#but seriously that first fight against them is my favorite thing to ever happen in one piece

[omwlaboon]

you know what Luffy did to Rob Lucci at Ennes Lobby?????? beat his ass. do you know what Luffy did to Rob Lucci at Egghead????? beat his ass.

[erinaeris]

Laios Touden and the Responsibility of Power

First off, let me gush just a bit about how fucking STRONK this man is. Olympic weightlifters are dying of sheer envy and lust over this man. He is a FUCKING POWERHOUSE.

My favorite panels ever, and judging by the cropping of the second photo, Tumblr agrees.

AHEM, where was I?

Ah yes. He's not just strong and incredibly hot, my man is literally an invasive species in this dungeon. He knows every single weak spot of every monster Thistle tried to throw at him and when he finds it he just fucking RAMS HIMSELF AT THEM AND TAKES THEM DOWN.

And when he's a dwarf HE LITERALLY BENDS STEEL.

"Beat Namari at arm wrestling"? My boy, she wouldn't let you anywhere near because you'd FUCKING BREAK HER HER HAND ALONG WITH THE TABLE. (It's such a fucking shame we didn't see Senshi at least raising an (perfectly plucked except it just grows that way naturally) eyebrow in the background when he sees this. Alas, he was too distracted by his hair.)

But I mentioned responsibility, didn't I? Strength is power in the dungeon, and we all knows what comes with great power. And Laios is, in fact, very responsible with that power!

(Futther examples under the cut, wee bit spoilers for anime watchers)

This scene lives rent-free in my head forever, because of two things: Thistle suddenly realizing just what the hell he's up against,

And Laios breaking Thistle's arm.

Now, I think Laios didn't mean to actually break his arm here, he's just half-blind and dizzy and knows he has to restrain Thistle or it will all go to shit. So that's what he does. The move you see above is a restraining hold. The point is that the person pinned down can't struggle much because the position of the arm presses the suprascapular nerve, so it hurts a lot, but unless they're held that way for too long they'll be fine.

But Thistle is TINY and elves are generally fine-boned. I think Laios really did just underestimate his strength.

And the moment the dragons aren't an IMMEDIATE THREAT anymore?

Laios heals him. Thistle's a better mage than him by miles, he could have done it himself. But no. Laios does it. He was too rough, too careless with his strength, and he immediately backtracked, fixed what he broke, and continued with more mindfullness.

And these are just the examples that stuck in my mind the most. And it happens often enough that the team isn't even fucking surprised! Laios' strength would 100% scare people who only saw him in a barfight and didn't know anything else about him. Hell, the other adventurers they meet fucking quiver before this guy who just took down a monster they had nightmares about in one blow, up until he opens his mouth and they relax. You put more malevolent software in that sort of hardware and he'd be the next Shadow Governor.

But Laios is Laios. He's a gentle soul at heart (a Great Pyrenese, specifically, the gentlest souls ever unless you're out for their flock) and he is VERY CAREFUL with his strength, ESPECIALLY around his team. Chilchuck, who is literally half his size and underfed to boot, can smack Laios as much as he wants with ZERO fear because Laios is aware he can hurt Chilchuck by literally tripping over him, so he just stays still and lets Chilchuck smack at him. I'd be surprised if he ever managed to leave a bruise. Chilchuck has to aim at Laios' weak spot (back of the knee here) just to get Laios to notice him!

But because I have some experience with marital arts and close combat, I think the fight with Shuro exemplifies my point so fucking well! Laios is HURT here, he's living every autistic person's worst nightmare.

And he HOLDS BACK. His restraint is fucking IMMACULATE.

Shuro is fucking lucky Laios still liked him when he started talking shit, because he would have broken his spine otherwise. Laios doesn't even take the fight seriously! He starts with a fucking SLAP.

Shuro retaliates with an actual punch (that does nothing but piss him off)

Laios wobbles. Shuro HITS THE DIRT.

And this is the part where he realizes just how outside his weight category he is. Shuro definitely has technique on his side, but that means jackshit when you need ten blows to to even bruise your opponent, but one hit from them will leave you drinking through a straw for a week. For a second there, Shuro thought he was in ACTUAL DANGER.

But instead of finishing the job, Laios tries to talk him down, which just sets him off again. Man was at his fucking LIMIT, and it snapped. Self-preservation who?

And the best part is? Shuro is throwing all his strength behind his punches and Laios just takes them, but Laios? He mostly pushed Shuro around!

They're mostly grappling here, precisely because Laios is very conscious his friend is pretty fragile right now.

And when he does have enough?

Shuro is flat on the ground again, and Laios has a black eye and a bloody nose. He sits down and five minutes later he's ready to go! Like yes, Shuro was at a low point here, but he's been mowing through monsters at only a bit slower pace than Laios' party. He's no weakling regardless. And Laios had to HOLD BACK SO HE WOULDN'T HURT HIM. And it's so obvious that Maizuru takes one look at the two of them and leaves them to their toussling.

When I saw her reaction I had to scroll back and take another look, because I was sure she would intervene! But she doesn't! She is aware of Laios' strength, she has to be, and she doesn't lift a finger to help her precious charge. She knows the big dog he's wrestling with knows to watch his strength.

And that's my whole point: my boi is STRONK AF! And he is very aware of his strength, and how he could hurt the people around him is he wasn't careful, so he is ALWAYS CAREFUL. He has deeply internalized the fact that to have strength is to be careful with it, to use it in service of people rather than to hurt them (possibly from his dad). He is going to SUCH a good king! He's not going to like the job but by GOD he will do it really well.

And I will give my right arm to see a fic about the first corrupt lord/governor/courtier who attempts to misuse their authority for their own gain. Kabru's gonna have to talk Laios out of an execution.

[viennakarma]

omg please share the fernando headcanons 😭

MY DEAREST FRIEND AND ENEMY HEADCANONS (Fernando's version)

Only read this after finishing the two parts of MDF&E

- She fell first, he fell harder. You had always had a silly crush on Fernando ever since meeting him at around 12/13. But Fernando fell during and after the first kiss. But stubborn as he was, he refused to acknowledge it or even talk about it to anyone (his father noticed the shift, though).

- In the early years of karting and single seater competitions, your praise was one of the best things to help him with his confidence. He liked to have in you the same faith you had in him.

- Despite Lucia initially liking you and respecting you as Fernando’s friend, through time, she noticed how much of a priority you were to him (sometimes even more than she was). When the day of Lucia’s graduation was coming the same day as your last race at the Euro Open, she gave him an ultimatum, you or her. And Fernando showed up to the Euro Open.

- He did speak to Flavio about taking a chance on you, but not the way he spoke about it in that moment of anger. He only asked Flavio to see you race once. And Flavio saw how good you were and decided to sponsor you by himself.

- He was the happiest when you first became teammates, even going as far as telling people how his teammate was his best friend.

- He knew all about your preferences, but especially with food, he'd always make sure the cafeteria had your favorites. (He'd still do that even after you stopped being friends)

- Fernando never knew about the team orders you’d receive to not fight against him during races. But he’d notice how you’d be down sometimes after races. When he tried to talk to you about it, you’d brush him off gently.

- The first few times you fought because of racing, it wasn’t really intentional on his part. He’d get so laser focused on races, that he’d only realise he’d been awful was after the race ended.

- Everyone on the grid knew that Fernando was in love with you. Nobody talked about it though, almost like a silent agreement. Everyone on the grid had at one point seen Fernando looking for you in the crowds or even making heart eyes at you when he thought no one was looking.

- When the big fight happened, and you said “you’re dead to me, Fernando” it was probably the most hurtful thing you ever told him in all those years of rivalry.

- When that crash happened, Fernando was so consumed with guilt that he immediately stopped his car and jumped out to get to you (even though he could’ve kept racing since his damage was almost nothing). He got to you before the marshals did, he kept calling your name over and over when he saw you were unconscious. He helped the marshals get you out of the broken car, as he only stopped when the medics got you into the ambulance. He spent hours just consumed with guilt. When he went to the med center to see you, and you pushed him away, he went back to his room to cry. Flavio saw him crying and tried to console him, promising to help you two recover your friendship.

- He saw every interview that you talked about not being friends with him. That was something that left him angry every time. And like a vicious circle, he’d get angry, do something stupid which would made you angry, which would just fuel your rivalry worse and worse.

- He hated when you became friends with Jenson and Nico, he'd sometimes see you talking with them, or he'd hear your laugh close by, knowing that had been so long since he saw you doing that.

- Fernando started dating seriously as a way to move on from you. And he thought he did, until he saw you and the footballer. The first day he saw you and the footballer (Fernando refused to acknowledge him by name) was in a Grand Prix. You had been specifically looking at Fernando when the footballer got in the way, sweeping you off your feet, making you laugh and blush as he spun you around in his arms. Fernando felt like his heart was being stomped on right in front of him, and if looks could kill, the footballer would be down in a split second.

- He was miserable all the time. After you fought, over and over, and the anger dissipated, he'd be left only with pain, hurt and regret. He'd always feel ashamed of the things he said and done, but his temper was always getting the best of him when he was facing you.

- Fernando was there when you got on the podium after winning your first World Championship. Despite you not seeing him in the crowd (and thinking he never showed up), he was there, with a hand on his heart as he saw you become the best in the sport.

- Many times, Fernando built up the courage to go try to talk to you and make peace, but you were always busy or he was interrupted, or something, anything, happened and it stopped him from reaching you.

- After your championship, when you told him your debt was paid, he felt the guilt consume him again. He never expected that you'd spend so long holding onto something he only said in a moment of anger, that he only said because he impulsively wanted to hurt you. That's when thought you two were too far gone to recover.

- He provoked you because being the target of your anger was better than to only have your indifference. He just wanted to have you looking at him and talking to him. If anger was the only emotion you could spare for him, than he'd take it. Because it was better than nothing.

- When he went back to Renault, he was determined to fix everything with you. It was gamble, really, but he was willing to swallow all his pride to have you back in whatever way you could possibly want. He even told Flavio of his plan to fix everything. Later when Flavio told him you were moving to Ferrari, his courage to have you back took a hit.

- Fernando was still in touch with your mom through the years. They almost didn't talk about you, but sometimes your mom would slip something, and those were all the personal news he had on you. (Neither you or Fernando knew this, but both sets of parents always believed you were soulmates and would eventually get married. They were heartbroken when the falling out happened)

- Fernando kept looking for you in other women. Same eyes, same hair color and even style. It wasn't something he did consciously, and he only noticed when his father pointed it out. Then he started to go out of his way to avoid women that reminded him of you.

- Fernando also kept the ice cream tradition on your birthdays.

- Sometimes he called your name in his sleep.

- Finding out of your breakup with the footballer, he didn't feel particularly happy about it, more worried about the circumstances around it than anything (he was worried the footballer had broken your heart). He had to bribe Jenson into telling him details.

- When he went to Ferrari, he also wanted to become your teammate again. Finding out you were leaving the team made him wonder if you were genuinely running away from him.

- He once got in an argument with another two drivers who had said you weren't good enough to be in Formula 1.

- Through the grapevine he'd hear about your flings here and there with other drivers. The jealousy burned so bright he once pushed one of them off the track (not his proudest moment).

- The announcement of your retirement caught the whole world by surprise, but Fernando didn't take it too well. During the party he approached your team to ask if they were forcing you out. (He only understood your desire to retire after talking to you)

- He went to find you a few months after your retirement, on your birthday. He spent hours building up the courage to go. He went to buy the ice cream and just drove to your place. It was a complete shot in the dark, to know if you'd even want to see or talk to him. But when you did, he was the happiest man ever.

[I might have gotten carried away with this one too. These are just a few, but there are a few others]

[ricegobbler]

TFP CONS X FEM!CON READER HCS! PT.1

ok ngl I did this bc I’m bored. I might open requests, but idk yet bc I’m always busy. So I’m NOT opening any requests atm but I may soon!! I also didn’t do all the cons in this bc I’m so tired. So I’ll do the rest of them maybe tmrw.

Ok anyways this might be a lil bad since it’s my first time :( but enjoy either way!

Also I’m using ‘Y/N’ bc idk what else to use even tho I think I’m supposed to use it.

Warnings‼️: Mention of fighting(s), injuries, drugs (calling Megatron the druglord basically) slightly suggestive (mainly for Megatron and kinda for Knockout?)

(Megatron, Starscream, and Knockout)

—————————————————

Megatron:

-Ah yes, our favorite drug lord☺️

-When he first saw you he thought of you as any other Decepticon on the Nemesis, a weakling basically.

-Every time he’d see you he wouldn’t really think much or care honestly, like I said, you were treated and thought of like any other Decepticon by the warlord. So the two of you wouldn’t rlly interact.

-But then, the first time you fought the Autobots in front of Megatron really changed his perspective of you. Yes, you still weren’t that special out of everyone else, but you did cause something special in his spark.

-After the battle, slamming Bulkhead into the ground, Megatron actually said something to you. Praising you for your strength and courage.

“I’m quite impressed, Y/N..” Megatron praised you, arms behind his back as he circled around you. “A fem with that much strength and power is quite…alluring~”

Your optics widened, feeling a bit of a shiver run up (or go down) your back. “A-alluring?…” You repeat, “Yes…very alluring..” he responded back, he then stood behind you and placed a servo on your shoulder, gripping it a little tightly.

“I’m quite glad to have you on our side~ you’ll be very useful….” He whispered into your audial.

-After that day he started treating you differently. Definitely favorite treatment. He wouldn’t get mad at you for your fails and would just brush it off, leaving the others (Starscream and Knockout) jaw dropped.

-Sometimes Megatron would com you to see him, privately. Whenever this happens the only thing that ever happens is some little conversation. Sometimes they’d be about the war, but mostly about each other and stories of both of your lives before the war. Sometimes he’d just praise you too tho, not that you minded though, praises from him were just 🙏

-I feel like he’d fall for some strong fem. Of course, he’d still be stronger. But he would love your strength, courage, wisdom and seriousness, and sometimes he’d get a little…riled up at the height difference between the two of you.

-When he finally confessed feelings for you (he wrote a poem and recited it to you💔🥹) you were treated WAYYY differently. Being called “my queen” or “my dear,” and he would fucking force the others to call you their queen.

-how he kisses?? Passionate. He’s so rough and touchy while kissing too omfg. PDA?? Hell yeah. He don’t gaf abt who’s around, he’d grab your waist in front of everyone and whisper the most…innocent..things to you!☺️

Starscream:

-Our favorite high heel cunt!😝

-Just like Megatron, I feel like he wouldn’t really care about your presence, BUT, he would definitely talk to you about how everything goes in the Nemesis. While doing so I feel like he’d trail off and start talkin abt overthrowing Megatron💀

“-And then I get to overthrow that scrap of a warlord! YES! I will offline him soon and..” He paused and slowly turned his head to look at you, you just blinked confusingly and cleared your throat awkwardly.

“Are you alright..?” You ask, “I’m fine. Moving on!..” he responded.

-Yeah. Anyways.

-When he first saw your skills against Autobots, he was surprised. He’s never seen a fem do that much damage. Of course, he doesn’t say anything about it. He’s pretty quick to brush it off anyways.

-Sometimes he’d just fucking burst in your berthroom and tell you orders. Why? Bc he’s SIC ig😒

Starscream bursting into your berthroom, “Y/N!” You quickly turn your helm to look at him. “Huh”

“As your second in command I order you to do [whatever idk]!” He yelled, hands on his waist and everything.🤦🏻‍♀️

-But the more you two interact the more he realizes he doesn’t mind you being around. He seems more comfortable with you. How would you know? He’d rant to you about how he’d make you his SIC once he overthrows Megatron😭

-Then he finally falls for you. I honestly see him being hella nervous around you but tried showing off to you. One time he tried showing off he could take on Megatron, next thing you know you brought him to the Medbay-

-the way he’d confessed would be so sweet but funny too istg.

“Y/N…I..I’ve fallen for you.” He said, “you what?..” you asked, he quickly stood up, transforming into his alt and flew through the halls of the Nemesis while yelling back “I LOVE YOUUUU..!”

-After that little fail you found him in his berth in the corner like he was in time out and you just giggled. You gently rubbed his back and smiled. You also told him you fell for him and his wings fluttered.

-He’s quite silly, and you loved that. Secretly in his berthroom you’d praise him and cuddle with him (he rlly needs it🙁) he’d call you names like “my spark” or “love.” PDA?? Yes, but not in public. Sure, he’ll hold your hand sometimes in public, but in the Berth is the best place. How he kisses? Amazing. Not as suggestive as Megatron, but they’re so sweet. Soft kisses<33

Knockout:

-The best flirtatious man ever😍

-He heard about your arrival from the rumors around the Nemesis, at first he was actually intrigued. He wanted to know what you looked like and what your personality was.

-Everyday he’d wait for you to come to the Medbay if you had any injuries. Of course, you didn’t. So what a shame 😢

-But he’d hear any new thing about you from either Starscream or the rumors around.

-But when the day of you fighting the Autobots for the first time he was finally able to see you in the Medbay to treat some wounds you had gotten.

You, covered in wounds, entering the Medbay for the first time and meeting optics with Knockout. “My my my….you’re the new fem, hm? Nice to meet you Y/N, the names Knockout~”

-curse his flirtatious side.

-when he finally treated your wounds and scratches he just smirked at you.

“Thank you,” You said to him, “No problem, doll~ it was wonderful to meet you..” he responded.

-After that, the more missions you went on and the more you’d get hurt you’d stop by to get treated. Even the smallest wounds you’d get, you’d still visit him! You mainly liked his personality though.

-The more you came by the more he got comfortable with you, he’d start ranting to you about random things. Once, he ranted to you about his paint being scratched by Arcee and Bumblebee.

-Sometimes when Knockout had no one to treat you’d come by and talk to him. You loved his sassiness, it was so funny😭 you’d also praise him too, saying how you loved him paint and how shiny it was that day. In return, he’d praise you too.

-whenever you two hung out you would just sit on the medbays bed and swing your legs back n forth since you didn’t reach the ground. Knockout found it quite amusing, he’d definitely tease you for it.

-When the two of you got close, you started falling for him first. Mostly because of his flirtation…yeah…like I said, curse his flirtatious side😢

-Of course he’d still flirt with you, making you flushed everytime you’d leave the Medbay after your daily conversations.

-When you finally confessed he just started saying how he knew something like this would happen. He also felt the same, so yay! Then he started teasing you hella again.

-He’d obviously call you things like “doll” or “dollface,” like omg.😍 How he kisses?? Also passionate, not rlly touchy tho..he just holds you by the waist n that’s it. Praises EVERYDAY. Only if you praise him tho. PDA?? Same like Starscream, not in public.

—————————————

[thequietkid-moonie]

Their extrovert crush is a really good singer

[ HEADCANONS ] [ Marinette, Adrien, Luka ]

[ Miraculous Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir ]

× Inspired on Sarah (from Kaleido Star)

Im being really excited since I had this idea!! I just love it so much!!! Also, im bragging about one of my favorites characters 🙆🏻‍♀️ like, seriously, Sarah is ✨ amazing ✨

I thought in Ibuki too but I decided to keep it as just Sarah

Marinette Dupain-Cheng

It could be that Marinette personaly meet you in school or by casuality first, or that she gets interested in your music first and then meet you in person, no matter how it happen she will be really surprised by how different your personality it is with the angelic and soft voice you have while sing, she find it hilarious at first but as the time pass and she falls in love with you she start to see it more as a little quirk of yours that makes you more special!

Marinette loves your voice and is constantly hearing your songs (if she has to record your voice herself she will find a way to do it), specially when she is doing homework or working in her designs she has your music in the background (she swears that your voice inspire her) and sometimes even sings along with you, and is for sure that at least once she had fallen sleep while hearing your voice

Speaking of it, Marinette has a lot of drawings of you, drawings of you alone, with the diferents costumes of your presentations, drawings of you with designs she made specially for you and so on, but she keep it to only herself! (or at least try to), she will be really embarrassed if you ever find out about this (even when she daydream a lot about you using her designs)

If Marinette ever has the opportunity to heard you sing personaly is almost a miracle that she doesn't faint or even combust for how flustered she is or how her heart is beating so fast, but it would even more dificult for her to stay calm if she is physicaly close to you (like she just casually heard you sing or even hum, or that you do it for her)

She is always paying a lot of attention to news about you in social media, specially if you make a new song or are going to have a presentation, somehow she always know (and she tries to go)

Marinette is always shy and trip in her own words whenever you are around, so you being more extrovert and talktive is a good thing for her, but at the same time is really bad, it helps her that you has no problem with starting the conversation with her but it makes her really nervous that you two are actually talking, still she can't help but be atracted to you

Marinette can't just bring herself to say no to you, and sometimes she is to distracted with your beauty to even actually heard what you are telling her so whenever you invite her to do something she end up going with you to a strange training of any fighting style you are into, however she is too nervous to say something or decline so she just end up doing it anyways

Marinette will never let anyone talk bad about you, even if someone just think that you are a little weird she is quickly to stand up for you and defend you (even if you don't really mind their comments), also it could be that if people don't actually hear you sing they won't really believe it, in that case she will try to defend you too

When you express your admiration for Ladybug and Chat Noir she is incredibly flustered, she is between trying to say a lot of things at once and stuttering, when she finally manage to ask you she quickly become a flustered blushing mess for you saying how much you admire them for how they always bravery fight against the akumatized people and thanks to your words practically all her worries and insecurities completely vanish (at least for a while) and will be giggly braging about it with Tikki for a long time

Whenever she is fighting as Ladybug it isn't her intention but sometimes she has to save you or put you out of danger and everytime she gets really blushy and giggly. Also, it take a lot of self control and insistence of Tikki for her to not give you a miraculous at the first chance she has

Adrien Agreste

It could be that you two met from even before he has the opportunity to properly go to the school, since you are part of the world of entertainment by being a really good singer, it would be because it benefit him (making good to his image) or even that Gabriel has made exclusive designs for your presentations (at least once) that gives him the opportunity to meet you and his father won't really see a problem with it

Adrien is really happy with being able to have more friends, doesn't matter much your personality at first and even so he likes it, however he is too innocent to notice when his feelings started to change, when he wants to spend more time with you not only because you are his friend, or when your voice start to sound even more beautiful or even when he start to win more confidence and become a little more extrovert (at least when he is with you)

Adrien will be lying if he says he doesn't like your voice because he does, and he has no problem with saying it neither, everytime he heards you sing he likes to take a moment to fully apreciate it (sometimes even close his eyes to just focus in your voice) and when you finish he always compliments you, comparing you with an angel or with famous singers (make you flustered isn't his intention, but if he does he will be blushy too)

He isn't someone who judge someone just for their looks or title, so he knows better to don't just think that your voice is all of you, that is why when he start to know you better and find out that your personality is the complete opposite of your voice he is totally fine with it, he is initially surprised but quickly finds it funny and even kinda cute

Adrien is a more calm person so he normally just tent to follow your lead whenever you two are together, he doesn't really mind doing whatever you want (he will only complain if it would bring you troubles or something), it always makes his day better seeing you so happy (specially knowing that you are happy to be with him, it flattered him a lot, it even make him a little shy and blushy from time to time)

Is probably that you two hang out in his house a lot with the excuse to help each other with the practice (him the piano and you with the singing), the first time it happen was because you two were actually going to practice but just entering in his room you imediatly become super excited for how much things he has in his room to entertain himself, and he just watch you run around his room seeing everything he has, laughing in amusment waiting until you finally choose something to do (he never had love his room so much before)

He is surprised by the fact that even as being a singer with an angelic voice you are more into learning fighting styles, but then again he doesn't judge so he just talks to you about his fencing lessons and even a little about how he fight to akumatized people (without saying that he is Chat Noir, just saying that that is how he imagine it would be or something). And when you express your admiration for Ladybug and Chat Noir for their habilities to fight and all of that he becomes really flustered in a second, shyly but excited asking you for your opinion about Chat Noir

Speaking of it he won't really lost the opportunity to approach to you while being Chat Noir, either when doing patrol or to take you out of harm's way, while that he will be a little more flirty and confident and still he easily gets flustered

Once he is finally able to go to the school that will give him the opportunity to spend more time with you, and even then he prefers to follow your lead, at first it could easily be seen as that the two of you are just best friends but as the time pass his friends will notice that what he feels for you is more than a friendship and will try to help him to be with you

Luka Couffaine

Is more probably that Luka meet you before he even has the opportunity to heard you sing, even when he is more into the music what you sing isn't really the type of music he normally hear, however he may know that you are a singer, in any case Luka will be happy to meet you and he is rather friendly since the start

Luka is really friendly so it doesn't take much for you two to start being friends, he won't force you to sing for him if you don't want to, but he is more than happy to hear you do it, he is completely mesmerize by your voice, you truly have the voice of an angel and he has no problem with expressing how beautiful you voice is

He never lose a chance to heard you sing (even if you are just humming or even singing a song that you like and not one of yours it doesn't matter), he likes to take a moment to appreciate before laughing softly in amusment, however he loves it more when he has the opportunity to make you company with his guitar while you sing (he loves doing that, or even just playing something for you, it makes him feel closer to you)

Luka is totally up for making you company in your singing with his guitar while hanging out, however normally when he thinks on you he plays a melody more playfuly and faster than the normal music you sing and is something funny for him (he secretly hopes that you like it because is the way he express his feelings for you)

And just as he loves your voice he loves your personality, once he has the opportunity to truly meet you he finds pretty hilarious the contrast between your voice while singing and you extrovert and determined personality, although he doesn't judge you for non of them it just make you more amazing in his eyes (more than once he had joked about it too)

Both of you easily start a really good friendship so you two spend a lot of time together, and you are always welcome in his house (his mother is always encouraging you to just be yourself, no matter what other would think) and, of course, you are always invited to the practice of Kitty Section and they are completely happy with letting you sing with them if you ever want to take a break of your usual singing

Luka loves hearing you rant about whatever you are into, either the fighting style you are interest or the ideas you are having, and he is actually really interested in what you have to say, even ask more about it sometimes

Luka finds pretty funny that you are interested in learning to fight but still for him is something that make you even more interesting and special, he won't really accept your offers to learn and train with you but he doesn't mind making your company while you do so, if you let him he will like to practice with his guitar while you train (well thats an excuse, he is actually playing along with your training, expressing how much he likes to be with you in his song)

When you express your admiration for the superheros that protect Paris for how strong they are and because they always have the opportunity to actually fight he find it funny and ask you more about it (he will ask you your opinion about Viperion too, but he mainly wants to continue hear you talk so excited about what you like). Everytime he has to be Viperion again he always thinks on you, it flustered him a little but still tries to not get distracted while fighting

Luka isn't unaware of his feelings for you, he knows that he loves you pretty well, even when he doesn't say it out loud (but has no problem with doing it) he does express his love by other ways, like while playing music, with his compliments and sometimes even flirting, but specially by the lovestruck expression he has while looking you while you sing or even when you train, he just can't help but admire every part of you

[cafeinthemoon]

Ever Dream (Apollo x reader)

Chapter 1/1

Wordcount 7,3k

Title Ever Dream

Fandom Shuumatsu no Valkyrie / Record of Ragnarok

Symbols ✔ . 1️⃣ . 💛

Warnings: Apollo is extremely inconvenient in the beginning; angst with a soft, bittersweet ending

Tagging ? (If you want to be tagged in any of my stories, just leave a comment on this chapter or send an ask or a message)

N. A. Finally I can fulfill my promise and post this little story with Apollo!

At first, he wasn't appealing to me at all, but as his character was developed, I found myself liking him (I basically understood that my lack of interest in him and his fight was due to me not moving on from Hades' loss, since snv doesn't feel the same for me anymore) Also his personality is a bit weird in this one bc I've started to write it before his flashback came out, and since I've wrote so much it would be a waste to restart my work to adjust his depiction to something more "pleasing", so I just kept things this way. But I hope you have fun with it :)

“Come out, come out

Wherever you are [...]

Give in, give in for my touch

For my taste

For my lust”

(Nightwish, Ever Dream)

Summer days might be the favorites among the mortals, for they were long and favorable to the body and the heart, as a good presage for the ones who needed it, but that didn’t apply to you. Yes, as many, you appreciated cheerful encounters of friends under the shadow of a tree on a warmth afternoon, as well as playing games in the city’s lake with your sisters, but none of these small delights were enough to make you enjoy Summer above the other seasons. Honestly, you would be happier during Spring, when the beauty of the flowers would be in its apex, or during Winter, when you would stay long periods at home, in front of a good fire, with warm food and crafting to occupy your hands; even Autumn had a special place in your heart, with its meadows of red leaves and winds whispering mysterious tunes.

The thing is that you used to work as a gardener during Spring and Summer, and this latter was always the most difficult one, for the land where you lived was always too hot for any activity to be possible under midday sun, so you would adjust your routine to work at early morning or when the sunset approached.

It was a hard work: the plants would suffer with the heat, and you must know the right moment of the day to pour water in them, in order to not burn their roots; some of them would even become dusty with the lack of rain, only to be harmed after sudden, summer storms, and it would take an entire day for you to clean the fallen leaves, broken branches and garbage brought by the wind – not to speak about the mud; and, as if none of this wasn’t enough, you would have to fight against seasonal infestations.

It was a lonely work, also: there would be days when you would stay in silence for so long that hearing your own voice after going back home or speaking to yourself during work brought a sensation of strangeness. But you enjoyed the solitude, using it to perfect your abilities and organize your thoughts.

Some would say that you should start thinking seriously about your situation, that is, that you couldn’t live only for the plants and that you were already in the age of considering marriage, but you would just escape from their demands inside the labyrinths of the garden. Not that you would get angry with them, though. You understood their preoccupations, but you were aware of where they came from: they didn’t understand that happiness could have many sources in human life beyond building a family.

And, as long as your own happiness came from the garden, you would stay inside it.

***

If the humans who knew you were the only ones watching your steps with what you’d call an abnormal interest, you could deal with it. But fate wanted things to be complicated for you, so your peculiar, solitary routine hasn’t caught only the mortals’ attention.

It happened that, close to your garden’s location, upon a greenish hill, a temple was built centuries ago. A temple to honor the deity whose powers were always strong across those lands – Apollo, Son of Zeus and Guardian of the Sun, Master of Poetry and Music, and owner of more titles than you could remember. You’ve never seen him in person, though it was said that he used that building as his temporary residence on summer days, which explained the intense temperatures during that time of the year; it also explained why the lights of the temple would be fed until late hours and why there would be sound of chords, drums and high voices all day. You respected the work of the people living there, of course, but you’d appreciate a bit of silence during a period that was so difficult for you, and there you had another reason to show up only when the sun wasn’t shinning in all its splendor.

Little you knew that, from the highest spot of the temple, upon a parapet only accessible to himself, the Lord of that house, to whom all those honors were directed, has been observing that lonely, little mortal who would come every day to take care of her flowers with the same dedication as Heracles by the time he had to fulfill his twelve tasks.

He couldn’t remember when was the first time he saw you: the only thing he knew was that, while he stood at that temple, he couldn’t spend one day without seeing you. Every morning, before his worshipers woke up, Apollo would walk up the stairs that led to the private space where the highest balcony of the temple was, and he would sit at it, with his back leaning on a column, to witness the girl’s arrival and her preparations before work; he would stay there, watching in ecstatic silence as she separated her tools, touched each plant with those delicate fingers of hers, examined each spot of them and gave them the necessary treatment, smiling and, sometimes, mumbling to herself.

Not only he noticed your diligence and dedication, but it didn’t escape him how much you were beautiful. Yes, you were surrounded by appealing fruit trees, flowers of the most interesting shapes and shades, all of them between intricate green walls that only added in majesty, yet your figure caught the man’s eyes above all of them – eyes that were trained to not miss anything that could be pleasing to one’s sight.

The god would cheer at himself with the fact that you were oblivious to this, while he, at that height, was completely out of your sight. It was like in the old days, where he would observe the mortal realm from his spot at the Olympus, except that this time there would be no difficulties in reaching you: as one of the city’s inhabitants, you were basically his neighbor, and knowing that building like the palm of his hand, he knew the secret shortcuts that would lead him to your garden’s gates.

At first, Apollo would state that his morning observations were just a hobby, and that with all the work to keep him occupied at the temple and the attentions he would get from the worshipers – particularly from the priestesses – he would soon forget about you and your flowers. However, he wasn’t fool to the point of lying to himself for too long, and soon he would admit that he was interested in you. Well, he was already desiring you, in a way that didn’t happen since… a few centuries ago, maybe by the time of that temple’s inauguration, when he would lure some of the city’s mortals into it. And now, there he was, leaving the comfort of his bed every morning, sometimes even before the sun came up to greet him, for anything but to catch the exact moment when your feet stepped into that garden, wondering how your voice would send shivers all over his body in case you whispered in his ears with the same docility you did to the flowers, how soft your skin would feel if he caught your frail form between his arms, and the heat he would sense once his lips touched yours.

This extended for days, until he finally had enough.

That morning, he watched you as always, but this time something inside him awakened, and he just let his body move away from the parapet and reach for his private chambers, where he caught his best garments and a pair of golden sandals, and then wandered to outside the temple, to the narrow path behind the hill, covered in stones and sand, only known by himself, and in one minute or two, he was standing at the garden’s entry.

Today is the day. The day when I shall make you mine.

***

It should be a pacific, ordinary morning of work at the garden.

You arrived at the usual hour, reached for the spot of the garden where you started working the day before, separated your tools and went to take care of your tasks.

You’ve spent one hour, maybe two like this, so concentrated in what your were doing that the sudden rustling between the leaves somewhere behind you made you startle and drop your garden shears. You turned around…

And found quite a spectacle for that time of the day.

Coming out of a narrow space between two green walls, you saw a young man dressed in garments that you supposed to be only appropriate for the Summer Festivities, not so far in the land’s calendar: he had a white toga around his body, which hems and details appeared to be sewn with golden threads; golden were also the strappy sandals he had on his feet, as well as the laurel wreath on his head. The first rays of the sun reached the space between you at that hour, and the golden light poured itself over the man’s figure as the hug of a beloved one, revealing that the metallic ornaments he carried were, in fact, gold, and conceding a singular glimmer to his eyes, which you thought to be of the same shade. But that wasn’t the only peculiarity seen in his appearance: his hair, falling on straight strands to his waist, were of a soft pink that reminded you of some of the flowers in your garden, but a comparison wasn’t possible, since they were out of sight at that moment.

Yes, the visitor was a beautiful man, though eccentric, so your first thought was that he was the son of a noble family that came to the city to honor the god of the Sun at the temple beside your garden.

He’s probably thinking that the garden is part of the temple’s territory. I must clarify this mistake and lead him back through the right path.

And you were going to do that very thing, but he was faster.

Without waiting for an invitation or at least a question about his presence there, the man approached your spot and stopped in front of you, observing your tiny person surrounded by flowers and tools with a mixture of curiosity and disbelief: was this girl really engaging in physical work this early?, his eyes seemed to ask.

You stepped behind, closer to a bush of wild roses, but glanced over your shoulder before touching the thorns – something that made the stranger giggle. You didn’t like that at all.

The first words said between you were his.

– I’ve always said that wild roses were not my favorites, but the truth is that they’ve scared me and charmed me at the same time, and I just couldn’t deal with it – he stretched an arm to touch a spot above and behind you; not disguising the feeling that he was closer than a stranger should be, your eyes followed his movement and found his fingers reaching for a flower of the bush – A ridiculous mistake from an arrogant heart… – and, turning his golden eyes to you, – Don’t you think, my flower?

Your eyes widened, but you managed to control your mouth to not scoff at those words: you’ve been working at that garden for too long now, and from time to time there would be one and other man who would come to celebrate the Summer Festivities at Apollo’s temple, many of them from privileged houses… and about whom you’ve already had a clear opinion.

Let me see… Extravagant clothing at this time of the day, bad sense of direction, abnormally elevated self-confidence and no regard for personal space. Of course, another womanizer who relies on cheap flirting to win innocent hearts. He knows that this type of chatting only works when the speaker is young and beautiful like him, but things would be very different if we had an old, naughty man in his place.

You knew that, if you didn’t do anything to get rid of him, he would bother you for the rest of the morning, and you wouldn’t be able to complete the works of the day, but fortunately you also knew how to deal with this kind of situation, so you decided to act right now...

By moving aside and bending down to grab the garden shears that he made you drop. You stood up again and started removing the small, green leaves from its blades as you spoke.

– My Lord, I suppose you entered here by accident – you started; and, looking into his eyes, still with the shears’ blades up – Because, you see, despite the proximity, this garden doesn’t belong to Apollo’s temple. No festivities will happen here.

It was with a bit of diversion that you observed the bright smile fading from his pretty face, but you remained impassible, for you were aware that this one was an experienced gentleman and wouldn’t give up so easily.

And he didn’t.

– I must be indelicate and disagree with you, Miss – he moved his hand away from the flower, but, with an eye on your shears, he hid both hands behind his back – For a garden is a never-ending festivity itself, and the one that is going on right here owes all its beauty to the work of your hands.

You swallowed. He did have a way with words, then. But not even this would be enough for you to allow delays in your routine, and you made that very clear.

– If this is the case, my Lord, I must make use of the same indelicacy and interrupt our conversation here – in a swift move of your hands, the shears closed and opened twice with a metallic whisper – And keep working on the garden’s beauty.

And, without waiting for a response, you turned your back on the man and restarted to prune the bush with the roses, just as you were doing when he arrived.

Not even this was able to shake the young man’s confidence, for he just stepped aside and continued to talk, caressing the flowers at the same time. No irritation or offense was sensed in his tone.

– Then I must leave you to complete your mission – and, after a pause, – But I’m trapped here, and you’re the only one who can release me... by letting me know your name.

Your hands stopped and you turned to him again. You weren’t willing to reveal it to him, but if that was going to make him go away, you would do it.

– Y/n s/n.

The young man opened a satisfied smile. But, instead of saying his own name in return, he just stepped back and nodded.

– For this I will be forever grateful, my y/n. I will make sure that Apollo’s blessing falls over you and your work concerning this celebration of beauty.

And without waiting for a response, he turned away and left.

***

If only the Festivities in honor of the Lord of the Sun were shorter, or if your garden was located in somewhere else, the strange events of yesterday involving that extravagant individual would be just a funny story to remember in an encounter between your friends, or even something you would forget after a week.

But, unfortunately, things don’t always go as we plan, so to your surprise – and exasperation – the situation happened again in the next day.

You were pouring water on the soil, in a spot of the garden not so far from the one where your first encounter happened, having only the sounds of the water falling from the can and the early birds singing on the trees as your company, when the rustling noise of indiscreet steps upon the grass caught your attention.

You turned around… and found the shinning figure of the young man smiling at you, his right hand leaning on the tree at his side, his golden eyes upon you with the same enthusiasm of the last day.

You bit your lip.

I can’t believe it. Did he forget everything that happened yesterday?

If he noticed your displease or if he chosen to ignore it, you didn’t know, but he started a casual conversation without waiting for an invitation.

– Good morning, dear y/n! – he left his spot beside the tree and walked toward you with no sign of embarrassment – As I can see, the festivities continue today.

You just gave him a silent nod in reply. The man’s smile widened in contentment.

– That’s good to hear, for today I bring you something that you might appreciate…

Only then you noticed the object he was carrying on his left hand: a bracelet made of gold, in the shape of a vine and with a white gem in its center, with rays surrounding it as an imitation of the sun. You looked at the object and hesitated.

– My Lord, it is not…

But when the words were still crossing your lips, you felt a strong hand holding your wrist and pulling it forward, making you drop the watering can; before you did anything, the man put the bracelet around your wrist and spent a moment admiring it, with your tiny hand between his.

You even tried to pull it back, but the he held you in place. You swallowed.

Heavens, his appearance is the most deceiving thing I’ve ever seen! I don’t know many soldiers who possess this strength!

Because of this, you understood that you might have been in danger since the other day, so that time you kept your mouth shut and waited to see what his next step would be.

And you didn’t know if you should feel relieved or shocked when you found it out.

– Now you were granted the necessary permission, my dear – he spoke with softness; and, pulling you closer to whisper in your ear, – The way to the Summer Festivities has opened to you at the Temple of the Great Apollo.

You had no time to respond, to move away or to show any form of refusal. The man, still holding your hand, pulled you with him and started running between the green walls and trees, rushing toward the depths of the garden and not allowing you to stop.

You glanced behind and your heart ached when you saw your work unfinished and the watering can forgotten on the spot it fell, the remaining water leaking and soaking the soil.

***

The path through which he led you, as well as the environment you found when you entered the temple was what you would sense in a dream: in one moment, he was carrying you by the hand through the green labyrinth, in a pace that defied time; in the next one, you were inside high walls of white, imposing columns with marble flowers surrounding them from their highest to their lowest spot, and countless tables of gold with goblets, jars and trays full of fruits, sweets and other tempting treats that were taken by uninhibited, joyful people dressed in flowing fabrics and barefoot, running, hopping and dancing between themselves to the frenetic sound of chords, flutes and drums. The place was a mixture of sounds, colors and smells that confused and numbed your senses, in a way that you were only able to stand thanks to the strong hold of the young man.

Despite that, you still noticed how strange was that those people seemed to move to the music as if they were just one, yet they acted like they weren’t seeing each other, lost in their particular world, to the point you wondered if they knew what they were doing or if they were just caught under a spell.

Are they really happy, or are they forced into this? It’s unsettling...

The people only showed a believable reaction when you arrived… Well, actually, when they put their eyes on the young man, and started reaching for him with no regard for your presence, pushing, bumping and even stepping upon your feet.

In a way you couldn’t understand, he opened his arms wide to receive them without letting go of your hand, with a satisfied smile on his face that seemed to light up when the first rays of sunshine entered the place, embracing him with the same passion as the people around.

It was when a thought crossed your mind as fast as those rays, and you stared at him with a knot in your stomach.

Could it be that he…?

The chorus around you, chanting the same words in delight, was the confirmation for it.

– Apollo! Apollo-sama! You finally arrived, Apollo-sama! Please don’t make us wait this long for you again, Apollo-sama!

His face brightened up with the call of the humans, as if it absorbed their joy and turned it into vital force, returning it to them with the warmth of the sun; to them, he was god, father, husband and master, and he was more than happy in taking all those roles for himself, in what you saw as a hungry, even predatory way. Though you still found it a beautiful thing to observe, you no longer saw any resemblance with a man in his figure.

He was something else.

Feeding himself with their energies and keeping them gravitating around him is like a diversion to him. How scary.

And with the same diversion, he pulled you to a tight embrace, giving you no choice to walk away, for many people came to him and were no dismissed, so that you were trapped between him and them, and you didn’t know for how long you would be able to breathe.

Somehow, he managed to walk among his worshipers and take you with him before you in fact were smothered, and without decreasing in enthusiasm, he looked around and chanted:

– My children, my flowers! Another day of Summer came to bless you! Enjoy it, cherish it like it’s your last!

Immediately, the people obeyed him and, as if slowly forgetting about his very presence, restarted the celebration, dancing and jumping around and opening the way for you two at the same time, not really realizing what they were doing.

Not wanting to join them and not being able to release yourself from Apollo’s grip, you had no choice but to follow him.

***

You walked up spiral, white stairs with golden banisters, ran through a corridor and ended up in front of an enormous pair of doors, which he opened with a slight touch of his hand.

They revealed a wide room that, even in your lack of experience in these matters, you knew to be worthy of a god: everywhere you looked, you saw comfortable chairs and couches, covered with satin sheets and surrounded by trays of sweets and fruits, and countless jars of wine; there was also a small fountain pouring water, with a jar and cups around it. You also saw books, parchments and musical instruments ready to be used. Everything there was arranged to display beauty and pleasure, as expected from its owner.

Once you stepped inside, you heard the sound of the keys turning to lock the doors from inside and shivered.

– My y/n, will you follow me to the balcony? – Apollo passed to your side – There’s something I need to reveal to you, but it has to be in an appropriate place!

And, without waiting for your response, he tightened his grip around your wrist and pulled you across the room, to reach the said balcony.

You passed under an arc with a pair of curtains of a peach shade and found yourself in a place that could serve as a common room of a human house by its largeness, except for the fact that it was uncovered; on it, there was wine, fod and water as well, and a couch twice the size of the ones inside the room, yet none of those objects interfered while you walked among them.

Apollo stopped at the parapet with you by his side. With his arm stretched over it, he indicated the entire view.

– Let your pretty eyes enjoy what’s in front of them with no shame, my dear – he laughed – Trust me, the view of your lands from the Olympus is no match for this!

And you were, in fact, impressed with what you saw.

From there, you were able to spot various things, from the mountains that surrounded the city, passing through the town itself, with its marketplace and daily movement, to nearer places… such as your garden, its open fields and the very spot where you were working this morning when Apollo arrived and abducted you.

Your face burned with the thought.

He has been spying on me from here? Since when…?

You never had the opportunity to inquire him on this, because he had no shame in telling you the whole story.

– Since this Summer started, though I cannot precise the day, I’ve been trapped in this balcony, just as I am now – he turned to you with a strange glimmer in his eyes; you sensed his hand letting go of your wrist and wrapping itself around your waist, bringing you closer as he spoke – I’ve been trapped by you, my flower, for I couldn’t spent one morning without seeing you from here, cherishing with your whole figure, your steps, the work of your hands, all for your precious garden…

You put your hands between you and him, in an attempt to prevent him from approaching even more.

– My Lord, with all the respect, this is my work – you managed to speak – I would never be able to properly take care of a garden if I refused to pour my heart into it…

The god’s response was to widen his already present smile, giving to it a hint of something that would be called presumption if he was a mortal man.

– I know it! I know well how these things work, and for this I am jealous – he caressed your face for an instant, his eyes swallowing each traits of yours with greed – I am jealous of your flowers, of your trees, and everything that has been blessed by the touch of your hands…

You gasped.

– My Lord, I think this is going too fa…

Your words were cut off by his next act, which consisted in wrapping his arms around you and lifting you from the floor, taking you to the couch you saw before, not so far from your spot on the parapet. There he sat you down, then knelt to take off your sandals – of course, without missing the chance to let his fingertips wander through your feet and legs. With no visible ways to escape this situation, you could only observe the scene in silence.

The door is locked, I don’t think I could open it as fast as he closed it, he’s too strong for me to put a physical fight and is too lost in his own fantasies to hear a word I say. I see no solution besides climbing up the parapet and jump.

While this thought was still crossing your mind (and your eyes glancing at the parapet), Apollo was already climbing the couch. You tried to move away, but he was faster: holding your jawline, he pulled you close to him, his lips brushing yours as he spoke.

– I beg you, my little flower… stop making me jealous… pour your heart to me… be mine…

You opened your mouth to speak, to reply, to try and reason with him one last time, to ask for his divine favor and beg him to let you go, but Apollo didn’t even give you the time to breathe: convinced that actions would teach you better than words, he covered your mouth with hungry kisses, his tongue reaching for yours in a hurry, his hands grabbing your body with voracity. With the lack of air, your lungs started to burn and your eyes got filled with tears.

Your hands, still free, pulled him away by his chin; he stared at you in incredulity.

– Please… my Lord… – you forced your words out, alternating them with gasps – Please… reconsider…

For the first time, Apollo seemed to have his patience tested, and the slight twist in the color of his eyes instilled fear in your heart like you’ve never felt before.

– Too late to think, my y/n… It’s time to act.

He pushed himself upon you on the couch and a second kiss happened, longer and hotter. Now that your attempt to stop him failed, desperation was taking over you, leaving you with two choices: letting him continue or dying for opposing to a god’s will.

The latter seemed less painful for you, so you opted for it.

Beside the couch, just like the other seats at that room, there was a small table with a metallic jar on it; you glanced at it when Apollo let go of your mouth and brought his kisses to your neck, and supposed that it was full. An idea came to you, but you had to be careful.

If I fail at this, it’s over for me.

With slow movements, you managed to bring your body closer to the table’s side, taking the god with you, leaving him too occupied in his caresses to notice anything around. You even reciprocated some of his touches to disguise your nervousness, and waited until you were sure that your hand would reach the jar’s wing.

When the moment came, you stretched your left arm… and your fingers closed around its wing, lifting it from the table with all the strength you could find.

Everything happened too fast for your eyes to follow: catching him in a surprise was your only and greatest advantage, and you managed to do it. The jar flew from the table and hit Apollo’s head, forcing him away from you and dropping the laurel wreath from his hair; confirming your prediction, the jar was full, and the water spread all over the place as the metal clanged against the floor.

You wasted no time: you dragged your body out of the couch and fled the balcony, leaving your sandals and a paralyzed, dismayed Apollo behind. You crossed the room like a ray and somehow unlocked the door easily despite your shaking hands; not only this, but you had the nerve to take the key with you and lock the door from outside to slow the man who would certainly come after you.

***

Your feet barely touched the stairs while you walked down. Behind your back, there was still silence, but you knew it wouldn’t take long until Apollo reached the door and found a way to open it, so you wouldn’t stay to see what was going to happen.

You soon were back to the wide room where his worshipers were celebrating, and it was with no surprise that you found them as happy as before, and that, as you joined the crowd to reach the exit, they barely remembered you. Still, you couldn’t help finding it scary to be squeezed and pushed to all sides by those strangers, who screamed, sang and danced with no regard for each other and for themselves, as victims of a sinister spell.

***

The image of you running away from him was the most terrifying of the nightmares.

Apollo could have ran after you, grabbed you and pulled you back to the balcony. He could have also stretched his hand toward you and used his golden threads to wrap your body and force you to stay, to submit to him. He even managed to raise his hand while you turned your back to him and moved away, passing under the arc that separated the balcony to the rest of the room… but he didn’t do anything.

He just stood there, paralyzed by the surprise with your reaction and the resulting dizziness in his head, his vision darkening as he came to the shameful conclusion.

What I did… there was nothing beautiful about it.

***

The sun was higher in the sky when he regained his consciousness and left the balcony. It must have been one hour or two, judging by its position now – long enough for the effects of the strike to diminish. His head hurt so much that he was sure he would be dead if he was human.

He left the balcony and passed by a mirror, not so far from its entry. He spotted the bruise on his forehead and flinched: it was darker, deeper than he first imagined. Not that he should be worried about having a permanent scar, of course, but it would ache for days.

The god crossed the silent room and stopped by the doors. One look to the lock and he noticed the absence of the key; the shadow of a smile came to his lips.

Clever girl. Trying to slow me down.

He raised his left hand and, working with his golden threads, he involved the doors and pushed them out of their hinges, destroying both with a thunderous sound. He walked out of the room in firm steps, the wreckage cracking under his golden sandals as he approached the stairs and walked them down.

In a minute, he has reached the first floor, where his worshipers continued to celebrate, yet this time a wave of uneasiness has spread silently among them, clearly provoked by the sound of wrecking materials upon there.

Of course, he was eager to leave and start chasing after you, but he was empathetic with the ones who were there just to love him, and made sure they were all calmed down by his words; with this, they were free to go back to their worshiping, knowing that their Lord would be back in a few moments.

He left the temple and rushed to the garden, as his feet were led by instinct to the place that first connected you, but it was with no surprise that he saw you weren’t there; you didn’t even use the garden as escape route. Still, his heart didn’t ache less with the sight of your tools on the soil, and your flowers abandoned, for they meant only one thing.

Not only you were gone, but you weren’t coming back.

***

Autumn came sooner to those lands that year.

The Temple of the Sun closed its gates long before the last week of Summer, and the worshipers returned to their homes with a strange weight in their hearts; it was clear that their god wasn’t content, but the reason was only known by himself, and perhaps as an act of mercy, he protected them from his wrath by sending them away, assuring them of their innocence and promising a warmer season of festivities for the next year.

The days quickly became short, and the winds of the new season were colder than they were in the previous years; the city’s inhabitants were caught in a surprise, and even feared what Winter has reserved for them. The streets were empty, the markets saw their clientele grow thin, the richest traveled to distant lands and the common people were hidden inside their houses. In the wild, the beasts and the small creatures were sharing the same difficulties, and just as it happened with the humans, there was no guarantee that they would make it through the longer period of cold.

Apollo, on his turn, stood in that house alone, instead of traveling back to his place and his divine fellows at the Olympus: he missed their company, but had no strength to face them after the ugliness he created; it has been a monstrosity and a shame, and this was something he must endure all by himself. And so he did it, spending his days and nights wandering among the cold walls of marble, inside which the sound of chords, voices of adoration and the wine being poured in the goblets wouldn’t be heard, and the echo of his own steps were his only partner; the fires lightened by his followers stopped making him warm even before they turned into smoke and cinders, the sweetness of their incense made him sick and the golden altars and objects of devotion turned gray to his eyes.

All because of what he did to you. Because in his eagerness to make you stay, he ended up scaring you away, and the sun that should have kept you content and safe almost burned you to death. How, he asked himself, how did he deprive love from its natural beauty, he who lived to exalt the beautiful? But silence was the only thing to reply.

***

Apollo visited your garden every morning, staying there for a while before returning to his temple and to his dark meditations. Protecting his physical form from the cold with a gray cloak, he wandered through the natural walls that were once green, but now had only brown and red to offer to his sight; the grass was now a shadow of what they were, just dried vegetation that would crack and whiter under his feet, and the flowers came undone to the touch of his fingers.

Many times he passed by the spot where he abducted you, and tears would fill his eyes as he looked at the watering can and the tools rotten on the cold soil, useless after so long time without executing their functions. One morning, he even considered touching them, but when he approached his hand no remnants of your spirit could be sensed in them, and he moved away.

Well, your presence just vanished from the garden itself, and even from the town: sometimes, he would disguise himself among the mortals and seek for your face in the corners of the streets, but he knew the search was worthless. You were long gone.

Actually, you left and hid on the other side of the land, and even your acquaintances haven’t heard about you since Autumn began. But even you couldn’t deny that the season was less merciful that year… and it didn’t take long for you to realize it had something to do with the episode at Apollo’s House. Maybe he couldn’t accept that a mortal woman defied him, and decided to punish her entire land in return; or maybe he just decided to leave sooner, and with him Summer has left. It was hard to be sure when it came to the gods.

However, as much as you weren’t willing to try and seek for his favor against your will in order to save the people of the city, innocent and defenseless against Nature, your heart has been yearning for your garden, your true house, where your happiness and strength and life purpose were. You’ve been struggling to stay in your hideout and wait until the god’s wrath was over, but you just couldn’t take it anymore.

One morning, despite the cold and the adversities, you dressed up and traveled back there. You had no idea of what you were going to find once you stepped into your beloved garden, and a thousand nightmares haunted you while you were on your way, and the times when you thought of giving up and return to the hideout weren’t few…

But all of this noise disappeared when you found yourself, in fact, standing before the garden’s gates. A breeze passed by you at that moment, coming from inside the garden, and sent a chill through your body – a chill that reached your heart.

You forced your feet to move ahead.

As you walked, farther from the entry and closer to the depths of the garden, you noticed that the sensation of loneliness that you were anticipating didn’t come. Yes, the flowers were dead, the grass was dry and the birds disappeared from the trees, but you had this strange feeling telling you that you weren’t the only living being wandering among the reddish vegetation.

A sudden instinct led your feet to the very place where your watering can and shears were left the day you were taken away by Apollo. Were they in the same place, still waiting for your return? You’d only know if you reached there.

And you did. And they were there. Covered in dirt, dead leaves and ivy.

But they weren’t alone. Someone was watching them in silence, standing among the desolation as if they were just a part of it that was waiting for you to come back as well.

And, perhaps, they were, for when they turned to you, your heart dropped.

It was him. It was him, there was no way for you to be mistaken.

The golden bright in his eyes has faded away, and so was his smile. The pink of his hair was no longer glowing, and the paleness on his skin was unsettling. He was still the god of the Sun, but the Sun just settled.

Suddenly, you were scared. What if he was there waiting to cease your existence in revenge? What if that was just a vision to deceive you, and you were now in a new trap, from which you had no chance to escape like the first one?

You tried to move your feet, but they wouldn’t obey you. Your heart ached inside you, and your eyes were getting filled with tears.

Is this how I’m going to die, then?

Apollo left his spot and walked toward you. He was still silent, but no sign of his intentions could be sensed, and you were too scared to try and guess them. Still, something wasn’t right – and when you finally had the courage to look straight to his face, you understood what it was.

From his eyes you saw tears rolling. And in his expression there was only room for incredulity and pain. It was when you knew: it wasn’t a vision; it was really him. And he couldn’t believe you were there.

Apollo stopped before you and you flinched, not knowing what to expect. You shut your eyes tight… and no touch, no extravagances nor punishment came.

You opened them again and found the proud god kneeling on the dirt soil, taking his cloak from his shoulders and leaving it beside him on the ground, his eyes glued on you all the time, as if you could disappear at the slightest distraction.

You didn’t know how long you stood like this, having only the winds to voice your anguish, but the silence became unbearable, and you opened your mouth to speak – but, as always, he was faster.

– Forgive me.

Two words only, but enough to shake your spirit and think of how strange reality could become. A god apologizing? When would you imagine such a thing?

– Forgive me, my flower – he repeated, since you stood quiet – For those things I’ve done weren’t but terrifying.

He stretched his hand to touch your clothes, but gave up on the gesture as to prove his feeling of shame.

Again, your heart ached, and your mouth dried out. You couldn’t just stand there with no reaction, no word, after traveling for so long to reunite with your beloved garden. But you didn’t know what to do or what would be right, so you just let your body decide.

You knelt on the soil too, before the astonished god, and didn’t try to stop yourself when you saw your arms throwing themselves around him, your head resting on his shoulder, and your skin shivering to the warmth of that embrace. You should be scared, you should be aware of any spell working at that very moment, you should be disgusted to see him there – but you weren’t.

– Yes, Apollo-sama – you murmured, not recognizing your own voice – They were terrifying. But I’m no longer scared.

And that was true. All your fear was leaving. And with the first signs that the Autumn was going away with it, you were strangely in peace.

[greatyme]

i'd be interested in your recent movie list - it's nice to hear what people are watching 🥰

OOOHHH thank you for asking!!! This gives me the perfect excuse 2 talk abt some of my favs ty hehe <3 The genres, years, countries, etc. might be wildly different and there’s no particular order to what I’m gonna list but here we go:

1. The Spook Who Sat by the Door

Ivan Dixon; action/political drama; America; 1973

EVERYONE needs to watch this honestly… it’s probably my favorite film I’ve seen this year. The movie’s about the first Black man, Dan Freeman, to be trained by the CIA, who then quits and takes the techniques he’s learned to create a team of Black youths to fight for freedom and against racism. Even though it’s a fictional plot, the real FBI pulled it from theaters for being too radical, and it has indeed been described as “the only true Black radical movie ever made.” I seriously can’t recommend it enough

2. Medicine for Melancholy

Barry Jenkins; romance/drama; America; 2008

If you’re familiar with Moonlight, you already know this filmmaker. Medicine for Melancholy is Barry Jenkins’ first film, about the romance between Jo and Micah after a one night stand that takes place in San Francisco. Some things I like about it are the ways the city and its racial issues so heavily influence the characters’ relationship so much so that it essentially becomes a character in itself. Since this is Jenkins’ first film, the budget was smaller ($15k) and it has a different feel from his newer movies which I personally really liked

3. They Cloned Tyrone

Juel Taylor; sci-fi/mystery; America; 2023

This movie was released on barbenheimer day and was WAY BETTER THAN BOTH OF THEM!!!! When Fontaine, a drug dealer played by John Boyega, seemingly gets shot and killed, Slick, a pimp, is shocked to see him walking around the next day as if nothing happened. Together, Slick, Fontaine, and Yo-Yo, a sex worker, work to uncover what actually happened and find that it’s much bigger than they could’ve imagined. This is a FANTASTIC sci-fi film with some fantastic writing (a lot of great one-liners lmao) and all the actors do amazingly. Also, the title goes hard!

4. Bad Genius

Baz Nattuwat; thriller; Thailand; 2017

I literally watched this last night (happy birthday Nonkul!) lol. In this movie the character Lynn gets paid to work with her friends to help other high school students cheat on tests. When I tell you this had me SWEATING from stress. It was very entertaining, I really liked the way it was shot and how it consistently kept the tension up

5. Do the Right Thing

Spike Lee; drama/comedy; America; 1989

Taking place on an unbearably hot summer day, racial tensions rise between the Black civilians and the Italian owners of a pizzeria in Brooklyn. This is a v famous movie, directed by Spike Lee, and honestly many of the themes still ring true today

6. Sorry to Bother You

Boots Riley; sci-fi/comedy; America; 2018

Set in the Oakland, Cassius Green becomes a telemarketer and uses a “white voice” to do better at his job. But when his coworkers form a union, he decides to take a promotion instead, leading to unexpected consequences. I don’t want to spoil anything, and this is another famous movie that many people have probably already seen and have probably been spoiled BUT. there is a crazy twist. I really enjoyed the messages and craziness this movie had to offer

7. Marry My Dead Body

Cheng Wei Hao; comedy/mystery; Taiwan; 2022

I saw this with my friend on my birthday and honestly it could not have been a better way to watch it. A homophobic cop accidentally gets into an arranged marriage with a dead gay ghost. Is that not one of the best plot descriptions u have ever heard. It’s horror, it’s comedy, it’s gay, it’s a romance (TO ME! And like everyone else who watched it)… WHAT MORE COULD U WANT!! It gave me a similar feeling as Secrets in the Hot Spring & Pee Mak, two movies that somehow seem to cover So Many Genres & that I love sooo much (the former is my fav movie ever). I literally laughed so hard I almost peed myself at times <3

Other than that some other movies I watched & enjoyed this year are: Love Lies Bleeding (2024), Claudine (1974), Eve’s Bayou (1997), and Bottoms (2023). I don’t wanna make this too long so I’ll stop it here but I hope you enjoy these films too if you decide to watch any!!

[animeyanderelover]

Could I request how it would be with indra,madara,Sakura,tsunade,Tobirama,itachi,naruto,Sasuke,shisui in a hunger games au?Thank you ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ

I might have twisted a few points of the Hunger Games here and there to fit my storyline better. In general I'd like to say that I've never seen or read this franchise so all those informations are based on what I've been told from my followers or what I've read online. By the way, I accidentally added Hashirama in here since I'm so used to having him and completely overlooked that you didn't even requested him here.

Tw: Yandere themes, unhealthy mindset, unhealthy relationship, possessive behavior, obsession, delusion, stalking, paranoia, clinginess, manipulation, blackmailing, poison, violence, torture, death, mentions of suicide, trauma

Hunger Games AU

Indra Otsutsuki

💜 As one of the highest officials even within the Capitol, Indra has always stood out. Not only because he's gorgeous but also because he hates the luxurious and shallow life most citizens in the Capitol lead. He has dedicated his life to overseeing the Peacekeepers, training them and brutally striking down anyone who dares to oppose the system. It makes him as feared as respected as the highly ranked officials in the Capitol do their best to keep Indra content so he will never turn against them as that would surely be fatal. Due to their fear and equal desire to keep a gem like him on their side, he has risen up to be one of the must influential and powerful humans in all of Panem with an army of Peacekeepers behind him. A lot of them from District 2 where Indra is worshipped as a god of some sorts. The Hunger Games have to be watched even if he thinks he could spend his time doing more important things, it's disgraceful to see people dying pathetic deaths due to their own incompetence.

💜 If someone would have ever told him that he would ever find himself falling for someone he only sees on TV, he would have flung them across the room. Yet this is exactly what happens during this year's game as you, an 18 year-old tribute from District 12, enter the games. Most other participants, especially the Career, are flashy and want attention to get supported and sponsored by other citizens. You stand precisely out because you don't draw any attention to you. You're calm, think ahead and it isn't your goal to try to be cool as you just try to do what you're supposed to whilst simultanously surviving. When nearly half of the tribute are already killed at the beginning whilst fighting for weapons and other important stuff in the Cornucopia, you instead decide to explore the region only to set a few traps later to steal everything other tributes collected. A bow and an arrow seem to be your favorite as you shoot opponents from a safe distance, silently waiting in a hidden spot.

💜 He can tell that you're experienced with hunting as you're excellent in hiding your own tracks whilst being a genius at following others. You even use the poison from muttations thrown in by the gamemakers to finish of your enemies even more efficiently. Someone who was forgettable at the beginning of the games has turned by the end of it into everyone's favorite as citizens are gushing over your smoothness and predator-like behavior. You have a lot of sponsors yet the first one who provided you with medicine and weapons was Indra. He's investing into you as he deems you to be someone who deserves to live. You're different from those incompetent and arrogant fools who are either too terrified or too cocky, you always approach everyone with the same amount of caution and fight seriously. Perhaps it is no one's surprise that you end up winning, the first champion of your district and the people love you. One specific person probably more than others.

💜 His desire for you shocks him as he's never met you in person, he's only seen you in the arena. Truth is though that you're everything he's ever searched for. Courageous, smart, strong and merciless when it comes to snuffing out a life. You're unaware of him until the day where he pays to see you, something that is allowed as he's from the Capitol and you're a mere attraction for those people. You walk in, completely expecting him to initiate sexual intercourse yet he's more interested in talking to you, seeing your skill with his own two eyes, scientifically modified with his own request to grant him even more power. The end result are permanently red eyes with black dots within his orbs which make him all the more intimidating. You're secretly just relieved that he doesn't want to violate you so you indulge him in his interest to see your abilities up close. If only you'd known what consequences that would have later on for you. It's never like you had a choice anyways...

💜 His obsession gets gradually worse as he gets to know you better. Your skills match your fast thinking and you're a quick learner as he suddenly starts training you in hand-to-hand combat and the use of other weapons. Slowly you start spending a lot of time with him until you find yourself staying days in his house as he provides a room for you. He grows possessive, sees it as such a terrible waste that you still have to stay in your District, even if it's in the Victor's Village. Thoughts fill his mind, wondering if he could convince the president to let you live permanently with him as Indra is almost as powerful as he is. Those dark thoughts turn into schemes yet it is when one of the Peacekeepers in the Victor's Village informs him that you recently took someone in who isn't your family but someone you fancy that a burning rage takes over him. The next time you're forced to come over, you instantly sense that something is wrong. It is only confirmed when you're grabbed by the man, red eyes gleaming as he smashes his lips against yours in a searing kiss, growling in between that you can't refuse him. You're his, he will see it through that you can never leave him.

Madara Uchiha

🌑 Madara is a Career from District 2 that will participate in this year's Hunger Games and to say that he's confident is an understatement. He's been training essentially his whole life for such a chance and in his last year before he would have been excluded from it, he's finally chosen. There are rumors if the Capitol might have manipulated the decision on purpose since Madara is quite well known even among the citizens of the Capitol for his skills and beauty. Truthfully spoken though, Madara doesn't care. He's just thrilled that he gets his chance to participate, to fight. His District has produced a lot of victors for the Hunger Games so this is about honor, especially since his own father is a previous victor from a game years ago. He can not let his family down like this. Madara is instantly the favorite among the crowd as soon as he enters, the cheers for him are deafening and a lot of tributes seem to give up instantly, recognizing him.

🌑 When he notices most of them cowering upon noticing him, avoiding his eyes and making themselves as small as possible, he can only scoff and give them a condescending look. He despises people like them, weak cowards. They're all going to die anyways. There's only one person who meets his gaze and refuses to look away, a sign of rebellion. A tribute from District 7, the same age as him. Both of you get caught in a silent stare battle as looking away or even blinking is a loss, something that both of you don't want. It's this first encounter between the both of you that not only sticks in Madara's memory as you're the first one to have challenged him so openly, but also makes you more memorable for the citizens. So you're the tribute he decides to keep an eye on for now but it's the fight around the Cornucopia that really earns you a spot in his memory and heart alike. Your strength from providing wood and lumber for the Capitol surprises and overwhelms almost all other tributes, even Madara.

🌑 Madara and you alike slaughter quite a few tributes until only both of you are left in the Cornucopia, staring at each other again. The adrenaline is still high yet both of you come to an agreement. You'll wait for this fight until you're the only two left. There's no doubt in Madara's mind that you'll survive to fulfill your promise and you think likewise. All viewers crave the same as both you and Madara receive lots of support, in your case an axe which becomes the weapon you slaughter all your enemies with. Even Careers fall ultimately when fighting you, the hardest fight up until Madara for you is the female Career from District 2 who is plenty skilled although you don't expect anything else if she comes from the same place as Madara. After a longer fight though, she succumbs to her injuries, her severed arm the main source as she has lost too much blood. When Madara and you meet again, both of you hold each other's gaze again...before one of the most spectacular fights unfolds itself.

🌑 You two go at it for hours as both of you possess a great amount of stamina, endurance and strength. There's no denial that both of you enjoy this fight to it's fullest though, you can even see Madara grinning, thrilled to have someone who can finally stand up to him. It seems inhumane, watching the fight between essentially two monsters. Both of you are so immersed in your own world where only you two and this fight exists that it's only when a loud announcement echoes through the arena, announcing both of you for some reason as victors of this year's games that both of you come back to reality. It turns out that the audience in the Capitol is absolutely enraptured with the both of you and has unanimously demanded for both of you to be named winners and the president saw himself forced to keep the citizens satisfied. Madara is in a way thankful though because if you two are alive, it means that you two can fight again. In a way you've completely won his heart with this fight.

🌑 It's never the same for him again after he's met you. You're special and talented, no one in his district can compare to you and that causes him to grow irritated. Luckily the Capitol is unable to forget about you two just as much and the demand for both of you to keep entertaining the citizens is high so both of you see each other often despite living in different districts. No words could describe just how excited Madara is about being able to see you as often as he does, focused on only you. If he has to take a spouse, he wants it to be you. He knows that it's technically not possible yet he senses soon enough that he isn't the only one who would want you two to be together. A good bunch of people in the Capitol love the romantic tension between you two and his growing possessive behavior so it dawns on him that he could use the foolish wishes of those people to his own advantage. Some people in the Capitol really start voicing their opinion that you two should marry since you are perfect for each other and you plan to announce that you don't have any interest, you're stopped by Madara. Hush, darling. Don't even try to stop something you have no control over.

Hashirama Senju

🌳 Hashirama and you alike are both from District 4, although his family lives in the Villager's District looking on how his father has won in his younger years the Hunger Games. That doesn't spare his children from being chosen as tributes though and it just so happens that Hashirama and you have been childhood friends since forever. His family is very close with yours so you're often allowed to come over and visit and train together as Careers. You know that Hashirama would do anything to spare you that fate though because even if his district sees it as an honor to add victors to their districts and stay wealthy and powerful among the other districts, Hashirama sees this entire game as rather cruel. He's always been empathetic as he watched so many young people dying for the amusement of others yet whenever he has voiced his opinions in the past, he has been scolded and punished by his parents. If the Capitol would find out after all, they might be killed.

🌳 Yet it is the cruelest irony when both of you get chosen as tributes to present your district for this year. Horror washes over his body as he clutches your hand tightly into his, sweaty and shaking ever so slightly. When he's shortly about to leave for the arena, his father advices him to not get all emotional and spare your life as there can only be one winner and those words haunt him and are the start of his breaking point. Obviously Hashirama doesn't listen to him as he sticks close to you the entire time, nervous and terrified for you instead of fearing for his own life. Both of you know that he's been in love with you for a long time now although you have asked him to give you time to think about it. His father knows about it too, the whole family does, that's why they're worried that Hashi will prioritize you over everything since he's an emotional fool. When all of you are presented to the viewers, he refuses to stray away from your side. Both of you catch the eyes of some people thanks to that.

🌳 They refer to you two as unfortunate sweethearts as Hashirama's love for you seems to earn you the favor and support of quite a few fans who are eager to see the development between you two. When both of you fight in the Cornucopia and Hashirama shields you and gets hurt in the process and you carry him around in desperate search of a hiding spot, you receive medicine and bandages from fans of you two who are positively gushing over the dedication between you two. This sickens you yet you have no choice but to accept the presents to help Hashirama who is busily soothing your guilt for him getting hurt because of you. You stay awake the entire night to let him rest, keep guard so that nothing and no one can attack him whilst he is so vulnerable. Both of you never separate once from each other during the entire game and the one time you suggested splitting up, Hashirama had a small meltdown, stopping you physically from leaving him.

🌳 Being part of the game and seeing himself forced to kill other participants breaks him and his psyche. Nightmares that always turn him into a whimpering mess who clings to your form and an emotional breakdown as soon as he thinks that he has lost you. He clings to you like his sanity depends on it and at this rate that is most likely the case. Whether it's luck or not, both of you find yourselves as the sole survivors by the end of it and Hashirama has killed a good bunch of them, something that still horrifies you even if you understand the rules of this game and that he only did it to protect you. There can only be one survivor though and you can only stare anxiously at Hashirama. He truly looks broken, dark rings under his eyes, bruises and cuts covering his face. His own tired gaze meets you and he musters a reassuring smile before embracing you. Terrified confusion turns into utter horror when he mumbles that he won't let you die, no matter what. Even if he has to commit suicide.

🌳 This revelation triggers shock and admiration alike within everyone in the Capitol, all of them loving the tragic love story. People crave a happy ending though so a lot of requests fly in to allow both of you to survive since you're from the same district. You're crying out in relief when the announcement is made or otherwise you would have knocked Hashirama out to stop him from doing anything stupid. Both of you return as victors to your district yet it wasn't worth the price you paid. Hashirama is traumatized with everything he has seen, glued to your hip and emotionally unable to accept you leaving him. You two move into a separate mansion in the Victor's Village, you would have most likely done that even without them telling you that you have to live together, apparently another sick fantasy of the Capitol. You despise all of them though because they've taken your best friend away from you and have ruined him into this anxious, clingy and delusional broken man in front of you who showers you excessively with his love and affection. Apparently that's what the people want though, you realize that with horror when you hear the rumors about an arranged engagement.

Tobirama Senju

🌊 Tobirama is within his lifetime the pride of his District 4 as he was barely 12 years old when he participated and won against everyone else, even if some of them were years older and had way more training as him. Tobirama is just naturally gifted and just happens to be your best friend as well. Something inside of him changed after he came back as the victor though. He never was all that much sunshine to begin with but he became harsher and way more merciless after he won the games. You can only imagine what he saw during his time as a player but when you try to ask him, he always puts you rudely down. He lives with his family in the Victor's Village where you are often visiting thanks to his influence. Instead of playing around and enjoying time together, now he starts training with you intensely though, reminding you harshly that you might get chosen one day too. It's jarring to see his transformation after the games.

🌊 You're 18 when you're chosen and shocked when you hear your name and even Tobirama is shaken but he flawlessly hides it behind the usual scowl sitting on his face. Needless to say that he becomes your official mentor since you're now the official tribute for this year. Expectations on you are high as all believe that with Tobirama as your mentor, you can not fail. Tobirama himself goes harsh on you now that you're going to participate in the Hunger Games. He's relentless and unforgiving, you pass out a couple of times since he does not allow you even a minute to take a break. Whenever you start begging him to stop, all you receive is a harsh lecture that you'll die as one of the first in the game if this is how you're going about it. Partially that is true, he knows that better than anyone else. However, Tobirama is also deep down very paranoid about the aspect of potentially losing you. All his rudeness aside, you're still very much his best friend and his first and only love. The later you don't know yet though.

🌊 The arena this year is close to the sea with a lot of beaches, rocks and cliffs and it's almost as if the Capitol is favoring those from District 4 with such an environment as they specialize in fishing and for that know how to navigate around such places. He watches this year's game with a lot more dread than he ever has. Whilst he is confident in your abilities, he knows that his district isn't the only one who produces Careers. Luckily for you and your fellow Career from District 4, the Cornucopia is placed on a small island within the sea which means that you either have to swim or build a boat. Unfortunately a lot of tributes lose early on their lives, underestimating what muttations swim around in the deep parts of the sea. You belong to the smarter ones who build a boat instead of risking to get eaten, go even as far as catch bait to keep those creatures under control in case they decide to assault your boat too. Sailing a boat is no problem for you.

🌊 The last part of the game is a never-ending train of death, fights and survival of the fittest as only the Careers are left and have to battle it out. You on the other hand go into hiding, stay close to the sea where using weapons will be for the most part very difficult, plus the fact that even Careers are careful to dive to deep into the water, considering the terror creatures the Gamekeepers have designed for this. You avoid the bloodbath for the biggest part, until only you, the other Career from your district and one from the first one are left. This fight is gruesome as you gut your fellow Career out with a harpoon you snatched away in the Cornucopia and push the other one down the cliff, watching the shark-like muttations tearing them apart. When you're announced the winner, Tobirama can only slide down the chair, all tension leaving his body and leaving him exhausted. You've won. You survived and most importantly...you'll return to him.

🌊 He gives you genuine praise when you return, relieved that you were skilled and strong enough to survive everything. You get your own house in the Victor's Village, beyond grateful that you made it out of this living hell of a game. Unfortunately you don't get much of a break as soon afterwards, his family and your own family start talking about potentially engaging you two. Both of you won a game after all and are now praised as the best of the best among their district. His father is finally willing to see you as worthy for his son and your own father can allow himself now to demand high things from your future husband too. This disturbs you as you don't plan to marry Tobirama and you seek him out as soon as the topic is brought up in your family, naively thinking that he will respect your wishes. Instead you're met with overwhelming silence as soon as you've finished your earnest plead to him, red eyes scrutinizing you. Are you really that repulsed with the thought of marrying him? After he's trained you, mentored you, helped you survive the game? It's on that day that you realize for the first time just how much the Hunger Games can change a person, especially your best friend.

Tsunade Senju

🐌 Tsunade is one of the most well-known victors in all of District 4 as her grandfather as well as her great uncle were both legendary victors in the annual Hunger Games and she herself participated when she was 18 years old. Unfortunately for Tsunade though, she lost everything because of those games. Her brother, who had just freshly turned 12, was elected as one of the tributes. Young, optimistic and naive he saw it as an amazing chance to show to everyone, including his sister, that the Senju were a family of winners. He lost his life in an explosion though, the necklace the only thing left of him. During her own time as a tribute, Tsunade was forced to see her own lover die, who was in the same year chosen as a tribute. The mere thought that only one person would survive was mortifying as it was but when Danzo sacrificied himself for her, earning her as a result the favor of the crowd, she was shattered forever. All her hope and optimism gone and instead she spends her time with sake.

🐌 When you enter the Victor's Village as the freshest addition of that place, you already know about Tsunade, everyone knows. For a woman of her height she easily matches and often surpasses the strength of any men and is additionally very skilled with medicine and surgeries. Yet all other victors who live here warn you about her as she's turned into a bitter and lonely woman who refuses everyone's company. It's a shame for someone with a pretty face like hers, she's still such a young and attractive woman after all, only a few years older than you are. In a way you can not bring yourself to blame Tsunade though, not after you've gone through those games too and had to kill the other person from your district who you had actually gotten along with quite well. You just leave her be, even if her own house is right next to yours. You never engage in any rumors about her, even go as far as defending her when other victors talk down on her. She's after all still one of the greatest.

🐌 Your first encounter is certainly one you will remember as the good lady had a few drinks too much and stumbles into your house instead of her own, breaking your door in the process with her brute strength. You initially think of thieves when you see the broken door hanging out of it's door frame only to see the good Tsunade Senju herself sleeping in your bed. You're baffled for a good amount of time, confused to say at least about what you should do now before you decide to let her be and instead sleep downstairs on the couch. The next morning is awkward for the both of you as you have to explain to her that this is in fact your house, especially since she was about to deliver a good punch for thinking that this was still your house. She leaves with her head held high, apologizing for putting you through such a situation before she leaves with the slightest hint of pink dusting her cheeks. After that encounter, your relationship with her is never the same again.

🐌 Somehow she seems less hostile around you, most likely because she will never be able to forget about that accident. That has eased her up around you and so you two occasionally engage in small chats when you meet each other outside. That slowly evolves into meeting each other inside either your or her house and you feel honored that you're pretty much the only one who she has ever allowed inside her mansion. She has her own laboratory that was specifically built for her as the Capitol still demands her to invent new medicine since she is the best there is, even surpassing the scientists in the Capitol. She admits to you that she doesn't want to help the very same people who took everything away from her but she knows that they will threaten innocent people and only bother her more otherwise so she still does as she is told. You openly tell her how much you admire her for what she does and also express your compassion regarding her brother and lover.

🐌 You're a person Tsunade feels comfortable around, less lonely and miserable. She can talk with you about her pain without others talking their death little by calling them simply not strong enough. You're still human, you admit that the whole concept of the Hunger Games is sick and wrong. You give her solace and she starts yearning for that feeling, seeks you out more and more actively. Initially you don't object, you know how lonely and misunderstood Tsunade is. Eventually you recognize that her clinginess has become rather unhealthy though as she barely wants to separate from you and you spend most of your time in her house. She doesn't want you to spend any more time with those people outside who have traded their morals and human lives for fame and glory, wealth and riches. You're still a good person but most importantly, you're a person she has learned to love and cherish. She won't lose you again and if she has to poison your food and weaken you a bit, she will do so. Don't worry though, she would never risk your life. No, instead she will only sicken you a bit to be the one to nurse you back to health.

Shisui Uchiha

🍂The Uchiha family within District 2 is by far one of the most well-known families throughout the entire country of Panem since a lot of people from there have not only been chosen as tributes but also won those Hunger Games. Shisui is no exception to that as he was barely 13 years old when he entered the game and left the arena as a victor. His skills were so outstanding that he was in fact approached by some high officials from the Capitol and asked if he'd like to join the Peacekeepers of Panem, looking on how they trained already in his district. Shisui politely declined though although he in fact is allowed to watch them training and even acts as a teacher at times since his abilities surpass theirs far. Some people in the Capitol are at times terrified that Shisui might betray them though because if he would join any sort of rebellion, he could make it work. That's why they go to great lengths to keep him content with his life, although they are never able to figure out how he is really feeling.

🍂You're a close friend of Shisui even if you don't belong to his family. You're still from District 4 though but have never been made a player in the Hunger Games and are out of their age range by now. When you turned 19 years old, everyone celebrated your birthday as if it was the greatest day in your life and honestly, it was. Because it meant freedom and no fear for you anymore. You have obviously been trained as a Career just like everyone else but you would have never been able to survive out there, at least in your opinion. Even Shisui seemed off for a few weeks after returning, you still remember this hollow look in his eyes and the goosebumps across his skin when he hugged you despite the sun shining brightly, pressing you tightly against his own body. He never talks with you about it and a huge part you've seen on TV when it all aired but the camera wasn't focused every time on him. You just assume that Shisui wants to spare you from the unspoken horrors he went through.

🍂With him moving into the Victor's Village, a tradition for everyone who wins a Hunger Game, you find yourself spending less time with him. It's lonely without him since he's always been your best buddy, even if he still tries to make time for you as good as he can. Instead you are now more often alone, a little bit sceptical to make new acquaintances. That is until you meet a lovely group of people, one of them is in fact a neighbour of yours. All of them are around your age which means you don't have to fear that even one of them might lose their lives in such a cruel and useless game. You start to spend gradually more time with them but Shisui seems a little bit relieved that you have found new friends, considering how much you've blamed him for leaving you all to yourself at first. He admits briefly that he's a little bit busy at the moment, although he never explicitily states what he is doing. All you know is that he's doing something for the Capitol.

🍂After a few weeks of spending time with your new friends and just living your life without the looming threat of death, they start asking you about what you think of the Hunger Games. You're cautious ith your answer since you know that quite a few people in the second district see those games as a chance to prove to the Capitol that their district is the superior one. You still make it clear that you think it's cruel and unfair to throw essentially children into an arena and have them killing each other for the sick amusement for the richest of the rich. To your relief they agree with you and voice their clear dislike of the whole concept. What you gradually notice though is that conversations always shift to the games and soon you start talking about how one might stop those games and how to overthrow the Capitol. You initially entertain them with your own schemes and ideas, start feeling very uncomfortable soon though. When they notice though, they instantly revert back to doing something else.

🍂You're surprised when Shisui one day requests you to visit him and even more shocked when the first thing he does as soon as letting you in is forbidding you to spend anymore time with those people. He doesn't answer any of your questions but only insists that you have to stay away from them. His more bossy tone does not sit right with you. Who does he think he is, telling you not to spend time with your friends when he's barely there anymore? It's this rebellious streak that you give him that shifts something within him and just as you're about to leave his house, he is in front of you in the blink of an eye, slamming the door closed and staring at you with black eyes who appear to see right through you. You shrink, trying to escape from his gaze that is staring relentlessly at you. You break out in cold sweat when he asks you if you really want to know but find yourself still nodding. When he tells you that those people plan a rebellion against the Capitol and planned to recruit you and that he has been tasked to kill them, your blood runs cold. When you asks him quietly if he can really kill people again, he gives you a firm nod. Those are orders and on top of that, they promised him the one thing he's always wanted. You.

Itachi Uchiha

🍡 Another resident in District 4 who has been trained from a very young age on as a Career. Itachi is gifted, there is no denying his skills as he has risen up to the status of a genius from a very young age on. It's precisely due to his outstanding abilities that his father is secretly always hoping that Itachi's name will be chosen in the annual lottery to determine the next participants in the game. Year after year passes by though and his name never once appears. Perhaps a stress relief for the other Career within District 4 as they have zero confidence to win if Itachi would get chosen together with them. How does Itachi feel about this though? Well, he isn't much of a talker and stays silent most of the time when someone approaches him and wants to converse with him about the Hunger Games. He hides his unhappiness though as he would rather spend time with his little brother or with his darling instead of training hours and hours on end for the slim chance he might get chosen.

🍡 When he passes the age of 18 and is officially out of the register, his father is greatly disappointed whilst Itachi is just relieved that he can hopefully spend more time with Sasuke and you from now on. Unfortunately fate is not as kind as your name gets chosen that year, your last year of potentially being chosen. Terror freezes you in your place as your name gets chosen and the same silent horror seeps into Itachi's veins as he hears the news. You come running to him the same day, although he was planning to search for you just as much. You're crying your eyes out whilst in his embrace, terrified and scare out of your mind. You don't want to participate in the games! You don't! Seeing your tears and the hope already having left your body breaks his heart, fills his chest with a searing pain. When Itachi finds himself laying that night wide awake in his bed, an idea suddenly pops up inside his head and the next morning he approaches his father and asks if it's possible that he can take your place.

🍡 Technically it shouldn't be allowed since he's out of the age range but when his father notifies the people organizing the Hunger Games, they're very happy to make an exception for Itachi. He's skilled, he's handsome and they're sure that the citizens of the Capitol will be very happy to have him as a tribute. News quickly spread within your district about the change of plans and knock the air out of your lungs when you hear what a sacrifice Itachi made for you. Yet you can't accept it, approach him angrily with tears in your eyes as you lash out at him for doing something so stupid. He shouldn't have done this for you. You aren't worth it. You try to convince him to pull back, that he doesn't have to do this for you yet he just gently nudges you away, speaks with a soft voice that it's alright. It's too late now anyways, they won't let him slip away now that they have him finally in the games. You can only watch with an aching heart as he leaves for the Hunger Games.

🍡 You watch everything with your heart in your throat, horrified yet unable to avert your eyes from the game you watch safely from the comfort of your house as Itachi participates in your place. At times you feel almost glad that it isn't you when you see the gruesome deaths of the participants yet guilt fills you almost instantly after as you realize that it's because Itachi risks his life instead of you yours. When Itachi stands as the last one and wins, no one in your district is surprised and instead they celebrate him. Only you sit there, devastated that you forced Itachi, who never wanted to kill tributes, into this living hell. When he returns and is brought to the Victor's Village, you try to avoid him. You see the broken glimmer inside his eyes, the burden he took because you were too much of a coward and it is too painful for you to witness. You don't deserve someone like him. You spend the following weeks away from him, ignore all letters and attempts he does to reach out to you.

🍡 After a few months have passed by and Itachi's attempts to reach out to you have stopped, you've slowly attempted to get back on track with your life. Itachi's absence has left a hole though, one you try to ignore since you made that decision. Your life isn't good but you try your best to do the best to make it acceptable again. Until one day a few Peacekeepers suddenly storm your house, arrest you and the rest of your family for no reason and you're separated from them. You don't know where they plan to take you, at least until you see the Victor's Village in the distance where you're thrown into one of the houses, the doors shut behind you. When you look up from your position on the floor, you're met with Itachi's black eyes. He's standing a few feet away from you, his face unreadable yet there's cold fury in his eyes. What do you expect? You betrayed him in a sense, left him alone when he would have needed you the most. Do you even know what he went through during this game? Your apologies barely do anything nor does your pleads to help you with your family. At least not for free this time. You can only stare at him with horror when you hear those words. What have you done?

Naruto Uzumaki

🍜 Naruto Uzumaki is from the twelfth district, the poorest district in all of Panem. He's an orphan whose parents have unfortunately died when he was really young due to the poor conditions such as minimal food. A lot of people in their village suffer under the dictatorship of the Capitol and they barely produce any winners for the Hunger Games as they lack the resources and the training to train the young children such as the wealthy districts do. So when one of their tributes miraculously wins the Hunger Games, only the tender age of 14 years, hope returns once more to the people that for at least the next year, the Capitol will provide them with enough food and supply them what they need. When the winner returns to the village, they're hailed and celebrated like they're the incarnation of a godly being themselves, so dire was the daily life before they won. It's been years since someone from their district has won after all. They move into the Victor's Village with their family soon after.

🍜 4 years later, Naruto gets chosen as a tribute for the Hunger Games, clinging to his hope that he has a chance to win if he works hard enough to win and help all the people in his village who suffer from the lack of food and water. There's also a bit of giddy excitement though to meet you, the very same champion who won 4 years ago and is even the same age as he is. You haven't been here that often ever since you were able to move into the Victor's Village but the stories about you have never really stopped. Such an impact left your victory on the people, the first one in over two decades. Naruto actually recalls that he knew you before you were chosen as a tribute but when he sees you again, he feels like he's meeting a completely new person. No wonder, you're famous now after all. He feels flattered when you actually recognize the blonde-haired boy too, point out that he surely has grown up. You do warn him that you won't go easy on him or otherwise he won't make it.

🍜 Training with you is surely tough as you force him through hours and hours but you admire that he never gives up and insists on doing something over and over again until he's got the hang of it. He's optimistic, painfully much so, and you wonder at times if that is a farce to keep himself motivated or if he truly thinks he has a shot. When you ask him, he manages to flatter you when he answers that you've given him and everyone else a lot of hope with your victory. The time you have to train him isn't that long yet you too grow quite close to each other during that period, most likely because of Naruto wanting to get to know you better. He's quite a fanboy, blue eyes admiring everything you do and somehow that feels nice. You're anxious when he leaves since you've grown attached to him and he's grown even more attached to you. You can only pray now as your one eye that you didn't lose during the games is glued to the screen when the tributes enter this year's arena, a forest.

🍜 Naruto is anxious and nervous when he enters the arena but he tries to do his best to stay optimistic throughout it all. His friends are watching him, you are watching him and this is a chance to help everyone in his district. Unfortunately his optimism gets shattered during the games. He knew that he would witness multiple bloodbaths but nothing could have prepared him for the real deal. His blue eyes grow dull as the game goes on and his hopeful smile leaves his face the more he is confronted with the ugliest side of humanity. It breaks your heart to see him although you can fully understand that no one would be able to stay happy after this hell of a hell. It's the finale of the game that mortifies you though as the other tribute from your district gets killed right in front of Naruto's eyes and the Career makes fun of them. Silence as blue eyes are glued to the mutiliated corpse before something just snaps and Naruto enters a frenzy, an outburst that makes him the victor as he kills the other survivors.

🍜 You wait for him in the Victor's Village, a shell of what he used to be with hollow and empty eyes. You do your best to take care of him, keep him hydrated and see through that he eats as Naruto sits otherwise just around, blue eyes staring into the emptiness. It truly shatters your heart and you do your best to help him to heal as good as you can and slowly he starts responding to you. Sad eyes are always following you around and soon you have him trailing behind you like a little duckling. You're too glad that he has started reacting again to notice the alarming signs that you're feeding him into an unhealthy and delusional obsession. You've always been there for him, haven't you? You've sacrificed even more than him since he didn't lose any eyes or limbs. It makes him wonder how much pain you still carry around inside of you and it's that thought, the idea that he should help you to heal too, that fully pushes out the grin out of him again. A smile to cheer you up. Initial happiness soon turns into dread when you finally come to realize that Naruto has lost his sanity in those games, his broken mind viewing you two as soulmates since both of you have gone through the same hell.

Sasuke Uchiha

💙 Sasuke and you have been childhood sweethearts for such a long time now, Mikoto adores the two of you together just as much as your mother does. Both of you were born in the second district which means that you two live a rather good life in comparison to most other districts, looking on how District 2 is one of the wealthiest districts among the 12. It also means that the both of you are trained from a very young age to be Career and potential tributes from the Hunger Games when you're old enough. You know that the pressure is big on Sasuke as he is from the Uchiha family who is generally known to have created a lot of champions in the Hunger Games. His own brother is hailed as one of those victors who has won the games at the age of 14 and that has led Sasuke to become visibly more bitter and greedy for power as he spends hours training relentlessly. You're one of the few people he is still occasionally showing his soft spot, although he has also demanded that you spend a lot of time with him.

💙 Both of you are 17 when somehow both of you get chosen as tributes and both of you are aware what that means. A shiver goes through you and when Sasuke clutches your hand tightly in his own, clearly stressed by this sudden turn of event, you know that both of you are screwed. You more so than Sasuke since he's talented whilst you're not. You're not bad but certainly not good enough to win this game and silently you might have already resigned yourself to the fact that you'll die. That is until Sasuke grabs you and drags you harshly to a place where no one can hear you two and tells you that you'll stay close to him during the entirety of the game. You want to protest but his dark eyes leave no room for a discussion and you silently nod, decide to listen to him. You spend the little bit of time you have left training with him and you can tell that he goes very hard on you as you receive bruise after bruise with him snapping at you that you need to focus more. You sense that he's scared for you though.

💙 Starting from when you enter the arena to be presented to the citizens of the Capitol, Sasuke keeps a sharp eye on you and an additional arm around you, glaring at everyone who does as much as glancing at you. When the fight in the Cornucopia begins, you realize very much just what hell behind the hell you'll have to endure as all tributes start fighting and slaughtering each other mercilessly to gather the weapons and supplies inside the building. Sasuke gets his hands on a katana and that's when pretty much everyone else is already screwed as he flawlessly starts slaughtering him, the blade of his weapon cutting through flesh with blood splittering his clothes and his face. The only ones who survive are the ones that are fast enough on their legs and a part of you wants to run away from him too when he turns around to you, covered in blood and far too calm considering what he just did, instead asking you if you're alright. You can only swallow back the lump in your throat and nod.

💙 You're able to collect a lot of stuff in the Cornucopia since everyone else fled when they saw Sasuke and his skills with the sword, the way he almost danced whilst killing everyone else. You should be glad that he's on your side and you are but at the same time you're frightened out of your mind. You never knew that Sasuke could murder so many people at once without feeling an ounce of guilt and dread pools deep inside your stomach when you think about what might happen at the end if you two are really the only ones left. With Sasuke on your side, you survive easily as he continues tracking down one tribute after the other and kills them all whilst you stay back and hide, wait for him to come back. One time you dare to ask him how he can just kill everyone that easily. Black eyes land on you for a few silent moments before he tells you that he doesn't care about anyone else besides you. If it wouldn't have been in those circumstances, you might have felt flattered by those words.

💙 As you have feared and dreaded, ultimately it's really only Sasuke and you left and that's when your fear really starts kicking in. He has reassured you throughout the game that he will find a way for both of you to survive but you just don't know how he plans to achieve that. You know that everyone is watching you two right now and Sasuke is just as aware of that and suddenly pulls you closer to him, one arm wrapping around you to hug you. For a split second you're confused only to completely freeze when you feel the blade of the katana pressing against your back, slightly pressing against it. He won't let anything separate you two, not even death. So if both of you can't survive, he'll just kill the both of you instead. You clutch the material of his outfit in your hand, wide eyes meeting his own horrified and silently begging him to reveal that this is a twisted joke. Your heart stops for a few seconds when you realize that this is his plan though, his ultimatum. Silence that drags on for far too long before both of you are named the victors, his daring gamble paying off. You lose all strength in your legs, Sasuke tightening his grip on you to keep you steady. A smirk on his face as you're pressed against him. Perfect, everything worked out.

Sakura Haruno

🌸 The 75th Hunger Game is around and with that special anniversary comes the Quarter Quell with a twist to the rules to make the games more entertaining for those who watch them and even more gruesome and bloody for those who are forced to participate. This year's game is especially anticipated among the richest people in the Capitol and especially dreaded among the districts, especially those who can not afford to train their children. When the special rules for this year are read out, everyone is watching it with mixed feelings, the most common ones fear and dread. Winners from previous games are supposed to participate in the games and team up with one tribute that is chosen from the lottery. That means that from each district one tribute and one winner will participate and to make it only more interesting, this year two winners will be allowed. Only if both of them are the victor and the tribute from the same district though.

🌸 Everyone has obviously heard from Sakura from your district, the poorest in all of Panem. Who didn't? She's legendary, 16 years old when she won the Hunger Games 3 years ago and stood out with her unusual strength and ability to create poison which she then used to paralyze and murder her opponents with. She's chosen as the victor that will participate in this year's Hunger Games to represent the victors from their district as she's the youngest one. Chosen as the other tribute to fight alongside with her are you, in your last year where you could have been chosen as a tribute. Your whole family is horrified as this is essentially a death sentence for you and you have no choice but to put your faith in Sakura, who was actually your friend before she moved to the Victor's Village with her family, who comes soon over to pick you up and mentor you. Her face contorts in one of shock when she sees you, her heart dropping into her stomach. No, why did they have to choose you this year?

🌸 It's been years since you've seen each other but Sakura has never forgotten you. How could she? You were her best friend back in the days when she was all shy and insecure and together with her family the main thing that kept her going during her time as a tribute in the Hunger Games. She tries to push all her emotions down but that is very hard because this is not how she envisioned your first encounter after such a long time to be. She pulls it ultimately together though as she senses that her fear only makes you lose your hope more. The time before the game starts is short so she has to teach you as much as she can. She mentors you in multiple things such as hand-to-hand combat, how to hide your own tracks and read the ones of others and especially in the usage of medicine and poison, the area she's the most skilled with. It's so much for you though, too much in such a short time yet she promises you that she'll do her everything to see it through that both of you survive.

🌸 She's terribly overprotective but you won't blame her for that as soon as the game starts and you're thrown into the hell that is meant to entertain those people in the Capitol. In fact, everything you see is too much for you to handle and you resort to clinging to Sakura as your sole pillow of protection and comfort since everyone else wants you dead. This in return only makes Sakura worse even if she won't show it all of the time. She immediately knows what the strategy of everyone is. They try to slaughter the tributes of districts that are ideally no Careers to take the easy route since without their tributes, the victors will have automatically lost. That's why Sakura never allows you to stray away from her side, something she doesn't need to tell you twice. Part of you has always been a little bit curious to know how she survived her first game though since the Sakura you have known throughout the years was too kind to hurt anyone. Your opinion is definitely about to change.

🌸She's rather merciful for the most part, only killing someone if they attack you and then with the poison she has already extracted from the snakes and poisonous insects within the arena.  It's the last fight that brings something out of her that is truly fearful when the only other two survivors, Career and champion from the second district, manage to catch her off-guard and hurt you. Not seriously as you're quick enough to dodge but enough to make you scream out in pain which causes Sakura to see red. It's hard to tell what you witness but at the end of it you only know that Sakura rushes to you to quickly tend to your wounds whilst your eyes can only zoom in on the two people behind her, one of them with his head smashed in and dead whilst the other one is still slightly twitching as his life slowly leaves him. Their blood is still on her hands as she stops the bleeding and bandages the wound whilst you distantly note that you two are announced the victors. That's when you finally manage to look her into her green eyes and she manages to give you an exhausted grin, mumbling that you two made it. That's when you wonder if everything you've just seen has been some sort of fever dream as there's no trace of that bloodlust left on her face anymore.

[noxer]

Second season of Earthspark

I watched the second season of Earthspark, and I want to share a thought that came to me. I would also like to point out that this is not an objective opinion and is just a first impression, so do not take it seriously.

There was one thing that haunted me and scratched my brain, and only now I finally understood what it was.

The main problem of the EarthSpark, without which the series would not only become more balanced, but would also drive away a significant part of the haters, is that Cybertronians, neither Autobots or Decepticons, are simply NOT NEEDED here.

Let me explain. The writers do an excellent job of developing the young Terrans, their problems, and the lessons they must learn. This is what you expect from a competent screenwriter. And then we have Cybertronians who just... are? They have no or minimal development, they have no meaningful story, and as the second season begins, they barely even serve any plot function. The only reason they exist is to be the recognizable face of the franchise and attract old fans. But neither are they designed to entertain old fans. They have neither compelling characters nor interesting development, which is what causes such dissatisfaction among those who came precisely because of these characters. They serve as background while Terrans go through their adventures.

What could fix this? Throw the Cybertronians to hell. Let the Terrans learn to be mechs through the comics and stories of their parents. Let the Cybertronians be the legends they have become to the fans. Let fans explore the past of Cybertron with children, without any snippets of dialogue between Autobots and Decepticons, which are not explained in any way and seem unnecessary. Make the appearance of the Autobots and Decepticons, if it ever happens, seem significant and impressive, so as to evoke the same reaction in the audience as in the children. Let the Chaos Terrans show up from the start so kids can fight and win against kids like them rather than outrun soldiers with millions of years of experience in war because I can't help but see how that would be disappointing to people, especially Decepticon fans. The antagonist should ultimately be a dark reflection of the protagonist, not just some evil guy that the protagonists have nothing in common with.

The only one I would keep is Bumblebee. First, he is a character who, decades before, served as someone with whom young viewers could identify. Now he has to be a mentor. Secondly, his arc should be as fleshed out as the Terrans' and not just be a source of lore.

This is just my subjective opinion, but for me it would greatly improve the series. Now the series is struggling to juggle the development of the Terrans, who need to be developed because they are new characters that we know nothing about, and pieces of old franchises that stick here frankly poorly. The writers should have chosen one direction and moved along it. Even if they lost some part of the audience, at least it would have happened painlessly. People would see that there were no familiar old characters here, and if that was all they came for, they would just silently leave (I hope I'm not overestimating humanity again). Now people are coming, people are seeing how the show treats their favorite characters (relegating them to the background, deliberately weakening them, etc.), people are getting angry.

Although I can see that this is not so much the fault of the writers, but of the company, which needs to sell toys with familiar images, and it does not matter that these characters do not fit into the story and unbalance it.

Earthspark would score even more points for me personally if it were a story exclusively about young creatures, without trying to parasitize on the nostalgia of old fans. But this, again, is my opinion.

[queer-ragnelle]

Huh, I wasn't aware the creator of Jeeves and Wooster wrote a Arthuriana. This is so cool!

On the other hand, what are the highlights you loved from the story? Any favorite quotes?

So many parts in Sir Agravaine to love! First of all the author name dropping Malory and Tennyson to call them out for only writing about supposedly handsome knights so so funny.

I had been under the impression, like, I presume, everybody else, that every Knight of the Round Table was a model of physical strength and beauty. Mallory says nothing to suggest the contrary. Nor does Tennyson. But apparently there were exceptions, of whom Sir Agravaine the Dolorous must have been the chief.

Get their asses!! Where my ugly boys at?! I also like that Agravaine feels melancholy sorry I do believe in my heart he's pathetic little soggy doggy who would be transformed in the right environment.

Handicapped in this manner, it is no wonder that he should feel sad and lonely in King Arthur's court.

His physical description is 10/10 but it's long so I'll just call attention to these parts. I HEART SHORT MEN WITH IMPERFECT TEETH!!!!!!!

Agravaine was a good deal better equipped than his contemporaries with grey matter, but his height in his socks was only five feet four ... his chin receded sharply from his lower lip, as if Nature, designing him, had had to leave off in a hurry and finish the job anyhow. The upper teeth, protruding, completed the resemblance to a nervous rabbit.

And he's got anxiety?? Perfect characterization no notes.

Sir Agravaine gulped. He was feeling more nervous than he had ever felt in his life.

I adore the lady Yvonne she's just existing and Agravaine is already worried about her impression of him and making up some bullshit in his head. We respect insecure characters in this house.

...he thought he had observed the damsel Yvonne frown as he rose. He groaned in spirit. This damsel, he felt, wanted the proper goods or none at all.

Then this right after made me chew a hole through my wall /pos

The fact was that Sir Agravaine had fallen in love at first sight. The moment he had caught a glimpse of the damsel Yvonne, he loved her devotedly. To others she seemed plain and unattractive. To him she was a Queen of Beauty.

"Love at first sight is bogus." WRONG!!!! It really does happen my buddy Agravaine is proof!! But seriously sometimes it really is like that two people are just drawn together and make a perfect match that nobody else could have been a replacement for one of them. It's delicious narrative frankly I'll hear nothing against the tried and true romance tropes they're beautiful. Now, without spoiling the full story, this might be one of my favorite lines in the whole thing because it's just so....knightly. Whereas Lancelot or Gawain might say they're not afraid as they charge into battle or whatever, Agravaine is very much afraid to fight this dragon. But he's going to do it anyway.

Then he looked at the damsel, and his mind was made up. What did death matter if he could serve her?

Brilliant. Spectacular. Show stopping. Wodehouse, I'm blowing you endless kisses. And Arthurian authors? More Agravaines like this please and thank you.

[radarsteddybear]

My favorite thing about Margaret Houlihan has always been that she is an excellent nurse no matter what. No matter how annoying and obnoxious she finds Hawkeye, Trapper, BJ, et al., no matter how much she loves Frank, she never lets any of that get in the way of doing her job to the absolute best of her ability. She will not hesitate to call out and correct Frank (or any of the other doctors, for that matter) when he does something that could potentially harm the patient(s). She shows real respect for the medical abilities of the doctors. She reassures patients by telling them how great said doctors are, even when she's talking about someone she doesn't generally get along with (see: Aid Station). Even the way she treats the enlisted men of the 4077th changes (for the better) when they become patients (see: Radar in "Mad Dogs and Servicemen"). She is 100% able to compartmentalize her personal relationships in order to be the best nurse there ever was, and I think it really speaks to her character.

I also think that it speaks to the way she's able to grow and evolve as the show goes on while characters like Frank are not.  She has a certain amount of respect for the medical professionals she works with regardless of what their personal relationships look like, and that, in turn, allows her to eventually become friends with characters like Hawkeye and BJ.  Frank, conversely, is a mediocre surgeon and knows it, deep down.  He didn't become a surgeon so that he could help people; he became a surgeon for the wealth and prestige the job comes with.  

He's also spent his life, it seems, having a very difficult time getting along with those around him,  He's a snitch with a sour personality, someone who became a bully to fight back against those who've bullied him.  He doesn't really know how to connect with people (except for Margaret, and they only seem to work due to their sexual compatibility and their mutual dislike of everybody else in camp), and he never truly learns how.

And I think it's really telling that there are moments prior to Frank's leaving that Margaret is able to have genuine moments of connection with Hawkeye, Trapper, and BJ while Frank never is.  Sure, there are a few times when Hawkeye/Trapper/BJ extend something resembling an olive branch, which Frank, desperate for friendship, grabs on to, but it's never genuine, and it never lasts very long.   It can't last very long.  Frank's values simply don't line up with those of Hawkeye/Trapper/BJ.  He's more concerned with making sure that those around him are following the rules to the letter while Hawkeye/Trapper/BJ are more concerned with helping people and reducing harm.  Frank feels like the whole world is out to get him, so he tries to get the whole world first.

With Margaret (and maybe this thought is colored by the fact that I've watched the whole series), you get the sense during these moments of friendship that, without Frank around, without the stick up her behind, she could be a really great friend.  She sees her patients above all else as patients, people.  While she does think that rules are important and that everybody should be following them, above even that, she is a nurse, and she takes seriously her job of making sure that those in her care are as comfortable and well taken care of as she possibly can.  This is what allows her to see those around her as human beings, to come to understand that the human experience is wide and varied and that people don't deserve to be punished simply for being different or for making a mistake.  Frank could never come to this realization, and sure enough, once he leaves, Margaret does become a really great friend, which is only able to happen due to the mutual respect she and the doctors have for each other from the beginning.

[bloodyshadow1]

so the percy jackson series was good, not just decent, but genuinely good. There are 5 criticisms that I have to make though to get them out of my system. Mostly small and 1 that will hopefully change as things move forward. Please dont take it seriously, the show has been great, but there are some things I need to get off of my chest as I watch it

I don't really like how the minotaur looked. just a preference I thought he looked too bulky and too much like a bull that happen to stand on 2 legs instead of a human bull hybrid. I was actually wondering for a while if they changed things and he was going to stay on 4 legs for the fight.

I dont' know if I like Percy having Riptide at the start. Personally Percy's first training session where he every normal sword doesn't feel right in his hands was one of my favorite scenes. I like how he does have a weakness where only certain weapons, (powered by the sea) feel right in his hands while others feel awkward to him. I don't know how they would do the scene in a show where you aren't having Percy's inner POV so I get it, I just feel sad that one of my favorite scenes is gone

Chiron sometimes just looked weird. Not the actor or anything, but the way they shot him sometimes. The scenes where he's walking with Percy, when they cut to him they show him from the waste up and without Percy by his side, like they cut back and forth between the two like the two actors were shot in different locations and they are trying to pretend they weren't without digitally editing them together. They also sometimes seemed to refuse to show Chiron's horse parts, I assume to save on CGI for it, but it looks awkward sometimes because the actor moves like he has a centaur body in some of the shots, but because they don't show the horse body the way he moves doesn't look human, like he looks very stilted and doesn't move his body like he's taking steps. Combine with the first part it doesn't even feel like Percy's talking to Chiron, the centaur, but Chiron, the 8 foot guy from a lower budget project.

I'm kind of mixed on the fight scene by the river in ep 2. It was well done, well choreographed but I don't think Percy ever steps foot in the water until Annabeth pushes him. The whole point of the scene was to show Percy gets a power boost when he's in the water, that he goes from a 12 year old to superman when he touches it. In the show, he just starts to get good, kind of like Jackie Chan mixed with the first Matrix Neo. I think it's to show him as a natural swordsman, but I liked that it wasn't just him, but the powerboost he gets due to being a son of Poseidon not just a prodigy. It is somewhat mitigated by him already having Riptide, a blade that fits perfectly in his hands instead of a basic camp sword that would already feel awkward in his hands, but still, I would have preferred it like it was in the books. Also Clarisse's scream at the end wasn't great either, should have done another take. Screams are hard though so whatever but still felt cringy. Also also, the whole strategy was to put Percy on boarder patrol near the river specifically so he would have the same advantage he had in the bathroom, not just him guarding a random road on the battlefield and stumbling into the river. The strategy still works because the main goal is to draw Clarisse away due to her grudge against Percy, but it would have showed off Annabeth's strategy chops to have multiple reasons

This one is gonna be controversial because the Actress playing Annabeth is already getting a stupid amount of hate, but I do think they sand down her edges and slightly girl power her up when it isn't necessary. Annabeth is one of my favorite characters in the series, tied with Percy for first, but I like her flaws and all. I like how she stood aside when Percy and Clarisse have their first clash, and got covered in toilet water too, I like how she has a dumb little girl crush on Luke who views her like a little sister and is embarrassed to the point of blushing when he addresses her, I like how she interrogates a barely conscious Percy about something he has no idea happened. I just feel like by reducing her screen time and letting Luke show Percy around it lessens who she is as a character and sands down her edges in attempting to making her a 'girl boss.' Which brings me to the other part of the issue, Annabeth is a super smart badass and talented action girl, you don't really need to say it if you're not going to show it. She doesn't need to be shilled, the character should just be allowed to be. That's why Luke's comment about her being the best warrior in camp kind of rubbed me the wrong way. The line could have been something about she's only 12 and one of the best warriors int he camp already and I think it would have amounted to the same thing and kept things more grounded. I don't mind her being hailed as one of the smartest or best strategists, but maybe it's just me being an adult, it's weird to say a 12 year old is the best warrior in the camp where they train child soldiers. That being said, she's only been in one of the two eps, she'll have plenty of time to show off her other skills. And again I want to be clear, it is not a flaw of the Actress, it's a flaw of the writing that I hope they course correct as a book reader

--> PS to point 5 Unfortunately, TLT doesn't have that many fight scenes compared to the later books and while Annabeth is the brains behind the quest, I'm not sure if she's going to get a chance to show off her fighting prowess unless they change the books so from a book readers perspective it just feels like a tell not shown line

-> PSS to point 5. Also another small nitpick, kind of feels blasphemous as a percabeth shipper, but I think the 'you drool in your sleep,' line wasn't delivered in the proper area. when Annabeth is being Percy's sleep paralysis demon, she interrogates him over what's happening on Olympus and the solstice, it felt weird to her just standing there just to say the line. I think she should have said the line at the toilets when Percy mentions seeing her in the infirmary and asks if she's stalking him. I think changing some things around makes it feel more real and less like a line they had to say, but that's just me

Other than that, sure there are moments that made me cringe, but I'm also an adult and the show is for kids, it's fine. I think the series is great and it's only been 2 episodes, there's plenty of time to find their groove. They change stuff sure, but eh, I'm okay with most of it and even happy in some cases. Even if I'm criticizing I'll only mention it in my posts if I think the books genuinely did a scene better.

[thatguywasvaping]

🏎️💨 THE FORMULA 1 TAG GAME! 🏎️💨:

i don't know who else to tag honestly but thank youuu @wisteria-wisteria for tagging me 😉

1. Who or what got you into F1?

i've been wanting to tell this story to someone cuz i think it's so dumb

so well, my dad and my cousins are HUGE f1 fans they always talk about it on the family gc. it was the mexico 2023 gp (we're mexican btw and just like every single men in mexico they love checo) and we all know what happened to checo in that race so they were fuming and honestly i was enjoying it and all the memes on twt

anyway i never really cared about the sport, to me it was just men going vroom vroom in circles for an hour but then the brazil gp came

we were in my grandparents house, i was in the living room and they were watching the race obviously, it was just about to start and then something magical happened that changed my whole life... charles leclerc crashes on the formation lap and i thought omg who's this dumbass 🙄 but then i heard his voice with that sadness you only hear in eastern european gay porn saying "why the fuck am i so unlucky?", i was like damn he's so me, my dad was asking me to traduce what he was saying, i had no context of everything that happened on the season but i could just think damn is this not the first time that it has happened to him? poor bro

then i saw him get lost in the motherfucking woods and i was crying laughing at this point wondering who the hell is this guy?

i made a mental note to search his name on twt later, anyway the race went on and i was actually getting invested in it, i remember my cousins had to leave but they were all i want to see checo pass hamilton bla bla bla and i had no idea who hamilton was but i wanted to see it too it was so exciting. when i got back home i went into a charles leclerc rabbit hole in twt and tumblr and tiktok, then i learned more about all the other drivers and as someone who was lacking content of my man finn wolfhard i was getting bored and seeing this guys being a chaotic mess and getting content of them every weekend i was like fuck it they're my new blorbos especially charles❤️

and now here i am :) the end.

2. Who was the very first F1 driver you supported? Do you support them now? Have your opinions on them differed or stayed the same since then?

i am a charles leclerc girlie and i will always be he's my sunshine i will fight anyone who dares to say something bad about him, i just love him so much he's so determinated and passionate i am so sure he will achieve his dream but he's also very kind, charming, funny. his history is also so amazing to me, his mental strenght is unbelievable and has motivated me to keep going no matter what, he's very dear to me, i admire him so much and i don't think it will ever change because he amazes me more and more everytime.

3. Who’s your current favourite F1 driver?

charlieeee obvi but i've also been very obsessed with max lately they are fighting for p1 in my favorite drivers championship every single day hahahah

maxie poo i love you babygirl 😘

ok but now seriously MAX VERSTAPPEN YOU ARE A FUCKING LEGEND AND DESERVE ALL THE HAPPINESS IN THE WORLD he means a lot to me now too

i love lando and oscar also i hope they achieve amazing things with mclaren they have so much talent and potential i know they will be great

and ofc mi gente latino 🇲🇽✊ checo pérez you are my dad and i support you no matter what also he's so unintentionally funny as max said i'll just call him lovely 😌

4. Is there a driver pairing or pairings you support? What made you attracted to that pairing in the first place?

LESTAPPEN MY GOD when i tell you that i think about them every day i'm not joking at all

my roman empire as the tiktok kids would say

i just love them for the same reasons everyone else does they have been racing against each other for most of their lives and of course they've had their rough patches but they respect each other and love racing together, they push the limits and will do everything to win but they always keep that mutual respect and admiration

i got into them with the inchident video it's just hilarious max being all mad like no it's so unfair 🙄 and charlie being like just an inchident 😘 I CAN'T THEY'RE SO ICONIC LIVE LAUGH LOVE LESTAPPEN we love emotional support rivals

also shoutout carlando, maxiel, charlos, chestappen, landoscar they are so funny love seeing them do stupid shit but also have each others back

5. Do your parents, siblings or relatives have a favourite team and/or favourite driver(s)?

my dad will die for red bull especially for checo, i don't really know my cousins favorite drivers but they like ferrari and one of them has a charles leclerc cap and a valtteri bottas one so i think them

i'm kind of a closeted f1 fan lmao because most of my life i've been like it's so boring just them going in circles but now i'm obsessed but also if i say i like it now they would be like you just like it because the drivers are good looking

and i mean YEAH but fuck just let me enjoy it and it's also my first season i'm still learning give me a break bruh

6. Do you have any favourite races? Are there any that stand out to you the most?

like i said this is my first season and i started pretty late but they first race i ever watched from start to finish was ✨las vegas 2023✨ and as a charles fan i will never forget that last lap where i was mourning p2 already and all like well let's hope for the best on the next race😔 when all of a sudden i see this mf overtaking checo, it was 1am and when i tell you i JUMPED from the couch and started screaming and jumping around, genuinely i will never forget it

7. Do you have a favourite circuit? Can be from the past or from the current calendar.

i don't really know about each circuit that much but i like monaco

8. Have you ever been to an F1 race in real life? Feel free to tell us your experience going to one if you like.

naaahh they're expensive af maybeee one day i'll go to the gp in mexico city but in a very distant future

9. Have you ever met an F1 driver in real life?

i see checo's face in every corner in my city does that count?

10. Do you have a favourite F1 car? If so, what is it?

i like the mercedes' cars just for the mere reason that they look cool to me and since i don't know all the technical stuff i think i could give you a pepper answer once i learn more

11. Do you have a favourite one win wonder?

not really ✌️

12. Do you have any favourite quotes from the F1 world? This can either be inspirational or hilarious.

when max said "i always thought that if i would make it to F1, charles will also make it"

what can i say i love my babygirls

[just-finished-watching]

Challengers

Finished Watching: 6/12/2024

Genre: Drama, Romance, Sports

Rating: 🌟/5 (1/5)

Expectations: I was so excited for this movie, but I was sorely disappointed. 30 minutes into the film, I realized I made a terrible mistake and was forced to stay because I'm a broke college student and wasn't willing to "waste" the $11 movie ticket. My friends and I spent the rest of the film in an empty theater (I'm guessing because everyone else had already watched it) cracking jokes and cringing.

Absolutely Not a Favorite

Summary: Tashi was a former prodigy tennis player turned coach for her husband, Art. She transformed him into a famous Grand Slam champion. Lately, he's been on a losing streak, so to fix that, Tashi signs him up for a "Challenger" event, where he finds himself facing his former best friend and Tashi's ex-boyfriend.

Thoughts (*SPOILERS*):

Wow wow wow, I actually disliked this movie so much. It was not the actors' fault, I think they just did their best with the script they were given. The vibes were there, but that's all this was. A vibes movie. At some point, I was completely lost, not because it was hard to understand, but because it was hard to care. The characters were hard to like, the plot was mostly fluff, and the romance was almost icky.

I usually have a favorite character in many of the things I watch, but I couldn't even force myself to like any of the characters. Tashi was my favorite in the beginning, but as the light faded from her eyes, I stopped caring. I did feel bad for her, but as she dragged it out, I got bored and was just waiting for something. Art was just a passive piece of shit, watching life go by. He had his good points (being a loving father will always make me a little bit soft), but he was too afraid to make a move on Tashi first so he turned to turning her and Patrick against each other. And Patrick is just a piece of shit, expecting the world to pause for him as he figured himself out. He didn't want what he was offered at first and still expected it? He's lucky Tashi didn't start knocking his fucking lights out.

I could not tell you what the hell happened in that movie. It was a tennis match, then a flashback, then another tennis match, but this time with a pov camera angle. There were some petty fights and reluctant break ups and everything felt so hesitant rather than being a fun bold film like I thought it would be.

Romance sucked. No, seriously, the two love interests seemed better suited for each other (which is how I thought the film would go), but instead they both went for Tashi who seemed to not be into either of them. Art is passive, waiting for Patrick to make first moves, and Patrick was too forceful, not waiting for anyones permission before taking complete control and getting mad when he didn't get his way. It also felt like they were hinting towards this with the way the two kissed each other? I honestly just sat there thinking, 'is this why they kept this in theaters until June?'

Overall, I don't think I would ever watch this movie again, or even recommend it to anybody unless their looking for something with a "rich person with rich person problems" vibes.

[bluejay-in-flight]

BRING IT ON: ALL OR NOTHING (2006) IS ONE OF THE GAYEST MOVIES EVER!!!!

here's why!

okay so not gonna do a whole essay cause honestly the proof is in the screenshots I took while screaming my ass off cause honestly the chemistry between the main Brittney and her enemy turned ally/girlfriend is just GIVING!!! I recommend all lesbians out there or just fans of women being down bad for each other should check this out!!!

let's start when they first go head to head during cheer tryouts where Britney is trying to show Camille that she has what it takes to be on their squad even tho she doesn't want to be a "cheer whore" and betray her old squad so she ends up refusing to join

sorry for the thing at the bottom in the last one but like THERE'S NO REASON FOR Y'ALL TO BE THAT CLOSE!!! as you can see the chemistry between them is electrifying oh and you can also see poor Kirresha in the background being like not in front of my lollipop!!! 🤣 seriously tho Britney pls give me one straight reason that you're staring at Camilles lips like that 👀👀👀

NEXT is a couple scenes after this one where Camille recognizes that they need Britney on the squad whether she likes the other girl or not so in a completely heterosexual move she decides to lean against the other girls car to wait for her and then this moment happens...

like I'm sorry but if someone looked at me like that while leaning against my car there is no way I could stop myself from kissing them right on the mouth! but alas we must move on and although they have so many good scenes I'm taking y'all to the end of the movie where it all comes to a head!

so we've seen them "fight" we know they don't get along well now they've figured out how to finally work together and are truly now on the same team which gives us one of the best moments ever!!!!!!

THAT'S RIGHT HOW SHE JUST GONNA GRAB HER GIRL BY THE ARM WITHOUT EVEN LOOKING AND TUG BRITNEY AGAINST HER NO PROBLEM!!!! like and the fact that Britney doesn't even fight against her just let's Camille pull her wherever she wants like GUYS!!!! GUYSSSSS!!!

This is one of the most lesbian movies I've ever had the honor of watching and this came out in 2006!! if this came out now they would have a huge following and so many fanfics but alas then it wouldn't be the same movie we know and love 🥺 And although this was one of my favorite scenes in the movie we do have one honorable mention!!!

I don't know if y'all noticed in the last scene but throughout the movie Britney has constantly been wearing studs while Camille has her pretty golden hoops if you can't tell here's this scene to give you a better look!

oh and you also get them standing way too close pressed against each other while Camille looks fondly down at Britney because as if they couldn't be more obvious 🤣 we all love a tall and short lesbian duo don't we ANYWAYS up until this moment at the end of the movie Camille has been wearing her golden hoops while Britney has her silver studs EXCEPT WAIT

THAT'S WEIRD THEY'RE BOTH WEARING GOLDEN HOOPS?!?!? I wonder where Britney could've gotten that other pair of golden hoops 🤔 I wonder who could've given her them cause god knows what completely normal heterosexual reason she must've had to change her earrings to the same ones as her rival girlfriend before their last performance together 👀👀👀 I can't imagine....

But yeah if any of y'all want to squeal about lesbians for an hour and thirty eight minutes you should definitely watch this movie!!! also cause it's just a bomb ass movie in general and mostly holds up even after god fuckin eighteen 😭😭😭 years later can't believe how time flies...

[toomanyplotbunnies-sendhelp]

Hello and welcome to Day 21 of "Let's Explore My Plot Bunnies"

Sorry if this is later than usual 😅

Today, I have a more unusual crossover plot bunny for you all - a Cardfight! Vanguard and Katekyo Hitman Reborn crossover!

The main motivations for this (already 2 or so years old) idea are as follows:

I love any card game anime - Cardfight Vanguard, FutureCard Buddyfight, Yu-Gi-Oh!; you name it, I probably already watched and loved the whole thing. Vanguard is probably my second most favorite anime besides the Yu-Gi-Oh! GX anime from this genre of shows.

I want Tsuna to have an actual hobby and make friends that aren't forced upon him by someone else. Like seriously, let the kid be a fucking kid - all world saving shenanigans aside.

So, yeah. Making Tsuna play a game and enjoy it while also making friends is the main goal of this fic. Also, I still have yet to find a good title for this fic idea yet, so any suggestions are welcome.

As for the synopsis:

After Tsuna got his Sky Flames sealed, he went to a festival with his mother. Tsuna got lost and met a young man named Daichi. Daichi kept Tsuna company till they were found by Nana. During this time, Daichi, in an attempt to cheer Tsuna up, showed him a bunch of Vanguard cards he had on himself. Tsuna instantly loved them, especially one Incandescent Lion, Blond Ezel. Once Nana found them, Daichi decides to give Tsuna the card he liked most out of the ones he showed him as a keepsake. (Daichi kinda feels like both Ezel and Tsuna need each other and if he ever learned something while playing Vanguard is that you listen to your gut in these situations)

Tsuna comes back home with Incandescent Lion, Blond Ezel, and with a new determination to make a deck to fight Daichi with it in the future. And so, years passed, and even though Tsuna did gather enough cards to make the deck he wanted, because of the seal's interference with Tsuna's courage and self esteem, he never got the nerve to actually have a Vanguard Fight with someone.

One day, Tsuna gets another headache before going to school (which is a common occurrence nowadays due to the seal clashing with Tsuna's Hyper Intuition) and gets the impression he should bring his deck to school. Even though nothing happens at school, while on the way back home, Tsuna bumps into another boy his age, scattering the vanguard cards the boy had in his hand. Since he feels guilty, Tsuna helps the boy gather them up, and once done, he, seemingly in a hurry, runs off. Unfortunately, Tsuna sees one of the cards from the boy's deck on the ground and follows him to give it back.

Tsuna ends up catching with the boy - who introduces himself as Jun - at a card shop named "Card Citadel." Jun, wanting to thank Tsuna somehow for returning one of his cards, asks if he plays. Tsuna, thinking this might be the only time he gets to fight like this, says he has a deck but never really played against anyone. Jun offers to be his first opponent and teach him the rules of a true fight.

Both enjoy the fight a lot, and Jun, feeling like he found another person with potential in Tsuna, wants to be his friend. Although bewildered, Tsuna accepts, and they make plans to meet at Card Citadel again tomorrow.

Next, Tsuna meets Ayaka, Jun's classmate and friend, who is also a cardfighter. All three of them became extremely close friends in the few months they knew each other for. When the opportunity to enter a Vanguard Tournament appears, the three of them decide to take it - mostly because they wanna know how playing in a tournament feels like and because they want to have fun playing against stronger opponents. The name they come up with for their team is "Skyfall," which is a fairly ominous name, but also, it's too catchy to just gloss over.

As Team Skyfall, they make it to the finals of the regional tournament only to meet Team Orion and its leader, Shindou. While Ayaka and Jun fought with Shindou's teammates, Tsuna faced Shindou, which ended in Team Skyfall's defeat. Tsuna, for the first time, feels very angry at some of the comments made by Shindou during their fight and wants to prove him wrong. Jun and Ayaka are also frustrated over the loss (in Ayaka's case) and win (in Jun's case). Jun feels like he won because of luck and not skill, so he feels like he shouldn't accept the win. Ayaka lost her fight and felt like she needed to improve or else she would be left behind.

All three decide to review their decks and get better from then on. Fortunately, there is another regional selection for the tournament they just lost. Unfortunately, most of the teams participating are teams that placed second in their regional tournament. This is the only chance left to go to the nationals for all of them.

Fuelled by their determination to face Team Orion again and win this time around, Team Skyfall wins the chance to go for the nationals. From there, after facing more and more powerful opponents, Team Skyfall manages to meet Team Orion again in the national finals. This time around, Team Skyfall won, and, reluctantly, Shindou recognized their skills. Although there are more things to settle between the two teams, they are amiable with each other from then on.

After the nationals are over and some more time passes, Tsuna and his friends get invitations to a (fancy) meeting with other National Champion Teams in New York (the costs being covered by their host). Thankfully, this takes place over the summer so they can attend it.

At the meeting, they encounter many other fighters such as Alessio and his team, La Vipera (Italy's Champion team), and Kong and his team The Chi (China's Champion Team) among others. This meeting is merely a formal introduction for every Champion to each other and to their host, who introduces himself as "Akash."

Akash wants to make Vanguard an even more popular game, and to do so, he introduces the notion of an annual tournament between the Champion Teams of each country. Akash assures them that the idea is still not yet to be put in motion as he can tell most of the ones present are not convinced. Instead, he says that everyone should take this opportunity to know each other better and, if they are available, they can meet again next year around the same time for another meeting - of course, the travelling and hotel costs for the champion teams are covered by Akash himself.

Although Tsuna feels like there is something more to Akash than meets the eye, he and his friends still enjoy their one week stay in New York and make friends there that they continue to keep in touch with.

After coming back to Japan, the three met new faces around Card Citadel, the cardfight beginners Kira (who is Shindou's classmate apparently) and Rinne, a more ... hot-headed individual. While Kira is somewhat aware of how to play Vanguard, Rinne is a total newbie that Tsuna decides to teach the ins and outs of the game, the same way Jun taught him two years ago. (And yes, at this point, it has been closer to 2 years since Tsuna met Jun)

Despite his fiery attitude, Rinne gets the game rules down pretty fast and becomes more excited about fighting other people. He and Kira become a permanent addition to Tsuna, Jun, Ayaka, and Shindou's group and continue to meet at Card Citadel.

A new tournament is announced during the winter season of this year. This Vanguard Tournament features a tag fight setting instead of the usual 1v1 setting they experienced till now. And you cannot choose your tag partners. Instead, you will be placed at random with another participant from the same bracket you are in.

The six friends join in the tournament, meeting old friends, but also new ones too. However, there is one person Tsuna never thought he would ever see participating in such a tournament, and that is Hibari Kyoya, the so-called "Demon of Namimori, who terrified the entire school (both students and teachers alike) and pretty much controls Namimori Middle School with an iron fist.

Unsurprisingly (since this is Tsuna we are talking about), Tsuna's random tag team partner is the aforementioned Habari Kyoya. But surprisingly, both of them work together quite well... (if you ignore the fact that Kyoya barely spoke with Tsuna since the teams were made, that is).

As the tournament goes on, Tsuna feels like Kyoya doesn't trust him as a teammate all that much (given that Kyoya doesn't talk with him at all or even seem to acknowledge that they are fighting together). Meanwhile, Kyoya is trying to get a read on this version of Tsunayoshi Sawada that he had never seen before - more confident in his skills, more open to social interaction, more ... carnivore than the herbivore Kyoya pegged Tsuna to be. This Tsunayoshi is pretty much the opposite of the herbivore he always sees at school. And yet, Kyoya can help to notice that not every herbivore behavior was left behind when Tsunayoshi became a carnivore - which should make him an omnivore. The first omnivore Kyoya has ever seen to be more precise.

The Tag Team Tournament ends with Kyoya and Tsuna vs. Shindou and Jun (who seem more ready to fight each other than him and Kyoya, Tsuna can't help but notice.) By a stroke of luck and a bit of Shindou's stategic mind, Tsuna and Kyoya lose the match - but they aren't that upset about it. Tsuna likes that he managed to be a good tag team partner for Kyoya since Kyoya acknowledged him during their fight against Shindou and Jun. Kyoya, on the other hand, finds himself enjoying this new omnivore Tsunayoshi a lot more than the herbivore one. Kyoya decides that maybe Tsunayoshi's presence is something he is more agreeable to having around himself - as long as his loud friends aren't going to bother him, that is.

And so Kyoya, from time to time, shows up at Card Citadel as well. Mostly to fight Tsuna as 1v1, which most of the time Tsuna loses. But still he is having a lot of fun.

Now, in his 3rd year of middle school and already a Vanguard Champion and participating in more tournaments while also debating which high school he should choose, Tsuna gets another surprise. Well, two actually.

The first one is the self-proclaimed "World's Best Hitman" named Reborn, who says he is here to teach Tsuna how to be a Mafia Boss. (Which OK... knowing Alessio well means Tsuna is more or less aware of Mafia shenanigans since Alessio is part of a Mafia family)

The second one is that Akash has decided that the Annual World Tournament should begin this year - and Tsuna's Intuition tells him something bad might happen there.

Regardless, he first has to survive whatever Reborn has in store for him before facing the disaster he feels the newly announced tournament will become. And if the whole Flames thing that Reborn has been telling him about is actually connected to both Akash and the game that he loves to play and that gave him all these amazing friends, well Tsuna will protect his friends (both the old ones and the new ones) from danger with all he has.

Some details:

In terms of clans for every character I have the following: Tsuna has Gold Paladins (because Ezel); Jun has Granblue (I just like the image of Tsuna's first opponent ever as a Pirate); Ayaka has Oracle Think Tank; Shindou has Shadow Paladin (befitting of the 1st major enemy Tsuna has to face); Kira has Nova Grappler; Rinne has Kagero; Hibari Kyoya has either Dark Irregulars or Narukami (still haven't decided but I am leaning towards Dark Irregulars); Alessio also uses Dark Irregulars, while Kong uses Nova Grappler.

In terms of Ace Vanguards/Units, I have the following list for them with photos (also, all of these are grade 3):

Tsuna - Incandescent Lion, Blond Ezel

Jun - Young Pirate Noble, Pinot Noir

Ayaka - Supreme Heavenly Battle Diety, Susanoo

Kira - Galaxy Blaukluger

Rinne - Amber Dragon, Eclipse

Shindou - Knight of Severity, Dubdrenn

Alessio - Scharhrot Vampir

Kong - Beast Diety, Azure Dragon

This idea really just came to me because I wanted Tsuna to have a freaking hobby that he enjoys doing. And because I wanted him to make friends without Reborn's interference. Like seriously, let the kid be a kid and have a game to enjoy.

I can only imagine the amount of confusion Reborn has when Tsuna explains what Vanguard is. Same when Tsuna appears to be on good terms with Hibari Kyoya of all people.

I WANT Tsuna to go to Italy for some tournament or because Alessio wanted him to visit. Why? Because it will be hilarious to explain to Reborn that yes, Tsuna was in Milano before. And yes, Tsuna knows how to speak Italian (at least conversation level). And let that paint for Reborn just how incompetent of a father Iemitsu is, since he (and by extend the CEDEF) is unaware of Tsuna ever being in Italy at any point in time. Like, how do you not know that your own child is in Italy? And, even worse, that your child is some Champion Representative for Japan for a (fairly popular) card game?

Because no Cardfight! Vanguard fic idea is complete (in my mind) without some PSYqualia bullshit, there will be PSYqualia bullshit. Who gets it and how, we will see.

I feel like by the end of this whole thing, Akash is either going to be your most beloved son (like he is to me) or your most, "I hate him because of his actions" character. Like, there is no in-between for Akash. (Even I oscillate between the two categories sometimes)

Both Alessio and Kong are part of the Mafia world. But again, they are children. So let children enjoy their damn game, mafia people.

You wonder how Kyoya got into the game? Blame Tsuna for that one. Kyoya got curious since whenever Tsuna would meet with Jun and Ayaka at Card Citadel, he would look excited and happier than before. Kyoya picked up on that change and followed him to Card Citadel. He got into the game without even meaning to do so. (Kusakabe is glad that Kyoya has some type of hobby besides just hitting people)

The whole thing between Kyoya and Tsuna mostly happens because I refuse to believe Kyoya wouldn't pick up on changes within his territory. Especially when said change happens to Sawada Tsunayoshi (who is a sealed sky, which is why Kyoya feels that Tsuna's strange as all hell. Unfortunately, he just chucked that to herbivore behavior without looking too much into it.)

Tsuna's seal here is mainly keeping his Sky Flames back, but it also interferes with his Hyper Intuition. This causes Tsuna to have a lot of migraines. So much so that he has pills prescribed by the doctor for them.

Speaking of the seal, it also is far too powerful for some measly bullet to break, so no magical "Reborn/Shamal does shit" that can get rid of the seal. Only Tsuna, through some unknown to him (but known to me) means, can remove the seal. After all, I feel that Nono would have put a strong seal on the CHILD that was a DANGER to his sons' sucession who were located in ITALY. (I can't get over the whole Nono thing, really. And I don't fucking buy that he wanted Tsuna "to have a civilian life" just like Iemitsu wished. Nono took the opportunity to get rid of another obstacle to his sons' succession as the next Vongola Boss. Simple as that. Too bad the Universe said "fuck you Nono" and killed his children)

And this is about it.

Holy hell, this was loooong. Hopefully, my ramblings entertained you all. Also, a bit of a heads up, you may see more Cardfight! Vanguard (or card game anime) ideas from me in the future - it mainly depends on how hyperfixated my brain can get on that idea. Also, yeah, I hyperfixated on this idea for the last 2 years. This is why it's more articulated than the others.

Another small thing before I go: If you are interested in the full decks for everyone (more or less), I have those too. So just let me know if you want a list for every character.

Anyway, have a nice day/night and take care!

See you tomorrow,

-TooManyPlotBunnies-Send Help