#but i also feel sad that i think she'd get a lot more attention

[mswyrr]

I wanted to recommend Tasha Suri's Burning Kingdoms book series again - they're epic Fantasy with a broad scope and beautiful worldbuilding inspired by the diverse cultures and histories of India. They also feature a gorgeous, grand main f/f romance, which is important. But I do get frustrated at the way the books get categorized primarily as sapphic - they are the kind of big, gorgeous Fantasy books that anyone who is into that kind of storytelling would enjoy. They have the depth of historical grounding, in terms of how conflicts between powerful nobles have looked, that rings true for me, and I LOVE the slow unveiling of how magic works in this storyverse.

The audiobook reader, Shiromi Arserio, is really good and I’m glad I listened to them before re-reading the print edition. Her work reading really added to the feeling of being swept away into an epic Fantasy tale.

[arminsumi]

Can i request megumi comforting reader after a bad day? i need happy comfort fluff today and you words are magic

★ Stargazing with Megumi

★ Pairings : fem reader / Megumi

★ Synopsis : Megumi takes you stargazing. Who knew he was such a space nerd?

★ Content : fluff, comfort, cheesy/dorky flirting

★ Note : 🪄🔮 sprinkling cosmic happiness dust on u rn!! hope u feel better!!

Arms spread out, laid on your back in the cool grass as a humid summer breeze drifts by, looking up at the dusky purple sky as stars slowly start to appear one by one.

Megumi shifts around next to you, trying to get comfortable. He bends his knees, you glance at his legs and note how much longer his legs are than yours.

A soft sigh leaves his nose. He brings his hands together over his midriff and fidgets his fingers while stealing sideways glances of you.

One particular star in the sky has caught your attention. It shines like a jewel. You blink at it, ignoring all the other littler stars that are coming out.

"Megumi, which star is that?" you ask.

"That's Venus."

You stare at Venus. "Why is it so much brighter than the rest?" you wonder aloud.

Megumi looks over at you, his heart throbs, then he looks back to Venus.

"Because it has thick clouds that reflect lots of sunlight." he answers your curiosity, "Uh, and it's the closest to earth. You know, it's also the hottest planet in our solar system — because of its clouds."

He goes on a long, dorky ramble about planets and constellations. You smile and listen to him geek out about space.

⁕⁕⁕⁕

Just a few hours earlier, Megumi had found you lingering gloomily on the steps outside Jujutsu High.

He did a double take and furrowed his brows when he saw your weighted expression. Characteristically, he sunk his hands into his pockets and approached you coolly.

"What's that heavy face for?" he asked.

"Bad day." you shrugged.

"Oh..." he stiffened, "What happened? Do you want to talk about it?" he asked softly.

"No, nothing in particular happened." you replied, "It's just been one of those days, you know?"

He scrambled his brain for ideas that could make you feel better.

What would the others do?

What would Yuji do? He'd crack jokes until you smiled and then infect you with his contagious laughter. What would Nobara do? She'd take you out on the town for retail therapy — and hype you up in the fitting rooms until you felt like the hottest person in the world. What would Gojo do? Probably give you one of those bone-breaking hugs while saying something dumb like "Don't be sad, it's just life, kid."

But joking didn't come naturally to Megumi, and he didn't believe in retail therapy, and he was too shy and reserved to give you a bone-breaking hug, and he was too sensitive as a person to tell you to just get over it.

"Uh, do you want to stargaze with me?" he asked.

That was the only idea he could come up with. Laying in the grass and stargazing was something he did when life exhausted or disappointed him. The stars could call back his calmness.

⁕⁕⁕⁕

"... I feel bad for Mercury, it must be lonely without moons." Megumi finishes his long ramble about Mercury.

"I think I'm Mercury." you joke, laughing at yourself.

Megumi looks over at you, "Then I'll be your moon and keep you company."

Your cheeks warm up.

"Okay, then let's tell 'em to rename Mercury to Megumi and throw a me into its orbit, too."

Megumi fidgets with his fingers more as you and him flirt like dorks.

"... yeah, and then you can orbit around me." he nods.

"Sounds like a good time. I'd love to orbit around you."

His cheeks go red, but the lamps are too far away to illuminate his face and reveal his blush to you. So you just barely see his lips purse together into a smile.

"I'd also love to orbit around you. I could be like your moon admirer."

You burst out laughing at last, and then Megumi feels accomplished; he could actually fix your mood with some stargazing and dorky astral flirting.

For the rest of the night, he teaches you how to spot famous constellations and passionately talks about outer space. At some point, when he's saying something about Pluto, you zone out to his voice.

"... and you know, personally, if I were Pluto I'd be enraged. How dare they."

"You got a bone to pick with NASA, Megumi?" you chuckle.

"It wasn't NASA it was the IAU. And yes I have a bone to pick with them."

"So, why was Pluto downgraded to a dwarf planet?" you ask.

Megumi clicks his tongue, "Uhhh... something about it not absorbing surrounding debris or something? Like asteroids and stuff. But jeez, maybe the asteroids are Pluto's friends and he doesn't wanna absorb them, you know?"

You turn on your side and use your arm as a pillow. Megumi feels you looking at him, so he looks over at you.

"You're quite passionate."

"That's a nice way of calling me a space nerd."

"No, I mean it! I hardly ever see you talking so heatedly about anything. You're usually pretty calm."

Megumi smiles a little. "Bet it's funny to see me heated about big rocks floating in a vacuum, huh?"

"Yeah it's hilarious. Anyways... we should get back before we fall asleep here."

"Have you never slept under the stars? It's a great experience." Megumi says.

"I have not. But it's getting cold so... you better keep me warm."

Megumi tenses up as you snuggle him. The sudden closeness and feeling of your warmth and softness takes him aback and he goes completely silent.

You rest your head in the crook of his shoulder, sinking into him like a pillow.

"Hey Megumi?"

"Yes?"

"Isn't Venus the planet of love?"

"Yes...?"

"Nothing, nothing... just thinking."

His heart pounds.

© arminsumi

I do not permit the copying/reposting/translation/plagiarism of my works. Do not steal what I've worked hard to create.

This is fictional work.

[rubra-wav]

how do you think Hazbin Hotel characters would react to a demon with butterfly wings?

The main Hazbin cast x Butterfly demon reader

Part 2 >

A/N: This wasn't really specific with what charas specifically, so I'm just doing the main cast. I'll do a part 2 with more characters, though, if it's wanted (sorry)

Reader's wings are written as colourful and proportionate to their body, so they are pretty big.

Realised there's a 10 image limit per post, which is bs. Isn't how i normally would have liked it to be aesthetically bc of that 👎

Cw: Sfw, slightly suggestive stuff in Angel's, reference to decapitation and cannibalism 💀, kinda a bit angsty in Angel's and Vaggie's, gn! Reader

Charlie

- Charlie would be absolutely delighted by you, no doubt about it.

- She wants nothing more than to be in a place that's vividly colourful and (assuming reader is a somewhat colourful butterfly demon) you'd be that for her.

- She also probably just really really likes butterflies in general though, let's be real.

- I can imagine her just staring at your wings with absolutely starry eyes while complimenting them.

- "They're so pretty ohhh my gosh!"

- I imagine her being lightly jealous, she'd love to have wings like a butterfly.

- Would probably ask if she can touch, and look somewhat sad when told no due to how it would cause your scales to come off. (Assuming reader's wings are the same as normal butterfly wings)

- It may get somewhat uncomfortable if you don't like attention, she would definitely fixate heavily on them. Tell her to stop though and it's making you feel weird and she will tone it down though.

- If not, though, enjoy the attention you're gonna be getting from Charlie over them.

Vaggie

- Vaggie would likely be a bit uncomfortable about seeing demons with wings in general due to her history - let alone you with beautiful, delicate ones.

- I think she'd secretly be hiding some angst and jealously about your wings ngl.

- When she sees Charlie fawning over them though oh boy.

- Yeah she's not gonna be happy about them then. She doesn't blame you or anything for how she's feeling as it's her issue and she knows that, but it still hurts quite a bit - especially in the beginning.

- It gets less and less bad though the more she gets used to it, she kind of just becomes 'meh' about it - especially if you ask Charlie to stop being so gaga about them.

- When she gets her wings back, though, I think she'd come to think they are cool. A normal level appreciation though.

- I can half see you two helping each other out with your wings down the line if you two get closer though.

- There are some things that come with upkeep so wings don't become damaged and stuff, so the people who also have wings? Allies 100%.

Angel

- I'm gonna be fr, the first time your wings come out he's probably gonna be panicked due to his baggage.

- Especially if it happens when you're angry.

- He's probably gonna need reassurance you aren't gonna try hurt him tbh.

- As sad as it is, his trauma would definitely play a part in his initial perception of them.

- After he recovers a bit and stops immediately going into fight or flight and seeing you =/= Val though, the switch up is insane.

- He would be all over you about them.

- I can imagine him calling you a bunch of butterfly related petnames.

- If you remember the 'make those wings flap' comments he made about Husk, its gonna be that on a hundred.

- Even if it's just joking flirting about them, it's gonna be constant because he thinks they are beautiful and it's a lot of material considering you're a butterfly and he's a spider.

- I feel like he would touch them at some point without really thinking and pull his hand back to see your scales have rubbed off onto his hand and go ''oh shit.''

Husk

- I don't think he'd have much of a reaction to it at all - at least not initially.

- Of course he acknowledges that they are very pretty, but he won't comment upon it much at all unlike the others.

- Possibly may make reference to it when crafting bitter statements directed towards you, though.

- Down the line, if you grow closer to him, I can see him as actually being concerned about your wings.

- They are extremely eye-catching and unique for a being in hell, and due to that, it could lead demons to actively target you

- Whether with overt aggressive intentions to take your wings and sell them, or with more covert problems like you being scouted for modelling (ie. By Velvette)

- I can see Vaggie and you trying to set up a wing maintenance group and trying to include him in it. Him being vehemently against it to a level that's almost comedic.

- You eventually convince him even though he's complaining the whole way through it. (He is lying and actually enjoys it).

Pentious

- He wouldn't like them at all in the beginning.

- They're big and bulky and get in the way of everything, including him.

- The amount of times he's accidentally fallen due to 'tripping' on your giant ass wings is greatly irritating and embarrassing to him.

- Possibly thinks you keep trying to kill him by tripping him.

- Could also see his 'hair' (idk how to properly refer to it, haha), accidentally brushing up against your wings with how expressive it is and getting your scales all over him.

- Basically, he doesn't like them because he's clumsy but will take it out on you.

- I also get the vibe he'd be jealous because of how eye-catching they are.

- In his mind, if he had wings like that, then he'd surely have been acknowledged by the Vees in some way.

- If you change your habits with your wings to be conscious of him not being able to walk normally and start getting onto better terms, though, he will likely become appreciative of them and stop being so pissy about them.

- They are very cool looking to him, and once his poor attitude wears off about them, he'll come to admit that.

Alastor

- He'd actually be somewhat weary of you in the beginning.

- It's nature's law that creatures that do not bother to hide themselves are not to be messed with - especially in a place like hell of all places.

- When he sees that you just happen to be particularly colourful, he drops that, though.

- He'd honestly probably be thinking of what it would be like to eat a demon like you after confirming you are, in fact, not poisonous or dangerous at all.

- He doesn't much care all that much for the intrinsic beauty of things as long as they aren't utterly ugly, and as long as they aren't obnoxious and in your face.

- Depending on how bright and vibrant they are and how much attention you bring to them, he may actually dislike them.

- If not, though, he acknowledges they are nice to look at, but again, doesn't really care about them outside of theorising how they would be to eat.

- Would probably make comments about how he could "just eat your wings up," or ask you about how you taste just to try to freak you out.

Niffty

- When she sees them, her eyes grow wide in a mixture of surprise and awe. At the exact same time, an unhinged smirk spreads across her face.

- She then proceeds to leap at you, scissors or whatever sharp object is closest to her raised at your wings.

- She'd be absolutely trying to take a piece out of them for her 'collection' 💀

- You're gonna need medical attention after she's done with you because she's hellbent.

- Her obsessiveness over your wings would vary depending on your gender but either way, she'd be trying to get a piece of them for herself.

- Definitely abnormal level of appreciation of them in the absolute worst way.

- If you can get her to stop instantly trying to cut off parts of them, she's still constantly trying to touch them. You need to complain about your scales every damn time she tries to reach out to touch it without fail.

- it's like your wings are a beacon, and she's the insect gunning for it ironically.

[sorcerous-caress]

Okay as great as crybaby!tav is we really glossed over the potential of mommy!Tav. I may be a smidge bias because that’s a lot like my tav, as she’s so damn determined to take care of her friends and was a baker before she was an adventurer so she’s constantly just doting on the companions offering them pastries. It’s a little self indulgent but My Tav has a little quirk that she grew up food insecure and just absolutely refuses to eat until she knows everyone else has eaten because she can’t bear the thought of any of her friends potentially going hungry. She’s normally very submissive and sweetly to all of them but no amount of begging, discipline or concern will break her because she just cares so damn much. Could you write the dom mom squad™️ reacting too something like that, who tries to comfort them? Who is incensed that she doesn’t believe they can provide? Who gets so hung up on the fact she’s being stubborn they forget the original issue?

A submissive mommy who can cook and give good hugs will literally fix 90% of the gang here, unironiclly.

Reacting to a very motherly Reader

[Bg3 women, fluff, dom mommies, afab!reader, fem pronouns, sub!reader ]

Karlach would relish in your dotting.

During her life in the hells, she was both touch starved and food starved for so long. You being there to encourage her with the pep talks, headpats, and occasional pie is everything she has ever dreamed of and more.

As much as she wants to be the one to take care of you, she can't help but let relish in you fussing over her. The coddling, the comfort, and the constant attention are slowly frying her brain from how happy she is.

Did she die and go to heaven?

She becomes very protective of you, never lets you carry heavy stuff, and always asks if you need her to bring you ingredients or something during her errand runs. No, no, you don't have to tire your pretty little legs. Just stay in camp all sweet and pretty while she goes out and brings you everything you need.

If you didn't know any better, you'd think she's subconsciously treating you like her stay at home wife.

She really likes hovering around while you cook, watching you work attentively and sometimes begging for a sample taste with her puppy eyes.

And yes you being the one feeding her those samples is very important, it enhances the taste a lot.

It might take her a while to notice the fact that you were always the last one to eat. Or how you immediately offered your plate if someone else wanted seconds.

She thinks it's very sweet at first but slowly grows more and more concerned at your well-being.

I mean, if she had to, she would sit on your lap to prevent you from getting up as she hands you a plate of food. Your stern talk will just make her feel guilty and sad but she'd refuse to let you get up.

As much as she loves nothing more than to obey her mommy, sometimes she also needs to take care of her mommy like she takes care of her.

Minthara would admire your ways.

Tenderness and love were never words that anyone in her culture used to describe a mother, an ilhar. No, they tend to fall more on the brutal and disciplinary side.

An ilhar meant authority, control, and order. To defy her is to commit a sin. To show weakness in front of her is even worse.

She is reminded by that cultural difference whenever someone describes you as motherly.

The only thing you had in common with the matrons of the underdark was that underlying strength. That unbreakable will hidden so deep inside you, the urge to survive at any cost and defend your subordinates. She admired it greatly.

You were very strong deep down, strong to be truly worthy of the description of motherly. That kind of strength that the males will never understand, the kind of strength that nurtured even more strength.

So when a person like you showered her in hugs, kisses, and even brushed and styled her hair for her from time to time, how could she ever be ungrateful and say no?

You were generous and kind even when you had no need to be, you were selfless to a concerning degree.

She had to put a stop to that.

Minthara respects you too much to use any of the punishments or disciplinary ways that her matrons taught her. She will talk to you like an equal because that's what she sees you as.

She will be very patient with you. Stopping you when your self sacrifices become too much for your health to bear, Reminding you that you also require as much food and rest as the rest of them.

She'll teach you to relay on her slowly, as gentle as she possibly can be. Which...isn't very gentle, honestly, but she is genuinely trying her best.

Jaheira feels like you complete her.

As an actual mother to so many children, Jaheira still never truly grasped the whole motherly vibe people keep preaching about. Her kids are safe, fed, cleaned, and trained in combat. Isn't that enough?

So what it if she was absent on missions a lot, need I remind you that her line of work concers the safety of the whole world? What kind of mother would she be if she let the whole world, which included her kids, end just because she picked to stay at home and colour with her youngest.

She knows it doesn't excuse it. Give her a break. She is at the end of her age and hasn't had someone by her side since in a long while.

That's why when you suddenly appear in her life with all of the qualities she was severely lacking in, she almost thinks it's too good to be true.

...you almost remind her of a certain someone she lost long ago. You're just as soft and caring to others. Ironically enough people also underestimate a lot because of your kindness too.

She is drawn to you, like a moth to a flame.

Jaheira can't help it. You shine with radiance, and she hasn't felt warmth in so long.

The first few days she brings her kids home-cooked meals, they immediately hold a knife to her throat as they demand this doppelganger tell them where their real mother is.

But after some very awkward conversations, and having to bring you into her house as actual proof. They realised that their mother's stone heart can still beat after all apparently.

Shadowheart tries to play it cool, fails.

She has an edgy mysterious aura she needs to keep, and you're making it very hard for her. How is she supposed to be this dark, cool cleric of Shar when you keep gifting her these hand-knitted pastel sweaters with the most loving look in your eyes.

Of course she will wear them, she isn't heartless.

She's really trying not to show how touched she is when you look for her during dinner at camp to make sure she got her plate. She can't help the blush on her ears when you wipe some food from the corner of her mouth.

She's mean to people on your behalf when they're rude to you or try to take advantage of your submissiveness. Actually she is just mean to people in general if she doesn't like the way they look at you.

Loves taking naps on your lap, absolutely adores when you play with her hair or braid it. Your thighs are the perfect pillows for her to rest her head on and just forget about the outside world and her mission for a while.

She saves the best wine she finds to share it with you later, or the best sweets or fancy jucies if you don't drink. She had to defend her stash from both Gale and Wyll wandering hands, absolutely refusing all of their offers or begging for some of that fancy cheese or that perfectly aged wine bottle.

You're the only person she ever shares it with. She doesn't even want anything in return. She just loves seeing you happy and relaxed every once in a while. You always take care of them, so it's about time that someone takes care of you too.

Laezel has killed people for disrespecting you.

And she'll do it fucking again. These worms forgot their place. She doesn't even care how little their offence is, just efficiently ending their miserable life.

Why do you have a look of disappointment on your face? She did them a favour. She even made it painless and quick to compromise for your feelings.

Chk. Your softness will be the end of you. Be grateful that she is here to prevent that from ever happening.

You threaten not to take her with you on errand runs anymore if she doesn't put her sword away? You really think you can survive without her?

...okay yeah actually you can. You make a really valid point.

If it was anyone else she'd have taken that request as an insult on her honor, but since it's you...

Fine. She will listen for now.

And maybe if you keep making more of those faerun dishes, she will find it easier to listen to you. Especially the apple pie ones.

[hyallulonelyhime]

Hyahime presents: That time when a jsk became an ironing board cover..

Today i'm sharing a classic from cgl many of you have definitely heard about: The ironing board fiasco. The story of a girl, her dad's fiance and many feels.

Everything started when OP shared this image and said the following:

Due to some unusual circumstances, I'm currently living in a partially-renovated house with my dad and his fiancé.

His fiancé is a very sweet lady who is very thrifty. She makes all her own clothes and and will usually find a practical use for something, rather than throw it out (i.e recycling old bottles and jars to pot plants).

I had a Baby The Stars Shine Bright Strawberry and Cherry Ruffle jumperskirt that I didn't wear anymore, so I was planning to sell it. From memory, it cost about $400.

I put it out in the main room next to a pile of clothes I planned to donate to Good Sammies, so I'd remember to take photos of it for the sale. I then went away for a week to visit my grandparents

When I came back, I noticed the pile of clothes had disappeared. Cool, my dad and/or his fiancé had donated them for me. But wait… Where was the jumperskirt?

It was then that I saw the sight portrayed in the uploaded. My dress had been cut up to to make an ironing board cover and a tablecloth. I don't know where the rest of the material is.

It appeared that my dad's fiancé had assumed the jumperskirt was part of the donation pile, and thought there was no harm in 'recycling' it for her own uses. In her efforts to pretty up the concrete-y wasteland of a house, she had unknowingly destroyed an expensive brand dress.

Literally the only thing I could do in that moment was stare blankly. I can't even be mad at her, she had no idea.

So now I have a BTSSB ironing board and table cloth.

the story immediately caught the attention of users as they scrolled. Some found it terrible, others couldn't help but laugh..

Though some were quick to say it must've been fake.

So.. did OP fake this for attention? Let's investigate.

It is very unlikely the fabric was gathered from a replica, judging by the print details and the fact that this isn't a very sought-after or popular piece you'd see everywhere.

But how did one dress result in so much fabric? Although it looks like a lot, one anon pointed this out:

But she knew she'd get the attention, right? ...yes, but I don't think anyone would come up with this specific odd way to recycle a lolita piece and make the community react.

OP responded to the questions and thoughts with the following:

At this point, some anons were pretty much just fighting over if it's okay for OP to be so calm or not. Which.. is a little bit weird. Others were more emotional about this than the victim themselves.

But what you may not know is.. there's more. There's more to the Kawaiironing fiasco.

Op comes back.

I queried the whereabouts of the remaining material and she showed me. She said my dad told her I was "throwing them out" (I have no idea where he drew that conclusion as i specifically said I was donating a bunch of clothes, so at the very least he should have assumed I was, you know, donating them), so she thought it was fine to cut up. My fault anyway, didn't separate the "sell" pile from the "donate" pile. HOWEVER… There were a few other brand dresses I was planning to sell. I assumed they had been donated with the rest of my clothes, as they were nowhere to be found. I was a little sad about that (they were valuable Angelic Pretty, BBSTB and Metamorphose), but oh well. Then I looked in her material bag and found they had also been cut up… When dad said I was "throwing THEM" out, he did not state a plural by accident… Pics to follow.

If anyone wants individual versions of those pics lemme know.

The loli gods frown upon me today for my unbecoming carelessness in handling burando.

Op decided to keep the truth a secret: ignorance is bliss, and her stepmother did not deserve to feel the guilt of ruining so much burando.. or to know that so many lolitas were in shambles knowing about her crafts.

..Although, anons said this wouldn't stop her from doing it again. Maybe she should know so she doesn't cut up even more dresses.

One thing is certain. that's a really cute ironing board cover. Maybe the fabric could become even more random burando stuff: headbows, little makeup bags, cup coasters, mats.. oven mitts?

Lolita home goods for all! we demand a cute life!(✧∀✧)/

[piracytheorist]

Episode 35 screaming notes!

So what if I'm emotional over a fictional, fake family spending one day of vacations together?

I love Twilight's comment about how he's glad the SSS is looking out for the bombing threat (and we know it's in vain), but it still puts him on edge to be stared at like this. He trusts them to protect civilian life (and Ostania's pride and joy of a ship) but he doesn't trust trust them, you get what I mean?

We shan't forget. The one thing this man can't pretend to be is someone who is having genuine fun and we'll drag his ass about it and then cry because this is a direct result of his traumatic childhood

Loid blushing when he spots Yor is so precious. I think it might be him blushing half because she saw his dorky skipping and half because… well. He might be falling in love :)

He notices the swelling on Yor's face, but I think he wouldn't even suspect her at this point. He sounded mostly worried about her.

And of course, Anya wasn't plaguing her with questions because she knows all, but it's funny that neither went like "Isn't our super curious five six-year-old going to ask where this bruise and swelling is from?"

SCREAMS

The following montage was absolutely adorable, and the insert song just made it even cuter. I love how it was Anya who lead them to each activity; neither Loid nor Yor had to drag her around anywhere, their attention was on her and on what she wanted. They even explored a cave! She was their priority, she truly must have had an amazing time and this is such a sweet way to end this cruise!

I mean, look. One of the ways Twilight learns how to parent is by fearing 24/7 that his daughter may fall. Very normal things.

Maybe it's because I'm the youngest child, so whenever we were out as a family and I asked to do something my parents would usually decline, because they had two more kids to look after and a place to go, but I have a lot of appreciation for the Forgers going around the resort and stopping to do whatever and anything Anya asked to do.

Very normal man who is definitely not an elite-trained spy trying to fit in. Normal things.

And like. Okay. Yor looking at Anya with such a soft face as Anya is having pure unrestrained fun is one thing.

BUT THEN THEY HIT US WITH THIS???

OH MY GOD. MY GOD. THIS MAN IS IN LOVE AND HE HAS NO FUCKING CLUE.

Like, for real. I can't stop looking at this. It's just his eyes but there's so much longing and yearning in them and also some sadness because deep down he thinks that what he wants is something he'll never get but this is really deep because it'll take him about three to five business years to accept he's grown feelings.

Like. It's not just "growing feelings" anymore. You don't look at someone like THIS when you're just "warming up" to them. He'd grown so accustomed to life with the Forgers that after Yor was away - though in the very same ship as them - for a couple of days he went all yearning looks and doe-y eyes at her when he met with her again. He's in LOVE.

I am so excited to see how their dynamic will develop from now on! It's gone on an entirely new page!

Anyway. I love how Yor went like "Oh they might see the wound on my chest" for the snorkeling but when she saw they could wear wetsuits she went like oh that's okay then and DIDN'T WORRY AT ALL ABOUT THE FACT THAT SHE'D GET SALTWATER ON HER WOUNDS. THIS WOMAN EATS HOT COALS FOR BREAKFAST AND WHITE HOT IRONS FOR LUNCH.

I mean, I'm guessing she is a fast healer and her wounds are not openly bleeding anymore but still. Hardcore.

And of course she'd beat the shit out of sharks. It's funny seeing the trio try to come up with excuses now but I think it's going to be a different type of good post-reveal, cause they'll be like "I have nothing to hide" and act on their abilities without a single moment of hesitation. Imagine Yor beating up sharks and Loid and Anya looking at her with heart eyes.

Aw, but look at them snorkeling. It's Yor who is holding Anya. I wonder what Yor's thinking is on that since she thinks that Loid is Anya's biological father and has been longer in her life. I doubt she thinks anything bad about Loid, but it is something that would make someone wonder.

I was so impressed by everything in the episode up until that point that I completely missed what the dialogue there was XD I only had more thoughts after I rewatched it.

Anya is having fun looking at the colourful fish. Yor has hunting in mind. Loid is… not impressed XD

Though very light, this could be a reflection of their characters. Anya is a child full of curiosity for the world, easily impressed by new stuff; she loved the aquarium, and she loved seeing new fish from up close.

Yor's encounters with animals were either for hunting (for food) or with guard dogs from people she was sent to kill. She understands the concept of pet animals, of course, but it seems to be a "secret third option", as tumblr would say. Her first instincts are either hunting or fighting, and since those fish were too small to be any threat (I mean, she's confident about fighting sharks), her mind went to food.

And then you have Loid. His wide knowledge of the world has rendered him almost incapable of getting impressed. There's nothing new for him to learn in anything… except for child rearing, of course. And maybe human connection. And so, he seems to be looking at those two in the last shot.

Just like Gram, Anya gets thrown around by a professional, super strong assassin and she just goes like "Again!" And Loid doesn't even make a comment about Yor pushing Anya too strong. He really took to heart and meant it when he told Yor that her being strong is one of the things that make her an amazing mother.

AND THEN THAT SCENE

I had guessed right, as Yor had indeed not rested at all for the entire three days of the cruise and had a long and intense fight the night before. AND THUS FANSERVICE HAPPENS <3 <3 <3

DON'T MIND IF I DO <3

ENDO KNEW WHAT HE WAS DOING <3

No but seriously, there's a lot to love about this moment. Apart from how cute it is, Twilight at first only seems annoyed by how this attracts attention to them. He was already alert from how the SSS was looking at everyone, this would only add to his uneasiness.

But it doesn't take long for him to find an excuse for his wife. Blaming all her exhaustion on her work, being thankful for her going along with everything Anya asked to do, and smiling at her!! Bruh!! And he STILL can't see it, this man is such a good liar he can even lie to himself!!

Seriously the way Eguchi delivered those lines? Superb <3

AND THEN THE FAMILY THEME PLAYED AND I WAS LOSING MY MIND.

They didn't have to go so hard T_T It was a relaxing (and quite prolonged!) chapter to wrap up the cruise arc, but it was wonderful T_T

Even the Handler is up to him, though. Fullmetal Lady won't fall for his emotionally constipated bullshit.

AND I THOUGHT IT COULDN'T GET ANY CUTER!

She even drew the family in their colours! Yor in red, herself in pink, and Loid in a muted green! I can see Yor holding one of her stilettos, but what is the other thing? A rose? I don't think I can tell what Anya is doing in the drawing, but Loid looks like he's holding a bomb? Or a surfboard?

AAAAAHHH It was wonderful!! T_T

The parts with Yor and her coworkers and Yuri and Lieutenant Guy were actually added by the anime! I feel Yor about the gifts. I'm so bad at gifts you have no idea. And Yuri is on another level, he doesn't stop talking about his sister and he tells Lieutenant Guy "Are you psychic or something" and he's like "Sure sure". And this being this kind of show I was like "MAYBE???" but yeah no he was just messing with Yuri XD

Hey psst. You know what will look even more convincing? If you both slept on those pillows 👀👀 next to each other 👀👀

I was cringing so hard at the scene in the school! Anya! We love you as you are, you don't need to go embarrass yourself!

It was interesting, though, to see that Damian stayed out of it all. It's proof that he can mind his business and keep his opinion to himself. I hope he learns to do that more often.

Becky continues being best friend material <3 Anya is so lucky for real

It's been less than a week

It's so funny to me that the anime added the detail that it was Loid who picked the snacks for Yuri. I wonder how quickly Yuri would spit them out upon learning that XD

My mans tired. I felt kinda sad for him ngl XD

Okay, this was hilarious. His paternal instincts are starting to kick in to the point where he imagines teaching Anya the proper methods of deception. It was also funny that as Yuri was imagining his speech, I went like "Uhm you lie to your sister no?" and before I got to finish that thought, the excuses kicked in.

And Anya is starting to learn that actions have consequences.

This isn't what she manipulated two enemies of the state into adopting her for.

TWO EPISODES LEFT T_T I might have to pick up making crack recaps again for however long the next hiatus will last :'D

[deconstructthesoup]

First thoughts on a Fantasy High Dead Boy Detectives AU:

Ayda is in Edwin's role as the brains of the agency and the ghost from 1916 who escaped Hell. Her father was wealthy enough that she was able to go to a private all-girl's boarding school, but as the only Black girl at the school---who was also visibly queer and neurodivergent to boot---she was treated as an outcast, right up until she got sacrificed in a prank gone wrong. Now that she's escaped, Ayda uses the skills she's picked up and her love of mysteries to help out her fellow ghosts, though she's... not exactly the best at processing her feelings. Especially when those feelings involve her partner in solving crime.

Fig is in Charles's role, because there's no better fit for our lovely, heart-on-her-sleeve punk than the lovely, heart-on-his-sleeve punk---and let's be real, Fig is the most 80's Bad Kid. She attended the same boarding school as Ayda (just, y'know, seventy decades in the future), and while she fell in with the popular girls easily, it didn't take long for them to turn on her once she stood up for someone they were bullying... and, well, that led to her death. While Fig acts carefree and wisecracking, she carries a lot of guilt with her over the fact that she'd written off her family once she found out that Gilear wasn't her real dad, and not only did she never get to reconnect with them, but the experience was jarring enough that she made a lot of bad decisions, which led to equally bad relationships.

Adaine is in Crystal's role as our favorite psychic that is full of rage and anxiety. Her "David" is Penelope, who posed as a cool, older girl who gave Adaine the attention that she was lacking at home---and eventually became her first girlfriend, though that relationship was... not great. Now without a lot of her memories, Adaine's stuck with the Dead Girl Detectives, much to Fig's delight---and Ayda's, eventually. She gets over her jealousy way quicker than Edwin did. While Adaine wasn't a "make someone walk into traffic" kind of person pre-amnesia, she did carry over a lot of bitterness that curdled into something worse when she got swept up into the popular crowd, so... yeah, Fig and Ayda are kind of a blessing for her.

Figuring out the Niko equivalent was a bit harder, but I eventually settled on making her Lucy. She kind of fits the bill of someone who has a lot of sadness but is still unflinchingly kind, and between the pale hair and being dead-but-not-really-dead... yeah, Lucy's wonderful, and it means if I ever write this, I get to figure out who she is as I write her. Also, her dandelion sprites are Kipperlilly and Ruben, because I thought that'd be hilarious.

Thinking more into that, I decided that Sam would be a pretty good Jenny, seeing as she's got the bitchy-yet-loving energy that we all need. She's tired yet protective, closed off yet oddly kind... it works. Even though her style's more of a, uh "mermaid academia" type than goth, I think she'd make a really good Jenny.

And here's where you're gonna have to hear me out... Kristen is the Cat King, or rather, the Cat Queen. As tempting as it is to make her the church girl lesbian who's just come out and is struggling in a small town, I really wanted to hone in on her energy in Junior Year---a confident, easygoing, and hella flirtatious butch who's still a total mess underneath her swagger. I like to think that she was a human girl living in a religious family once (say, when settlers first arrived in Port Townsend), but she got really into witchcraft and wound up devoting herself to the cats, becoming an otherworldly being with nine lives as a result. As it stands, Kristen is hella fun, even if most of what she does is cause trouble.

With that in mind, Kalina was really the only character who I felt matched up with Ester's energy---except for Aelwyn, of course, but seeing as she's Adaine's sister and all, it didn't feel quite right. It could also tie in with Kristen's backstory---say, maybe Kalina was the person who taught Kristen about witchcraft, Kristen wound up getting the better end of the deal, and Kalina's still burnt out about two hundred years later. And in an irony of ironies, that resentment led Kalina to have a wolf familiar instead of a cat... who is, of course, our lovely girl Tracker. (Yes, Tracker has been turned into a girl before, and yes, she and Kristen are exes.)

I'm not quite sure who I want the Night Nurse to be, and you can tell that I'm saving roles for Gorgug, Fabian, Riz, and Ragh in case we meet characters like them in season 2---though, I have been fiddling around with the idea of Riz being an angel and a former agent of Heaven who Ayda and Fig have basically adopted into the agency. This is a first draft, so... yep!

[m4yasnotthatcool]

Any headcanons for Nicky Nichols?

Nicky Nichols hcs

I'm dorry i didnt know if you meant general hcs or also x reader hcs so I just kinda mixed em and put some general relationship hcs w her (I used the terms: girlfriend, partner and lover. I did specify the gender of her potential partner because she's a lesbian SO FIGHT ME)

♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡

•I feel like she's very overprotective over her whole family in general (by that I mean red, gina etc) but more so over her girlfriend(yes I'm using the term girlfriend because she's a lesbian, deal with it);

•don't get me wrong, she trusts her partner 100% and she would never get involved into any of her drama unless she believes it's getting to the point where any actual harm would come for her lover;

•I also think she's internally a very emotional and sensitive person, but due to her upbringing she doesn't know how to express herself (thats also part of why she started using drugs, it was a way of coping and also forcing her mom to give her the attention she craved her whole life);

•that being said, i think what she really needs is a girlfriend who even tough might not understand her struggles, doesn't undermind them;

•she would need a lot of reassuring, because as I've said before, I think that for her even the slightest change in attitude could make her spiral and think the other person hates her;

•I love love love her relationship with red and all I can think about is how actually sad and fucked up it truly is that the only time in her life when she had someone truly care for her in a motherly way was in prison;

•I don't remember if this is canon or not (it most probably isnt) but I feel like while in rehab the first time they took her away after luscheck ratted her out she would do crafty little art projects to district herself; I don't think she'd read much tough, especially during that time. reading usually brings you to think and she probably was looking for a way to disassociate, distracted herself from her addiction;

•I also don't think she had that much sex while in rehab (counterintuitive, I know). even tough sex is a great way of making you forget about your problems, I don't think she'd be up for it. with her situation I belive her libido dropped (shocking, I know) so she didn't really feel the need to anyway;

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(a/n) YES IK ITS SHORT ASF IM SO SORRY I JUST DIDNT KNOW WHAT ELSE TO SAY

love yall, be safe out there

[grievedeeply]

the less time, the better. pt 6.

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pairing: heimdall x gn!reader

summary: seeing your face in asgard once more is enough to send heimdall careening over the edge, running face first into the feelings he harbors for you. your mission to find the last mask piece takes you to nilfheim, where you share a heart to heart with the aesir god of foresight.

notes: it's been five months. i'm so sorry. i genuinely had no idea where to take this story and i still don't but.. this is a thank you to everyone who decided to stick around. it means a lot to me that you all still support me and my silly little fic <3 i also forgot about the entire muspelheim section.. so pretend that happened already with thor. and this is where the story really diverges from the plot, as heimdall would be dead by this point in the game's story, so ignore any plot holes i might have made (i do not plan i just write). lastly, if you have been tagged for this and don't want to be anymore, send me a pm!

you'd ran into ratatoskr on your way out of sindri's place, and he greeted you with a warm grin and a gentle hug (as much of a hug as a squirrel could give, anyway), and sent you on your way. you couldn't remember what he said to you as you passed through the mystic gateway and onto the yggdrasil, but still, you smiled at it. you wondered if he ever got tired of your family's presence there. how had sindri come to own his home in the first place? you'd have to ask him another time.. if you even managed to get back in one piece.

you wondered if people in asgard even noticed your absence at all. you were almost sure they did, seeing as you were running errands for the allfather and spending time with his lapdog. you were nearly impossible to miss and the attention was something you weren't exactly used to, but you had learned to adjust as time went on.

you kicked at the wood beneath your feet. how many times had father walked these branches before you? would he be proud of you? was he proud?

before you could think on it any further and dig yourself into an ever deeper sadness, the gateway opened and you stepped into the cold with a sigh. you loved midgard. it was your home, but the weather was something you never thought you'd get used to. all it did was remind you of your past. you pushed the door to your home ajar and your eyes met huginn's. you swore he could read your mind as he called the ravens into the room, ready to take you back to asgard.

you landed in your room— well, modi's— and looked around at the familiar yet strange surroundings that formed in your vision. this room would never be yours. it belonged to modi, and you felt guilty for taking it away from him even if he wasn't around to occupy it anymore. still, you gathered yourself and your thoughts in this room, and you were grateful. it was the only place in all of asgard where you felt at peace, but you also knew it was the only place where you had some sort of privacy. as soon as you opened the door, your mind was open to all who surrounded you.

you took in a deep, shuttering breath. it had been some time since you'd last been in asgard, and you knew you'd become a topic of conversation. it was better to face it now than to delay it any further. you pressed your shoulder against the door, pushing it open with a sigh. you came face to face with thrúd, who wore a smile. her hair was still unruly and wild, her weapons hanging from her hip and onto her backside as they always did. it was good to see something remained constant in an ever changing environment.

you'd come to like thrúd, she reminded you of atreus. even though they didn't act very similarly at all, she was young and bright— clever and courageous— and all of those things always brought your thoughts to your younger brother. you greeted her with a grin, and she turned on her heel, heading off in the direction of the mess hall. she'd come to welcome you. even without saying anything at all to each other, the smile you'd shared was enough to make your chest feel warm. she cared for you, and that was more than you ever would've expected from any of the aesir.

you stood there for a few moments, brushing the thought of her out of your mind for a few moments before you made your way down to odin's study. you didn't exactly want to see him, but you knew he would be expecting you to meet him upon your return.

the doors were much heavier than you remembered, but you forced them open despite the strange amount of weight. the room was empty, and you immediately knew where he would be. you noticed huginn and muninn in this room, and you nodded over at them in greeting. even if they couldn't speak to you, they were both somewhat intimidating. bounded to odin forever.. the idea was a horrible one. you made your way down to the rift, passing odin's desk in the process. it still felt uncomfortable for you to walk around as though you belonged.. but you tried to keep your head up about those things. if anyone were to know about your feelings in that regard, especially heimdall, he would rub it in your face.

heimdall. you grimaced at even the thought of him. odin seemed to love sending you out with him. you had only went out once with thor when finding the first piece of the mask, and you had distracted him so easily with the trials to take a peak into surtur's shrine. you'd unpack whatever you saw then another time, but you knew it was important. despite that, you'd been out with no one else except for the aesir god of foresight. heimdall was easily manipulated by his father for a man with abilities like his own. you could only assume his lack of perception stemmed from his need for validation from him. you sighed. you felt poorly for him and the way he'd been treated, but it still didn't mean you enjoyed his company.

"ah," odin greeted you once you reached the bottom of the steps, his hands coming to rest on your shoulders as they always seemed to do. it reminded you of your father, but his touch was vastly different from odin's. his hands were gentle, as though if he were to squeeze you any tighter you would break in his grip, but his.. you couldn't begin to describe it. it felt foreign, even after how common this was. you'd never get used to it. "i knew you'd come back." he said, his voice going in one ear and out the other. the man was practically insufferable, but you smiled up at him regardless, keeping your façade up that you knew he could see right through.

"next is niflheim, isn't it?" he asked, and you nodded in response. "heimdall will be joining you. it seems the two of you get along quite well." he told you, and you swore heimdall appeared out of thin air right next to you.

he stood behind you, his hands resting on both of your shoulders. his thumbs dug into your collarbone, but your back pressed against his chest. you were.. close. "we do get along, don't we?" he asked, leaning his head over your shoulder to look you in the eyes. he had gotten bolder in your absence, almost as if he had forgotten that his powers did nothing on you, which was something that still confused you. you didn't think on it too much. it was nice that he couldn't read you with his abilities, but he was still smart enough to figure it all out eventually. "we do." you grinned over at him, meeting his eyes. at this, he pulled back from you and let his grip on you loosen, but he didn't take his hands away.

"let's get it taken care of then, shall we?" odin said, gesturing for the his ravens to surround you with a flick of his wrist. "good luck." he whispered through the flock, and he disappeared from your vision. heimdall's hands finally fell from your shoulders, and he moved away from you.

being in your presence again made him feel uneasy. you were still a giant, an enemy of his people, someone he was supposed to despise no matter how helpful you may prove yourself to be. though, his heart ached whenever he heard your name. you'd wiggled your way into his heart and he hated it, but he had finally brought himself to admitting it. he practically lived by, 'the less time, the better' when it came to you. the less time he spent around you, the better it would be for him and his growing feelings, but the allfather was always intent on sending him out with you. he would try to brush it away as him being trusted. watching you was a priority, making sure you didn't sneak away to do whatever it is you do.

with this piece crossed off, there was nothing left to be done. in a different world, you'd look through the crack in the basement and see whatever odin was talking about, but you couldn't let him have this mask. you'd take it back to sindri's, away from his grasp forever. whatever this thing was.. it was no good.

the cold wind pulled you out of your thoughts, and you thanked yourself for putting on a coat before you left. you put your hand into your jacket pocket, feeling the yggdrasil key in your grasp. if things were to go wrong, sindri gave you an escape. he'd approached you right before you saw ratatoskr on the steps of his home. sindri.. all he ever did was give. he was far too good for a world as cruel as this one.

you glanced over at heimdall, who stood in front of you with crossed arms. "the mask?" he asked sarcastically, eyebrows raised in annoyance. you said nothing in response, only rolling your eyes before you held the mask out in front of you. "this way." you muttered, moving down the pathway and towards its pull. this mission was different from the one to helheim. it was quiet. you didn't have much energy to talk, but he wasn't exactly the best person to talk to, anyways. you were feeling guilty about leaving your family once again. knowing that they worried for you.. it struck a chord in your heart, and it hurt. heimdall said nothing as you walked, but you could feel his eyes practically glued onto you.

you were unbelievably hard to read almost every other time he'd seen you. the time in the mess hall where you'd teased him and stared right into his eyes and into the depths of his soul was at the front of his mind. he memorized your features in that moment, much to his dismay. he never would've expected to feel this way for a giant. he had struggled with putting a word to the emotions he'd been feeling.. but your absence made it easier to realize. once you were gone, he felt normal again, but his mind was still plagued with thoughts of you as though you never left. these feelings.. they were love. admiration. all things he should never feel for a giant, but he did believe in fate. this was meant to happen. it had to be that way. if only he could seek out the norns for reassurance that this was the decision he should make, that he needed to make. he yearned to have solidity in his choices, but he was leaping off of the deep end with this.

heimdall struggled with reading you, but now.. it was incredibly easy. your shoulders slouched and your expression cast downwards towards the icy floor beneath your feet. he hated feeling as though he needed to help you, and he kept quiet for as long as he could. had you even realized you looked so upset? even if he were to point out how saddened you looked, what would he say to you? he was never the best at comforting, being the last person anyone would go to for any sort of advice in any sense.. so he had no experience in the emotional department. when he was feeling down, who did he have to do to? no one. he grew up bottling everything inside until he couldn't anymore. did you grow up that way? you couldn't, he told himself. your mother, laufey. she wouldn't have let you feel that way.

he sighed, but took a few quick steps to reach your side. "you are dampening the mood with your dour expression," heimdall muttered, sparing a glance over at you. he noticed you looked towards him, but that was all you did. he let out a dramatic breath and held his hands behind his back, lips pressed into a thin line. "i am serious." he spoke up once again. "you will speak of what ails you, or this will be the most counterproductive trip you have ever been on, and we will get nothing done."

suddenly, you stopped in your tracks and turned to him. "do you really want to know what's wrong, or do you want to find out and then use it against me?" you asked, brows furrowed as you took a step towards him, pressing an accusatory finger at his chest. "you.. you never liked me, you never wanted me here, why pretend to care about me now?" you inquired, tone filled with frustration. heimdall confused you to no end and you wondered if you would ever get to the bottom of whatever was going on with him. hopefully you wouldn't. the less time you spend around him, the better. was it too late for that mentality? you saw him nearly every day in asgard. he was practically impossible to escape. "you.. you hate me. you're supposed to hate me." you whispered.

he said nothing in response and you rolled your eyes. "left you speechless, huh?" you chuckled dryly. taking your emotions out on him wasn't a particularly kind thing to do, you knew that. normally, you weren't one to lose control of yourself to easily. was it the change in environment? the stress? the absence of your family once again? you took in a deep breath, staring down at the clothes you wore, brushing your hand down them to straighten yourself up. "i'm.. i'm sorry. that was mean." you whispered, shutting your eyes.

this was supposed to be a serious, professional mission. this was supposed to be an in and out, simple thing. why were you making it so difficult?

heimdall still remained silent. you looked at anything except for him, your cheeks flushed in embarrassment. you weren't mad at him, not really. he had been an arrogant, bratty asshole in the past.. but he had asked if you were okay. did he care for you? in a real, genuine way?

you forced yourself to move your eyes to him. he was already looking at you, his eyes practically glued to your face. you felt tiny under his gaze, as though he could see right through you. "i am supposed to hate you." heimdall murmured, "and yet.. i don't." he told you, shrugging his shoulders. this was the most vulnerable he had ever been with you. "when you bested me the day we met.. i wanted nothing more than to prove myself better than you. i hated you for embarrassing me." he admitted to you what you knew was obvious, but you let him talk. his voice sounded less grating, now. almost like a warm birdsong in a sweet summer morning. reassuring. gentle.

"but now, i don't hate you. you are.. a giant." he lowered his voice, letting a sigh escape his lips. "i judged you based off of it. but you.. you are different. special."

you furrowed your brow. special? what was he talking about? his cheeks turned a soft pink but he didn't dare pull his eyes off of you. you were special. you made him see giants in a different light. you.. you were kind. you were beautiful in every way imaginable. if this was what love was, he was content with every bit of it.. even if you would never reciprocate.

he watched as you pursed your lips, leaning back against the balls of your feet. you bit at the inside of your cheek, sniffling. "thanks." you whispered out to him after a pause. all he could bring himself to do was nod. he kept his eyes on you. despite opening himself up to you, you stood in front of him, looking just as distressed as you did before. he knew his words of reassurance couldn't automatically cure you of your worries. he would be a fool to believe that would ever be the case. instead, he sat one hand on your shoulder, the other coming up to your cheek. he turned your head to face him and watched as your eyes met his.

"what ails you?" he repeated his words from before. now, with his hands grounding you into reality, you swallowed. his thumb caressed your skin as though you were a piece of glass or.. an expensive piece of artwork. he studied you and your expression, his eyes searching your face for anything he could make note of. like how your gaze flickered back and forth between his eyes, unable to focus on just one.

"i.. feel guilty." you admitted to him. he furrowed his brow. "guilty. what for?" he asked you. his hands still kept their hold on you. if he let go of you, would you go into that same spiral? "leaving again." you mumbled, barely loud enough for anyone to hear. he was grateful for his enhanced senses. "you should've.. you should've heard them. my brother." you said, atreus' face filling your mind. he was too sweet. he cared almost too much, sometimes. you would protect him, protect him from anything. isn't that why you came to asgard in the first place, to protect your family?

heimdall nearly froze. his brothers had never cared for him in the way you care for yours. thor was more of a colleague, working for the same man. baldur was hardly ever around when he was alive, always out tracking for the allfather. týr.. he was the only one who truly expressed any sort of love or kindness towards him, and then he was gone. he was ripped away from him, just like that. týr was his older brother. he wasn't a coworker. he was family. he pushed the thought of him out of his mind. this was about you.. not him.

"your brother. tell me of him." he told you, thumb running over your skin a few more times before he let go of you. instead, he took hold of your hand and led you to the side of the path, sitting down on a conveniently placed rock, big enough for both of you to share. even once you'd sat down, he didn't drop your hand.

"atreus.." you chuckled, turning your head to the sky. "he's so sweet. he loves animals. he loves the.. the realms for what they are. he finds the good in everyone, in everything. like.. baldur." you whispered his name. "i think of.. of baldur. of magni and modi." you turned your head to look at him. "i feel so guilty, sleeping in his room." you murmured. "it isn't mine, it's his." you swallowed. you'd been getting distracted from what he asked you to speak about, but.. had you ever spoken of them to anyone other than your father and your brother? have you even spoke of them recently at all? your father moved on from them easily, but you hung onto each of them, their memory.

"i'm sorry, i'm.. getting off topic." you chuckled breathlessly. "no," he murmured, "speak of what you wish." he told you. heimdall had never sounded so genuine, so kind. what was he trying to do? would he really use all of this as some type of leverage? your guilt, your worries and feelings? he couldn't. he wouldn't be that cruel. he had opened up to you. he liked you, you reassured yourself.

"atreus.. he has wolves. speki, svanna. fenrir."'you told him, a soft grin on your lips. heimdall found himself admiring each expression that formed on your face as you spoke, but he never let his attention drift away from your voice. "he loves those dogs. he loves.. archery, and art. he's so good at drawing. he has a- a journal. i've seen it. he fills it with anything and everything. he's so.. good." you continued, turning your head to look at him. "he deserves more than i could ever give him." you mumbled to yourself, glancing up towards the icy ceiling above you.

"he sounds.. like you." heimdall said. he sounded kindhearted, caring. loving and genuine. all things that reminded him of you. "he's better than me." you spoke through soft laughter, shaking your head nonchalantly. it was good to get these things off of your chest. you glanced over at him, your gaze soft and gentle. he found himself getting lost in you once again. your eyes held a warmth he never would've expected to see.

why did you have to be a giant? why did you have to be related to the man who killed his family? why had life dealt him a cruel hand of cards? even despite all of that, he kept his eyes on you. his feelings for you may never be accepted by asgard or even reciprocated by you at all, but that was for the best, wasn't it? this relationship you had with him was a strictly platonic one, he reminded himself. though, he turned his gaze down to look at your hands. as you were speaking, you'd entwined your fingers in his own. did you even realize you'd done it?

he squeezed your hand, and you squeezed back.

a weak grin formed on your lips and you lifted your free hand to your face, wiping away the salty tears that had begun to fall down your cheeks as you spoke. he kept his eyes on you, running his thumb across the back of your hand. realistically, he knew you would never work out. being with you was a dream.. but it was a nightmare. his family would never approve, he would be cast out and shunned by his father. could he handle that? as he looked at you, he had no doubt in his mind that he could.

you had mentioned your thoughts on his father to him before, only briefly, but it was enough for him to get an understanding of the relationship you thought he had with him. he wasn't a fool, either. even if he couldn't read your intentions he could read your expressions and your body language. you weren't his biggest fan, but you were still in asgard, helping him. for your family.

he knew you hated the allfather. why had he not killed you the moment he laid eyes upon you? he remembered the smile on your lips as you hung from the wall, the only thing keeping you up was his hand wrapped around your wrist. he should've killed you then. he shouldn't have let himself grow attached to you but you looked at him with such a soft gaze.. how could he help himself? you didn't put him up on a pedestal and that was different. it was unusual for him to be treated the same as everyone else but it felt almost decent when it came from you. he felt.. normal.

he blinked a few times. he was completely enamored with you from the moment he saw you. that was why he didn't kill you. even if he didn't realize it until now, you were the one he was meant for.

he let his mind wander for a moment. if you were to reciprocate, would that give an opportunity to mend the relationship between the giants and the aesir? he knew that you wouldn't be approved of by anyone in that sense but.. people would get used to it, right? he was his own person. he could make decisions for himself.

"i'm sorry," you muttered. heimdall furrowed his brow and shook his head. your hand remained in his own. you had to have noticed it by now. "you have nothing to apologize for." he whispered out to you. you chuckled, a small smile forming across your lips. he swore he would never get tired of seeing you happy. "never knew you could be such a softie," you told him, "but.. i like this. seeing you being genuine."

you pushed yourself to your feet, your hand falling out of his in the process. with a sigh, you grabbed the mask from your belt and spun in a circle until it turned that same familiar green color you'd seen so many times before. "let's get this done, yeah?" you peeked at him from over your shoulder, and he nodded wordlessly.

there was nothing left for him to say, anyway.

the last stretch of the trip was silent. heimdall felt as though his heart and emotions were on display to you after the conversation you'd had, but you moved on with the mission as though you barely noticed. did you notice it? were you just trying to make him feel better? he shrugged it off. he had to behave normally for the allfather, anyway. this was for the best, he told himself.

"here," you called out to him, your voice breaking the silence like a knife. "look." you held up the mask for him to look at, and he did so. it was glowing, shaking with every step you took towards the edge of the cliff. you looked down into the abyss below you with an uncomfortable expression on your features. if you were to fall, you would definitely die. before you could think on your fears any further, the mask nearly flew out of your hands. with a grunt, you tightened your grip on it, and the next mask piece flew up and attached itself onto what you held in your hands.

the force nearly knocked you over the edge, and he reached out for you, pulling you back up onto solid ground. "thanks," you mumbled, taking in a deep breath. he nodded, turning away from you. the screech of odin's ravens filled the air, and suddenly the allfather had appeared in front of you. he approached you, a grin on his lips that spread across his entire face. it was almost unsettling.

"you did it," he murmured, walking past heimdall to meet you. you noticed his expression fall. you knew odin was a professional at making his kids feel awfully about themselves, but seeing it firsthand was something you hated. no matter how horrible the things they'd done, they did it on his command. were they really to blame for it all? they yearned for his approval, after all. you pushed the thought away, focusing on the man that stood in front of you.

while you were lost in thought, thor and sif appeared in the same way odin had moments ago. they were accompanied by two valkyries who towered over you. you weren't really scared of them, though. not after you'd freed all of the corrupted ones all those years ago with your father and brother.

"they mean to kill you, allfather." sif said through pursed lips, and odin rolled his eyes, turning to face her. "i thought we were past all of this, sif." he spat her name out, fiery eyes meeting her gaze. "they are using you. they're using all of us. they're manipulating your son," she shot a glance at heimdall, and he furrowed his brow. manipulation? you wouldn't. you couldn't.

"their father killed our family." she said, turning her gaze towards you and away from her father in law. "our sons," she glanced up at thor, who gripped his hammer so hard his knuckles were turning white. "baldur." she whispered his name out, and you took in a shuddering breath. "and they get to live here, sleep in our sons room?" sif asked. "isn't it only fair they die, too?"

suddenly, thor took a few quick, bounding steps towards you. you swallowed, digging through your pocket to find your yggdrasil key. you shut your eyes, grabbing heimdall's arm with your free hand without even realizing it. "i hope this works," you whispered to yourself before throwing it down with all of your might, "hvergi!"

you felt yourself falling through the air, wind whipping past your ears until your back landed hard against the wood of the yggdrasil. you let out a breath, opening your eyes to look around at your surroundings. before you could pull yourself up on your own, you felt a hand wrapping around yours, bringing you to your feet. your father. you grinned up at him before you noticed him narrow his brow. you looked over your shoulder.

heimdall.

you'd taken him with you.

TAGS: @s1mpss @gorepitt @callalillie15 @bluehorizon987 @vanserrar @trippingoverstars @mysiax @beaniebear152 @rei64bit @neverendingdumptser @a-bunny13 @lei-leigha @candy4bonez @yyourmotherr @blobdrake-theory @zarizee @rainygamingstreamingturtle @kise-kae @aesthetic-of-a-director @unodostrescuatrolove @nixeustheclamity @aiciteaa @multifand0m-gal0re @chibi668 @wonderkive @lentillo @luffysoctopus @elizabeth-hatake @black-star1472 @lacm-ac @sxmirae @maggot-baggage @emc2beans @suzumi-hiddenmistclan @engardeitsme @white-lyra @lmorg149 @iamverydreamy @giornos-curls @reinabxitch @ourchampionofthesun @paintmekala @the-eternal-sunflower @alextric-overload @lynn-haitani

[marinerainbow]

I'm getting back into Mario... And it reminded me of two OC's I made when I was younger... I'll put the second OC on the back burner in case I don't go anywhere with her, but the other OC I know I'm definitely keeping.

The Princess of the Boos, daughter of King Boo

Now, I am still trying to figure out her design and backstory. Her backstory I think I want to keep it a mystery similar to Bowser Jr's origins (the idea I have though is that King Boo had fallen for a human women and used her soul when she died to create the first born Boo; his princess. But I haven't played Luigi's Mansion, so I have no idea if that'd even be in character for him). The only thing that is for certain, however, is that she is King Boo's child and heir.

I keep interchanging between a humanized look for her and her looking like a Boo, however. If she's a royal boo, then she'd be a bit smaller than a regular boo (which is tiny compared to King Boo 🥺), but she has the black sclera like him (or are those dark circles/shadows under his eyes? It's kind of hard to tell), with glowing, opera mauve pupils. She has a jewelry crown like him. However, it's smaller compared to his, and it'd look like a garnet rather than an amethyst like King Boo's crown. Her human form- which I'm not sure if she'd naturally have, could transform into, or would need the Peachette Crown to turn into, I'm still debating on... Though I kind of imagine her having a similar style as Muffet from Undertale 🤔

I couldn't find who the artist of Muffet's illustration was, but this was the best photo I could find. If you guys know, please let me know so I can properly credit them ^^

Yeah, she is still a bit of a mystery 😅 but I still wanted to post about her. Here are some tidbits for her ^^

Personality wise, she is a bubbly goth XD she's the kind of princess who would take you to the cemetery to meet her family, but she's way too happy and excited that you're here so you can't get too weirded out. To her, creepier things are normal; the killer piano is just a lovable puppy to her, the spinning eyeball is a nice decoration, her dad trapping people in his paintings is just 'dad and his collection' to her, etc. She feels curious about the rest of the kingdom, but would also feel out of place in Peach's castle or something.

Even so, when she gets upset, she'll resort to pranks and causing trouble. Like how children will sometimes do if they seek attention. She is a playful soul in general, but her jokes will turn more troubling when she's sad or angry.

King Boo, similar to Bowser with Junior, loves her to peices ^^ even if he is 'working' all the time. He does have a lot of haunted manors to look after and only really gets a vacation when Bowser temporarily takes over, and his time is taken up even more now that he's declared Luigi his enemy. So, unfortunately, they don't see each other too often. King Boo has yet to figure out how to balance his royal duties and family like Bowser (we do see Bowser invading the kingdoms alot, but it's obvious with how much Junior and/or the Koopalings admire and love him that he is a good and devoted father).

Princess Boo keeps a diary, like Luigi in Paper Mario. She writes down everything in it. Little writing blurbs, what she did that day, her thoughts and feelings, etc. Including all the times her dad left her behind.

This does leave Princess Boo feeling pretty lonely and prompts her to show up unannounced. But really, she just wants to hang out with the only parent she has. Sure, her citizen boos will play with her if she asks, but it's not the same... If she was in the games, this could even be a game mechanic; Princess Boo will pop up out of nowhere in the haunted house and pretty much stop everything the player was doing to 'play a game'. Whatever game she chooses, you can only pass the level when you win, but regardles, she looks so happy you're complying with her. On the surface, she looks like a brat interrupting the game, but all she wants is a friend if she can't have her dad.

Which leads me to one of my main tidbits about her; since I hc King Boo and Bowser have some kind of treaty or alliance, especially after the events of Luigi's Mansion, King Boo requested Bowser at some point to make sure his child doesn't interfere with his latest scheme. Bowser agreed, allowing the Boo Princess into his castle. She was pretty hurt by the implications behind this, and she did cause some trouble in the castle. But that led to her running into her best friend, Lemmy Koopa.

Lemmy, as we know, is pretty fun-loving and playful himself. I think he was immediately drawn to Princess Boo, just excited to have another playmate! But also because of how sad she looked. Being part of a mischievous pack of lizard children, he (and all his siblings) can tell the difference between genuine play and attention seeking mischief. Princess Boo at first wanted him to just leave her alone, but it didn't take long of him showing off his ball and magic for her to cheer up and start giggling again. And ever since then, they've been inseparable ^^ in fact, when the koopalings started taking over kingdoms alongside Bowser, she begged her dad to let her set up a haunted house in Lemmy's kingdom so they could team up.

Princess Boo does have varied relations with the other Koopalings too. She and Bowser Jr. And Larry are all similar ages, so they can get along the best (I'm not sure if I want Princess Boo to be younger or as old as Junior. She would definitely be one of the younger kids, though). She was first introduced to makeup and dress up with Wendy- who also taught her the tactic of referring to her dad as 'daddy' to get what she wants, so shes kind of like a big sister to her. Ludwig is a bit stuffy, but he can be cool. Iggy is on a similar level as Lemmy, and Princess Boo adores his pet Chomp Chomp. Roy is also cool, but in a 'the big kids on the block' sort of way to the princess. And she likes playing with Mortan and listening to him blab on about whatever is on his mind. But of course, Lemmy is her bestest friend.

She is envious, though, of their great relationship with their father. She is a bit sensitive about her dad and their relationship and would prefer it to not be brought up whenever she comes over.

Although she doesn't know it, her father is definitely getting dad advice from Bowser when word gets back to him on how sad she really is. He genuinely loves her and wants to do the best for her.

When Princess Boo is really sad to the point of tears, she'll fly away and possess something just so she can be alone and unseen. She has a bed in her room just for the purpose of her diving into it, but she has been known to hide away in paintings, vases, and other furniture and decor.

After hanging out with Bowser Jr., she wanted to try her hand at painting, too ^^ her art is more gothic abstract/psychedelic, and she likes to hang them up in her dad's haunted manors. He refuses to take any of them down, not even to make room for his own collection.

Now, that's all I got for her, but there is one more thing; I have referred to her as Princess Boo throughout this post, but... I don't really like it 😅 I know it'd fit in with King Boo, but I prefer something like Boolina or Booella. I can't decide which one, though. So, even though I doubt this'll reach to a lot of people, I wanted to add a poll ^^ I'd love to see what you guys think.

Edit: I forget that the character Goombella existed. And thinking about it, with Toadette and Gommbella, Boolina would complete the set of 'characters with feminized names of their species' names' xD (but also, Boolina sounds close to Rosalina, and as far as I know, all of the female characters in Mario have unique names special to them 🤔 and I also like the sound of Booella-). So I am leaning a bit more towards Boolina, but we'll see how the poll goes ^^

Also, I meant to add this as an option in the poll, but if you guys have other suggestions for her name, I'd love to hear them! No doubt, you guys are way more creative than me XD

[fetusgooseandjuice]

Hi, how are you? I hope everything is good. I wanted to tell you that I love the story "I'd Do It Again For You" I reread a lot of times already, it's one of my fav. I like how you write, so I was wondering if it was possible a "Kate x FemReader" where Kate was a little distant and cold and the reader was sad, they argue a little about this but the truth is that Kate preparing a surprise for the reader's birthday, something for the two of them, romantic and fluffy. Thank you if you'll do my request. （*＾ワ＾*）Have a great day/night❣

Promises

Pairings: Kate Bishop x Fem!Reader | Wandnat x Daughter!Reader

Summary: The request!

Warnings: Mentions of cheating

Word Count: 4.2k

Author’s Note: Sorry it took me a bit to write this request, but here is it! I hope you like it! Also, I apologize for any grammatical errors. ❤️



You weren't sure what had caused Kate to become so distant lately. It seemed like she was always too busy to spend time with you, and you didn't know why. She'd been more secretive with her phone and her whereabouts, and it honestly worried you.

Was she cheating on you? Had she lost feelings and was just afraid to say something?

So many possible reasons for her recent behavior ran through your mind, and it scared you to think that some of them might actually be true.

With your birthday being in only a week you hoped none of your thoughts would become reality because that would be the worst birthday present in all of history. But you didn't know anything for sure besides the change in her behavior began a couple weeks ago...

~~~

"Hi, Katie!" you happily greeted your girlfriend as you flopped down next to her on the couch of the compound living room.

She quickly shut her laptop that was on her lap before looking at you, "Hey, baby!" Kate nervously chucked, "When did you get here? I thought your moms didn't have to come in until tomorrow."

You slightly frowned at her actions, "Just a few minutes ago. Fury called them in for a last minute meeting, so I decided to tag along to come see you."

"Well I am extremely happy to see you, pretty girl. I missed you." Kate softly spoke as she leaned in to kiss you, but before your lips could touch you placed a hand on her chest to stop her. She looked at you with worried eyes and pulled back, "What's wrong?" Kate asked.

"What were you doing on your laptop?"

She hummed in confusion with furrowed eyebrows at your question. "When I came in here you closed your laptop like you were hiding something. Are you?" you clarified.

"What? No, I would never hide something from you, baby. I just wanted to give my full attention to my girl now that you're here." Kate assured you with a sincere smile.

You searched her eyes for any signs of deception, "Are you sure?"

"One-hundred percent, my love." she confirmed before you just decided to let it go with a nod of your head, "Wanna watch a movie? Yelena went shopping earlier and bought some of the good snacks if you're hungry." Kate suggested as she reached for the television remote to turn on the TV.

"Sure, as long as I get to pick what we watch. Your taste in movies is a bit...different?" you said with a giggle.

"Fine," Kate playfully rolled her eyes while standing up, "You pick the movie, and I'll go get snacks." she said, leaning down to peck your lips before heading off into the kitchen.

~~~

You thought that would just be a weird one time thing from your girlfriend, so you pushed it to the back of your mind and tried to forget about it. That was going pretty well until her suspicious demeanor continued and the amount of unusual behavior from her started to pile up.

Like when she canceled your date night plans at the last minute a few days later...

~~~

You were laying in bed reading a new book you've been obsessed with when your phone rang from beside you. Your eyes shifted away from the pages to look at the screen and when you saw your girlfriend's contact name on the screen, your heart fluttered.

Setting aside your book, you tapped the button to answer and held the phone up to your ear, "Hi, Katie!"

"Hey, baby." she responded, her tone sounding a bit sorrowful which caught your attention immediately.

"What's up? Are we still on for tonight? I've been looking forward to it all week." you questioned with a grin just at the thought of seeing her later on.

"Um, yeah, about that..." Kate trailed off.

You furrowed your eyebrows, "What's wrong?"

"I'm gonna need a rain check on our date. Something came up and I can't make it." she explained.

Your once fluttering heart dropped at her words. You had been so excited to finally spend time with her after being busy with your moms all week.

You missed her.

Kate told you she missed you just as much which is why she promised to keep her schedule today clear of missions and anything extra. But you can't blame her because it's not her fault.

"Oh," you said sadly, "That's okay. What came up? Did Fury give you a mission?"

"No, I just have some personal stuff that I have to take care of. I'm sorry, baby. I know you were excited for our date, but I promise I'll make it up to you soon." Kate answered which made you frown.

You both tell eachother everything, so you found it odd how she wasn't telling you what came up that caused her to cancel on you at the last minute. You were confused, but you decided to just leave it alone for now.

"Okay, I understand. I'll talk to you later?" you asked, hopeful.

"Yeah, of course, I'll call you. I love you." she responded. You repeated the words back to her before hanging up.

Dropping your phone, you rested your head back on the headboard with a sigh. Personal stuff? What was that supposed to mean? You didn't wanna think about it at first, but the thought of her possibly cheating on you or having lost feelings now seemed like it might actually become true.

A knock on your bedroom door broke you out of your thoughts, "Yeah?" you called out.

The door opened revealing Wanda, "Hey, dinner will be done in a couple minutes if you're hungry." she said.

"Alright, thanks." you gave her a small smile that, as your mother, Wanda was easily able to tell you forced out.

"What's wrong, darling?" she wondered.

You looked up at her with a hum, "Nothing, I'm fine." you answered.

Wanda playfully rolled her eyes at the lie and entered your room, taking a seat on the edge of your bed, "You know you can talk to me, right? I know kids don't necessarily prefer to talk to their parents about their problems, but I want you to be able to talk to me."

You nodded your head, "Yeah. Yeah I know." you said while sitting up, "It's nothing, really. Kate and I might just be going through a rough patch."

She lightly frowned, "What do you mean?"

"I don't know. Kate's been acting a little off. First she started hiding things from me, and now she just canceled our date because 'something came up' in her words." you explained and Wanda just listened, "I just feel like something might be up with her."

Wanda had a sympathetic expression on her face as she looked at you, "Oh, I'm sorry, honey. Have you talked to her about it?"

"Yeah, the first time it happened. She promised me there was nothing going on so I left it alone, but now I'm starting to doubt that." you responded.

Wanda just pulled you in for a hug, comfortingly rubbing your back, "I'm sorry, sweetie. I'm sure things will get better very soon. Your mom and I both know that Kate loves you too much to let you go, but we're here for you if you need us."

"Thanks, mom. I think I'm just gonna go eat dinner and then settle down for the night." you pulled away from the hug.

"Okay, sweetie. I love you."

"I love you too." you said before she left your room, closing the door behind her.

~~~

That leads you to now.

Kate was driving you home after going on your rescheduled date that she promised to make up to you. Your birthday was tomorrow, and things were seemingly back to normal. Kate had been showering you with affection and she called you fifteen times a day just to tell you that she loved you like she always had.

Wanda was right when she told you things would get better...but it didn't last.

You and Kate were singing along to your favorite song when her phone rang. She took her phone out of the cupholder and looked between the screen and the road. You watched as she pressed the red button to quickly decline the call and then set her phone in the compartment on her door, away from you.

"Who was that?" you asked.

She shook her head, "Nobody."

That's how she always answered whenever you asked what was up. She brushed it off and it was beginning to get on your nerves.

"Are you cheating on me?"

To say Kate was shocked at your question would be an understatement. 'Why would you ever think such a thing?' she thought to herself. She loves you more than anything in this world, and Kate thought you knew that.

"Because if you are, just tell me so we can get this over with." you added.

"Baby, where is this coming from? Why would you think I'm cheating on you?" she asked, glancing at you before looking back at the road.

You shrugged your shoulders with a scoff, "Oh, I don't know. It's just the way you've been acting recently. Like that time where you shut your laptop the second I walked into the room, and then you took a raincheck on our date because you had 'something to take care of'. Now someone just called you and you're gonna tell me that it's nobody?"

As Kate listened to you she cursed herself for not realizing what her recent secretiveness looked like. Now she understands why you would think she's cheating on you, but that's not what's not even close to happening. Kate would clear everything up for you right now if she could, but she couldn't.

That would just ruin what she's been planning.

"Listen, I understand why you'd think that and I'm sorry for making it seem that way, but I promise you I am not cheating on you. I would never." Kate assured you, but you just rolled your eyes. "Nothing is going on, you just have to trust me, baby." she said as she parked the car in front of your house.

"I've swept everything under the rug because I trust you, but I'm tired of it now, Kate." you said.

Kate sighed and looked at you, "I know, baby, and I'm sorry. I love you so much, but I can't tell you right now. "

It was your turn to sigh now, "Fine" you unbuckled your seatbelt, "Just call me when you wanna tell the truth." you said as you got out of the car and made your way inside your house.

She watched you close the front door with guilt written all over her face. Kate never meant to upset you. She just wanted to plan a surprise for you to make you happy, but she sees now that she wasn't very good at trying to keep it a secret.

Kate just hopes that you're not too mad at her to talk to her tomorrow when she can finally show you what she's been doing all this time.

~~~

"Good morning, honey. Happy birthday!" Wanda enthusiastically spoke when she heard you enter the kitchen the next day.

You gave her a smile as you sat down at the kitchen table, "Thanks, mom."

"Got any plans for today? Going out with friends or are you and Kate doing something?" she asked, keeping an eye on the food she had cooking.

You sighed at the mention of your girlfriend, "I don't know. We got into a small argument last night when she dropped me off and haven't talked since."

"Who got into an argument last night?" Natasha jumped in as walked into the kitchen. She approached your spot at the table and leaned down to kiss the side of your head, muttering a 'Happy birthday, sweetheart.' to you before going to look through the fridge for something to drink.

"Thank you, mama." you said, "Kate and I got into a small argument when I asked her about why she's been acting so off recently."

Natasha and Wanda looked at each other before turning to you, "We're sorry, darling. Your mom told me about that night when she canceled your date. I'm sure she didn't mean to hurt you. We see how much Kate cares about you so I know things will eventually work themselves out. You probably have nothing to worry about, dear." Natasha reassured you and Wanda nodded her head in agreement.

You tried to think positively after seeing how your moms were doing so, but you were finding it kind of hard to. However, what you didn't know was that they were fully aware of Kate's plans, which is why they were trying to comfort you like this.

She had let them in on her idea to surprise you for your birthday so that she could ask their opinions on things, but now they were silently scolding Kate for upsetting their daughter because of her inability to act normal while sorting out this surprise.

You just shrugged your shoulders as they sat at the table with you, setting down plates of food. That was when your phone dinged, letting you know you had gotten a text. You looked at the lit up screen that had a message from Kate's contact.

Good morning, pretty girl! Happy birthday! I'm sorry about last night and I hope you're not too angry with me about it. I'm a little busy this morning so I won't be by until evening, but I love you so much and I hope you have a great start to your day! I'll see you later, my love. ❤️❤️❤️

You weren't sure what to think at this point. You were confused. Deep down you know that Kate would never hurt you, but then why had she been acting like this? You wanted answers, yet weren't getting them.

Letting out a sigh, you stood up from your chair, "Actually, I'm not really that hungry."

Wanda and Natasha glanced at each other, "Are you sure, honey? Breakfast is the most important meal of the day." Wanda chuckled in an attempt to lighten the mood.

"Yeah, I'm just a little tired. I'll be up in my room if you need me." you said before making your way upstairs.

They heard you bedroom door shut before sighing.

"Bishop better make this little surprise worth it if she's gonna upset Y/N this much." Natasha practically growled, turning to her wife.

Wanda shook her head, "It'll be fine. Remember how stressed out she was when trying to find a present for her? Kate cares too much to give Y/N anything less than what she deserves."

Natasha leaned back in her chair, "I hope you're right."

~~~

It was now evening and Kate just pulled up to your house. The sun was set, the stars were out, and everything had been working out perfectly. She knows however, that it might be a challenge to convince you to come with her.

She walked up the front steps with a bouquet of your favorite flowers for you in hand and rang the doorbell, patiently waiting for someone to answer.

A few moments later the door opened, revealing Wanda, "Kate! Hi, it's good to see you." she said as she stepped aside to allow Kate inside.

"It's good to see you too, Mrs. Romanoff." Kate replied with a genuine smile.

"Y/N is up in her room. She's barely come downstairs today because she's been so upset." Wanda told her which made another wave of guilt wash over her. She thanked Wanda and made her way to the stairs, politely greeting Natasha on the way.

Kate stood outside your room and took a deep breath before knocking on the door. She waited for you to answer before opening the door and stepping inside, "Hey, love." she said.

You lifted your head away from your book to look at her, "Hi." you quietly responded.

She approached your bed and held the bouquet out for you to take, "I know the old ones are starting to die, so I got you new ones."

You took the flowers from her with a small smile, "Thank you, Katie."

Kate stood there for a moment, contemplating what to do, "Listen" she started, sitting next to you on your bed, "I know you're mad at me for how I've been acting recently, but I have a reason for it. I couldn't tell you before, but I can tell you now." she said, "Well I can't really tell you, I have to show you."

"Kate it's late and I'm tired–"

"Please," she cut you off and took your hand into hers, "Please, just come with me. You said you wanted the truth, and what I'm about to show you is the truth."

You gazed into her pleading eyes and thought for a second, "This is gonna explain what you've been up to all this time?"

"Yep," Kate smiled, "So get your cute butt up, get dressed, and let's go." she grinned at your giggle and kissed your forehead before leaving the room to let you get ready.

A few minutes later your footsteps walking down the stairs interrupted Kate's conversation with your moms. She looked at you with adoring eyes, "Ready to go, beautiful?" she asked, standing up from the couch.

You hummed as she grabbed her keys and led you to the front door with a hand on your lower back.

"Hey, Bishop," Natasha said before you could walk out the door. Kate turned around to look at your mom who had her arms crossed, "Drive slow."

Kate gave her a quick nod of her head in understandment, "Yes, Mrs. Romanoff." she agreed before leading you out of the house and to her car.

"Where are we going?" you asked as she pulled out of the driveway.

"You'll see soon enough." Kate smiled at you.

And you did.

A little while later Kate parked in front of a place that you both knew like the back of your hands even in the dark. It was the lake that you had your very first date at after Kate asked you out.

She had set up a nice lakeside picnic on a sunny, breezy day where she taught you how to use her bow, and you fed the ducks and skipped rocks.

You haven't been back since, but you were happy Kate decided to bring you.

"Katie, what're we doing here? We haven't been here in forever." you gazed out the window, taking in the familiar sights.

"Come on, I'll show you." Kate said, getting out of the car with you. She grabbed your hand and intertwined your fingers to lead the way.

She began following the dirt trail through the trees and along the lake. It hadn't been too much of a long walk when Kate stopped, "We're almost there, so I'm gonna cover your eyes now. Do you trust me?" she asked.

"Yeah, of course." you answered before she placed her hands over your eyes and carefully led you the rest of the way. When she eventually stopped again you assumed you had arrived.

"Okay, are you ready?"

"Yes, Katie, just show me already." you said and she chuckled at your eagerness.

When she removed her hands from your eyes your breath hitched at the sight. It was just like your first date, but so much more. Blankets and pillows were laid on the grass with food sat on top and lit candles carefully placed on the ground.

Rose petals were scattered all around, fairy lights hung on the branches of the surrounding trees which gave the scene a beautiful, romantic glow with the sound of the gentle ripples of water from the lake.

It was gorgeous.

"Do you like it?" Kate hopefully asked.

"Like it?" you repeated in shock, "I love it...I love it, Katie."

She breathed out a sigh of relief, "Thank god, I thought it would be too much. I mean you didn't tell me what you wanted to do for your birthday, but I knew I obviously had to do something so I practically begged your moms to help me plan this. They probably got tired of me–"

"Wait, my moms knew about this?"

Kate scratched the back of her neck, "Well, yeah. They helped me pick out some of the decorations and your mom gave me recipes for the food because we both know I can't cook."

You giggled, "It looks amazing. This is what you've been up to lately? You did all of this yourself?"

"Not all of it. Yelena helped me set most of this up. She's actually the one who called me yesterday. She was letting me know that she got the fairy lights I asked for. I just told you it was no one so you didn't get suspicious, but that clearly backfired." Kate confessed.

"Oh," you mumbled. Now you're the one who felt guilty for ever doubting Kate's loyalty to you. You should've known better, "I'm sorry for not believing you when you said there wasn't anything going on. I was just worried."

Kate shook her head with a small smile, "It's okay, I understand. I was acting pretty weird so you had every right to suspect something. But, now you know what I've been doing so there's no need to think about it anymore, okay?" she spoke to you softly, gently cupping your cheeks.

"Okay." you whispered. Kate leaned down to capture your lips in a tender kiss, moving her hands down to your sides as yours went to her neck.

You eventually pulled away when air became a necessity and Kate rested her forehead against your own, "We should probably eat the food before it gets cold." she said.

Nodding your head you let her take your hand and lead you towards the blankets where you sat down and began looking through the options.

Time always felt like it flew by at a lightning speed whenever you were with Kate. You could never get enough of the way her terrible jokes made you laugh to the point where you were out of breath, or the way she looked at you while you were talking, how she took her time whenever she kissed you.

You could never get enough of her.

So you shouldn't have been surprised when a couple hours of you two flicking food at each other, and skipping rocks, and laughing until you couldn't breath, and sharing sweet kisses ended up passing by.

"And then Tony got so mad at me and Clint for destroying all of that equipment with the arrows we made that he just ended up making a whole separate room solely for archery." Kate said and you giggled as she was telling you about one of the many times she's stressed out Tony.

Kate gazed at you as your laugh gradually winded down with adoring eyes. "Hey, I actually got a little something for you." she said, searching through a bag that was set off to the side.

"Oh Kate, you didn't have to. This is already enough as it is." you gestured to everything she had set up around you.

"Yeah, but I wanted to. Besides, I think you're really gonna like this." Kate spoke as she pulled out a small pink box with a cute ribbon decorating it and handed it to you.

You looked between her and the box.

"Go on, open it. It's what I was buying that day I hid my laptop from you. It's also what I went to pick up when I canceled our date, so this almost got me in trouble." she laughed with you and watched as you untied the ribbon and opened the box.

You gasped at what sat in the center of the box. It was a gorgeous silver ring with a small heart shaped diamond attached that shimmered in the dimly lit area.

Kate gently grabbed the box from you and took the ring out, holding it in front of you, "Now it's only a promise ring, but I hope to eventually change that." she said and you giggled, "I want this ring to remind you of how much I love you whenever you look at it, Y/N. I promise that one day, I'll replace this ring with an engagement ring, but until then I want you to know that I'll always stay loyal to you because I love you more than anything else in this world."

Her words were so sweet that a single tear ran down your cheek. She reached out wipe away the tear before taking hold of your left hand and you gladly let her. She slipped the ring onto your ring finger and admired how it was a perfect fit.

She brought that hand up to her lips and gave it a soft kiss, "I love you, Y/N. So, so much." she whispered to you.

You surged forward and connected your lips in a passionate kiss. You had caught Kate so off guard that she had to hold your waist steady to keep from falling back as you wrapped your arms around her neck.

"I love you more, Katie. So much more." you breathlessly spoke against her lips before connecting them once again.

She grinned into the kiss, "Happy birthday, baby."

[lesfir]

This is the kind of post that become a flight of thought and reasoning with a bit of hc. The Break Up with Lord Astarion Like: Asc Astsrion dickpic photo of a drunk ex - behavior nah well if drunk... still nah+meh Astarion has centuries of seduction experience. His brains aren't so smooth as to send Tav a "dickpic" in hopes of attention and success. He'll come up with a really nice and neat plan to get Tav to come to him on their own. He's got time. It's AU meme modernity ofc. It's hard to work. Without context, Astarion loses a lot. The medieval, vampirism and slavery is a big context. Depends on how painful it was. Let's say it went okay, a little uncomfortable, but normal. In modern times, if Tav was kind, he'd be something charitable, showy. For Tav and good for building influence, too. For love of the people. If Tav was more evil. He'd be doing something extravagant, still logical. Looking like a fool is not a best seduction tactic. For a good Tav, he'd create parks in the city, and support the arts, charities. For the evil Tav, he would seek influence in closed circles so that those she knows about (admires) would talk about him and his deeds like new skyscraper-hotels with casinos. In any field he would quickly become famous: a beautiful man with refined taste. Speaking of the Middle Ages, in Faerun. Depends on what Tav is interested in, it's magic - the best relics from around the world in Baldur's Gate. New opportunities for mages from all over Faerun. Come to Baldur's Gate. Warfare - don't even ask. Fella will climb into any dragon lair on his own to get to impress. (And have some fun). Astarion despite having goals, would quite enjoy and discover new things in the world. In general, he would get his way. I don't think it's even canonically obsessive, that you can't get off once, like a frenzy, nah.

He'd remember his personal plans, he'd party a lot, he'd be sad sometimes that Tav couldn't share the fun with him. Eventually he was able to taste the food again. There was so much around that he couldn't for 200 years. Seriously he would eat 10 kinds of desserts and enjoy them, forgetting everything. I prefer it when Tav loves everything and shares eternity, pleasures and decadence, the line of play. In this line-breakup I'm more interested in the “partners in crime” that Lord Astarion suggests. That's the fun line of the game.

Here, if Tav friendly agrees, he definitely:

Kinda Friendship Zone. But Astarion is ok with it.

-- Everyone on the Sword Coast thinks they're having an affair. -- He very often emphasized in the beginning that Tav was his friend, like a little poke. But he stopped doing that when Tav returned the favor. -- Astarion feels the need to touch Tav's hand. In general, touching Tav makes him feel better. This Tav is also tactile, she needs to touch someone she likes, someone she is friends with. -- That Tav is a druid. She turns into a frog if Astarion goes too far. And starts croaking. A thing that makes him angry, sad and happy. -- Astarion crosses the lines of edgy flirting while dancing. -- Sometimes Astarion thinks dark thoughts, but he always just thinks them. He has time. To lose her smile is to be a fool. -- He always sulks for about three days when their temprs clash. But that doesn't happen very often. This Tav is as calm as a toad in the sun. -- Surprisingly. He was so greedy for her time, literally, but he'd only gently invite her to join him - for a party, a walk, on a ship to Calimport. Tav had said no a few times. Needing to keep her distance, not to spoil the greedy dragon. And he'd just go like a cat and she'd be bored while he got the fun of traveling. He brought back souvenirs. But she would have liked to see his smile the first time he looked at this town. -- No friend in the Realms gets gifts like Tav. -- His legions of crows are on duty outside her house. Tav didn't mind, she didn't have the best opinion of the world anyway. They were showing up together, these rumors... who need to prick him, will prick her. -- At sunset they often walk together in the parks in the Upper City.

[bonefall]

Honestly, I think it could be interesting having Thunder's siblings be old enough to at least interact with him before he left. Seems like a prime way to display how bad parents like Clear Sky turn their kids against each other if it benefits them sometimes- especially when they won't play their games anymore. Plus, it'd be interesting to see them interact with Sparrow Fur, and how she'd feel about them.

I think I've got an interesting direction in mind, to tie in the new family.

Clear Sky Baby Expansion: Draft 1

Thunder Storm is the firstborn. All others in his litter are stillborn, as previously stated.

Ages are shuffled around a bit in BB. Thunder Storm is looking at about 1 year old when he goes to train under Clear Sky, encouraged by his mother.

It's only here that he learns that he has half siblings. They're significantly younger, a little under 6 months.

Their mother is pretty clearly not close to Clear Sky, and treated like most other cats. Thunder Storm pieces together that her life was a lot better when his halfsibs were younger, but it seems like Clear Sky lost interest in them pretty quickly.

Something about this makes him uncomfortable; but he doesn't have the words yet to say that he feels like she has been used and discarded

NOTE: I am planning for the relationship between Thunder Storm and this character to be generally positive, but in a sad way. "I don't know how to say you deserve better without calling my dad a piece of shit."

Tiger Sky and Pale Sky, notably, do not carry their mother's last name. This is very rare for Tribe cats, it's customary to do an even split.

They're also both girls, since there's no stated gender.

Clear badly plays favorites, and has chosen Thunder Storm as his current favorite because he is the largest, most charismatic kit.

Thunder thinks the two younger kids are brats at first, but then realizes, that's the only way they get attention

I may have Pale or Tiger take the role of Fircone; Thunder thinks he's close with them, but they turned the minute they could get a step ahead in their relationship with their dad... and Tall Shadow merc'd them in the First Battle, not knowing that she was Thunder's half-sister.

Clear Sky is unfortunately very unkind to the surviving twin. "We all fought our hardest in the First Battle. If you had been stronger you might have saved her."

This also becomes a thing he uses as a method of control :/ "I'm just trying to keep you safe! I never want to lose another child like how I lost your twin! I hope you never feel what I feel!"

Tiger: "i guess i wont go hang out with my friends because it reminds my dad of my sister dying, which was actually my fault <:("

Tiger Sky will PROBABLY be the survivor because I like the name more.

Eventually Skystar has another litter, Rumble Sky and Lightning Sky (Note: still not named for their mother), after being betrayed by Star Flower.

It is noted that he did not even consider a name for the lost twin and it's pretty weird they have names related to Thunderstar.

Sparrow Heart betrays ThunderClan for SkyClan before the First Battle, and so definitely had to compete against both twins.

[happyk44]

Since HPD isn't as well known as the others, I wanted to make a list of ways I think Piper would display it. I made a greater list with ways HPD could present in general, but I'm iffy on posting it because I don't have HPD so it's like 😬😬. I might post it later, we'll see.

Anyway! Piper!

Preoccupation with appearance is a criterion according to the DSM and a frequent symptom experienced. While I think Piper does pay more attention to her appearance than she believes she does, she does so in a way that people's first thought isn't "oh she's so pretty" or "oh she looks so strange/interesting". She puts a lot of effort into looking normal/boy-ish, which obviously makes her stand out compared to her siblings when at camp, but also makes her stand out in general public because she expressly denies femininity, wears a feather in her hair, oversized or ill-fitting clothing. I think she both thrifts and "shops" (steals) from expensive stores so her outfits have a mismatched element there as well.

It's supposed to prove that she doesn't care about looking pretty and therefore doesn't care about people paying her any mind, but they always do, and then she can feign annoyance or distress over people telling her she'd look so much better if she wore things that fit or had any cohesion to her choices, or even complimenting her on her eccentricity.

It's not a criterion but people with HPD have said that they tend to lie or exaggerate situations. In the early stages of her dad's career taking off and her refusal to acknowledge it, she probably started lying about what he did for a job when it came up or lying to sabotage his jobs because she was desperate for him to spend time with her like he used to. Maybe even lying to explain why she doesn't have a mom. It just gradually escalates from there until she's lying about things that don't even matter.

Breaking the law is also not a criterion and it's not something that's come up frequently in people discussing their live experiences BUT it is the primary way that Piper has sought out attention from her dad and I can't imagine that she manages to shake it off so easily. She steals, not always for the thrill of it, but in an obvious manner so she'll get caught. When she seeks novelty or excitement, she might steal less obviously. She gets frustrated when a cashier or clerk notices her stealing but doesn't care.

I do like her having shallow and shifting emotions, lacking depth in her feelings. Everything is so fleeting it would cause emotional whiplash in anyone else. She's good at disguising how she feels internally, but she still struggles with her emotions. One minute she's the happiest girl in the world, the next she's sad, the next she's angry, the next numb, then back to happy. It flashes through her like lightning.

It's kind of like standing in a puddle when everyone else is enjoying their own lake. They tell her to swim like they do and she can't because she just has this tiny puddle of glee. It's not deep enough to swim. So she just gets her feet wet and nothing else. Feels glee but it's so faint. So she jumps to the angry puddle, but it's just the same problem. She's learned how to fake swimming, and sometimes the puddles will become lakes, bur they shrink back to a puddle so fast it's almost like the lake never happened. Only the residue of water drying in her hair and on her clothes lets her know it was real.

Interpreting relationships as closer than they are is such a good one as well!

Jason: Not entirely her fault, Hera did mess with her memories, but instead of taking a step back and giving them both breathing room to truly get to know each other for reals this time, she stuck with the "he's my boyfriend, everyone else can fuck off" attitude, even though technically they'd never dated and weren't through TLH

Putting a claim on Jason and then dating him also provides her with attention because Jason is so perfect and everyone is jealous about it, as well as unintentional charmspeak making Jason ignore other girls. But then Jason moves back to Camp Jupiter while she stays at CHB and she starts to lose that jealousy from others, as well as the attention she needs from Jason himself, plus her own feelings regarding her sexuality, so oops, turns out I never loved you, it was all fake because of your step-mom, bye

Leo: She definitely thinks they're closer than they are. She thinks she knows everything about him, when the reality is she knows everything Leo wants people to know about him. He keeps everything private and personal and traumatic locked deep inside himself. She only knows the persona and never once questions that there may be more below the surface because she doesn't really need to know him fully to get attention from him.

Leo being her primary source of attention because others find him too annoying to tolerate so she's really his only friend (until Jason) is one of my favourite headcanons with this AU because Leo is not as social as he pretends to be and requires more space and time alone than she is willing to give, so she gets deeply frustrated about and bothers him constantly because, until camp, he's really the only one provides her with positive attention

Annabeth: Piper becoming quickly attached to Annabeth and thinking of them as best friends is a concept I really like. In BOO, I always found that one scene between the two of them very odd. Not necessarily because it wasn't a good scene, but because it made them appear much closer than I had thought they were. Annabeth is the only member of the seven that I see being actual friends with everyone of the ship, but I wouldn't necessarily think of her as being close to all of them.

Annabeth is eager to fix things and provide solutions, so Piper is able to overshare and rapidly talk about herself and her life. Under NPD!Annabeth, I think this works out in both their favours because Annabeth gets praise and admiration for her intelligence, and Piper gets attention and focus. With canon Annabeth, I think she'd get winded far too quickly because Piper puts a lot of emotional needs on her and it's a little overwhelming

People with HPD have also talked about validation and seeking approval from others. This kind of couples in with the suggestibility/easily influenced criterion. Piper will default to either the most popular choice or to the side of whoever she seeks most approval from. I like to imagine this as being Jason or Annabeth.

When they're on opposing sides, she will become nervous and afraid that the other will like her less for not choosing them so she exhibits fawning and/or people-pleasing behaviours towards them as sort of an apology and to also ensure they're still willing to pay attention to her.

If it seems they're not, she will start to crash and/or become much more clingy and dependent on the person she did choose, which can cause a sort of tonal whiplash because one minute she's apologetic and kind and the next she's ignoring you and rude.

I don't think this is so much as easily influenced on her behalf, so much as her lacking her own moral structure. She's focused on the present, what feels good in the moment. She might have stronger opinions in certain moral and ethical discussions and be willing to vocalize them even if they oppose everyone else's stance, but for the most part she lacks that development.

Like Percy, or even Clarisse, she relies on other people to define her morality, but where they are very stagnant in the people they've chosen to mimic, she's much more wishy-washy about it. If Jason expresses opinion A, she will express opinion A. But if Jason leaves and Annabeth expresses opinion B, she will express opinion B. If someone comes up to her and asks her for her opinion, she might be vague about it or assess the person and vocalize the opinion she believes they would most prefer. For Percy, it's more Sally has expressed opinion A, so Percy will typically always express opinion A, even if Annabeth or Grover express opinion B.

There's definitely stances Piper is firm on. But a lot of things, especially stuff she doesn't know, are much more vague. She's less willing to admit to disinterest, especially if it's something the other person is passionate about, because then they may not engage with her.

This isn't really HPD specific, but according to one study, it was found that two thirds (67%) of people with HPD also met the criteria for ASPD. Now ASPD has a low threshold to qualify (3/7 versus 5/8 for HPD), so there is that to consider. But I do like the idea that she does have noticeable traits of ASPD, even if she does not qualify, re: disregard for the law (the constant theft), lack of remorse/rationalizing mistreating other people ("people just like giving me stuff"), lying repeatedly for personal gain (attention).

I get that she didn't know she had charmspeak at the time, but given her intention was to steal the car for attention from her dad, I don't think the lack of knowledge about charmspeak matters. She knew the salesman would let her drive the car, even if she wasn't sure why, and even if he wasn't willing, she could've easily started damaging the cars and received the same outcome (police called, dad comes).

In summation:

Disregard for the law, often in obvious manners in order to get caught

Excessive focus on appearing "not like other girls" and unfeminine; drawing attention to her Native American ancestry, even though feathers in your hair is not commonplace

Pathological lying

Quick attachment to others; overestimating her closeness with people; disposing of people when they do not provide enough attention

Clinginess

Oversharing personal information

Constantly seeks approval from people she thinks highly of

Struggles with indecisiveness

Fluid/flexible opinions and moral code

Lack of remorse or guilt, even when the behaviour is detrimental to others; rationalizes harm or mistreatment of others, whether actions were intentional or not

Shallow expression of emotions

As always, if anyone reading this has HPD and their own ideas or thoughts on this headcanon, feel free to send me an ask about it.

[unlikelyjapan]

s2e4 rewatch notes

I'm a bit tired, please forgive the typos:

At the intro, we get a montage of the permits and files and drills, the sense of urgency - the furiousness of the work and notes begging Carmy for something (that was probably already set on his list in the last episode). I guess I stopped paying attention to the timelines - they're now 7 weeks out with no walls and we haven't really gotten into the meat of the series yet - meaning we don't really see Carmy flake the fuck out until 1 month from opening.

Sugar's "don't tell anyone - this is my problem" bit is so sad, watching her castigate herself for bringing another her/carmy/mikey/donna/their dad into the world. I also hate the way such a heavy moment was turned into such a "womp womp - wall fell" moment, as the situation (and Sugar) deserved a lot more gravitas.

But this is a show through the male lens. Richie feels vindicated that he "guessed it". Carmy doesn't know how to show his concern (and to be fair, she'd probably pummel him if he expressed anything in that moment), but the fact that he still lets his sister shoulder so much of the restaurants burdens alone through the rest of the series shows the level he disassociates from his family (even his only caring/loving family member) at every turn.

Marcus is such a good son - I hope in season 3 we get a (posthumous, I presume) look at who his mother was, what shaped his character, how his brother/father play a role (if any) in his current family dynamic etc.

The Chester + Marcus pairing is a magical talisman that protects the show from a deluge of male-on-male emotional evasion, jousting and toxic co-dependency. I don't care that Chester is about as believable as Claire as a character, mainline that shit into my veins.

I love that Carmy ensured that Marcus would have the identical experience he had when he staged in Copenhagen (as described in Fishes to Mikey) - this is in no way coincidental, he would have had to make plenty of arrangements/requests to Marie for things to play out that way. He wanted Marcus to see Copenhagen through the same magical lens he did, knowing Marcus needed the inspiration and a break from his own version of family strife.

The invisible cat (Coco), the looming presence of Marcus' mom on the viewers minds, and the bike scene are three great examples of things that feel foreboding (like the other shoe is going to drop on Marcus) but never actually amount to anything. Whether existential or hopeful, I like it.

"Do you know how to make Shisho Gelee?" - this is such a gentle test to see how insecure Marcus is in this environment. Passing him the recipe as he's googling was an awesome act of amnesty. It immediately brings out Marcus' curiosity in the next scenes - he's asking all the right questions and looks so joyful when Luca gives him concise answers.

The scenes played out to Otis Redding's "I've Been Loving You Too Long", starting with "You're tired - and you want to be free" playing as Marcus walks home. Temporarily free from the impending death of his mother at home after a long illness. Free from the constraints of the (up until now) low-level jobs Marcus' has held down in kitchens with minimal inspiration and nowhere to go. Free from loneliness? The next cut is Sydney interviewing staff, as if on cue.

The quenelle - the heavy-lovin' part of the song as Marcus' is immersed in his work with Luca, falling in love with the ritualization of his craft. Things in Marcus' life haven't exactly been going right, but this is a place of solace. He follows this up by calling his Mom - professing his love for his craft, as well as for her.

Sidebar: The minty snickers bar is almost a sexual release scene during the ballad. I get why so many folks were led down the road to hell that is Marcus x Luca fanfic, as weird as I think that is (no hate! do you!)

The song ends with the pastry dissection on the boat. This man found love/spiritual release in Copenhagen, just like Carmy. "Mission accomplished, I guess."

Fak saying "Dude! We're best friends, we don't tell secrets!" re: the alliance stuff. So....every dude at The Beef/Bear is his best friend, Sugar is Mommy, and Sydney (and Tina, for that matter) are ????

I feel like Fak may be the thing that continues to insulate The Beef/The Bear as a Berzatto clubhouse for wayward boys at this juncture, but I'm originally from Canada (and thus have been force-fed Matty Matheson a.k.a Fak-Light since the mid-aughts) so there's probably some bias creeping in here.

Luca started as a chef 14 years ago. If he entered the profession and competed against Carmy at the same level/experience as a high-school graduate, that makes him and Carmy in the rough age range of 29-32, adjusting for education sans A-levels in the UK. We can put away that screenrant article and die in peace now.

Mikey was "Really tight, but also really out of his fucking mind, and he wanted to open a bakery". Something something Berzatto parallels.

Luca says "I've got a younger sister, somewhere, yeah" after asking about Marcus' family. Luca's got a case of the family damage, the trouble in school, a past-tense case of the ferocious mopes - all the same watermarks as Carmy. Meanwhile, Marcus was just sharing his mothers prognosis, and speaks of his brother with no ill will (even though he doesn't appear to be in the caretaking position with his mom) - are they foreshadowing that Marcus' doesn't have the damage that makes a truly great/ritualized/masochistic chef in the long run?

Luca's may have learned more lessons in life than Carmy has (in part by being thwarted by Carmy) but the habits borne out of family evasion/searching for something else are so engrained with that backstory. Or maybe Marcus' represents the happier/new way of doing things, breaking the toxic cycle (more thoughts on this down the line).

Luca worked to keep up with Carmy after he came to a place of acceptance that he'd never be the best, and that ended up being enough for him. Maybe a blessing is that Marcus' gets to sidestep the whole toxic cycle and just absorb knowledge (from Luca, from Carmy, from Syd) - he's not in a running position, just like Tina.

But of course, we never worry about Tina - she's too self-possessed. Marcus is emotional and easily influenced, so I have a feeling his narrative could turn on a dime.

Luca says "At a certain stage, it becomes less about skill and more about being open....." In summary:

Marcus - Open, but I fear could easily become closed in the wrong environment/trauma.

Carmy - Closed, doesn't really understand how to open when not hiding behind the guise of the restaurant/Syd/emotional fabrications

Sydney - Wants open, but always closes instinctively for self-protection.

Natalie - Open, with the limited emotional tools she has at her disposal.

Richie - *learning* to open, but that's a long fucking road.

Tina - Open

"It helps to have good people around you, too" - see above. The Bear represents the inherent goodness of people, with familial history run roughshod over it.

Marcus asking "Was It worth it? The time you put in" quickly followed by Luca saying "I dunno....ask me tomorrow"

Isn't this the feeling of fecklessness that almost everyone has with their creative craft being converted to labor? There's been a lot of theories floating around that Carmy doesn't like cooking anymore/never liked cooking - could it just be the long-standing feeling of irrelevance when you've taken a deep-dive into your craft for so long that you can't see the forest (inspiration, caring for people) through the trees (red tape, skill level, trauma etc.)?

The man on the bike could also represent saving someone the way that Marcus can't save his mom - it alleviates some of the feelings of powerlessness, and the exchange of comfort in the hug a reciprocity he can no longer experience with her.

"Are you sure you want to get back on the bike?"

A bad thing happened, but the man feels compelled to keep moving - as Marcus said to Syd in S1 "just keep moving" - there are a bunch of metaphors for just proceeding with the restaurant here.

Syd is literally just being goofy and talking to Marcus like a friend when he first calls - I guess I imagined there being a little more heat/aloofness there on her behalf, but it's giving friend-zone. She wouldn't act so familiar if there was a crush, I don't feel its in her DNA....

Marcus sharing the nightmare about his mom's impending death with Sydney is huge (again, the other shoe dropping) - Sydney tries to give an empathetic response (she's not great at anything with a whiff of mortality to it, but she approaches the topic with optimism) and caps it off with a "ugghh - I miss you man" as a reassuring gesture - he's her friend and a great source of comfort.

He nods quietly, waits a beat, and says "I miss you too" - and you can tell the pregnant pause has let Syd know that there's gravity/consequences to her words. She diffuses with the freeze humor because what the hell else are you going to do once a guy tells you about his dying mom nightmare, you spurt out a casual "I miss you bro" and he responds back tenderly that he misses you too. Unenviable.

"Okay, goodnight dude" - Syd hangs up immediately. Oof. Everyone talks about Syd getting a love interest in season 3 to level the stakes with Carmy, but I want Marcus' to bag a hot expediter or something just so there's a bit of joy in his life without a crazy dramatic subplot ensuing.

The mild smile on Marcus' face is so peaceful when he masters the dessert. It's such a quiet satisfaction you can only get when you create things. What a nice way to end the episode.

Holy crap, this was far too long. If you stuck it out, thank you!

[isleofdarkness]

"You bitch!" Maverick barely managed to keep from sighing at the sound of Rose's voice, filled with fury. Great, someone else was pissed with her. She didn't even know what she'd done this time.

"I'm gonna need you to be more specific," Maverick drawled, turning on her heel to face the furious princess. There was sadness and pain in Rose's eyes, which did make her feel kind of bad for both whatever she had done and for being sarcastic, but the hatred made it easier to lock that remorse away and put up her normal front. "I do a lot of "you bitch" worthy things. I can think of like, twelve I've done in the last six hours alone."

"You killed Rook!" Rose snapped. So she was upset that Maverick had killed the person human trafficking her sibling? Sure, that made sense. Not. "I had dibs on killing him!"

Ah.

Maverick softened. "I apologize. I had no idea you'd called it, but that's no excuse. I'm sorry."

There was a long pause as Rose struggled to stay angry, but the sincerety in Maverick's voice had that anger and hate melting away to reveal the pain underneath. She sounded more sad than anything when she finally spoke. "Why did you kill him? You never get involved like that."

"Like that" meant Maverick walking into the Salazan's Grum courtyard, kicking the ass of half of the Queen's guard and killing a good portion, grabbing Rook, and teleporting back to the Mile. The part Rose didn't know was that the two weeks between him being captured and him winding up dead, mutilated and strung up on a noose hanging at the entrance to the courtyard, hadn't been captivity until she got around to dealing with him. No, those two weeks had been her undivided attention, until she'd grown bored of torturing him and had killed him, slowly. For good reason. "I know what he's done to Ace, but a few things recently came to my attention. Ace wasn't the only one." Her lip curled in distaste. Some people really went out of their ways to be evil and Rook was one of those people. "You know of Malachi Mim?" Rose nodded. The look on her face told Maverick that Rose, like most of the Isle, knew what Mim had been putting him through before his "death." "He was Malachi's handler, the one who pimped him out in public because Madre knew I'd kill her ass if she set foot outside doing it. Bought him far too many times to count, too. It's not like he saves up being a monster for three weeks just to take it out on Ace for one, he's a monster every day, he just knew he couldn't get away with constantly abusing your sibling. And then, as if that wasn't enough, he also moonlights in Maleficent's facilities. Gods help any of the poor kids he happened across. And then Constantine Westergaard- gods. What happened to Malachi made me look into Rook and what I found made me sick. Literally. So I killed him. Made it long and slow, drew it out, made it as painful as I possibly could." Her lips curled into a cruel smile at the memories. "If it makes you feel any better, he suffered. But I'm sorry I took your revenge from you. I'll be more careful in the future."

She let Rose process what she'd just heard, hatred returning, though now directed at a new source. When Rose finally relaxed, she knew they had come to an understanding. "Fine, I get why you did it. But for the record, I have dibs on killing our parents and you'd better not take that one or else I'll kill you as compensation."

Well, at least she had been planning on letting the twins have those cunts, anyway. "They're yours."