#but what I’m attacking is that he didn’t even try to share the culture with the other kids he was the avatar water was the first element-

[vicontheinternet]

The way they should at the very made s2 of lok abt korra and the crew going on a journey to relearn the elements and maybe she meets the lion turtle and diss a way to give ppl back their bending back because it was just block by chi bending and at the end it would lead to her giving lin and everyone their bending back if they wanted it back then it would lead into the next season which the conclusion would be the air bending boom or he giving back power could bring the boom on.

[musicalmoritz]

The common misconception that Akane has no personality outside of Aoi is a sign of immaturity among many fans, in my opinion. This isn’t really their fault, seeing as the majority of the tbhk fandom is on the younger side, but it’s still something that should be noted

When people say this, they are talking about his hobbies. It’s true that every hobby Akane has is something he started to impress Aoi. I’m of the firm belief that he stayed on the Student Council because he enjoys it but that’s slightly up to interpretation (it could also be a way for Teru to keep an eye on him). However, in general, Akane doesn’t seem to have much going on outside of Aoi. His favorite food is something he imagines her baking for him, he joins clubs based on what type of guys she shows interest in, the books he reads all have a character that shares her name, and when she asks him what he enjoys, his response is “I like you, Aoi.” He’s even shown to zone out of conversations when Aoi isn’t mentioned. This is clearly unhealthy, though he does eventually learn to give her some distance which is beneficial to the both of them. But he still doesn’t seem to actively engage in hobbies that have nothing to do with Aoi

This is a consistent character flaw, but it does not mean Akane has no personality or character outside of Aoi. This is where the immaturity bit comes in, kids want to describe themselves entirely based on their interests. With the rise of fan culture and the internet, many adults do the same. It’s not just a young people problem, it’s an issue of how we identify ourselves. We like to put people into categories, understanding them based on their hobbies and careers. These are very important elements of identity, but they aren’t everything. A person with no job and no hobbies is still a person. They might struggle due to having no outlet for their creativity, but they are a person nonetheless

Fandoms notoriously love to understand characters based on their niche interests. Aoi is a gardener, Hanako loves the moon, Nene plays idol games, Teru has a very sad life. These are absolutely elements of their characters, but there’s more to them than their hobbies. They have personalities too, goals and passions outside of what they do in their free time

Akane puts his all into helping others, he takes his Student Council duties very seriously and keeps his hands full during every school event. He is a very empathetic character, able to understand characters like Aoi, Teru, and Nene without them having to tell him what they need. He’s competitive, as seen in his friendship with Teru. He’s romantic, as is the driving force of his character (and romance is a perfectly acceptable goal, marriage is one of the most common things for a person to strive towards in life). He’s violent and overprotective, striking down any man who makes Aoi uncomfortable. He’s emotional, prone to fits of joy, anger, and tears. He’s easily annoyed and carries a chip on his shoulder, but that doesn’t stop him from wanting to help people. He hates supernaturals because of how they hurt others, and despite his stance as a School Mystery, he is so painstakingly human. He can be aggressive, especially when someone he loves is trying to do something self-destructive. He cares so deeply for people, wearing his heart on his sleeve. He’d stay up all night playing video games if it made the girl he loves happy, but he won’t attack Teru for having genuine feelings for her. He’s incredibly loyal. He’s also casually bisexual so there’s that

Idk there’s just so much more to Akane’s character than people give him credit for, I didn’t even cover everything. Remember when you’re analyzing a character, it’s important to look deeper than “they enjoy this” or “this is their job.” Akane may devote so much of his life to Aoi, but he is still his own person, whether he realizes that or not

I am begging ya’ll to stop throwing the “no character outside of Aoi” allegations at this man

[underdark-dreams]

Request from @smolpocketmonstercoffee that I accidently deleted when I was trying to kill a spider (fucking wish I was kidding 😭)

🖤 HCs: Dammon / Rolan as new dads 🖤

Dammon:

Dammon seems like the type to want a family, probably a large one, and let’s be honest fatherhood would come SO naturally to him

After everything he’s been through in Elturel and Avernus, the challenge of raising a child doesn’t phase him one bit

Much more elated than he is nervous about the prospect

When Dammon holds his baby for the first time, he wants you to be right beside him. Pulls you close so you can look at this beautiful new little life together

He might say something a little sappy (“Look at what we made, love”), but coming from him it is somehow 100% sincere and extremely sweet

He’s that type of dad to have a conversation with his baby whenever they’re fussing/crying

“Oh dearest. Oh darling. What’s the matter? Hush, little one, I’m here—”

He would rock his baby to sleep with stories about Elturel and their people's history. Even when they’re still too little to understand, it’s very important to him that your child learns about their culture and where they came from

You both do a great job at alternating the night shift duties during the first months. Dammon offers to generously take more than his share, even when he's running on 2 hours of sleep already. But you know he needs all the rest he can get since his work takes a lot of energy

During the day he wears one of those baby slings to keep your child wrapped safe and secure against his chest, even while he's at work in his forge

You're a little skeptical about it until you glimpse your baby’s eyes closed fast asleep against Dammon even as he loudly tempers a sword with his hammer. Truly their father's child. It's the most adorable picture

As a dad, Dammon would place a lot of weight on teaching your child the difference between right and wrong. He encourages them to be thoughtful and kind to others always

And he's a very kind father himself. When your little one gets hurt, they run to Dammon 90% of the time over you for comfort. He's the resident expert at kissing it better

He makes them feel secure they can come to him with anything, even when they messed up/did something bad

Sometimes Dammon is too much of a softie and lets his child get away with little things. Many bedtimes are extended when Dammon is left in charge. He just doesn't always have the will to resist their little hands grabbing his face to ask please

And he’s so easily distracted whenever his kid wants to play. He’ll abandon his work for hours to take them on walks to the park, build with toys, wrestle, all of it. You find them out in the yard playing knights a lot 

Dammon loves when they’re old enough to go for rides on his shoulders, little hands holding on to his horns for balance. He takes them around the city and plays ‘say what you see’ to help them learn their words

---------

Rolan:

Of course, he is overjoyed when you tell him. But something tells me Rolan’s next reaction to finding out he’s going to be a dad would be a very focused and existential freakout

There’s so many things he has to do, you and he have so much to prepare for, he wants his child to come into a perfect world & feels responsible for making it that way

Bit of a panic attack dad. You have to encourage him to breathe & relax & take things one day at a time

Late at night though, you just know Rolan’s lying awake wondering what if you two didn’t pre-pre-register for the absolute best preschool in Baldur’s Gate?

They’re his child, so they’re bound to be a magical prodigy. And he is determined to give them every advantage he never had growing up

When holding his baby for the first time: the first thing he feels is a sense of overwhelming protectiveness

Rolan has experienced some dark, unfair shit in his life. He knows the world can be a very harsh and unforgiving place, especially to Tieflings

Rolan always thought of himself as a more instinctual, look-out-for-yourself-first type. But looking at this tiny bundle in his arms, he would give anything to protect them 

He's overwhelmed with love at every detail: tail no longer than his palm, ruddy skin the same shade as his, little golden eyes blinking up at him

"They've got my eyes!" He tells you in pure excitement, smiling and tearing up at the same time

Rolan is surprisingly natural with all the infant care things: changing, feeding, putting down for sleep, etc. He picked up a lot from growing up in foster homes and taking care of Cal and Lia when they were all young

That doesn’t make him any more conscious when it’s his turn to wake up in the middle of the night. He will rise from bed like a zombie, eyes barely cracked open, tending to his little one’s cries guided by an overwhelming force of instinct

Although he's got a lot of responsibility on his shoulders as master of Ramazith Tower, Rolan insists on splitting up childcare duties evenly so you can get your own work done. Balances your little cooing Tiefling baby on his hip while he’s giving his pupils their evocation lecture

They all respect him too much to say anything about it (ok Rolan is still pretty intimidating too)

If and when his child shows their first signs of magical talent, Rolan is completely overcome with emotion. He might have to excuse himself for a minute to collect his feelings alone 

He was hoping this day would come, but he could never be sure. They will have the best, most patient, most dedicated teacher in all of Faerûn

He’s an excellent teacher with other things, too. Rolan always wants to hear about what your little one learned in school today & he’s always ready to help with homework or extra tutoring

And when it comes to babysitting, Cal and Lia are lifesavers. They make it possible for you and Rolan to slip away for some alone time at least once a week

[fairsexynasty]

ˏ🔪ˋ°•*⁀➷･ IF YOU REWRITE YOUR LIFE, MAY I STILL PLAY A PART?

.｡🗡️*⋆⍋*🃏*｡ ethan landry x chad meeks-martin x fem!reader

summary: your living situation had already been a mess. but with how charming your roommates were, it soon intertwined with your love life.

warnings: hurt + comfort, (un)requited love, love confessions, angst, hints to attachment anxiety, panic attacks, mentions of smut (ethan getting dicked down :o), guilt, domesticity, chef!ethan, non gf! au

a/n: heavily inspired by we’re in love by boygenius, that song requires tissues bro. this will be a series :3

you had to have been the worst best friend in the world. there was no logical explanation for the way you’d been feeling besides that. it’s not that you did anything wrong—at least, tangibly. your perspective just happened to shift, as it does with age, but you never expected it’d fuck your life up at 19.

college is a terrible place, swarming with hookup culture. and in nyc, it’s twenty times worse. you liked to think you were one of the only sane ones left, as in, being someone who wished oh-so-desperately to be swept off her feet by true romance. it only took one look around blackmore to see you most likely were not going to experience that from anyone.

but a girl can dream. and dreamt you did.

your living situation was a total fuckup. gigantic fuckup. monstrous fuckup. instead of making a home with girls who would help you create serotonin with every interaction, you were somehow rooming with two, sweetly dumb men.

ethan and chad share their differences, that’s for sure. chad’s cleanliness has been overrun by ethan’s haphazard living, and a handful of spats occur.

“ethan, for the last time, dude. clean up your shit! i don’t even know how your pants ended up in the kitchen.”

“chill out, chad, they’re just pants.”

“yeah, but they’re pants this week, and then it’ll be a condom the next.”

ethan scoffed. “says you. may i remind you, your name is chad.”

you’d always have to mediate between the two, giving them a smack on both their heads so they could feel the pain of the headache they gave you.

ethan’s things being in the kitchen somehow make sense. he’s in there whenever he has free time, cooking whatever try hard recipes he finds on his tiktok feed. they always turn out delicious, but ethan is an extremely controlling chef.

“what are you doing, chad?”

“what does it look like i’m doing? i’m eating a fry.”

“don’t touch the frites for the steak. out. of. my. kitchen.”

“may i remind you that y/n and i live here too?”

“yeah, but she isn’t eating the frites before the steak is ready. i haven’t even made the hollandaise yet.”

but even with their differences, they have many similarities. and those similarities were what had you feeling horrible in the first place.

chad and ethan might just have been the most charming men you’d ever encountered. it was strange to live with a girl in such close proximity, because living with a sister and parents was so different. but they never once made you feel like they didn’t want you there.

for the most part, what was theirs was yours. they never asked for the vice versa because they knew you’d kill them if they ever used your skincare or hair care in the bathroom.

that includes personal space, for some reason.

most nights you three got to spend time together, whether that was going out or staying in. everyone knew you had grown to be inseparable, including all the girls. mindy and anika never failed to call you names and titles.

“oh, look, it’s boygenius.”

every night typically looked like the three of you on the couch, a giant mclovin blanket covering you. you were typically in the middle, with both boys as close as humanly possible to you, as you watched whatever movie was picked out of your roulette list.

when it was a sad movie, like eternal sunshine of the spotless mind, ethan would be silently crying, head leaning on your shoulder for comfort. chad would be watching with wide, watery eyes, singular tears dropping every couple of seconds. his head would eventually perch upon your other shoulder.

with a comedy movie, like your favorite, superbad, typically you were sprawled out across ethan and chad, head resting on the arm of the couch, legs across their own.

and with a romance or drama movie, a train of bodies occurred. chad would be at the arm of the couch, with you resting in his lap, with ethan resting in yours. your hands would find themselves busy in ethan’s curls as you watched the movie, with chad’s chin resting on top of your head.

one time, you fell asleep after the movie in that exact position, and tara swung by to drop off some books. when she entered the apartment (of course she had a key, she was a ‘core four’ member,) she was met with the sight of you three. perfect photoshoot, in her mind.

the touchiness didn’t stop there. when walking outside, your arms were often linked together, or one of the boys would be holding your stuff while the other had an arm around your shoulders.

when you went to parties, they danced with you when you felt like it, and sat down with you when you felt like going on some kind of drunken tangent. and the behavior from them was eye-catching to everybody who saw you three together.

after a humanities class, a random girl walked up to you. the conversation was short and sweet, but left you stunned and questioning every part of your existence.

“hey, y/n. i just wanted to tell you that you and your boyfriends are literally goals. i can just feel the love radiating from all of you.”

love? there was no way chad AND ethan were in love with you. they probably would have beaten each other up by now if they were both into you. but, the random girl did say she thought you were all dating. and suddenly you found yourself watching the boys like a creep.

you kept a note in your phone of every single behavior that pointed to either two things: they were in love with you, and they were in love with each other. by the end of the week, you had amassed at least twenty different entries a day.

for evidence pointing towards their shared loved for you, you found that they’d start staring at you when you weren’t looking. their eyes often had a gleam you’d catch in the corner of your eye, and occasionally a failure of a repressed smile.

when you said goodnight, you’d feel their eyes on you until you closed the door to your room, and they never went to bed until at least an hour after you did, just to make sure you were safe asleep.

ethan would blush whenever you established physical affection with him or accepted his own, and chad would give you the biggest grins whenever you deglammed for the evening (and even when you were dolled up, that damn smile never left his face around you)

now, for the evidence pointing towards them being in love with each other? your theories were solidified one thursday night you had gotten back from the store. as soon as you had opened the door, the sluttiest whimper you’d ever heard, came from chad’s room. and you knew for a fact, chad was not the type to sound so desperate.

with one moan of a, “oh, fuck!” you knew ethan was getting dicked down by chad, and promptly left the apartment, deciding you forgot some milk. you probably sat in the trader joe’s parking garage for a good half an hour, attempting to process what you had almost walked in on.

it was reality. you all liked one another. it seemed too good to be true, though. how could two perfect guys like them, magnetize to you? with all your self consciousness, you shot them a text you were coming back home, and prepared yourself for confrontation.

when you got home, they immediately rushed outside to help you with the groceries. you didn’t make a comment on ethan’s flushed face and the trail of hickeys under his collar— which was the collar of chad’s shirt.

you felt like your heart was going to burst out of your chest, neck, and skull at the same time. when everything was put away, chad gave you a kiss on the head and thanked you for going to the store.

“i need to talk to you two about something,” you blurted out, eyes fixated on the receipt that laid on the counter. “i think you might want to sit.” ethan and chad had brief looks of fear on their faces, but acquiesced to your request. you slowly trailed after them.

“is everything okay, sweets?” chad asked you after settling onto the couch next to ethan. “is there something wrong?”

you let out a shaky breath as your hand tugged at the sleeves of your shirt. “i don’t know. that’s what i want to know. you see, uh…” you trailed off. it was a struggle to find the right words. ethan patted his hand on the couch in between him and chad, and you sauntered over to them. when you sat down, you played with your hands, completely nerved. the boys took your hands in their own, trying to calm you. you took a breath.

“listen, i love you guys a lot. i really do, and everyone knows that. i mean, i’ve been so happy ever since you came into my life. i just, i really am. but, i think i’ve been having some realizations lately, and i think i’m one of the last people to see this has been happening, but, i know everyone thinks that we’re dating.” okay, that’s not what you really meant to say, but you pussied out at the last moment.

“oh, wow.” ethan said, with a small smile. you saw chad let out the smallest sigh of relief. “does it bother you?”

“yeah, um, no,-“

“wait, yeah as in it bothers you, or no it doesn’t bother you?” chad asked.

“nonono, i mean i’m not done with what i want to say, sorry,” you rushed out.

“don’t apologize,” chad smiled and rubbed your back. “take your time,” he encouraged.

you nodded slowly, and took another breath. “because of everyone thinking this, it made me start wondering if they were… onto something? so, i did a lot of thinking, and, at least on my part, i love you both a lot more than you might think i do. i’m, in love.”

both boys were silent for a moment. you felt your stomach churn, and your hands started to get clammy. as your anxiety crept up, so did the pace of your breathing, and within the silence, tears found their way to your face. had you fucked this up?

however, unbeknownst to you, ethan and chad both looked at each other, a silent nod of understanding, but then they immediately realized you were crying.

“shit, nonono, sweets, don’t cry, it’s okay! it’s okay, y/n!” chad wiped away your tears as ethan hugged you from behind.

“i’m sorry,” you sobbed, “i’m so sorry.”

ethan spoke gently into your ear, “y/n, there’s no reason to be sorry, it’s okay! we’re in love with you too! you didn’t do anything wrong!”

you stopped crying as chad held your face in his hands, a look of pure love across his face. “really?” you hiccuped. “you feel the same?” they both nodded in sync.

“yes, y/n.” chad agreed. “we’re in love.”

[astra-galaxie]

★✿▼♒ for fili savage :)

Of course, I have some headcanons for our gentle giant! I did make him, after all!😉

★ - sad headcanon

As a child, when Fili’s gigantism first manifested after starting puberty, he was hospitalized while doctors tried to figure out what was wrong with him. Due to the genetic mutation in his DNA from the enhancement serum, his body started growing at an unnaturally fast rate, alarming everyone. He was in constant pain as his body grew, leaving his muscles stiff and sore and his skin full of bruises from stretching so fast.

He also suffered from malnourishment as the serum was using up his nutrients faster than he could consume them. Fili had to be put on a feeding tube and IV fluids to receive a constant supply of nutrients so his body could keep up with what it was using. When his condition reached its worst point, Fili was bedridden and couldn't even get up to use the bathroom without screaming in pain. Even worse, some nights, the doctors had to sedate him so he could sleep through the pain as his body burned off the pain medication too fast for it to help him.

Fili’s parents couldn't bear to watch their son suffer in constant agony and did everything they could to get him to help. When MI6 finally found the solution to slow down his body’s production of growth hormones to a normal rate, Fili was able to experience being pain-free for the first time in months. He still had months of recovery to go through, including physiotherapy, but he didn’t care now that he was finally discharged from the hospital and able to go home and sleep in his own bed again.

✿ - Sex headcanon

To many people’s surprise, Fili is a switch. While he does prefer to be on top, he enjoys being the bottom with the right person. He can be kinky when he wants to be, but his favourite type of sex is the slow and loving kind. He likes taking the time to pleasure his partner and make them feel good instead of rushing to climax.

▼ - childhood headcanon

Growing up, the McGee family farm wasn’t just a place to find livestock and fresh produce but also a place for supernatural creatures seeking sanctuary from humans and hunters. As a child, Fili met all kinds of supernatural creatures, from fairies and pixies to sea creatures and were-creatures. There always seemed to be someone new on the farm seeking the McGees’ help, and Fili made many friends. Most don’t stay for long as they are just looking for temporary safety or aid, but some stay for a long time, and others still visit frequently.

Fili has also met his fair share of hunters over the years, and the first time he encountered them was when he was a child. Hunters had tried attacking the farm, but thankfully, Fili’s family managed to defeat them. After the attack, his family strengthened the magical wards around the farm, making it invisible to anyone seeking to destroy it or harm its inhabitants. Since that day, Fili has remained vigilant for possible hunters and vows to protect his family and friends from them.

♒ - cooking/food headcanon

Fili is a good cook but a better baker. He’s not great at making things from other cultures, but he’s always willing to give a new recipe his best shot!

While he prefers the foods he grew up on, he is always open to trying new things. Travelling with the Bureau was fun because he got to experience his teammates’ cultures through their cooking and try foods in the countries they visited. He always stocked up on local snacks that he liked and kept them in his and Star’s room to prevent the others from stealing them.

Some of his favourite foods are homemade breads and locally sourced produce. He always says he can taste the difference between foods from a local farm and those from a factory. As a child, his mother always made fresh bread for them to have for breakfast and sandwiches, and the McGee family farm grows some of the best fruits, vegetables, and grains in Dublin.

That’s all of my answers for Fili! Thanks for the request, Liz! I’m sure you enjoyed the angst fuel the most!😉

[mswyrr]

“fixing” is actually a double-edged sword

The most discussed problem is the dynamics of who is obligated to care for who in terms of social privilege and power and also--even if, say, it’s a same gender couple--the harm of one person feeling they have to do that for another generally. That is important to discuss and covered quite a bit; I’ve pointed out my pov on the nuances of it here. (EDIT and I’ve updated with some “fixee” pov stuff here).

But “fixing him/her/them” is also bad for the “him/her/them”. It’s potentially dangerous and harmful to the person “being fixed”.

Being an amateur and poking around in someone's trauma and mental illness can actually  make things worse for them - it can cause real harm to someone. Even trained therapists can make things worse for someone by accident. It’s a known risk of therapy.

And this is (lol I’ve been trying not to say this for weeks!!) why I find C/laire kind of personally disquieting tbqh. Playing  therapist without a license on someone is kinda messed up! It's not just that women  "fixing" men is anti-feminist - that is true - it's that a non-professional using a  personal relationship to fiddle around in someone's head is also messed.  up and, frankly, dangerous.

I’m not “anti” her as a character - all the characters are flawed, this is a dynamic people fall into for various reasons, it’s as understandable a flaw/mistake as any of the things the other characters do. But there’s a ton of discussion of how it’s unfair to the “fixer” - but not really any about how unfair and potentially dangerous it is to the “fixee.” (Imo cultural ableism plays into why the violence toward the “fixee” is rarely (if ever?) discussed as a problem: neurodivergent people are often considered, by default, as problems to be solved rather than people, so the way it’s dangerous and harmful to a “fixee” is just - erased/ignored. The attitude is that they should be grateful a normal, healthy person is bothering themselves at all to be so generous as to try to “fix” them!). And she gets treated like she’s made of sweetness and light, and not deeply flawed, when what I saw of her was -- deeply flawed, like the rest of the characters.

I’m sorry but this is, in fact, a way that neurotypical partners can abuse neurodivergent people 🤷‍♀️ (shall I quote the stats on the high risk mentally ill people are at for being abused????? And how the (false!) idea that mentally ill people are more likely to be abusers plays into the culture around that?) all while coming across like a selfless hero to other neurotypicals for being willing to “fix” this “broken” person -- and yet how often is it ever discussed that that can be part of it??

I don’t think she was consciously doing it. But it’s dangerous even if not done intentionally abusively and some people do it to abuse on purpose. And they have so much room to cloak their behavior because of how the narrative of the double-sided nature of this isn’t widely discussed.

I’m sure she didn’t mean it that way precisely as a character - but IMO part of why she’s part of what gives Carmy a panic attack is that he interpreted her as wanting him to perform/share being unwell with her and then--after she said platitudes like “nobody’s counting shoes”--perform being all better and “fixed” for her.

That’s an incredibly draining performance to feel you have to give.

[frasier-crane-style]

Some random musings on Picard season 3

-I’m not trying to be an asshole, but in the very first scene, Beverly Crusher is operating a pump-action phaser rifle. I really don’t mean to be a pedant, but it’s a laser gun! what exactly is she pumping?

-I assumed... and according to Wikipedia, this is the case... that time had progressed in real-time for both the Trekverse and the real world. So 21 years have passed since Star Trek: Nemesis was released--21 years have passed for Picard and co since the events of Nemesis. Then we’re introduced to characters who... seem unlikely to have existed during Nemesis. Crusher has a secret love-child that is said to be about 23 years old and Geordi has a daughter who is at least old enough to be a bridge officer on the Titan. (The actors are both in their early thirties.) The notion that all the characters, immediately after Nemesis, got down to making babies is pretty silly.

-As for Jack Crusher himself... I really wish Star Trek would stop throwing in characters that are meant to be their version of Han Solo. We tried it with the Outrageous Okana, he banged Teri Hatcher--if it didn’t work then, it’s not going to work now...

And like... I’m sure this bunch of Hollywood nepo baby commies loves the idea that Star Trek is socialist and evil late-stage capitalism and shit and like... you do realize you keep introducing these grizzled captain rogue tramp freighter characters, they undermine that completely? You’re literally characterizing the socialists as lame dweebs and the capitalists as cool, sexy badasses. Which is valid, but I don’t think you intended to do that, Alex Kurtzman, I think you’re just lousy at your job.

-The circumstances of Baby Crusher’s existence are particularly silly. I’m going to get into spoiler territory, but apparently after Nemesis, Picard and Bev started dating, had unprotected sex, and conceived a child. But this Picard is a sort of workaholic Spider-Man and Beverly realized her new son would never be safe because of all Jean-Luc’s enemies. So she cut off contact with everyone from the Enterprise and started raising young Jack with Picard having no knowledge of her existence (I’m really tired of this trope, which I think no rational human being would ever actually do, but at least Picard chews Beverly out for this psychotic and incredibly uncharacteristic decision).

-This is where the TNG characters and the Picard characters feel like two separate entities that happen to be played by the same actors and share the same names. It’s not just that as they’ve aged, their ‘character development’ has led to Stewart and co. essentially playing themselves more than anything else (at one point, Picard calls someone “a dipshit from Chicago.”). It’s also that they’re treated as action heroes who are always going rogue and getting into crazy adventures; this season even introduces a mean, by-the-book Starfleet officer who acts as something of a pissed off police commission trying to rein these loose cannons in!

That’s just not my recollection of the characters. It’s the pop culture perception of Kirk, sure, and not a particularly accurate perception. But Picard was never really a cowboy. Yet they have these dumb moments like in the first season where he shows up at Riker’s house like “I’m in trouble” and Riker turns on a forcefield and busts out the phasers like the two of them are Murtaugh and Riggs. Picard had his moments of bucking the system, but they act like he was constantly riding around on a motorcycle in a leather jacket, smoking a cigarette--it’s even retroactive! They have Jean-Luc tell this anecdote about him and Jack Crusher Sr. stealing a shuttle from the Stargazer to go get laid. I really don’t think these writers have actually watched TNG--they just assume Picard is an older version of Shepherd from Mass Effect.

-Speaking of video games, the requisite superweapon this time around is portal technology. Yes, like in Portal. And the big obligatory terrorist attack is the bad guys opening a portal under a Starfleet recruitment center and then dropping it on top of a few city blocks. It’s a cool visual and all, but as a weapon, this seems to rate way behind good old-fashioned 20th-century nukes, much less all the phasers and torpedoes that are commonplace in Star Trek.

-And I know the last two seasons sucked, but it’d be nice to have some consistency. In Season 1, Picard was a contentedly retired old coot, not daredevil workaholic Spider-Man. In Season 1, Riker and Troi were happily married, albeit dealing with the grief of losing a child. Here, they’re estranged because Riker suddenly can’t take the grief we’d previously seen him work through.

And another thing: I found it risible in S1 that the technology existed to cure Riker’s son, but it was illegal, so Riker and Troi just shrugged their shoulders and said “Well, nice knowing ya, kid.” That’s the time they’d get the old gang together and steal a starship. And that’s the by-the-book, competent, dutiful officers we saw in TNG. The bunch of renegades and outlaws they’re characterized as in Picard just laid down and buried a kid? It’s so stupid!

-I know remaking The Wrath of Khan is the ol’ reliable of the Trek franchise, but this has to be the most bald-faced redo yet (with bits of Treks 3 and 4 The Force Awakens into the mix). I think Picard suffers in comparison.

-Speaking of comparisons, that “these Enterprise crew members have no respect for the law!” guy I mentioned before has a mad-on for Picard due to his time as Locutus. Obviously, that’s recycled from Sisko’s anger at Picard.

Now the DS9 example is pushing it a little far as the melodrama goes--Sisko’s being blatantly disrespectful, but still, he acknowledges the tension between them, Picard feels awkward, then they move on to official business and try to ignore the past. They actually get more heated about current events: Sisko’s reassignment and his possible departure from Starfleet.

In Picard, the character in Sisko’s shoes is far more unprofessional and emotional (we’ve given the excuse that he’s on painkillers, but you’d think that they’d have pain meds that would leave people entirely rational in the future--he certainly acts rational enough for the remainder of the episode). In front of his demoralized crew, he goes on a lengthy tirade about how much he hates Picard and all I could think by the end is that this is a guy who’s lost all respect of the people under his command. He’s more pissed off at Picard thirty years after the fact than Sisko was just a couple years after his wife died!

-They’re also doing... what I think is a dead name metaphor where the captain, because he’s a jerk, refers to Seven as Annika Hansen instead of Seven, since he hates Borg? But all it does is make it seem odd that Seven is still going by Seven long after she’s reclaimed her humanity and even joined Starfleet, given that the Borg are the ultimate evil of this universe. It’d be like if someone left a Neo-Nazi organization and decried everything they stood for, but still insisted on being referred to by their SS rank or something. What a weirdo!

-Wait, Seven joined Starfleet in Season 2, which was last year... and this year, she’s already first officer of an entire ship? Shouldn’t she still be in the Academy? And you thought it was silly when Kirk became captain of the flagship at the end of Star Trek 09!

-Raffi is awful, as usual, always either acting like a crackhead or ‘acting’ like a crackhead. She’s Space Jack Bauer now, so every scene she’s in is acted like she’s on the verge of tears, about to fly into a homicidal rage, or both. She has a scene with Special Guest Character The Audience Cares About Worf (’member Worf? I MEMBER!) where they’re both interrogating a bad guy and Worf is trying to build a rapport with the guy and Raffi is threatening to cut his dick off and shit. Raffi’s method works, because why should Star Trek be about communication and diplomacy working out when violence and aggression fails??

-My least favorite moment, though, is this bit where Riker is in command and Picard is giving him advice. Riker decides to listen to his advice, it goes to shit, and Riker turns to Picard and literally goes “You’ve just killed us all!”

You’d think a veteran starship commander would take some responsibility for his own actions instead of going “He told me to do it!” like a fucking little kid.

[dailyanarchistposts]

Do you worry that you validated and perhaps encouraged the irrationally violent desires of the school shooter who called your radio show through your shared desire for de-industrialisation?

Ishkah: You talk a lot about school shootings on your show and it’s such a horrific thing and it’s a sign of atomization, and culture being fragmented.

You had a weird case of someone phoning your radio show who years later committed a school shooting. And there was a CNN piece… [8]

Zerzan: Adam Lanza, yeah that was pretty incredible. He acted out the very thing that he was trying to raise awareness about, the chimpanzee attacked its owner in a very horrible way and you know he said that’s us, we’re forced into these impossible unnatural ways of being and people are gonna snap, like the chimpanzee and then he snapped. I mean talk about incredible irony there.

Ishkah: Yeah, I mean it’s a really difficult one, have you thought about how you maybe would have handled it if you had the amazing foresight of interpreting what he meant or what his state of mind was.

Zerzan: Well that would have been really nice, but he struck my co-host as kind of a quiet troubled high school kid, but picking up on on the reality of life in late civilization and how bizarre it is and the pressures one’s under.

We both said yeah exactly, thanks for the call, I mean it certainly did not occur to us that he was part of the very thing he was warning about and I guess that was about a year later that that happened. That would have been awfully nice, but we didn’t, we thought that that’s quite a good insight, that’s quite a good parallel that you’re making and you know that was it, there wasn’t any dialogue, we didn’t even… he was just trying to bring out that point and bothered to call and yeah, ‘thanks for the call’ and that was that.

If only we could have or seen that he was actually going in that very direction, it would have been nice, we could have tried to do something, tried to engage him in terms of where he was at, with how his life was, in his own life.

Ishkah: Yeah and I mean I know primitivists in my own life and I know a lot of them get a lot of value from it, when they get into the philosophy and they start an allotment and they feel more connected to the earth and all the stuff and maybe work on a food no bombs stall and stuff, they’re often very much part of campaigns on the left.

But, saying all that, I’m not a primitive so I know that if if I’d had that call I might have tried to challenge him a little bit on domestication and how inevitable violence is, even if you feel pushed to an extent through bullying in school or something, like whether I don’t know… I guess my fumbling over my words now shows that it’s hard and I wouldn’t necessarily have the perfect words to say, but I don’t know, I wonder if there wasn’t someone he could find with a shared philosophy of de-industralisation and he’d phoned up someone who had challenged him a bit, that it could have been a turning point.

Like with the CNN piece, the doctor of criminology they had on at the end said:

“the subtext of what he’s [the school shooter is] saying is violence is innate and instinctual to humans, and really should not be punished because it’s their natural basis, that’s the message I think he’s trying to get across, and the parallel to himself is obvious, he feels possessed by this need, this compulsion to commit violence.”

So do you agree with that? Do you think that he was saying something like that or…?

Zerzan: It sounds very, very off base, that people are innately homicidal, is that what he’s saying?

Ishkah: Well, I think the criminologist was saying that Lanza was bringing up the story because maybe he felt those impulses within himself because of domestication, because of like bullying at school, and so if there wasn’t domestication, it wouldn’t have happened to him, so then his violence is justified in some way.

Zerzan: Well yeah, that seemed to be the lesson of what he phoned the show about, you know that’s what you get, that’s why this chimpanzee freaked out and attacked its owner, I mean precisely because of the domestication control, the so unnatural and painful, and it just caused the animal to snap. And you know he was saying of course that corresponds to the situation in society, it’s so unbearable really and I bet there was quite possibly bullying in the picture. There have been other cases of mass shootings where there was in fact bullying and then that’s part of the you know the onerous life that somebody’s living and they… it’s intolerable so yeah…

Ishkah: I mean still I would have liked to try to challenge him or challenge anyone who talked about violence as somewhat inevitable, I would have tried to say it’s not acceptable the way schools are structured at the moment, the way bullying is allowed to happen, and the way we are domesticated by technology to a degree, but I just worry that because there’s a sect of like nihilist primitivism of the ITS variety, that think nature is violent in some way, rather than nature just being destructive, that think they are justified to do it, so if I came across someone like that, I would hope that I would try and talk them over to a kind of personal low tech lifestyle, but to see that like there’s a future in building better schools and not being justified to take violence in that way.

Zerzan: You have to see… I mean is somebody coming from an anti-authoritarian point of view or not? You know that’s kind of basic. Or to put it another way, is this person an anarchist? Are we starting out with the same sort of general approaches or values?

I don’t know, some of this stuff is just off the table, like this ITS stuff, that just strikes me as completely unworthy of making any contribution at all. I was just appalled that people like the Little Black Cart folks were saying ‘oh we can learn something from this’, really? Murdering random people? No, it’s not, that’s just sick and fucked up and if that’s what passes for being an anarchist, no thanks. You just have to distance yourself from shit like that.

Ishkah: Cool, okay yeah, definitely agree on that.

[fatiguedcorvid]

everything stays- Golden Wind fanfic

JJBA GW one shot ~1.6k words, SFW genfic

now on AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/50584042/share

As much as he might have been loathe to admit it, Giorno hated his requiem stand. He felt like an immature ingrate thinking it; Gold Experience Requiem saved him and his friends in Rome. It was the reason Giorno was able to pursue his dream of cleaning up Naples’ streets. But with every passing month the feeling weighed on him more.

He sat bodily on a public bench outside some hair salon, the sign reading ‘il parrucchiere mago- trova il tuo nuovo sé’. Breathing heavily, he was trying to glance at GER behind him without arousing suspicion from the few people already out and about at 5:40 AM on a Tuesday. GER had no such considerations, glaring at every passerby with what Giorno could only imagine was murderous intent. ‘Touch my water bottle’ he thought to it. ‘Turn it into a nutria.’ GER didn’t budge. He tried to call it back into him. It didn’t work. 

Once his vision stopped spinning he sighed and started heading back to the Villa. Giorno had taken up morning jogs in the past few weeks, hoping they would help clear his mind. In reality they did little other than make him feel guilty for not starting his already too busy workday earlier. Is that why he found himself sprinting full force every time he started running?

~

“Ah, man, what to do about GER… ?” Mista scratched his head with the tip of his revolver, considering the question. Most people would be hesitant to stand at the barrel of a gun, but Mista trusted Sex Pistols to never let him come to harm. Well, no harm so irreversible as brain death. Even if perhaps he shouldn’t have. “I dunno, Giogio, I’m not usually the advice guy.” he looked at Giorno, impassive as ever. “But,” he smiled at him, “I'll tell you what. I might not be able to fix anything, but I do know what you need. A distraction.”

“Distraction.”

“Yeah! Anything to just stop thinking about it.”

Giorno paused to consider. “I am very busy, Mista. But I increasingly can’t put it out of my mind.”

Mista pftt-ed automatically before suddenly remembering where he was and looking to see if Giorno was offended. He wasn’t able to tell. “Yeah, but you’re busy with work stuff. Peril, danger, stand attacks. How can you expect GER to lay low like that? Do something fun, for once.” Giorno tried to think back. ‘When did I last do something for pure enjoyment?’

~

“How was the movie? Did Tony McGire spider a lot of men?” Fugo asked, somewhat exasperated. Though he was invited, he didn’t come to the viewing, which only quietly convinced Giorno he got the name wrong on purpose. Fugo wasn’t exactly a pop culture aficionado.

“I don’t know. Fell asleep about fifteen minutes in.”

Fugo shook his head. “C’mon, Giogio. How can you expect to be taller than me one day if you keep sleeping barely four hours a night?” Fugo still retained three stubborn centimeters over Giorno, which he didn’t hesitate to mention at any available opportunity. Giorno had to admit he probably had a point, but sleeping more would leave even less time for his job, let alone having fun. He took a tentative bite of his croissant, smeared with copious butter and his favorite apricot jam; the taste was divine. He loved this quaint little cafe. But at that moment it brought him no comfort. He took his time chewing, wanting any excuse to delay the next part of this conversation. But if anyone could help him with this, it had to be Fugo. “When we came back, I tried to summon Gold Experience again. Strained so hard I felt my eyes almost pop out of their sockets. GER was just staring at me, wearing a certain disapproving expression. I might have snapped at it. Or maybe it was the one who snapped at me. Even now I'm not entirely sure. But it left a giant gash on my forehead.” He pointed to the now traceless site of the injury, undone by the very stand that caused it. Fugo sat there staring at him, mouth full of tuna salad sandwich. Giorno waited expectantly for him to swallow, silently resenting him for using the same time earning trick as himself.

“I don’t really know anything about requiem stands. Did you ask Polnareff about this?”

“I did. He even contacted the Speedwagon Foundation on my behalf to see if they can discover something useful.”

“And… ?”

“And nothing. He says he barely understands them himself. But if the original Gold Experience hadn’t asserted itself once since it was pierced with the arrow, it’s unlikely it ever will again.”

“I see.” Fugo said eventually. “If that’s the case, I think the only way forward is to accept your circumstances. You need to stop thinking up ways to bring it back. You’re just torturing yourself. You’ll never be able to make peace with GER if you only ever think of how to turn it back. Who knows? Maybe GER will change, become something bearable, even if it will never be the same Gold Experience again.” Giorno held back his response.

“Well, regarding the monthly budget-”

~

Giorno knocked on the half opened door to Coco Jumbo’s room. It was already rather late, but Polnareff would usually still be awake at this hour. From inside came an ever cheery voice “yes, come in!” It echoed like it was coming from a much bigger space than the modest room could allow. Coco Jumbo was sitting on the sofa in the corner. Normally much too tall a surface for a turtle to climb onto, given access by ramps stretching from the floor to every piece of furniture or appliance not already placed on the floor. They’d offered to get rid of the sofa, but Polnareff insisted they keep at least a small sofa and desk. As soon as he was inside the turtle Polnareff charged at him with a bear hug. The contact with his ghostly form felt a bit weird. It had mass, but wasn’t entirely solid. 

“What’s wrong Giorno? Couldn’t sleep? Something bothering you?” Coming from any other person that kind of attention would’ve felt smothering, but from him it felt genuine. Like he was asking because he wanted to hear the answer, not just out of politeness.

“I suppose.” he sat down, reminding himself not to get so comfortable as to fall asleep in the turtle. “I talked to Fugo. He said I can't live with GER if I'm constantly trying to turn it back to something that's already gone. But I can't seem to actually let it go. Even though I know it’s all useless.”

“What is it exactly about Gold Experience that you miss?”

Giorno was a bit taken aback. “How do you mean?”

“Well, Gold Experience might not be coming back, but why do you miss it in the first place? Do you know what it is about it that made you happier than GER? Maybe you can have this thing back. That same feeling, just in a different way.”

~

It was over a decade ago now. Giorno, only five years old, was sitting on the dirt in the tiny unkempt garden of their new house in italy. It was the time when his mother’s marriage was still fresh. When he was excited to make friends at this new place called “school”. When he still believed his stepdad’s wrath could be avoided if only he was well behaved enough. That garden was his refuge, a garden of eden. Crows and pigeons would fight over the right to rule the fence. Stray cats would sometimes sneak in; they might’ve let him pet them, if he gave them food scraps before. He was digging around for worms, eyes widening every time he found a squirming form in the moist ground. It made him wonder if they were placed there by a higher power just for him. The critters hiding in foliage and underground seemed like too much of a miracle to be a product of mere chance. Aristotle wrote about the theory of spontaneous generation. That living creatures could be birthed from dead, inanimate matter. And that was what humans believed for centuries. Common knowledge, really. By Giorno’s time everyone knew this was nonsense, of course; a fantasy created by prescientific minds. But Giorno was too young to have learned about such things; free to dream up explanations for the miracle in front of him.

~

Once giorno figured out how the damned UV lamp was supposed to be set up the cage was complete. Substrate, sticks, a stone to rub on, and every amenity a crested gecko could hope for. He opened the small plastic container and placed it inside the terrarium, letting the little guy step out and explore in his own time. Mista stood behind them, making faces.

“A gecko, really? Am I going to see it now every time I step in your office? Ugh, it’s face gives me the heebie-jeebies.”

“How could you say something so awful?” he said, his back still turned. Not that seeing his face would’ve given away whether or not he was joking. “In any case, his name’s Charlie, and you’re perfectly within your right to look away if his face bothers you.” When Giorno finally turned to face him, he took another sip of his tea. Out of politeness more than anything. He was never much of a tea guy, but when Giorno offered him a cup he brewed with the mint he grew himself, Mista didn’t have the heart to tell him no. Because at this point he knew Giorno well enough to see through his mysterious air; he was proud of himself.

[couplesinstitutecounseling]

The Power of Perspective

“Perspective influences belief and belief influences behavior.”

This statement has been on my mind lately. It’s not a groundbreaking concept, but it’s a timely reminder, especially with the recent election season and the holidays just around the corner.

Life is full of challenges, uncertainties, and moments of frustration. Often, it’s not the events themselves but the way you perceive them that shapes your experience. Shifting your perspective has the power to transform challenges into opportunities, uncertainty into curiosity, and resentment into gratitude. When you master the ability to shift your perspective, you gain a personal superpower—your experience is no longer dictated by external events.

I’ve seen firsthand how a simple shift in perspective can unlock new possibilities in relationships and personal growth. This change, while subtle, can ripple outward to transform your reality.

Perspective Shapes Reality

Perspective is, at its core, a way of looking at or thinking about something. How you interpret events directly impacts your beliefs and, consequently, your actions. Perspective is powerful, but it’s also deeply personal, shaped by your past experiences, culture, and values.

Your perspective acts like a filter, influencing how you view yourself, your relationships, and the world around you. Many people don’t realize how much this filter colors their interactions and interpretations.

One way I see this come up in relationships, including my own marriage, is how people keep their environments, requests changes to a partner and the meaning attributed to the relationship when the partner doesn’t do what is asked.

In my own marriage, shoes are a hot topic. My husband, Curtis, leaves his shoes in random places. It drove me crazy. I asked, explained, and even tried suggesting ways for him to organize them, but the shoes continued to appear where they didn’t belong. Early in our marriage, this seemingly small issue caused repeated arguments. I took his behavior as a sign that “I’m not important to him.” This perspective shaped my beliefs about our relationship and changed how I behaved toward Curtis.

Eventually, something had to change—and it did, starting with me.

Growth Through New Filter

Adopting a new perspective often requires stepping out of your comfort zone. It may involve questioning assumptions, seeking advice, or actively listening to others. One of the most powerful aspects of changing a perspective is its ability to break free from ineffective relationship patterns. When you’re stuck in a cycle of conflict or misunderstanding, changing your viewpoint can open up new avenues for connection and resolution.

In my “shoe saga,” I realized I couldn’t control Curtis’s behavior, and trying to do so was exhausting for both of us. I also realized I didn’t want to keep fighting over shoes—it simply wasn’t worth the emotional energy. So, I decided to shift my perspective.

Instead of seeing his scattered shoes as a sign of carelessness, disrespect, or lack of love, I reframed them as evidence that Curtis is part of my life—a life I’ve chosen to share with him—a life I want with him. I realized that if he left my life I would miss seeing his shoes around, because I would miss him. This small change in outlook was transformative. I still ask him to move his shoes, but I no longer feel angry about it. Because my reaction is calmer, Curtis is more willing to make an effort.

The situation hasn’t changed, but my experience of it has—and that’s the power of perspective.

Shifting your perspective empowers you to take control of your narrative. It allows you to see challenges as temporary and manageable rather than insurmountable roadblocks or a personal attack.

The Ripple Effect

Changing your perspective doesn’t just impact your mindset; it affects your actions and interactions, often influencing those around you. In my example, my shift in perspective changed not only how I approached Curtis but also how he responded to me. This led to a more peaceful and connected relationship.

Beyond relationships, a shift in perspective can improve your overall sense of peace and open doors to new opportunities. It’s a simple yet powerful tool that can help you navigate life’s unpredictability.

Powerful Life Tool

Ultimately, the power of shifting your perspective lies in its simplicity and accessibility. It doesn’t require a dramatic change in circumstances—just a willingness to see things differently.

Elections are won or lost. Holiday plans can go smoothly or completely blow up. Relationships feel close and connected or fractured and distant. At any given moment, things can go “your way” or feel like they’re completely falling apart. This can make life feel unpredictable and overwhelming. The power to shift your perspective changes that. It allows you to unlock new paths, find peace in chaos, and embrace life with renewed clarity and confidence.

How to Shift Your Perspective

Pause and Reflect: When you feel stuck, ask yourself, “Is there another way to view this situation?”

Practice Gratitude: Gratitude is very powerful in shifting perspective and helping you hold on to inner peace. Reframing your focus on what’s going well can help you see the bigger picture.

Seek Diverse Opinions: Gaining insight from others can help you see things from a fresh angle. Experiment with “trying on” someone else’s perspective, even if only temporarily.

Repetition: Shifting your perspective takes practice. When old habits resurface, remind yourself of the new perspective you want to adopt. Take a deep breath and repeat the new outlook to yourself a few times.

Challenge for Today: Take one frustrating situation and ask yourself, “How can I view this differently?” Notice how this shift changes your attitude—and your outcome.

As always, if you find you need more support, Reach out to us…

[fanfic-obsessed]

Mace has had enough

Here’s another funny one to go with my Anidala subtlety idea. Specifically that half the temple has a bet on when Mace Windu finally snaps. This man has been dealing with too many people’s shenanigans and deserves to chew a few people out. 

When Padme Amidala opened her front door, she was not expecting the two Jedi on her doorstep. Anakin had just left for his own meetings, so seeing him being dragged by his collar by Jedi Master Mace Windu was a bit of a surprise. 

The bald Master pushed his way into the apartment, dragging Anakin with him. He forced Anakin to sit on her couch with a dark growl. He then turned enraged eyes on her, “Padme Amidala, sit down next to you husband.”

She sat, even as Anakin tried to splutter denials.  

Mace Windu glared at them for a full three minutes until Anakin fell silent, “Yes I know you’re married. The entire Kriffing Order knows you’re married. Jon Antilles, himself, came back from the dead just to pout at not getting to attend a Noobian wedding party. I’m here to tell you if you kriffing dare to get married in the Jedi tradition without at least inviting your force damned former Master, I will make it my mission to sabotage every drop of caff either of you will ever have access to.”

Padme felt herself gape and from the corner of her eye she saw Anakin do the same.

Windu sank onto one of Padme’s chairs, rubbing his temple like he had a headache. “If I have to spend another afternoon trying to convince Obi Wan Kenobi that your actions are not, in fact, your way of telling him to get out of your life, I am going kill all of you. Honestly, like you have the ability to be that subtle.”

Anakin jerked forward, almost standing before a glare from Master Windu had him remaining in his seat “Wha…Why? Why would Obi Wan think that?”

Padme wondered if Master Windu would teach her his unimpressed glare, with that she might actually be able to get something done in the Senate.

“You mean besides your refusal to share your wedding photos with him, or even acknowledge that you are married, shutting down his every attempt to throw you a party to celebrate your relationship with the Senator, and now not letting him tell you about his own engagement so that he can ask you to stand witness?” The Master growled. 

“Obi Wan’s engaged?” Anakin yelped.

This was apparently not the right answer as Master Windu growled again. 

“I was not aware that Jedi could get married.” Padme said carefully, hoping to keep the Korun Master from attacking her husband. 

Master Windu snorted, “Anyone can get married, it’s the legality and consequences that vary. As a whole we prefer that a Jedi have at least passed their knight trials, because Padawans are still considered children in Jedi culture, but we have had a handful of Senior Padawans that married with their Master permission. And personally I would have preferred that Skywalker not have married one of the only senators that is consistently Pro Jedi, because that makes more work for everyone.” His face twisted thoughtfully, “By the way, Senator Amidala, don’t let me forget to give you the chat code for the ‘what the kark do they mean, will of the Force?’. It’s a support group for Force nulls whose partners are force sensitive. Also a Jedi Shadow will also be stopping by to make sure we have an evac plan on file for you, and that you have the emergency line for the Temple and code words handy. The healers will be in touch to get a baseline for you, then discuss the realities of potential pregnancy with you and Skywalker and options if you want to either prevent or ensure having children. If you two decide to go forward with Marriage Bond Ritual, it is also the healers that handle much of that process.”

Anakin threw up his hands, “Why didn’t anyone tell me that Jedi could get married?”

Master Windu blinked at Anakin, now looking just a bit concerned. “Skywalker, you were at Knight Bing’s wedding to Madam Geller when you were 12. You bombarded me with questions about their marriage and if that means that she would move into the temple. Should you two decide to, you certainly can contact the Quartermaster to see about a set of rooms. There are far too many empty suites in the temple these days.”

Anakin’s face twisted, “I kind of remember that, but it is really faint. Like it is a half dream.”

Master Windu hmphed, “I would go see the healers when you go back to the temple, could be that you were hit with something weird that is messing with your memories. Has anything else seemed different?”

Anakin looked like he was thinking about it but Padme was struck with how casual Master Windu was about memory loss, “Why aren’t you more concerned?”

The small smile that spread on Master Windu’s face was likely supposed to be comforting. “The Force is karking weird at times. Temples where Force Sensitives once lived and studied the Force, no matter the sect, are even weirder. If you don’t accept the fact that you will end up possessed, with missing memories, switching consciousness with other Jedi, thinking you have been transformed into a small tooka, or actually being transformed into a small tooka you will end up with a psychotic break.” Padme was not sure what face she was making but whatever it was caused Master Windu to bark out a laugh, “We’re careful around outsiders, because you never know when someone is going to freak out or use some piece of information against us, but you’re not an outsider any more. You married in, as it were. Now come on, from the look on your face, Skywalker has forgotten more than we thought and we should get him to the healers. Plus then Obi Wan can actually say the words to ask Skywalker to Bear Witness.”

Pade actually stands, then something occurs to her “Wait…Evac plan?”

Master Windu nodded, “Everyone in the Temple is very aware that the Jedi are not well regarded in many places, including here on Coruscant. The beings we share our lives with are in as much, if not more danger, to some being with a grudge and the wrong kind of power. We try to have a plan for anyone who works or lives out of the temple, just in case.”

The three go to the Jedi Temple and Padme sees the parts that never had before. She had been to the public parts of the temple, with its austere serenity full of Jedi who spoke softly and calmly to each other. Within those public spaces were the public Archives, the Council Chambers and the Halls of Healing. Master Windu insists that Anakin be dropped off at the Halls of Healing and that the Master would escort Padme to his and Obi Wan’s quarters, while Anakin would meet them there.

She considered herself a good judge of character and body language, but she had never guessed that there was anything beyond that. But now she passed through a door into a cacophony.  There was one corridor absolutely covered in pain, both wet and dried, with clones and Jedi of all ages slipping and throwing paint at each other. 

“That paint fight has been going on for almost 150 years.” Master Windu commented with amusement, “There is always someone throwing paint around.”

She had never known that Jedi could be as loud as they were, but it was almost heartbreaking when Master Windu murmured that he had never heard the temple be this silent.

They arrived at Obi Wan and Anakin’s apartment and Master Windu punched the code to open the door to a sitting room. Obi Wan and a clone that it took Padme a moment, and a glance at his face, to recognize as Commander Cody were entwined on the couch. It looked like they had been taking a rare moment to nap, or start to. 

Obi Wan’s head came up from where it was resting on Cody’s chest, “Mace? What’s going…” His voice was the kind of muzzy that came from being half asleep when he caught sight of Padme. She watched as he tensed and sat up, Cody doing the same. They did not try to separate, but some of the ease in both of them drained away. She was surprised how much that ached, even as she was self aware enough to know that she had caused the distance between them.  “Mace, what did you do?”

“Got your idiot child to sit down and listen. He’s with the healers right now.”

Obi Wan looked faintly alarmed, “Did you actually break a bone to get him to sit still?”

Master Windu shook his head, “His memories seem to be a bit spotty, he couldn’t remember that Jedi can and do get married.”

Just like Master Windu, Obi Wan took the news with less concern than Padme thought warranted. 

From there, the Healers discover that Palpatine has been manipulating Anakin’s mind for years. This sparks a bit more horror, but partial possession by a Sith (or Sith object) is on the Mission Result Bingo and the drop down for reports for a reason.  This sparks a memory of Cody’s wherere Fox was complaining about his own memory loss. They manage to get the Coruscant Guard into the Temple (by infecting them with a miserable but survivable illness that required the Force to treat. The Jedi were very apologetic but they had no idea how else to get the Guard away from the Senate without raising suspicion) and Scans reveal both the Chips and Palptaines’ continued  mental manipulation of the guard. Once the Guard (and assorted others that the Guard wanted with them) are in the temple the Jedi make all kinds of excuses why they cannot go back to the Rotunda. After the chips are found and Fox realizes that the Jedi want him to get some actual sleep, he wholeheartedly agrees. 

It is decided that with the news that Palpatine is a Sith Lord that the situation on Coruscant is about to become untenable. One of the things that the Jedi carefully kept from ‘Outsiders’ is that the Jedi Temple is a Massive City sized ship, whose levels go all the way down to the surface of Coruscant. They spend two day evacuating everyone that is Jedi and Jedi Adjacent, on Coruscant to the temple. At the same time they evacuated the Clones off Kamino. On the various GAR ships the natborn officers that did not want to leave with them were left a single cruiser (parked at a location that every ship in the GAR could get to within two days) whose hyperspace and communication abilities would return after a single tenday. The GAR then went and picked up various Jedi and Corps throughout the galaxy. Then, barring a single ship with two masters, the entire Temple ship takes off for wild space to meetup with the remainder of the GAR, the roaming Jedi, and the Corps (many clones also wanted to stay but it seemed like a bad idea considering they were all still chipped).  

Obi Wan and Mace Windu entered the Senate one last time. They do not point to Palpatine as the cause, they do not accuse him of treason, they do not accuse him of being Sith. There is no point, nothing that they have proof of is technically illegal. Instead they point out that the residents of every world that the Jedi and the Clones have set foot on in almost a year have told them to leave (mission that actually protected the populace instead of locations of strategic value ended pretty early in the war). Every single one, including Coruscant, has wished them ill. So the Jedi, and with them the clones, have decided they would abide by the wishes of the Galaxy and leave.

The two manage to leave before the uproar begins. They have people to get back too.

I am going to be honest, this came out more seriously than I intended.

[transgenderteensurvivalguide]

“Elliot Page doesn’t remember exactly how long he had been asking.

But he does remember the acute feeling of triumph when, around age 9, he was finally allowed to cut his hair short. “I felt like a boy,” Page says. “I wanted to be a boy. I would ask my mom if I could be someday.” Growing up in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Page visualized himself as a boy in imaginary games, freed from the discomfort of how other people saw him: as a girl. After the haircut, strangers finally started perceiving him the way he saw himself, and it felt both right and exciting.

The joy was short-lived. Months later, Page got his first break, landing a part as a daughter in a Canadian mining family in the TV movie Pit Pony. He wore a wig for the film, and when Pit Pony became a TV show, he grew his hair out again. “I became a professional actor at the age of 10,” Page says. And pursuing that passion came with a difficult compromise. “Of course I had to look a certain way.”

We are speaking in late February. It is the first interview Page, 34, has given since disclosing in December that he is transgender, in a heartfelt letter posted to Instagram, and he is crying before I have even uttered a question. “Sorry, I’m going to be emotional, but that’s cool, right?” he says, smiling through his tears.

It’s hard for him to talk about the days that led up to that disclosure. When I ask how he was feeling, he looks away, his neck exposed by a new short haircut. After a pause, he presses his hand to his heart and closes his eyes. “This feeling of true excitement and deep gratitude to have made it to this point in my life,” he says, “mixed with a lot of fear and anxiety.”

It’s not hard to understand why a trans person would be dealing with conflicting feelings in this moment. Increased social acceptance has led to more young people describing themselves as trans—1.8% of Gen Z compared with 0.2% of boomers, according to a recent Gallup poll—yet this has fueled conservatives who are stoking fears about a “transgender craze.” President Joe Biden has restored the right of transgender military members to serve openly, and in Hollywood, trans people have never had more meaningful time onscreen. Meanwhile, J.K. Rowling is leveraging her cultural capital to oppose transgender equality in the name of feminism, and lawmakers are arguing in the halls of Congress over the validity of gender identities. “Sex has become a political football in the culture wars,” says Chase Strangio, deputy director for transgender justice at the ACLU.

(Full article with photos continued under the “read more”)

And so Page—who charmed America as a precocious pregnant teenager in Juno, constructed dreamscapes in Inception and now stars in Netflix’s hit superhero show The Umbrella Academy, the third season of which he’s filming in Toronto—expected that his news would be met with both applause and vitriol. “What I was anticipating was a lot of support and love and a massive amount of hatred and transphobia,” says Page. “That’s essentially what happened.” What he did not anticipate was just how big this story would be. Page’s announcement, which made him one of the most famous out trans people in the world, started trending on Twitter in more than 20 countries. He gained more than 400,000 new followers on Instagram on that day alone. Thousands of articles were published. Likes and shares reached the millions. Right-wing podcasters readied their rhetoric about “women in men’s locker rooms.” Casting directors reached out to Page’s manager saying it would be an honor to cast Page in their next big movie.

So, it was a lot. Over the course of two conversations, Page will say that understanding himself in all the specifics remains a work in progress. Fathoming one’s gender, an identity innate and performed, personal and social, fixed and evolving, is complicated enough without being under a spotlight that never seems to turn off. But having arrived at a critical juncture, Page feels a deep sense of responsibility to share his truth. “Extremely influential people are spreading these myths and damaging rhetoric—every day you’re seeing our existence debated,” Page says. “Transgender people are so very real.”

That role in Pit Pony led to other productions and eventually, when Page was 16, to a film called Mouth to Mouth. Playing a young anarchist, Page had a chance to cut his hair again. This time, he shaved it off completely. The kids at his high school teased him, but in photos he has posted from that time on social media he looks at ease. Page’s head was still shaved when he mailed in an audition tape for the 2005 thriller Hard Candy. The people in charge of casting asked him to audition again in a wig. Soon, the hair was back.

Page’s tour de force performance in Hard Candy led, two years later, to Juno, a low-budget indie film that brought Page Oscar, BAFTA and Golden Globe nominations and sudden megafame. The actor, then 21, struggled with the stresses of that ascension. The endless primping, red carpets and magazine spreads were all agonizing reminders of the disconnect between how the world saw Page and who he knew himself to be. “I just never recognized myself,” Page says. “For a long time I could not even look at a photo of myself.” It was difficult to watch the movies too, especially ones in which he played more feminine roles.

Page loved making movies, but he also felt alienated by Hollywood and its standards. Alia Shawkat, a close friend and co-star in 2009’s Whip It,describes all the attention from Juno as scarring. “He had a really hard time with the press and expectations,” Shawkat says. “‘Put this on! And look this way! And this is sexy!’”

By the time he appeared in blockbusters like X-Men: The Last Stand and Inception, Page was suffering from depression, anxiety and panic attacks. He didn’t know, he says, “how to explain to people that even though [I was] an actor, just putting on a T-shirt cut for a woman would make me so unwell.” Shawkat recalls Page’s struggles with clothes. “I’d be like, ‘Hey, look at all these nice outfits you’re getting,’ and he would say, ‘It’s not me. It feels like a costume,’” she says. Page tried to convince himself that he was fine, that someone who was fortunate enough to have made it shouldn’t have complaints. But he felt exhausted by the work required to “just exist,” and thought more than once about quitting acting.

In 2014, Page came out as gay, despite feeling for years that “being out was impossible” given his career. (Gender identity and sexual orientation are, of course, distinct, but one queer identity can coexist with another.) In an emotional speech at a Human Rights Campaign conference, Page talked about being part of an industry “that places crushing standards” on actors and viewers alike. “There are pervasive stereotypes about masculinity and femininity that define how we’re all supposed to act, dress and speak,” Page went on. “And they serve no one.”

The actor started wearing suits on the red carpet. He found love, marrying choreographer Emma Portner in 2018. He asserted more agency in his career, producing his own films with LGBTQ leads like Freeheld and My Days of Mercy. And he made a masculine wardrobe a condition of taking roles. Yet the daily discord was becoming unbearable. “The difference in how I felt before coming out as gay to after was massive,” says Page. “But did the discomfort in my body ever go away? No, no, no, no.”

In part, it was the isolation forced by the pandemic that brought to a head Page’s wrestling with gender. (Page and Portner separated last summer, and the two divorced in early 2021. “We’ve remained close friends,” Page says.) “I had a lot of time on my own to really focus on things that I think, in so many ways, unconsciously, I was avoiding,” he says. He was inspired by trailblazing trans icons like Janet Mock and Laverne Cox, who found success in Hollywood while living authentically. Trans writers helped him understand his feelings; Page saw himself reflected in P. Carl’s memoir Becoming a Man. Eventually “shame and discomfort” gave way to revelation. “I was finally able to embrace being transgender,” Page says, “and letting myself fully become who I am.”

This led to a series of decisions. One was asking the world to call him by a different name, Elliot, which he says he’s always liked. Page has a tattoo that says E.P. PHONE HOME, a reference to a movie about a young boy with that name. “I loved E.T. when I was a kid and always wanted to look like the boys in the movies, right?” he says. The other decision was to use different pronouns—for the record, both he/him and they/them are fine. (When I ask if he has a preference on pronouns for the purposes of this story, Page says, “He/him is great.”)

A day before we first speak, Page will talk to his mom about this interview and she will tell him, “I’m just so proud of my son.” He grows emotional relating this and tries to explain that his mom, the daughter of a minister, who was born in the 1950s, was always trying to do what she thought was best for her child, even if that meant encouraging young Page to act like a girl. “She wants me to be who I am and supports me fully,” Page says. “It is a testament to how people really change.”

Another decision was to get top surgery. Page volunteers this information early in our conversation; at the time he posted his disclosure on Instagram, he was recovering in Toronto. Like many trans people, Page emphasizes being trans isn’t all about surgery. For some people, it’s unnecessary. For others, it’s unaffordable. For the wider world, the media’s focus on it has sensationalized transgender bodies, inviting invasive and inappropriate questions. But Page describes surgery as something that, for him, has made it possible to finally recognize himself when he looks in the mirror, providing catharsis he’s been waiting for since the “total hell” of puberty. “It has completely transformed my life,” he says. So much of his energy was spent on being uncomfortable in his body, he says. Now he has that energy back.

For the transgender community at large, visibility does not automatically lead to acceptance. Around the globe, transgender people deal disproportionately with violence and discrimination. Anti-trans hate crimes are on the rise in the U.K. along with increasingly transphobic rhetoric in newspapers and tabloids. In the U.S., in addition to the perennial challenges trans people face with issues like poverty and homelessness, a flurry of bills in state legislatures would make it a crime to provide transition-related medical care to trans youth. And crass old jokes are still in circulation. When Biden lifted the ban on open service for transgender troops, Saturday Night Live’s Michael Che did a bit on Weekend Update about the policy being called “don’t ask, don’t tuck.”

Page says coming out as trans was “selfish” on one level: “It’s for me. I want to live and be who I am.” But he also felt a moral imperative to do so, given the times. Human identity is complicated and mysterious, but politics insists on fitting everything into boxes. In today’s culture wars, simplistic beliefs about gender—e.g., chromosomes = destiny—are so widespread and so deep-seated that many people who hold those beliefs don’t feel compelled to consider whether they might be incomplete or prejudiced. On Feb. 24, after a passionate debate on legislation that would ban discrimination against LGBTQ people, Representative Marie Newman, an Illinois Democrat, proudly displayed the pride flag in support of her daughter, who is trans. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Georgia Republican, responded by hanging a poster outside her office that read: There are TWO genders: MALE & FEMALE.

The next day Dr. Rachel Levine, who stands to become the first openly transgender federal official confirmed by the Senate, endured a tirade from Senator Rand Paul about “genital mutilation” during her confirmation hearing. My second conversation with Page happens shortly after this. He brings it up almost immediately, and seems both heartbroken and determined. He wants to emphasize that top surgery, for him, was “not only life-changing but lifesaving.” He implores people to educate themselves about trans lives, to learn how crucial medical care can be, to understand that lack of access to it is one of the many reasons that an estimated 41% of transgender people have attempted suicide, according to one survey.

Page has been in the political trenches for a while, having leaned into progressive activism after coming out as queer in 2014. For two seasons, he and best friend Ian Daniel filmed Gaycation, a Viceland series that explored LGBTQ culture around the world and, at one point, showed Page grilling Senator Ted Cruz at the Iowa State Fair about discrimination against queer people. In 2019, Page made a documentary called There’s Something in the Water, which explores environmental hardships experienced by communities of color in Nova Scotia, with $350,000 of his own money. That activism extends to his own industry: in 2017, he published a Facebook post that, among other things, accused director Brett Ratner of forcibly outing him as gay on the set of an X-Men movie. (A representative for Ratner did not respond to a request for comment.)

As a trans person who is white, wealthy and famous, Page has a unique kind of privilege, and with it an opportunity to advocate for those with less. According to the U.S. Trans Survey, a large-scale report from 2015, transgender people of color are more likely to experience unemployment, harassment by police and refusals of medical care. Nearly half of all Black respondents reported being denied equal treatment, verbally harassed and/or physically attacked in the past year. Trans people as a group fare much worse on such stats than the general population. “My privilege has allowed me to have resources to get through and to be where I am today,” Page says, “and of course I want to use that privilege and platform to help in the ways I can.”

Since his disclosure, Page has been mostly quiet on social media. One exception has been to tweet on behalf of the ACLU, which is in the midst of fighting anti-trans bills and laws around the country, including those that ban transgender girls and women from participating in sports. Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves says he will sign such a bill in the name of “protect[ing] young girls.” Page played competitive soccer and vividly recalls the agony of being told he would have to play on the girls’ team once he aged out of mixed-gender squads. After an appeal, Page was allowed to play with the boys for an additional year. Today, several bills list genitalia as a requirement for deciding who plays on which team. “I would have been in that position as a kid,” Page says. “It’s horrific.”

All this advocacy is unlikely to make life easier. “You can’t enter into certain spaces as a public trans person,” says the ACLU’s Strangio, “without being prepared to spend some percentage of your life being threatened and harassed.” Yet, while he seems overwhelmed at times, Page is also eager. Many of the political attacks on trans people—whether it is a mandate that bathroom use be determined by birth sex, a blanket ban on medical interventions for trans kids or the suggestion that trans men are simply wayward women beguiled by male privilege—carry the same subtext: that trans people are mistaken about who they are. “We know who we are,” Page says. “People cling to these firm ideas [about gender] because it makes people feel safe. But if we could just celebrate all the wonderful complexities of people, the world would be such a better place.”

Even if Page weren’t vocal, his public presence would communicate something powerful. That is in part because of what Paisley Currah, a professor of political science at Brooklyn College, calls “visibility gaps.” Historically, trans women have been more visible, in culture and in Hollywood, than trans men. There are many explanations: Our culture is obsessed with femininity. Men’s bodies are less policed and scrutinized. Patriarchal people tend to get more emotional about who is considered to be in the same category as their daughters. “And a lot of trans men don’t stand out as trans,” says Currah, who is a trans man himself. “I think we’ve taken up less of the public’s attention because masculinity is sort of the norm.”

During our interviews, Page will repeatedly refer to himself as a “transgender guy.” He also calls himself nonbinary and queer, but for him, transmasculinity is at the center of the conversation right now. “It’s a complicated journey,” he says, “and an ongoing process.”

While the visibility gap means that trans men have been spared some of the hate endured by trans women, it has also meant that people like Page have had fewer models. “There were no examples,” Page says of growing up in Halifax in the 1990s. There are many queer people who have felt “that how they feel deep inside isn’t a real thing because they never saw it reflected back to them,” says Tiq Milan, an activist, author and transgender man. Page offers a reflection: “They can see that and say, ‘You know what, that’s who I am too,’” Milan says. When there aren’t examples, he says, “people make monsters of us.”

For decades, that was something Hollywood did. As detailed in the 2020 Netflix documentary Disclosure, transgender people have been portrayed onscreen as villainous and deceitful, tragic subplots or the butt of jokes. In a sign of just how far the industry has come—spurred on by productions like Pose and trailblazers like Mock—Netflix offered to change the credits on The Umbrella Academy the same day that its star posted his statement on social media. Now when an episode ends, the first words viewers see are “Elliot Page.”

Today, there are many out trans and nonbinary actors, directors and producers. Storylines involving trans people are more common, more respectful. Sometimes that aspect of identity is even incidental, rather than the crux of a morality tale. And yet Hollywood can still seem a frightening place for LGBTQ people to come out. “It’s an industry that says, ‘Don’t do that,’” says director Silas Howard, who got his break on Amazon’s show Transparent, which made efforts to hire transgender crew members. “I wouldn’t have been hired if they didn’t have a trans initiative,” Howard says. “I’m always aware of that.”

So what will it mean for Page’s career? While Page has appeared in many projects, he also faced challenges landing female leads because he didn’t fit Hollywood’s narrow mold. Since Page’s Instagram post, his team is seeing more activity than they have in years. Many of the offers coming in—to direct, to produce, to act—are trans-related, but there are also some “dude roles.”

Downtime in quarantine helped Page accept his gender identity. “I was finally able to embrace being transgender,” he says.

Page was attracted to the role of Vanya in The Umbrella Academy because—in the first season, released in 2019—Vanya is crushed by self-loathing, believing herself to be the only ordinary sibling in an extraordinary family. The character can barely summon the courage to move through the world. “I related to how much Vanya was closed off,” Page says. Now on set filming the third season, co-workers have seen a change in the actor. “It seems like there’s a tremendous weight off his shoulders, a feeling of comfort,” says showrunner Steve Blackman. “There’s a lightness, a lot more smiling.” For Page, returning to set has been validating, if awkward at times. Yes, people accidentally use the wrong pronouns—“It’s going to be an adjustment,” Page says—but co-workers also see and acknowledge him.

The debate over whether cisgender people, who have repeatedly collected awards for playing trans characters, should continue to do so has largely been settled. However, trans actors have rarely been considered for cisgender parts. Whatever challenges might lie ahead, Page seems exuberant about playing a new spectrum of roles. “I’m really excited to act, now that I’m fully who I am, in this body,” Page says. “No matter the challenges and difficult moments of this, nothing amounts to getting to feel how I feel now.”

This includes having short hair again. During our interview, Page keeps rearranging strands on his forehead. It took a long time for him to return to the barber’s chair and ask to cut it short, but he got there. And how did that haircut feel?

Page tears up again, then smiles. “I just could not have enjoyed it more,” he says.”

[elina-sakura]

Okay, I had to reblog this in order to respond to some of the comments I got because for some reason it is not showing up in the comments, and that is just frustrating for me. So I’m just gonna reblog here not just to respond to the comments, but also so other people who has the same claims can see as well (and I don’t have to repeat myself over and over).

NOTE: PLEASE DO NOT ATTACK ANYONE WHO HAS A DIFFERENT OPINION THAN MINE OR YOURS. AND PLEASE DO NOT ATTACK THE PERSON I’M RESPONDING TOO; THEY’RE ALLOW TO HAVE A DIFFERENT OPINION THAN OURS, EVEN IF WE DON’T AGREE WITH THEM.

Okay, let me start with the responses.

“Marinette became confident after she became Ladybug.”

While that is true, that is not what I was referring too. I was referring to way before Marinette got the Ladybug Miraculous. In Origins Part 1, when we first see the two interact, Marinette didn’t seem all that scared of her. More like annoyed and just done with her, like she’s an annoying fly she has to tolerate with.

Now you could argue that maybe Marinette has hyped herself to build a backbone for herself by Socqueline’s words, and that could be the case. However, the problem is that you don’t just go from being scared of an abuser to having an attitude of just being done with her. It’s not like a straight line of improvement and changes, especially when it’s toward a girl whose goal seems to be to make her life miserable no matter what Marinette does, and (according to the timeline) almost got her drowned just a few months ago. You would think there would at least be some sort of apprehensiveness when meeting her bully again.

“Chloé toned down her attitude for Adrien.”

Here is where I disagree with your point. We have seen throughout the show that Chloé is completely fine with bullying others in front of Adrien, or admitting her wrongdoings to Adrien immediately. Like in Origins Part 2, Adrien sees Chloé and Sabrina putting gum on one of the seats and confronts her on it, and she just explains it to him and say “he has a lot to learn about school culture,” like this is normal behavior that they should be exhibiting. Considering how we later explore more on their social class, this kind of attitude seems to be uncommon and expected actually, so it’s not really unexpected from Chloé’s character. And Chloé continues to exhibit her awful behavior in front of Adrien and not try to hide it, like in Horrificator with insulting Mylène, Reflekta when she tried to force herself next to Adrien, and Despair Bear when she called the fire department, tried to frame Marinette for it, and lets the whole school get punish for her action while she gets out of it scot-free. And all those times, Adrien has called Chloé out on her behavior, but she doesn’t try to hide it or cover up her actions to make herself look good. She even won’t hide when she does something so big like Despair Bear when Adrien asks if she was the one who called the fire department, and instead of hiding it in risk it could upset Adrien, she just flats out admit to it like she expects him to not be bothered by it and share the same feelings as her. So it wouldn’t make sense why Chloé would tone down her attitude for Adrien when she doesn’t seem to try to hide it from him.

“Marinette has forgiven Kim for the prank, and knows Kim didn’t mean to hurt her.”

Now again, I can see where the idea comes from. Marinette’s forgiving nature is both a strength and a flaw of hers. While she is willing to forgive others when they hurt her, that doesn’t mean their actions hasn’t harmed her. She just tends to brush aside her misgivings when she learns they didn’t mean to hurt her. Now you could speculate maybe after Marinette learned how nice of a person Adrien is, maybe she decided to give Kim a second chance, believing he is still a nice person deep down.

However, there are a couple of problems that contradicts these statements.

First is that we have never seen Marinette and Kim talk to each other about the event. If this is such a big deal considering the flashback is suppose to be important (like a turning point in Marinette’s backstory), then we should see a moment of Marinette realizing maybe Kim isn’t that bad as she might have thought (despite what he did was more horrible than gum on her seat). However, what Derision shows is that Marinette still subconsciously believes that Kim was pretending to be nice to hurt her, as shown with her outburst towards Adrien. So if that’s the case, she should still have apprehensions with Kim at this point of time (which is suppose to be the end of the school year), which contradicts their interactions beforehand.

The second thing to point out, while following up on my last point, is that the whole point of the event that happened is to explain why Marinette is so overly-cautious of her crush with Adrien by getting to know every details about him, and one of the biggest emphasis she makes on making sure she knows about her crush is making sure they aren’t friends with Chloé. Now you can argue she decides to accept her feelings for Adrien is because she has seen him be kind in words and actions and vulnerable about his feelings, and she has acted on what she said in the flashback as well to know everything about him. But if she still believes her claims that she won’t interact with those who are friends with Chloé, she should still be apprehensive to be around Kim. After all, it’s Kim helping Chloé to humiliate Marinette that created her apprehension of anybody who are friends with Chloé.

My final point argues against the follow-up of the claim that Marinette knew Kim didn’t know. By that knowledge, it would mean Marinette have to know Chloé was solely at fault and she should be more wary of Chloé interfering with her love life again than being obsessed with knowing every details about her crush. Plus, it seems that Marinette only realizes that Kim wasn’t intending to hurt her after having gotten to know him over the school year and reflecting on her past trauma. Earlier in the episode, with how Marinette is still subconsciously worried Adrien could hurt her, then by extension, she should still believe Kim was in on Chloé’s prank, so that means their interaction, again, should be tensed.

“Marinette did try to give Chloé a second chance.”

Now this, I have to agree with Eris from the comments on. Marinette didn’t actually choose to give Chloé a second chance of her own will; she had to be nudged by both the narrative and the characters to do so in the episodes Despair Bear, Zombizou, and Malediktator. And in those episodes, the narrative frames it as Marinette was being unreasonable with Chloé (despite narratively having good reasons to not trust her) and learned to hold out hope that Chloé can change, so that’s why she gets that hope. But the episode Derision ends up proving Marinette’s apprehension right as she was practically abused by Chloé, and could have died by one of her pranks. She was making Marinette’s life miserable beforehand, it was even her goal. At least that’s what Derision tried to frame Chloé’s bullying as. Now it makes the characters look bad and the narrative even that you just forgive your abusers (and almost makes me glad Astruc actually stopped the redemption arc. Keyword being almost because this narrative was never introduced until years later audience-wise and the last season of the first narrative arc).

Now let me clarify, Marinette is in no way have to forgive Chloé even if she did get a redemption arc. Whatever Chloé did in the past, whether it’s petty teasing or making her life miserable everyday, it still affected Marinette to this day. So she does not owe Chloé any forgiveness unless she truly sees Chloé make an effort to change and sticks to it over the years.

So these are all my responses to the comments. I hope these arguments are critically valid, and you are free to try to argue back. I don’t really mind, it allows me to do critical thinking when it comes my argument. And thanks to the commenter for their comments, even if I don’t agree with you, it was nice to practice critical counterarguments. And again, please do not attack the commenter, they are free to disagree with me.

So after watching a YouTube video yesterday, I finally realized why I have such an issue with Derision, or more specifically the backstory it provided: it just doesn’t fit.

Let’s say that the Miraculous narrative is a set of puzzles, and we’re getting the full picture of the backstory before the series, or more specifically, the characters like Marinette and Chloé. We’ve already been established that the two girls have a history with each for at least three-four years, that Chloé has been a bully towards Marinette, and that in results worsens her anxiety. Yet it has never been shown anything more than Chloé being petty against Marinette, and eventually becoming a rival that clash because of their beliefs and personalities.

Then Derision comes along, and reveals that Chloé has actually been more an abuser who did harmful pranks, isolated her from her peers, ruined her reputation to be made out as a bad kid, and masterminded a prank that could have literally killed Marinette and caused everlasting trauma for her. Now let me be clear, what happened was terrible and Chloé is a terrible person for it. If this is the narrative they have been trying to paint, that is the truth we unfortunately accept.

But it is hard to accept it, because this goes against the narrative we’ve seen for the past years, and contradicts a lot of stuff in both backstory and character interactions, again focusing on Chloé and Marinette. If Chloé has been so terrible this whole time as shown in Derision, why is Marinette just more annoyed with Chloé and able to take her on so easily?You could say it may have been the words of encouragement from Socqueline, but Marinette should still be anxious and scared of Chloé still. Chloé has tormented Marinette for years, Marinette has no support to help back her up, and now that she doesn’t have Socqueline by her side to defend her, she’s on her own (at least that should be her thought process the whole time before meeting Alya).

Also, we have seen multiple times Marinette and Kim interacting with each other, and it’s always been at least friendly with each other. Marinette has never been shown to be uncomfortable around him, especially in Dark Cupid where they most interacted. If they had a bad history this whole time with each other, then why are they acting like nothing happened. I know people are going to say “maybe she subconsciously repressed the memories,” and that might be the case, especially with Kim. It seemed to imply she tried to forget it. But I’m not sure if that is the case in real life, so please take what I said with a grain of salt and I’m sorry if it was offensive.

However, it still doesn’t explain the very different dynamic relationship with Marinette and Chloé. Chloé has done much more things besides the prank/near-death experience she masterminded in, and that should have Marinette more apprehensive and scared of Chloé. Heck, it would make her willing to give Chloé a second chance all the more weirder because why would she ever give back the Bee Miraculous to Chloé, and always keep opening her mind to thinking “maybe she’ll change.”

In conclusion, Derision is like a puzzle piece that the writers are trying to fit into Marinette’s and Chloé’s backstory. However, it does not fit as it contradicts with the narrative they already set up. But instead of trying to move this backstory idea somewhere else like for another story, they forced it in, not caring that it’ll upset the picture they were putting together.

[yostresswritinggirl]

I… don’t really have to tell you which fic I like lol.

Scaramance = Puppet reader is a passenger and pillow prince/princess. He will drive them where they want when they want, he’ll carry the bags, don’t worry baby, embrace the spoiling.

I don’t really insert myself into the stories! Kinda of weird? But I see the distinction between the reader inserts because each story has different settings/requirements and it’s vague enough to input the other bits if you get what I mean.

It’s… like a diving board? For me at least, since I read the story and I don’t get attacked by thoughts until after I read it all. Then I start doing regular everyday stuff and my mind wanders to it and then the gears start turning. And then I’m trapped in brain rot hell.

A really good thing about your writing is how you set up the story so it provides a rather solid foundation for brain rots, which are like the furniture!

I haven’t read a story from you that I didn’t like. If anything, I just haven’t been brave enough to throw out ideas until Scara.

Scara is the grumpy neighborhood cat you decide to follow one day only to see him jump on a spiked fence to visit his beloved puppet reader and suddenly you’re invested in their fluffy love story. And I did fall in love with their relationship. It’s more than the typical friendship/romance and captures just how complex love can be? It’s… it’s a quiet and not so loud love but you see him and you know that whatever he has with puppet reader, it is where eternity is found. (Hehe, eternity, get it?)

Just as there is love in the way that everyone checks on Collei to make sure she’s okay and the way Cyrus checks up on reader and they actively communicate about their lives. There’s love in how Tighnari lets them and Cyno lay on him and he holds their hands as he listens to their soft whispers and oh, Cyno makes a joke and-. There’s love when they include Karkata and Kevah at dinner, and they share stories and jokes and laugh and laugh into the late hours of the night.

Because love (from where I live) is so, so closely associated with a sexual romance where the guy wins the girl no matter what he does to her and how he’s always stoic and can’t be vulnerable. And the culture I was raised in is one where the men can have affairs and no one bats an eye but that’s a whole another story.

But there’s love in your story even if the focus is romance. In bits and pieces here and there that speaks about their willingness to be open about it and I think we should start remembering love (platonic, romantic, and familial) in all the little places that we end up overlooking because we’re so used to it.

This got long and off topic so I’ll end it here, but I would love the idea of love. Not blindly. But that it exists and it doesn’t have to be overwhelming all the time. The kind of love that you learn to speak and watch as you grow as a person. And!!!! It’s okay if two people grow into people who are no longer compatible because it doesn’t erase the love that was/is there. Because you can end the relationship amicably and fall in love again and be surrounded by love from friends (in real life and online!!!) and family.

Okay, I’m done for real now.

Bloom anon

(survey) Holy crap, this reads like a poem, a masterpiece, bloom anon. It's so beautiful, and the bits of headcanons stuck between is both hilarious and amazing

Also the part with Scaramouche dragging reader around is so in line with his Wanderer occupation for real, I can imagine them in a modern au that's always traveling to the point that their friends only get updated by their socmed photos together in some other country or region. While Scaramouche carries the luggage, Reader always has those neck pillows around their neck and their drinks in hand (they hold the drink up for Scara to drink when his hands are full) (eternity joke so tru tho, that's what I was trying to convey!!)

I am sorry about the death of romance in your area, honestly that's kind of the same here in my country too and I try to not embody that for the next generation. But thank you for the sweetness in noticing the details! I do adore the many ways romance can be shown (Romance is actually not my go to genre in every media I consume haha) and as such, refrain from writing cliches

But I think the biggest factor is that I'm a demiromantic, romance that is cultivated and grown is my specialty, romance that naturally occurs. And perhaps my preference to not overly romanticize things can sometimes make fics look like platonic and familial too, which I don't mind at all

Absolutely beautiful words, bloom anon, thank you. Let love foster here, small or not, and I wish to continue showing everyone the many beautiful forms of love

[myherowritings]

PART 2. LOVE IS FAKE, MARRY A WEALTHY SUITOR

SUMMARY. Todoroki Shouto was a wealthy, young CEO who inherited his father’s enterprise. You were a barista at a local cafe who wouldn’t mind some extra cash. One day, Shouto came in during an early morning shift and tipped you such a large sum of money, you were certain it had to have been an accident. To your surprise and complete pleasure: It was not.

PAIRING. ceo!todoroki shouto x barista!reader

WORD COUNT. 2.5k

GENRE. ceo/barista au, fluff, eventual smut

WARNINGS. none in this chapter

A/N. thank u guys for all the positive feedback on this series so far and i really hope u enjoy this chapter too ! ^-^ xx sof

SERIES MASTERLIST

© myherowritings — all rights reserved. reposting, modifying, copying, or translating of any kind is not allowed. do not read my writing as asmr. do not plagiarize.

It seemed your subtle pleas to the gods to see the mysterious businessman again had been answered, since only the day after Shouto gave you a $100 tip, you saw him at the cafe. 

You looked to the skies with a hint of suspicion. This seemed too easy— You were expecting at least a few weeks of your heart pining as you wondered where-oh-where your dreamy customer could have gone. But instead, after a mere 24 hours later, you saw him enter the store in a pair of pressed trousers and a light blue, button up shirt that was rolled just below his elbows. 

Blinking, you drew your attention away from his exposed forearms. You knew he was attractive from your first encounter, but was he always this hot? 

Sadly, you couldn’t focus too much on that since he had to get behind the line and obstruct himself from your view, and you had to take the order of the next customer. 

“Hi! I can take the next person in line.” You smiled. “Good morning! What can I get started for you today?”

After repeating that five or so more times and starting a few drinks on hot bar, you finally reached Shouto’s place and, thankfully, there didn’t seem to be too many patrons piling behind him. 

“Good morning, Shouto!” you greeted when he stepped forward to the counter. “How are you this morning?”

“Better now that I saw you.” 

Your smile faltered as your cheeks heated up, but you tried to brush it off with a laugh. While Shouto had the definite looks of a so-called businessman playboy, his words held none of the flirtatious intonation as one might expect. In fact, he sounded like he genuinely meant it— Like he was only stating a simple fact and had no reason to be shameful. 

It felt both like an attack on your heart and like a refreshing glass of water at the same time. 

“How about you?” he continued. 

“I could say the same thing,” you said with a chuckle, but you found yourself meaning everything you told him. Though you didn’t expect to see him again at the cafe so soon, you couldn’t deny the instant he walked through the doors, your morning felt just a little bit brighter. “Didn’t think I’d see you again so soon, but this is a pleasant surprise.” 

Shouto had the decency to look a little bashful as he averted his gaze slightly. “Yeah. I…really liked the...cheese danishes.” 

Surprised, a small giggle left your lips. “Don’t tell me you finished all three dozen of them!”

“Well…” He looked even more sheepish. “I didn’t exactly… I guess you could say that.” 

“I’m glad you liked them so much you came back for more,” you teased, looking down at the pastries from the oven you just stocked. “Sadly, our fresh pastry today is a chocolate croissant. I can tell my manager to have cheese danishes made again soon though!”

He shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll try the chocolate croissants today then. Maybe five dozen this time.” 

Five multiplied by twelve… A whole 60 chocolate croissants? Were they all for him? You shrugged, not one to judge. If someone wanted to eat 60 croissants, so be it. Though you did hope he wouldn’t eat it all in one sitting. That might give him a stomachache. 

“Alrighty, five dozen chocolate croissants,” you repeated as you typed it into the register. “And would you like any beverages with that? Another flat white maybe?” 

“Actually, I’ll have a large macchiato with two extra shots of espresso this time.” 

You nodded with a hum. “Long day ahead?” 

“Unfortunately.” 

“I hope the coffee and croissants can carry you through, Shouto!” you said, wishing his day would go by smoothly. “Will that be all for you today?”

“Thank you, Y/N. I hope so too. And yes, that’s it.”

“Great. $73.24 is your total then! Will you be paying in card again?” 

He nodded. 

“Go ahead and scan and sign when you’re ready.”

You busied yourself by writing his name and order on a large cup and starting the espresso pulls. Your manager was helping get the pastries and other orders ready this morning, so it was nowhere near as hectic as yesterday. 

“Your order will be to your right. It was nice seeing you again, Shouto.” You smiled, giving him a small wave and already wishing you could hold the line up to talk to him longer. “See you tomorrow morning?” you asked almost hesitantly.

He returned your smile with upturned lips of his own. “Yeah. Tomorrow.” Before he left the counter, he pulled out another $100 bill—did he go to a dry cleaners to have his cash steamed and ironed? It was almost ridiculously crisp—and handed it to you. “A tip to show my appreciation for your service.”

“A-Again?” you stammered, eyes wide. That was $200 in two days from just his tip alone. That was more than you made in two weeks when you worked part-time! “Are you sure?”

Whether he had money to spare or not, this was incredibly generous of him and you would never have expected this amount from anyone. And it wasn’t like Shouto made it a scene for everyone in the shop to look at and gawk; he was subtle yet unashamed. Like he wanted to do it for no other reason than to do it. 

“Of course. You deserve it for your work, Y/N.”

The customer behind him made an impatient noise and you winced. You wanted to be able to thank him more, but all you had time for was a simple, “Thank you, I really appreciate it.”

Shouto nodded in response before walking to the other side of the cafe to wait for his order while you managed the other customers in line, a fuzzy but warm feeling lingering in your stomach from your bizarre interaction. Money or not, you enjoyed seeing him in the mornings and were already looking forward to your brief conversations that would take place the next days to come.

He certainly gave you something to look forward to amidst the inconsiderate customers who barely saw you as human every morning. Sometimes, that was all you could ask for. 

When Shouto left the store and the line had died down towards the end of rush hour, your manager approached you with a curious look on her face. 

“That guy named Shouto…?” Miyazaki said. 

You nodded. 

“A friend of yours?”

“You could say that… We just met yesterday’s morning shift,” you said as you finished up the green tea latte for one of the remaining stragglers from the last hour’s boom. “But he’s really friendly I think.”

“You only recently became associated?” she asked, lifting a brow. “It seemed like you two were quite chummy today.” Then, nudged your side. “He was rather attractive don’t you think? And rich-looking.”

Fumbling with the lid on the beverage, you stifled a surprised cough. Sure, you got along with your boss and thought she was one of the more understanding and kind individuals you have worked under, but gossiping about the looks and potential income of a customer with your 56-year-old manager was not on your bingo sheet as a worker here.

“I…” You called out the order for the latte before turning back to your manager. “He is.”

“Ooh, he’s rich?”

“I meant he’s attractive!” you sputtered, feeling abashed at her blunt words. You thought of the tip he gave you in your pocket and his orders of dozens of pastries. “Rich…maybe so. Not that it matters!” 

Miyazaki tsked. “Of course it matters! Marry rich and your life will be easier. That’s what my mother told me and what her mother told her.” She shook her head. “Should’ve listened.” 

You laughed, feeling only a little awkward. It wasn’t the first time you heard that sentiment from someone older than you. It wasn’t uncommon for family members or even workers you were close to to share that same advice—if you could even call it that.

While you agreed money could make a lot of things easier, marrying someone for wealth didn’t appeal to you. But you recognized that even that may come from a place of privilege to be able to say. 

“He seems like a wealthy suitor for you, yes?”

“Suitor—?” you choked out. “No! I mean— We just met! We don’t know anything about each other really.”

She sighed, “Young people and their obsession with marrying someone they ‘know’ for true love. When do you really know someone anyway?” Waving a hand she changed the topic. “But enough of that. What I wanted to say was next time that man comes in here, we can offer him a complimentary box of a dozen pastries— Since he’s spent so much in so little it feels like the right thing to do.”

“Sure. A complimentary dozen.” Finally. Work. A topic you felt much more comfortable talking about. “That, I can do.” 

“And then maybe offer a hand in marriage while you’re at it.”

“Mrs. Miyazaki!” you gasped, feeling only mildly affronted. 

“I joke.” She ruffled her hair and smoothed down her apron. “I’m going to make more pastries now. Can you hold up the front?” 

“You can count on me.”

“I know I can. Thanks for your hard work!” 

And with that, she headed to the backroom where the kitchen was to leave you alone with your thoughts in a quiet cafe. Rush hour ended so there were only a few customers trickling in, most much kinder and more pleasant to talk to than the bustling businessmen of the earlier shift. 

Throughout your small conversations with the patrons, you found yourself thinking back to two things— One, how interesting traditional values and teachings in collectivist cultures were and questioning where you fell into place with them, and two…wondering about Shouto. 

Tomorrow, he had said before he left. You’d see him again tomorrow. 

Oddly enough, you were looking forward to it more than you’d like to admit. 

— ✩ —

It was the fifth day of the week, the fifth time he had seen you at the cafe, and he was already tempted to see you again. Would it be invasive to get another pastry after work? Would you even be there working at that hour?

Shouto saw you this morning (along with all the other mornings before that) and yet he couldn’t quell the pull he felt towards you with only the short interaction time you had together. But he would take what he could get without being weird. 

He had been told in the past he could be too forward and dysregulate his feelings and scare people off, and that wasn’t something he wanted to risk with you, though he was certainly much better at it now with learning and practice. If he was reading things correctly, you at least seemed to enjoy seeing him during your shift. 

“You got more pastries, sir?” an employee from the medical supplies sector asked him gleefully. “I swear they get better each time!”

Shouto nodded with a smile. “I’m glad you like it. I’ll be sure to relay your compliment.”

With the dozens of pastries he’s been ordering from your cafe (each order seeming to grow every time he visited after realizing just how much his employees enjoyed it), he would place them around the breakrooms and staff kitchens in the establishment. Those areas were always fully stocked with drinks and sandwiches and chocolates in case anyone needed a little boost, but nothing seemed to bring as much comfort as freshly baked pastries did. And a different baked good almost everyday seemed to give people more to get excited about. 

He owed it all to your sales’ pitch and blinding smile that made him want to buy it. And your personality, of course.

His Personal Secretary had started to wonder why she no longer was tasked with his early morning coffee runs, and Shouto had to find a way to answer without saying it was because there was a barista he wanted to keep talking to. 

Not even he was that shameless. 

The first time, his PS had just called in sick and Shouto decided he might as well head to a cafe himself for the first time in a while. He worried he might have been rusty while ordering, but you did such a good job at being welcoming and guiding the transaction that he found himself actually enjoying it. (Enjoying you, maybe. But it was too soon to admit that.) 

And now, after that initial meeting, he decided it was worth half an hour of his day to give his PS some early morning break time and visit the cafe himself. 

It was worth it so much, in fact, that the next morning on a Saturday, despite most of his employees being given the weekend off, he still went to buy some coffee and pastries. 

“Good morning!” an older lady called as he entered the front doors. Shouto had seen her assisting in shifts and baking pastries when you were busy working the cash register. “What can I get started for you today?”

He looked around the store—relatively quiet compared to the rush hour during the weekdays—and to his disappointment, saw no sight of you. 

The current barista laughed, seeming to read his very thoughts. “Looking for someone? Y/N perhaps?”

His gaze shot up, feeling like a kid getting caught doing something he wasn’t supposed to by his guardian. Cautiously, he gave a small nod. 

“‘Fraid they have the weekends off, actually,” the lady—her name tag read Miyazaki—said. “But don’t look so down, they’ll be back on Monday morning to greet you with a smile.”

He nodded again, feeling his face heat up. Was he that transparent or did Miyazaki just know too much? “Thank you, ma’am.”

She chuckled, waving him over. “No need to be so formal. Now, is there anything I can get for you? Or were you just visiting in hopes of asking our dear Y/N out?”

“No— I…” Shouto felt himself averting his gaze. “I’ll order something.”

At his apparent discomfort, her mischievous gaze softened. “Of course, hon. Sorry for teasing too much. I was just excited seeing how adorable you and Y/N were.” She cleared her throat. “I mean, that’s not my business. Anyway. What can I get started for you?”

He asked for a macchiato and a couple dozen of today’s pastries, paid, and tipped. (Though, it was initially met with a blatant rejection. He didn’t take it too hard; he knew some older members of society thought of tips as insulting and he’d never force anyone to take a tip if it made them feel bad. But after offering again, she thankfully accepted it.)

When he left the cafe, although the exchange was pleasant enough, Shouto still found himself disappointed he wasn’t able to see you. 

At least he had something to look forward to next Monday morning, though part of him wished the day would somehow come sooner. 

a/n: hope u enjoyed miyazaki’s words of wisdom u.u FHKDF i’m totally kidding, but if ur asian like me then u kNOW what convos like that are like omg ,, just had my mom and two grandmas tell me that recently :’/ kskskfd but anyway i hope u enjoyed this chapter and liked seeing a glimpse of shouto’s thoughts ;3 tysm for reading!

what to expect in the next part:

more shouto and y/n :>

maybe some ~flirting~ pfft idk idk u.u

some minor...misunderstandings 

“hello, zuko here” vibes

[anenbylittlepotato]

mc asking the demon bros to do the pocky challenge with them? :o

Ooh, I really like this idea!

The Bros Reacting to MC Asking to Do the Pocky Challenge with Them

The Dateables Here

You go up to this brother and hold up a box of Pocky, asking them to do the Pocky challenge with you. Though you might have to explain what it is, depending on the brother, as not all of them are caught up on human culture.

Lucifer

You'll definitely have to explain it to him because he has no idea what you're talking about-

When you do explain it, he'll blink, taken aback which is pretty rare for him.

There's also a hint of a blush on his cheeks. Quick take a pic before it goes away!

But once he composes himself, he gets that iconic and infuriating smirk across his face.

He'll gladly accept. Any chance to be close to you like that is good for him.

He waits patiently for to put the stick in your mouth before placing his hand on the wall behind you and gently taking up his end. Then you begin.

He's... Surprisingly good at this??? He's obviously never done it before, but he's really good at not letting the pocky fall. And he's super steady too, so it's not hard to keep up. Honestly, he's doing most of the work.

And at the end when your lips meet, he holds the kiss, his hands moving to your waist.

Then he pulls away and smirks at you.

"Well, that's quite an intimate little game of yours. But don't you think that's quite a roundabout way of getting a kiss? You could have just asked, you know."

Mammon

You'll probably have to explain it to him too. He may enjoy going down to the human world a lot, but that's mostly to make money. He doesn't pay much attention to their trends.

When you do explain, his entire face turns red and he becomes a flustered mess. Just what are you trying to DO to him, human???

At first, he'll refuse, too embarrassed to even try.

But as he watches you start to walk away, he immediately changes his mind. Wait come back- he'll do it! He doesn't want you doing it with anyone else!

He fidgets nervously as he waits for you to put the stick in your mouth. Once it's there, he puts his hands on your shoulders and takes up his end.

The opposite of Lucifer, he's really bad at it. Like, really, really bad. He's trembling and shaking too much to do it properly and he keeps going too fast. Safe to say you two drop it several times and have to restart.

But when you finally get it and your lips meet, he'll definitely hold it. Actually, he might not wanna let you go at that point.

You have to pull away eventually to breathe.

"Heh. Well... I guess that wasn't so bad. We should do that again some time. But ya kept messin' us up! Ya didn't move fast enough. Good thing it was the GREAT Mammon you were doin' it with, or else you never woulda gotten it right!"

Leviathan

He needs no explanation, he is fluent in human trends.

When you ask, though, his face is immediately bright red and he becomes a spluttering, flustered mess. Are you TRYING to give him a heart attack, MC? Seriously, his little otaku heart can't handle you just blatantly asking things like that...! And why would you wanna do such an intimate game with a gross, yucky otaku like him anyway?

He'll have to take a minute to calm his breathing, but he'll eventually accept. This trend is used far too much in anime and anime fandoms for it to be considered normie. Actually, he's always wanted to try this trend with someone! But Henry can't exactly play the Pocky game with him...

He waits nervously as you put the stick in your mouth, his face still glowing bright red. When you're done, he gently grabs your hands, mostly for comfort, and takes up his end.

He's also pretty bad at it, but not nearly as bad as Mammon. At least he learns from his mistakes. In the first attempt, he goes much too fast and you end up dropping it. So next time he forces himself to go slower. But he's still trembling far too much and you still end up dropping it a few more times before he finally manages to quell his trembling enough for it to work.

When your lips finally meet at the end, he'll hold it for just a few moments. It'll be a sweet and tender kiss.

And when you pull away, you'll find his face is still flushed, but less, and now there's a small smile on his face.

"W-wow! I've always wanted to try that game...! It's just like that one episode of The Magical Ruri Hanai: Demon Girl!"

Satan

With how much he reads about the human world he's bound to have come across something about it. So honestly? He probably won't need much of an explanation.

When you ask him about it, his eyes will widen slightly, his cheek flushing. He'll close his eyes and shake his head, muttering something about how you somehow know exactly how to get him flustered.

But it's not like he'll refuse! No, no, quite the contrary, he accepts, rather eagerly, in fact.

He watches as you carefully place the stick into your mouth. When you're done, he gently places his hands on your waist and takes his end.

He's also surprisingly good at this. Not quite as good as Lucifer, but he's still good enough to keep it from falling. And good enough that he's doing most of the work.

When your lips meet at the end, his arms slide around the small of your back and he holds you in a brief, but passionate kiss.

When he pulls away, he smiles at you softly, his cheeks still just slightly flushed.

"Well, that was certainly an interesting game. Maybe just ask next time you want a kiss though."

Asmodeus

This man knows all forms of intimacy, you think he wouldn't know the pocky game? Honestly, he's probably had some people ask to play it with him before you.

As soon as you ask, he's smirking, now being all flirty. Ooh, you want to be all intimate with him, do you~? Of course, you do! Everyone wants a taste of his gorgeous face and body~!

He accepts without hesitation. He's more than eager to share an intimate moment with his favorite person in all three worlds! Other than himself, of course ;)

He's practically trembling with excitement as he waits for you to put the stick in your mouth. Once you do, he puts his hands on your waist as he takes up his end, his hands trying to wander a bit too far below... Keep it family-friendly, mister!

When you start, he isn't the greatest because he keeps trying to go too fast, a little too eager for the part at the end. So you drop it a few times, but he gets it eventually.

Once your lips meet, he pulls you as close to him as possible, running a hand through your hair as he holds the kiss.

When you pull away, he gives you a suggestive smirk.

"We should do more intimate little games like that together. I'd just love to get even closer to you~"

Beelzebub

He definitely needs an explanation, he doesn't keep up with human world trends, only their food.

When you do, he blinks, his cheeks flushing slightly. Though, honestly, you had him at food. He's never had Pocky before. But are you sure asking him, of all people, was a good idea...? He's already tried to eat the whole box of Pocky, box included, twice now.

You have to hold him back from immediately helping himself to the Pocky stick as soon as you take it out of the box and it takes you a lot longer than it should just to get it in your mouth. When you finally do, he eagerly takes up his end, his hands clamping on your arms.

He doesn't even give you a chance to prepare before he starts munching. He definitely sucks at this game, mainly because he's trying harder to eat the Pocky than actually play the game, so you end up dropping it several times, and every time he just picks up the dropped bits and chows down.

When you finally manage to get it somehow, he nearly bites your lips off at first, but he quickly calms down, and it quickly turns into a sweet and tender kiss.

When he pulls away and smiles that smile that makes it hard for you to be mad at him because he looks like a happy puppy.

"That Pocky sure was tasty. And your lips are so soft..."

Belphegor

He needs an explanation too because he stopped keeping up with human world trends after the Fall.... Which was thousands of years before Pocky was even invented.

Once you explain, his cheeks flush a little bit, but he smirks anyway and teases you about it. Cheeky bastard-

He agrees and waits, still smirking, as you put the stick in your mouth. His hands gently meet the sides of your neck as he takes up his end of the stick.

He's actually okay at it, given he's too lazy to go too quickly, and he's relatively steady. Though you do still drop it once or twice because he goes... A little too slow.

When your lips finally meet, his hands slide up from your neck to cup your cheeks as he kisses you rather passionately.

Soon he pulls away and gives you a lazy grin.

"That was pretty fun, MC, but it was a pretty dumb way to get a kiss. You should have just done it."

==

I really loved that idea and that was really fun to write. I definitely wanna do more with the side dateables, but for now, I'm gonna go eat, take a shower, then try to find the case to my earbuds that I lost last night.