#but i personally choose to believe this is when they choose to stomp people to death. for my personal enjoyment

[todayisafridaynight]

genuine question why does everyone make kirin mine so violent? arent kirin meant to be kind creatures actually really interested in the peoples thought processes O_O

in general, kirin/qilin are peaceful and gentle creatures and generally do no harm to others; often so, they're considered one of the strongest creatures in chinese mythology, with the tradeoff they're generally pacifists (so much so they're often depicted walking on clouds to avoid crushing grass and are even thought to be vegetarian- THATS how peaceful they are by default)

its when innocent people are threatened and people act wickedly that they become ferocious and unforgiving, often incinerating people that do wrong with their holy fire

[iloveboysinred]

Cw; angst no comfort, complicated feelings of grief, mostly how i think reader would feel when Suguru leaves. Minimal editing (sfw but mdni) came to me in a dream i just woke up and wrote it

Masterlist

2007 was the last time you'd seen or heard of him. You don't even remember the date or time of your last conversation, your brain only retaining that it happened sometime in the month of September with the sun being out, and a crowd full of people passively witnessing as your lover broke your heart and stomped it into dust.

Your heart felt open and raw in your chest, bleeding with every unanswered text, and every call that went straight to voicemail. You knew he was receiving your messages, but it somehow made the hole in your chest cave in deeper knowing that he was ignoring you. He could see your pain clear as day, and still choose not to answer.

Why? you felt like it was audacious to ask. What did you mean "why?" It was obvious Suguru was going through something-- you knew why. He had confided in you how he felt like everything he had been working towards had been for nothing. How many nights had he woken up in the middle of the night, because he just couldn't get the image of Amanai's lifeless body out of his head? He had reassured you that he was fine. Promising you that everything would be alright, kissing your worried eyebrow creases away and teasing you about wrinkles. You wanted to be angry at him for lying, and you were, but you were also angry at yourself for believing him.

Anger, resentment, and hurt tied themselves into tight bands around your fragile heart, pressurizing your blood to the point you felt like you might burst. You thought about every person you and Suguru had known, desperately trying to form a picture in your mind of who you could blame for this. A million faces flooded your mind, and the air was stolen from your lungs as you cried for him.

As time passed by, you tried to push the thoughts of Suguru Geto to the back of your mind. It had been weeks since he'd left Jujustu Tech and you couldn't continue to allow grief to hinder you from your work.

You found solace in Saturo, who needed your company just as badly. On the surface, it seemed like he had been taking Suguru's departure just fine. He retained his usual bubbly personality with everyone else, taking up excessive missions nobody else could handle and really growing into his title as the strongest.

But, he visited Suguru's abandoned dorm room with you often. The two of you would sit there, not touching a thing. It felt like his energy still resided in the room, the two of you finding comfort in his belongings in your own way. You loved him in two different ways, and experienced who he was in different ways as well. It brought you together, and for the first time you felt like you had an anchor.

For 10 years your mind occasionally drifted back to him. What was once crushing pain dulled into unpleasant aches whenever you thought about him.

You sat by yourself on the steps of your apartment, loosely holding onto the top of a paper coffee cup. Yesterday you’d heard the news— Geto’s residuals had been recently detected in the same place where your students had gone on a mission. You didn’t know what to think. The pulsing pain in your chest forced you to close your eyes, painful memories infiltrating your heart. But you also felt..glad. He was alive and he was close. You didn’t know if you were allowed to feel the way your stomach twisted with hope? Fear? You didn’t know.

Bringing the cup to your lips, you failed to notice him standing there, just a few feet away and tucked into the darkness of a neighboring alley. He wanted to come forward, to say something to you. But he was too close to his goal, too close to having to steel himself when he inevitably faced you and Saturo when he showed up to the school. So he slinked away, ignoring the gnawing at the back of his mind.

Days later, Suguru Geto Declares war.

[ellisgirl]

Jude Jazza & Ellis Twilight — Villains Want to Embarrass Little Robin Story Event

Premium End

I do not own any contents of Ikemen Villains. This story being uploaded in this blog belongs solely to CYBIRD. Please support them by downloading their games and buying their stories. Both English and Japanese are not my mother tongue languages, please keep in mind that there will be mistakes and added words for my own preferences. I translate for my personal entertainment and for my own practice only.

After washing my body and changing into my night dress, I sank into the bed in my room and suddenly felt tired.

(Tomorrow, I'll have to pull myself together... I'll have to do my best...)

While I was sorting out tomorrow's schedule in my head, my eyelids got heavier and heavier—, and I fell asleep.

—I woke up in the middle of the night when I noticed the faint sound of the door opening.

(That...... What time is it now?—)

(—Wait a minute. This is Her Majesty's bedroom, who the hell is in here at this hour?)

My spine trembles. I'm shaking. Jude and Ellis should be resting in a separate room.

(No way, is it really Mr. Abel?)

(But "only people inside the palace have the key")

(Mr. Abel stole the key? Or maybe the mastermind behind the assassination plan is someone inside the palace—?)

Through the curtain of the canopy, the silhouette of a person approaches.

(It can't be helped if I just deduced here! What should I do... get out of the other side of the bed?)

(If I could get out of the room without being seen and call Mr. Jude and Ellis,)

(I should be able to complete the mission.)

(Honestly, I don't feel like I can do it, but— I have no choice but to do it)

Holding my pillow as a shield, I gently placed my hand on the canopy curtain on the other side, at that moment.

A figure raises an arm holding something sharp—,

Man’s voice: “—What the!?”

The figure crumpled to the floor after receiving a heavy blow to the side of the head.

(Hey, what..... What happened......)

I'm afraid to open the canopy curtain and look outside.

Mr. Jude was stomping on a man dressed as a guard.

Jude: "I can't believe you’re screaming in Her Majesty's room in the middle of the night."

Jude: "Isn't that disrespectful? I don't know.”

A man dressed as a guard: "Well.... You are one of Her Majesty's guards.”

Jude: "So you're the secretary of the Glasses Minister?"

Jude: "What are you trying to do with such a dangerous thing?"

A man dressed as a guard: “Damn it. ....I'm gonna kill you too...Nn”

The guard man crawled out from under Mr. Jude's feet and raised his knife again.

A man dressed as a guard: "This is a crime committed by the U.S. ambassador....... I'm in trouble if it doesn't happen like that."

Ellis: "Are you trying to frame it...?"

A man dressed as a guard: “Wha!?”

A hand stretched out from behind twisted the wrist that the man raised again.

Ellis: ".....No, that kind of thing. I don't think anyone will be happy."

A man dressed as a guard: “You, It— hurts.”

Mr. Jude's hand roughly grabbed his mouth and sealed it as he tried to complain of pain.

His nose and mouth are blocked and I can hear a painful voice.

Jude: "If you don't keep quiet, the “Queen” will wake up."

Ellis: "...The Queen's aide wants to ask you something."

Ellis puts one arm around the man's neck and tightens it even more.

Jude: "You’re going to faint from lack of oxygen, or I'll let you sleep in peace, which one? I’ll let you choose."

A man dressed as a guard: "Hmm, hmm!!"

Ellis: "It's rare for Jude to let you choose. You'd better answer as soon as possible."

A man dressed as a guard: "Ngu... O..."

Jude: "Uh? What's that? I can't hear you.”

A man dressed as a guard: “Gu....Nn, ugh….., …….”

When the man's whole body fell apart, Mr. Jude let go of his hand as if throwing out the filth.

Ellis caught him in good timing, tied him up with a rope, dragged him to the corner of the room, and rolled him over.

(......Wow, that's great..... He knows what he’s doing.)

Once again, you are stuck in the dark world, and see that they are two terrifying people to make enemies with...

Jude: “….Hm?”

Kate: “Uwha!”

The curtains were unreservedly opened, and I almost fell off the bed while holding my pillow.

Jude: "It's a nasty queen who has a hobby of distributing."

Ellis: "...It was scary, isn't it? Miss Kate, it's okay now."

An agitated sneer and a gentle smile. I am again confronted with conflicting smiles, but this time my facial muscles are not confused, but relaxed.

Kate: "Both of you..... Thank you very much."

Kate: "But...how did you know?”

Ellis: "Your crown smelled sweet.”

Kate: “Eh…..?”

Jude: “The nectar that caused the bird to run amok was smeared on the crown.”

Kate: "On the crown...?"

Ellis: “So, Jude and I looked into who might have approached the crown before the audience.”

Jude: “The secretary of the minister with the glasses was the last one who approached it, so I kept an eye on the minister and sure enough, there it is."

Jude: “Originally, he was an extremist in the military and a warmonger and a sloppy politician, and he had the motive to say that he would make money by raising a jerk.”

(That kind of thing...)

Kate: "He rebelled against Her Majesty, and on top of that he tried to frame such a good-looking ambassador as a criminal...that's the worst."

When I muttered what I thought, Mr. Jude raised his eyebrow in amusement.

Jude: "Ha, that's surprising. ......As if saying “Don't do it like that” is easy enough.”

Kate: "......He’s alive, isn’t he?”

Ellis: "Yeah, of course. Victor told me not to kill him because he has something to ask."

Kate: "He was trying to take someone's life...”

Kate: “Both the secretary who attacked me and the minister behind it should be prepared for some pain.”

Kate: "......I don't sympathise."

Jude & Ellis : “………”

(At least, Mr. Jude and Ellis know that they will be retaliated in the same way...it looks like they are working with this in mind.)

I don't think it's a good thing, but I'm not going to assume it's a bad thing either.

That was my frank thought after working with them on several missions.

Jude: "Ha, how did you start saying that?"

Ellis: "Shall I go and hurt him more? How much do you want me to abuse him?"

Kate: "You don't have to do it any more...!”

Ellis: “Yeah…..?”

When I hurriedly stopped him, Ellis put away the knife with a small bow of his head.

(These two people are both quite troublesome.)

(But I can absolutely trust you... being by your side might be the strongest)

Jude: "Hah..... I'm really tired today because the princess is unreliable."

Mr. Jude sat down on the bed and sprawled himself up.

Jude: "It's almost morning. I gave almost a whole night to that weirdo assistant.”

He was about to close his eyes, so I opened my mouth in a hurry.

Kate: "Um, I'm sorry, here is my bed.”

Jude: “Ah? It's not yours, it's Her Majesty's."

Ellis: "Oh, Jude is not fair."

Ellis also turned to the other side and lay down with Mr. Jude sandwiching me.

Ellis: "I think I'll take a nap here too."

Kate: “Eh, Ellis…..?”

Ellis: “Miss Kate, can we sleep together?”

Kate: "Sleep, you mean......, eh...eh!?"

(Together, .......With these two people!?)

Jude: "It's so noisy."

Ellis: "Here, over here."

Kate: "Wha......!?"

I collapsed onto the bed with my arms pulled from both sides.

No matter how wide Her Majesty's bed is, when two adult men and I lie down, it's narrow.

(S-So close...)

There was no way Mr. Jude would open up space for me, and Ellis was close enough to say that he wanted to stick together with me.

I was sandwiched between the two bodies regardless, and my shoulders, arms, and legs were in close contact.

Jude: "You body temperature is high... Are you a child even here?”

Ellis: "It feels so warm and nice. .....Hey, can't I hug you?"

Kate: "It's no good...!"

No matter which way I look, I feel strange, so I answered while looking straight up.

Jude: “Fuha, what are you blushing for? You dirty girl."

Mr. Jude sits on his shoulders next to me and looks down at me with a smirk on his face.

Kate: "Isn't it disrespectful to sneak into someone's bed without permission?"

Jude: "Isn't it disgusting? I don't know who it is, the villain who does such a thing."

Ellis: “Do you want to do something naughty? It’s okay, if you want to.”

Kate: “Huh….uh, …..?”

Ellis lays down next to me, looks straight at me, and suggests the most outrageous thing.

Ellis: “Oh, would you rather do with Jude? Or me, or both?"

Jude: "Hey, I'm getting involved without permission."

Jude: “If you want to do it, do it as you like. I'll just sit here and watch. You like that kind of thing, don't you?”

Ellis: "Really? Then will you?"

They whisper to me from both sides as they please, and my face starts to twitch more and more.

Kate: "Could you please get off the bed and sleep in your own room..."

Ellis: "......But I'm worried if you're alone, Miss Kate."

Kate: “Uh…..”

Jude: "This bed is so comfortable, I refuse."

Kate: “….Jesus, I’m done…..!”

With a tired head, a pure conscience and arrogant selfishness thrust at me—

—I stopped thinking.

Kate: "It's fine as it is...! Good night!"

I pulled the sheet up to my face and managed to keep them out of sight.

Jude: "Fuha, what's with that sleeping style?"

Ellis: “You’re hiding. I miss you.”

Both of them started to fall asleep after a few minutes without knowing what others thought....

While being wrapped in the gentle sound, warm body temperature, and the sweet scent of the two people, I also fell asleep before I knew it.

…

A few days later. Without making it public that there was an assassination, the U.S. ambassador left the palace with the same sunny smile he had on his face when he arrived.

To my horror, the minister with glasses disappeared from his seat without my knowledge. And then—

Ellis: "Ah, here we come. Miss Kate, this way."

Kate: "...Thank you for waiting."

Jude: "Are you more nervous than the mission?"

Today is the day we decided to grant each other's "requests" in celebration of completing our mission without our identities being revealed.

(The partners are Mr. Jude and Ellis. The promises we exchanged must be kept.)

It's reassuring to have these people as allies, but I've just learned that turning them into enemies can be troublesome.

I gulped and swallowed my spit, the two smiled their very best smiles.

Ellis: "I'm looking forward to it... Well then, Miss Kate."

Jude: "Do you want me to fulfil your “wish”?"

…Fin…

Masterlist

Chapter 1 >> Chapter 2 >> Premium End >> Epilogue

[mountingpulisic]

YOU BELIEVE ME NOW?

part one

It had been a total of two days since you broke up with christian, yet that didn’t stop him from sending multiple texts or calling a dozen times a day. you had gone as far as blocking his number, not needing the constant reminder of his infidelity. 

your brothers had called you on three-way after your fight with christian, asking you if they needed to drive down to cobham and teach the pretty boy a lesson. you dismissed their protectiveness and assured them you were able to deal with this heartbreak on your own. 

you were an absolute wreck nonetheless, it felt as if someone came and ripped your heart out of your chest and stomped on it repeatedly. 

it was as if you were going through the seven stages of grief, but you had skipped the first four steps. 

the first night of your heartbreak you had cried. you cried watching the movie, someone great, you cried when you saw his favorite ice cream in the freezer and you cried when you had to fall asleep alone.

the second night of your heartbreak, you cried a little less. slowly accepting the harsh reality that the one person who promised to never hurt you, had. 

now here you were, at one o’clock in the afternoon, blasting taylor swift. christian had always asked why you sang with so much emotion to her break up songs even though you two were perfectly fine, you had told him that you were an empath, she made you feel her pain. 

at the moment however, you wonder if she felt yours as you belt the lyrics of babe. 

there was a light knocking at your front door as your favorite verse had started to approach, one that you could now relate to. 

“since you admitted it, i keep picturing it. her lips on your neck, i can’t uns-” your singing had come to a dramatic stop when the one person you were singing about, stood in front of you with the said girl you were also singing about. 

you went to close the door but christian’s hand had halted the movement. 

“five minutes. i am asking you for five minutes to let me explain.” christian pleaded, removing his hand from the door when he felt certain you weren’t going to shut it.  

“this is my sister’s friend rileigh, she is in town with her boyfriend on a business trip. I ran into her while we were both leaving the bar, y/n. I didn’t plan on meeting her there, i was actually with mason and ben. you would’ve known that if you had answered any of their calls.” 

you squinted your eyes at him in disbelief, was he really catching an attitude with you when he was the one caught cheating? 

christian qued rileigh to speak, jerking his head towards you when facing her. 

the pictures posted in the article didn’t do her any justice, she was a mix of bella hadid and freaking beyonce for crying out loud. 

“he is telling the truth, y/n.” you wanted to rip your hair out, her voice was even attractive. “ i tripped over my heels and grabbed onto his arm to steady myself, my boyfriend is even in the pictures, just a few feet behind us.” 

you didn’t know who her boyfriend was nor did you care, you weren’t looking at anyone else in the photo but her and christian, you didn’t need to analyze the people around them too. 

“then where’s your boyfriend now?” you asked crossing your arms over your chest, looking between them both, wondering where the one person who could help prove their case was.

“he is in the car, i can go get him if you want me to?” rileigh had offered. when you had just stared at her back she took that as a sign that she needed to go retrieve her boyfriend in order for you to believe christian. 

with rileigh walking off to go grab their star witness, it left you and christian in an uncomfortable silence. 

“you got a lot of nerve, pulisic. bringing your other woman to my doorstep, way to rub it.” you whispered shouted at the dumbfounded brunette, christian couldn’t believe you still thought he cheated on you.  

“do you hear yourself right, y/n? who in their right mind has all the evidence in front of them but still chooses to believe a magazine company whose livelihood depends on stirring shit up? and are you seriously listening to taylor swift right now?!” 

before you could respond back to him, rileigh was walking up the stairs hand in hand with her so-called boyfriend, she could’ve pulled him off the street for all you knew. 

“now do you believe me? this is her boyfriend, y/n. this is justin.” 

eyeing the couple in front of you, you couldn’t deny their obvious chemistry, he was holding her tightly around the waist as she leaned into him. 

“I’m not sure if i e-” christian had shrieked loudly interrupting you. 

digging into his pocket to retrieve his phone, he had tapped on it harshly a few times before he shoved it in your face. his screen reflected the same article you had read a few days ago.

“look closely, don’t focus on rileigh and i, focus on our surroundings.” pinching the screen, christian enlarged the photo for you. 

lord behold, there stood justin behind rileigh, holding on her waist as she gripped christian’s forearm, supporting the fact that she indeed had tripped and was using christian to break her fall. 

mouth opening and closing, you couldn’t find any words to stubbornly argue back and christian had realized this, his smirk growing an inch per second knowing he proved you wrong. 

you go to argue another theory but christian shuts you up by lightly pushing you back into your apartment with him following behind. you heard him thank the couple for their assistance and close the door. 

“I take payments for an apology only in the form of sex.” christian cheekily said as he made his way towards you, not being able to keep the smile off his face. he wrapped his arms around your waist, pulling you close to him. you rolled your eyes playfully as you melted in his touch. 

you felt like a complete idiot for even believing the article. however to your defense your emotions were at an all-time high after reading the scandalous title and seeing the picture for the first time. you had also felt ashamed of yourself for not trusting christian. 

“i’m sorry, baby. i shouldn’t have ever dou-” you were cut off by christian pressing his lips to yours, the two of you moved in sync as christian overpowered you for dominance of the kiss. needing to catch a breath, you two had separated, lips however still ghosting over one another. 

“I don’t care what you have to say because i know if it was you pictured closely with another man i would’ve reacted the same. y/n, i need you to know that you’re it for me. there’s no other girl that can make me feel the way you do, there’s no other girl that i want to have my last name, there’s no other girl y/n. I forgive you princess.  now i just want to forget that these past two days ever happened okay?” pecking you lightly on the lip, christian pulled you into an intimate brace. 

“christian, im seriously so sorry baby. what can i do to make it up to you?” you asked, pulling away slightly to admired his face. 

his famous grin started to make an appearance, bringing along his dimples this time.

startling you, he cupped his hands from right under your ass cheeks, swiftly picking you up and heading towards your bedroom.

 “I did say i only take apologies in the form of sex, princess.” throwing you down onto the bed, christian was swift to dispose of his shirt, showing off his toned biceps as he pulled the fabric off his body. slowly making his way towards you, christian began to kiss delicately on your thighs before he made his way up to your lips to kiss you hungrily. 

after a moment of passionately making out, christian pulled apart from you suddenly. 

“what? what is it?” you asked frantically, missing the warmth of his body pressed up against you. 

“my key, i want my key back y/n.” 

you were astonished at the moment; he had interrupted foreplay for a damn key? 

“okay christian, i will give you back your key after, now cmon.” you said pulling him back into the kiss but he stubbornly held his arm out to create distant between the two of you. 

“key first, then sex.” he sternly said, crossing his arms to physically tell you he wasn’t budging until he got it back. 

grumbling loudly, you dramatically got out of bed to go retrieve the stupid key he was whining about, christian was sure to give your ass a firm smack as you climbed out. 

as you sought after the key, christian sat content in your bed. he wasn't playing again games when it came to winning you back, and he proved that to you.

[coolingrosa]

Not in roseverse related but do you think canon Ink already faced some kind of ableism in canon? He's stated as not being very well liked due to his social 'ineptness' and lacks friends as a result. That's something i've always thought about tbh

Probably! Which is something that aligns with canon Undertale too, tbh. Monsters are a very accepting race, but even in the games, they ostracize/baby characters who are very autistic coded. Main example being Papyrus. I don’t even think this was Toby being ableist too, bc he makes sure to show how smart and caring Papyrus is, and how he’s not as innocent as people make him out to be. However, both Undyne and Sans lie to Papyrus to keep him from knowing the darker truths of their world. Sans makes sense since he’s being a protective older brother. But Undyne? She cares for him, yes, but she meets him once and sees his autistic traits and instantly stresses he’ll get himself hurt. I don’t think this is her underestimating him, as she says he’s VERY capable. However, she also says that his kindness and lack of understanding of evil is what she’s worried about, which does align with how people tend to baby autistic people for believing the good in others and missing obvious signs of evil (which we see in the genocide run with Papyrus feeling awkward but still trying even tho the human stomps all over his puzzles)

In the grand scheme of the Multiverse, I think monsterkinds’ treatment towards those who are autistic or neurodivergent is very similar to how the human race treats it. However, not with hatred but more so sharing that genuine confusion on why the person acts the way they do. Not exactly judgement, but confusion and worry. It’s clear Papyrus isn’t hated. Just very left out as the other people have a hard time being around him, but still talk anout him kindly, as we see with the Bunny Innkeeper.

Ink is VERY likely to face a lot of ableism, especially in a society so heavily revolved around Souls. Hell, I even hc that baby monsters, no matter the kind, all form in the soul of a Host monster and then are extracted with magic. I think even Asriel was born this way. Magic is everything to them, and so are souls. The torment Flowey faced is a great example of the self hatred (honesty ur soul being different is a great example of mental health disorders possibly being a thing) that people may have towards themselves if their soul is a bit different- let alone missing. Ink having no soul in itself would bring discomfort to those talking to him, and added with his very autistic traits, I do think he’d be very ostracized.

It’s why I always hated the Ink and Dream fight (it’s SO out of canon for both of them and ruins their characters and puts all the blame on Ink when he did nothing wrong and god I could ramble about it for ages) bc it’s just Ink getting screamed at and then abandoned for sticking to his ideals and being his authentic self. I don’t think Dream would EVER do that, especially if Dream knew how Ink acted, and it feels like a character blaming an autistic coded character for showing autistic traits. Makes me very uncomfortable

I mean, even the fandom treats him horribly. They label him a horrible person bc his emotions are “artificial” when that’s just not the case. If he has no vials, he turns into a husk and basically becomes an unmoving corpse. His vials ARE his soul. Which makes his emotions real. Him choosing which emotions to feel, however, is just an example of his autism and him heavily suppressing his other emotions and dissociating.

Everything about him screams autistic, and people would definitely be uncomfortable around that as I see canon ink on support level 2 but with no support there for him. He’s on his own, and therefore messes up a lot accidentally but it’s also not his fault. He has no support given nor is surrounded by people who truly get him besides his fathers and brothers. (Which are canon btw. Ink has two brothers who he’s stated to very much care about)

[faededaway]

Alpha Nanami x beta reader: wherein, reader learns that their crush likes them too.

[not proper a/b/o but I'm tagging it as such just in case people want to avoid it] [other warnings: alcohol, bar, drunk Nanami, slight self deprication. Slight... Ooc? Very slight ooc. Also office setting. Reader is depicted as dense] [not smut]

[1337 ish words] [MDNI]

It was one of those days at work, where one chief felt too generous and asked everyone to go to a bar with them.

“Drinks on me!” and “Banzai!” the naive juniors would reply. The older employees knew that this was a ploy for something that had nothing to do with them and had more to do with the chiefs internal drama. Who could say anything?

So, that's how the middle managers, you and your colleague Jasmine, ended up babysitting the table of juniors while three others were handling the table of seniors.

How this topic of conversation started, though, was a mystery.

“Seriously, why are you single? What's the reason? I know you want to date. I also happen to know that five people in the office like like you. So? What's holding you back? You against office romance?”, Jasmine asked while moving a bottle away from a too drunk junior.

“Not really. I won't lie and say that the idea of coming to office together, or I dunno, having lunch breaks together doesn't seem slightly romantic to me. But it would be weird wouldn't it?”, you say while placing a neatly folded suit under someone's chin.

“Why would it be weird! Our office is kinda lax about this stuff”, Jasmine sighed.

Well, she didn't lie. Your office was lax about this stuff.

“Well, there is one shallow reason”, you murmured. There was a reason. A person, to be exact. Someone who you thought was way out of your league.

Your colleague sat up from her seat, “what is it?!”

Two of the sleeping people on the table jerked awake at her exclamation. Thankfully, they went back to sleep without waiting around for an answer.

You pondered for a moment. You wouldn't usually say this out loud. But, this is Jasmine. She's not a gossiper. And the thing you're about to say isn't all that believable as a rumor anyway. You're very average. Never had much of a scandal before. And no one else is in a state to listen in on this conversation.

So you took a deep breath before murmuring, “betas usually date other betas right? But I don't wanna.”

An audible gasp was heard from your colleague. “Oh? Oh. Do tell me more.”

You regretted saying that. Part of you wanted her to not hear you. Part of you wanted a chance to change your answer.

“Well, I'm not ...very beta like when it comes to er-Romance. I want someone dominant”.

“So? What's stopping you? No one says you have to date a beta”, she interjected when your words fell short.

“Well, don't alphas and omegas just... Connect? Why would an alpha want me when they can have an omega. Why would he choose me when countless omegas throw themselves at him everyday? I'm like a discount version of them.”

Before Jasmine could respond, someone slammed a glass in the booth behind you. You turned around to see what happened.

A tall man walked out of his booth and towards your table. Tall, blonde, handsome, and oh. Oh

It took you a moment to recognize him. His coat and tie were gone. His hair was drawn back. He wore an expression on his stoic face that made it almost unrecognizable.

Anger. He was livid. And he was stomping over towards you.

“Who told you that?”, he growled when he reached your table.

Jasmine and you stared at him in shock. Some of the juniors sobered immediately after hearing his voice.

“Uh, Nanami, we're sorry about the ruckus why don't you have a drink?”, Jasmine tried to handle the situation by sobering him before he said something that no one needed to hear.

But Nanami only glared at her until she kept the glass of water back down. He repeated his question.

Nanami was visibly drunk. His eyes were darker, face slightly flushed. And his voice. No one ever heard him use his alpha voice before. That voice made your insides melt. Thankfully, you were seated. You were sure your knees would give out if you'd been standing.

“Nanami, n- no one told me anything. Why don't you sit down and-” you tried to soothe him.

“Oh? So my mate is calling herself that on her own accord?”, he cut you off and glared at you.

Mate? Who-

At that, multiple gasps were heard from across tables. You're not sure if one of them was yours.

“I don't-, I didn't, I-”, your face flushed at his implications.

He leaned over the table and bent down to face you, “did you assume your worth like that? Do you not see how much you mean to me? How I can go home knowing this is how you think of yourself?”

Your heart raced in your chest. You could smell something strong on his breath. Scotch?

You remembered something Gojo Satoru once told you.

“I always go drinking with Nanami! He never gets drunk so I can drink as much as I like! Although he sometimes leaves me at the bars when I pass out. Haha!”

Nanami has strong tolerance, so how?

You looked back at his table and saw 4 empty bottles of a drink you're sure would've knocked you out to next week.

You turned to face him and thought hard about what made him call you his mate.

Yeah, it's true that he was nice to you. He always took his time to explain things to you in details. He never worked overtime but was always there to accompany you if you ever did. He always walked you home after. If you forgot lunch, we would always remind you. He'd even leave a pastry on your desk if you skipped lunch. Nanami has always been supportive of you in the office. He has even helped you outside of work when he heard of your troubles. Bad plumbing, annoying landlord, creepy stalker, complicated bank notes, or even long waiting lines at the doctor's. He had helped you with those. And that is why you wanted him. You wanted him as your mate, but you couldn't decipher what made him like you!

Wait. Fuck. I am stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Fuck. He likes me. Of course. He's always liked me. Nanami 'I don't work overtime' worked overtime with me. How did I miss this? Why would a 'good boss' do that much? They'd just tell me to go home!

“Nanami, I am sorry,” I'm sorry I missed your cues all this time.

You wanted to laugh and cry at the same time. Nanami stood up and moved into the booth with you. He cupped your face and held your gaze.

“I heard every word you said here. Downed too much alcohol trying to stop myself. It's my mistake. As someone who's always been in charge of explaining things to you, I should've known you'd need this spelled out for you. I have been courting you for a while now. Correct me if I'm overstepping but you've accepted them, haven't you?”, his eyes pleaded with yours.

You remembered all the care and responsibleness he showed you with every gesture. He showed you how capable he is as a mate all those times. And you fell for him but didn't even stop to consider that he, an alpha, could like you, a beta, to this extent.

“I like you, Nanami. I like you a lot. And I'm sorry. I'm sorry I was, I am so dense and self absorbed. I'm sorry I didn't see it. But, I l..love you. And yes! I do accept your courtship,” you couldn't stop your tears then. You'd yearned for this man for so long. You couldn't help but cry of joy.

Jasmine passed him a tissue which he took with a 'thank you'. He'd wiped your tears as he consoled you. You heard Jasmine sniffle her own tears and blow her nose beside you. That reminded you that this was happening in public. Nanami claimed you in front of all the people who knew you. He called you his mate.

You smiled at that and hugged him. This sought after Alpha was off the market and yours alone.

[parliamentoftoh]

I’ve posted before about how much I love Belos as a villain and how I think he is one of the best villains Disney as a whole has created in years but I have to reiterate this again in light of the finale

because the finale finished him off so well 

(like I have my tiny quibbles about wanting a little more Caleb and/or Evelyn mentions in the end but I kind of like that we didn't get any of that because it reenforces what the Titan points out: it’s not about that anymore. Belos has completely lost sight of any noble goal he might have ever claimed to have, even to himself. He is operating on nothing but pure desperation and rejection of any reality where his humanity (what little he believes he’s retained) doesn’t make him superior to this world. I like that the last reference to Caleb is his ghost/hallucination looking down at Belos and silently condemning him and his actions. ‘This wasn’t for me,’ he is saying. ‘it never was.’ and that’s how we conclude that relationship. I like that.)

anyway that rant aside that isn’t even what I’m talking about here. I am talking about when this incredible piece of shit uses his last bit of life and magic to try and manipulate Luz one last time, and specifically the direction he chooses -

because it’s another fan theory! Up until around Yesterday’s Lie and even until Hollow Mind, I saw a lot of posts that theorized that Philip and Belos were the same person but that what had happened was that Philip had been cursed. That explained his hatred of Wild Magic, after all. There were even people - myself included - who had crack theories that the Titan was, in fact, possessing him in a Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde scenario 

and so for Belos to try to use that on Luz is a delightful bit of trope-awareness from both the show - and Belos himself, whose strong suit had always been telling people what they wanted or expected to hear and using those expectations to fuck with them (including the audience)

like of course it doesn’t work because how could it after everything but I love that it’s still... it’s still almost a good cover up and they let him have that, like... acknowledgement of how good he has always been at pivoting, how skilled he is at finding the best lie each time he’s beaten- 

and THEN they curb stomp him to death. 

anyway 10/10 Belos is the villain of all time thank you for coming to me ted talk

[tehamelie]

Various fine opinions on the meaning of life contained in Monty Python's The Meaning of Life:

*Unionize your workplace, alternatively turn it into a pirate ship and take to the high seas. It'll piss off management either way.

*Question everything.

*Look at what you think you know from a different perspective.

*The pursuit of profit at all costs can and will ruin the meaning of any work and also make you worse at it.

*Gender roles are not necessarily assigned at birth.

*The Catholic church is not well.

"God has blessed us so much I can't afford to feed you all any longer."

*Just because you're allowed doesn't mean you should.

*You should not, and will not, die to "keep China British."

*God has many ways to cook you to death, if He wants to.

*Straight sex is so damn boring.

*Don't just stampede towards the clitoris, Watson.

*Sport, like sex, only works between equal parties. Any other way and you invite horror and depravity. (That kid is definitely dead and the upperclassmen are just stomping on him anyway.)

*Actually, getting murdered playing rugby against adults two or three times your size is an excellent way to prepare you for fighting in a war.

*Even a good captain will be hated by their subordinates. This is the burden of command.

"We'll always need an army, and may God strike me down were it to be otherwise." *is immediately struck down by literal the hand of God*

*A fighting force is better served by a single soldier who actually wants to be there than twenty men who doesn't.

*There's a fine line between keeping one's cool in a heated situation and acting like you're on a bloody different planet when people are dying in front of you.

There are less than 4500 wild tigers left in the world. The "A tiger? In Africa?!" bit is less of a joke every year.

*In less than surprising news, killing people is bad for you. (It turns out, for psychologically healthy people, doing violence really hurts you as much as the victim.)

*Where is that fish?

*Theme restaurants could do with a bit of randomly mixed themes.

*Don't be afraid to ask the most idiotic questions about things you don't understand. That's how we learn.

*Oh ho it's the meaning of liver donation I get it now.

*The Galaxy Song is fun and all but don't give in to misanthropy.

*Matter is energy, the human soul grows with care and attention, and people aren't wearing enough hats.

*Actually, the movie makes a staggering point here and buries it with distracting nonsense jokes, while also making the point that we get sidetracked from self-actualization by distracting nonsense jokes. It's a point sandwich with joke filling.

Isn't it awfully nice to have a penis? Shout out to happy penis havers, though I'm not one myself.

*M Creosote shows us that single-minded devotion to one's mission in life (eating an entire upscale French restaurant in one sitting, for example) will leave you unhappy and alone.

*Dunk antisemites in buckets of vomit.

*Gaston, the middle aged waiter, delivers a coherent personal philosophy as he walks us to the cottage where he was born. The significance of this cannot be overestimated. He decided to be a waiter, you see. Because he believes in something. It's a simple belief of giving, of loving people and bringing them joy. But be believes it with all his heart and he'll fight for the right to live the life he chose.

*If you have to die, but can choose the manner of your execution, try being hounded to death by naked women.

*See the world in a grain of sand, or a maple leaf as it were.

*Terry Pratchett was a great man and a great writer, but he's wrong about one thing: Death is relative. No, no, you can't argue away Death or shoot him, but he is subject to the laws of relativity. Consider the stars in the sky; at least one star that's visible to the naked eye I hear may be dead right now - it's 500 light years away and they think it may go supernova at any point within 500 years from now. But here, locally, the star still lives; there's no possible reality where it's gone until the light of its explosion reaches us.

*Heaven is a fantastically cheesy musical theater performance with angel santa claus strippers and a lead singer you just want to punch. Clearly we need to build something better here on Earth.

*Be nice, read books, take a walk sometimes, and try to live together in peace and harmony with people of all creeds and nations. Obviously.

*[The producers] hope that other fish will follow [the example of the movie] so that, in future, fish all over the world will live together in harmony and understanding, and put aside their petty differences, stop hunting and eating each other and live for a brighter, better future for all fish and those who love them. Yes, clearly this is about fish.

[twstunes]

okay this isn't a tierlist it's more of a groupings list

BORING DRESS SHOES CONTAINMENT ZONE

[ Trey, Deuce, Jack, Azul, Jade, Malleus, Silver, Sebek, Trein ]

There's not much to say about most of these except that I don't like them. Yes yes they're functional and fit the personalities of those wearing them. I'll still die on the hill that plain dress shoes are more boring than they are classy >:/

Trey, Deuce, Jack, and Silver all have on penny loafers, which are about as casual as you can get while still counting as formalwear-appropriate. Azul and Jade appear to both have on plain-toe oxfords, which I'm sure they coordinated on. Malleus and Trein also seem to have some variety of oxfords, though Trein might be wearing derbies?

Sebek's in here bc I'm not quite sure what's going on with his shoes. Considering that rectangular portion on the interior sides & the fact he's in Equestrian Club, I wouldn't be surprised if they were jodhpurs? They accomplish the same visual effect as basic dress shoes, though, so in the containment zone he stays.

ZESTY DRESS SHOES

[ Riddle, Floyd, Lilia, Crowley, Crewel, Sam ]

Floyd, Lilia, and Sam make up the milder end of the zest spectrum. Floyd made his own shoes and thus gets a cool-by-default technicality. Lilia's shoes are fairly basic loafers, but the bat engraving and large golden heels are enough to nudge them under the "interesting" umbrella. Sam's shoes aren't really visible under his spats, but he remembered the crucial aesthetic detail of matching his spats w/ his gloves, so he gets a pass.

Riddle's shoes have heart-shaped cap toes and heels so chunky they might as well be wedges; both of these details perfectly fit his heart-themed and undersized ass. Crowley appears to have on derbies w/ extensive lace-patterned embellishments, which feels in-line with his love of fancy little baubles. I'd assumed Crewel was wearing saddle shoes at first glance, but now that I'm looking at them…those are full brogues, I'm pretty sure? (Good walking shoes, thus a good pick for a dog owner.)

BOOT CORNER

[ Rook, Epel ]

Rook is a hunter, and hunters need sturdy shoes that can hold up to long treks through the wilderness (or across campus). These are literally boots you could pick up at any given Tractor Supply. I personally believe Vil hates these shoes but cannot do anything to stop Rook from wearing them. He balances them out with his fancy hat, though, so maybe that's enough to placate Vil?

Epel grew up in Harveston, where I don't think it's possible to wear anything less than boots without getting frostbite most months of the year. Epel's probably been stomping around in these bad boys for A While; the tartan pattern is just unique enough to make it feel more like a hand-me-down than something Vil would buy for him.

ACTUAL SENSIBLE SHOES

[ Cater, Ace, Ruggie, Jamil, Idia, Vargas ]

Cater goes with some stylish slip-ons. They're comfy, they're convenient, and they go with most outfits. This dude would definitely wear the checkered Vans if he could.

I fully believe Ace picked out his shoes based entirely on how they looked. It worked out well in the end tho, bc they're perfect for how active he is. He and Idia are the only ones who don't change into different shoes for PE.

Ruggie, Jamil, and Vargas all have on practical, comfy sneakers, which makes sense considering they're some of the most active people on campus—Ruggie and Jamil are constantly running errands, and Vargas teaches PE all day. I like that Jamil's actually seem a little faded from use, though chances are that's just how they're supposed to look.

Idia, despite being a shut-in, at least has the good sense to put on what appear to be velcro shoes when he goes out. (Choosing velcro over laces is also maybe a safety thing? Easy to get on and off, no laces to come undone and trip over. Very important in a dorm with a lot of expensive tech!)

OUTLIERS

[ Leona, Kalim, Vil, Ortho ]

Leona is well-aware of the standard level of chaos that happens every day at NRC, but that isn't going to stop him from wearing sandals instead of something more protective. Dude wants to be comfy above all else, and frankly, I respect it. Either Crewel hasn't noticed Leona's lack of lab-safe footwear or he's given up on getting the guy to wear closed-toe shoes.

Kalim has on juttis w/ the classic curled/pointed tips. Iirc, curled, pointed tips are startlingly good at reducing the amount of sand that gets into shoes! Seeing as both his home and dorm are in desert environments, these make perfect sense for Kalim's go-to footwear.

Someone at this school full of prettyboys had to put on the heels, and Vil is the only baddie committed to fashion enough to follow through. This pair is undoubtedly custom-made—not just because that's the kind of person Vil is, but because they specifically feature Pomefiore's dorm colors.

Ortho doesn't wear shoes. That's just his body. He also doesn't walk in these bc, according to Idia, "walking is for normies." This foot design is present in all of Ortho's bodies except for his athletic gear, seeing as his athletic gear is the only one meant for walking instead of floating. (Since they're shaped kinda like pincers, I wonder if he can use them for picking things up?)

[g00ngala]

hopefully this is the last long post i will ever have to make about hit disney show the owl house but I am so sick of people posting paragraphs of lukewarm takes on philip's death so. one last rant for the road, i suppose.

belos's death wasn't unsatisfying, nor was it purely physical. first of all, philip is a representation of greater societal problems (which are notably still there, remember, there's people who want to reestablish his order for their own gain). he is a plague and parasite on the world and a demonstration of humanity's worst cruelties, and his pathetic death by boiling rain and stomping as the most true and good character, who does her best to do right by everyone and believes in second chances, in the entire show, looks at him with no emotion in a way that directly parallels the way caleb's ghost looks down upon him, and he claws at her feet in a desperate attempt to use another person's good nature once again to get what he wants, and fails and dies, is INCREDIBLY symbolic.

and TWO. the point ISN'T that philip is an Evil Liar Who Lies and his backstory is being shafted for simple evil, he is an incredibly realistic depiction of how many people are consumed by their fear of what they don't understand and their hatred, let it fester into a desire to harm, and then elaborate lies to not only manipulate others but trick themselves by their own rhetoric so they don't have to feel bad for it

throughout the show philip is paralleled to cult leaders and militaristic dictators, and he is LITERALLY a puritan colonizer. philip is white man ego in its purest form. yes, the awful society is 75% the fault of Just One Guy, but this is a cartoon. he represents every man who has tried to build a world like this, who burns what he doesn't understand and makes up lies to justify it and trick his own guilt into not eating him alive.

people keep bitching that philip didn't truly face his own lies and realize how awful he was before he died, or that he wasn't given any chance to change, but philip has run the fuck out of chances. the point is he will never learn because he chooses not to. philip had to die because he'd rather lie and rot and take everyone down with him than EVER admit he's wrong. he killed his brother because he tricked himself into believing that caleb betrayed him, romanticized the idea of Caleb in his head and delusionally convinced himself that he tried to save him, while his knife hangs over his brother's ghost eternally, symbolizing the shoved down guilt he'll never truly outrun.

he made hunter believe it was his fault that philip repeatedly harmed him, he told the people of the isles after slaughtering them over and over that it's better if he rules them because he is better than them, he eternally victimizes himself over and over because he is an abuser. his lies are not just to others but to himself. he makes himself believe that the ends justify the means, when the ends are nonsensical rhetoric and the means are horrific violence. because philip is a person who may have had the capacity for good, but he chooses to live in his own hatred and rot everything around him, taking advantage of hunger for power and good natured kindness in the same breath, and he chooses to turn away from the mirror every time, to refuse to acknowledge the monster he's become because he's a coward.

the titan said it themself. his motives aren't genuine, not because he's evil for evil's sake but because he'd do anything to continue to live in his own delusion of heroism and perpetual victimhood. philip is someone you can find in the behaviors of dictators and colonists and evangelical christians and run of the mill abusers all throughout history. this doesn't make him a cookie cutter villain, it makes him a REALISTIC villain, or as realistic as you can get in a cartoon on the disney channel. he wants power and he wants admiration and he wants death and suffering to the people he's scared of, and he'd rather kill himself and take everyone down with him than ever face who he is.

not all villains need a redemption arc to be complex. he doesn't love to rub his hands together cartoonishly and watch the world burn, but some people do actually enjoy harming others. but the realism comes from how he lies to himself and others about it.

sometimes someone can be truly evil, not because they were born that way, but because they choose to be, and because they choose to live in denial about it until they're rotting in the ground.

[bassettmemes]

YOU KNOW YOU LOVE ME. XOXO, GOSSIP GIRL. ↳ a collection of sentences from the Gossip Girl (2007) series.

"I'm not a stop along the way. I'm a destination."

“Three words. Eight letters. Say it and I’m yours.”

“If you’re going to be sad, you might as well be sad in Paris.”

“Once men have tasted caviar, it baffles me how they settle for catfish.”

“Whoever said money doesn’t buy happiness didn’t know where to shop.”

“We’re sisters. You’re my family. What is you is me. There’s nothing you could ever say that would make me let go.”

“You can’t make people love you, but you can make them fear you.”

“Haven’t you heard? I’m the crazy bitch around here.”

“Here’s my advice. Have a little faith, and if that doesn’t work, have a lot of mimosas.”

“Don’t go all Notebook on me. Not now. I need you.”

“I have an idea for you: quit. Your boss is a bitch. Let’s go to lunch.”

“Destiny is for losers. It’s just a stupid excuse to wait for things to happen instead of making them happen.”

“We’re not servants to our emotions. We can control them, suppress them, stomp them out like bugs.”

“You need to be cold to be a queen.”

“Don’t let people tell you who you are. You tell them.”

“I didn’t come back for you.”

“I’ll just stay home, eat lots of gelato, and write about how true love is nothing but a myth.”

“I’d ask you how you are, but I don’t really care.”

“You know my mom: If it’s not broke, break it.”

“There’s something vibrating in your pocket, and I really hope it’s your phone.”

“I hate that stupid headband.”

“I remember everything you’ve read to me. In case you haven’t noticed I don’t really let go of things so easily.”

“I like the way I feel when he looks at me. Like I wanna believe in myself.”

“Earn the spotlight on your own merits. You’ll feel better.”

“Even if it’s the biggest kamikaze disaster of my life, it’s my disaster.”

“You are no one until you’re talked about.”

“When Prince Charming found Cinderella’s slipper, they didn’t accuse him of having a foot fetish.”

“I don’t read Gossip Girl. That’s for chicks.”

“So, actually, I’ll be living out my nightmare. Trapped in the city with only you to talk to.”

“She doesn’t know me. Nobody knows me. It’s cool. It’s fine.”

“Yeah, well, your fashion emergency was solved so I figured my work was done.”

“You can’t fight against who you are.”

“You gonna strangle him with your scarf?”

“You don’t just give up because things are hard.”

“You know it’s love when you start talking like an assassin.”

“I just want to be the person you can bring anything to.”

“Affairs with married people, threesomes — it just so happens everyone’s problems are within my area of expertise.”

“I just don’t get it. I organized everything the way she likes it. I mean, I even made sure my bowtie matched her dress.”

“Listen, there’s nothing wrong with keeping your options open. I don’t think your parents are going to be mad at you for choosing your own path. Unless… they’re related to my parents.”

“Some might call this a fustercluck. But on the Upper East Side, we call it Sunday afternoon.”

“There’s a weak link in every chain, and it’s just a matter of time before this one snaps.”

“One thing about being on the top of the world? It gives you a long, long way to fall.”

“So we should just be anonymous losers who eat lunch alone and never get invited to parties?”

“Well, keep dreaming. Maybe one day she’ll actually know your name.”

“The sound of your own voice annoying you?”

“Even you should know that jealousy clashes with L.L. Bean pants!”

“I came to tell you in person. You win.”

“The only human contact that you don’t pay for is the people in this house.” 

“That’s not fair. Everyone’s topless on Valentino’s yacht.”

“You know you really put yourself on the radar tonight. Better not make that mistake again or you’ll pay for real.”

 “Don’t look now, but those are the JV mean girls.”

“He gave six girls from Nightingale gonorrhea of the throat last year.”

“I wouldn’t have had to do it if it weren’t for your smear campaign against me.”

“If we wanted to have sex, we’d just go to a hotel.”

“You’ve come to my rescue enough times, let me help you for once.”

“I don’t need a guy to make me feel fulfilled, especially when he’s unavailable.”

[sixpossumsinatrenchcoat]

Talking to Ghosts

A postgame Omori epilogue exploring the way each member of the gang would cope after learning the truth. This time, Kel takes the wheel.

After Sunny gets into his mom’s car and leaves Faraway for good, Kel sits on his porch and Doesn’t Think About Anything. 

It isn’t easy. Kel just had one of the craziest nights of his life. Everything Sunny said in that hospital room is bouncing around in his brain like one of those DVD screensavers. Except instead of a tacky color-changing logo, it's the worst thing he ever heard. 

Luckily, Kel is very good at this game. He kicks off his shoes and digs his toes into the dirt. He plucks blades of grass and shreds them into spindly little threads. The bloody wreckage of Sunny's eye keeps surfacing in his mind, but it's way more fun to think about what he could IM Sunny about, now that Sunny has AIM. It’s even nicer to remember how tight Sunny hugged him before he left. 

…Man. It's dumb, ‘cause it’s not like he didn’t already, but. Kel is really gonna miss that guy. 

The sun climbs higher in the sky. The clouds scud by in no particular hurry. By the time the cool of morning heats to day, Kel is feeling sort of normal, actually. 

So, of course, that’s when Aubrey shows up. 

“Sunny,” she spits. 

Kel does a double-take. “Wh— Huh?? Where???”

“No, you fucking moron, I’m asking. Where the fuck is Sunny.”

Right. Classic Aubrey. Skipping straight to ‘physical violence’ is an insane first resort, but it’s par for the course, for Aubrey. When Aubrey feels bad, she can’t just hide it, like Hero, or swallow it, like Basil, or—freaking—think about literally anything else, like Kel. Aubrey would rather forge her hurt into a warhammer and swing it at anyone dumb enough to get close. 

They’ve had this fight a million times already. At this point, Kel could do it in his sleep. 

Even after all this time, he can’t help letting Aubrey piss him off. But he does manage to bail out before she can break all his bones with her nail bat, so. That’s probably personal growth. 

Kel gets all pissed off and stomps off and then stops being pissed off, because he hates being pissed off. He’s always hated feeling angry. It feels like poison in his blood. He doesn’t get how so many people can do it so much of the time. Why would you choose to feel bad when instead you could just… look at something else?

###

On his way inside, Kel blunders right into Hero.

“O-Oh! Sorry, bro!” 

“All good,” Hero says automatically. Reflexive. His eyes are rimmed with red, but he obviously doesn’t plan on talking about it. “You okay?”

Kel has to stop himself from rolling his eyes. Clearly, Hero is taking the news way, way, way worse than anyone. (Including Aubrey, who is currently, actively committing property damage about it). But of course he’d rather die than say so. 

“Totally,” Kel reassures him. “All good.”

###

It was the same when they were kids. 

Oh, Hero acts like he never gets mad. He acts like he’s too grown-up for that kind of thing. He’s even pretty good at it. He’s got Aubrey fooled, and Sunny. And obviously their parents (not that that one was much of a challenge. Mamá and Dad would believe anything if Hero was the one who said it). 

But Hero could never fool Mari. Mari was sharp, like Sunny. Perceptive enough to smell the lies on your breath. If you were hiding something, she could always draw it out of you. She’d soften Hero up with teasing and flattery and then hit him in his weak spot at the exact right moment, the perfect jab at the perfect angle to split him open like a fish. The good cop and the bad cop, all in one. 

Kel used to hear them sometimes. Once in a blue moon, when Hero and Mari were sure that no one was listening, they would even let their hair down a little. Take off their disguises and let themselves be less-than-perfect for a change. Sometimes it was Hero who was crying, and sometimes it was Mari. Sometimes both of them at once! 

But most of the time, they weren’t crying. They were pissed. 

Like in fourth grade, after Kel’s practice got rained out. Kel was soaking wet and past exhausted. All he wanted was to lie down and close his eyes and not even think about the stupid math test that he definitely flunked this morning. 

He was already reaching for the door when he heard the voices: pitched low and stretched taut, like a rubber band about to break. 

“—even matter!!” Hero was whispering. “If I’m too busy, it’s my fault for not helping; but if I do tutor him—instead of studying for my own finals!! By the way!! Which I really need to be doing!!!”

“I’m familiar with the concept,” Mari said drily.

“—then it’s still my fault for—what? Not helping well enough? I mean, what??? What do they expect me to do? Freaking… crawl inside his head and make him smarter?” 

Mari snickered. “You could hide a walkie-talkie in his hat. Like that Spongebob episode where he goes to driver’s ed.”

Hero huffed a tired laugh. “I just don’t get what they expect me to do. I’m not the one who still can’t do long division in fourth grade.” 

Kel froze with his hand on the doorknob. Okay. Yeah. He wasn’t sure for a second, but—yeah. They were definitely talking about him. 

Some people would probably pick a fight about it. Some people (cough, cough, Aubrey) would storm in guns a-blazing. And where would that get her? All the mean stuff she heard would still be in her head. Nothing would change, except that everyone would know that everyone knew that everything was worse than it looked. Kel didn’t want any part in it.

He backed away from the door. He backed all the way down the hall, and halfway down the stairs. Then—louder this time—he stomped up the steps and burst through the door to their room.

“Oh!” Hero looked very briefly panicked. “H-Hey, little bro! Short practice today?” 

“Uh huh! We got rained out! But look!!!” Kel bared his teeth, showing off the ragged hole where his canine used to be. 

Hero turned faintly green. 

“Grooossss!” Mari giggled. “Did you twist it out yourself?”

“Uh huh!”

She ruffled his hair. “You’re so cool, Kel. Don’t ever change, okay?”

Kel grinned up at her, gap-toothed and beaming. “You got it!!”

###

But everyone changes.

###

Kel opens his eyes in Basil’s room. 

It’s not how he remembers. Basil’s room used to be wall-to-wall leaves and vines and memories. Now it’s vacant. No photos. No sticky note reminders. None of Sunny's sketches on the walls. Just white paint and beige carpet and a pool of inky dark, slowly swallowing the floor. 

In real life, Kel wasn’t here for this part. He had to hear about it from Aubrey while they huddled outside the ICU, clutching each other’s hands hard enough to cut off the circulation and taking turns telling each other that it was going to be okay. But Kel’s brain must not know that. Because this time, he can see everything.

Basil kneels over Sunny’s chest. Sunny’s face is eyeless mush. A mangle of ground meat. 

There’s a blur of motion as Hero tackles Basil against the wall.

“Kel!” he bellows. He kicks the shears across the floor. “Kelsey! Now!!”

Oh. This is where he comes in. 

Kel jerks around to stare at Hero, who’s got Basil pinned by the throat. “Wh–What?”

“Hold him!!”

“Huh???” Basil isn’t even struggling. He's just dangling there. Bleeding.

“NOW!!”

On his way across the room, Kel almost trips over something on the floor. A body. Sunny’s. But Sunny was sleeping in the living room. Why would Sunny be on Basil’s floor? 

Kel looks closer. 

Sunny’s face is red. Sunny’s hair is slicked flat and his face is all red, only red without any eyes at all. His face is torn red and he’s—moving. He’s moving. He’s awake. He’s bleeding out and he can feel it happen because he’s still awake. 

Sunny looks at Kel without any eyes. Red sputters through his teeth. “Khrrrh—”

###

Kel wakes up gasping. Scrambles for his phone before he remembers that he doesn’t have Sunny's number. Does Sunny even have a phone? Would Kel even know if he did?

He stumbles downstairs to the family desktop. Sunny’s online. Big surprise. Sunny is always online, and never answers. 

Kel is so freaked out, he almost types, ‘Hey, are you okay?’

‘Hey, Sunny! Sorry, I don’t want to stress you out, but I’m really scared. I’m really scared for you Sunny. I can’t stop feeling like something bad is going to happen. I can’t stop dreaming that something bad is going to happen. But they don’t feel like nightmares. They feel like visions. Premonitions.’

‘Hi Sunny. Long time no see, haha. Hey, weird question: are you okay? Are you hurt? Please tell me if you’re hurting but please please PLEASE don’t lie. Sometimes I get so scared you’re going to die. Are you going to die? You have to tell me if you’re—’

Kel doesn’t type any of that stuff. 

He types, snnyyyy! u up? lol

He types, cant sleep haha

He types, wanna sneak out 2 hobbeez? ;) ;) ;)

Sunny doesn’t answer. Because he lives three hours away, and because he never answers. Whatever it is that Sunny wants, it’s obviously not to go to fucking Hobbeez.

Kel types, misss u bro. gna try 2 sleep. wishme luck :/

###

When he pads downstairs, he’s met with the hissing crackle of frying eggs.

“Mo~rning!” his mom sings out. “Thought I’d make breakfast, since it’s your brother’s last day!”

Right. Hero heads back to college tomorrow. Kel knew that. “Heck yeah! Can I help?”

“Vaya, vaya! I don’t need any more mess! Oh, and your friend got home from the hospital. You should go say hi! I’m sure he’d appreciate it.”

“My—” Kel sputters, before he remembers that she couldn’t possibly be talking about Sunny. Sunny lives three hours away. “Who??”

“The little blanquito. Que siempre parece como conejito mojado.”

Well, that’s definitely not Sunny. Which means that, by ‘hospital,’ Mamá meant ‘psych ward.’ Specifically, the wing for kids who tried to murder their best friend.

Kel’s eyes unfocus a little. The last time he saw Basil, it was—

(—pinned to the wall with Hero's elbow pressed into his throat. Beads of red dripping from his fingers. Even later, blanched and bloodless on the gurney, Kel could still see the blood crusted under his—

Basil wasn’t even very badly hurt, after. It looked a lot worse than it was, but that’s just ‘cause all his wounds were on his face. It’s not like Sunny’d had any way to defend himself. Just his own two hands. At worst, the marks might have got infected from all the grime under Sunny’s unwashed nails.)

“You should go see him!” Mamá says encouragingly. “I’m sure he’d be glad to see a friend.”

…Right. That’s what Kel is. A friend.

###

Basil really is back. He’s coming to school and everything. It’s—weird.

Not bad. It’s not bad. It’s just that talking to Basil is— Um. It’s sort of like playing a videogame about talking to Basil. Like Kel is watching himself from outside-in.

It was the same after Mari. Kel couldn’t wrap his head around why she did it. He couldn’t even stand to think about why she did it. So, he didn’t. He spent months on autopilot. Controlling his body remotely, like a mech pilot or something. ‘Press A to get out of bed.’ ‘Press B to put on your clothes.’ ‘Press X to bring your brother another meal that you both know he isn’t going to eat.’

“K-Kel?” Basil says again.

“Haha, sorry! Guess I spaced out for a second. I just wanted to say that it’s, uh. You know. It’s good to have you back! And if you ever need anything—someone to talk to, or to back you up if someone’s messing with you, or whatever—just, like, let me know.”

Basil doesn’t look up. He just keeps fidgeting with his fingernails, chewing a scab on his lip that’s already started to bleed. He obviously isn’t convinced.

“Hey, c’mon!” Kel whacks him on the arm, making Basil flinch. “You know we’ve got your back. If anyone gives you a hard time, you tell them to talk to me.”

If anything, Basil looks even less convinced. “...R-Right. Um. Thank you. I’ll… do that.”

Kel has to stop himself from scowling. He’s aware that he’s fucking this up. He just doesn’t understand why.

For a few years there, Kel was pretty sure that he was a good friend, at least. If nothing else. Now it turns out he couldn’t even get that right. In the end, it’s like everything else. No matter how hard he tries, it never seems to be enough.

What is it about friendship that he isn’t getting? Isn’t being friends just, like… hanging out, and going on adventures, and having a good time and stuff? Why is everyone so determined to make it into this big exhausting thing?

###

Kel is hanging out on Sunny’s porch again. Though technically it isn’t Sunny’s porch anymore. The For Sale sign is gone, so the sale must have gone through. But no one’s actually moved in yet, so. Not like there’s anyone to kick him out.

Kel isn’t moping, if that’s what you think. Being here is just a habit. Somewhere he goes to be alone. If anyone saw him here, they’d feel too awkward to approach.

…With one obvious exception.

Aubrey stalks across the lawn with her bat slung over one shoulder. The storm brewing in the air frizzes her hair to angry spikes. As usual, she doesn’t mince words.

“Are you seriously still doing this?”

Kel buries his face in his hands. “Why are you still so mad at me?”

“Why do you think?”

Thunder rolls. Lightning rends the sky, a violent gash in the dark.

“I don’t know!!” Kel shouts, too-loud in the ensuing quiet. “That’s why I’m asking!!”

Just for a second, Aubrey’s bat lowers. “...Are you actually fucking stupid? You totally iced me out. For years. In the worst time of my life.”

“I already apologized for that!!”

“I don’t care,” Aubrey snarls. Her goodwill has officially run out. “That doesn’t do anything! I’m not gonna get any less mad until you make it make sense!!”

Kel grimaces. “It’s— It was just…”

…It’s just that she was being so awful. At home, Kel was swallowed up by the black hole of Hero’s grief. And the second he clawed his way out into the light, there was Aubrey, choking, totally coming apart. Kel just wanted to feel okay for two seconds. Was that really so much to ask?

Wasn’t it bad enough that Mari was gone? Wasn’t it enough that Sunny left with her? There were plenty of times when Kel couldn’t get away from it. When he had to lock himself in the shower to keep from breaking down. But did it really have to be all the time? Always? For every second of every day?

Kel couldn’t even laugh at a joke without feeling like a jerk. Like feeling okay for a second was an insult. (Not to Mari, obviously. Mari was like Kel: she found the fun in every moment. Mari would be thrilled to see him whoop after landing a free throw, or laugh because a butterfly landed on his juice-stained shirt. And she’d hate how Hero and Aubrey were acting. So why was Kel the only one who was wrong?)

“I gotta go,” he mutters, jerking to his feet.

Aubrey barks a cold laugh. “Yeah. That’s what I thought.”

You can read Kel's chapter here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/43929270/chapters/123048562

Or start from the beginning: https://archiveofourown.org/works/43929270/chapters/110454879

[muraenide]

This miiiiight be oversharing personal sentiments a little bit but...

Ever since I changed my rules to include an explicit list of what I'm going to write on this blog instead of just a simple, brief statement saying "dark things will be present here" and started actively following people or mutuals of mutuals whose muses or writing I am genuinely interested in/have spiked my interests, I've grown a lot happier about the contents and people I'm seeing on my dash.

I felt like tum.blr rpers have grown incredibly judgemental and incapable of minding their own business. People all around me seem to have shifted their energy onto focusing on offending as few people as possible instead of trying to actually have fun, and the rpc has become a weird circle for activism when it shouldn't have been used as a medium for (false) activism in the first place. Not all of us are here to make a point or to establish a legacy. In fact, most of us are just here to have fun and scratch an itch in the brain or fill in gaps that canon source materials haven't been able to provide. But the idea of this is incomprehensible to some people who are actively ruining the rpc and making everyone fear that they're walking on eggshells while they spiral into a depressing state of existing to not offend anyone instead of existing to have fun.

I've lost count of the number of times people tell me that I'm on a DNI for "writing with pro.ship.pers" or "writing romantic ships with an adult and a minor" (<- said ship is between a 17 y.o. and a 19 y.o.) sometimes it's also ships about fake incest.

(Just as an aside, I've grown so desensitized by being on DNIs that it's no longer something to feel anything about. I'd just go through their rules with a very confused expression if to see what they took issue with. Most of the time I don't even know the mun personally.)

I've gotten more hate directed at me for writing fake in.cest rather than real ones, which is not only baffling but also incredibly ODD bc the fandom "decides" what is good and what is bad, which reeks heavily of manipulation and toxicity in my opinion. Fandoms aren't governed by a single party or a monolithic authority that decides its rules. Fandom rules are made by the community, and in every community, there should be different rules, made to ensure everyone is comfortable and feel inclusive. That is what makes fandoms special and detached from reality. Yes, you're entitled to not want to interact with certain content for reasons no one else is entitled to know unless they have your consent, but you're definitely not entitled to silence/stomp out everyone to cater to your whims or risk getting hate/harassment. Which is why I heavily encourage tagging content as-is instead of denying the nature of said content and praying that no one notices because that is the best way to make it difficult for people with different preferences and tastes to co-exist.

And ever since I changed my rules and actively followed people again, there has been a variety of content on my dash with varying tags. It's honestly very stimulating and uplifting, and if I firmly believe if a mutual were to take offense to anything I write or choose to interact with, it's on them as they clearly did not go through my rules when they followed/followed back. Additionally, I tag all my things.

A few months ago, my dash was exhausting, and boring, everyone (or most of my mutuals) was scared. Now I see posts getting tagged "necrophilia cw". I'm very happy for both my mutuals and their muses for striving for the peaks of how far fiction writing and the imaginative side of the mind can go.

I'd highly recommend anyone who has been in a similar situation to list down your dos and don'ts so your mutuals will know what to take to your tables and what to not. Personally, it felt like my dash had curated itself and it's been very pleasant to be on tum.blr lately even if I still have to vanish for a few more days due to inrl.

I think about my dash very often this week and I love all of you guys for being here and showing me your brainrots/muses! 💗💞💓

[iriswestallenn]

The discourse on Saltburn is so interesting to me because you either choose to take the movie as a fun romp or a movie "that had nothing [new] to say." Or that things happened just for shock value.

While there's definitely an argument to be made that this film had nothing/little to say, (as I am struggling with some themes they seemed to drop halfway through as well,) I just took this movie as a fun romp haha. You have to sit back and remember... they drew curtains back after a major character death and the entire room was RED! They isolate their black family member. They put a deer costume on Oliver during his bday party. A DEER. This movie was never trying to be subtle.

I've seen some crazy takes like "rich people good?" lmao Felix is arguably the 'nicest' family member right? Jacob Elordi and the script honestly do a really good job showing he's just as shitty as his family. After telling Oliver about his life, he asks Oliver, what about you? Cmon, what else? Siblings? ANYTHING interesting about you? Oliver should not have lied... if he didn't though, do you actually believe Felix would have kept talking to him? Felix gathered his family around and told them exactly "what happened" to Olivers mom and dad. No one would DO THAT! Especially if you've invited this person to your home!!

This internet age refuses to accept multiple things can be true at the same time haha when Felix learned from Farleigh that Ollie and Venetia hooked up, Felix STOMPED to the breakfast table. Folded his arms, ignored Ollie, made no eye contact. Then admitted he didn't want Ollie to be with Venetia, he had a problem with THE LAST GUY he brought to their home being with Venetia. They bring a new "poor" person their home every damn Summer. Multiple truths: 1. Felix shouldn't have been friggin killed. 2. Felix was a shitty person. Jesus

I understand the shock value critique. None of the three big scenes came across like shock value to me personally. I think it's because 1. It was all coming from Oliver. Oliver slurped the tub water, he fucked the grave, he put the period blood back in Venetias mouth. I think if everyone in the family was also doing weird fucked up shit, I'd be like, oookay. Now how is everyone here a weirdo? lol but it was just Oliver. 2. I thought this was a cannibalism movie lmao so I was actually expecting worse!

Obviously people can have different opinions but this movie and its discourse have been super interesting to me. I really enjoyed this movie but my main negative is that it does present itself in the beginning of the movie as though it has something to say but it doesn't have much to say? You're also not made aware that Olivers main objective was the house. Or if it wasn't the house at the start, at what point did it become about getting everything from the family?

Remember the friend Ollie had at the school that he later dropped? That friends last words to Ollie were, "he'll [felix] will get bored of you." Or something like that. That was so dumb lmao Venetia says this exact thing later in the movie. Why not make that friends last words to Ollie about status? Tie that into what Farleigh begins to tell Ollie and make Ollies goal clear to the audience even before the "plot twist."

That scene in school with the tutor. Oliver read the whole summer reading list. He came to college ready to go by the rules and succeed. There's no clear turning point imo. When Farleigh gets there late, doesn't care, definitely didn't read the reading list, and the tutor is like, "I knew your hot mom. We weren't friends, I just admired her from afar." I wish there was more focus on Oliver realizing following the rules would get him nowhere he wanted to be.

I ended up enjoying this movie because I'm satisfied with how fun it was, how GORGEOUS it looks, and how great the performances are. Not good, great performances truly. It's so sad that this could have been a 'no plot, just vibes' kinda movie. But instead there is some semblance of a plot lol it's just not fully fleshed out. I still think people are taking it way too seriously and the genuine distain for it is odd but there's a tug and pull here for sure.

[quoththeowl31]

Tea Time

(Post-Manor AU)

Melly Plinius poured honey into her favorite tea, orange blossom, ignoring the look of ire directed at her from Martha Bahamfil. The latter had yet to touch her own cup that Melly had generously offered when she had stormed onto the Plinius estate, upset and irritated.

"Your tea is getting cold. Would you like some honey? It's from my personal apiary."

"Why did you tell Mr. Campbell Alice was leaving?" Martha demanded. No longer wearing her veil or mask, Martha could clearly see the raised eyebrow on her host's face.

"Ah so that's what this is about." Mell sipped her tea, once again offering the jar of honey. Martha reluctantly accepted it, making an obvious eye roll.

"Of course that's what this is about. What else would it be about?"

Melly hummed.

"It wasn't obvious, you stomped onto my property demanding a word with me. No polite greeting and no "how are you." She took another sip of tea. "To answer your question though, it was a mistake on my part. I let slip that Miss DeRoss was leaving. He started moping around my estate for a few days; it disrupted my own work and brought down the mood, so I let him know she didn't leave yet and let him know where to find her. He left that afternoon for the next train to London." If Melly were being honest with herself, even with the limp, she had never seen someone move as fast as he did to catch the train. She was worried that he'd injure himself again just by running.

Martha still looked irritated though, now she had to try and help forge a new identity for him too for the boat to America. And the scar was not going to make it easy; sure make-up would helpful but only from a distance. Him sticking with Alice was a huge risk to her safety; the people behind the Manor games, they were many and they were powerful. They were going to be looking for all of them, Alice especially.

"He's going to compromise her safety. He's too identifiable; our goal is to cover our tracks before They find us." Martha retorted, angrily taking a sip of her tea.

"I believe that's where you're wrong," Melly leaned forward resting her chin on her hands. "Mr. Campbell may be someone who could provide an extra layer of cover. He's cautious and observant; when we were in that game, his quick thinking threw Orpheus off."

"He punched you in the face." Martha retorted.

"Only because Orpheus was watching from a distance. We had to do what we could to survive him. We needed him to believe we weren't working together."

"But he's...he's greedy and rude and what if he hurts her?"

Melly smiled a warm smile.

"You care very deeply for Alice." Martha looked down at her cold tea, reminiscing on their shared past.

"Of course I do. She's been through hell and back. She's the one who gave me the courage to choose my own path and I don't want her to lose any potential for a happier life."

"I think she'll be ok," Melly offered Martha a refill of tea. "Besides, any man who gives off that much of a puppy-dog look at the thought of never seeing someone again is going to follow that person to the ends of the Earth."

They sat in silence for awhile, Martha taking it all in.

"So what are you going to do?" She asked. Melly leaned back.

"I think maybe it's time to take my studies to a few new places for awhile. I'm thinking maybe the Amazon or Africa."

[daughter-of-melpomene]

𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗥 𝗔𝗙𝗧𝗘𝗥 𝗛𝗜𝗚𝗛 𝗣𝗟𝗢𝗧 𝗕𝗨𝗡𝗡𝗜𝗘𝗦

The time has finally come for me to share my Ever After High plot bunnies with you guys!! I really did mean to post this shortly after I talked about my Monster High babies, but some things happened and I never got around to it. However, I’m here now!! Feel free to also check out my Ever After High fancast if you want to better picture these plot bunnies with their friends and ships!

(Also gonna tag my beloveds @ginevrastilinski-ocs and @manyfandomocs since they’re the ones who inspired me to share these, and also my beloved @auxiliarydetective!!)

Tempest Witch, daughter of the Sea Witch, poly Dexter/Raven ship, China Anne McClain FC. Hidden away in the sea and homeschooled for most of her life because her mother wanted to protect her from having to sign the Storybook of Legends and suffering the same fate she did, but starts attending Ever After High after the Storybook is officially abolished. Kind of in awe of Raven and has a bit of a hero worship crush on her at first since she’s the one who changed everything, but eventually that turns into real feelings as they get to know each other better and those feelings extend to Dexter as well. A total sweetheart who absolutely doesn’t want to be evil and believes in goodness and helping people, but also intensely awkward and a bit naïve after being hidden away from the world for so long. Can transform into an octopus hybrid form whenever she gets into water, and also has hydrokinesis and is actually one of the strongest magic-using students at school since she was with her mother for so long and didn’t have a lot to do but practice. Obviously a Rebel, since she absolutely doesn’t want to become evil and hurt people, and her roommate is Lilly Bo-Peep.

Helena Müller Jr., daughter of “Thousandfurs,” Duchess ship, Paris Berelc FC. Named after her mother’s real name, but call her Junior and she’ll stomp on your toes in heels. One of the most fashionable students at Ever After High, and has definitely collaborated with Poppy on designs before. Happy to be a princess and looks forward to ruling her kingdom some day, but also wants to be able to design and sell her creations and is way too much of a social butterfly to be content being in disguise and unknown for years, so she certainly isn’t upset when Milton finally gets rid of the Storybook of Legends. A bright, cheeeful, and energetic person, always the life of the party, but also tends to be a bit insecure that people only like her because of her looks (a leftover from what happened to her mother). Develops a crush on Duchess despite the vast differences in their personalities, and though Duchess initially resents her like she resents all students with happy endings she eventually comes around and they get together. Some kind of a mix between a Royal and a Rebel (she likes her happy ending but doesn’t want to go through everything leading up to it and anyway believes that people should get to choose their destinies), and her roommate is Clara Lear.

Faerena Upland, daughter of Glinda the Good Witch, poly OC ship, Maisie Peters FC. Basically for the longest time this girl is Apple’s pre-Legacy Day beliefs combined with Glinda’s personality before she became friends with Elphaba - Faerena is a master at becoming exactly what the person she’s talking to wants to see and hear so she can keep boosting her social status, but she’s also pretty self-absorbed and doesn’t care about much but becoming Oz’s beloved Good Witch someday. Doesn’t care for the Rebels at all, can’t understand why they won’t just suck it up and stop making things hard for the people who do want their happy endings, and is constantly rude to all of the Rebels and Ness in particular, since he is supposed to be her future “enemy”. Eventually does realize the error of her ways and strives to become better and make amends, though, especially after she falls in love with Ness and Em - she doesn’t quite ever lose the vanity or the instinct to put on an act, though. Like her mother, has the ability to do magic but isn’t super good at it, which frustrates her to no end. Initially a hardcore Royal but transitions into becoming a Rebel, and her roommate is Emerald “Em” Gale (and they were roommates!).

Ness Thropp, son of Elphaba Thropp a.k.a. the Wicked Witch of the West, poly OC ship (Faerena and Em’s boyfriend), Finn Wolfhard FC. Named after his late aunt Nessarose, which he isn’t exactly sure how to feel about. Most people at Ever After High tend to forget that he’s actually a student there, because he’s incredibly quiet and tries his best not to make his presence known. A good bit more skilled in magic than his mom since he has more opportunities to actually practice and learn about it, but mostly just practices so he can keep it in control because he’d much rather be drawing or painting than doing any magic. A dedicated artist who’s terrified of becoming Oz’s misunderstood pariah and is honestly kind of afraid of Faerena before he comes to realize just how constantly she puts on an act. The days Raven refused to sign the Storybook of Legends and when it was officially destroyed were the two best days of his life because it meant he didn’t have to be afraid anymore, but he also does have pretty bad social anxiety and has to learn to accept support from the people who care about him to overcome his worries and insecurities. He and Em start dating at first (he’s been hopelessly pining after her for literal years and she finally asks him out shortly after the Royals and Rebels start to make peace), and even though it takes him a bit longer than Em to forgive Faerena and start dating her - even though he’s also had a crush on her for a while despite everything - he fully supports Em entering into a relationship with her first and is the sweetest most attentive boyfriend to both his girlfriends when they all get together. Definitely a Rebel considering how much he’s always feared his destiny, and his roommate is Tucker.

Emerald “Em” Gale, daughter of Dorothy Gale, poly OC ship (Faerena and Ness’s girlfriend), Halle Bailey FC. Has always been excited for her destiny, since she can’t wait to visit Oz, but has also always thought Ness was sweet and doesn’t really want to go up against him, so she’s happy when the Storybook of Legends gets abolished because it means she won’t have to. Also doesn’t like Faerena much at first, since as her roommate she really sees how self-absorbed and image-obsessed she is, but eventually she sees how much the other girl puts on a constant mask and doesn’t really know who she is without her destiny and offers to help her make amends (essentially taking up the role of Faerena’s Elphaba rather than Ness doing it), and eventually winds up falling in love with her and dating her while also still dating Ness. Very happy when Ness and Faerena fall in love because she loves love and now the two people she loves love each other too! Definitely a lot like her mother, curious and adventurous and a bit quick-tempered, but also a sweetheart who would do anything for the people she cares about. Probably would describe herself as a Roybel (likes the idea of her destiny despite the fact that she completely flouts it, and does believe that people should be allowed to choose what they want to do), and her roommate is Faerena Upland (again, and they were roommates!).

Kieran Dancer, child of the eleventh Dancing Princess, Hopper ship, Keiynan Lonsdale FC. Justine’s cousin, but in her year at Ever After High since their mom didn’t have them until later in life. An absolutely terrible dancer despite the fact that their parents and aunts have had them and all their cousins in lessons since they were able to walk, so they’ve always been dreading their destiny and they’re intensely relieved when Milton finally gets rid of the Storybook of Legends. A very talented actor, though, and they get involved with Ever After High’s theatre department once Raven doesn’t sign and the Rebels are more free to pursue their actual passions. Kind of a class clown, super quick-witted and funny, but also has a big heart and knows how to be serious when it’s needed. Besties with Dexter since they both thought for a while that Dexter might be the prince in Kieran and Justine’s story, even though Kieran knew he was in love with Raven and was totally cool with it since they basically just see Dexter as a brother. Has had a crush on Hopper for years but never tried to make a move before Raven doesn’t sign the Storybook, but doesn’t hesitate to ask him out once the Royals and Rebels make peace. A Rebel who does also support those who like their destiny and want to go through with it, and their roommate (unfortunately) is Gus Crumb.

Molly Marian, daughter of Maid Marian, Darling ship, Ella Purnell FC. Has always hated the idea of her destiny, both because she hates that she doesn’t get to do anything important and because she thinks Sparrow is annoying and doesn’t want to get married to him at all (never mind the fact that she doesn’t even like guys). One of the biggest troublemakers at Ever After High because of this, because she is determined to make Milton’s life as miserable as possible before she has to sign the Storybook. The very first one, besides Maddie of course, to be on Raven’s side after Legacy Day, and is eternally grateful to the other girl for what she sees as saving her from the life she didn’t want. An absolute spitfire, fierce and defiant and never afraid to call out bullshit when she sees it, but also has a big heart and loves deeply. Has been pining for Darling from afar since they were kids, but doesn’t make a move until after the Wonderland adventure when she learns the other girl’s White Knight secret - they’re an absolute power couple when they do get together, though. Kind of becomes besties with Raven and Maddie after Legacy Day. Basically the original Rebel, and her roommate is Kitty Cheshire (which can be stressful sometimes, but most of the time she likes it).

Now, I don’t actually intend to properly introduce these guys or do much with them, but if you still want to ask any questions about them, feel free!! Hope you guys enjoy these babies!! <3