#especially since this fandom is pretty dead now

[bvnneyrabbet]

Since I'm seeing so much content revolving around people dunking on Forsaken for it's fandom, I am hoping SO HARD that the Forsaken fandom gets outta the trenches.

I am hoping SO HARD that the Forsaken fandom becomes better in the eyes of outsiders.

From what I can see, it's largely due to the amount of suggestive, sexual, and disturbing content revolving it. I'm not talking about disturbing as in horror, I mean disturbing as in "what the fuck is WRONG WITH YOU?!" But even so, the amount of disturbing content is small in numbers, but the sexual stuff isn't so small.

And this problem is not a Forsaken exclusive problem, it's a problem in the Phighting and Regretevator fandoms too, it's just that while Regretevator and Phighting have died down a bit Forsaken is extremely popular as of now, and as well as how stereotypes often get applied to fandoms.

For example, the Regretevator fandom is stereotyped to be "uwu cutesy kawaii fujoshi," and it has an entire stereotypical "style" named after it, referred to as "Regretevator avatars." Regretevator avatars are just stylized, often cutesy but not always applied, cosplays, and most of the time aren't even related to Regretevator. Anything that people deem too different in a cosplay is basically a Regretevator avatar.

The Forsaken fandom is stereotyped to be full of creeps, hypersexualizers, idiots, and mentally deranged folk, as those types of people are often the loudest. But I think we need to remember that Forsaken has almost 450 million visits and has a giant fandom, some of which don't even PLAY the game.

And as for the Spawn Cult IRL thing... Barely anyone in the fandom supports it other than the people participating in it. The developers of Forsaken itself don't support it nor do they want it to happen. From my own guesses, the Spawn Cult IRL is likely very small, probably being under 50 in members, hopefully less.

I genuinely hope that nobody in that Spawn Cult actually do such things regarding it, whether being hurting themselves or hurting others. We cannot have another Slenderman Stabbing situation.

In my eyes, the smut in Forsaken isn't a problem as long as it's kept in private and consenting adult spaces, it's only a problem when it gets pushed into public view with no warnings.

If you open the fridge to find a bag with a very obvious warning on it saying "dead dove: do not eat" you do not have to look inside, you can throw it away, and it's understandable. But if there's just a rotten dove carcass in your fridge with zero warnings, just a plain ol' dead dove laying on the shelf, it's understandable too. Who wouldn't be shocked and disgusted?

And no, I do not mean this in a "ignore those disturbing freaks," I am very much against things such as that, and even if I'm super desensitized to smut content I can see why other people do not like it especially if it's smut in plain public with no warnings.

Fandom is not pretty. Fandom is not as sweet and clean as you want it to be. All fandoms are messy, and if they don't look like it on the outside, you're bound to find it on the inside.

As a mutual of mine said, "purity culture in fandom is also ruining so much." And I agree with that completely, it's like having someone barge into your kitchen and berate you on how you cook. But in my eyes it goes to an extent to where things are acceptable and where things aren't.

But things like that are subjective, and everyone's moral compass is different. But I think we can all agree that having smut out in the open for everyone to see is not okay, especially genuinely traumatizing shit. I've been heavily effected by sexual content as a child, and I do not want anyone, especially minors to become hypersexual like I am. It ruins you, it really does.

I think a way to at least make the Forsaken fandom "better" is making your own rules on what one could and could not do, and having others apply to them if they want, not forcing but a mere suggestion. One of the things I often do is, mostly by accident, make my own little circle within fandom with people of the same interests, and over time it builds up and more people will follow those same rules.

Another thing I could suggest is changing yourself and the things you do. Do you post suggestive content? Try to keep them to yourself and consenting friends of the same age. Wanna post something suggestive? Put obvious warnings and try keep it away from where minors can view.

It's really easy, truly.

The Forsaken fandom is still growing in culture and in-fandom rules, even if it's super popular as of now, so of course it's gonna be haywire for a while. But it can indeed change, but you need to do it yourself if you want to see it happen.

[kumeko]

A/N: For the Mystery of the Blue Rose zine! So many memories brought back writing this, including actually finding out there was a sequel series (come on, gimme an ova!).

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Lust

Albert de Blois knew of greed. No, it would be safe to say greed knew of him. It owned him, possessed him, like a curse that only grew bigger with time. Nothing was ever enough, neither the silken suits he donned nor the trophy wife on his arms nor the gold in his vault.

There was always more to be had, more to take. His greed knew no bounds and he coveted what others owned, taking what he desired by hook or by crook. His estate grew bigger, his coppers plush, and still it wasn’t enough. Food tasted like ash, his sleep was fitful, his every waking thought consumed by more.

He did not merely want an estate or two. Even having the king’s ear and controlling policy couldn’t slake his thirst. No, Albert lusted for power, for control, for the world.

And finally, the key for his success was here, in a dim dungeon in the middle of the forest. In an isolated castle that protected his precious cargo from those who would try to take it from him. Albert stood at the door, looking through the bars at the golden-haired girl sitting blankly on the floor. To anyone else, she might have seemed like a normal ten-year-old, if a bit quiet and withdrawn. With her threadbare clothes and dirt-stained face, she looked like a ragamuffin urchin from the streets.

Others would be fools, not seeing the treasure before them.

“My grey wolf,” he whispered. Even the moniker felt like it held power, making the world shudder once it hit the air. Albert smirked as the girl glanced at him, her eyes as empty as her heart.

She would be smarter, wiser, stronger than her kin. Most importantly, she would be obedient, a mere dog instead of a wild wolf.

It had been foretold that he would rule the world if he could get a wolf in his hands. There was one now. The path ahead was set, his years of planning and preparation almost done. It wouldn’t be long before she could walk down it and take him to its destination.

“Soon,” he promised, turning around.

His destiny was so close he could taste it. Maybe then, he’d finally know rest.

Hate

Cordelia Gallo knew of hate. It filled her every waking moment, a dark, black desire that sank into her bones, reminding her of its existence with every step. Her chest constricted with the memories of a cold, blond man, of his leering smile, of his fingers pressing into her skin hard enough to brand. Even now, she was certain she’d find his mark on her, connecting her to him.

But then again, she already had a connection with Albert de Blois that could never be severed: her daughter.

Cordelia shivered. The fire blazed in front of her, flickering merrily as it tried to stave off the chill. It was an uphill battle, considering she was sitting on a log in the middle of the woods. Yet, she was certain it wasn’t the cold breeze nor the dropping temperature that left her freezing to her core.

“You’ll catch a cold like that,” Brian Roscoe murmured as he draped his coat over her shoulders. It was still warm from his body and she pulled the edges closer until it engulfed her.

Not that it was too hard to do; unlike any of her kin, he was tall and broad-shouldered. She felt like a child in his clothes. Cordelia looked up and smiled. “Thanks.”

His twin brother sat down on her left, spreading his coat on her lap. It looked like a blanket on her legs. Quietly, he asked, his voice terse, “You were thinking about her again, weren’t you?”

She didn’t bother to deny it. They always saw through her. After travelling together as long as they had, she would have been surprised if they couldn’t. “Won’t you get cold?”

“Not if we’re like this.” The first Brian sat down on her other side and held his hands to the fire. He smiled softly as he rubbed them. “We should stay in an inn tomorrow. The weather’s only getting colder.”

“We should go somewhere south,” the second Brian countered, annoyance creeping into his voice. He had never liked her plans. “If it weren’t for her—”

Brian snapped, interrupting him. “Brian! Don’t.”

Brian scowled, glaring back at him. “It’s not like I’m wrong.”

It was like hearing her hate battling her love. Maybe she shouldn’t be surprised—the Brians had been with her since they were pups. At some point, they had picked up on her feelings, adopting them as their own. Brian’s bitterness was her bitterness. Brian’s optimism was her optimism.

Her doubt, her rage, her fears, all of them played out in the argument in front of her. Cordelia watched, her hands curling into her sides as anger and faith warred on another. For all the pieces of herself she could find in them, she still couldn’t pick up on their genuine emotions. If they still had any that were untouched by her.

Despite all of their time together, Cordelia knew so little about her two companions. Why did they insist on sharing the same name? The same fate? What were their goals? Did they ever dream of the future?

Did they ever want more than this tepid relationship?

It was unfair, what she did to them. Her eyes were always on the horizon, searching for her daughter, but the Brians only looked at her. Maybe she should have pushed them away before their dependency grew too big.

It was too late now. She could never give them the love they wanted. She wasn’t even sure she could give her daughter everything she deserved. Some days, Cordelia was certain her hate for Albert outweighed her love for Victorique.

Today, she wanted love to win for a change. It was cold, the brothers were warm, and Cordelia wanted to do better. For them. For herself. For all that she had lost and gained over the years. Cordelia reached up and gently tousled their hair, ending their argument. “Come closer,” she said, tugging their shirts. “It’s too cold to argue.”

And they did, bodies pressed flush to one another, the Brians watching her with a mixture of hope and concern.

“Is that better?” Brian asked.

The other Brian glanced at the fire. “Should we toss in another log?”

“It’s fine.” She smiled, opening her coat and wrapping her arms around their waists. She pulled them closer, trying to share what little she could of their coats. “I haven’t sung for you in a while. What would you like to hear?”

Envy

Grévil de Blois knew of envy. He faced it every time he looked at his drill-like hairstyle. It was a constant reminder that Jacqueline wasn’t his, would never be his, and the only favour she showed him was that of a fond companion. If he were truly honest, Jacqueline had never looked at him that way, her eyes always flitting somewhere else whenever he awkwardly showed interest.

Still, he didn’t mind envy. It was just another facet of love and for all of its aches, he had never regretted loving Jacqueline. Nor had he regretted his sister’s ridiculous conditions, even if no one could look him in the eye anymore because of his ridiculous hairstyle.

What he did mind, however, was his sister.

Whether she was locked up in his father’s dungeons or cooped up in the school’s library, Victorique only looked at him with blank eyes, her heart empty and devoid of any emotion. Even now, as impatience and irritation laced her voice, her eyes flicking between him and the textbook on her lap, her face was expressionless.

“What have you come for today?” she drawled, flipping a page. As usual, she was surrounded by books, as though she could find the missing parts of her soul in them.

Grévil crossed his arms, more out of habit than anything else. “What else? Another case.”

“I hope you brought me a fun one this time.” Victorique closed her book, finally giving him her undivided attention. Seeing his hairstyle again, she smirked. “I wonder how long you should keep that up?”

“Don’t taunt me,” he snapped, glaring.

He could never figure out just where Victorique had gotten her sharp tongue and even sharper wit. Her expression was sly as she replied, “I’m not taunting. I’m just wondering aloud. Maybe I should leave you with that drill forever.”

“You…” Grévil fisted his hand and took a deep, calming breath. It wouldn’t do to lose his temper over such a silly thing. “That doesn’t matter.”

She shrugged and raised her pipe. “At least your hair is sharp and to the point. Though, even if you got rid of the hair, she still won’t look at you.”

It was like a knife twisting in his gust. “Victorique!”

He had heard those words enough in his head without hearing them from her. There was a callous cruelty in his sister, and perhaps it was better that she didn’t understand just how sharp her words cut, just what sort of feelings they inspired. That he could write off her manipulation to ignorance rather than malice.

She looked away, barely listening. “Hmm?”

“It doesn’t matter if she doesn’t look at me. That’s not the point. You have no idea what lov—” Before Grévil could finish his sentence, the elevator dinged open.

Out walked an exhausted Kujo, his arms wrapped around a cardboard box overfilled with books. His sweaty black hair stuck to his skin as he almost collapsed. “Got…it…”

“About time,” Victorique replied tartly, getting up. “You’re slow.”

“We’re not done,” Grévil growled, turning back to her. “You—”

He cut himself off. The girl in front of him little resembled the Victorique he knew. Her eyes were focused, her lips curved into a small smile, and there was a strange tenderness that radiated from her as she approached Kujo.

If Grévil had been anyone else, he would have mistaken her for a lovestruck maiden.

It was impossible. Not her, not this grey wolf that couldn’t so much as comprehend emotion, much less feel them. Yet, as he watched her talk to Kujo, watched her ears redden as her hand brushed his, there really was no other word for it.

Victorique was learning to love.

A bitter part of him wondered, with how tight her prison was, how long it would take that love to turn into envy.

Love

Victorique knew of love. She hadn’t for the longest time. She had only known of four cell walls, cold bricks, moonlight. She had known of a man with a cruel heart and crueler words. She had known of a ‘brother’ who never looked at her for more than a few minutes, as though he would see his own guilt in her.

And then came Kujo, bumbling, kind Kujo. More boy than man when he stumbled through her doors, all gangly limbs and tongue-tied as he tried to keep up with her. He had no wits, was barely able to find his way out of a paper bag let alone a case, and was driven entirely by his heart.

And yet, for some reason, she hadn’t been able to look away when he talked of ideals and fantasies.

And yet, for some reason, she looked forward to his tired steps as he climbed up the long staircase to her abode.

Grévil had once told her that a monster like her couldn’t feel love. To his credit, he had been right for the first time in his life. Victorique couldn’t. Not love, not sorrow, not even hate—for years, not a single emotion touched her heart.

Now, they overwhelmed her. Her mother’s death. Her father’s destructive urges. Her classmates fawning over Kujo. Her separation from him.

Loss. Hate. Envy.

And above it all: love.

It threatened to drown her, yet for some reason she didn’t feel suffocated.

It was strange. She didn’t know enough to explain it. Victorique rubbed her wrist as she turned the emotion over in her mind, trying to process it like she had any other case. All of the evidence was there, all of the clues assembled, but she didn’t have the knowledge to link it all together.

“What are you thinking?” Grévil asked, breaking through her thoughts. She had almost forgotten he was there, standing beside her as he watched a ship pull into the harbour.

For once, she didn’t scowl at his voice. “Nothing.”

He scoffed. “Impossible.” His hair looked like it would pierce the sun when he turned. Green eyes identical to hers studied her. “You’re always thinking.”

“It’s private. Something you—” wouldn’t understand. But his hair told her he would. No, he would understand better than her. Victorique stared at it before looking away. She held out her ticket, a one-way trip to Japan. “Why are you doing this?”

Her brother was obedient to their father to a fault. It hadn’t been that long ago he had dragged her away from Kujo and into Albert’s mechanisms. A change of heart felt out of place.

“I…” He bit his lip, averting his gaze as well. Seagulls cried as the wind blew, bringing with it the salty, musty scent of the sea and its inhabitants. “It’s the right thing to do.”

Victorique couldn’t stop her disbelieving laugh. “When have you ever let that dictate what you do?”

“You—!” Grévil pivoted toward her before deflating. His shoulders sank as he sighed. “No, that’s…not entirely unfair.”

“Not entirely?” Victorique raised a brow. It was strange to see him so humbled.

“Do you have to be this insufferable?” His words lacked their usual bite. Grévil stuffed his hands in his pockets. “It’s…complicated. I…I want to start now. Changing. Amending. Being better. Either way, consider this me repaying my debt. They won’t find you there.”

Victorique eyed him, but for once it seemed her brother was entirely honest. Was it Jacqueline’s influence? Or something else entirely? It surely couldn’t have been out of sibling love; she doubted either of them saw each other as family.

Still, she could understand the urge to change. To grow. Her past year had been full of it. Victorique looked down at her ticket. Once she reached Japan, she had no intention of returning.

They would never meet again.

Perhaps it was time she also put aside her pride and allowed the past to settle. “Your hair.”

Grévil raised his head. “Even now, you’re—”

“Do whatever you want with it.” Victorique watched as the gangplank to her ship was secured. “I doubt it’ll look any better.”

His lips parted, a soft, “You…” escaping before he laughed. Grévil reached up, messing up his hair, releasing his strands from the prison she’d kept them in for years. As his locks fell over his shoulders, he held out his hand. “Goodbye, Victorique.”

She glanced at his palm before shaking. “Goodbye, Grévil.”

And then she left, disappearing into the crowds as she boarded her ship. Ahead of her, Japan. And beyond that, Kujo. Even with the war, he’d return home alive. He had uncanny luck like that. And when he did, he’d find her there, waiting for him.

Victorique had never been a patient woman, but perhaps that was something love could change too. She looked forward to finding out.

[high-voltage-rat]

My final late submission to the RvB OC Week, for day 6: relationships!

Ali and Kris, as members of the Reds and Blues respectively, end up forming really strong relationships with everyone in the blood gulch crew. What this means, practically speaking, is that they participate in a lot of shenaniganry throughout the course of the series.

To start, Ali and Kris are of course very close. The cousins grew up together, and then having been through so much together as adults- the glassing of their planet, their time as freelancers, and everything beyond... Their bond is probably the closest in their lives. During their tenure in blood gulch, even before the formation of a more amicable familiarity between the reds and blues, the cousins spent a lot of time together. They essentially have a relationship akin to siblings, full of playful bickering and teasing, but a very deep trust and understanding of one another.

(This is mostly a collection of some of my old (really, really old) doodles and drawings with some additions and edits thrown in. transcript as an antidote to poor handwriting beneath the cut, plus details on each relationship!)

Ali and Donut:

Ali, staring at red base's curtains: No, you're right actually. Chantilly lace was the move. Donut: O! M! G! Right? It adds so much more natural light!

Donut is probably Ali's best friend on the red team. At first, she found his bubbly demeanour a little exhausting, but quickly grew to appreciate his genuine nature and his spirited can-do attitude. It's a lesser known fact that Ali spent part of their childhood living on a farm- but it was definitely a bonding point between them. They'll sometimes just sit and complain about horses being idiots who try to self-destruct at the slightest provocation, or chickens having bloodthirsty rage within their hearts, or cows trying to kick you in the head while you try to help deliver their babies. Ali is also the only member of red team willing to engage with Donut's ideas for interior design and fashion- mainly because she considers it an important factor in everyone's morale, and eschews the military ideals of uniformity. They often encourage him to keep being his bright and individual self... which is much-needed among a team of party-poopers. Donut, in turn, tries to encourage Ali to be just as bold as him- especially important when their social anxiety gets the better of them.

Kris and Tucker:

Tucker: Hey, baby. Do you have a map? Cause I just got lost in your eyes. Kris, filling up a water gun: Tucker, I'm literally wearing my helmet.

Tucker is Kris' best friend on blue team, despite his incessant habit of practicing his shitty pickup lines on her (Kris actually finds it kind of charming, though she'd never admit it to him). They had a rocky start, with Tucker having a rigid idea of how he was "supposed to" interact with women that generally just made every conversation stupid and uncomfortable while he tried to perform masculinity. But with time, and a few serious and hard conversations about women being normal people, he relaxed, and they eventually managed to settle into a normal friendship- full of dirty jokes, lighthearted banter, and "fake" flirting. Never mind the fact that it feels kind of real. They're just friends. Normal friends. They just hang out, shoot the shit, play video games or take bets on the outcome of whatever new shenanigans are happening around them. Kris is the only one Tucker trusts to help braid his hair. And Kris was willing to be around the same species and culture of alien that had glassed her home planet, just to make sure Tucker was safe. Tucker made Kris the godmother of his child, she reciprocated by helping him learn some of that child's language (again, the language of a people who destroyed her home). When they were split up after Blood Gulch, Kris picked up saying 'bow chicka bow wow' to fill the space Tucker left. and it's all very, totally platonic.

Kris and Caboose

Freinds 4 Evr: Cris + Cabose

If Church wasn't Caboose's best friend, Kris would be next in line for the position. She's really well accustomed to the quirks of living with people who have working memory issues- Ali's ADHD has made sure of that, let alone her time in CANDIV- so she typically does her best to lend a hand when Caboose needs it, instituting a few memory aid systems around the base, and being patient when he has difficulty remembering and understanding things. She's also careful to treat him with respect and kindness, and encourage others to do the same- even if they don't often listen. In a lot of ways, Kris kind of feels like another big sister to him. He also really enjoys giving her piggybacks, and playing roadtrip games or singing songs together when they're travelling or waiting around for long periods of time. Kris also does art as a hobby, so Caboose will often sit and paint or draw alongside her, they'll chat about whatever is on their minds, and when they're done they'll hang their art in the base side by side.

Ali and the Director

Why the CANDIV Agents really rebelled from PFL: as told by Agent Alberta Ali: Director, this ship needs chicken nuggets ASAP. Director: Fuhk you, ayjunt.

Bafflingly, Ali was the CANDIV agent most often in charge of relations with the Director and Counsellor. Despite not being one of the team's leaders, she had both the ability to pick up on Vibes and nonverbal information, and to tolerate their weird and frankly irritating style of conducting themselves (the Counsellor's unbridled therapyspeak and the Director's bitchiness)... which tended to rub everyone else in CANDIV the wrong way. Not that it didn't, you know, also irritate her sometimes. The Director, for his part, just kind of wanted to study Ali like a bug, as he did all the freelancers.

Kris and Ali and Wash + Carolina

Carolina: How did Ali and Nova go so long undetected? They must be incredible at espionage to have fooled you. Wash, remembering: Uh huh, yep, totally! Past!Wash: You guys seem familiar... are you sure we haven't met? Past!Ali, wearing a shirt that says "NOT A FREELANCER": Past!Kris, wearing a shirt that says "REGULAR SIM-TROOPER": Certain! As you can see by our shirts, we are not freelancers! Past!Wash: Hard to argue with that logic!

As shown in my fic covering Season 6, Wash had no idea Ali and Kris were former freelancers, despite a brief feeling of familiarity when they first met. It helped, of course, that he had a lot on his plate, and the literal Alpha AI was there stealing the show. But at the end of Season 8, Ali and Karys finally revealed themselves when they offered him a chance to do the same as them- to fake his death, hide from the authorities, and take on a new sim trooper identity. The way they explained it to him, they were of the opinion that freelancers shouldn't be made to take the fall for the crimes the Director and Counsellor committed, or the things they had to do to survive the Project's bullshit. They helped coach him a bit on how to really sell it, acting like the dumbest of asses, and helped to set him at ease with the knowledge that it really could be over. Then Carolina showed up and was baffled by the three highly trained special ops agents playing capture the flag and recreationally bickering over which team had the superior kill count.

...they'll get her too, eventually. They just need to catch her first, which is hard because she's speedy.

Kris + Ali and Wash

Kris' Imagination!Ali, swooning: ooh wash~ Kris' Imagination!Wash: how are you bending like that Real!Ali: Kris I will literally kill you Real!Kris: No you won't <3

Ali has... a soft spot for Wash. Kris likes to tease them about it. They tease back about her "totally platonic" relationship with Tucker. You know, psychological warfare among cousins.

In truth, Ali and Wash are friends- beyond the whole "learning how to de-freelancer" thing they do with Kris, sometimes Wash just needs the opportunity to complain about the members of blue team, or Ali needs to complain about the members of red team, or they just "need" to practice shooting bottles off the side of a cliff. Sometimes Wash will let Ali infodump about whatever thing she's hyperfocused on in the moment. Sometimes they'll swap stories- usually the embarrassing ones. Both of them are socially awkward, but there's a comfort in both knowing the other person is awkward, too, and not judging you- and that makes it a bit easier. Whether or not they'd ever be more than friends isn't worth complicating matters.

Church + Kris and Ali

Ali, standing on top of red base: I think DOGS should VOTE! Church: Yo Kris! Your red buddy's being weird again!

Kris and Ali firmly hold that Church is a bit of a dick- but they've grown fond of him, anyway. Church, for his part, really finds the cousins weird and a little exasperating, much as he does every other member of the canyon- but he also has a weird sense of familiarity with them he can't seem to shake. He enjoys talking shit with Kris and Tucker, and finds Ali the second most tolerable member of red team after Grif. He also still doesn't really get why Ali hasn't converted to blue team considering how much she hangs around their base, but she sometimes brings snacks from Grif's stash and fixed Sheila with parts stolen from Sarge's stash for them a couple times, so he only complains a relatively normal amount. When they lived together in Outpost 48-A for a year, he spent a lot of time having awkward conversations with them, serving as an extra pair of hands while they worked on projects around the base, and being subjected to attempted shooting lessons from them to fix his terrible aim. He was, frankly, really ready for a break from them by the time Wash and Caboose showed up.

There's of course an underlying layer to the relationship here- Ali and Kris know that Church is the Alpha, they put it together very early on in their time in Blood Gulch. After discovering a little bit of what was done to make the fragments, the CANDIV freelancers definitely started to consider the Alpha as "one of them"- so the two decided to make it a priority to keep him safe and give him some semblance of freedom where possible.

Ali and Grif

Ali, slamming open the doors: Sarge wants us to start eating healthy! Grif, panicking: Oh, god, hide the snacks!

Ali and Grif have a strong solidarity in avoiding work at all costs- though their motivations are very different. They also have a shared love of snacks, and a desire to be as laid-back as possible. The problem comes in what can essentially be summed up as "Ali is messy, Grif is dirty". In this sense, they actually clash over the way the common space is- or isn't- maintained, which drives Simmons nuts because they're both filthy in his eyes. They'll cover for each other to try and help in the ever-present task of evading Sarge's orders, and they'll share their respective snack stashes- within reason. And occasionally, for brief periods of uncommon motivation, they'll have a war over high scores in whatever video game is in vogue for them. The score for Rainbow Road on the team's wii is still occasionally revisited to this day.

Simmons + Ali and Kris

Simmons, staring through the doorway: Ali, perched on top of the fridge, handing a bag of chips down to Kris standing on a step stool: <- red fucking handed

Quite frankly, Simmons doesn't understand how Sarge hasn't branded Ali as a traitor and given her a shotgun court-martial. He comes so close to reporting them every time they bring a blue into their base, and especially when they feed her Grif's snacks. But every time, he's given the excuse that Ali is "cementing their in with the enemy for better infiltration and deception"- and every time, it gives him just enough pause that he never says anything to any of the other reds. What if he's wrong? What if she really is gathering valuable intel? The blues clearly tolerate her hanging around their base, so she is actually in an excellent position to infiltrate them when it's needed most. It drives him nuts that she has a point, and it infuriates him to no end that she can use it as an excuse to get out of work, and Sarge still seems to think she's an excellent soldier. He secretly desires nothing more than to prove they're an incompetent phony compared to him.

Ali thinks Simmons is hilarious. They know he seethes about everything they do- and that he also thinks he's more competent than them. If ever he tries to trip them up or make them look like a fool, they'll sometimes let the sim trooper facade of idiocy fall just for him- just long enough to take anything he throws at them in stride. They're also the one who helped Sarge turn him into a part-cyborg, which just serves to make the beef that much funnier to them.

Ali + Kris and Kris' garden

Ali, carrying a cabbage, sprinting past a sign that says "GARDEN, KEEP OUT!": Kris, aiming a gun at them:

The garden Kris maintains out back of Blue Base is her pride and joy. Every time a member of blue team is eating a plant, Kris watches like a hawk to ensure seeds are saved and replanted- she has meticulously pulled every seed off an entire shipment of strawberries before allowing anyone to eat them. She's chewed Church out for ordering seedless grapes from command. The plants growing there are named, lovingly tended to each morning and evening, and ensure her ability to maintain a vegetarian diet. The plants are her babies.

Ali hangs around Blue Base so often at this point, the fighting is just a formality. In order to keep up the facade, at some point during every visit, Ali will attempt to steal a fruit or vegetable out of the garden, and Kris will attempt to stop them. Usually, it's somewhat tame- a minor heist that's easily thwarted, or a clean getaway after a suitable distraction. However, every once and a while it's instead akin to a fight for the flag, just with a carrot instead of a piece of coloured fabric. Kris has, in fact, shot Ali with live rounds over a cauliflower before. They had full shields, but still.

Kris and Lopez

Kris: So, they crashed the jeep again? Lopez: si. Kris: After you just fixed it? Lopez: si. Kris: That's messed up. Lopez: si.

Kris has a weirdly amicable relationship with Lopez. He likes her most out of everyone in the entire canyon- probably mostly because she doesn't pretend to know what he's saying, but doesn't ignore him, either... and she has a dry sense of humour he really appreciates. They kind of get along on a system of "si or no" whenever they interact.

Ali and Sarge

Sarge, pointing at a "Red Team Victory Scheme V.37.23" poster: Ali, I need you to- Ali, walking past: Sorry, sir, have to spy on the blues. Sarge: Huh. What a dedicated soldier.

Sarge genuinely thinks Ali is his best soldier, aside from Lopez. It helps that Ali, being from a military family, knows exactly how to "yes, and" military guys to make them think you're on their side, and whatever you've suggested is their idea. It also helps that she's teamed up with Kris to run the long con. While Sarge looks at Ali fondly, and holds her up as a shining example of red team loyalty, Ali is actively working to prevent the red team from ever making a successful combat move against the blues. She feeds just enough information that they constantly have to be changing their plans of attack, regularly claims the blues are "unexpectedly on patrol" to force them to abort a mission, and just generally manipulates things to avoid open conflict. Despite everything, though, she kind of looks at him like a vaguely annoying yet still beloved grandfather- and when they work together to rebuild Simmons as a cyborg, or create a robotic vessel for a "ghost", or just revamp the chupathingy... she can't help but be a little fond of the kooky old guy. Especially when she acknowledges that he, like the rest of them, is a victim of the military and Project Freelancer's manipulation and exploitation. She hopes that one day, she'll be able to get him to acknowledge that enough to be someone other than a rank.

Ali and Doc + O'Malley

Ali, with bloodstained hands and blood splatters on their armour, looking haunted: I've seen more of Tucker today than I ever wanted to. O'Malley, similarly bloodstained and fist-pumping: Muahaha! Excellent! We can exploit this weakness! Ali: O'Malley, if you find a way to weaponize Tucker in active labour, I will gladly surrender there and then.

Ali and Doc really don't know what to think of each other. They're both medically inclined- and sometimes they can have a good conversation about patient relations or wound care practices. But sometimes Doc says some truly ridiculous thing that highlights the fact that he very much failed medical school, and Ali really has to bite their tongue as they try to gently correct him. Doc, for his part, finds it a little annoying that Ali has to criticize so much- who's the qualified medic, here, after all?- but does appreciate the extra hand for the treatment he's doing when needed. After he was possessed by O'Malley, their weird half-amicable-coworkers, half-baffled-and-irritated dynamic kind of got cranked up even further. During periods when O'Malley kind of establishes himself as a minimal threat, Ali just kind of smiles and nods at his evil rants and makes polite conversation with him and Doc. Sometimes their dynamic turns into something resembling a spray bottle wielder and a cat- no threats of murder while we're delivering a baby, man, cut it out!

At the end of the day though- Doc is a pacifist medic in a war zone, even one as ridiculous as Blood Gulch, and Ali really respects that. And the fact that Ali doesn't actually fear O'Malley much has earned her his respect, and Doc's, in turn.

[cinellieroll]

☆ more random obey me headcanons !

characters: the demon brothers! <3

small note: i am back. and i will disappear once more after this..also i apologize for the VERYYY LATE upload. i am not dead and i wont die until om fandom comes back to life i tell ya 😤😤

cw: none! :p

☆ lucifer:

- occasionaly has thoughts of getting a german shepherd but cerberus would get EXTREMELY PISSED if he did. also another reason why he refuses to let satan keep cats in the house. cerberus will gobble them up in less than a millisecond.

- has a pretty high libido (as if it isn't already obvious in the game..) he really enjoys taking out his stress on you everytime he gets the chance. buckle up buttercup ༎ຶ⁠‿⁠༎ຶ

- one if his biggest secrets is keeping like a few albums of him and his brothers back when they still lived in the celestial realm. he keeps em hidden realll good

- sometimes asks levi or mammon to help him with his D.D.D

- "mammon, help me with this." "levi, why is my screen stuck like this?" "lucifer you paused the video-"

- he likes silk pajamas :3 he also can't STAND sweatpants for some reason.

- once a week, he dedicates atleast an hour or two grooming his own wings and his horns. there's a lot of occasions where he transforms in his demon form for parties and such.

- reads newspaper while taking a shit. guys dont argue with me on this its real.

- he has cold lips but his kisses are always very passionate with you!

- very well mannered everytime he's on the dining table and eating. y'all will never catch him spill a single food on the table or his clothes.

☆ mammon:

- eats with his hands sometimes when he's alone. and if someone ever finds out his excuse is always "so what? sometimes eating food with your hands is a better way to savor the taste." and i completely agree with him

- cleans his jewelry a lot. he wants them dazzling that people will do a double take when they see his mega awesome drip. like "haha yeah yall cant beat me on this baby" type shit

- cooks the BEST beef curry. the level of spice is perfect-o and beel always pesters him to make it.

- during family photos, he's always the one doing silly poses. he does hand stands, he has his ass out on display, he's ON THE FLOOR

- always man spreading in class. like you can literally see him chewing on his pen from across the room with his legs sprawled out

- you know that empty feeling you get after watching a movie? double that and give it to mammon. man takes it HARD especially if it was a sad movie that he watched. he'll feel empty for a gooooddd while

- always breaks his earphones, so when d.d.d airpods came out he got really happy and bought like 6 pairs (he ended up breaking all of them too)

- blasts music like crazy when he works out and lucifer absolutely HATES his music style and thinks it's unsanitary and inappropriate. like ok whatever you old fucking hag

- doesn't close the bathroom door after he uses it LIKE BITCH CLOSE THAT SHIT RN

- follows all of his fan accounts on devilgram ugh my boy <33

☆ leviathan:

- there's just like random times where he'll suddenly remember all of his past cringe phases. and it like appears on the most random times it's actually pissing him off

- always fantasized about creating character designs for simeon ever since he found out he was the creator of TSL

- he has a bad habit of HOLDING IN HIS PISS. yes he holds them in. he developed this habit ever since he got addicted to gaming. luckily for him he's a demon but boy if he was human he would've gotten kidney problems by now.

- levi would never ever admit it but he enjoyed getting spun around by mammon when they were still kids. like mammon grabs his arms then just spins him around and stuff

- sleeps with his headphones on and now he can't sleep without it. he's just like me jujujuju

- he really likes alex g :3

- sometimes he wishes he was a magical pop star girl performing for people on stage because they always look so happy when he watches them

- loves being the little spoon so much. sometimes it's awkward with him when he's the big spoon because he's either trembling or really stiff like a log

- he enjoys kissing your cheeks the most because he's convinced he'll melt if he tries kissing you on the lips

- has a hidden album on his phone of stolen shots of you doing the most random shit ever. eating, sleeping, showering..💀

☆ satan:

- even when it's freezing cold, his feet are always peeking out of his blanket. can't sleep without his bare feet hanging out.

- doesn't need reading glasses but insists on buying them because he thinks it fits the detective aesthetic. unfortunately he loses them a lot and no one knows why

- besides lucifer, satan is very sleek and neat when putting on neck ties

- had a phase where he absolutely despised coffee and tea because he found out lucifer enjoyed it. deep down he knew he enjoyed them too and it'd be one of the reasons for his constant rampages..

- started enjoying lofi music ever since levi introduced him to it.

- out of all the brothers, satan feels the most comfortable crying in front of mammon the most. (can i get some big brother mammon appreciation out here? 😔)

- he's the type to practice his lines in front of the mirror before asking you out on the date! he just wants everything to be perfect for you and yes sometimes he messes up but it's your fault for being too pretty

- worked as a librarian once as a part time job and lemme tell you..sales went high as fuck after that and the manager even BEGGED him to stay for longer. (which he did, as long as he got to have free books :p)

- tried the "which of the seven brothers are you?" quiz and got lucifer.

- is very skilled with the piano and even made a few pieces that reminded him of you <3

☆ asmodeus:

- really enjoys ear piercings and even got one himself!

- owns a clothing brand in the human world and even tried making you the co-owner. it's a really big success and he uses the money to buy you gifts

- can't go a day without kissing you atleast once! he feels like his lips would dry if doesn't get to even leave a peck on you

- does that back arch thing in his room when he's bored 👀

- bought so many makeup products once to the point lucifer banned makeup in HOL for like a month 💀 asmo held a grudge for a while because he was lowkey kinda conscious of his appearance when he'd go outside. especially when he's in front of you! ;((

- second most followed user on devilgram! (top one is diavolo lol)

- if he had to choose a favorite makeup brand from the human world it's either the ones with the cute packaging (ex: flower knows, too faced) or the high end brands like dior

- changes bed sheets like twice a week because it's either he can't stand the feeling anymore or found a new inspo on devilgram

- says he's not easily influenced on buying new things like mammon or levi but the moment he sees something go viral he's already purchasing 10 of them. (and posts it on his feed to gain those likes)

- crop dusts every now and then

☆ beelzebub:

- finds those gross ass thirst trappers who sexualizes food nasty asf and is a big donutdaddy hater

- wins awards from eating competitions a lot and always ALWAYS spoils you and belphie first

- always the viewer in situations where one of the brothers fight w eachother. mans always there for some reason so lucifer always approaches him first when smth happens lol

- sometimes he goes overboard with body sprays

- he likes hand made accessories/jewelry. belphie was the one who made his choker on his everyday outfit and cherishes it everyday

- he thinks tongue piercings are cool but never went out of his way to get one

- buys burger merch or any food merch in general lol

- he was never really the type to care about his own appearance and only did the bare minimum to make himself look presentable. but sometimes he does feel insecure when people get too intimidated by him, especially when it's you.

- "mc, you're not afraid of me right? i won't hurt you. i promise"

- majority of the time he's the one who fixes belphie's bed and cleans his side of the room so lucifer won't get mad at him

☆ belphegor:

- has no shame in stealing pillows from furniture shops and always gets away with it

- unintentionally says the most sassy remarks ever and stares at you when you call him out for it

- being the youngest, he doesn't really need to go shopping for his own necessities because one of the brothers already buys it for him before he can even step out of the house

- when you'd go back to the human world, he'd always gaze up at the stars and wonder how you're doing and if you're getting enough sleep

- always constipated like idk he just seems like the type to only shit once a week lmfao

- one time (or two..or three) he accidentally used a different toothbrush that belonged to one of the brothers because he was half asleep

- hates the feeling of jewelry on him because he thinks it's just in the way. especially hates earrings because it's a nuisance when he sleeps.

- HORRIBLE driver and can't drive for shit. crashed mammon's car once because he fell asleep. and his in defense was because traffic was so long smh

- he can't live without his cardigans. always wears long sleeved shirts unless it's summer season in the devildom and settles for loose shirts. he also has a habit of pulling his sleeves that it nearly covers his whole hand

- very calming singing voice. back when he was still in the celestial realm, a bunch of angel kids would approach him at night, telling him to sing lullabies for them to help them sleep <3

note: had to repost :P ALSO TY FOR 73 FOLLOWERS! hiphiphorey

[0-therw-0-rldly]

I’ll preface this by saying I’m not really a shipper. I just enjoy canon couples on TV Series/films.

Terms I’d like B*ddies to remove from their vocabulary because they don’t know how to use them correctly:

Media literacy: For a group that uses this term a lot you sure do misinterpret everything in this show.

Queerbaiting: Going to expand on this one. A show that’s already been pre established for having queer characters simply cannot queerbait.

Ship baiting: While sometimes you can argue that they could be doing that, that’s only if you look at the show in a very biased manner. You might think this is the case but the general audience doesn’t think the way you do.

Ship war: This isn’t a one tree hill situation where there was Team Brooke Vs. Team Peyton where the middle guy (Lucas Scott) had canonically been with both women. This is people not understanding fanon vs. canon and not being able to just watch the show. It’s like playing quarterback on Madden and thinking you could be better than Patrick Mahomes.

Plot device: everything’s a plot device. Move tf on.

Predator: You sound like crazy MAGA supporters calling everything regarding the LGBTQIA+ community as predatory. Sit down.

Co-parenting: I know this is a big one and discourse was brought up during the hiatus. Oliver and Ryan have loosely mentioned this years ago but it was never to be taken this seriously. Do y’all even know what co-parenting is or are you that big of a donut? Buck is someone who loves his best friend deeply and by extension, his kid too. Him taking care of him frequently does not make him a co-parent. Maybe he is a parental or uncle figure, but he isn’t a co-parent. Also, I swear y’all need to learn how a will works. He is a GODPARENT, not a GUARDIAN. Stfu.

Hag: This especially applies to women, but to say that someone 25-30+ is a hag for still being in fandoms or enjoying tv shows/films is inherently misogynistic. Men are never held to this much criticism for enjoying fictional media, but women aren’t allowed to?

Queer Coding: people of the same sex “looking at each other”, hugging, or having intimate moments all together doesn’t make them queer coded. It could mean that they just love each other that deeply platonically. While representation is amazing and just because you interpret a character as queer coded (just like my ship baiting comment) doesn’t mean others interpret it that way as well. In addition, network TV has stipulations, and also actors are allowed to decline storylines. Ryan has mentioned his character is heterosexual an abundance of times which means (at least for now) that he isn’t willing to go for this storyline.

Dead naming: Y’all construing the fact that Buck wants people like coworkers and some of his former love interests, to saying Evan is his dead name is inherently transphobic because do you even understand what a dead name is? Evan Buckley is shown as being fine with being called Evan by both Tommy and his sister. I’m pretty sure some of his love interests have called him Evan as well.

Fetishizing: You guys saw two hot guys who “looked at each other” and for 6 seasons have wanted nothing but to see those two make out with each other. Those of us who enjoy Tevan saw Buck giddy at the thought of Tommy and have wanted domestic fluff for them since.

Anything to do with racism, homophobia, and misogyny: I’ve seen the way you guys have conveniently weaponized Henren and by extension Aisha/Tracie when you didn’t get the Ryan/Oliver interview, don’t try to act like you’re morally superior. Not to mention wanting a canonically gay man to die in a show and not even holding those who use your ship name to write CSA fics accountable because you’re petty and want to throw hissy fits. Anyone looking at your comments as an outsider would think you’re homophobes and yes queer people can be homophobic.

I do hope you can expand your vocabulary. 🤍

[tawked]

I know we're all real big "read the comics" fans here but, considering the show is now 32 years old and many people in the Batman fandom might not know about it -

if you do not want to read the comics, might I recommend the massively acclaimed Batman animated series from the 90s instead?

Seriously, room-temperature take: it's better than what was going on in the comics at the time.

DCAU Batman: kind, empathetic but still troubled and a little self-centered at times. He understands even scary dangerous mentally ill people are not beyond help and that what they really need is support and care. He actively tries to resolve every conflict with a minimal of violence and brutality, with stories often focusing on detective work in a pulpy noir atmosphere, or the clever use of a tactic relevant to a bad man's gimmick. Every character is consistent and has a clear, coherent vision. There is exactly one profoundly stupid retcon and it's in an extremely skippable bottle episode of another show (Justice League Unlimited, and the retcon relates to Batman Beyond, the Wise Man's Favourite Batman). Respects women (here to take back the night, for her). Loves his gay sons and daughter. Does not turn his car into a murder tank to shoot people with.

90s comics Batman: violent asshole who is mean to everybody because idk Denny O'Neil thinks that's what autism or PTSD or whatever is. Makes absurdly stupid fucking decisions that later need to be retconned into making sense and even then they rely on everybody else being an inconsistent nonsense character. Launches into monologues about how it'd be super easy if he could just kill people, especially those incurable freak scoundrels at the crazy people prison more often than you would think. Truly horribly mean to women (Huntress and Spoiler especially) in a way that is simply beyond the norm of the genre at the time. Relentlessly weird and abusive in "my dad never hugged me" ways toward his ever-growing collection of sometimes dead children. Constantly turning his car into a murder tank to shoot people with.

This show is not an adaptation of the comics (though some individual issues are adapted or reworked), but if you just specify you're writing about or discussing DCAU Batman, people are pretty chill and in my experience will actively tell you about specific issues or TPBs that relate to the show. Other than that, it's just an extremely solid, accessible version of Batman, and the version of the character most people remember / care about when they criticize mean asshole comic book Batman for being "out of character" (even though comic book Batman has kinda sorta been that way since Crisis).

The same is basically true of Superman. His DCAU series has less of a reputation but is honestly crazy underrated. Best version of Lois Lane and Jimmy Olsen.

The Justice League cartoon, a sequel to both series, will also introduce you to a bunch of mainstay DC characters, albeit usually pretty far-removed from their own stories and exclusively in a team context. The only major outliers are The Question, Wonder Woman (kinda) and Martian Manhunter, who were basically 100% rewritten for the show. Even then if you just specify you mean the DCAU versions of these characters people will get it, the shows used to be more popular than the comics in the 90s.

This will also sneakily onboard you to the Zeta Project and you will learn, albeit indirectly, who the most insufferable kids in like 2002 were. Seriously, I sound insane telling children this now, but Ro's design was like... the rosetta stone for shit Deviantart anime OCs for a whole five years or so.

The watching order I'd recommend is:

Batman: Mask of the Phantasm.

Batman: The Animated Series.

Superman: The Animated Series.

Batman & Mr. Freeze: SubZero.

The New Batman Adventures.

Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman.

Justice League.

Justice League Unlimited.

Batman Beyond.

Batman: Return of the Joker (the only Tim Drake story I like lol).

The Zeta Project (severely optional).

I'd place Static Shock somewhere before Justice League Unlimited, personally, but you can move that one around as you please. There's some jank to it because it wasn't originally going to be part of the DCAU, but then come season two they started incorporating little crossovers and nods.

Batman & Harley Quinn and Justice League vs. the Furious Five are also in continuity but I pretend I do not see the Harley Quinn farts in the batmobile and fucks Nightwing movie, and have not actually seen the Furious Five movie.

Easy, simple, no fuss no muss. Batman is the only character to appear in every single show (albeit not every episode, obviously), so he serves as kind of a connecting throughline for the "Timmverse."

A lot of these shows are on Netflix and I mean, y'know, just pirate them, it's not like Warner Bros. needs more money lol.

Other recommendations:

Super Friends - no bullshit. It's aged pretty horribly, especially the animation, but I kid you not, this show genuinely captures what golden age superhero stories and especially Batman feels like. Not at all remotely character-driven (but neither were 90% of the comics), instead centered 100% around very badly animated action. I fucking love it. It will teach you how the idea of Batman worked before he was Gotham's dark moody emo prince. I don't recommend watching all of Super Friends, there is a lot of it, but there's value in just blasting through a couple eps. The benefit here is that they tinker with the format and line-up every season so if you do find yourself enjoying that 1970s American cartoon style of storytelling, they do keep it kind of fresh.

The Batman - that is, the 2004 series. Hated on arrival for not being more Timmverse DCAU stuff. Some of the most creative direction in villain and action design the franchise has ever had, but like, everybody in this show is a kung fu fighter when that is extremely not the case in the comics lol. Will demonstrate Batman as a pulp scifi detective, and how his stories can work when he's an isolated character. Plays hard into the idea of empathy for some villains, and provides most villains with pretty human motives. Downplays Batman as mentally ill and makes his Bruce Wayne persona, uh... more "relatable" to kids in the mid-2000s lol. Doesn't really supplement comic book canon but if you want to see how concepts can be stretched and adapted for fanfiction purposes, this is an invaluable show.

Batman - The Brave & The Bold. Captures the vibe of the wider DC universe during the 1950s - 1970s, with a lot of fun modern characters reworked into a silver age vibe and aesthetic. Very lighthearted and silly, but feels like if Gardner Fox were around today he'd fuck with it hard. Not a replacement for comics that people actually read and discuss in the tumblr fandom, but will introduce you to a range of characters, some of whom are actually pretty obscure, in an extremely digestible format. Has a bad, Teen Titans Go esque habit of responding to reddit fan criticisms in the Bat-Mite episodes, but those are paradoxically some of the most solid shit in the show.

[sleepy-grav3]

Glitching issue

So I was getting distracted again. I heard Masochism Tango and Stalker's Tango, wanted a yandere playlist with intense ballroom songs, that types of thing.

And then I thought of another story idea for my current hyperfixation: DCxDP

One of my favorite ships in that fandom is Dead Tired/Brain Dead, cause I love them... so much...

Anyway-

With the context of the yandere ballroom playlist, you should know where I'm going. And I read a few fics/prompts/whatever else you'd call them where it portrays a normally pretty toxic relationship but they're actually in a really healthy relationship.

There was one about mutual stalking, another with kidnapping shenanigans, one that mentioned attempted deprogramming- you get it. (don't ask me for them, I don't know what they're called and there's too much to sift through to find them, very sorry, do feel free to reblog/comment the authors of them or ones that hold some relevance)

But yeah, now I'm making a fic with a playlist as storyline inspiration. Idk the layout yet.

1 Long Chapter : 1 Song

or

Story Arc (probably short) : 1 Song

Always a 1:1 ratio, maybe a special 2 songs here and there? Not sure.

But so far!!! I have the usual: Masochism Tango and Stalker's Tango.

Got the Cell Block Tango ready. El Tango de Roxanne will be there too. I got some waltzes and looking into other types of rhythms like them. Tango, Waltz, thinking about Salsa and Swing, got a few others too

Looking into some less yandere themed songs since I can't solely do it on yandere themes. I want it to be drama filled but with some healthy doses of attraction, y'know?

Yeah, that whole thing is going on a headcannon and an idea.

Ghosts feel things more strongly, so some unhealthy things to humans are meh or minimum level things to ghosts. Because of this, Danny's a bit unhealthy in what he considers love (his vigilante life didn't help with that, especially with Vlad), but his human side keeps it more on the downlow

There's a different species of beings that are immortal in a way: The Undying. Life loves them or they're obsessed with Life. Tim is one of the only true Undying. They're as rare as true Halfas.

So... yeah. Love this little idea. Been working on it for a few hours now. And I need help. Song recommendations mostly, storyline ideas are welcome.

I'll be posting a playlist once I get it all sorted out, chronologically, and the outline of the story put up. The summary will be a genuine summary and not just some background info or a quick sentence like I usually do.

But I want a happy ending. No bittersweet, no hurt/barely any or no comfort, no fully angst-

I need some kind of betrayal for someone to go to jail TvT

Will it be Tim or Danny? Who fits best as a viewer for Cell Block Tango, just casually listening to people talk about killing (and that one framed murder).

Who's the one that lives off the thrill of getting hurt (I'm thinking more of the bdsm way, but also the "I'll only let you hurt me" type of way too? Doesn't have to be physical or verbal or even intentional... I'm making this sound worse-)

I got this one part for the Roxanne one

The yandere is "cheating", no idea if it's fake or a previous relationship, or whatever. still under planning for that.

And the "victim" is the one who's begging the yandere to not deceive them. Maybe they've been lied to a bunch of times, maybe they really don't want false hope, maybe they're fine with an open relationship as long as the yandere doesn't leave- idk, but the "victim" is the one who's pulling the strings during then.

I'm trying to think of who's the other person, the yandere, and the "victim". Who's who? Not sure. And how does it fit with the rest of the songs too... Ugh, I really should just do oneshots T^T But I can't at the moment, not with the ideas-

So yeah

Ideas? Song recommendations? Character ideas? Scene prompts????

Please?

Oh, and this post is named glitching because it broke my fucking computer. I don't have a mouse anymore. Luckily, it's touchscreen and the keyboard still works. Still annoying though

[freddie-77-ao3]

Octavian started another war where he was willing and eager to firebomb a camp full of children so he could reap the glory of victory. I'd say his villainization by the fandom is very well-earned, especially since he had none of Luke's more sympathetic traits.

feel like you missed my whole point but okay.

Um. I mean if we consider Luke's sympathetic traits to be he was actually treated as a human with a backstory, sure, Octavian deserves to be villainized more but uh, I'd consider Octavian's reasons for waging war a lot more legitimate than Luke's tbh?

Like. Luke's boiled down to daddy issues. He was upset his father wasn't there, and decided to make that everyone else's problem. Sure, if it wasn't Luke, it would be someone else, but Luke's the figurehead here. Luke, who was actually treated pretty well by Hermes all things considered.

And yes, May Castellan would have been terrifying, and shouldn't have been Luke's caregiver but...

Having a difficult parental situation absolutely does not give you the right to take your pain out on others. And that's what Luke did.

And yes, Luke absolutely was manipulated. Kronos manipulated him.

Now let's consider Octavian's motivation to "firebomb a camp full of children" as you put it.

Number one: Octavian was also manipulated. Gaea did manipulate him. He thought he was listening to Apollo-- a god who, to him, was good. Should be respected.

Number two: he didn't start the war. No, really. The greeks, from his point of view, brought a warship over the city and started firing. They damaged homes, likely hurt people, all within what was MEANT to be a safe place.

Leo might have been possessed but that was never communicated to Octavian. So no, he didn't start a war.

Gaea forced Leo to start a war. Either way, the Greeks started the war in his eyes.

Also the fact you take such offense to Octavian waging war on children... did you somehow think that Luke was only waging war on the adults? Because I can tell you, most people consider a twelve year old a child, and Luke did in fact try to kill one of those. You know, Percy.

Also victims of Luke: Silena, actively groomed by Luke. Yeah she committed suicide, but she wouldn't have if Luke hadn't done that. Also, grooming is in fact also a crime.

And, you know, all the other casualties from that war. Because there were. Castor, Lee, Bianca, Zoë, Michael, Beckendorf, the other 15 campers dead from the battle of manhattan, and all the other casualties.

Also he did send Chris into the labyrinth, and didn't particularly seem to care that he was driven mad?

Not to mention the PTSD he inflicted on a bunch of kids.

So yes, you're right, Octavian did bad shit. But he also had his reasons for said bad shit. Reasons that I, personally, find a lot more compelling than Luke's.

Plenty of people have daddy issues, anon. Not many of them try to end the world.

[mrcowboydeanwinchester]

women in horror

wanted a sapphicnatural anthem so i wrote one <3

this is dedicated to all the women of supernatural, and especially to the people in the fandom who bring them back to life to give them their sapphic happy endings. happy @sapphicnaturalrights sapphicnatural week !!! i tried to hit as many of the prompts as possible in one go <3

lyrics under the cut!

VERSE home alone late at night cold open in the dark light bubble bath, spilling red wine her scream cues the title card

guest appearance, aren't you lucky exposition, keep it clunky mystery isn't the only thing she makes hard

PRE-CHORUS tiny top, thick makeup white and lacy linen lipstick pop, DD cup bloody in your visions oh, she's a woman in horror come and tell me you want her handcuff torn, baby born losing is a given monster turn, crash and burn i know why you're driven oh, she's a woman in horror come and

CHORUS bury your girls bury your gays you like pretty women (yum) but you love your cliches she's coming back wrong i'm making it right once i get my shovel we'll keep you up at night (oh?) we'll keep you up at night (okay)

([british accent] so basically, she- am i american or not? i can't remember. oh. um. [american accent] is this accent okay?)

VERSE bloodthirsty kiss and chase through hell's fire and heaven's grace slow panning shots up to her face (that's hot) that's a wrap on her screentime

credits rolling, she's the last name find a plot hole, give her the blame she's a hot one but it's a shame about her crimes (ew)

PRE-CHORUS tiny top, thick makeup white and lacy linen lipstick pop, DD cup bloody in your visions oh, she's a woman in horror come and tell me you want her handcuff torn, baby born losing is a given (yeah) monster turn, crash and burn i know why you're driven oh, in a fatal genre she's dead cos you (laughter into manic shriek)

CHORUS bury your girls bury your gays you like pretty women but you love your cliches she's coming back wrong i'm making it right (yeah) since i've got my shovel we'll keep you up at night we'll keep you up at night

([american accent] so his girlfriend burns to death, so he wants revenge, but then she comes back to life, like - nonono, his mom comes back to life, because she also burned to death-)

BRIDGE me and bloody mary are getting off in the back of your daddy's car stole your silver bullets, the witches and i making magic, we go so far for women in white for mothers and wives for demons and daughters resurrection time the write to survive she's coming alive for women in horror resurrection time !!!

CHORUS you bury your girls you bury your gays i love all your women and i hate your cliches she's coming back strong i'm making it right now i've got my shovel we'll bury you deep at night we bury you deep at night

[wisecura]

Timid

Izuku Midoriya x you

Short headcannons

AN: Cuz I don’t have much from other fandoms and this has been on the back burner of my mind. Lemme know if you’d like a continuation or different one. ♥️♥️ please be mindful of my tags.

warning: stalking, creepy behavior, obsessive behavior, jealousy, gaslighting, manipulation, breaking and entering, just be cautious babe

Sweet Izuku who you meet on the first day of school, a stuttering, flushing mess. You two instantly click and he becomes one of your best friends. That cute and timid side draws you in, but his lighthearted and charismatic personality makes you stay.

Sweet Izuku who becomes your best friend within a year, you don’t remember a time your best friend wasn’t around. From the first day you were placed in Class-A with him, he’s been stuck to your side—like glue. Super glue. He’s easily the kindest to you, always bringing you your favorite snacks, picking you up drinks from the vending machines. Always willing to tutor you on classes you struggle with. He even helps you identify weaknesses and strengths to your quirk. Constantly complimenting you—your quirk, your resilience, your pretty appearance—

Sweet Izuku who has a stellar reputation around school as the shy, timid, and polite boy. There wasn’t a single person who’d say otherwise —he was just a sweetheart through and through. You’d never guess how he subconsciously flips a switch when it comes to you. The one who was always so sweet to him. The one who trusted and respected his hard work more than anyone else before you. He couldn’t help the way he stared at you. The way his mind seemed to drift to more inappropriate thoughts. Not that he’d let you find out.

Sweet Izuku who developed a significant…infatuation with you. The nights you’d invite him over for movies or gaming sessions always resulted in him stealing something of yours. Last time it was a pen. This time, your hoodie. Next time he’ll work up the nerve to take the first lacy thing that crosses his path. You’d always been so careless—something he found immensely cute. He’d gotten over his initial fear of being caught, especially when you never seemed to notice your items going missing. You always trusted him. He already has a history of being a thorough fanboy—so don’t doubt for a second that he has a camera roll filled with thousands of pictures of just you. Notebooks dedicated to you.

Sweet Izuku who becomes increasingly more obsessed with you. Following you around wherever you went, gaslighting you—or the people around you to stay away. ‘I heard he was a creep—what? That’s just what I’d heard!’ Wanting more and more of your time—spent alone. It was so difficult to confront him—his more reserved and flustered nature making you feel almost bad. You wouldn’t have a single accusation leave your lips before he’s damn near tearing up. Yes—it’s impossible to confront him for something you can’t 100% confirm. Especially not with the way your heart clenches when you see his waterline fog up. So you do the next most reasonable thing.

Sweet Izuku who realizes you’re pulling away, manipulating situations that seemed more plausible. Showing up in more places coincidentally. You’d go to hang out with someone, finding him already there. Manipulating your conversations so you’d feel more reliant on him. Reeling in his praises and compliments when he spoke to you, especially when he noticed you seemed concerned for his lack of interactiveness. Did you do something wrong? He’d made sure you were his best friend after all.

Sweet Izuku who gets caught sneaking into your room in the dead of the night. You’d been sleeping but, surprisingly, you’re now wide awake. He’d been standing over your bed staring down at you with an impassively blank, scary face. The only light source being a moonlit background. ‘Izu? W-what’re you doing here?’

Sweet Izuku who breaks down, dropping onto his knees, and immediately confesses his unyielding devotion. He’s loved you since he first met you—loved you since you’d become joined at the hip. Loves everything about you. You’d been scared to see him in your room—only realizing now that he wasn’t in his right mind. How did he even get in? The doors fucking locked. His past actions began to click into place, each one making more sense with every passing second as you stared into his desperate, misty eyes. ‘Izuku, please leave.’

come home

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Hello! It's me again. I'm probably pestering you, lol. I think a lotta people give flack for the Octavinelle trio being ruthless and "behaving like a Mafia." But I think considering where they live it makes sense? They live in the ocean. And the ocean is a kill or be killed environment, where you have to the strongest and toughest. If not? You at least have to be quick witted and unable to be seen, otherwise you'll be dead. If the trio become too soft they'll be fish meat.

I think the fandom is pretty divided when it comes to perceptions of what the Coral Sea is like. On one hand, you have the people who think of it as like living in Atlantica, which is basically just like living in a peaceful and pretty city (but underwater). Then you have the people who think the environment would be so different it would shape its inhabitants to behave differently as well. The second one tends to be a darker or grittier interpretation which aknowledges dangers such as other undersea creatures and treacherous living conditions.

Personally, I lean on and enjoy the latter, since TWST rarely ever designs purely for the aesthetic of it; one example of this is how the twins are confirmed to be bioluminescent in the Magical Archives. This is a decision that was not made “because it would look cool”, but because many deep sea creatures rely on this trait to intimidate potential predators. It would make more sense for the cold waters of the Coral Sea to change its people rather than merfolks’ cities simply being civilizations moved several leagues under, especially seeing TWST time and time again really consider the geography and history of each new location and how those inform the cultures that form there.

However, I want to state that the Coral Sea would be very different depending on which area you’re in, just like how there are nice parts and bad parts of a city. It’s not ALL nice or ALL bad. For example, the Atlantica Museum in book 3 appears to be in a more photic zone, so there’s more sunlight and it appears pleasant to be in. Even the merpeople there seem to be different than the Octatrio; they less so resemble specific sea creatures and are much more akin to being human-like. We have yet to really see how the benthic zones are—but we do know they must be harsher, since Floyd has mentioned exploring shipwrecks and various dangers there (like sharks).

I also want to point out that there are subtle signs in dialogue which could imply merpeople prefer traits that promote survivability and adaptability in the ocean. Azul’s bullies are noted to taunt him for his weight, but also for his bulky tentacles and inky tears. Now why those traits specifically??? Because these impede his ability to swim swiftly (making it harder to escape danger) and easily give away his location (if he’s in hiding or camoflauging).

I’ve seen others suggest that maybe these comments are because of racism against octopus merpeople, who are a rare kind of merfolk. This is entirely possible, yes! But thinking about it like that… Isn’t it also possible that there aren’t a lot of octopus merpeople at the moment because it’s more difficult for them to escape or to hide from predators? Which then informs and perpetuates preexisting prejudices. In this context (plus the bullying), it makes sense why Azul may have “hardened” as a defense and survival mechanism. The same goes for the twins, who were explicitly taught how to defend themselves (although this also goes into the Leech mob family theory, which is a whole separate matter) and have often made references to fighting others in the Coral Sea. Their upbringings also play a part in their personalities, but so does the environment they grew up in. Like Azul and the twins, you’d have to harden mentally or physically to some degree to ensure your survival through tough circumstances.

It’s hard to say for sure though! A lot of this is speculation based on current but infrequent lore, and the Octatrio themselves are a very small portion of all merfolk. They may not be representative of the behaviors of all other merpeople, and we should keep this in mind when referring to them as our exemplars. That’s why I’ve been hoping for a Coral Sea hometown event so we have a more concrete idea of what life under the sea is like 😭

[rebelliousstories]

Old Wound

Relationship: Cooper Howard x Reader

Fandom: Fallout

Request: No

Warnings: Fluff, Angst, Mentions of Death, Brief Strong Language

Word Count: 1,167

Main Masterlist: Here

Fallout Masterlist: Here

Summary: She was supposed to be dead. He held her while she died in his arms. How is she here?

“You ever think about what’s gonna happen when we’re dead, cowpoke?” She asked.

It was a cool night, probably winter now if Cooper was remembering right. It had been so long since he felt a proper winter that he was not sure after all these years. He turned his head to the woman that was resting on his chest as they huddled around a fire to keep away the chill.

“You on drugs or somethin’?” Cooper’s serious tone made the woman burst out with laughter. She pushed herself up so that she was level with his face to look into his beautiful ocean blue eyes.

“No but, you’ve survived centuries. I may get a few decades if I’m lucky. I was just wondering if you’ve ever thought about what’ll happen when we die.” Her repeated question did not even make The Ghoul miss a beat.

“We’re gonna become food for someone or somethin’ else. That’s what’s gonna happen.” He stated, trying to get the woman to lay back down.

“I meant the afterlife, baby. Like do you think that there’s the pearly gates, or just nothingness?” She laid back down and let the man run his ungloved hand over her head, and through her hair.

“I hope there’s an afterlife, but if there is anything these last couple centuries have taught me is that God is cruel. So whatever is waiting for us, we take it as it comes.” Howard pressed a kiss in the wake of his hand and felt the woman relax into him. That answer seemed to pacify her as they settled in for the night and went to bed.

If only he could ask her what was waiting for them on the other side of death’s embrace. It had only been a couple weeks and the sting was still fresh, but you know cowpokes. They take it as it comes. Cooper had been traveling alone this entire time with a chip on his shoulder, and saddened eyes.

Walking into Filly, there was a vacancy in his pouch where his chems would be. The thought alone made him want to shoot something. She always got his chems for him because they would give the pretty girl a discount, but the ghoul behind her would get nothing. He had not needed to get his own since she began traveling with him a couple of years ago.

A sign on the door pointed him to where he needed to go. His spurs clinked against the wooden floors as he went inside the little apothecary. There was a bell that he ringed, and soon a man stepped out from behind a curtain.

“Sixty chems.” The Ghoul left no room for small talk, and set the necessary caps on the counter between them. Without a word, the man disappeared and retrieved the items for the mutant. Each man pocketed their own items and said nothing as they turned to go back to what they were doing before.

As soon as Cooper stepped out, gasps and shouts were heard through the downtown area. At first he thought it was him; ghouls were not exactly welcomed in many parts, especially him. But it was not. A woman in distressed clothing was walking around and looking for someone or something with desperation in her eyes. Looking at her from underneath the lip of his hat, The Ghoul thought that her clothing was remarkably familiar.

“Get lost, Ghoul. You ain’t welcome round here.” One of the shopkeepers shouted at the woman, who was clearly very lost. She said nothing as she kept looking around and did not even respond to the man. However she did respond when someone threw something at her. Trying to protect herself, she reached for something on her hip, only for that object to not be there. It was not until she turned around the Cooper felt his breath catch and his heart stop.

It was her. His little spitfire girl was right in front of him. There was no way though. She had bled out in his arms. She died in his arms. He felt the last breath leave her body, and her pulse stop. And yet, here she was. Standing in front of him as if nothing had happened. The sound of a gun cocking caught his attention, as well as the end of a barrel trained on the woman. In an instant, Howard shot the assailant first before he had time to harm the woman. She did not flinch, but rather calmly looked to where he stood and gasped out his name in a hushed whisper.

Cooper marched right up to her, and observed. Not a hair was different from the last time he had seen her. He did not even allow for another moment to pass as he grabbed her arm and began to drag her from the market. Once they were in a quiet part, he let go and could not hold his tongue.

“Who the hell are you? Why are you wearin’ her clothes?” Cooper demanded, holding his gun out to point at the woman.

“What- what are you talking about. Coop, it’s me. This isn’t funny.” She pleaded, feeling afraid as this was the first time in years that she had been at the end of his gun.

“Prove it,” he breathed, “what did you tell me you hoped was waiting for us in death?”

“I never told you.” She whispered. “But you told me that no matter what, we cowpokes take it as it comes, so it didn’t matter. Please Coop. Just put the gun down.”

With a deep breath in and out, he did as she asked. Cooper rushed forward and took in another deep breath, this time with the scent of her. But there was something off about her scent. It smelt much more… ghoulish. Pulling away, he saw her same eyes staring back at him. Those same eyes that he begged to open just one more time a few weeks ago.

“How?” Cooper asked, running his hands everywhere he could.

“I don’t know. I don’t even know what I am, or what happened that I came back. All I know is that one minute I’m in your arms, and the next I’m picking myself up off the ground and all alone.” She repeated the process of running her hands everywhere she could as her lover was doing to her.

“Hate to break it to ya, sweetheart, but I think you’re a little like me. Who the hell knows with all the radiation bullshit.” He whispered, chuckling lightly at the face she pulled when he proposed his theory.

“I guess there are worse things to be. I’m just glad I found you again.” Cooper was brought into a tight embrace, as she buried her face into his chest and breathed in his scent.

“Me too, darlin’. Me too.” He whispered back, pressing kisses to her hair as he was glad to just hold her in his arms again.

[bomber-grl]

Hiro Hamada dating hc ❤︎₊ ⊹

~ Pairing(s): Hiro Hamada x Gn!reader (no pronouns used)

Hiro is most definitely full of nerves and awkwardness when the relationship first starts

I mean you can’t rlly blame him considering it’s super awkward when you start dating your friend ����🫠

He obvs eases up eventually and it becomes more casual between the two of you .

He pretty much stays the same but the way he tries to sneakily hold your hand doesn’t go unnoticed

He’s still the stupid and cringe prick he always was

Except 100x worse

You thought it couldn’t get worse than this? Well you were wrong 🦍

He’s alwayyyysssss bothering you

Sure he loves you and everything but bro

You can only handle so much

Bro is obsessed with so many things and is in a bunch of fandoms

So best believe you’re gonna have to sit and listen to him talk about the lore about random ass shit you’ve never heard about

How lovely ☺️

He seems to be on crack all the freaking time

Freaking demon child

You’ll especially love when you get comfortable enough to cuddle and he decides to trap you under the blanket with his farts while he runs away

And they say romance is dead 😍

And then he goes and acts like he’s an angel in front of cass

☺️ beautiful

Just smile for the time being, dw you can imagine the torture you’ll put him through to get you through the week

Also, you can’t not tell me this boy is a gamer or anime watcher

He’ll definitely watch shonen anime’s like Naruto or bleach but secretly watch them romance animes

Hell probably watch kdramas too, initially because cass would and it kinda stuck with hiro

Now going back

Hiro is super clingy

He tries denying it but he’s Fr super fucking clingy

It’s not a bad thing iggggg

He’s super cuddly and affectionate but not like in a super lovey way but more like a cat just doing whatever

Likes having his hair played with too

Will throw a whole ass tantrum if you don’t

Not rlly but still)

It’s pretty fun hanging around him especially when you’re not with him

When you’re not together you use social media to interact

Over TikTok, discord and just regular ol messages

Usually over TikTok since you guys be having TikTok wars

Whenever you open the app hiro always sends you 99+ TikTok’s and you do the same just to be an ass

He also uses those wack ass TikTok emojis 😭

Imagine going home after a long day at school and just seeing-

“Fnafl0v3r_66 tagged you “hehe [cute]”

If you don’t know that emoji go ahead and search it on TikTok)

Following that message is a video of sukuna x Cinderella w bakugo as their son

Like wtf

And then there’s the other end of the spectrum with hiro tagging you in those cute couple TikTok’s like bro pick a sideeeee

Ugly ass

Calling him that as if you guys don’t cuddle all the time

Well yea he’s pretty cool to have as a boyfriend when he’s not being a pain in the ass 😍

Extra - I just think of that one audio “I love you mr beast, I’ll love you forever and ever”

———————————————————————————

Best believe he says that on repeat

[herefortheships]

On media portrayals of older women

Commentary on Lydia's characterization in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. 🕷

This post was originally a response to a post from two months ago, but it got so big (and also I kinda moved away from the topic a little), I decided to make it its own post. It's a long ramble, basically, about my feelings around how women over 30 tend to be written and how disappointing it often is, especially now that I am a woman over 30 myself.

Before I get to Lydia and my issues with how she was written in BJBJ, I just want to say something. There is a blatant unwillingness to represent an older woman who isn't a mother or, at the very least, married or divorced, and often those women who are depicted as individuals outside of these roles, tend to be either toxic or unhappy characters (Cruella De Vil totally came to mind when I just typed that 😆 But even Cruella is married in the original story). As a matter of fact, the ex-wife or divorced older woman is often depicted as a cruel, bitter, or even evil woman (Miranda Priestly form "Devil Wears Prada" came to mind. Hey, another iconic fashion industry character lol). Single older women are often also depicted as "ugly", or flat out scary characters (Miss Trunchbull in Matilda came to mind).

It's like for many screenwriters it's impossible to visualize a mature woman who isn't or hasn't been married, and is childless.

The issue is not that they are given these roles; the issue is that their character arcs often seem to revolve around these roles and their identity is very focused on being either the mom, the wife, or the ex-wife. More often than not, female characters over 30 that are good are usually moms or struggling wives, and their identity is confined or greatly centered around her role as the mother or the suffering wife. (Chances are, if she's happily married, she's either not the protagonist or the story is over 💀). And if it is not centered around these, then motherhood is something adjacent to the story in some way, shape, or form.

Using the first "Beetlejuice" movie we have an example of a happily married woman in a leading role, Barbara Maitland. She's not an older woman, per se, but she is a happily married woman in a leading role. But what is one of her main concerns as a character? She can't have children. So she does have a motherly-adjacent struggle. At least Adam accompanies her in this story thread and it isn't just a struggle Barbara alone is facing; both of them are pretty balanced as far as their struggles go in "Beetlejuice". (I could have also used Delia as an example here, but she isn't exactly the main character as Barbara was in "Beetlejuice". That said, she is both a mother and wife.)

I'm pretty new to the Beetlejuice fandom (as in I was a fan who watched the movie a few times a year around Halloween, but never actually interacted with fandom or analyzed anything, until I watched BJBJ and became totally obsessed), and as a relatively new fan who has been here since September 2024, I'm not sure what the expectations around Lydia's future were throughout the years in the fandom. But, I'm positive a lot of fans never considered Lydia would choose to get married and to a pretty regular guy at that at some point and become a mother. I'm sure many fans shared Winona's idea of older Lydia being a goth spinster, living a pretty unconventional, but happy life, just doing her thing. She might have gone into photography and kept interacting with the dead and being her goth, "strange and unusual" self.

So it must have been pretty shocking to see that older Lydia is not only a struggling mother, but she is also anxiety-ridden and in an abusive relationship with some normie guy.

Lydia at least has something that separates her identity as an individual from her identity as a mother, in her show, but it's made clear that getting into making the show was considered by her as "selling out", a sentiment that came up in her conversation with Delia. I wish they would have gone into that a little bit more, because it's not entirely clear how Lydia felt about the show exactly and what her reasons were to do it in the first place. Lydia's interest in photography from the first film, and subsequently from the animated show as well (meaning this was an inherent and very characteristic part of her), is non-existent in the sequel.

While it's understandable that "life happens" and people just change over time, and a life of seeing and interacting with all sorts of ghosts must have taken a toll on her, Lydia's characterization was considerably far from the person she used to be, and it feels like a lot of it had to do with her mother role.

I know a lot of fans also appreciate this, too, don't get me wrong; Lydia as she is now is relatable to many women's experience, but what I'm getting at is that a choice was made to write older Lydia like this, and that choice is the same treatment that's given to too many older female characters in the media. They chose to make her a struggling mother, is the point I'm trying to make.

Her character has also become more reactionary; she isn't exactly in control about anything. Even making her show appears to be a reactive decision, too, rather than something she did because she genuinely wanted to. She's even taking medications to get through the day when she starts seeing ghosts (Nadja disappears after Lydia takes the pills, so one can assume she takes these pills to quiet down her psychic abilities and stop seeing ghosts; Rory's comment in the bathroom also supports this).

Lydia is indeed, overall, unhappy, and she has been for a long time. Not saying this is a bad thing; stories need conflict, and it would have been strange if she was living her best life at the start of the film. After Charles funeral we confirm that she wasn't exactly happy when Richard was around, either ("our relationship was over long before the accident", strange thing to say to Astrid when she's questioning her about why she cannot see her father). Things seemed to have ended amicably between them, but it looks like Lydia was not happy in that relationship by its end.

Lydia only seems to take control when her daughter is in danger, so that which spurs her into action is more linked to her mother persona over any other conflict that's more directly linked to her as an individual. If it wasn't for Betelgeuse's intervention, she might have even ended up marrying Rory, who, not only did she not love, he was also using her and being emotionally manipulative and abusive.

I know Lydia at some point became affected by seeing ghosts every other day through her life, as evidenced by the pills, but (and this is something I talked about before here) the way they ended the previous film, there was nothing to indicate that Lydia was in a downward spiral or that seeing strange things and dead people affected her negatively in any strong, life-altering way (unless Lydia was pretending to like the dark stuff before, and by the end she's more herself and admits to not like the creepy stuff; she does reject dissecting the frog in her science class, but then again, she asks the Maitlands to levitate her and pretty much do a ghostly possession in the house for the "Jump in the line" scene. But I digress. Lydia's character arc in the first film is an analysis for another post).

Moving on, Lydia's brief experience with Betelgeuse in the first film also does not justify her current emotional state for the reasons stated above and in that post I linked. Losing Richard also doesn't seem to be enough of a reason to have created the emotional issues Lydia is struggling deeply with in BJBJ, and it does seem that the movie pointed at that, but it was poorly done, when Lydia told Astrid she didn't have a relationship with him long before he passed away; she also didn't have a strong reaction to seeing Richard in the afterlife.

Whatever happened to Lydia that led her to this current state wasn't properly explored, is what I'm getting at, because the film decided to focus her character struggles mostly on her relationship with her daughter, over her own personal conflicts as a separate individual. Lydia as the suffering mom, struggling to connect with her daughter was the focus of her arc. Did we ever get to know exactly why she was willing to marry Rory despite clearly not loving him? (she even seemed disgusted by him kissing her and when he tried to kiss her lol).

Was it because she thought he was her only chance at being happy again? Was it because she thought she needed to be married for Astrid, to rebuild their family? Lydia's actions were entirely steered by Rory; he emotionally manipulated her so much, he made her believe she had feelings for him and start a relationship with him, even. Maybe it was him, the one who convinced her to start the show in the first place, to take advantage of her psychic abilities (which he totally believed to be bullshit, anyway, but he thought he could use her delusions/fake claims to attract fame and money), he was her producer, after all. (Actually I think it was him who convinced her?? Was she making her show before meeting him? Lol I totally forgot this bit. Fill me in because I've only watched the movie twice.)

By the end of the film, ironically, Lydia takes more control for herself when she sends Betelgeuse away (and I say "ironically" because, without Betelgeuse she would still be stuck in the same toxic situation she was with Rory. In fact, things would have gotten much worse as Rory would have gotten away with his plan. She also had no issues handling Betelgeuse during all scenes they had together; she would even raise her voice at him and act exasperated with his behavior--that is not typically how a person who is terrified or traumatized by someone acts around them, but ok...), and she makes a choice to be more focused in her life, assuming she did quit her job, which is up for debate, depending on when the dream sequence started.

Without Betelgeuse, Lydia would be stuck in a terrible relationship, where her life would have been ruined, and she would have also lost her daughter on Halloween night when Jeremy used her to get his life back. So it's really strange a choice (and poorly executed, again) to have Lydia's character resolution be sending Betelgeuse away like she's finally confronting some deep-rooted fear or trauma, when her character really wasn't explored individually all throughout the movie to showcase in what way exactly did her brief interactions with Betelgeuse over 30 years ago might have crumbled her emotional stability to that degree. The movie isn't clear if her depression and anxiety are related to losing Richard and therefore that's what she needs to heal from; or if it's more related to her past trauma around Betelgeuse, and then, that's what she needed to heal from.

There really should have been more of a focus on her as an individual apart from her struggles as Astrid's mother for her character to really have a good payoff at the end. And truly, if facing Betelgeuse was going to "fix her", then she's back at square one when he shows up on her bed at the end. Lydia's character and story are incomplete. More reasons why we need a BJ3.

What's truly going to heal Lydia is her finding herself again, as just Lydia; not the mother or the TV presenter. And she must get there herself, not have it all fixed for her by Betelgeuse yet again or another external force. She has to make a choice for herself. They need to show her picking up her camera again, and yes, enjoying the "strange and unusual". She needs to embrace her otherness and be herself again.

(And if she doesn't want to be alone... she shouldn't go after a guy like Rory or a normie. She needs another weirdo like Richard who loved scary movies, or, ahem, Betelgeuse, who has already proved he loves her more than any normie ever could.)

I can't stress enough how disappointing it is that mature women are mostly presented as moms or wives or even grandmas, without dreams and motivations of their own that are entirely separate from their (societal) roles. Mature men can be out there living adventures and doing all sorts of things, like James Bond for example. Meanwhile women are either divorced, mothers, wives, grandmas, aunts, etc and these roles are a huge part of what defines them as characters. And if it doesn't define them, they still are moms, wives, ex-wives, or grandmas. It's rare to see a single older lady doing her thing and being just a character and like, falling in love and going through a satisfying arc that has nothing to do with having kids, or dealing with estranged kids, etc. At least Delia was out there doing her thing in BJBJ; she was doing what she loved, while still being a mother and a grandmother, and a loving wife/widow to Charles. She was a realized character. And that's what I want to see, you know? I don't mind seeing an older female character who is married with kids (and even grandkids!), as long as she is also a fully realized individual when her character arc is wrapped up at the end.

If Lydia being behind the camera instead of in front of it in BJBJ is representative of her feeling lost in life, and her being in a toxic relationship and almost saying yes to someone she doesn't love or even remotely fit in with, then healed Lydia should be behind the camera again in BJ3, and saying yes to someone she does love and fits in with by the end.

I definitely want to see a Lydia who is more than Astrid's mom in BJ3; a Lydia who isn't easily manipulated and stepped on, and who has a firm grasp on who she is and a love for who she is. Yeah, I totally want her to end up with Betelegeuse (edit: And I am writing a post about why they are perfectly matched to complete each other's character arcs), but I also want to see her fully realized outside of the mother and (potential) wife roles.

[tavina-writes]

I have been pondering the recent rash of "post canon NHS and LXC would never ever reconcile bc even if NHS wanted to have Er-ge back, LXC would never ever forgive him for [insert reason of choice here]" type of posts + the "do you think NHS thinks very hard about how much Da-ge would hate him for becoming [the way that he is now] by choosing to seek vengeance" type of posts, and I think fundamentally the reason these posts do not jive with me is that we have no indication, in the show or in the book that uh, NHS gives a shit about either of these things very much anymore?

The first type of post is predicated on the assumption that LXC's forgiveness or lack thereof some some sort of either extension of mercy (which NHS obviously does not deserve <- or so assumes the post) or some form of punishment (which is obviously the correct answer) but the last scene we get with NHS both in the book and the show make no indication that this is a thing he wants? Or cares about? Book NHS has *sauntered off* with his little hat trophy and Show NHS walks off screen after saying something along the lines of "What is my responsibility I won't shirk, what isn't my responsibility I won't care about." Now, arguably, show NHS is having a worse go of it emotionally, but shows no real inclination or interest in either apologies or making up and being friends again with LWJ, LXC, WWX, or other people. Book NHS seems pretty pleased with the outcome of the events as a whole?

The second type of post is predicated on the fact that NHS finds Da-ge's judgement a horrible burden to bear at this stage in the game, which! He might! But again especially in the book we get no indication that he has any fucks left to give about what Da-ge may or may not have wanted since Da-ge is dead. In both the show and the book, NHS went about revenge taking very specific and complicated actions with the desired result of JGY dying, but he certainly took the scenic route getting there, which, he didn't need to? As I've written about before, JGY didn't see him as a threat. If he wanted JGY dead he could've arranged to poison JGY's tea like, 10 years ago and had done with it instead of his complicated Rube Goldberg life ruining scheme. If he is still sickly anxious about how Da-ge might feel about the scheming and the trouble causing and the whole everything, that's certainly possible, but he must've decided it was worth it anyway regardless of that, and I don't know that it necessarily would've changed just because he got what he wanted at the end.

Overall, I think as a fandom we think a lot about like "will and should this relationship ever be repaired or similar to how it used to be?" and "does this character deserve/not deserve the forgiveness of people they've hurt or abandoned?" which can be interesting questions! I do feel like these are often taken as "is a character morally good (deserves to be forgiven) or morally bad (deserves to rot in hell forever never forgiven ever ever)" and based entirely on if Character is the meta writer's blorbo. Under this paradigm the concept of "Character did bad things to get exactly what they wanted and were happy about that and no relationships were ever repaired and the emotional detachment of people they used to care about no longer matters to them!" is uncomfortable.

It's just that for NHS I've increasingly come to the conclusion that canonically, I don't think NHS thinks he has anything to apologize for, nor is he super interested in being forgiven! He got what he wanted the way he wanted it to happen. Which is potentially supremely unsatisfying but I think is very sexy as a narrative concept.

[tokyo-daaaamn-ji-gang]

OMG would you like some SAD TIME?💙

I really can't stop thinking about a 'what if one of the Haitani brothers died' so I'mma share a slice of my brain in the hotpot. Ok, so, the ending was rushed but if it wasn't rushed, I imagine Ran is more likely to die in the fight. Right? That'd be so juicy. Like just imagine the after of it, just Rindou going through the life of gang and violence all by himself without the guidance of his brother. I imagined that he'd be reckless and would probably get into more trouble without Ran clearing the front for him.

Ran's death would overwhelm him with grief that he might question his own worth and abilities. He might even start feeling that he’s now even more in the shadow of his brother who was seen as the more popular one when he was alive but is dead now. You know, Ran lived his life being more known than him, he was the popular brother. And now, Rindou will be known as the little brother of the deceased Ran Haitani. It'll just remind him that he's gone everytime.

On the other hand, he'd feel guilty and lost. He feels guilty for getting separated in the fight and to be woken up by Ran dragging him to safety and losing him at the same time. He feels lost because the Haitani brothers wouldn't be called that if there was just one, they're always a pair. He's alone and there's no one by his side. No matter how much he rolls his eyes at his presence, he's still his big brother, there's no one else in the world that he's closer to than Ran.

Rindou's scared, really scared. He's scared of Ran leaving him.

Btw, I love your updates and posts! It really makes the TR fandom very lively!( ≧ᗜ≦)❤

Ohh this reminds me of all the Ran death theories/ predictions because of this image!

Rindou would definitely take it very badly though, he's always had Ran, always been part of a duo. So if Ran was gone I think Rindou would struggle a lot with what to do, losing Ran would hurt him so badly. He'd probably start using alcohol to try and cope too, since he already is known to drink a lot. Actually do think the remaining S62 members would try to be there for him though, Shion especially seems to think highly of him so could see him try to kinda be a big brother to him (it probably goes pretty badly but in a way Shion being a bit silly would likely provide at least a bit of a distraction to Rindou).