I'm So Lonely and You're the Only One That Knows Me," he does get Oscar off (they get a little...out of control when they start their kink negotiation stuff and Oscar drops into subspace and Lando can't help himself but make Oscar come), and THEN it's at Baku. So currently...just shy of like...6-ish weeks, roughly, is the longest Lando's denied him. NOW I swear y'all are looking for spoilers about [redacted][redacted] which YOU AREN'T GETTING YET.

If you're just referring to how long Lando's teased Oscar in the bedroom without letting him come...he's definitely gone for a couple hours or until Oscar's sobbing, whichever comes first, tbh.

If I didn't answer the second part well enough please feel free to clarify. I am here, dying in bed because my workday was INSANE.

[kingwuko]

Hey im new to wuko i think it's cute but I'm Not sure about it like what does mako LOVE about wu ? genuinely asking it feels unbalanced to me

GASP NEW TO WUKO???

Welcome to the Wuko fandom my friend. I'm glad to hear you think it's cute and excited that you are interested!

I don't want to scare you away. But as you can see I'm a little unhinged about Wuko as a ship lol. I could talk about them all day. And I have. Better people than me have written meta on why Wuko works as a ship, but I'll do my best!

When you say 'unbalanced', I'm guessing you mean that it's pretty clear that Wu loves Mako, but you aren't sure about the other way around.

Since this isn't a canon ship, we have to make some assumptions based on canon. It's EASY to interpret the way Wu acts throughout the show and the comics are signs of romantic feelings. We have to look at Mako a little more closely.

For me, personally, the biggest thing that I believe Mako loves about Wu is his growth as a person. We see it in canon. Mako watches Wu become more selfless throughout the show. He acknowledges it in the finale. He makes comments about it in Ruins of the Empire.

I don't know about you, but I don't know ANYONE in the world who is perfect. But I know plenty of people who think they're perfect or close enough and don't believe they have to change and grow to be better. And I also know certain people who have grown TREMENDOUSLY during the time I've known them and changed for the better.

The people who see where they can grow and improve, then actually do it? The people who can admit when they're wrong and change? The people who can take criticism and acknowledge their faults, then actively work to be better? Those are people worth the risk of loving.

I think Mako loves a lot of things about Wu but he doesn't realize it, much like in season one when he first met Korra, he struggled to recognize when his feelings for her were emerging. But I think when Mako finally realizes there's something there for Wu, he's going to realize all the little things he loves, too. Yes, there's lots of big things to love and admire about Wu: his handling of the evacuation, his decision to give up absolute power to transition the Earth Kingdom into a democracy, then his decision to delay his abdication make a smoother transition of power...

But also consider: Wu genuinely dotes after Mako; wants to make him feel better when he's down; throws compliments around like it's nothing; he accepts Mako exactly as he his, messy history and all; he wins the hearts of Yin and Pabu; and despite his obnoxious comphet ladies man act, he manages to befriend Korra, a person Mako cares about and holds in the highest regard. Wu is fun and outgoing. He does things just because they feel good. He dances and sings. He befriends animals. He CARES.

Mako can definitely fall in love with someone who has all those traits. They got off to a rocky start, but so what? Mako and Korra got off to a rocky start too. He loved her anyways, but they didn't work together because they weren't compatible. Mako and Wu are, in a perfect opposites attract way.

Ironically, you mentioned it feels 'unbalanced' and I wrote a whole post about their personality types and how they balance each other out, here, if you're interested.

I hope I haven't scared you away with my rambling. I have been actively shipping these two for a looooong time. Pretty much since I first saw season four, which would have been around eight or nine years ago! And I've had this blog since 2019, so I've been active in the Wuko fandom for years.

[shallowseeker]

Who called cas a pretty angel? A demon (crowley?) I know he said that cas has sex appeal, but I can't remember whether or not Crowley called him pretty . Or was it Balthazar or other angels. I remember someone calling cas a pretty angel

I was on the ao3 tag looking through some dean cas fics and came across this highschool fic and how dean was a jock, cool guy and like cas is the nerd that was basically the intro and then it got me thinking of all these other highschool intro fics that makes cas the nerd etc

And like for all intents and purposes it makes more sense for cas to be the jock. Throwback to ishm calling him an angels angel. Like it makes sense that cas would be the cool one Specifically the type who is cool but internally doesn't feel like he belongs with them since he doesn't fit in that crowd.

Why I am I ranting lol it's probably cause its 1 am lol

But cas was the cool angel right? when he was still in and accepted by the angels

I think you're thinking of Changing Channels: "No, no. *MR. Trickster does not like pretty-boy angels." :-)

///

There are snide comments made about Cas's attractiveness, sure, with Gabriel and most demonic characters. But those are mostly power-motioned taunting.

You’re right about Crowley. I think Crowley's positive associations were, "Buddy Boy, you have what they call sex appeal." ("Thank you. Get to the point.") And if you squint, "You like to bend em right over, don't you?" which is the mated joke to Crowley's failed taunting, "You're the bottom in this relationship." (However, Cas on Crowley in TMWWBK? “But I was smarter than him, stronger. (I wasn't ever threatened.)")

///

IMHO, Cas is canonically implied to be handsome, simply by how regular people react to him. There's the woman on the television in season 6, saying (of Godstiel) - "He was SEXY." (After which Dean quickly turns off the TV.) Although...it's hard to say whether she was simply having a "Ted-Bundy-groupie-style" fawning moment... We can point to Mandy the waitress, but maybe she was just playing along and fawning over the guy who looked most likely to leave tips...

I guess it's up to interpretation.

I happen to think Cas's sexiness extends beyond his vessel. There's the "Angel's angel" line, of course, but also in Metatron's taunting of the beautiful Hannah wanted to be "dominated" by a more rugged experienced-battalion-oriented angel.

Taken together, I think it's pretty safe to say Cas is considered handsome, rugged, strong, cool, popular etc; both in-vessel and as simply a natural way of his being among the angels.

///

On your second point, I think fanfic is safe to explore just about anything, so I don't fault whatever way it wants to swing!

Cas certainly has enough dorky/“doof” moments to play with, and he's very brainy/eccentric/philosophical sometimes! Plus, I think there's some actor bleed-over with Misha Collins, honestly, who is in my head more similar to Dean than Castiel. (But that's neither here nor there.)

I do happen to think that in-world, all signs point to, "Cas is popular/cool even when he's a doof."

I actually think Cas exemplifies, "Even when he loses, he wins," more than the characters that actually long to exemplify this, especially when it comes to people and “being likable.” It frustrates characters like Metatron (probably also Crowley, Rowena, Chuck Shurley, even Sam -> "i.e. characters with have ambition but can't seem to muster up enough natural charisma to get where they wanna go").

And I think part of that is...well. Castiel has charisma. He has a natural willingness to play big and fail spectacularly. (Unlike characters like Rowena or Crowley, Cas usually puts his own skin in the game/his own self on the line as “the muscle.”)

In one-on-one battle, Metatron laments Cas's abilities to be popular. He calls him various things like, "the villain/lame/braindead puppy/stupid jock/underdog. Metatron is holding the high cards, even the angel tablet! And yet Castiel manages to match his nice guy 4D chess...somehow. “I didn't think he'd be good at it!" (NOTE: After all that, Metatron kinda…resorts to killing Dean as petty revenge.)

Metatron certainly comes off as "no fair! He's not even trying to be cool and here I am putting in all this effort to look cool and no one sees me as anything other than a loser!" Or "Why is it lame when I do it, but people fawn over Ass-stiel?! I'm a nice guy!!!"

METATRON: Well, I could get a new face. TYRUS: You'd still be you -- a nerd trying to be one of the popular kids. Mnh-mnh....my guys will go running to Castiel.

We've all been there.

So yeah. Even when Castiel's "a doof," he's cool/popular and connects with others pretty effortlessly.

But it's Cas's willingness to spectacularly fail that gets him places, canonically. It wins him points with others even when that's not what he's trying to do. It's that earnestness. I'll quote Daphne in Scoobynatural on what she looks for in a guy: "Strong, sincere..."

I mean, just look at how quickly Rowena flipped on him. :-)

Aside/// Like Dean, Cas doesn't actually want the big things, not really. He wants the horrifically mundane little things (boring family life). Not because of what it represents, "Normal Life." It's not a checklist of status symbol of "Success" or "Making It."

No, for characters like Dean and Cas, it's simply an emotional thing. And I think it's part of what makes them likeable/able to form connections so much more readily than other characters.

[shocked-collar]

Ren's the type of man to groom you over online games. The way he can take control of a lobby, the way you attract him with how well you listen and behave- it's just fun for you. Someone who knows what they're doing and who knows how to win the game taking charge because he knows he can. Feeling seen and admired because he recognized your strengths and weaknesses and put you in a specific, coordinated area because of it... But it's so much more to him.

You get praised for you performance. And when you fuck it up, he's very energetic. Basic gamer rage for a moment, before calming down and "Aaagh, that's alright. Next time!". An instant buddy. A stranger you feel the need to defend to other players, because "At least he's actually trying!" and oh god, the things it does to him.

You two become in-game friends. Every time you come online, you're sent a lobby invitation. You two get close. You meet his other friends, he meets yours. Soon enough, you've built an entire team of people on your side. You guys feel great! You feel like one of those famous, competitive teams! And Ren is never shy to tell you how good of a job you do.

Soon enough it's not just the game. It's your social media. You've added each other, and can now peer into each others lives. He loves talking to you. Tells you all the time how pretty you are in all your pictures. Comments on all your posts, likes everything, tags you in things.. Notices how close you two live to each other. He becomes pushy. He wants to talk all the time. His patience is thinning with you. He's almost possessive over you.

"So you played with [---] all day? And didn't invite me?" "Where were you? I missed you..." "Do you even like me anymore? I know we spoke 8 hrs ago, but you sounded cold.." "Fine. Yeah. Go play with [---]. No, I'm not mad, it's okay, just go do whatever you want." "You know I've got problems with being lonely.. You know I can't help it.."

One day, "an opportunity to meet" arises. He's going on a small trip and passing through your area, so you two get to hang out in real life! It's exciting, meeting such a good online friend you've had a while. The meeting is so nice. Ren is a lot smaller than you thought he would be, but his hugs are so strong! Once again, he is complimenting your features, and now, your figure. You two hangout at home for a while. You have fun showing him around, introducing him to any pets you may have, any things you hold dear- and he is very respectful. But he wants to see more.

You offer to take him to see some signature, fun areas in town. He's very excited! It's about an hour into the walk that his colors begin to show. He's got you all alone.

He pins you to the wall and takes you as he likes. Rapes you til your knees can no longer hold your weight. Makes you a mess like you've never been before. A friend you trusted, a friend you've had a while. He hurts you in such an evil way, and leaves you with a kiss. Even when you limp yourself home, you can still feel his hands on your body. You can still feel him inside. Can still feel the choke in the back of your throat, and the bruising he undoubtedly left in your tummy.

You are recovering mentally. Quiet, frozen days roll by, just waiting to be okay again. It's not like he didn't know. In fact, it's what got him off. You've never seen such evil out of a seemingly normal person, not personally. Sometimes you have nightmares about it, and wake up aroused. And now, you can't even go to your best online friend for help, because he did it. You feel like you're drowning. You're so lonely. It's too much to process.

You turn your brain off for a while. For the first time in a week or two, you pick up your controller, and turn on your game. Just a casual play is all you want. You come online.

'You've been invited to a lobby!'

[radioaf]

For Alastor about  Relationships  

Just want to start this off by saying I'm asexual and on the aromantic spectrum, so I know little more than most how this really does impact relationships on a personal level. Spoiler alert it as bad as you except because there is a lot of misunderstanding about the two so let's break it down into what asexuality means and what that means for al and then what  aromantic means and how that impacts him.

Asexuality –  It's different from celibacy, in that celibacy is the choice to refrain from engaging in sexual behaviours where as someone who is asexual  does not experience sexual attraction toward individuals of any gender which leaves said person to having 0 interest in engaging in  sexual behaviours or very weak and infrequent  want for sexual relationship because it is spectrum (if want to find out more google good place to start or I'm happy to answer questions about it)

Now, on to the radio demon himself and where I place him on asexuality spectrum, he does not experience sexual attraction at all, and he has never once wanted to engage in sexual behaviours. Now he lives in hell, of course he sees and hears about it because it's apart of life down there he just tunes it out he doesn't care for any of it and will actively avoid it but sometimes it can't be helped and he will make jokes about it and find humour in it. Though Alastor doesn't know he is asexual. He just believes that he hasn't met the right person like most people do when they haven't realized they are asexual hell even I thought this way for a long time. Alastor being asexual won't stop him from flirting with people or stop him from making comments about sex. he will if only to get a better understanding of how sexual relationship work and of course for his own entertainment of watching other people reaction to him asking because they probably don't expect it from him and also to annoy people. At the end of the day, no one is good enough to Alastor. No one is on his level, and no one will ever truly understand him except maybe Rosie, but even she doesn't know everything. Alastor is a man of misunderstanding mystery and deception.

Aromantic Spectrum - a person who experiences little or no romantic attraction to anyone. They may or may not feel sexual attraction. An aromantic person can fall into one of two groups: aromantic sexual people or aromantic asexual people. There are few terms that people may want to use to further specify how they identify which are all on Google.

Alastor falls into the category of aromantic-asexual or aroace for short.  Now this is where I'm gonna throw more terms at you, haha. This being that alastor is romance neutral which means he is just neutral to the idea of romantic relationships, he can sometimes experience very weak and Irregular romantic attraction but don't count on it. He much rather have meaningful friendships than anything romantic as he finds platonic relationships easier to understand as he has more experience with them. Romantic relationships are complicated to him; he has no idea how to handle those emotions. He quickly loses interest in someone if they state their romantic feelings to him because he is happy on his own 9/10 times but doesn't mean romantic relationships won't happen they are just a very rare thing for him to want. He does have his own twisted little love language which I'll talk about in a moment . I hope this helps you understand him more. I suppose you could call my version of Al being greyromantic. 

Now let's talk about my Alastor and how he views romantic love (Get comfy kids this gonna be interesting) He views love as a game that he can play with naturally it something that he can use to his benefits and views it as a game because he knows how to win those and having that mind set with it helps him keeps his emotions out of them because he doesn’t want those involved but sometimes they can slip through for certain people who are able to see him as more than just the radio demon and overlord which is rare people only want him for that and the power he holds. That being said he is a gentleman and will use  love language like acts of service and quality time be this by gift giving and learning enough about the other person to plan dates that fit into both their interests so no one will be bored for an example. He will use words of affirmation also when he sees fit to do so. He is touch averse. He has intense discomfort and a fear when someone attempts to touch him without his permission the best way is to always let him make the first moves and invite him to do so because oddly enough alastor is big on consent when it comes to touching. So say if someone wants to hug him the way to this is to open your came to you and let him make that choice. Yes this stems from his need to be in control but it’s also a tramura repose from his childhood with his father (I’ll right another headcanon about that at some other point) There are a few people he will let openly touch him with out fear and that’s Rosie and Niffty because he knows the two women well and that them mean no harm. He is a hard man to try and love because he is not open about his emotions or  what he wants. It is very much a guessing game with him but it also takes time for him to be more open to people he will say no a lot more then he will say yes to things.  

So now you're probably wondering what he looks for in a romantic partner?

Well here is a list for a few things:

Someone who challenges him

Similar interest is a must. 

Manners must and so is self respect. He is not interested in fixing someone most of the time.  

Funny he likes someone who can generally make him laugh.

People who respects boundaries

He likes people who are charming and well spoken.

Some who is interested in him outside of him being the radio demon.

I hope this helps people understand how I write Alastor a little better. If you have any questions please send them my way.

[onetimetwotimesthreetimess]

When Chaos Met Love: Redemption

Part I

Part II

Part III

Part IV

Part V

Part VI

“You’re supposed to be doing amusement part things when you’re at Coney Island. Not supposed to sit on a bench and lurk on the passers-by,” Alec slides next to Magnus on the bench, maintaining a respectable amount of distance between the two, even though the urge, like always, has to just sit as close to the other man as possible. “It’s creepy.”

Magnus’s lips curl upwards slightly, “It’s creepy when insanely attractive people in black leather clothes lurk around. I lurk in style.”

It’s always easy to fall back into their usual banter, but something flashes across Alec’s face in an instant, and it hardens.

“Why did you call me here?”

Magnus sighs, knowing it’s not going to be easy to get Alec to understand. Not after all the pain he’s caused the man.

He turns his eyes towards the man and it seems like Alec has aged a decade in the past few weeks.

The beautiful shadowhunter seems so bereft of any hope in his face that it crushes against his chest.

“How are you doing, Alec?” Magnus asks, fully knowing the answer, waiting for Alec to scoff or chide at the question.

But none of that comes, only painful resignation in the man’s voice.

“I’m okay,” Alec replies, and Magnus almost wishes that the man had said something mean to him.

“Thank you for meeting me.”

“Have you really been coming to all the places for the entire week?”

He nods. “Yes.”

“Why?”

“I had to make amends.”

“You don’t,” Alec sighs. “I hurt you. You hurt me. we’re even.”

The words hurt more than Magnus could possibly imagine—the implication that the two of them keep scores now, on which one of them hurt the other better.

And that Magnus is winning.

A painful noise leaves his mouth at the words, and Alec tilts his head to look at him.

“Magnus? Are you okay?”

Stop being so good.

“I—I…” he tries and fails. “Yeah. I’m okay. You shouldn’t be asking me that. It should be the other way around.”

Alec gives him a sad smile, “I’ll always want to know how you’re doing, Magnus. I can’t help it.”

There’s a question at the top of his lips, and he doesn’t want to ask, but it escapes him regardless, “Are you still mad?"

That night outside the club, Alec sounded crushed and devastated.

It’s reasonable if Alec is still mad.

"There are a lot of things I feel right now but anger isn't one of them."

Three small kids, two boys and a girl probably under the age of 10, come running towards the bench where they sit and then apologise. “Sorry,” they mutter sheepishly and leave.

The girl, the youngest out of them, stays and pushes a flower in Alec’s hand before she leaves, and the action finally—finally pulls a smile on Alec’s face.

“Why aren’t you going on any rides? Parks aren’t built to talk,” the girl comments.

Alec chuckles at that and pulls her close, conspiringly, “He’s scared of rides so I’m keeping him company.” He replies, pointing towards Magnus.

Magnus smiles at that. Alec’s always been a little shit.

The girl giggles and then leaves a few seconds later. The second she leaves, so does the smile on Alec’s face, and Magnus is left with the shell of a man he created.

Then it’s suddenly too much, too much of everything—of pain, loneliness and guilt, and then he’s bursting in front of Alec.

“It wasn’t revenge.”

Alec raises an eyebrow.

“All the things I did. All of it. It wasn’t because I was mad at you for the Camille thing. That’s not why I did it.”

The shadowhunter should disagree with that, but he doesn’t. The words are entirely different from what Magnus expects.

“I figured.”

Magnus frowns in confusion, “What?”

Alec fidgets with his fingers as he speaks, “I might not know everything about you but I know enough. I know you, Magnus. You’re not cruel. You do not really believe in revenge. I figured that for whatever reason you did all of it, revenge couldn’t be one of them.”

He all but chokes at the words because there had been days in the past few weeks where he himself had convinced himself that he did it out of revenge.

But Alec always sees him.

“I thought that the man who let the woman who kidnapped and tried to kill him, raised Asmodeus to sacrifice him go couldn’t possibly hate me so much that he had to do all of this,” Alec continues, “or so I think.”

Losing any ability to control himself and craving to touch Alec, he takes his hand in his and squeezes it tightly, “I don’t hate you. I never did. You have got it all wrong and I—“

“Then why, Magnus?” Alec mumbles, “What could you have possibly gotten out of it? I have thought of so many possibilities but none of them make sense.”

They wouldn’t

Whatever you’re thinking wouldn’t make sense because you’ve always underestimated your place in my life.

“It doesn’t really make sense but I—“

Before he can finish, Alec clutches his hand and mumbles, “Ravener demons.”

Magnus’s eyes widen as it trails where Alec just pointed out.

The two of them run towards a secluded area so that they can glamour themselves. Magnus snaps his fingers and summons Alec’s bow and arrows, and the shadow hunter mutters a thank you.

“Stupid demons and their timings.”

“I’ll lure them out,” Alec announces and moves towards the raveners to lure them away from the crowd towards the back alley.

“You’re not going to call backup? There’s like dozens of them?” Magnus raises an eyebrow. It’s not that he thinks Alec and he can’t defeat the horde, but Alec usually calls backup in such situations.

“Don’t need to,” He replies and moves ahead. “Why? You scared?”

Magnus rolls his eyes, fully knowing Alec is challenging him and taking the bait.

It’s been a while since they have fought together anyways.

He straightens his coat, and in an instant, blue sparks fly from his fingers.

He throws a ball of magic at the demon ahead and watches as it splinters across. Alec rolls his eyes and launches three arrows at once, hitting all three in the right places.

“Show off!”

More ravagers demons appear suddenly, and Alec groans before jumping towards them.

Magnus opposes the idiocy.

Alec is always competent in the field, but there’s a reckless quality to the way he runs headrest into danger right now, as if he doesn’t really care about the consequences, and the realisation acts like ice-cold water over him.

A ravener demon rushes towards Alec, but Magnus yells and attacks it before it can reach the shadow hunter.

“Alexander!!!”

Alec turns at the name and frowns at Magnus before continuing to attach the rest of the demons.

The next fifteen minutes are quite possibly the longest fifteen minutes of his life, spent entirely focused and shouting at Alec—asking him to not act like an idiot.

When all the demons are vanquished, Magnus breathes heavily and clutches Alec by his sweater and pulls him against himself, “Are you out of your goddamn mind?”

The shadowhunter has the audacity to look confused, “What?” “What the hell was that, Alec? Are you trying to get yourself killed?”

“I was trying to kill those demon and save everyone else’s ass.”

There’s a fire in Alec’s eyes, and it mirrors his own. He’s still breathing heavily at the implication of what Alec’s been doing.

It’s not very Alec-y.

It’s something Jace used to do.

Before everything.

When he cared a little about his life.

“That wasn’t you saving anyone’e ass. If I wasn’t here, you’d be dead ten times over,” He yells, his face entirely too close to Alec, still clutching onto his sweater.

“What the fuck is your problem?” Alec says sharply.

“My problem?”

“Yes. Why the fuck do you even care?”

Magnus is taken aback at the question—at all the accusations of him not caring about Alec and he finally—-finally speaks his truth.

“You fucking moron, why do I care?” He groans and gently shoves at Alec’s chest, “All I do is care about you.”

Alec let out a laugh at that, “Well, you sure have a funny way of showing it.”

He raises a hand to stop Alec, “I love you. I am so in love with you that it has driven me insane and made me into this person I don’t recognise anymore.” Magnus watches Alec’s eyes widen at the words, “I have been doing all these shitty things, ruining your dates and threatening people so that they can’t come close to you, all because I cannot stomach the idea of you being with anyone else.”

He creates some distance between them, running his hands through his hair in frustration, not finding the right words. Something beautiful, something poetic to express all the love he has inside of him for Alec.

“If you or anyone thinks I did it because of revenge then you couldn’t be more wrong. There is not a single bone in my body that could ever hate you and neither do I want to. It didn’t matter how painful being away from you has—I would never want that love to be turned into hate. I love you. I loved you a year ago when we were the happiest in Paris, and I loved you six months ago when I broke up with you and I love you right now and I know it in my heart that as long as I have magic in my veins, I will love you, Alexander Gideon Lightwood.”

When he finishes, he’s breathing heavily, suddenly exhausted of all the feelings, but there’s also relief coursing through him.

It had been so hard to pretend to not be in love with Alec Lightwood.

“You can forgive me for what I did or not. But don’t you ever dare do something like this again in the field. Because if something ever happened to you, it would break more than just my heart.”

There’s pin-drop silence for a moment—for a lot of moments.

Before Alec finally speaks, “You love me?”

everyone go say thank you to anh for this chaotic series @carelessflower

PART VIII

[machihunnicutt]

[falls out of baby it's you finale] Hello I'm Here To Ask You To Please Talk Some About The Extended Knight Metaphor I'm Feeling Super Normal About ("There he was, a knight in armor, lingering at the front steps, haunted by closed doors.") PLUS ⭐ a selection of your choice (if you'd like!!!)

YEAH OF COURSE ! long thoughts under the cut

I think BJ as The Knight works in a lot of ways for his thoughts/feelings/position throughout baby it's you. In flashbacks, I see him presenting this very protective/loyal/rigid/chivalrous persona to mask his insecurities/discomfort he feels trying to fit himself into straight manhood (and fatherhood & marriage). For example, with Peg (in chapter 4):

Alone together. The phrase rattled around in his head. He’d been alone so long that he didn’t know how else to be. Every time he reached for her he felt selfish. He felt like he’d grafted himself to her, or that they were passing through each other. He felt like he wasn’t supposed to feel so intensely. He felt like the words husband and wife should come more easily. He felt like he could sit there on the church steps for hours, rubbing her feet. “Should I carry your shoes? Or are you going to put them back on?” he said. She laughed, chin dipping. “Carry them. Just don’t step on my toes,” she said.

The attachment/devotion/service & the intensity of his feelings despite his lack of attraction to her...carrying her shoes, idk. BJ's internal conflicts, for me, always come back to the tension between who he is, who he feels he should be, and how he can reconcile & articulate his identity after repressing everything for so long. He's always coming back to these questions of duty & the roles he plays in other peoples' lives.

And, where you point it out in chapter 12:

“Do you let anything get under there?” Hawkeye muttered. “Under my armor?” BJ said, eyebrows raising. He could play along. He was good at it. He was better at it with Hawkeye than with anyone.  “I wouldn’t be much of a knight if I did, would I?” BJ said. “You’re no knight,” Hawkeye said, yawning. “You wound me,” BJ said, letting the smile win over his face.  “See, if you were a knight, it would take more to wound you. They’re stoic,” Hawkeye said. “I’m stoic. People tell me I’m very stoic,” BJ said, though his tone contradicted his point. “Hmm,” Hawkeye said.

I think it's significant that Hawkeye immediately sees through BJ as The Knight, and more so that he's interested in what's under the armor/persona. For Hawk, it's not about what BJ does for him...he loves BJ for who he is. (He's warm, under all the armor!! He's easily wounded!!)

BJ in 1970 is certainly in a less precarious position than he is in the 40s/50s, but I think he still plays The Knight. Particularly in the scenes in Le Cafe, he's always got an eye on Hawk (protecting him from his own actions? protecting him from Trapper? serving him by fulfilling all his wishes wrt the wedding??) Like Hawk describes in this bit in chapter 10:

Hawkeye thought about what Beej said at the bar. He thought about his hand on his waist, steadying him, holding him too tight. He thought about the space he’d given. He thought about BJ hanging in the margins: on the couch in the living room with a magazine, pretending not to eavesdrop, watching Hawk’s face in the bar, keeping track of Trapper’s comments at dinner, pacing, hiding his hands, talking a minute to cool off, managing his temper like he managed difficult surgical cases. It was like there was an invisible boundary between him and Beej. BJ always knew where the lines were, and had been trying, ardently, not to cross them.

I wanted it to take a while for Hawk to notice the way BJ positions himself the whole Vegas trip (and how hard it's been for him). BJ The Knight is always on the outside. He's got a job to do. He can't get too close. He can't get inside. He's got to be stoic.

AND, I wanted to use Knighthood to connect BJ & Erin. They really don't get much time together at all in baby it's you, but I wanted there to still be clear similarities in their thought patterns. She takes after him in good ways and in bad ways. They're both very hard on themselves. They both wrestle with these questions of belonging & duty & bravery & purpose. In chapter 11:

Erin had never gotten so much sun in her life. The summer’s activities had bleached her hair and tanned her arms. She’d be unrecognizable at Berkeley, come fall, she realized. It was a thought that made her insides squirm. It was like she’d been picking at a scab all summer, to get to the fresh, new, pink skin underneath. She was about to cast off this wild, reckless, ragtag version of herself. They couldn’t stay kids forever. “Why are you so afraid of what Fern thinks?” Benny said. “Don’t say it like that. It’s not as if I…well, it isn’t like I’m afraid,” Erin said. “It sounds like you are,” Benny said. “Well, I’m not,” Erin said, sharply. 

I like this idea of the dual purpose of armor for Erin & BJ: protecting/serving/being brave for others while simultaneously shielding/masking/hiding themselves from the judgement of others. Erin's picking at the mask/armor like a scab...she's got to cast it off in order to be herself, but letting other people under the armor comes at a price.

And, like Hawk, Benny sees through the persona (while at the same time understanding its function for Erin). In chapter 12:

“I’ve been acting like it’s us against the world. I never stopped to think about how that weighs on you,” Benny said. Erin sat up.  “You were right, though. I want to be the kind of person that you think I am,” Erin said. “You are,” Benny said. He shook his head vigorously. “There’s no doubt in my mind that you are.”

Benny believes Erin is as brave as she pretends to be. He still knows she's pretending.

Also...motorcycle/bike/noble steed??? The Hunnicutts are Knight coded.

[musical-chick-13]

What do you think is up with the male protagonist of Apothecary's Diaries???

Prefacing this by saying that I'm about two-thirds of the way through the show, so I don't really, completely know all of what Jinshi's deal is. Nonetheless, I shall try and collect my thoughts so far!

Spoilers through episode 16 of The Apothecary Diaries under the cut.

Jinshi is an odd character for me to try to define. Because I do genuinely find him annoying at times (and not just in an "All people are annoying sometimes and characters should have flaws to enrich their personalities and feel more real" kind of way), but...I don't find myself hating him.

For one, his interest in Maomao (despite her open and obvious abhorrence of a good portion of his behavior) isn't based in any of the story beats I hate that frequently accompany this kind of dynamic (i.e. "Interested guy maintains long-standing attraction toward disinterested woman"). It's not, "I hate women, except for this super special one who is my Only Equal," it's not, "She's the only person who doesn't fawn over me, so she's the only one here who isn't Completely Stupid," and it's not, "I think winning her over is a challenge that will prove how macho and cool and suave I am."

Jinshi is considered unearthly beautiful, to the point where people are constantly making passes at him, leaving him creepy gifts to express their obsession, and trying to slip him aphrodisiacs to push romantic and/or sexual contact on him. It's so bad that he can't have younger servants, no one except his older attendants (and later Maomao) is even allowed to see him when he wakes up in the morning, and he has to bar the doors to his office at night. Despite her consistent disdain toward his antics, Maomao is, paradoxically, the only person in Jinshi's relative age range who actually sees him as a person; because her hatred of his behavior means she's evaluating him for something other than his beauty. Even if she doesn't often like how he presents himself to her, her judgment of him is based on who he is and what he does, rather than how he looks.

And this lends a level of nuance to the show that I think prevents me from just being frustrated at Jinshi and that being the end of it. There's other nuance there, too: he does take his political work seriously; he obviously possesses significant analytical ability, and is pretty good at fighting, but doesn't think those qualities mean anything because he doesn't supremely excel at them (which, wow, what a mood, as the kids say); he tries to play nice with Lakan despite finding him incredibly off-putting because he knows it'll help keep things stable. Jinshi has some. Trouble. With personal boundaries (more on that in a second), but we are shown that he has some standards. He's willing to let Maomao go when he thinks that's what she wants. He seems genuinely horrified at Lakan's predatory comments about the courtesan he was attracted to, and at Maomao's story of how she got kidnapped. He pays for Maomao's removal from Verdigris House, but this only happens after he makes a comment to her about it and she says that it might be a good idea. And (at least so far, again, I haven't finished the show yet), when he takes her on as his personal servant, he never considers using that position to order her to accept his romantic advances. He definitely has some flaws (and I can understand if those flaws make him too off-putting to care about to some people). But I do recognize and respect the obvious effort that was put into making sure Jinshi doesn't come across as a one-dimensional character.

I've seen a theory that his, uh...less-than-stellar understanding of day-to-day personal boundaries are related to all of the things I mentioned above, in regard to how doggedly people keep pursuing him. (My sincerest apologies to whoever wrote that post, I tried to find it again and I can't.) And I do think this makes sense--that he internalized a lot of negative behaviors from his immediate environment and the way people act toward him. (I even think you could argue that, since beauty is so important for women in this setting--to the point where it's almost seen as a necessity--extreme physical attractiveness is more broadly viewed as a "feminine" quality. And since Jinshi possesses this """feminine""" quality, plenty of people treat him the way they would a woman: as an object to be looked at and obtained for clout.) I think it's also worth noting that Maomao only really responds positively toward him when he's not being flirty or pushy, during moments where he's being genuinely thoughtful (like the hairpin giving scene, Jinshi taking her to the infirmary after ingesting poison at the garden party, and catching her when she falls off the wall after drinking with Ah-Duo). So, between the deeper aspects of Jinshi's characterization, the fact that he does clearly have some principles, and the specific way Maomao's reactions to him are framed, I still find myself interested in seeing what will happen with him next.

All of that being said. I also frequently find myself going, "Dude. Wtf." And given my own personal preferences in characters and the types of relationships I like to see (which I will not get into because it's not particularly important and this response is already very long), I doubt that will change during these upcoming episodes.

[stellahaze135]

Ok so hear me out, the reason my blanket OC NightShade or Shade (the one that has Umbrakinesis.) has that monicker is because of Ivy. Ivy n Shade have always been cool, almost like a sibling bond, and Ivy’s always called her different flower names. One night, one really stuck after Shade helped Ivy raid/sabotage a chemical processing plant, where Shade for one of the first times uses her powers in an effective combative way. Ivy makes the offhand comment of ‘Thatta girl! Beware The Deadly Nightshade!’ And it kinda stuck. Well years go by, Shade gets real damn good at tech things and espionage (you can tell she shadowed Selina a lot on her heists being an honorary Gotham City Siren.) but eventually an event happened where it kinda forced her to look for new surroundings.

The earthquake that practically leveled the city, forcing it to become a No-Man’s Land. (talking the comic arc not the season of Harley Quinn just to clarify.) So she was able to find work in, guess where, but Raccon City. She finds work, ironically, at the R.P.D in their tech dept. specifically under the S.T.A.R.S division. Where she meets and becomes friends with most of the team including Jill, Chris, and Rebecca (I actually have a headcanon that Rebecca is actually one of the first people in RC to find out about Shade’s powers but because Rebecca is a literal angel, she promises to never tell!) and of course Captain Wesker. Now, she always knew Umbrella and Raccoon were dirty, like more corrupted than Gotham, and THAT was definitely saying something. But she had no idea Wesker was working for Umbrella all along. Until she happened to unwillingly listen in on a phone call between Wesker and Birkin. She always had complicated feelings about the Captain. He was drop dead gorgeous but he was also a bit scary to tell the truth. And she was used to people like Scarecrow and Joker. But to learn that he was working with Umbrella well that put a bit of ice in her veins for sure. She knew that because of her status as metahuman/mutant that could put her in all sorts of danger that she didn’t want any part of. She spent enough time in Arkham to be incredibly weary of scientists. She never wanted to be another experiment ever again. But her feelings, destiny, and he had other plans.

Wesker took an interest in her anyway, despite not knowing what she was. He considered her quite intelligent resourceful and he had to admit that he found her incredibly attractive. If she was afraid of him she knew how to put up a good front. She’d give his sarcasm and snark right back to him, and definitely didn’t take any shit from anyone else. The teams would joke that you could definitely tell she was a Gotham girl. And despite everything, Shade and the Captain still managed to hook up. (Shade like me has a really hard time saying no to that little voice in our heads that tells us to not do the fucking thing that we really shouldn’t do.) Anyways skip to the mansion incident, and both Shade and Albert are forced to show their hands. And Wesker’s just plain impressed ok? Not only did she manage to hide this beautiful development (seriously he thought she was breathtaking the first time she used her powers. Would he ever admit that out loud to anyone else? Probably not.) but she managed to hide them while they were fucking? He definitely made a mental note to keep tabs on her in the future eventually trying to win her over to his side as an asset, and he silently hoped future Goddess to his God. Which he does. Well he wins her over to his side anyway. She hates to admit it but Wesker’s become the Joker to her Harley. He’s got her wrapped around his little finger, but she hates to do anything against Chris and the others. He’d call her weak but she’d counter that she still has a moral compass. A definitely damaged one, but it still works. Skip through 5 and his death. She comes to terms with their relationship however incredibly messy it was, and decides she needs to move on…. Then Chris gets wind of happenings in Eastern Europe. And well let’s just say a new distraction in the form of a burly crass sexy metal man that chain smoked the finest of cigars with enormous mommy issues. But oh is Karl actually so sweet to her. He puts up a good front she wasn’t gunna lie, but once they got to know one another work together to take down Miranda… Well she found Albert Wesker to be a distant memory. For now.

I wanna set up a love triangle and maybe eventual poly relationship with the three of them. Like after Village, Shade n Karl get sent to Arkham, but this time with Karl she’s willing to go cause fuck they’ve been through some shit and need to talk it out. Being years later, the city and asylum have been rebuilt.

Things seem to settle down, Shade’s content, and Karl’s been really receptive to therapy. That is until another curve ball was dealt. Wesker somehow survived the volcano, pulled out by his own people after the dust had settled, but as they were busy keeping Albert stable, the BSAA breaks in. They apprehend Wesker and where is it decided that he be sent to? Arkham Asylum of course. If they had the capability to contain the likes of Poison Ivy and Killer Croc then they had the facilities to keep him contained.

I‘d love to see Karl n Albert bickering and the sexual tension is palpable, and I don’t know who moved in first but in a split second the two are passionately making out. Wesker mostly doms both Karl and Shade, Karl’s a classic switch, and Shade for all her bark is a bit subby.

[ladyelainehilfur]

Ooooh thoughts on Nice to Meet You's ending?

bruv....real life image of me entering the comment section of the last episode:

I know a lot of people feel very strongly about Nice To Meet You's ending. And well, I also have ✨opinions✨

For one, I'm not the kind of person to assume that just because a male character is on the cover, that he's going to be endgame. I had no real expectation that Daze was fated to end the series dating Mew.

Frankly, I barely found Daze engaging as a character. His most memorable moment to me was that scene where he helped Mew walk through the murder of crows to the phone booth. Butterflies ✅ invested in him as a character ❌

He's sweet enough, but overall, I thought he was kind of boring. Don't @ me but I'm pretty sure a lot of people only liked him because he was hot.

Does that mean I was Mew x Wyn shipper? Nah. That entire first season, I was extremely convinced Wyn was aroace. I should've known it was too good to be true. An equally attractive best friend to the male lead with NO interest in the female lead? We could've had it all.

I adore Wyn as a character. He's cute, fun, funny, good-looking, and supportive. His mullet is sick. His outfits are slay. He's basically perfect...but not for Mew, imo. Him falling for Mew was startling.

However, Mew is very lovable in the typical clumsy anime girl way. I just thought the story would become about her journey to self-actualization and idk...following her dreams or something. Not knocking on the romance, but season one was just so strong and handled her character so well. I was impressed that she rose above expectations and handled the theatre crush situation on her own, more or less.

But season two...girlie what even happened. It became all about her having to decide between Wyn and Daze. That would've been fine if it wasn't so heavily focused on her crushing and blushing and looking down at her shoes shyly. I didn't think Mew was weak or annoying, but the writing did her a major disservice in the second season.

One thing I'll say is that I really liked that neither Daze or Wyn were competitive or possessive of Mew. I despise love triangles, usually because they treat the female lead like an object to win, or they resort to bullying and pulling each other down to end up with the girl. It's like "guys, GUYS, why are we fighting over (1) girl when there are so many fish in the ocean".

But Nice To Meet You hopped right over that trope and had Wyn and Daze mutually agree to let Mew choose. They literally let each other have moments with Mew at their own expense. It was really sweet. I liked it.

But the ending still flopped 🙊 what do you MEAN a 3 year time skip????????? I feel like I'm the only one who was genuinely flabbergasted by Mew's painting of Daze. Was it supposed to mean something?? And if so, why did we never get an explicit answer?? Mew crying tells me nothing.

As I said, I ship neither Daze nor Wyn with Mew. I wasn't disappointed that she chose Wyn, but I was confused about why. I had so many questions.

Why did Daze give up on her? Why did Mew need to take a trip for that long? Where did she go? Why did she she cry while painting Daze? Was she letting go of her feeling for him? Did Daze never find someone else? Did Mickey just keep his unrequited crush on Daze for 3 more years? Why was Wyn willing to wait that long for an answer? What's Mew's brother up to? Did Simon follow him? Was Mew so hesitant to start a new relationship because her last one was abusive? What even happened to her ex? Why doesn't she talk about him more? Is Daze's dream to run a coffee shop? What's Wyn's career? Are they all still in college?

A three year time skip is just way too long.

More importantly, I do not like Wyn with black hair!!

I wasn't a ride-or-die Nice To Meet You fan, but I still had all these questions. I can't imagine how its biggest fans felt about the ending. Well, no, I can. That comment section on the last episode is brutal. I'm sure the creator had a reason for rushing the series to a close, but I feel the fans are equally justified in being very frustrated by the unanswered questions and Mew suddenly ending up with Wyn when I think most were lead to believe the painting meant Daze was endgame.

6/10 ending, what a bummer ending for a series with such good art and characters.