#but removing him from her life entirely tends to end up bad

[a-roguish-gambit]

I recently saw a person comment that Rogue was better off without Remy in her life.... My brother in Christ she literally went on a rampage. She tried to kill a man. She tried to kill several people in trying to kill that man. She fell into a coma in part as a result of this. She literally tried to join magneto against humanity. Her actions in helping magneto unintentionally lead to wolverines fucking bones getting stolen. And you think she's better off without him? I love rogue so much but she makes some objectively pretty bad decisions when she's had her emotional support Cajun forcibly removed from her.

And when Remy isn't in the picture all together look what happens look at the X-Men movies and how she's portrayed. You may not like Rogue and Gambit as a ship and that is totally fine but Gambit is basically the last line of defense from her being used as pure creepy fan service to the audience a good chunk of the time from what I've seen.

You only think she's a better character without Remy and more complex because he's literally a grounding force in her life her life gets incredibly toxic and complicated in bad ways without him. It's why he's considered her home and harbor. Even if the relationship was entirely platonic he is often just someone she can go to for anything and helps her cool her head and keeps her from falling back on bad coping mechanisms.

[sinizade]

A little family tree about Izveta and Astarion because I recently discovered that vampires in D&D can have children...

The appearance and what is written about Astarion's parents is just a headcanon created by me, I keep in mind that they never found their son and ended up dying over the years since the game does not mention anything connected abt Astarion's family.

I never wrote about Izveta's father, but basically he was a quiet man and obedient to his wife even though she was extremely aggressive towards him. She killed him a few years after adopting Izveta when he tried to get rid of the girl after overhearing her talking to Sceleritas.

The day that Sarevok had mentioned in his letter arrived and Izveta could no longer think rationally, she wanted children, she needed children and so it was done... Twins with Bhaal's blood, a boy and a girl who, since they were born, already had an aptitude for magic, Belgos and Amalicia or as the people in Baldur's Gate call them "Cursed Children.

Even though they were children of a Vampire Lord and a Bhaalspawn, Belgos and Amalicia did not grow up in a troubled home, quite the contrary, Astarion and Izveta had plans for their children and being bad parents was not one of those plans. The children were loved to the extreme and no one would dare try to hurt any of them, also because no one would be crazy enough to try.

I like to think that Astarion would be a drooling father, you can see in the game that even though he tries to pretend otherwise, he loves children. I think he would remove ALL of Cazador's paintings and decorations and fill the entire castle with paintings of Elbos, Amalicia and Izveta, every hallway and room would have at least two paintings of them so that everyone could see the GREAT family he and Izveta built together

Amalicia is defiant, she took this a lot from her mother, she always wants to go out when she shouldn't, she always wants to fight with people who shouldn't, Astarion and Izveta often had to solve many of the problems she caused, whether with Astarion's vampire spawns or with some hunters she provoked when she ran away from the Castle. Even with all the problems she causes, Amalicia is still a child and many times she just wants to play.

Elbos is a calm and affectionate boy unlike his sister and is almost always seen hiding behind Astarion and Izveta's legs. He likes rats and keeps some pets hidden in his room as Astarion makes a point of banning any rats inside his castle. .

Amalicia and Elbos' relationship tends to be the basic one for children their age, they fight and then go back to playing together, but sometimes they both seem to be far away from where they are, as if they were listening to something... Or someone...

Btw, if you are a hunter or a mercenary with a functional brain and love for life, you N E V E R try to hurt the children of a Bhaalspawn and a Vampire Lord... They will do really bad things to you

[jerktournament]

FINAL ROUND - GLaDOS (Portal) VS Herbert P Bear (Club Penguin)

!!! PROPAGANDA BELOW !!!

GLaDOS: "So mot only is she running your character through a series of puzzles with the intention of killing her at the end, but in the second game she spends the Entire. Time. Verbally and emotionally abusing you, including body shaming and bullying you for being an orphan. If it's any consolation, she does have to exist as a potato for the second and third acts of Portal 2."

"Known for being mean (hot). Mercilessly targets the player character's every possible insecurity. Petty and mean. I understand if you don't want to include her since she tends to dominate polls, lol."

HERBERT: "This mf spends his whole life trying to heat up a frozen island and terrorizing the innocent penguins that live on it all bc he was bad at sailing one time and is too much of a wimp to try again. Classic Misery loves Company type asshole."

"operation blackout would have been NOTHING without him (mostly because he caused it). he has a SOLAR LASER. this polar bear is an ass who literally harnessed the power of the sun and froze the top members of the elite penguin force (a group of penguin special agents) and his best friend is an equally villainous crab"

"Herbert may be a fandom darling in our fandom of like, 20 people. BUT DON'T LET THAT FOOL YOU! He is a conniving, EVIL bear, and a professional jerk and some highlights of his jerkishness include...

- Spending ten years of his life (by the time the game closed) trying to destroy the Penguin Secret Agency and Elite Penguin Force (both were agencies that protected the island from disasters and villains like Herbert) with varying success...

- SUCCESSFULLY destroyed the Penguin Secret Agency with a popcorn bomb, which destroyed their HQ. It should also be noted that while doing so, he locked in the player, Rookie, and Gary the Gadget Guy, presumably so the bombs explosion would have killed them all.

-Teamed up with the EPF to stop the Ultimate Protobot 10,000 and the Test Bots, a small group of four dangerous robots after he personally brought them back. When Protobot went "too far" for Herbert's standards by threatening the environment and trying to completely destroy the EPF (despite the aforementioned Popcorn Bomb incident literally destroying the PSA, and also a certain Operation: Blackout), causing him to temporarily switch sides. This might sound like a character growth moment...except for the fact that he immediately betrays them once Protobot is dealt with and attacks and damages the EPF's HQ using a robot hydra made for the Medieval Party that he stole.

- A canonical ex-dictator. Don't believe me? Look up Operation: Blackout on the Club Penguin Wiki! He froze several agents during his reign of terror, was open to freezing innocent civilians, and also wanted to do away with puffles- the pets of penguins. He also banned several hobbies and professions during his reign (being a Ninja, a DJ, a Pirate, etc) for no reason other than disliking them. He also destroyed the EPF'S HQ and exposed two agents' private information to the public. This means Herbert is the first and only character to canonically dox people he doesn't like on Club Penguin.

-Was planning to bomb the EPF literally two months later with a hot sauce bomb (makes sense in context of the game and yes, it is more destructive than it sounds).

-Brainwashed puffles into digging coins for him purely because his henchman, Klutzy the crab brought a coin slot to use for his DIY heater, instead of just removing the coin slot and retooling it to work without one like a normal person."

[mc-lukanette]

Thanks. I should be there in five minutes.

The reply came a few seconds later.

Okay! I'll keep an ear out for you!

Near the end of those five minutes, Luka was still dashing down the sidewalk, mentally cursing himself for daring to almost be late. They didn't have any particular plans and he'd only really said it as a guess that didn't mean much, but he could just imagine Marinette standing by the door with her hearing trained intensely on it.

It would've been cute if he wouldn't have felt bad for it.

He knew it wasn't technically his fault. He'd nearly been recognized and she tended to be his safe place to go to, but then most of the detours he knew of had him running into more risk. Hiding his hair and the lower half of his face apparently weren't enough anymore to stop people from doing a double take at him.

Maybe he'd been in this place for too long on his break, but she was there. He simply didn't want to leave, not if it meant losing the "rock star's safe haven," as he called it in his head.

Footsteps still pounding as he ran, he was within arm's reach of the door when it flew open. Without a word, he slipped inside and Marinette shut it behind him. He let himself breathe, pushing his hood up and pulling his face mask down.

Sighing in relief, he said, “You're a lifesaver, as always,”

She laughed him off. “You don't have to go that far.”

“But I do,” he replied. “You're risking a lot letting me hide here. If anyone finds out you're doing it—”

“Stop.“ She raised a hand, turning her face away from him with a faint blush. “It's really not a big deal.”

He pouted a bit, but let the praise go for the time being. He understood, on some level, that she'd done it before for other famous people she knew (the people he'd have to thank if he ever met them, since it led to him meeting her), but it didn't make it any less special.

Not to him, anyway.

Marinette, strolling across the room and waving a hand at all the seating in the living room, asked without looking back at him, “You want any snacks?”

Any kind of food sounded good after the running he did. “Please. Anything's fine.”

As she left the room, he went and plopped himself down on the recliner, going about removing the hoodie he'd been using to keep himself hidden. He also took off the face mask entirely and set them both neatly on the table.

She returned from the kitchen a moment later, tossing a bag of chips at him and sitting down on the couch with one of her own. She popped it open, then hesitated before asking him, “Do you like soup?”

He nodded impulsively, though he honestly was neutral to it overall. “Why?”

“I was gonna make some later, and I—” She made an unreadable gesture. “—I bought too many ingredients when I was at the store, so there'd be leftovers if you didn't have any.”

Huh. Luka didn't doubt that she could've made a mistake on her mental shopping list, but more of all of her ingredients sounded too odd to be a mistake. He could've sworn as well that she'd told him how much she didn't like leftovers, back when she'd ramble about her creative process and forcing herself to take a break by cooking or baking something everyday.

Unless, of course, Marinette had intentionally prepared to make more because of him, in which case he wasn't lying anymore about liking soup.; it just so happened to have shot up on his list of appealing foods all of a sudden.

“We can't have that,” he said with a grin, opening the chip bag in his hands. “Do you mind me staying that long?”

“Not at all!” she insisted. She dug into her own bag and pulled out a single chip, telling him before she put it in her mouth, “Besides, I want to catch up. Have you come up with any new music?”

“No—” He caught himself, realizing it was the instinctive answer he'd been giving to anyone involved with his rock star life, then corrected to, “Nothing I want out there.”

“Oh.” She leaned back, thoughtful. “I get it. Sometimes I make something just for me without wanting to put it out there. I didn't know it worked the same for music.”

He tried not to be obvious about the hearts in his eyes he was throwing her way. She just got him so easily and he did the same for her. He didn't have that many creative people in his life, but even those he did have saw creativity as something so casual. He cared dearly for his sister's wife, for example, yet knew that the finer nuances of creating things went over her head.

Marinette hummed, somewhat disconcerted. “You're not in any... trouble, are you?” She pouted, twisting a corner of the chip bag to the point it formed wrinkles. “I know how much people think we can just rush the process.”

He smiled, appreciating the concern, and shrugged at her. ”They do want me to get back out there, but I'm not going to force it.”

There was a flicker of what he was fairly sure was disappointment in her eyes when he mentioned touring again. He didn't comment on it, but silently hoped he'd caught it correctly and it wasn't just him.

Reaching into his bag for a few chips, he took one between his lips and tipped his head back, opening his mouth to send the chip fully in from the momentum. He chewed, swallowed, then gave a half-hearted chuckle. “Or maybe I'll just retire.”

“Wha—?” Marinette was so shocked that her tightened grip on the bag audibly crushed a couple of poor chips. “Retire?”

Luka had never said it aloud to anyone before, but he had been thinking about it for a few months now. At first, it was more like a joke to himself, an amusing musing on if he did quit and how much chaos that would've spread across the world from the suddenness of it. Then, it became more serious the more he joked about it, thinking about how free he would be and how much he wouldn't have to wither away like whenever he was forced to make something he genuinely wasn't invested in. He thought it would be easier when he initially started out, that he could just create and wouldn't have to bear witness to parts of himself he didn't like.

In what should've been obvious to him, it hadn't ended up that way. He glanced over to check Marinette's reaction and, rather than any displeasure with the idea, she appeared sad for him.

“I didn't know it was that bad,” she admitted. “I thought you just didn't like people recognizing you in your off time.”

“I don't, but it's everything else too,” he explained. Giving her a reassuring smile, he added, “And you couldn't have known. I've never told anyone else before.”

Her cheeks turned to his favorite shade of pink. She averted her eyes to her chips, taking another couple into her mouth and chewing them as she thought over what he'd said. Letting out a small, puzzled noise in the back of her throat, she finally asked the obvious, “Why haven't you yet? Retired, I mean.”

He'd finished the other chips in his hand by then and set the bag aside to focus fully on her. “I... don't have that many places to go. I live on my own, so it'd be hard to not go out. I'd just get recognized all over again, and my sister's famous and married, so I can't stay with her while I wait for everything to die down.”

As much as he would've liked it to be simple, it wasn't. Also, while he wouldn't have told Marinette as much directly, he wouldn't have wanted to give up on their time together. It might've been a little selfish of him, but—

“What if you stayed with me?” she blurted out, turning her body and leaning onto the arm of the couch to face him.

He opened his mouth, almost instantly saying “yes,” but stopped himself to ask, “...What?”

She pushed against the couch with the hand not holding her bag of chips, straightening herself back up and awkwardly elaborating, “Because—well, you already come here? It's already safe, and if you were okay with it then why not, right? I won't bring anyone here either, so...”

“Wait,” he interrupted because, as fast as his heart was pounding at the opportunity, he wouldn't dare risk holding her back in any way. “I don't want you to stop yourself from bringing someone home just for my sake.”

“Huh?” She blinked at him, as if he'd somehow misunderstood whatever she'd been trying to say. Then, wide-eyed and blushing deeper, she shook her head. “No, it's—I meant... I'm not going to bring anyone anyway. That's why it's alright.”

A beat of silence passed between the both of them. Luka knew from all the little moments when Marinette had spoken about romance that she wasn't aromantic, nor had she ever talked about giving up on love entirely, yet she seemed certain that he wasn't going to end up as a third wheel in her house.

He considered asking, considered multiple possibilities without assuming anything specifically, but she bounced up from the couch before he could get anything out.

“O-oh wow! I should really get started on that soup and, ah—don't worry, you don't have to give me an answer right now!” She turned away swiftly, took a few steps, then paused and looked at the chip bag in her hand. Without glancing back, she tossed the bag towards him and offered, “You can finish that if you want.”

He caught it with both hands and watched her go. After she'd disappeared from his view and into the kitchen, he let his eyes drop to the bag, seeing the chips and the crumbled pieces from when she'd gripped it earlier.

Despite that, his own bag didn't look as appetizing anymore, so he plucked a single, broken chip and slipped it between his lips. His mind was already conjuring scenarios in his head without any effort on his part, imagining what it might be like if he actually lived with her instead of just visiting.

He could still make money with music so long as he could do it without showing his face, thus there wasn't much worry about not being able to pay for his staying there. He was certain that Marinette would give him the guest room, and then they'd end up spending their mornings together. He could find ways to lessen her stress or help out around the house, and he would be there whenever she came home after going out.

To say it was tempting was an understatement. Even the clamor of pots, pans, and the openings of the fridge and cupboards as she shuffled about for her ingredients was like music to his ears.

Swallowing the half chip and finding that it suddenly tasted sweet going down, he thought to himself, No excuse anymore, Couffaine.

[tigerspite]

Ship sleeping? ALL for Siramis (that's Eramis/Siriks for those not in the know).

Oh lord. Thank you!

Under read more because it got long

Who is a night owl:

Eramis. 110% Eramis. Girlie does not and cannot sleep thanks to chronic insomnia. Night time is just additional time for doing stuff until her brain and body is convinced it's time to sleep, which has been known to take days. She kind of got used to functioning like that and feeling as terrible as that level of sleep deprivation does, but usually does crash out in the end.

It's not a new thing. She's been like it her entire life, and probably drove her parents and siblings nuts.

Who is a morning person:

Bizarrely, also Eramis. She gets restless and needs to get up and do stuff, so up she gets before sunrise to go and run around or get started on some kind of project. She just doesn't stop, or necessarily know how to stop. Always something ticking over in her head that puts her into action.

Are they cuddlers:

YES. They can't keep off each other. Sleeping, and the whole process of getting ready to sleep and waking up in the morning, is just one big excuse to cuddle. They are very snuggly bugs just in general, but that Devils all over.

Who is the big spoon and who is the little spoon:

Interchangeable! Eramis typically likes to be the big spoon, but this leads to her looking like a backpack on most of her partners. Siriks is no exception. He doesn't mind being the little spoon, in the same way he's happy to be the big spoon to her.

What is their favourite sleeping position:

Siriks laying on top of Eramis and squashing her flat like a pancake. Exact details of the position are flexible. The pressure helps her sleep, and his weight on top of her means she can't fidget and roll around like she tends to do.

Who steals all the blankets:

Eramis. Constantly. How? Unclear. She rotates like a rotisserie chicken when she does sleep.

What they wear to bed:

Depends. Eramis acquired a nasty habit of crashing out wearing whatever, so often ends up wearing her full suit of armor to bed. On the occasions she makes a conscious effort to sleep, she still tends to keep a base layer of armor on, even if the helmet and whatnot are removed. It helps her feel safer and more prepared should anything happen. Especially after her stint in the Prison of Elders, a spear would sometimes accompany her to bed as well. Siriks had to spend a long while coaxing her out of that and convincing her that perhaps she's reinforcing some anxiety by bringing armor and weapons to the nest.

Siriks will take his armor off and tends to just keep his robes on. He's nice and soft and comfortable.

To note, Eramis does not remove her prosthetics to sleep. They stay on.

Who likes seeing the other wearing their t-shirt:

Siriks finds it greatly amusing to put Eramis in whatever oversized-to-her garments he finds. He'll lend her his robes or dig out some godawful tacky XXXXL t shirt and she'll love him for it. Will she wear it to sleep in, however? Probably not.

Who falls asleep mid-conversation:

Siriks. He sleeps like a log. Usually he finishes what he's saying before peacing out, but no guarantee.

Who wakes up in the middle of the night with nightmares:

Eramis, although this doesn't preclude Siriks from nightmares too. She tends to have a more violent reaction to waking up from her nightmares, which sometimes (key word) wakes Siriks up. If he has a nightmare, he'll probably wake up and go wow that sucked, then fall back asleep in minutes. Eramis meanwhile is convinced the world is ending.

Who accidentally punched the other in their sleep:

Eramis. She's been known to chew on Siriks's arm while fast asleep. He always wakes up with bruises or bumps or teeth and claw marks on him. Good thing for him, he sleeps through it all! Bad thing, he's getting older now and waking up to additional aches and pains is not doing him well.

Who can't keep their hands to themself:

Both. As stated earlier, they're big on physical contact and all that entails. You know how when a cat or dog decides they have to be touching you at all times? They're that.

[hawkogurl]

in the genuine way possible, Why do you like Raimi verse MJ?

Would like a description of your thoughts.

So I just woke up (I know it’s 6PM I work night shifts) so this might not be as well verbalized as it could be. (Update: I put this in drafts and am now adding to it at midnight but I have had a day so prior warnings apply)

But for me, she’s a nuanced and flawed female character who isn’t given the credit for that she deserves and I think she kicks ass as a result. I don’t need characters I like to be good people, I need them to be interesting. She’s interesting.

But in terms of what people normally hate her for, I don’t really tend to agree for a variety of reasons. The main thing people get on her about is cheating, which is very much true, but that feels unfair when Peter also cheats! And he doesn’t see nearly the same amount of shit thrown at him that MJ does! (Wonder why that is?) Hell, he hits her while he has the symbiote but I barely see people bring it up. But on the note of her cheating, I don’t mind it because we’re given a reason as to why she’s got such bad commitment issues that I find interesting. She grew up in an extremely unstable home with a seemingly chronically ill mother and a verbally and likely physically abusive father. She’s a dysfunctional person for sure, but we as a community are more than willing to read into and analyze far worse behaviors in Peter, Harry, hell, people outright ignore Norman being an abusive father. It’s bs to me that she’s not given the same treatment. Shes someone who grew up in an unstable environment. Shes used to that. Her entire life in her formative years was that. As a result, the way I see it, she either gets into relationships with people who tend to continue not treating her well (Flash and to a degree Harry.) and when she’s in more stable relationships that hurt her less, (like John) I theorize that the reason she does so much to put them in jeopardy is that her, stability with men in her life is always something that has ended inevitably, but abruptly and probably violently. Being the one to destroy a relationship her trauma screams at her will inevitably end with her being hurt again gives her a sense of control.

And on top of that, I find her emotional responses to Peter’s behavior while he dates her extremely human! Sure, she definitely makes mistakes in how she handles it, but I personally absolutely hate the degree to which people ignore Peter’s own mistreatment of her. I’m not gonna claim she did nothing wrong, but people in this fandom have a tendency to remove responsibility or the ability to have done something wrong from Peter. At that point in the movies, Peter has everything going for him. His life is finally going well and as a result of his own inflated ego and the fact the world has revolved around him he sort of seems to forget that she has her own life and her own problems that she wants to be heard and understood and supported through. His ability to do that is one of the things that drew her to him in the first movie and she’s watching him as it becomes apparent he doesn’t really have that anymore. Everything in his life revolves around him and has for years, so when her life problems get brought up and he makes them about himself and remains somewhat unempathetic and so absorbed in his own joy he doesn’t notice how poorly she’s doing, I find it personally hard to deny that’s exactly how I would feel in that situation. I hate that people refuse to empathize with her, or when they do on a surface level they still refuse to acknowledge any blame Peter has there. Hell, I find it hard to deny that I’m irritated that it’s basically overlooked that Peter kissed another woman in front of her face but people will rip her to shreds for kissing another man one time. I’m not gonna say she didn’t fuck up, but I find the way she’s treated unfair and I frankly think the opinion wouldn’t skew the same if she was a man for both of these topics.

I also just like that she’s a person? She has emotions that feel real, she has a life and a career outside her relationship with Peter, she has compelling trauma that informs her decisions. I frankly find her to be a more nuanced and interesting character than MCU MJ or TASM Gwen simply because she feels more well rounded and flawed. They’re better and more likeable love interests, but I frankly think she’s a better character. Everything that people praise in them as something that makes them Better Than Raimi MJ either feels like rather shallow traits or things that feel somewhat misogynistic towards Raimi MJ, a character who they claim they don’t like due to misogynistic writing. No hate to those to ladies, I see the appeal to them and I think people should like them, but Raimi Mj has more depth to me.

In conclusion: To like a character I don’t need them to be a good person I need them to be interesting. Shes interesting. Also everyone in this trilogy, including Peter, is at least somewhat a bad person. So I don’t know why she specifically is being treated with so much less grace other than the obvious reason.

[akirakirxaa]

Final Thoughts on Dawntrail

Final thoughts on MSQ. There are some positives that I will open with, but as I do have many criticisms and overall did not have as good of a time as I've had in other expacs, I will put it under a break. This will also be quite long.

I will start off by listing some of the things I enjoyed. I liked the overall themes of found and adoptive family, as well as family in general. Most of the plot threads and cutscenes around these themes tended to be quite good. I will admit, I bawled like a baby when they introduced baby Gulool Ja to Koana. I also very much enjoyed the plot revolving around the milalla and honestly wish there were more; I love Erenville's mom a lot as a character, but I feel like she took up comparatively a lot of narrative space when Krile's parents were much more plot relevant. I also liked Bakool's character arc as I'm just a sucker for the bully becoming a big well meaning lug. This is another plot I wish we'd gotten more about since, once we left the woods, we never see him outside of combat again; I'd have liked to see him struggling to connect with the people in non-life threatening situations and learning to not react to everything with violence.

Unfortunately, that is the end of what I actually enjoyed without a "but" that isn't "I'd have liked more". I am so sorry, but by the time I got to the end I did not like Wuk Lamat anymore. The sheer amount of time we spend with her and the sheer amount of that time spent on the same exact speech again and again grated by the end. There were some moments where she really shone though, and that's why I'm putting this to poor writing and misuse of her character than her character actually being bad. I loved her in the whole bit with Zarool Ja, and during the Rite it was fine because her learning to grow up was the point. Which leads to the second thing I really did not like; that we existed to be a camera for her story. 99% of the story could have happened even were we not there, and the last 1% is honestly iffy. I understand letting her have her time, and despite finding it excruciatingly dull to my tastes, the rite was fine and she should take point during it since it's to test her abilities. But...there was not one moment where we got to be the hero. Not one. Hell, in several cutscenes I could barely even see my character because it's her show the whole time. Even at the end, where it finally matters that we're here, because we have the magic crystal that lets us call backup and stay and fight...it still didn't, because she just broke into the fight anyways. Once again, we might as well not even be there.

"Well what's the problem with that!" I hear you cry, and the problem with that is this is a Final Fantasy. I'm here to play the protagonist. I'm not here to control the camera while the writer's NPC does everything. She can be the main character of the expac, but I should not be able to remove my character entirely and have everything go the exact same way. Literally any scion could've done the same things we did while we drank on the beach and nothing would change. A great example of this was when Gulool Ja Ja was killed. Not only did we just stand there and not even attempt to interfere (this could have been a good moment to push the difference of another culture by having an ally stop the WoL), we barely had any reaction at all to it and were covered up most of the time by NPCs. At that point, just have us not be there, have us out protecting civilians and we arrive too late. We've had cutscenes from other PoVs before where we show up right at the end (for good or ill) so no excuse.

I very much did not like any of the plot around Alexandria and Living Memory. It strikes me as that meme of "can I copy your homework?" "Sure, just change it a little so it doesn't look the same". Tell me if you've heard this one before. Immortal being, unable to bear loss, creates a city full of the memories of their lost loved ones in a recreation of their former home. They want to sacrifice the people of the Source to restore these loved ones. When we try to reason with them, they tell us that they cannot give up on their fallen loved ones and refuse to move on. They show us their memories of their loved ones in their former home. At the end, they turn into a big damn monster that we fight. We're close to losing when an ally falls from the sky to our aid. When we win, they ask us to remember.

It's knock off brand Shadowbringers.

Not to mention it seriously feels like the writer forgot while doing Living Memory that, not only does no one remember these people we're erasing, but their souls were eaten so that people can not worry about, idk, falling pianos and such. These people literally just do not exist anymore and we are now the only people who remember them. What's worse, there are probably millions more people we didn't get to meet that we still erased, so they're just gone forever. That's...literally the opposite of the plot of Ultima Thule from EW. We, in this case, are playing the role of Meteion, and not a single Endless seems to have an opinion on it outside of Erenville's mother and Krile's parents.

Never mentioning Dynamis really bugged me too. I was kinda hoping that Wuk Lamat's "specialty", the thing that set her apart, was maybe she was just very good at subconsciously wielding dynamis, letting her easily befriend others and draw greater strength when she needs it. But, like many many pieces of lore, it's never even suggested. In fact, if a piece of lore was in EW, you can almost guarantee it isn't mentioned. Like the boy with a lightning aether imbalance. We literally have the cure for that, but say nothing at all, not even to our allies when we meet back up. I'm hoping this will be addressed in a later patch since it was specifically pointed out (chekov's gun and all) but still. It felt over and over that things we learned in ShB and EW were glossed over at best or outright ignored at worst. The pacing of everything after the dome appeared was strange; some parts went too fast, then some went on forever.

Unfortunately, this comes in as my least favorite expac. Even below SB, which I famously dislike. I'm hoping moving forward we'll see some more interesting stories that once again require us to be present to be told, and I am curious about why the key bears Azem's symbol, but I will not be rushing to play through this expac again any time soon. And will most likely be tweaking the scenes in anything I write to make more sense, flow better, or actually require Akira's attention.

[kaibasupremacy]

1. Canon I outright reject

2. A canon or headcanon hill I will die on

For Kaiba obviously~

Jksjsj 🥺🥺 thank you so much for the ask

1. Canon I outright reject

Despite all of the contradictions between the separate canons (anime, manga, sub, dub ect) I find it hard to pick an aspect of it that I refuse to find merit in, even aspects that are painful to me (Seto removing the locket in DSOD T-T)

My personal canon when it comes to Seto tends to be a mixture of anime sub (filler arcs included), and manga canon and DSOD, and I do not consider the Toei anime series to be canon because of the discrepancies with the manga.

I think an aspect of canon I outright reject is the idea that the Mind Crush made him a better person and “purged the evil” in him.

I have a very strong attachment to early manga Seto and I cannot see him as a uniquely evil character. The mind crush itself I find to be a disappointing climax to the Death T arc, but many lovely people in the fandom have made lots of touching art on the subject matter so I wouldn’t say I entirely detest it, but the idea that if he had not received the penalty games he would have been doomed (even if it’s strongly implied by the canon) I just cannot accept (and I think it flattens him). But that’s just a personal thing.

2. A canon or headcanon hill I will die on

Ohh I have several so probably I will end up leaving out some T-T I warn you beforehand they’re mostly super sad 😭

Two aspects that are ultimately up to interpretation but that I consider ultimately canon is that 1. Seto suffers from hallucinations and 2. Seto struggles with suicidal ideation. Another hill I will die on is that Seto’s childhood and adolescent experiences *before* and *after* his six years with Gozaburo were equally as scarring for him.

As for headcanons, a strong one I have is Seto being autistic. Another one is that he really admired Gozaburo, and never really disliked him despite the way he was treated until they had their ideological clash in respect to war as Seto began to grow into a teen with his own ideas and even then, I headcanon that Seto still saw it as a rivalry (kind of like the one he had with Atem later) and did not see himself as his victim.

I also headcanon that Seto was forced to be a child athlete by him, exploiting his already existent love for sports and competition.

I also headcanon that Gozaburo’s wife was European and a Christian Catholic and Gozaburo adopted her religious practices and tried to impose them on Seto as well, who grew to dislike religion for this reason.

I realize they’re all quite sad but I also have this hc that Seto struggles with poor body image and disordered eating and that his biological father turned to alcoholism after the death of their biological mother, and Seto had to stay home to care for both him and Mokuba, so the only time he went to school was when he was taken in by his relatives.

I also headcanon that he used books as an escapism throughout his life and as we can see has adopted a manner of speaking that’s very literary. He loves to write and writes a lot anytime he has the time to do so, but most of the time discards what he has written or is too embarrassed to ever show it to anyone, even Mokuba. In general I have a strong headcanon that he is very sensitive about art.

An happier hc I have is that he really loves amusement parks. Not just what they represent and the fact it’s his and Mokuba’s dream, but like, just attending and getting to do the most thrilling rides. And that his complex about winning is not limited to the things he considers “serious”, but just about anything. He could be playing the most silly game and will still treat it as a matter of life and death.

Thank you again for the ask and have a wonderful day ❤️ sorry for my bad English btw 🙏🏻

[pleasestaywithmedarling]

Sin of Purity, Purity of Sin: Part V

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Over the next few days, Kiri began to learn the patterns of her new life in the captivity of the High Temple. Before dawn each morning, a meager breakfast was brought to her and Anden’s cells. They had just enough time to eat before the arrival of the healer priestess, who checked on the progress of the healing brand mark on Kiri’s chest. Meanwhile a pair of guards wrestled Anden into his restraints, which at first had merely been the manacles at his wrists. But after the second morning when one guard had kicked at him and Anden had kicked back, they’d added added a set of shackles at his ankles, the connecting chain barely long enough to allow him to walk. The healer priestess would then tend to Anden’s numerous injuries while Kiri was bathed and dressed by two female attendants. Her hair and makeup were finished, his muzzle was strapped in place, and they were declared ready to begin the day.

Apparently there would be another procession each Holy Day, including Fifth Day each week, and Kiri felt ill whenever she thought about it. Not that the unhallowed days spent inside the High Chamber were all that much of an improvement.

From sunup to sundown, she and Anden each stood before the one of the two pillars that flanked the Divine Throne of Vato, collars around their necks keeping them chained there on leashes of a scant few inches. Those who entered the High Chamber to submit a specific request to Vato had to first stop at her column and recite a prayer offering up their gratitude to Him. They would then dip their fingertip into a bowl of water on a nearby pedestal and trace a small line of water droplets somewhere across her skin, just like the previous Vessel of Purity had done to her just before the Midsummer’s sacrifice. Based on the doctrine she’d learned back in her village temple, she determined that a person submerging themselves, or in this case their fingertip, in water was symbolic of being immersed in Vato’s blessing. Transfering that water on to Kiri showed that they were offering up a portion of Vato’s blessing back to Him in thanks. Kiri thought it might almost have been a lovely sentiment.

Almost, were it not for the fact that this ritual required an unwilling person to be used as an object. Or for the fact that the ritual was technically incomplete until Midsummer next year, when she would be killed as a sacrifice to Vato.

She was trying not to think too much about that just yet, though. It was already bad enough having to stand there for the entire day, still and silent, collared like a housepet, letting so very many people touch her.

Evidently, anywhere her skin was bared was permissible for the ritual’s transference of water, because none of the nearby priests objected when someone stroked her cheek or caressed her throat or even fully clasped her hand within theirs. That she had to hold still and just allow such invasive contact made it all the more awful. But she was terrified of what the consequences might be for both herself and Anden if she didn't, so she maintained her position, her shallow breaths and shaking hands the only giveaways to her true feelings.

It was impossible not to see that Anden already had it bad enough, after all, and certainly didn't need her bringing any further torments on him. Once they were done at her pillar, worshipers then crossed over to Anden’s. They’d recite a prayer asking Vato to remove any evil in their hearts, prick themselves with a small knife, and smear their blood off onto him. It was a truly vile practice; she felt sick if she watched for too long. And if the poor man ever shifted too much in his numerous restraints or tried to curse at anyone through his muzzle—which he did quite often—a nearby guard with a baton would strike him, hard. By the end of each day, the man was covered in blood and fresh bruises. She didn’t know how he hadn’t already broken down under such abuse; just seeing it occur made her heart pound heavy in her ears.

When the sun finally set in the evenings, the worshipers were ushered out, and she and Anden were released from the pillars. She quickly learned that the day’s trials were never over yet, though, as there was something unsettling about the guard who always escorted her back through the winding halls—one by the name of Edric, as she’d overheard.

While the other guards had quickly accepted that, unlike Anden, she’d simply follow where they told her to go, Edric always made a point of taking her by the arm and pulling her along close beside him. She knew there were strict rules as to how anyone could interact with her—the priests were very concerned with maintaining her “purity”—and she supposed Edric never actually broke any of those rules. Still, there was something in the way he held her arm, or in certain sidelong glances he sent her, that made her uneasy. It was becoming a strange relief each night, to be back in her cell. Yes, the bars kept her locked in, but they also gave her the illusion that others could be kept out.

Unfortunately, those bars couldn’t offer even the illusion of any privacy. She had been relieved to discover that Anden was respectful of her modesty, at least, always pointedly diverting his gaze when she made use of her chamber pot just as she did for him. By their fourth night, they’d fallen into something of a nightly routine together. They kept their backs turned to one another while he cleaned himself as best he could with a pail of water and greasy-looking bar of soap, and she stripped off her jewelry and her draped silk gown before wrapping her blanket over her thin sleeveless shift. Attendants would come to collect her finery and deliver their tasteless dinners, and once they left the day was finally over.

Kiri hated the way she’d come to look forward to the scraping sound of outer chamber door being barred shut. It should be a dreadful reminder that they were imprisoned here against their wills, but after only a few days she was already associating it with safety—it meant that she would be left alone till morning.

Well, alone with Anden, anyway.

The night of their first Third Day there, she sat toying with a strand of her dark hair and singing softly while he slept in the other cell. Or, she thought he was sleeping. She learned otherwise when he grumbled, “Don’t you know any songs that aren’t fucking hymns?”

“Sorry, I didn’t—I didn’t think you could hear me.” She looked down at her hands wringing the blanket in her lap. “I, um, I don’t know many other kinds of music.”

Anden winced in pain as he rolled over to look at her. “How do you only know temple music?”

“I know a few unhallowed songs,” she defended weakly. “I just—I’ve spent a lot of time in temple, I guess.”

He snorted. “What, did you actually believe in all this crap?”

A “yes” and a “no” were jumbled together at the tip of her tongue; she supposed she’d never had a simple answer to that question, and now she was more confused than ever. Rather than try to sort it out, she simply told him, “My father was head priest in our village.”

“Oh.” Anden was quiet for a moment. “I assume he knows you’re the new Vessel?”

Numbly, Kiri replied, “He’s the one who volunteered me.”

“What?”

At that moment came the unmistakable creaks of the outer chamber’s iron door being opened. Kiri’s eyes flew to inner chamber’s open doorway. “No. No, no, no, no,” she breathed. This wasn’t supposed to happen; they were supposed to left alone till morning! That’s how this worked, wasn’t it? A shared glance with Anden showed her own worry reflected in his green eyes.

Guards swarmed the inner chamber and pulled them from their cells. Anden’s stream of angry curses were cut short when they discovered who was waiting for them in the outer chamber: Emitis, the High Priest. Kiri’s breath hitched. She’d not seen him since the Midsummer Morrow’s procession; his presence now could not mean anything good for her or Anden.

Emitis smiled at their stunned silence. “Prepare the Vessels for tonight’s ritual.”

Struggling against the guards’ grip on his arms, Anden demanded, “What ritual?”

Narrowing his eyes, Emitis declared, “Not the full muzzle for this one tonight—I’d rather like to hear his screams.”

Kiri paled. What exactly did this ritual entail? Trembling violently, she watched Anden’s angry stream of curses be rendered unintelligible as a thick, coarse rope was pulled between his teeth.

Emitis’ took her chin in his cold fingers and forced her to look up at him. He studied her for a long moment. “Bind this one too,” he told a guard. “She’s compliant enough but too fearful—I’ll not have her ruining this if she loses her self-control.” He released her from his grip, and a guard procured a coil of rope from one of the cabinets lining the wall. It was wound over and under her arms and shoulders and cinched tight at her wrists, crossing her hands over her breast and holding them firmly in that position. When a thick length of cloth was pulled between her lips and tied behind her head, she couldn’t contain a small whine—never had she felt so completely helpless.

Anden looked even more vulnerable. His hands had been lashed together and were held high over his head by a hook that hung from the ceiling. A guard had just finished tying his legs at the ankles when Emitis ordered, “Higher.” The hook was raised until Anden was so stretched out that his toes barely touched the floor. His incomprehensible shouts were defiant as ever, but Kiri could see how hard and fast he was breathing—he was scared, too.

Emitis ordered an attendant who stood by the door, “Show him in.” Moments later, a gray-haired man richly attired entered the Chamber of Vessels and bowed his head to the High Priest.

“Vato has agreed to grant your request for a private audience with Him in the Chamber of the Divine Throne,” said Emitis, “once the appropriately amplified rituals of water and blood are complete. These Vessels are prepared to act as your substitutions, in thanks for your generous monetary offerings to the High Temple.”

Amplified rituals… substitutions… Kiri was beginning to worry that she knew where this was going. To her dismay her suspicions were confirmed when Emitis began to step down into the chamber’s large sunken bathing pool and motioned to the guard who stood at her side. As she was ushered into the water, she whimpered into her gag and glanced over at Anden. His eyes widened as she was forced down on her knees—evidently he’d worked out the nature of tonight’s ritual too. With the water lapping at her chest, she began to panic. She did not remember that she must not be caught disobeying again; she only knew that she needed to get away, now. But the ropes rendered her helpless against Emitis’ tight grasp holding her down.

“You may begin the prayer,” Emitis told the worshiper.

“Vato, wisest in the heavens and ruler over Ilyrna, kingdom of the Great River—”

As the man recited the opening words of the prayer that she’d heard dozens of times each day while leashed to her pillar, Emitis tilted her back until she was fully submerged in the pool. She knew that she should be focusing her energy on conserving air, but her senses were soon so fully overwhelmed by the water and the ropes and the long fingers digging into her shoulders that her mind could only scream at her that she had get out. She thrashed hard against the High Priest’s grip and was at last brought back up to the surface, only to be shoved back down as the worshiper began the second stanza of the prayer. So unprepared, she’d scarcely had time to draw in a small breath, and her lungs were burning by the time she was brought up once more.

Over and over, she was forced beneath the water’s surface. She lost track of the number of stanzas that had been recited, as her whole world became nothing but water and all-too-quick bursts of cold air. Her struggles against her bonds became merely involuntary tremors as she lost any control over her body. As she was brought up for air once more, she sucked in a breath but took in water from her soaked gag with it. Just as she finished coughing it up, she was forced back underwater.

No air.

She had no air.

She was going to die.

Time lost all meaning. For eons, the panic ran rampant through her mind and body as she fought desperately to break through to the surface. Swirls of color flooded her vision until everything else disappeared.

She was going to die.

And then she was lying the side of the pool, taking in deep, ragged breaths. She vomited up the water she’d swallowed, nearly choking on it until someone finally removed the fabric still tied between her teeth.

A hand tenderly stroked her hair and she recoiled, kicking out as she scrambled to get away from the unwanted contact. The hand released her tresses only to grab her by the throat, pinning her to the floor. Emitis leaned over her and hissed, “How dare you strike out at the voice of Vato?” He backhanded her so sharply that his jeweled rings sliced open her cheek.

Garbled shouts thundered through the chamber, and she looked over to see Anden glaring furiously at the High Priest as he pulled at his bonds. When his gaze shifted to her, his green eyes were filled with so much concern and fear that her own began to brim with tears.

It hit her all over again: she’d really thought she was about to die.

Her tears overflowed and turned into racking sobs, and no matter how quickly she gasped in air she simply could not get enough into her lungs. When Emitis declared her hysterical and ordered her taken away, the guards had to carry her because her legs were shaking so much. They finally cut away the ropes binding her upper body and shoved her into her cell, swiftly locking the door shut as she collapsed onto the hard stone floor.

Her hands flapped in distress as she lay there weeping. She could hear through the open doorway when the worshiper began reciting the prayer of the Vessel of Sin. At regular intervals, his words were interrupted by the sound of a sharp crack, followed by a muffled grunt. Later the grunts became piercing cries.

Damn the priests; for that matter, damn Vato. Anden didn’t deserve this, and neither did she.

Gods, she’d really thought she was about to die.

Though she felt pathetic and weak laying there shaking on her cell floor, somewhere within she felt a resolve form and grow strong: whatever manner in which Emitis planned to sacrifice them next Midsummer didn’t matter. She was not going to die that day; she would make certain of it.

next

I love Kiri so much and I just want her to be happy, but I wrote this for her instead. Guess my hand slipped :) Thank you for reading!

tag list: @starlit-hopes-and-dreams

[tacticaldivine]

I just found out about Daccapri, she seems really neat :) I do have questions:

• So her parents are Argosax and Arius? How did that go down? To what extent did she know her parents?

• Since Lucia trained her, what's their relationship like? On a scale of "I taught her what I know then we went our separate ways" to "she's basically my daughter"?

• How did she get involved with Nero and the crew?

• Where did she learn her gunsmithing skills? What kind of guns does she make, and does she use them?

• Tell us more about this demon witch that possesses her sometimes, assuming that's still canon.

Thanks I'm glad you think she is neat uvu I’m gonna tell you rn; we do not live and die by canon in this house I be making this shit up so you just need to trust me. A lot of her stuff borders into Bayonetta lore too

 So her parents are Argosax and Arius? How did that go down? 

Her parents are actually Arius and the demon witch Fortuna

It all started 500 years ago. Her mother was a human born witch who went to Hell to escape the persecution of her coven, making a pact with the demon known as Fortuna to ensure her safety.

Fortuna had aided Sparda in his crusade against Mundus; she absolutely takes it personal when she finds out the island named after her worships him. Fortuna is an extremely petty being, a professional hater if you would, holding a grudge against the guy who sealed her off with the rest of the demons is expected.

Emerging after several hundred years after being summoned by Arius. Her mind consumed by her pact demon, Fortuna wants nothing more than to get revenge on humanity, starting with the Legendary Dark Knight who chose to save them. 

Fortuna takes to Arius cause they’re both cartoony ass villains, they wanna reclaim Earth for demonkind. They make a baby, the two of them do a silly little magic ritual to make the baby a vessel for Argosax. 

Fortuna wanted to inhabit the vessel and Arius who’s spent his entire life building to this point ends up using her own weapon to slay her, sealing her inside of it. A weapon Daccapri gains once Arius is killed.

To what extent did she know her parents?

Daccapri was raised by Arius so she knows him very well. Their relationship is very complicated. He treats her like a pet more than a person. And she doesn’t know any better so Daccapri spends most of her life assuming that this is normal. No matter what awful tests she’s subjected to she is fiercely loyal to Arius, her only family. While Arius is incredibly strict and blunt with her, I like to think under all that he does care for her.

She takes after him. Dressing in expensive clothes, behaving with great composure; she maintains a coquettish and level-headed illusion. The façade tends to come undone during combat or moments of intense emotions, revealing her aggressive and crude self.

Daccapri doesn’t really know Fortuna or Argosax. She hears Fortuna’s voice in her head, goading her on, her blood singing to eviscerate Sparda’s kin whenever she’s around one of them. 

Daccapri only knows of Argosax through texts. A distinct flavor of dread that haunts her, an unknown legacy to live up to that instinctively she knows is bad but it's what she was made for, her sole purpose for existing.

Since Lucia trained her, what's their relationship like? On a scale of "I taught her what I know then we went our separate ways" to "she's basically my daughter"?

I would describe it more as a sibling type bond but mentor/pupil is definitely more fitting I do agree. Either way they do not get along at all, more of a “I’m disappointed that you let yourself become the monster they made you to be” kind of way. Lucia spent countless hours training her during her time as a Secretary and then once again later when she became a Protector. Both of them raised to be weapons by the same man, they argue about how they should and should not be using said powers. Lucia believes it best to remove her from the equation entirely, Daccapri's mind already slipping; who knows when she'll finally lose control.

Lucia’s relationship with Matier is her saving grace, but Lucia does not show this same patience to Daccapri. Meanwhile Daccapri, who’s only idea of love, familial or otherwise, is absolute control over another person, hates being told what to do; especially from a Secretary. Daccapri recognizes Lucia’s skill but her inflated ego has her believing she’s above anyone around her. Unfortunately for both of them; she is able to back up said ego with combat prowess thanks to her demonic blood. 

How did she get involved with Nero and the crew?

Following her departure from Dumary Island, Daccapri ends up becoming an Information Broker. Her time with the Uroboros Corp at least comes in handy for something. Lucia, who has little trust that she’ll keep herself out of trouble, asks Dante to watch her.

She is turned away from DMC at first, so she uses her own connections to establish herself as a decent fixer. Impressed by her strong will and resourcefulness earning the respect of the accomplished hunter, she works for Lady post DMC2. 

During this time she slowly meets them all as Lady spends a fair amount of time entangled with the crew. Her connection with Lady is what helps establish herself amongst other information brokers. It also puts her directly at odds with Dante, who’s involvement with Lady results in countless collateral charges. 

As for how she meets Nero? She first learned of him through her time spent visiting The Order on Fortuna. Though she did not pay attention to him at first, more enamored with the recent success of Credo; a human having survived the Ascension Ceremony with his mind in tact. 

She would properly meet Nero and Nico sometime between 4 and 5 when Morrison sends them to her to collect job details. A love of supernatural weaponry unites her and Nico. Her and Nero however? The pair are volatile together, constantly egging the other on. Unstoppable Force meets Immoveable Object.

Daccapri takes to Nero the most because she enjoys toying with him. She also sees a bit of herself in him. She also wants to completely eviscerate him due to the age old grudge she was made to fulfill but its easily overcome with the power of friendship! He gives as good as he gets and she's absolutely enthralled at having to earn his respect, she loves a good challenge.

After the fall of the Qliphoth, Daccapri steps in as the primary informant for Nico and him and even accompanies them on missions.

Where did she learn her gunsmithing skills? What kind of guns does she make, and does she use them?

She learns them during her time with Uroboros. In my perfect little world, she would have learned from Agnus. (Whether that could be "canon" or not really idc cause she would have encountered The Order when funding their research so it doesn't matter when) She has a preference for making Devil Arms, she has a disdain for the stink of gunpowder and prefers any alternative. Despite this she wields Arius’s revolver, though she does end up heavily modifying it. She tends to use regular guns more as a melee weapon than as a ranged weapon, unless you count throwing it at someone at Mach speed(which I do at least).

She does try to use magic to concentrate bullets but regular weaponry tends to jam or stall at the rate she fires them. It's easier to avoid it entirely.

She herself uses a big stupid fuck off OP weapon that’s a gift from her mother. It's like Pandora’s box but bigger and gaudier. She spends most of her time studying it to try and replicate it, all attempts have failed but it's her own pet project.

I haven't sat down to properly draw her arsenal yet,,, my apologies

Tell us more about this demon witch that possesses her sometimes, assuming that's still canon.

So the demon witch that possesses her sometimes is actually her Mother, Fortuna. 

Fortuna is my Bayonetta OC. At this time she doesn't have a design so I'll give you Daccapri's Trigger design that invokes her

Madama Fortuna, was a former angel who spurned Iustita and wished to take over them rather than be just a servant to them. Cast out of Paradiso, she took well to the shadows of Inferno. Should a conjurer sign a contract and trade her soul, the demon will bestow her [[enourmous power and great wisdom]]

Witches who do their research can utilize her blinding lust for conquest to overwhelm her better judgment to manipulate the demon to their will. Following the witch's fall, they are destined to live out all eternity in her circle. Souls brave enough to fuse with her, or romance her, will become attached to her gown where she flaunts them for intimidation.

Fortuna grants her conjurer what is essentially plot armor. While the user is blessed with good luck, all those around her are given her misfortune. The last witch to enter into a pact with her was able to survive the Witch Hunts but wasn’t able to save anyone else during the war due to how her passive ability works.

To what extent this ability affects Daccapri, having both the Fortuna’s blood and her soul bound to her weapon, is unknown at this time.

The human disguise Fortuna wears is the last witch to willingly enter a pact with her.

________________________

I think that's everything. Hope that was somewhat helpful! Thank you for the question

[aita-blorbos]

AITA for "playing the villain" to protect some kids?

I (30s, M) am a "former" convict. Nowadays, I'm a high ranking official at the prison that once held me. 'Cause of this, it's my responsibility to guard the prison's secret. A lethal secret that could kill everyone in this prison, or even the entire country in the worst-case.

Recently, an external organization has been sending moles into my prison, my home. To find out about this secret. It's a delicate situation, so I've had most of them removed. It's been a hassle but nothing serious. Until they sent some kids down here.

Orphans. Three of them, siblings. Their foster father, one of the big shots in this organization, sent them down here to weasel their way into the fortress's secrets. Knowing full well what happened to the others, and surely knowing a thing or two about the nature of this secret. Maybe she knew I wouldn't hurt a kid, and she was hoping I'd leave them be. But there was no guarantee I'd go soft on 'em, and no guarantee that they wouldn't die (or worse) in the line of getting to this secret. So does she just see them as disposable tools with a slightly higher chance of success? Honestly, the idea sickens me.

I wasn't about to needlessly cause them harm, so I stayed out of their way. Until they got too close. One of the kids ended up nearly dying in a biologically hazardous area— as soon as I found out where he went, I sent a trusted colleague to fetch him and my nurse to tend to his health. Another ended up too close to the heart of this prison, so I had to stop her by force (she was well taken care of, though. I ensured that she had some fresh tea and a comfortable bed when she awoke).

Which leaves the last child. At the time, I didn't really think of it from his point of view— how it would feel to be isolated in a strange place like this, under orders from a supposed loved one, where neither of his siblings showed up when they were supposed to.

He correctly assessed that I was behind their disappearances, and came to confront me about them. I could tell from the look in his eyes that giving up wasn't an option for him, but I couldn't let him risk his life to get near this secret. So, I acted as if I was keeping his siblings hostage. Told him that if it was information he wanted, I wasn't opposed— but I would only tell his "Father" directly. I couldn't risk him using the information to pursue deeper answers himself, and it just seemed disgustingly low to send a bunch of children up against someone like me. Was she that afraid of getting her hands a little dirty? Did she care about them that little? Especially considering how.... absolutely terrified, this eldest child was, of failing her, disappointing her.

Anyway. I made a bit of a show of it, he begged for his sister back, refused to call this supposed "Father" down to talk with me, and I had to eventually subdue him (with the assistance of my nurse). I figure it's one thing if they return to this "Father" empty handed and feeling like they didn't try hard enough, and quite another if their hands are empty because the big bad head of the fortress got in their way and overpowered them. But in hindsight, I think I may have caused some psychological damage, since this kid really did think someone bigger and stronger than him had actually kidnapped his siblings. I don't feel that it would be right to apologize, but I do have other ways of making amends, if necessary. Friends on the surface and all.

[allgonejeon]

7/29/23 1:24am • Age

I don’t think I’ve ever felt this depressed since Dav back in 2021. And I don’t think I’ve ever told you about him. Although I don’t spend my nights praying to God to remove the life from my body so to not continue feeling pain like I did then, I’m grieving. I cried when you sent that last text but my body only allowed myself to do so for only a few seconds. I’ve been sleeping a lot. My body is reacting now. I woke up with chills without having a fever. It only lasted half an hour. Today was the first day since my breakup back in ‘21 that I spend the whole day without eating or drinking water; that’s until I went over to my friends house and had pizza. I feel like Jah knew I would need a busy weekend, and god did I need it. It was nice being with friends. But to be honest, the thought of me wishing you were there hit me a few times. I think you would’ve liked my friends. The guys would’ve loved you. There were like ten of us at my friends house, we were all on the couch voting on what to watch. I told them I voted for Shrek 2 and the dude next to me agreed. I told him “nah dude but like I’m gonna be super annoying though because I quote the whole entire movie and won’t shut up” and he said “that’s okay, I can quote the whole Nacho Libre movie and won’t shut up”. That reminded me of you, and all I could do was smile. Actually, I talked to my friend Bridge about you. Whenever I talk about a situation I’m in with anyone, I tend to throw myself under the bus. And so I did in this case too. But what she said to me was so true. I told her how sorry I was about hurting you, and especially for bringing up your spirituality more than I should’ve because it wasn’t my business. And she said “Ash, although you could’ve probably delivered your concerns to him in a better way, and although his reasons for leaving are valid. You were not the person who put himself in that situation, and he shouldn’t be blaming you for him leaving. At the end of the day, had he not fallen into temptation, he would’ve never gotten reproved and he would’ve met you and you two would’ve been perfect. But since he did, he has to live with the consequences, and one of those consequences is losing someone like you even if it was his choice. At the end of the day, your concerns about him weren’t wrong. And he sounds to me to be very insecure and is probably projecting that onto you in a small level. You moving on, he told you he didn’t have feelings for you and he’s also made it clear he didn’t believe in waiting for anyone. So you moved on and now he’s putting that on you when he admitted to talking to another girl too after you broke up, only it didn’t work out unlike you and C. Him not measuring up to your expectations, he could’ve been there had he not done what he did in the first place and that’s something he has to live with. All in all, it is not your fault.”… I just stood there and all I could say was “But what if I am to blame? Maybe I’m just a bad person, what can I do better?” And he goes “Nothing at all. I know you’re a helper and a fixer by heart but you’re exactly where you need to be and you don’t have to help anyone. You dodged another bullet. Because you need someone who’s willing to put as much effort into the relationship as you have been. It’s not fair to you.”

And to be completely honest, that whole conversation was exactly what I needed. I know you’re never gonna read this, Age. But I think Im gonna be ready to let you go soon too. I’m sorry for hurting you, but I really don’t need to be lead on and let go so many times from the same person. Or to make me feel so replaceable because all you can talk about to me are about other girls. I don’t deserve to feel like I always need to be interesting or hot in order to get the attention and praise I always needed from you. And I don’t deserve to feel like I’m still competing with E when clearly she’s all you still think about. It all hurt me so much and had put such a deep cut on my heart and on my self esteem but I still stayed and I never complained to you. I didn’t deserve to feel like a trash person or boy crazy when I moved on with another guy given that I felt like the one person I ever wanted wasn’t going to be in my life anymore and I needed to move on for my own sake only for you to come back out of the blue. And only for you to open my heart back up again and get me to the verge of me falling in love with you only for you to leave me again for good when I never left you. You never had the intention of staying or working things out. You always left when things got too hard which is something I never did to you. And I NEVER brought any of it up because I was always made to feel like it’s my fault for not making our relationship work. And I think it’s time I start to learn my own worth. Even when I still love you. And I still feel so damn pathetic that I do. Because you really don’t deserve for me to love you as much as I genuinely do.

[spirituallyghostly]

Insomnia kicked my ass into staring at a wall for 6 hours, so I'm giving up on that. It's gonna be easy mode challenges today at the gym ('help the Dreepy out of trees', 'round up all the Gastly that decided to haunt the janitor closets' 'remove the rotoms from the internet router' type shit), but while I'm still up against my will before my shift, I might as well ramble about my current team.

So, Baby is my starter, she's been with me since I was 8 or 9 (a lot of that time period is a blur in my memories, don't worry about it), and I personally hatched her from an egg. My family's lived in Unova for generations now, but my dad's side of the family started out in one of the islands surrounding Galar, and they send our side of the family random eggs every once in a while. Mom and Dad expected something like a Rookidee or a Galarian Meowth, maybe a Clobbopus or Impidimp at the high end (dad's starter is a Klinklang and mom's starter was a Gyarados within a year of her getting a Magikarp, they're not directly trainer-oriented professionals but they know how to take care of pokemon), so it was a bit of a shock to everyone to get a tiny little Ghost/Dragon instead. We spent years not even focusing on battling or anything, just kind of hanging out and learning how to communicate and exist together, until she evolved into a Drakloak when I was 16 and decided she needed to be more active in the competitive scene. We didn't do any official badge runs or anything, but we did go around to a few regions and hung out with other Ghost trainers and occasionally gym leaders, just learning the ropes and fighting for fun. She didn't hit her final evolution until 4 or 5 years ago, while I was beginning to leave my preschool work and began attending college, and she still has a super soft spot for little kids, which translates into the entire local Dreepy line colony hanging around the local schools and daycares. THAT was a weird conversation to have with the authorities, but it ended well, so no harm done.

Jade was a Duskull when we found him in Hoenn, not actually around Mount Pyre but in a field outside Verdanturf, off route 116. We still have no idea why he was there, but he seemed lost and stuck around with my team while we traveled the region and studied under Phoebe's family. Eventually, it was time for us to go, and he wanted to come with us, so he got his wish. He's been with me for 8 years now, and he's been a Dusknoir for about half that time; getting him the cloth to evolve took a bit of doing and a lot of money, but he was determined to become a Dusknoir, and I can't say no to that kind of thing. He tends to just hang around in my shadow most of the time, but he's very protective and has been known to mess with annoying challengers by untying their shoelaces, opening all their bags and pockets, and generally being as annoying to them as they are to me. He's a good friend, and an amazing helper on bad days.

Lady C is my newest pokemon, I've only been her trainer for a little over a year now. She came to the gym fully evolved, and the details of her life before the transfer are a little murky. I think she was a service pokemon of some sort before she evolved, since she's extremely practiced in taking care of people and younger pokemon, but she's very quiet and doesn't seem to want to talk about it at the moment. Originally, she was going to be one of the gym leader's gym challenge pokemon, but she never really took to the role, and isn't really the battling type in the first place, so he let her help me out in my non-challenge duties, and eventually she just came home with me and never left. She's a huge help with the younger challengers and pokemon, and usually makes sure I take care of myself. Her name is actually a reference to a video game I was playing, one of the antagonists is named Lady D, and she took a shine to the character over the course of my playthrough. I only realized she'd named herself when I called her Lady C on accident one day and she didn't even bat an eye.

[razorblade180]

Nine Days of Lancaster

[Day 4: Soulmate au]

Everything has a routine. From the everyday worker, to the cat resting on a fence. Cars pass by, birds call, life goes on. I’m truth, there’s nothing wrong with that. Not everything is meant to be grand. However, everything was meant to have color, vibrant and glorious visuals that made the mundane a little more grand. Unfortunately such a right was only given when life’s greatest thing was found, love.

Jaune Arc walked through the muted Vale streets. It wasn’t too bad. Color wasn’t truly loved, but never experienced deeply by most. Faint flickers of green signaled him to cross the street which, rushing to lunch before meeting with his visiting family. He weaved around the colorless bystanders then continued on his way. He was making good time. That was until Jaune made a sharp left turn around a corner. The young man was stopped dead in his tracks as somebody crashed right into him, toppling them over and sending a skateboard into the road.

“Ugh..what on Remnant?” Jaune groaned as rubbed his side. It felt like he hit a car instead of a person. He looked across from him to see why that was. Oh it was a person alright. Unlike him however, they had a helmet. “Hey, are you o-”

His words were caught in his throat as the stranger sat up, removing the helmet to rub their head. Slowly, as if like tie dye, color begin to spill into the world before his eyes. Stark black hair revealed hints of red end. Their fair skin became more peach while white jeans became blue and muted gray turned to black. The only color that remained unchanged was the pool of silver eyes he peered into. With a couple blinks, Jaune Arc’s world became vibrant.

Ruby looked that boy she just hit and gasped, hoping to her feet. “Oh my goodness! I’m so sorry.” She reached her hand out to help him up. “Dad always tells me not to skate on busy sidewalks. Guess I should’ve listened. Are you okay?”

“Umm…uhhhh”

“Oh no, I broke you!” She panicked. The girl had half a mind to call for medical help, when a hard snap made them both turn around to see a big truck pass by and broken board in the street. Her jaw dropped and so did her head.

“Woah, bad luck.” Jaune said.

“Oh, so you can speak? Guess that’s good.” She sighed, “Well, guess I deserved it.”

“I’m partly to blame. I shouldn’t be running around corners like that. Are you…okay?” He quickly became aware of this girl’s beauty again, making him nervous.

“Me? I had the helmet. You’re the one rubbing your ribs. Oof, please tell me they’re not broken?”

“No, no, I’m…pretty sure?” He was legitimate pain but not that much pain. “I might bruise by I tend to bounce back quickly.”

He saw her frown. Clearly she wasn’t convinced and by her earlier reaction, probably feels bad. Jaune wasn’t really sure what to do. He didn’t even know her name. Also, she didn’t appear to be as startled as he was either. He didn’t want to think about it much but it’s entirely possible that he was only one seeing in color now. That’s happened to more than a few unfortunate people.

“That’s unfortunate.” He thought to himself. Still, everything and anything became more…alive. Even the sky he’s seen all his life was finally the magnificent blue his parents described. That alone was a blessing. Not the mention the sense of warmth he was getting from her. It made him nervous, but not unpleasant.

“Were you going some place important? With your board gone, I don’t mind buying you a bus ticket.”

“Don’t worry about all that. I wasn’t going any place special. Just my sister’s. Anyways, scroll.” She holds out her hand.

“Excuse me?”

“Your scroll. I’m giving you my number. If you end up having to see a doctor or anything then call me. I’ll pay the bill.”

“Oh, you don’t really have t-”

“Scroll please.”

“Yes ma’am.” Her stern yet polite voice was somehow both sweet and intimidating. He got his scroll back and took a look. “Ruby Rose, that’s a nice name. I’m Jaune Arc by the way. A not as nice name.”

“Hehe, I don’t know. Rolls off the tongue pretty easily. Well I hope you feel better genuinely. If not, don’t hesitate to call. I’m a clutz but a responsible one.” She said with pride.

Jaune got a laugh at that. He nodded and just like that, Ruby went on her way. He saw her look at her board for a moment before her shoulders slouched as she abandoned the idea of grabbing the pieces.

“Ruby Rose…huh.”

xxxxxx

“I can’t believe you hit someone!”

“Leave me alone!” Ruby yelled defensively, plopping down on her sister’s couch. “I lost the board and my knee hurts. I’ve suffered enough. Yang, please tell me you have an ice pack or something?”

“You’re lucky I always have a bag of something frozen whenever you get hurt. Hold on.” She walked over to her kitchen.

“You always have something because you don’t cook.” Ruby mumbled.

“What was that?”

“Nothing~”

“Thought so.” Yang chuckled, opening the freezer. “So, what’s this Jaune fellow look like?”

“Tall, a bit scraggly, but seemed nice. Also…deep blue eyes.”

“Oh yeah? That sounds n-” it took a second but did she hear that right? Yang immediately closed the fridge and ran back to the living room to see her sister bunched up in the corner of the couch, a deep blush on her face.

A smile slowly started to spread across the older sister’s face. “Ruby, can you see in color!?”

She hugged her knees, “Oh you know…yeah~”

“You ran over your soulmate!?”

“It was a crash and I think I did!”

Yang in her special way started off getting really excited for Ruby, before immediately bursting into laughing. All Ruby could do was cover her face in embarrassment. She didn’t need any color to know just how red she must’ve been. Oh well. At least she got his number.

[tommyspeakycap]

omgg write something about playing or braiding jack’s hair

oh em gee I love this !!!!! I loved his hair braid too omg

Jack had a very specific barber he liked to go to to get the same quality haircut he always got. He trusted that specific barber and his appointments were always made in advance to absolutely ensure he could get it done the way he liked by whom he liked at the right time so it never got overgrown or hard to manage. Jack was very specific about his hair and about keeping it the way he liked it to be. It was part of his image, part of him really. The Brummie boy hated when anyone else touched it. Be that joking team members giving his head a teasing push or his dad ruffling his hair each time he walks in the door, it irks the living daylights right out of him.

So it seems as though it’s Jack’s own personal nightmare now the barbers are shut with absolutely no sign of opening up for at least another month and Jack can’t seem to take one minute more of training with his hair getting all up in his eyes, dropping into his face and blowing wildly in Birmingham wind even with a headband in. It is driving him absolutely insane. It’s all he can think of in this moment.

And that is because he currently has your fingers tangled in it completely absentmindedly as he lays in between with your legs with his legs stretched out along the L section of the L shaped couch. Your eyes are fully focussed on the storyline evolving throughout an old episode of Greys Anatomy. Jack’s arms are around your torso as his head rests comfortably on your lower stomach with his eyes peacefully shut. He would usually engage in the TV with you, but the preseason after an unexpected break that had him doing less exercise than he definitely should have been doing had him absolutely shattered.

It was rare for even you to touch the locks he took so laughably serious, but it felt like the most soothing experience he’d maybe ever had to feel the gentility of your finger massaging over his scalp in the most relaxing manner he’d ever known. Even his sports massages after long matches weren’t this relaxing.

“Mmmhm, feels so good.” He murmurs, his voice ticking your stomach as he speaks against it, the sigh that leaves him making you giggle in response. “So annoyin’ in training.” He adds tiredly, but not lacking in the obvious irritation he feels towards it. Jack tends to feel a lot and often, and even seemingly small things like his hair getting in the way of his play was unimaginably irritating for him.

“I could cut it?” You suggest.

“Yeah,” he snorts, “And end up like the poor dog? I’ll pass love.”

“Aw come on! It wasn’t that bad.” You retort

“He looked like a street rat with curls, sweetheart.” He laughs, despite the disappointment he feels for your hands leaving his hair for the first time since he lay down tonight.

“Cheek.”

“Sorry baby.” He lulls, finally looking up at you for the first time, lifting his face to offer you a smile that strained him. Holding his head up like that was too much for his already tired muscles, so he’s quickly laying his head back to its resting place. You can’t think of anything else to retort with, knowing full and well the incredibly poor state of affairs that occurred in your household three weeks into Lockdown 1 after you attempted to give the dog a haircut out of pure boredom and lack of open dog grooming services. The state of affairs being Jack crawling to the bathroom on his knees and one hand with the other hand holding onto his crotch because he was trying so hard not to wet himself from laughing at the poor pup who looked so confused that his dad hadn’t been able to greet him as normal when he returned from the weekly food shop.

Jack very nearly did piss on your good cream carpet that day, so it was fair for him to not trust your barber skills either. Especially being the way he is about his hair.

“You know the old episodes make me miss Derek.” You announce after a moment of only the television speaking between the two of you.

“He the one with the hair?” Jack mumbles. You snort a laugh.

“They’ve all got hair, Jack. Go on, say it then?”

“Fine,” he huffs indignantly, “The one with the good hair.”

Your giggle makes his heart erupt into butterflies that dance through his stomach and chest just like it does every single time he gets to be lucky enough to hear it. Jack doesn’t like to admit when others have hair he likes. He prefers to live in a world where his hairstyle is simply the best, and truly he usually does. He tends to live in his own world anyway. The world where his hair is fantastic, he gets to do what he loves for a living and come home to you each and every day. That’s his world and fucking hell does he love that world.

In reality though, part of that world is that however fictional Derek Shepherd may be, his hair is fantastic and always looks rather immaculate. Something Jack can’t quite relate to at this current moment in time. “You know this episode is kinda about his hair,” you note softly, hands smoothing back over your boyfriends brown locks. He knows by the tone of your voice that you’re going to go into more detail about the episode currently playing through on Amazon Prime TV. Some people may well have been annoyed listening to their girlfriends recounting entire episodes of TV shows that they weren’t exactly inclined to watch, but Jack was not one of those men. He didn’t care what you were talking about, just the sound of you talking was enough to make him listen intently. He loved to hear you talk, and if that was the only thing that he ever got to hear for the rest of his life then he’d still be happy.

“They adopted a little girl and he hasn’t quite figured her hair out yet but everyone’s shocked ‘cause his hairs pretty good. Like you, a little. You got good hair, just haven’t learned to manage it yet eh?” You explain, weaving your fingers in and out of those stands of hair that make him hum in both understanding and enjoyment. He isn’t sure what you’re doing, but the weaving of stands, pads of your fingers dancing over his scalp carefully, softly feels like what he might imagine heaven to be. “Yeah?” He asks, “And what does he do then?” His voice is filled with genuine interest for what you were saying. It was the first time you’d ever known that in a relationship. He heard you snigger softly to yourself. “He learns from someone who knows a bit more about hair than he does.” You state pointedly, prompting him to roll his eyes even if you can’t see him.

“I’m not letting you cut my hair, (y/n). Not happening, I’m sor-“

“Alright, Jack. I bloody know! That’s not what I meant.” You grumble. Jack can immediately imagine your disgruntled pout already, with those irritated narrowed eyes and the playful scrunch of your nose. “Sorry.” Every time he sees that look on you, he moves to kiss that furrow out of your nose. It makes his heart smile each and every time he sees it. You are simultaneously the most beautiful, more adorable and hottest woman he has ever laid his eyes on. “Sorry baby,” he reiterated, “Go on.”

“I could braid it for you?”

That earns a belly laugh from him that reverberates through your body, jostling with the force of his whole body laughter. “So you will,” he bellows in breaks between the ever comedic gasping from breath after each loud laugh. “Not a chance.”

He pushes himself up to sit back on his knees, trapping your legs between his as he looks down at you with a huge grin still stretching his lips and creasing his eyes, yet they still sparkle in adoration for you. “Oh yeah?” You muse with a giggle to follow despite the firm attempt to seal it behind clenched lips. The giggle sets those dimples into your cheeks, his eyes just drinking you up as you lounge back on the huge couch there in front of him, sinking back into the pillows just like he had been sinking against you in comfort for hours only moments ago. “Yeah.” He repeats firmly, the playful jest of his words not lost on your ears as he leans forward.

With the emission of only a small, surprised yelp from you that turns the head of the dog in his bed for only a moment, Jack has grabbed your legs to tug you down so you were laying flat on your back on the L of the sofa. He leans over you, hands and strong arms keeping him above you with ease. “Realllly?” You tease, one eyebrow quirked. Jack loves it when you do that, mostly because he can’t and he finds it beautifully funny.

Your hands reach up to his face, cupping over the beard on his cheeks to bring his face down to peck his lips before letting him press back up like a simple press up over your body. This was a common occurrence between the pair of you and Jack had always loved to show off. “Not cuttin’ about with a braid in my hair baby, sorry.”

He dips down for another kiss and you break out another giggle that parts your lips from his. “You already are, bub.”

“Ya what?” He pops straight up, sitting again back on his knees. “Not falling over your face now eh?” You taunt with a cheeky grin that makes him furrow his brows. Jack removed his hands from beside you to run one after the other over the top of his hair, a weird mix of a grin and disbelief washing over his face. Your sweetheart smile warms his heart as you lay there looking up at him with tired eyes and a lazy smile, cheeks flushed and one of his old cotton shirts keeping you warm long after his body raises from yours.

“Wait there!” He yells, bounding off the couch to all but leap through the living room until he reaches the mirror in the hall just outside the door. “Babe!” He cheers through the house, appearing back in the doorway of the room. “Nah it’s kinda cool, you fuckin’ smashed that!” You sit up and turn around towards him with your hand covering your mouth in a giggle that makes him stride forward and tug your hand away so he can see that beautiful smile. He jumps back again. “And look; stays in when I move around like-”

An immediate howl of laughter breaks out of your mouth with your head tipped back in hysterics as you watch him run on the spot, jump on the spot and then shake his head around like your puppy when he had a cone on his head. You laugh so hard your laughter looses its noise, simply existing as a elongated wheeze and a sudden gasp for desperate air to aid and allow for only more laughter. “Why you laughing for?” He yells, his words split by his own laughter as he tugs you to your feet, standing taller than him when your on your feet on the couch. Jack wraps one arm around your waist and moves the other down to the bend of your knees to sweep your legs from beneath you, perching you on the edge of the back of the couch.

“It,” kiss, “is,” kiss, “perfect.” Kiss.

“Just like you, baby.” He rumbles lowly, “Perfect just like my girl. Gonna wear it to training. Keep hair out my face, remind me of you, perfect.” He just keeps talking, keeps praising you between kisses while he brings you closer and closer to him until you can wrap your legs around him. Locked in place, he takes your face in his hands.

“So you’ll let me braid it again?” You chime, eyes lighting up. Jack chuckles, thumbs smoothing over your cheeks with a kiss pressed to the tip of your nose. “Course baby. Every day.”

True to his word Jack Grealish is. Every night he comes home from his training, he’s laying on the couch letting you massage the days stresses out of his mind, letting your fingers weave the tension out of his scalp. Jack’s never let anyone take care of him so much. He’s never felt comfortable to be taken care of like this, but you are his exception. His one single exception. And every morning he sits in the floor at the foot of the bed while you sit with a leg on either side of him, fingers weaving the strands into place for the day and tighter for match days. People make comments but Jack doesn’t give even half of a shit. His hair is how he likes it; out of his face so he can concentrate on his game and it gives you more of a reason to actually be up in the morning when he leaves before the sun rises above you. That’s perfect for Jack.

Until his next haircut, the only time that footballer doesn’t have a braid through his hair is when your fingers are tangling in it while he’s between your legs for another very enjoyable reason.

[newborn-vessel]

Ok I don't normally like responding to arguments online but this sort of feels like a bad faith reading of Worm. As someone who has read Worm and keeps up with MHA (I'm not quite manga current though so forgive me if there's stuff that happens later that I overlook) I'd definitely say that Worm actually does very well at conveying its themes while MHA sort of falls flat with its overall message.

I definitely concede that MHA is better produced since it's consistent and more heavily checked over but it tends to be shallower in what it wants to convey. You say it does "villain protagonists" better but most often the series will introduce a villain who succinctly and cleanly describes a genuinely fundamental issue with hero society but then gets into a fight and dies/goes to jail by the end of the arc. And what's more annoying is that often nothing changes! The heroes at most vaguely acknowledge the points made or just handwave it as "Well you should have tried being Good and Nice and maybe we would've bothered to care".

MHA is fundamentally trapped by the fact it barely wants to budge from its status quo and wants to paint evil as some inherent force that will be removed when you get rid of all the Bad People. You say they try to fix the issues brought up by the villains but most often that's just by saying "We should just be even more Good" rather than exploring the depths of the underlying societal issues.

Comparatively, Worm explores these things inherently. While I will agree it gets a little edgy at times, Worm portrays a world that meaningfully depicts Real People in that kind of setting. The reason you're constantly shifted as to your opinion of Taylor is because she isn't meant to be Completely Good or Completely Bad. Taylor is a girl fundamentally driven by her own views of the world and while she seemingly strives to do the Right thing her entire idea of what that means is informed by her own life and own experiences. I think it's sort of bizarre to act as though having every character feel like a unique and fully formed person with entirely personal inner worlds is somehow worse than solidly splitting characters into Good and Evil and not allowing for nuance beyond slight deviations. Even what you say of the contrast of the darker parts of MHA is a testament to the fact it only ever explores that darkness to make a point and then ignores it in favour of its own oversimplified worldview when it doesn't want that. Trying to act like MHA relatively quickly disposing of any of its legitimately fascinating villains is some stroke of genius while Worm instead showing that all of these heroes and villains are People who can change their minds, develop or make mistakes is some failure of writing is just disingenuous.

Worm has a message that doesn't intend to give specific ideas of good and evil but instead says "Having a system that controls power through heavily policed ideals inherently allows for harm to occur on all sides. No matter how many bad apples you remove, you cannot form a perfect society through hard moral lines". MHA on the other hand constantly feels just short of its own point. Even at the very beginning, Deku is introduced as someone who is looked down on for being quirkless and instead of showcasing that he actually has worth of his own or that the society he's in is wrong to mistreat him, he only gets treated better when given a quirk; essentially leaning into the idea that he deserved that mistreatment. MHA has a message that doing good matters but doesn't meaningfully engage with the complexity involved in that. I genuinely do still love the series but it's sort of ridiculous to describe it how you have when many of these things are issues that stick out constantly to me.

what if I made a post telling macadamia hero fans sad that their thing is over to read worm. Would that be funny? Could they handle amy?