#force my “we hate each other OTP” in situation together

[the-fatal-impact]

Hanush of Leipa: Ha! That was such a great idea to send Hans and Henry to hunting trip together! They become such a good friends.

Hanush of Leipa: But if that didn't work...

Hanush of Leipa: I would send them to another trip with accommodation in inn with only last room left and with only ONE BED!

Hanush of Leipa: That would teach them!

[l-ii-zz]

— ¿How the heck did Red and Zim start having their first feelings for each other? I'm intrigued.

I didn't want to answer your question earlier 'cause I was determined to write a whole bible about how RaZR works in my AU, but I was also hesitating because I always get embarrased whenever I talk about my otps in general.

I was also still discussing with myself if I should put this ship in the story or not, because I know about certain people not being confortable with ships in this AU and because I don't want my AU to be involved with people who just follows the story only 'cause their fav ship is there. I already had a bad experience with those kind of people with another fandom.

But at the same time; RaZR might not be a rare ship, but a quite underrated one that doesn't have a lot of content to dig in comparing it with other big ships that we already know. Also, when I said that I don't want shipping involved in my AU, I was specifically referring to ZaDR. Despite I like it, it is STUPIDLY overrated, to the point that it gets a little exhausting to see it everywhere in the fandom... So idk, RaZR wouldn't be much of a big trouble in my AU, and it's not like it's gonna be the main thing in the story.

BUT YEAH, About your question:

In my AU, Zim already had a crush on Red since they saw each other again by iniciating Elite training together. However, his feelings were mostly involved by this idealized image of Red being this "infallible", "exemplary", "perfect" soldier. You know: things that Zim wished to be. Thus becoming the reason why Zim always have seeked his approval.

On the other hand, Red was aware of this weird fixation Zim had on him, which was obviously very annoying. Despite this, Red never truly hated him; In fact, he always felt a little pity for the defective lil bug. Red also learned to deal with Zim's destructive shenanigans by taking advantage of that weakness he had over Red. However, this kind of manipulative dynamic made Red accidentally more tolerant and permissive with Zim, behavior that followed Red even after becoming a Tallest.

Then, AU shit happens. Zim has his own development arc with Dib on their adventures in space, but Red also has his own development arc with a number of situations; such as the coming of his adulthood, his responsibilities as a leader, memories of his abusive past becoming relevant in his life again, etc. Both Zim and Red don't see each other again until the events of Arc 4.

At this point, many years have passed and both have changed a lot. And the fact that Red and Purple have no power over Zim makes their dynamics change drastically.

The role reversal made it so that they could see each other as equals. Neither Zim nor Red are trying to like each other, so they both interact as how they truly are. Sure there is tension and hostility between them sometimes, but as they can act as themselves, they start to feel strangely comfortable with each other. And as suddenly as it starts, the curiosity to see how far one can go with the other causes the bickering and teasing to accidentally turn into a very strange and very Irken form of.... flirting??! The funny thing is that neither of them are aware of this until there is no turning back.

But there's something else that's even more relevant about Zim and Red's dynamic: There's a point in the plot where both of them are forced to show their most vulnerable side. With Zim, there's the whole trauma thing that he still carries around and that reaches a limit where he can no longer hide; on Red's part, due to a slip of his own, he was forced to tell Zim about the abusive past he had with Miyuki and how it has affected him in several aspects of his life, including his relationship with Purple. By uncovering their most vulnerable side, both of them maintain a silent truce that turns into mutual respect. Slowly and gradually, both of them start to feel comfortable to vent and share things that they haven't told to anyone, not even their loved ones (Purple and Dib respectively).

It's all a veeeery long process of understanding and trust that is slowly forming and needs some pushes to become stronger. It's very similar to what Zim and Dib had to do to form their friendship, except that Red and Zim feelings are growing beyond to just friendship.

However; even though it's clear that something is changing between these two, they both feel conflicted by these new feelings.

As for Red, he has never experienced romantic feelings before and doesn't know how to act in certain circumstances. This is all new to him and therefore he can't discern whether he is truly falling in love or if he is misinterpreting his feelings. Not to mention that these types of relationships are completely punished by the Irken Empire.

With Zim, he believed that he no longer had feelings for Red and that it would stay that way now that he discovered his true colors. Instead, Zim went from a childhood crush to being genuinely and hopelessly in love with him. However, he can't trust Red's intentions. In fact, he hates that despite all the awful things Red had done to him, he is still madly in love. Zim knows that Red had and will always have control over him, because deep down he has always wanted for Red to want him, and it seems like it will always be that way.

But, despite still being conflicted about his feelings, Red knows that he has stopped seeing Zim in the same way and that he even feels guilty about the things he has done, and he admits that he shouldn't reciprocate Zim's feelings, not because he doesn't want to, but because he knows he doesn't deserve it.

They go through a lot of tense moments and trust issues, but they will eventually talk it out and correspond each other. Not in a conventional way, though. They are still not sure about what they are or should be (although they are already doing what lovers do). Neither of them dares to make it completely official; because deep down they know that sooner or later the day will come when they will both have to go on separate ways, perhaps never to see each other again.

[kinetic-elaboration]

June 20: My So-Called Life 1x16

I feel like it's been so long since I watched MSCL last, even though it was only the week before last, but then before that was another break... I miss it but I don't hate that I'm drawing out the last few episodes.

This one was really good because it was a mix of some very different story lines. I mainly remember it for Rickie's, of course; in some ways, I'm more upset watching him in Resolutions even than in So-Called Angels. I think it's because the very special holiday episode is over, but his story still doesn't have a resolution. He still doesn't have a home; he still doesn't belong anywhere. And everyone else has moved on to other, more regular program. Also, I think Rickie's pride and his loneliness and his desperation are all really warring in a way that's more palpable than in the previous episode. A step forward, a step back. The way he and Mr. Katimsky WANT to be each other's family so bad but are both scared.

It's interesting to me that Rickie specifically mentions The Odyssey starting in medias res, right before he admits that he has nowhere to live--because Mr. Katimsky is getting his story in the middle, but in a way so is the audience. Rickie's life has been seen in bits and pieces, there at the edges of Angela's life. He's in the middle of a crisis but it's been a long time coming.

Rickie and Rayanne barely interacting in this ep was--notable. I know it was probably largely about fitting different story lines together, and keeping the A, B, C plots clean, but they are best friends, and Rickie has no home. Rayanne's doesn't seem to be an option. The most we see of Rayanne's concern is Angela's statement that Rayanne blames Patty for kicking Rickie out. But it's Angela who seems to have be more invested in Rickie's situation, at least comparatively. I can't tell how much this is supposed to reflect the strained nature of their friendship right now and how much is just about the strictures of writing.

I mean honestly I would have liked to see Brian and Rickie interact, given that their friendship is actually pretty well established by now, although I don't think Brian is the first person Rickie would run to with this sort of problem.

I loved the Brian and Jordan story (a new BroTP begins lol) and how much Jordan has grown. Accepting tutoring so easily. Getting Brian to concentrate on tutoring. Calling Angela his friend. Not wanting to use her for her homework help. Being able to joke with her about sex. They could never have done that in episodes 2 or 3. This is what friendship among the three of them could look like if they stopped angsting.

Sharon and Rayanne might be my favorite friendship of this rewatch though... I mean it's a tough call but they're really in the running. I think it's how they are in some ways the oddest or least likely friendship, but also how Rayanne is gaining Sharon as a friend even as she loses everyone else, and how they can be a mess around each other and the other one is the perfect person to deal with that mess. I also found Rayanne specifically very endearing in this ep; her desire to be loved and have that solve all her problems (cause you're totally fulfilled now, right?) is so heartbreaking. Like she was really Experiencing Something seeing Kyle confess his love. And as for Sharon, I envy her her affectionate himbo.

I didn't pay that much attention to the adult story line this ep because I just can't stand Hallie and I also never believed this Graham/Hallie affair. I can see how Patty would be scared of it. I can see how Hallie has a crush on Graham. But I really think Graham is oblivious to that and his guilt and confusion is really coming from the idea of the restaurant itself. That is a big, risky thing to do! And he is trying to transform his life right now! He's allowed to angst about it, and it shouldn't be forced into some affair story line. Boring. I don't care about that. Graham/Patty OTP for life.

I will say that it's interesting that Graham didn't go to college, when Patty pretty obviously did and I'd say Angela pretty obviously will. I never remembered that detail about him but it puts some of the community college class stuff in a different perspective for me.

[somin-yin]

sangwoo!

Thank you so much @squid-guts, I literally love you for sending me Sangwoo because he's my favourite character in Squid Game and it's been so long since I've written something about him ❤️

Sexuality headcanon: GAY, SANGWOO IS DEFINITELY GAY. He's so queer coded and doesn't have an ounce of heterosexuality in him. He was even super offended when Gi-hun asked him if he has a girlfriend 😂

OTP: Sangihun all the way ❤️ first off, I love the friends to enemies to lovers trope, and secondly, you simply cannot tell me they didn't date in high school, if you say they didn't, you're lying. These 2 have history and it's very obvious, all that bad blood from Sangwoo towards Gi-hun has to come from somewhere 🤷‍♀️ Also they're INTJ x ESFP, they're each other's polar opposite and that makes up for a juicy dynamic ❤️

BROTP: Ali and Sangwoo, Sangwoo seems to have a soft spot for Ali but I see them as brothers only to be honest 🤷‍♀️

NOTP: Sangwoo x ...Il Nam? Sangwoo x Sae Byeok too sorry ;-; but I don't judge whoever ships them.

First headcanon that pops into my head: As I said, one of my biggest headcanons is that they were together in the past. And that they had a VERY nasty break up. When they used to date, everything was awesome but then Sangwoo went to SNU, and Gi-hun didn't wait for him and got married, Sangwoo got bitter towards him and buried his feelings during all those years. Then when he saw Gi-hun again in the games, he felt anger and resentment towards him but he acted as if he didn't care (he was just pretending, Sangwoo cares a lot but he pretends), that resentment pushed him to want revenge and not warn Gi-hun in game 2, even if that would mean Gi-hun would be killed, he wanted to convince himself that he had no feelings for Gi-hun and that he wouldn't care if he dies or not, but after he did that he regretted it so much that he realised he still has feelings for Gi-hun, but it was too late and there was no way to stop the game. So he left Gi-hun's survival to chance, which he hated and was so angry at himself for it, he had some serious emotional pain when the game was ongoing, then Gi-hun survived and he felt so relieved, he was still mad and resentful but he realised he still has feelings for him despite everything. And we know the rest, just Sangwoo struggling about not being over his first love. If Gi-hun hadn't survived Sangwoo would have never forgiven himself and would have unalived himself, we know Sangwoo is suic*dal.

Favorite line from this character: “I'll pick, okay?” -proceeds to push man off the bridge- (sorry ;-;)

One way in which I relate to this character: Okay time to get serious here, I relate to him getting embarrassed and uncomfortable whenever Gi-hun bragged about Sangwoo's accomplishments and being considered the genius of his neighbourhood because I've been there too, whenever people brag about me I get so uncomfortable because when people know that you went to an elite college or they consider you smart, they place very high and unrealistic expectations on you and you have to live with those expectations on your shoulders, which is a huge weight and you somehow are forced to live up to the expectations of others. Perhaps that's why he invested in futures and stocks, because he wanted to live up to the very high expectations people placed on him. It is really very uncomfortable when other people brag about your accomplishments, if you have been in that situation in the past you may understand how uncomfortable it is. Your close ones feeling proud is pretty much appreciated but other people don't need to know, precisely because of the high expectations they will inevitable place on you. For Sangwoo it's better to lay low, also because he's an introvert (extreme introverts will understand this). This gets even worse in Asian societies. As a person of Asian descent myself, let me tell you the pressure is hard!! the expectations are hard, you are expected to succeed so your parents can brag about you and if you don't, they see you as a failure, so in a way I can understand Sangwoo, that's why he ended up there in the games, he didn't want to disappoint anyone.

Thing that gives me second hand embarrassment about this character: He not admitting his gayness and feelings about Gi-hun is very cringy.

Cinnamon roll or problematic fave? Problematic fave all the way, but he's still one of the most complex and nuanced characters in the show ❤️

Sorry for the walls of text about Sangwoo but he's so layered that I can't help it. Also tagging @moonlitdayy since she asked me about Sangihun so here's the Sangwoo part. I'll reply to the Gi-hun part next ❤️ (It pains me to see the Squid Game fandom ded, I miss it ;-;). Adding Sangwoo's songs just because I can and because I'll take every opportunity to talk about Sangwoo:

[yeehanfrf]

Week 3 Recs: Right on Time

This week's Yeehan recs were all modern/contemporary AUs. Those fics set in our world and time (or roughly thereabouts) that still include the OTP. Check out the recs gathered from the Yeehan community below, organized by rating then alphabetically by title.

Not Rated

Rootbound by wyntera [WIP; 67,484 words] Reccer comment: "Flower shop au bc yes"

Every plant is unique. They need love and care in the right environment to grow. Give them what they need, and they will flourish.

McCree and Hanzo are a lot like plants. Big, stubborn, root bound plants.

General Audiences

Conflict of Interest by orphan_account [28,222 words] Reccer comment: "Superhero au with a Lois Lane type beat"

“You know, I’ve been wanting to get an interview with you,” Jesse says as Hanzo happens upon another malfunctioning elevator shaft. How is it at all likely that more than one elevator is out of service? When Hanzo levels Jesse with a hard glare, the man keeps talking.   “I’m a reporter.”

Or, the one where Hazno and Genji fight crime, Jesse is a cigar-smoking Lois Lane, and everyone else wonders why they’ve been trapped in a bad comic book.

Teen and Up

Climbing the Walls by robocryptid [22,669 words] Reccer comment: "a social-distancing yeehan fic"

Hanzo and Cole are neighbors who have never met until social distancing forces them to stay in their homes. Neither can see the other's face, but that doesn't stop them from getting to know each other.

Da Capo al Signo by midgetnazgul & temporalSilence [75,482 words] Reccer comment: "an incredibly moving fic featuring musician Hanzo and rancher Cassidy falling in loooove"

In music, da capo al signo tells the performer to start over until they see the sign to move on. Life has its movements, too. Even when we must begin again, signs will appear to remind us that just because we feel we are repeating ourselves, we will not necessarily end in the same terrible place we were before.

It's 2018 and Jesse and Hanzo are both living in Tucson, AZ on second chances. Hanzo is on the cusp of recognition as a musician after his life in Japan is run aground by a devastating accident, and Jesse has chiseled out a life of purpose and achievement after a rough childhood. Together, they will come to understand how misfortune and loneliness can end, giving gifts they would never have found any other way.

Flowers for Assholes by HappyLeech [10,552 words]

Hanzo just wants to close up shop for the night. Jesse just wants to tell his boss where to stick it and quit his job.

Of the Pickle Persuasion by Byacolate and mywordsflyup [14,813 words] Reccer comment: "My favorite food truck au"

Hanzo is convinced that his bento wagon is locked in a corporate deathmatch with the taco truck down the street. Genji just wants to flirt with the produce vendor.

Searching for Game... by AsheRhyder [10,792 words] Reccer comment: "Cute, cute, cute, with fun meta jokes about the game, characters, and community."

Genji wants Cassidy to play the new game he helped develop: Overwatch.

Cassidy just wants his hot upstairs neighbor to stop throwing food at him every time he says "hello".

Shimada Dreams of Sushi by delicaterosebud [24,344 words] Reccer comment: "It's silly, but has the right amount of drama, angst and extremely uncomfortable situations."

As the owner of a mediocre taco shack with tanking reviews and multiple health violations, the last thing that Jesse McCree needs is competition - competition, specifically, from a sushi bar so popular that it drove every other restaurant in the neighborhood out of business.

From the very day that Shimada sushi opened its doors, Jesse had hated that restaurant with a burning passion. ...So how does he end up working for the man who runs it?

To the Great Deep He Goes by westerncibee [53,288 words] Reccer comment: "its been a hot second since ive read this but i remember enjoying this one"

Hanzo accompanies Genji to their new college, and of course Genji would want to room with his friend--leaving Hanzo to deal with a god-forsaken cowboy whose only goal that year was to be Hanzo's friend. And as the cowboy said, "You're stuck with me for the rest of the year." - and a lot can happen in a year.

Mature

The Cooking Cowboy by SadakoTetsuwan [WIP; 79,662 words]

It had started simple—he just needed a good recipe for matcha cake to surprise Genji on his birthday, and so he’d started clicking around for tutorials on YouTube.

But now Hanzo is in deep, and is officially part of ‘The Chuckwagon’; the mostly middle-aged, mostly female fan following of YouTube cooking sensation Jesse McCree, the Cooking Cowboy.

How had his life come to this?

Explicit

School Nights by rebeccastceir [WIP; 45,484 words] Reccer comment: "School teacher au and romance~"

Jesse got so flustered he forgot what he was doing and stuck his hand out. “Jesse. McCree. Jesse McCree. I’m -”

“Hana’s teacher, of course,” Hanzo smiled at him, shaking hands, holding on for a split second longer than necessary. He held his head cocked down, almost shy, but kept looking up from under his long lashes, pretty lips teasing in a grin, and ohhh, Jesse was in so much trouble he ached with it.

“Sorry. You knew that,” Jesse mumbled. Was he red? He felt like he was flaming red. __________

It's the fluffiest, smuttiest, romcom-iest, parent-teacher au we all need and deserve

Shear Bliss by wyntera [12,725 words] Reccer comment: "I think about the way Hanzo's hair is described in this fic all the time"

Sometimes you can't help falling for a handsome face...even if they are holding very sharp objects near your head.

And that's a wrap on Week 3! Thank you to everyone who sent in a recommendation! Keep an eye out for next week's theme: "The Rivalmance," or fics all about the rivals to lovers, enemies to lovers, competitive assholes to lovers of it all.

In the meantime, you can also check out the Week 2 recs here or see the list of past and future themes here!

[bush-viper-cutie]

Guinea Pig Adventures: Curse of the Friendly Tickles

Pairing: young!severus x reader

Word Count: 1,609

Request: “Headcanon with young Severus x reader where the reader has guinea pigs that she brought to hogwarts and the guinea pigs follow the reader around and wheek in happiness with they see Severus” - anon

Warnings: cuteness overload

A/N: Soooo, I didn’t know how to write a headcanon for this XD please enjoy this lil story instead! :D

Posted: 2/15/21

Masterlist

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

One, two, three… oh dear… you were missing one weren’t you? You knew it had been a bad idea to bring your guinea pigs to Hogwarts but you couldn’t help it! Look at how cute they were! Lyla, the little black one was so cuddly, how could you leave her behind? And Bow? With his little orange and brown spots and his love of pets? Or Luie and June? The cutest little twin combo you’d ever seen? There wasn’t a reason in the world to leave them behind… well… except…

“Are you ready?” your partner, Severus Snape, Mr. Irritable himself, snapped in your direction.

Why would Professor Kettleburn pair him with you? You were his best student in all the year, how could he do this? You always raised your hand, always answered his questions, always volunteered, and how did he reward you? By forcing you to work with someone who definitely didn’t want to work with you on a care of magical creatures assignment that involved long hours of working together!

You scratched your head and looked again in the cage you had brought with you. There were definitely only three guinea pigs here, and Lyla was the one missing. “Um, Severus?”

Severus turned his scrutinizing gaze your way. Among the large leafs and tall foliage of the greenhouse, he looked very much like a poisonous plant, dressed in nearly all black. He held his books tighter in his hands and frowned. “What.”

“One of my guinea pigs is missing, we can’t leave the greenhouse yet.”

He shut his eyes, very annoyed, and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Look, getting the sand otter to even poke his head out will take hours, let alone getting him to change colors.” He looked back up at you and down at the cage. “We only need one.”

You gasped and heard identical squeaking from the cage that you were sure were little gasps of shock. You shook your head. “No. We’re not leaving Lyla. And what happens if we open the door and she runs out?”

He let out a frustrated growl. “You should have taken better care of your animals! Or better yet, you should have only brought ONE!” He marched up to the table and picked up the seeds you both had collected from several plants to feed the otter in the hopes of luring him out. “I’m going to get started, and if at any moment you’d like to help me complete our task, please don’t hesitate to join.”

He stormed back to the door and you held out your hand. “Wait!” He glared at you, making you wince. He had a point, somewhat. You needed to get started and… besides, Lyla hates not being around her friends. Maybe if she thought she was alone, she’d reveal her hiding place. “Ok, your right.”

A single dark eyebrow raised on his face.

You sighed. “You get started and take the other three. I’ll stay here a few minutes just to look around one last time.”

Severus rolled his eyes but released the knob of the door. “Fine,” he grumbled. He walked back, pulled his sleeves up, and picked up the cage. “But if I get the otter to show himself and change colors, I won’t be putting your name on the report.”

You nodded and watched him awkwardly take the large cage to the door and struggle with the doorknob. His long arms wrapped around the cage clumsily as he balanced his books on top, where the cage’s handle was. You refrained from laughing as he toed the door open and squeezed his way through. His fuming and hostile exterior while carrying a cage full of adorable little creatures really made his struggle an amusing sight to behold.

The door shut and you watched through the dirt stained greenhouse windows as he waddled towards one of the inflatable kiddie pools filled with sand. He set down the cage carefully and sat on the grass with crossed legs. You turned your attention to the greenhouse floor and began searching for your adventuring little girl.

“Lyla, your missing out,” you teased. You looked back out and saw Severus opening the cage door and placing June on the sand. “They’re all having fun out there, meeting new people, playing in warm sand…” You heard a rustle and followed the sound to a little fern on the ground where two little eyes looked up at you. “Hello there, little Miss. Would you like me to bring you back to your friends?”

She hopped down from the pot and ran to your shoes, squeaking excitedly. You picked her up and smiled. “Nothing keeps you from a new adventure, isn’t that right?” She squeaked happily in your hands as you kissed her little head and headed out of the greenhouse. “Now let’s – ”

You stopped on the grass, eyes wide, as you took in the situation. The sand otter, golden yellow with little freckles of pinks, browns, and oranges, sat on its haunches enjoying the sight of Severus Displeased-With-Everyone Snape struggled to contain his laughter while three little furry bodies climbed all over his robes. Luie was licking Severus’ neck, dodging his hands to his other shoulder to wiggle his whiskers on his cheek. Bow was running in and out of Severus’ pant legs, avoiding being shaken off by climbing up into his shirt. And June was holding strands of coal-black hair in his attempt to stay sprawled on top of Severus’ head.

Finally, unable to hold it in anymore, Severus barked out a laugh that unleashed a flurry of giggles. He was down on the ground now, struggling to contain the three traitorous guinea pigs from running all over him with soft little paws.

In your hands, Lyla struggled to get free and you put her down, running alongside her on the grass. You stopped before Severus and kneeled next to him. “Do you need any help?” You tried holding back your own giggles but gave in as Lyla started licking his nose.

“Please!” he laughed.

You took each one off him and placed them in the sand to play with the otter. He breathed in and huffed out air as he laid on the grass still, trying to catch his breath. You were still smiling down at him. You hadn’t ever thought it possible that Severus could have such a fun side to him. Sure, he very much had tried to stop the storm of tickles, but he didn’t seem very mad. In fact, he looked positively happy. He looked up at you and blushed, and for several seconds you held his gaze with a grin of your own. It was nice to sit in the grass, forget about school, and just enjoy the day.

Voices sounded from a distance, and as if remembering where he was, Severus quickly sat up and fixed his face sternly. “We did it,” he said, picking up his books. “I’ll write up the report tonight and put your name on it.” He picked up June, Bow, Luie, and Lyla and placed them in their cage.

You nodded. Seeing the sudden difference between Severus’ happy self and his serious self made your head swirl. If only that moment had lasted a bit longer. If only you could have looked down at his smile and glowing eyes longer, sharing in the joyfulness of life. You would never look at him the same again knowing this other side of him existed.

He stood just as other students made their ways to the other little sand pools. You stood as well, brushing grass off your skirt, and picked up the cage by the handle since you didn’t have long arms like him. Together, in awkward silence, you headed back to the castle.

When you reached the steps he stopped to face you but avoided your eyes. There was a light blush still present on his cheeks. “Please don’t tell anyone,” he whispered.

You nodded, knowing how precarious his situation was. He already got picked on, and if you told anyone that there was a softer side to him they’d surely take it as weakness and try to exploit it for their own amusement. “I promise I won’t,” you reassured him.

He nodded but before he could take another step you caught his wrist. He turned and his mouth opened a small bit from shock by the strange intimacy that was quickly forming between you. You twisted the cage to your back side and took a step closer.

“I really liked seeing that side of you, Severus… and… I’d like to get to know all sides of you.”

His mouth still hung open but his face was slowly turning bright pink again. You smiled at him and stood on your toes, placing your hand on his shoulder for support, and gave him a peck on the cheek. You pulled back and giggled at his obvious delight by your kiss.

He shut his mouth and grinned from ear to ear. His eyes scanned your surroundings and after making sure there was no one nearby, he gave your cheek a quick kiss in return. “Do you… want to sit with me while I write our report?”

“I’d love to.”

He took the cage in his arms again and the guinea pigs squeaked with delight, rushing to the cage bars to lick Severus’ fingers lovingly. He bit his lip quickly, stifling a giggle and looked your way shyly. Unable to stop yourself, you kissed his cheek on last time before calming your little babies with promises that Severus would play with them again soon.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

Masterlist

—-

General taglist:

@setsuna-meiou31

@severuslovebot

@bionic-otp

—–

[snuggetfish]

Do you think makoto loved majima at any point in y0? Or do you think his love for her in that game and afterwards was one-sided? Also, I wonder if she had any regrets about her marriage once she figured out that it was majima who fixed her watch

This is an interesting question, anon. For Majima’s sake, I’d like to say she did maybe return the feelings, but if I were to really put myself in her shoes, I think my real answer would be... probably not. Or at least not the same infatuation Majima felt. 

Thing is, she was a young woman still living with the trauma of a horrific human trafficking past, suddenly caught in the middle of a gang war, who came close to losing her life many times (once at the hands of Majima, no less...) and after struggling so hard to reunite with her brother, in the end got to only hold his cold, lifeless hand... that’s not something I would wish on anyone and really, in a situation like this, I think love would be the last thing on my mind. I have no doubt she thought fondly of Majima, saw through his rough exterior and learned to eventually trust him, but as far as romantic feelings go, hmm yeah, I don’t know.

However, even if she did fall for him, I categorically believe she didn’t regret her marriage. Earlier I used “infatuation” to describe Majima’s feelings and that’s the key point here. Majima and Makoto knew each other for the span of... what? A few days? A week? This hard and fast kind of love is almost always idealistic, where you’re far more in love with the idea of a person and your concept of what a relationship with them would be like, than with the actual person. It’s a shallow  affection, that can nevertheless last a long time (as we see with Majima) precisely because it’s “perfect”. You never spend enough time around the person to learn their habits, to have conflicts arise or realize that your views on some things are maybe incompatible, so it’s easy to lose yourself in fantasies of an ideal life by their side. But, simultaneously, you also never get to experience the bonding moments a long-term couple does. You don’t get to laugh and cry together, be there for each other, share life goals or plan a future, all things that strengthen the emotional connection.

So, how can this compare to the family you’ve built together with the father of your child? I think it would be disingenuous to paint Makoto’s husband as a rebound, someone she only settles on because she can’t have Majima. This comes across in K2, where I think she explicitly says she’s made a happy life for herself and only wishes she could thank the man who saved her all those years ago. After all, if it wasn’t for him, all of this happiness wouldn’t even have been possible.

I touched upon this before, but by the end of Y0 it was quite clear to me at least that Makoto wanted nothing more to do with the yakuza business. She’d gained considerable courage when dealing with them, but after everything she’d been through, I think she wanted to get as far away from that life as she could. Which she did manage, in the end. Heartbreaking as it was, Majima made the right choice. Their life paths were just too different.

As a last point, I just want to say this isn’t me discrediting MajiMako as a ship. From what I’ve seen, opinions are very divided, with some people hating it and feeling their romance subplot in Y0 was forced and others seeing it as the OTP for Majima. But I’m sorta indifferent. I definitely agree their relationship was presented way too vaguely and could’ve used more development (actually, neither of Majima’s canon romances get any development...), but I can also see its merits as a ship, for all the interesting what-if scenarios it can explore. Ultimately, I’m okay with how things turned out, as both of them got the closure they needed: Majima knowing she’s happy and Makoto finally able to put a face on her saviour.

[thebreakfastgenie]

margaret for the ask meme

ooooh yes

favorite thing about them

Her growth!! She really evolves so much and it's a delight to see. Margaret probably changes the most of anyone and it's for the better. Also the fact that she gets furious when she's horny is so funny. That episode where she has to go see Donald because "he" has needs lmao. And I love every time she joins in on the fun.

least favorite thing about them

She's a Republican who loves the Army. But I can fix her. Also, this is just so specific, and I can rationalize it, but in Comrades in Arms (an episode I love), Margaret is a little unprofessional with Hawkeye in the OR. I don't like it because I don't think it's in-character for her and it's honestly my biggest disappointment in Alan Alda as a writer. I think he chose to prioritize the comedy of Hawkeye and Margaret in this like, pseudo marriage situation, and admittedly it is very funny, but bringing that sort of long-suffering man, irrational woman dynamic specifically into the OR is, well, not very #MaleFeminist of him.

favorite line

"It's a good thing Donald isn't here." when she punches that guy.

brOTP

Margaret and Hawkeye!!! Also the full squad with BJ and Charles. Also the like two times she hung out with Hawkeye and Trapper. Also Margaret and Klinger! Also Margaret and Potter! But yeah actually it's Hawkeye I just remembered Aid Station and Out of Gas. Aid Station is great obviously for the jeep scene, but also for the tag where everyone is talking about whatever nonsense and Hawkeye and Margaret just exchange this look like "they don't know what we know, and that's okay" because they shared this experience. And in Out of Gas, both Hawkeye tending to her after she passes out from the ether, and later when she has to wake him up and he makes a joke about leaning on her and she smiles. I love that even from the beginning, they respect each other professionally, and they know they work well together. I love how she reaches out in Sticky Wicket and Hawkeye is the one who pushes her away because he's so upset about the patient.

OTP

I never thought I would be this person but I actually like Margaret/Hawkeye. I love them as friends but I also like them both as a couple and as friends with benefits. I just think they have good chemistry and they don't seem like they'd be good for each other but they are. Also FWBs is fun because they're like slut-shaming each other in the mess tent and then meeting in Margaret's tent for a quickie. I wouldn't want them to be any different in canon than how they are, but I do enjoy fics that explore them as a couple. I'm not averse to Margaret/Trapper either but just as a hook up. Hawkeye/Margaret/Trapper is the threesome that got away. But also on the clear+vivid MASH quarantine special, Loretta said she was glad she lived alone, and I could totally see Margaret being the same way. I think it's a nice ending for her, since she was so obsessed with being in a relationship before.

nOTP

Margaret/Scully although I liked them in his first episode just as someone for her to bang. Margaret/Frank obviously was not good for her, although I do like it as part of her story because I think she really did care about him and kept trying to convince herself he'd leave his wife for her. Margaret/Donald because fuck that guy. Margaret/Helen because I don't like those F/F ships based on one single episode, it always feels forced. That being said, I would completely buy that both Helen and Lorraine were ex-girlfriends, I just have no interest in fic where she gets back together with either of them. Margaret/Charles I hated and then after I watched the whole show and rewatched some episodes, I started to understand why people like it in the later seasons, but I still don't like it very much, and it's just because of how the show pushed in season 6 when Charles wasn't developed yet which was such a weird choice since Margaret had literally just gotten married.

random headcanon

Margaret votes for Kennedy in 1960. Let me have this.

unpopular opinion

I can totally see Margaret being straight. I'm fine with lesbian Margaret as a headcanon or for fics or whatever, because I'm a lesbian and I want her, and bi Margaret totally makes sense, but so does straight Margaret. I do prefer the bi headcanon over the lesbian headcanon also because it's just a lot of canon material to recontextualize as comphet and I like the intended canon in most cases. But I'm also sort of fascinated by the loneliness of a woman like Margaret trying to find a man who truly respects her and loves her for who she is. It's not something I relate to, but it's something that so many women deal with, and it's such a poignant story. So I do see the benefits to Margaret just being straight and since that's what's intended I default to it, though again I'm open to whatever when it comes to fan stuff. I tried to think of some that weren't queer related but I can't lol. I think I'm mostly in agreement with the people on here about her. The general audience things I disagree with are mostly just misogyny.

song i associate with them

She's Always a Woman. Such a gimme but really.

favorite picture of them

Okay I don't have time to fetch screenshots but in The Ringbanger when she comes in wearing shorts and a sweater? Also in one of the It's Hot episodes she wears shorts and a Hawaiian shirt that's kinda rolled to be cropped and I am so incredibly gay.

[queeranesearch]

ohhh haru for the character game????

Dude. I got carried away with this so uh. yea <3

a song that reminds me of them

man i have so many but I gotta say...Welcome To The Black Parade by mcr. NOW HEAR ME OUT.

Even though he’s such a minor character, so much of what he see from him in his ep is so compelling, mainly, that strong desire to act and make a difference, but external circumstances and internal fear preventing it.

Haru’s father (Tyro) is someone he admires greatly, and we learn that he fought with everything he had against the Fire Nation soldiers, even when he was outnumbered. That direct action and pure determination and resilience is exactly what Haru wants to emulate, but doing so would put him and his mother in danger, and, seemingly, the rest of his village have resigned themselves to their situation. ( Haru expresses his anger at the rest of the village for being “cowards” and not showing any resistance).Haru would’ve been around twelve when his village was occupied, so he’s lost his father, his earthbending teacher, but retained the values Tyro demonstrated: ( “ Son, when you grow up/ Would you be the savior of the broken/ The beaten and the damned?") that resistance, the will to fight and protect others, is what he’s left with.

HOWEVER. Haru has this complicated relationship with his mother where she clearly loves him and wants to keep him safe more than anything, but in doing so smothers him and outright condemns his bending despite it being such an integral part of his identity. (which *cough* can be read as a metaphor for queerness, particularly relating to parents of colour wanting to protect their kids but end up hurting them). Of course this only leads to him practicing behind her back, and there’s a clear tension where she snaps at him when he calls the soldiers thugs, telling him not to talk like that. ( Sometimes I get the feelin'/ She's watchin' over me/And other times I feel like I should go)

So in order to survive, Haru’s forced to supress all this anger he feels at the state of what his home has become, and watch everyone around him surrender themselves: there’s no strength in community anymore, and maybe, there never was, seeing as how easily that old mf betrayed him after Haru saved his life. (A world that sends you reelin'/ From decimated dreams/Your misery and hate will kill us all). So this leads to him feeling disenchanted, discouraged, and pretty hopeless about his situation. But then, of course he meets best girl Katara and she understands his trauma, has that same righteous anger, and is so full of hope. She’s able to remind him what he stands for and inspires him to take that leap, even when his own father was beaten down and discouraged, making him rediscover his own strength and hope. (Do or die, you'll never make me/ Because the world will never take my heart)

And I do joke about Haru is just some guy because. Well, he is. But that makes him even more compelling because you get insight into the life an ‘ordinary’ person, not a main character, not a chosen one, someone who isn’t gonna save the world but still someone who’s gonna do his damn best to make a difference where he can. ( I'm just a man, I'm not a hero/Just a boy, who had to sing this song/I'm just a man, I'm not a hero)

what they smell like

Farm boy smells like natural things; hay, earth, grass, and sun kissed skin.

an otp

You already know. Jetru my beloved <3 Two ek boys full of compassion and strength, wanting to make a difference, finding peace in each other <3

a notp

Hm I guess Ty Lee and Haru? Sorry chibi shorts.

favorite platonic/familial relationships

I absolutely go bonkers thinking about Haru and both his parents but this is already too long so I won’t go into more detail </3  But I adore Katara and Haru as friends so much!! They both have a lot in common what with having a disconnect with their bending, and both have that same anger against injustice! It doesn’t seem like Haru had many friends in his village after its occupation, and Katara didn’t have anyone around her age other than Sokka, so I think they deserve to be friends <3 They can practice bending together and Katara can braid Haru’s hair (one day).

Also Teo and The Duke! I think it’s sweet how they were a little group at the WAT, and it warms my heart to think of lonely, only child Haru basically getting two younger brothers. I reckon Teo would be doing soo many reckless stunts and pulling pranks, and The Duke being literally eight would only add to the chaos. They give him a grey hair <3

a headcanon that is popular in the fandom but that i disagree with

...Does he even have a popular hc? idk i’ll just say I don’t think he’s straight that boy is a fruit.

the position they sleep in

Pretty curled up, like a foetal position, hugging himself; reflecting how reserved and cautious he has to be, and also he’s touch starved and wants comfort. (and he gets it with Jet those two will always cuddle in bed okay)

a crossover au i’d love to see them in

Honestly, a stranger things AU knock around in my brain a lot. Having powers and needing to hide them but not knowing how to deal with them? yes please. Also because of List, I do be thinking of a Luca AU in regards to the whole having to hide who you are to keep yourself safe but wanting more out of life and also having a protective mother.

my favorite outfit they’ve ever worn

well he only has two skdfldgds. but i like the one he wears in ‘Imprisoned’! It’s simple but cute. Also i refuse to acknowlegde him being in the ek army no thank you <3

[i-am-church-the-cat]

Good To Sea You Again

Hi @thomas-gaypanic-lightwood! I’m your person for the Willex gift exchange week. You said you liked Willix, Juke, and Flarrie as well as enemies to lovers and fake dating so I tried to do a little bit of both for Flarrie with background Willex. It didn’t have as much Willex as I wanted though, so the second part of your gift is in the reblog. I hope you like it! - WC: 4292 Pairing: Flarrie (background Willex) Summary: Flynn and Carrie are trying to help their best friend propose to his boyfriend on a cruise. Only, it’s a couples cruise...  -

Flynn looked around as she broke her muffin into little pieces. Alex had asked her to meet her at a cafe so that she could ask her something. And when her best friend’s boyfriend asked her for a favor, the least she could do was listen to him. Okay, so maybe Alex had known Willie first. And introduced him to Flynn. But which one of them skated with him every Thursday since they were seventeen? Julie would always be Flynn’s bffl, but when she had gone to Julliard for college and Flynn stayed in LA, she had to find other people to hang out with. Most notably, her childhood best friend’s band mate’s epic skater boyfriend. She heard the door open and turned, waving at the blond man who came through the door. Her smile fell when she saw who was following in after him, though. Carrie Wilson had been Juli’s best friend before she dropped her in high school. She had never been nice to Flynn or Julie, but when the boys had transferred school their senior year, the connection between her and Alex was instant. Julie and Carrie had made up but Flynn had ever seen eye-to-eye with her. They tolerated each other’s presence for their friends’ sake, but they weren’t making friendship bracelets anytime soon. “Hey!” Alex greeted, dropping into the seat across from her. Carrie pulled up a chair while they situated the absorbent amount of bags they were both holding. “Sorry we’re late.” “Don’t worry about it, I haven’t been here long,” she eyed their stuff before returning her smile to her face. “What were you two up to?” “Getting ready. Lots of stuff to do before the wedding,” Carrie explains, settling in her chair. Flynn frowned in confusion as Alex hissed Carrie’s name. That was all she needed for it to click. “Oh my god, Willie proposed to you?! Why didn’t he tell me? Why wasn’t I involved? Why am I-” “No no no,” Alex waved his hands to get her to stop. “Willie didn’t propose to me, I’m trying to propose to him.” She blinks, getting hit with emotional whiplash as she relaxes. “Oh. Wait, are you asking my permission?” Carrie snorted (Flynn wished she could say unattractively but she’s been gorgeous every day of their lives) and Alex ignored her. “No, I’m asking for your help.” “Aw, dude!” She grinned and leaned forward to take his hand. “Of course, I’ll help. You two are my OTP.” “I thought Luke and Julie were your OTP?” Flynn waved his words away. The two had been on and off since high school and while she had no doubt they would find each other in the end, Wille and Alex took priority. “Doesn’t matter, tell me what you’re thinking and how I can help. Also, why is Carrie here?” “I’m the best woman,” the blonde said smugly. Flynn just blinked at her. “There’s no wedding yet.” Carrie rolled her eyes. “Fine, then I’m helping my best friend get engaged. Does it matter?” Flynn wanted to argue that yes, it did matter, but a look from Alex kept her silent. She shrugged and then focused back on her friend. Her questions still needed answers after all. Alex looked between them, waiting for them to be done before smiling at Flynn. “Right, so there’s this cruise Willie’s always wanted to go on.” “The Alaska cruise.” “Yeah,” Alex shivered. “I don’t know why but he does. And I found a couple’s cruise that goes there and I told them what I want to do and they’re going to help me set it up.”

Flynn frowned. “Alright, cool… what do you need me for?” Alex looked expectant if a little nervous. “I need you and Carrie to distract Willie so that he doesn’t find out before the end of the two-week cruise.” Two weeks? That would be a little tight but they could probably swing it. Flynn happened to know first hand that Carrie was very good at espionage when she wanted to be. They could definitely do it. “But wait,” Flynn frowned and looked between the two. “Carrie and I are both single, we can’t go on a couple’s cruise.” Carrie rolled her eyes as if Flynn was missing something (and she was starting to feel like maybe she was). “Isn’t it obvious? The two of us will pretend to be a couple.” Flynn just stared at her until Carrie snapped her fingers in front of her face. “I’m sorry, did you just say a couple?” “Yep,” she assured, accentuating the p with a pop of her gum. “And.. you’re okay with that?” Carrie rolled her eyes. “I don’t know if you noticed, but I got over the internalized homophobia thing back in high school.” She shook her head. “No no, just. Me? Really?” “Yes, Flynn,” the blonde sighs. “If it’s for my friends, I’ll even date you.” “So you’ll do it?” Alex asked before the two could start trading insults. Flynn crossed her arms and looked between the two. Pretending to be dating Carrie Wilson wouldn’t exactly be fun for her. But… It was her best friends. “Yeah, yeah, I’ll do it,” she sighed with a grin. “But this proposal better be awesome.” “Oh, it is,” Alex assured. The woman relaxed as her friend regaled her with his plans to propose. And if she had a hard time keeping her eyes off of her “girlfriend”. Well, she was just getting ready for the trip. - “I can’t believe you two were dating and you didn’t tell me!” Willie said as he and Flynn walked back from the skate park. The cruise left in a week and Flynn was using all her spare time to help get ready for it- and keep Willie in the dark. She and Carrie had decided on a cover story a few days ago, and it was only yesterday that Alex told Willie about the trip. “Yeah, it was a shock to me too,” she agreed, forcing a laugh. “Wait, but how did it even happen? I thought you two hated each other?” “We don’t hate each other…” Flynn started to explain, remembering the conversation she and Carrie had the other day. `So what, we’re going to go from hating each other to dating just like that?’ Carrie rolled her eyes but Flynn was used to it by now. People always seemed to miss that the important questions were sometimes the most obvious ones. ‘I’ve never hated you, Flynn.’ She scoffed at that. ‘Seriously, I haven’t! We disagreed but I didn’t hate you…’ Flynn watched her and was surprised to find that she looked sincere. And Flynn knew when she looked sincere. Carrie was a good actress but not that good. Well, at least there’s that. She sighed. ‘Fine. But how did we get together?’ “It was so weird, honestly. You know that blind date Georgia, my coworker, sent me on?” At Willie’s nod, she continued. “She was the blind date.” Not really. Her blind date had never shown and Flynn had gone home and ate brownies all night but whatever. It worked in their favor. “Wow, really?” Willie laughed. “Small world.” “That’s exactly what I thought. Anyway, dinner was already paid for so we both just decided to stay. We ended up having fun. I guess dates are better when you already know the person you’re dating.” Willie hummed in agreement then hit her lightly with the back of his hand. “And hey, now you can do fun stuff like this with me and Alex. My best friend’s girlfriend just happens to be my boyfriend’s best friend. It’s kind of perfect.” Flynn smiles but it doesn’t quite reach her eyes. “Yeah, it kind of is, isn’t it?” But it isn’t real, her brain reminds her. It never would be. Willie grins and nudges her again before his eyes lit up. “Hey, race ya to the convenience store.” He put his board down and hopped on, speeding off. Flynn grinned and was quick to follow him. They raced around people down the block. Even at almost 28, they knew how to goof off just enough to enjoy life. Flynn never felt bad around Willie. He was a genuinely nice guy and he always knew how to lift her spirits. That’s why he deserved this, an epic proposal from the love of his life with the help of his friends. Flynn would do anything to give him that, even pretend to date Carrie Wilson. - So, Flynn had something to admit. She’d never been on a cruise before. Even growing up less than an hour away from the beach, it was just not something she had ever wanted to do. She was confused when they explained they would have to fly up to Anchorage to even board the boat. But after learning it would take almost 5 weeks to sail from LA to Alaska, she was more than happy to pay the cost. Carrie and Flynn flew up a day before Alex and Willie. Something about Carrie needing to get over the time difference but Alaska was just an hour behind California so Flynn was pretty sure that was a lie. Either way, it let them practice their roles before the cruise and that’s what Flynn was going to do. “Here I can get that,” Flynn said, smiling at Carrie as she took her bag and placed it in the overhead bin. The blonde looked bewildered at her attitude. She’d been doing that all day and Flynn would clue her in, but it was more fun to watch her be confused. The best part was when the flight attendant came to check on them though. They had first-class seats - thank you, Carrie’s dad - so there was plenty of room between them. “Hi, Miss Wilson?” At Carrie’s nod, the attendant continued. “We hope you enjoy your flight. If you and your…” When she trailed off, Flynn grinned and pointedly reached across the console to take Carrie’s hand. “Girlfriend.” The attendant smiled and nodded. “If you and your girlfriend need anything, please let us know.” Flynn was honestly impressed at Carrie’s ability to keep her composure. She just nodded and thanked her. It wasn’t until she had walked away did the blonde whip around to look at her, looking honestly baffled. “What did you say that for?” She hissed, taking her hand back. Flynn grinned and shrugged. “We’re supposed to be pretending to date each other right? Why not start now?” Carrie looked at her weirdly before eventually nodding and sitting back in her seat. The rest of the flight was uneventful, but Carrie took her out to dinner as soon as they landed. They held hands and flirted and fought over who would pay the bill - Carrie won. Honestly, Flynn would be fooled if she was watching all of this. Carrie was a very good fake girlfriend. Or, you know. Real girlfriend too. When they got to the hotel, they found out that their reservation had accidentally been put as one king-sized bed. Carrie nodded and said that was fine. At the look Flynn gave her, she shrugged. “We’re going to be sharing a bed for a week on the boat. What’s one more night?” Flynn couldn’t shake how fast her heart was beating as she followed the blonde to the elevator. They stood in awkward silence until they reached their floor. Carrie led the way once again and unlocked their room with her key card. The room was gorgeous, as was the rest of the hotel. There was something to be said about traveling with Carrie Wilson. You travel in style. “Do you want the right side or the left side?” Carrie asked, glancing at her. “Ummm. I’ll take the side closer to the windows, you take the side closer to the bathroom?” Carrie agreed and they got their stuff situated. Flynn flopped onto the bed with a sigh, feeling exhausted from their flight. She could probably pass out for the next sixteen hours and have to race to get the boat on time. The blonde shook her head at her. “I’m going to take a shower, should I save you some hot water?” “Nah you take it,” Flynn said, kicking her shoes off. “I’ll probably be out by the time you get back.” Carrie nodded and disappeared into the bathroom. Flynn hadn’t been lying when she said she would probably pass out within minutes. But for some reason, she just couldn’t relax enough to fall asleep. She was staring at the closed curtains when the bathroom door re-opened and the other woman slipped into the bed. The silence grew between them as the minutes ticked by. Flynn knew Carrie wasn’t asleep because her breathing was too fast. Eventually, the silence got to be too much for her, and she turned over. Carrie was facing the other way but after a few moments of Flynn staring at her back, she turned over, too. “Should we talk about this?” Flynn finally asked. Carrie didn’t look surprised. “We already talked about this.” “Yeah but it’s. Different. Now that we’re actually doing it.” Carrie nodded. “It is a little weird isn’t it? To go from nothing to… pretending to be something?” “Yeah.” Flynn sighs and stretches out on the bed. “But… we don’t have to.” Carrie blinked then frowned at her. “What?” “We don’t have to go from nothing. We can be... friends. Right?” Carrie nodded. “I’d like that. To be your friend.” Flynn smiled. “Me too.” “Alright then,” the blonde sighed. “Friends it is.” Flynn stuck her pinkie out. Carrie snorted but dutifully wrapped her pinkie around Flynn’s. “Friends,” Flynn agreed. She fell asleep almost instantly after that. - The boat was beautiful. And a little crowded but mostly beautiful. Carrie had planned tons of activities for them all, and a few for just Alex and Willie, or, when Alex needed to go talk to someone about the proposal, Willie and Flynn. Flynn barely had a second to herself the first few days. She enjoyed helping out but… planning a proposal was a lot apparently. Carrie didn’t exactly make it better. Not about the proposal. With that, she was great, she knew exactly what she wanted and how to make it happen. It made Flynn imagine what she would be like planning her own engagement or wedding. And that was the problem. The more time the two spent together and around all this stuff, the more Flynn thought about it being real. And she liked those thoughts. It was getting way too close to things she wasn’t ready to acknowledge, may never be able to acknowledge. “Hey, what are you doing here?” Flynn looked up from where she was trailing her legs through the water. She was sitting on the edge of her pool, getting a break from all the planning and scheming and girlfriend-ing. She was not expecting to be found by the woman she was trying to avoid. “Uh, I was just… getting some sun.” Carrie sighed as she sat down next to Flynn, closer than she normally would. But, girlfriends. They were girlfriends right now. She stuck her bare legs in the water and tilted her head back. “The boys are getting facials. I was tasked with coming to find you since no one knew where you were.” “Sorry…” Flynn mumbled, looking back at the water. Carrie nudged her. “Don’t worry about it. Is everything okay?” Flynn nodded before she could change her mind. “Yeah yeah, just needed a second.” “Oh,” Carrie blinked, pinking up distractingly. “Oh, right, I can just get out of your-” “No, no, it’s okay,” Flynn assured, reaching out to grab her hand. “You can stay. I want you here.” And she meant it too. Sure, she had been avoiding her, but only because she made it hard to pretend. But now that she was here, Flynn was hit with how much she wanted to be in the other woman’s company. Carrie smiled softly and settled back down. “Alright then. I’ll stay.” “Great,” Flynn smiled at her and the two looked at each other for a while before turning back to the pool. They talked quietly for the rest of the afternoon until the sun started to dip below the horizon and they had to go meet the boys for dinner. Flynn wished they could have stayed there forever. - The longer the week wore on, the harder it was to admit that Flynn didn’t like Carrie. She was loud and passionate in the best way (some would say a lot like Flynn herself) and she knew how to get what she wanted. That was clear when she had stolen some drinks from the bar in the middle of the night and convinced Flynn to drink them on the deck with her under the stars. It had been fun. Very intimate. She had to keep reminding herself it wasn’t a date even as the memory of Carrie’s eyes shining in the starlight replayed in her head. Yeah, she was most definitely screwed. Tonight was the second to last night on the ship. They would be home the day after tomorrow, Willie and Alex would be happily engaged, and they could stop pretending. Go back to their normal lives. As if Flynn even knew what that meant anymore. “What are you thinking about?” Willie asked as he leaned against the rail next to her. They were on the balcony, looking down at the main deck where Carrie and Alex and a few others were dancing. “Oh, you know,” Flynn sighed. “The future.” Willie looked between her and Carrie and grinned. “The future huh?” Flynn knew what he was thinking and she was surprised with how much she wanted his assumption to be true. She forced a smile and nodded. “Yep. What about you?” “I was thinking…” Willie grinned. “That we should go dance with our beautiful partners.” She laughed and pushed off of the railing. “You read my mind, Will.” He grinned and nudged her before heading down the stairs, Flynn on his heels. She smiled as he pulled Alex into a smooth dip and kiss. She could admit that the man definitely had moves. “Hey,” came a soft voice. Flynn smiled and turned to Carrie. They smiled at each other for a moment before Flynn extended her hand. Carrie took it and they began to sway together. The music was soft and light, easy to dance to. They didn’t talk as they danced. Just relaxed and enjoyed the music, moving along with the ship, and each other’s company. It was cozy in a way Flynn knew she was going to miss later. But for now, she let herself have it. They danced through a few songs and she almost jumped when Carrie spoke again. “Do you want to get out of here?” She asked tentatively. Flynn never knew her to be tentative in anything. She nodded and the two started walking back to their cabin. They walked in silence most of the way but Flynn could feel the tension in the air. She was just waiting for Carrie to say something. The brunette was paying close enough attention to stop at the same time as the other woman. She waited patiently - for maybe the first time in her life - as Carrie collected herself. “I was the blind date.” Flynn frowned. That was not what she was expecting to hear at all, especially because it made no sense. But Carrie was looking more anxious than she had ever known the other woman to be, so she tried her best to answer. “Yeah, that was our story right?” Carrie shook her head. “No- I mean yes, it was, but it wasn’t just a story. I was your blind date. I- I stood you up.” Okay, now she was definitely confused. Why was she telling her this now? “So what? You decided to leave instead of just tell me you weren’t interested? That’s not exactly new information.” “I- What, no?” Carrie looked genuinely surprised. “I decided to leave because I knew you would hate seeing me.” Flynn scoffed. “I would not have-” “You’ve glared at me every time I’ve walked into a room for the last eleven years!” “Not every time,” she disagrees. The blonde’s scoff/laugh grates on her nerves and she draws herself up. “Yeah, well, so what? It’s not like you were interested in dating me either.” “I tried to ask you to prom senior year!” Record scratch. Excuse me? “What? No, you didn’t!” Carrie looked at her triumphantly but also a little bitterly. “Oh yes, I did. But the second I came up to you, you insulted me.” “When did I…” Flynn inhaled quickly. She did remember Carrie coming up to her a few weeks before prom. She hadn’t even let her talk, just said something about not voting for her for prom queen. Carrie hadn’t even responded, just nodded as if she had known it all along and walked off. Flynn always thought that was weird but it was ten years ago. She blinked at the blonde, shock and horror warring for dominance in her head. “Carrie, I didn’t…” “It’s fine,” she said tossing her hair back. It didn’t sound fine, that’s for sure. “I knew you never felt the same way.” No. No no no no, this couldn’t be happening. Carrie had to know that she was wrong; she had to know that Flynn felt the same way. Before she could overthink it, she stepped forward and pulled the other woman down into a kiss. Carrie gasped softly and Flynn pressed closer, tried to show her how she felt. The blonde’s hands came to rest on her waist and she leaned into it and then… then… And then Carrie was pulling away. She brought a hand up between them and shook her head. Flynn wanted to protest, ask what was wrong, but Carrie just looked so sad. “Don’t,” came so softly, Flynn almost thought she imagined it. Then she was turning around and striding back down the corridor, leaving Flynn a few feet away from their door. She brought a hand up to her lips as she slumped against the wall. Even with her lips still tingling from the kiss, she couldn’t shake the feeling that her heart was breaking before her eyes. Carrie didn’t come back to the room that night. Flynn couldn’t fall asleep.  - Carrie ignored her all through breakfast the next morning. Her bag was packed by the time Flynn came back to the room and they had nothing planned on the ship so no one came to get them. She didn’t get a chance to talk with her until they were setting up the main deck for the proposal. “Balloons.” “Check.” “Champagne.” “Check.” “Live preservers.” Flynn huffed. They had already gone through this list twice. “Check, Carrie, will you please-” “It’s almost time for the proposal, Flynn, I don’t know what you want me to do,” the blonde brushed her aside, not looking up from her clipboard. “I want you to talk to me.” “I am talking to you.” “Not like-” she growled in frustration and stole Carrie’s clipboard. She looked up, a protest on her lips, but the shorter woman stuck a finger in her face. “No, we are talking about this, Wilson.” Carrie seemed to deflate. She crossed her arms defensively and let out a small huff. “Fine, you want to talk? Let’s talk. Let’s talk about how you haven’t given me the time of day in almost eleven years.” “Oh yeah? Well, let’s also talk about how you’ve liked me for ten of those!” “I didn’t-” she bit off the end of her sentence. She pointed at Flynn. “I was over you, okay? Over you. And then you had to come in and hold my hand and be nice to me and call me your girlfriend and it hurt, okay? It hurt because it was everything I had wanted in high school being dangled in front of me with the knowledge that it would all be ripped away once we ended this. Okay, so maybe I got a little heated but I didn’t want to be strung along.” Flynn felt like she had been slapped. She never could have imagined making anyone feel like this. And- and Carrie? Flynn never considered being more than a blip on her radar. “Strung along? What are you talking about?” Carrie snorted. “Please, you’ve never been shy about how you felt about me. You just got caught up in all the emotions this week.” “Is that what you think?” Flynn asked, incredulous. Carrie shrugged. “Carrie Wilson, I’ve had a crush on you since middle school.” The blonde looked as shocked as she felt. “What? No, you haven’t.” “Yes, I have! And then you stopped hanging out with Julie and started being cold to us and I thought ‘well, the pretty ones are always like that’. But then you apologized and got better but I still thought you hated me. So I thought I would do my best to ignore you right back.” “So… so,” for once in her life, it looked like Carrie was speechless. “So I never hated you,” Flynn chewed on her lip. “And you never hated me?” Carrie shook her head slowly. “So what does… what does that mean?” “It means,” Flynn took a deep breath and held out her hand. “Carrie Wilson, after this cruise, would you like to go on a date with me?” The other woman beamed and took her hand. “Yes. I would.” - It was a beautiful proposal. Willie of course said yes. And Flynn got to see it all, with Carrie’s hand in hers.

[mira--mira]

One obvious for the ask game. The main protagonist; Naruto Uzumaki and Izuku Midoriya.

@shiryusamarkanda it’s so nice to hear from you again! <3 

I totally didn’t forget to post this and had it fully finished in my drafts for days...totally. 

Naruto

What I love about them:

Naruto's a bratty kid who’s not afraid to speak up and challenge something he thinks is "wrong". This, of course, is part 1 Naruto. I actually like when he's a bit insensitive without being explicitly malicious bc its very fitting for his background/how he grew up but also gives him a clear path forward as he learns how to work as a team/starts to grow. It wasn’t exactly a smart move, but I really liked how he continued to challenge Zabuza in the Wave Arc saying “he’s still my enemy” after Kakashi told him to back off. This is all good and strong characterization that, to me, was more often endearing than it wasn’t. Naruto had goals and a purpose and in early Naruto that was still clear.

What I hate about them:

Part 2 (Shippuden) Naruto. There’s a lot that goes into this but the core deviation is getting away from the underdog story. In Shippuden Naruto is the son of the 4th, the Child of Prophecy, a reincarnation of the Sage of Six Path’s kid, makes friends with Kurama, and has the most OP power of the them all: Talk no Jutsu. What makes all of this even worse is Naruto went from a loveable bratty kid to an insufferable messiah figure. To be “perfect” his natural personality is shorn down until he’s only allowed occasional “stupid” mistakes rather than mistakes that emerge from his characterization. This also makes his ideological “wins” with villains...completely meaningless. Shippuden Naruto doesn’t really...have beliefs. He wants to be hokage and bring Sasuke back to the village. “Being hokage” was fine as a kid but I expected the progression into shippuden to be “what kind of hokage do I want to be?” This seemed natural bc we get in the Wave arc Naruto pushing against “what a shinobi is supposed to be: a tool” from Haku and declaring he’d make his own ninja way. Flashforward to the chunin arcs: hates Orochimaru for messing with Sasuke (esp when he eventually leaves to join him) and Neji for treating Hinata the way he did until he learned more about the Hyuga before declaring it wasn’t fair and you had to fight against fate and destiny. Tsunade’s arc was more about reemphasizing the village was something worth protecting and the Sasuke retrieval arc, while focused on Sasuke, at least kept up this theme. But these moments of growth are only alluded to in shippuden and by the time the war arc and ending come around...nothing changes. Naruto didn’t upset the status quo, he only maintained it. And once that ending was established it was a lot easier to go back and pick out exactly when his characterization started to fall through and the weird messiah figure took over instead. Part of this, imo, is the focus of his ultimate goal being “bring Sasuke back to the village” rather than understand what Sasuke is doing/why he’s doing it and then deciding to help him or stop him. 

Favorite Moment/Quote:

“You’re cute when you’re chubby” [in reference to the frog purse] 

I really love the quiet moments Naruto has and watching him live out his daily life. The frog purse is absolutely adorable and I love seeing it crop up time and time again. A close second is when Gai kicks Jiraiya in the face and, a short time later, offers Naruto the green tracksuit which he’s appreciative of. 

What I would like to see more focus on:

In Part 2 Naruto having a long-term goal alongside bringing Sasuke back to the village or trying to seriously think about why Sasuke does what he does and how that would potentially affect the plot. If I could go back to the very start, keeping the actual heart and intent of an underdog ninja story rather than everything turning into superpowered mecha/kaiju battles and aliens from space this is the big point that I’d want to address. In general, I really like fics that focus on training and give him a range of jutsu besides spamming shadow clones and rasengan variants. I’ve said this before, but if Naruto really wants to keep the “number 1 unpredictable ninja” moniker, learning a variety of small, diverse jutsu and using them in interesting/creative ways would be the way to go rather than spamming the aforementioned two. I also really like fics that buckle down and just go ham and create their own variety of jutsu, especially if it’s small practical jutsu rather than the latest and greatest OP Power #839281 kind of jutsu. 

What I would like to see less focus on:

The messiah figure. Talk no Jutsu. The obsession with having a morally pure hero in a world that routinely employed child soldiers and put them in war. I understand Naruto was a shonen manga first and foremost but like...this was the setting/world Kishimoto decided on having. However, I will say some fics take it to far on the other extreme for my taste, creating a edgy nihilistic Naruto that hates everyone and everything. 

Favorite pairing with:

Uhh...I don’t actually have a strong feeling for this one LOL. The most I’ve read has been SasuNaru (Sasuke x Naruto) because I’ve found really interesting set-ups. I like the ship and it does have a decent amount of backing in canon but it’s the little moments (or my ability to see possible little moments) that really make or break a ship for me. SasuNaru is all Big Declarations and I struggle to see how they’d actually settle down post Shippuden time into something sustainable. My favorite iterations of the ship is focused when they’re genin age and have a better relationship...but then I recognize that this is getting closer and closer to Hashimada. The other big things I run into with shipping Naruto with Sasuke is 1. Sasuke needs a shit ton of therapy/willingness to process his family related trauma and 2. Naruto needs a good support network/family outside of a romantic partner because it personally makes me uncomfortable to read ‘you’re my one and only’ (here being: I have no other friends, family, loved ones outside of you). It’s a ship that can work but it’s not my personal OTP.  

Favorite friendship:

Canon/OoT - Naruto & Sakura

I do have a softspot for fics where Naruto realizes his crush on Sakura is actually a desire to have friends/someone to care about him and then they do become close. In canon Sasuke was clearly the favorite of Kakashi (if chunin arc is kept the same/similar and he takes him away for the month to train) I really like Naruto and Sakura sticking together and trying to help each other. They’re both loud and can wind each other up but Naruto can help Sakura relax a bit from her rigid view of herself and she can help keep him on track/encourage him. 

NOTP:

Again, no real strong opinions here. Probably harems? I remember seeing a lot of those a couple years ago and I fundamentally dislike the harem so it will never be ‘done well’ to my personal taste. 

Favorite headcanon:

Naruto is smart, he just needs things to be explained in a way he can understand. 

I’m not a fan of ‘he’s the smartest person in the entire world’ trope but Naruto is creative, he created the oiroke jutsu before he graduated to genin and has a lot of stubborn determination. He’s just really bad at typical ‘book learning’ and traditional testing and he’s not a genius/prodigy like Sasuke or Neji.

.

.

Read line for BNHA manga spoilers

Izuku

What I love about them:

He’s such a smart kid and while he’s unsure/insecure about himself he still does his best. Honestly the premise of BNHA is amazing and I was so excited to watch this little quirky (heh) boy do his best and outthink heroes, utilizing his intelligence and knowledge of quirks. I really love early Izuku and how he has to approach situations from a different angle bc he grew up quirkless/can’t properly handle OFA. The sports festival arc remains one of my personal favorites and really showed his ingenuity. I also really love that Izuku is openly emotional, he cries, he gets super happy about things, he’s angry, he’s sad, etc.  

What I hate about them:

Why do stories insist on calling themselves “underdogs” when for a majority of the time, they’re not? Or not as much as they would be from the original premise? Look, TDP came about exactly bc BNHA was billed as ‘quirkless boy becomes number 1 hero’ it changed rapidly into ‘Izuku gets the strongest quirk but can’t control it’ and while I was...disappointed with that, it happened so quickly I wasn’t really upset. Fast forward to apparently OFA has...what seven(?) quirks inside it and I just...it’s frustrating. Even more the longer we go the more Izuku strays away from a character that is forced to use his intelligence and creatively outthink his opponents and instead becomes...I just have to hit him harder! The Muscular fight already inched towards this but the Overhaul fight just felt like Super Shonen Smack-down 728329. Which, isn’t an inherent problem, it just doesn’t match up to the expectations I had about BNHA I had at the start and how I hoped the series would go. For a character trait that I hate: Izuku is stupidly self-sacrificing. It makes sense with his character but he shoots beyond what is safe and reasonable and I wish there would be more internal emphasis on the question “is it better to save one person today if it meant I couldn’t save ten people tomorrow?” I think he’d choose the former or forsake the question altogether (we touched briefly on this during the overhaul arc with Eri) but I think it’s a serious question needs to be touched on (or I just need to go back and rewatch things again LOL) 

Favorite Moment/Quote:

See entire sports festival arc. I don’t really have a favorite moment because I love the entire arc and we get so much out of it. 

What I would like to see more focus on:

Quirkless Izuku. There’s already a lot of fics, but I really do love them. It deviates a bit, but I do like the creativity of giving Izuku his own unique quirk and then exploring what he can do with that/how it changes canon. Really I want Izuku to keep his original characterization and not trade his smarts for more punching power or deus ex machinas for quirks hidden inside of OFA. If OFA!Izuku is kept, I like story ideas where he still has to rely on means outside of his quirk. Preferably this is isn’t because he injuries himself so much, but I like toying with the idea that Izuku never gets OFA to All Might’s level so he really does have to make the quirk his own and still rely heavily on his intelligence and quirk journals to become the number 1. 

What I would like to see less focus on:

Quirks hidden inside OFA. Strength should have been enough, it was already billed as the most powerful quirk of all. I know this is a common theme for shonen stories, and I don’t mean to harp specifically on Izuku, but again the premise of BNHA was an underdog story. 

Favorite pairing with:

Tododeku (Todoroki Shouto x Midoriya Izuku) 

Friends to lover and battle couples lads, I am weak to them. I like the contrast between their personalities as well as origins (Shouto being the number 2′s (now 1) kid and Izuku from a quiet civilian background). At the end of the sports festival arc both of them are extremely well characterized and it’s easy for me to imagine how their relationship progresses from there and how they can support each other and help each other grow. It’s a very sweet and wholesome ship the way I write and read it and it’s v cute.

Favorite friendship:

Canon- Midoriya Izuku & Uraraka Ochaco & Iida Tenya

I really like the core trio and think their interactions are really sweet. They balance each other out well and their friendship was immediately believable to me. I also like later when Tsuyu and Shouto start to get included in the group and out of the “main” core friends I’m endlessly entertained whenever Izuku and Tokoyami interact with one another. (This is also because I love my bird son, but you know.)

TDP - Midoriya Izuku & Ashido Mina or Midoriya Izuku & Hatsume Mei

Really, I love all of TDP’s kiddos interactions. Their chemistry is one of my favorite things about the fic and all the villain school kiddos meshed really well and had hilarious interactions. Mina and Mei are my faves but just barely. Mina came out of left field for the fic but she plays a similar role that Ochaco does in canon as a usual source of positivity (but unlike Ochaco with additional chaos). She’s Izuku’s first real friend even before starting HIVVE and wouldn’t hesitate to call Izuku her cousin as she views him as family. In return, Mina’s someone Izuku can completely count and depend on if necessary. Mei is...Mei. Izuku is her best “useful customer” and it’s actually terrifying how similar their thoughts are, just Mei has an (un)healthy dose of Hazmat’s insanity and her own business acumen added into the mix. They have slightly different fields of interest but are intellectual equals that work well together and that’s something new to both of them.

NOTP:

Bakudeku (Bakugo Katsuki x Midoriya Izuku)

It’s unhealthy. Unless it’s an AU that changes what the start of their relationship is like, Bakugo and Izuku will always have a toxic friendship to me and I can’t ever see them in a healthy relationship. Both of them have a lot to learn and I am of the opinion that Bakugo should get the opportunity to grow and become a good person and leave behind his past as a bully. However, I’m also of the opinion that no matter how good of a person a bully becomes their victim is never required to absolve them of past wrongdoings. Izuku and Bakugo were friends once, their relationship turned toxic, and now it’s in the interest of both of them to grow apart from one another. I even hesitate to really say they’ll be friends again because the early characterization of their relationship was so imbalanced to me, but for the right author and the right work I may see them being on good terms. It’s still a romantic relationship that I dislike. 

Favorite headcanon:

Crack headcanon? Izuku does have a natural quirk, the force of his tears is clearly superpowered 😂 Regular headcanon, (that is canon in TDP and kindaaa in regular canon(?)) when Izuku gets really engrossed in a super stressful fight he focuses on what will work rather than what is moral. It has...mixed results. 

.

For the ask game. 

[magicofthepen]

For the character thingy, romana and leela?? ❤

ROMANA - I’m going to answer for Romana I, since I already did Romana II!

favorite thing about them: so I fell in love with Romana I instantly when I watched The Ribos Operation. I was like “wait no one told me that Romana’s basically a recent graduate who always thrived in school but has now suddenly been thrust into the Real World and is a bit of a mess” and oh my god why is she so relatable, also I love that about her. I love that she doesn’t quite know what she’s doing, and her academic brilliance doesn’t necessarily help in the situations she’s finding herself in, but she keeps trying and learning, so by the end of season 16 she’s much more confident and capable on her own than she was when she started. I just absolutely adore the premise of her character and how she develops during the key to time quest. also her banter skills are so excellent. (….this wasn’t one thing whoops. 😄)

least favorite thing about them: I feel like it’s something about how she’s portrayed in the Gallifrey audios, but I can’t quite articulate what? but I feel like somehow, some of the things I really liked about her on TV (her witty fun banter, her determination even when she’s out of her depth) aren’t represented as much when we get glimpses of Actual Romana I (not Pandora or an alternate universe version). idk if this is even fully true, it’s just….she doesn’t quite have the same vibe as the character I remember from the TV show (but this is also tricky because the Lies scene, the Matrix projection in Lies (which *isn’t* really her technically) and the remains of her consciousness in the body that Pandora’s using are the only times we get Actual Romana I - which isn’t that much time to express all the nuances of her character.)

(continuing to skip the favorite line question because it’s too hard)

brOTP: her and the Doctor!! (like I said in the Romana II ask, I used to ship them more, but lately I’ve been more into a platonic interpretation.) I just as instantly fell for their dynamic in the Ribos Operation - two people with very different personalities who don’t get along but are forced to work together and gradually become friends?? this is exactly the kind of relationship arc that I adore. Their banter and snark is So Good (I was so entertained by their interactions in Ribos Operation that my brain refused to pay attention to anything but their scenes, and I ended up having issues following the plot later oops). And I love their growing respect and care for each other - how they go from being mutually dismissive of each other to valuing each other and being a solid Team and just really genuinely liking each other! their friendship is just Very Good (…..and now I really want to rewatch season 16….I’ve only seen it like one and a half times but I loved it very much….)

OTP: I don’t think I have any ships with Romana I that I would consider an ‘otp’? (the closest would be her and the Doctor since I have sometimes shipped them and I adore their relationship in general)

nOTP: Brax/Romana again….and tbh with Romana I it’s more of an actual nOTP (rather than ‘kinda nOTP, kinda ‘it’s complicated’’) because this is the time frame when she’s actually his student and so my discomfort with student/teacher relationships really rears its head (although there’s still one fic out there that I just think is so well-written.....but it does show the relationship as very unhealthy). 

random headcanon: .....so sorry to continue Sartia posting, but oops the first thing that popped into my head is my new maybe-unrealistic headcanon that Sartia was Romana’s first kiss. in a teenage “I’m curious and want to try this thing and you’re the only person I hang out with, but it doesn’t mean anything....or does it??” way. (.....this is so self-indulgent in such a terrible way rip.)

unpopular opinion: Armageddon Factor is my favorite Key to Time story! (I gather this is an unpopular opinion in Doctor Who Fandom At Large, it doesn’t seem to be liked as much as some of the earlier stories in the season.) technically I’ve only seen it once and it was a couple years ago, but I remember loving it as a Romana story, there were a lot of really interesting character bits for her!

song i associate with them: hmm I don’t really have one? my Romana playlist is specifically for Romana II in Big Finish so....yeah.

favorite picture of them: anything with her Ribos Operation outfit (with the full cloak), it’s iconic and beautiful! on a similar note, I love this Romana I art by @volucris-liga, it’s the first Romana fanart I ever reblogged and it’s so pretty!

more under the cut!

LEELA

favorite thing about them: her resilience and her kindness. Leela goes through so much grief and pain, she has her world upended again and again, she never really finds a place where she belongs. and yet she still keeps choosing to love, choosing to keep fighting for what she believes in, choosing to rebuild again and again. and sometimes it’s really hard and she doesn’t want to go on….but she does, and she finds moments of happiness again. and that strength is really powerful. and no matter how cruel the universe (and other people) are to her, she is still relentlessly kind - she listens, she protects, she wants to help, she cares. 

least favorite thing about them: I mean, the “savage” stereotype that her character references is a racist/anti-indigenous trope (especially the whole dynamic of the Doctor trying to “civilize” her ugh). and I hate that characters keep calling her “savage” (even when they’re the Bad Guys, it’s still bringing up this trope again and again, and it’s even worse when it’s the Good Guys). why are they still doing this.

brOTP: see all characters listed under otp, every relationship that I ship is also an incredibly important friendship in Leela’s life and I love all of them <33 as far as relationships that I see as entirely non-romantic….I really love the version of Leela and Ace’s relationship that exists in my head (and in fandom) - they didn’t get to interact enough in the audios, but I absolutely think they were really close, because of their shared experiences and the ways their personalities mesh. (I feel like I should also say the Doctor here, but tbh I don’t remember her TV stories that well, so I don’t really have a solid memory of what their relationship was like.) and of course, Leela’s parental relationship with Rayo is very important to me!

OTP: once again, ot3 my beloved <33 and Leela/Romana first and foremost (I already rambled about them here, so I’m just going to second everything I said earlier). 

and I also ship Leela/Narvin, although I’m not quite as invested in that pairing? (due to a combination of ‘Romana is my favorite character and so I’m just more interested in her relationships with other characters,’ ‘I joined the fandom when things were pretty much all Leela/Narvin all the time (I say with great respect and affection for the artists and writers putting out amazing content for that ship) so I was motivated to write fic primarily for R/L and N/R to balance out the ot3 content,’ ‘apparently I have a contrary streak with Gallifrey and the more the writers push a romantic interpretation of a relationship, the less interested I am in actually shipping it,’ and ‘I’m not really into Leela/Narvin as a pairing on its own - although I do love a lot of fic that portrays them that way bc it’s just very well-written.’) But just. how they form a grudging alliance for Romana’s sake and then develop genuine respect for each other and then build this really solid foundation of teamwork and fondness and care and really relax and feel comfortable around each other….the way they become ride-or-die for each other and just trust and love each other so much….it’s Very Good!! (And I did love writing scenes with the two of them in Call It Home - I might not focus on them, but I do genuinely love their relationship.) 

And of course Leela/Veega <33….I debated if they even interacted enough in the actual audios for me to consider it an otp, but I love the idea of their relationship and the story of them in my head so much?? going to link to this post because it really captures my feelings about them - they’ve both been through so much grief and pain by the time they meet, they’ve both lost people they love before, so the idea of them choosing to love each other and build something together against the odds is just. very powerful. plus I have a whole playlist for the family they’ve built together, which is a strong indication that I really love this ship. 😊

nOTP: Leela/Andred. last time I answered an ask meme about Leela, I had this complicated response about how I hated Leela/Andred when I watched Invasion of Time (bc it’s so abrupt and arbitrary), and then Louise Jameson’s voice acting Convinced Me To Care because oh she really did love him....alas i am a Leela/Andred detractor at heart, and I have been nudged back to my default state by re-listening….I simply hate how he treats Leela in Gallifrey.

random headcanon: I really like the idea of Leela being more politically involved in her own right after they all return from the Axis. She’s just spent a lot of time leading a group of people who don’t have a voice in the government, fighting for their rights against the established injustices of Gallifreyan society. I don’t think she’d easily slip back into only being Romana’s bodyguard after experiencing more political autonomy on the other Gallifrey. What exactly this looks like in practice I’m not sure about - in my one fic ‘verse, I wrote about her being more directly involved with the Academy as a political liaison and guest tutor, and also advocating to Romana for policies that would benefit those who live outside the city on their home Gallifrey. but there’s probably a lot of options to explore here!

unpopular opinion: hmm I don’t think this is necessarily unpopular but idk and I want to talk about it: even though Leela identifies so strongly as a warrior, a “happy ending” for her would, I think, need to involve getting away from fighting. too often she throws herself into a fight to try to avoid thinking about how much she’s hurting, and it doesn’t work, it doesn’t stop the pain. and in the Time War, she’s tied her identity so strongly to war (it’s inevitable, inescapable, and she will Fight and Defend because that’s all she has left). there’s a difference between “I am a warrior” and “all I am is a warrior,” and Leela’s slid too far into the second one, and she needs to untangle her own identity from war to heal. 

song i associate with them: Freedom by Karmina (it’s a song about going on defiantly in the face of heartbreak -  “Tearing my room apart, I’m starting over” / “Take my pride I can still survive I’ve got my freedom” / “Hunt me down you’ll never find me now that I’ve got my freedom”)

favorite picture of them: the first one that came to mind is this gorgeous art by @laurelhach (which I didn’t realize was based on a picture until I stumbled across the original picture and was like oh my god!! it looks exactly like the art!!)

[aelysianmuse]

DESTIEL FIC REC

Okay, so, fanfiction is something that has brought me so much joy, entertainment and comfort during these hard times. These are the Destiel fics that I have bookmarked and would suggest for everyone to read. They are top notch in every department and I’ve read each and every multiple times. I wrote them down from the lowest word count to the highest and I linked the authors to their tumblr accounts, whenever I could find them, so please go shower them with love!

Touchstone - by xylodemon -   Words: 3,519 - Summary: "You're in pain," Cas says finally. He sounds sad. (Episode tag for 11x03, the one where Dean is hurt but doesn’t think he deserves Cas healing him. Cas disagrees and makes heals him in loveliest, most tender way. Everything is beautiful.)

Colette - by englandwouldfall - Words: 4,218 - Summary: Cain’s prediction keeps ringing in his ears. He’s going to kill Crowley, then Cas, then Sam. It makes sense to him. He hates how much sense it makes, but there’s something almost poetic about it; it’s circular, neat, the Mark wants it. The Mark wants to destroy everything, but most of all it wants to destroy Dean. And that would do it. (Episode tag 10x14, Dean struggling with the Mark, unable to deal with all the anger and urge to kill and Cas trying to be his savior Collette. Feelings are acknowledged but things are far more complicated than that.)

Newton’s Third - by felolle - Words: 6,220 - Summary: “How can I be running from something when I’m racing toward it?” “I dunno -- kinda your thing.” Thanks for the call out, little brother (Episode tag 14x03, Cas helping Dean deal with Michael possession. Awesome character portrayal!)

Take me home tonight - by persephoneshadow -  Words: 8,111 -  Summary: The one where Cas wants to have sex and Dean is there to help (It’s a PWP where it takes some jealousy for Dean to get his head out of his ass - and Cas knows exactly what he’s doing)

Boys on film - by loversantiquities - Words: 8,540 - Summary: But maybe that’s what it is—maybe Castiel’s finally realized something Dean is too chicken to admit, despite the fact he’s been jerking off to the idea of Castiel fucking him for the past few weeks. The idea warms him as much as it pains him to think about, his friend not being able to talk to him about something like that. That has to be it—it’s the only explanation. Castiel likes him.“Or maybe he knows you do cam shows.”Dean chokes on his burger. (Basically Dean does cam-shows, Cas knows. They get it on in the end.)

Cuckoo and Nest - by komodobits - Words: 10, 190 - Summary: For a long time, Castiel thought that every earthly possession other than the immediately necessary was excess to requirement. But Dean – Dean who named his car, who keeps a photograph of his mother in his wallet, some thirty-plus years after her death, who still has the crumpled ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign with a sleeping pelican emblazoned on it from the Microtel outside of Roanoke where he first kissed Castiel, clumsy and unsure, under the unsteady fluorescence of an exhausted bathroom bulb – is sentimental.It puzzles Castiel, where Dean draws the line between what is meaningful and what it is worthless. (Boys walking on eggshells around each other, Castiel mistaking Dean’s neatness for annoyance about Cas’s lack of thereof, Dean mistaking Cas’s apprehension for having one foot out of the door. Miscommunication that gets resolved. It’s delightful!)

Just turn around and go - by Porcupinegirl - Words: 11,320 - Summary: Dean should be happy. His best friend and housemate of five years, Castiel, is moving out to live with his boyfriend, Balthazar. Dean's career is going great, so he can easily afford the house on his own now. This is just growing up, moving forward to the next phase of their lives.It would be awesome, if he weren't in love with Cas. (Some angst and miscommunication among roomies who are in love but needed a little push to finally do something about it, and that push is Cas deciding to move out and live with his actual boyfriend. Things work out just fine.)

So glad we made it - by annie d (scaramouche) - Words: 16,421 - Summary: At twelve years old, Dean makes a friend, who becomes his best friend, who will eventually become the love of his life. (Destiel fic in which they know each other since childhood and take their sweet-ass time with admitting to each other that they’re otp: meant to be. But it happens. Timeline of little snippets that show them falling in love and owning that shit up, at last!)

I know who I want to take me home- by annodominique -  Words: 17,548 - Summary: The one where Dean and Cas are new workmates who hate each other's guts, are somehow forced into driving each other crazy because they secretly want to fuck, and they might have fallen in love with each other in the process. (Lots of sexual tension, mutual pining and enemies to lovers storyline - all in a nursing home. It’s amazing and absolutely heartwarming.)

Welcome to humanity - by winnywriter -  Words: 19,944 - Summary: Castiel is falling, slowly but surely becoming fully human. Every day there is something new to discover, and many of those discoveries are not wholly pleasant ones. And the whole time, Dean can't help but worry about the fact that the further the angel falls, the more he finds he likes the human Cas is becoming. (It’s exactly what the summary says it is. Moments of Castiel slowly becoming human and Dean trying to help him navigate that path while navigating it himself in the most Dean way possible)

On air - by wincechesters - Words: 21,219 - Summary: Cas and Dean are radio DJs who host the second most popular morning show in Lawrence. They’ve been co-hosts for years at different stations across the country, and they own a house together out of necessity, even though they’re just friends. But for some reason, a lot of their listeners and even some of their friends and family seem to think that they’re secretly in some kind of relationship, which they’re totally not (besides that one time that totally doesn’t count). In spite of that, Dean thinks he’s got everything figured out, until an ill-fated on air game of Truth or Dare turns everything upside down (and the billboards around town aren’t helping either). (Friends to lovers story that’s very well summarized, so I have nothing to add except that it’s such a wonderful read, this author is absolutely amazing and you should definitely read it.)

The Beach House in the Winter - by englandwouldfall - Words: 23,715 - Summary: They're not exactly in a good place right now, so it was probably a bad idea to agree to a full Milton family reunion at their old summer haunt to mark a year since Cas' father died.Obviously, he did it anyway. (This is a second part of a series, I absolutely suggest reading all of the works ‘cause they’re equally wonderful, but I read this one first and individually and loved it the most so I’m suggesting it. Look at tag warnings. It’s about Dean having panic attacks mid sex due to trauma, Castiel trying to treat him right and handle the situation properly. They love each other so much ugh)

There are many things - by imogenbynight -  Words: 28,807 - Summary: In which Dean and Castiel learn, through trial and error, how to be together. (What starts out as an angsty fic that follows Cas’s human experience after Dean kicked him out of the bunker, turns into a Destiel falling in love fic as they find their way back to one another)

Sometimes it fits - by ballsdeepinwinchesters -  Words: 37,720 - Summary: Castiel is an over-worked, socially awkward neurosurgeon; Dean is the ruggedly handsome paramedic that asks him out for drinks. The rest kind of fell into place. (Two hotties with busy work schedules having lots of sex and being domestic. It’s a lot of fluff and smut. No angst.)

Put up your dukes - by saltyfeathers - Words: 38, 282 - Summary: Dean can't sleep. Cas offers to tire him out. (Dean struggling to accept the sexual tension relief Castiel is oh-so-eager to offer. So much tension, sparring goodness and bed sharing.)

All’s well that ends well - englandwouldfall - Words:  52,326 - Summary: Dean knew the second he took off that he shouldn't have left, but that didn't mean he could have guessed what he'd be coming back home to. (It’s actually a part 4 of the series, and I do suggest reading the entire series, but I read it first and individually before even realizing this and I absolutely loved it nonetheless. It’s about both Dean and Cas having made some poor choices in the past, abandonment and infidelity and two of them loving each other so much that they’re willing to forgive and fight for each other no matter what. Angsty and beautiful.)

A midterms night’s dream - by englandwouldfall -  Words: 75,756 - Summary: There's at least fifteen good reasons why they're not sleeping together, it's just that Dean can’t remember them when Cas sends him one second dirty snapchats to goad him into doing the dishes. (One of my absolutely favorite fics and one of my top 3 fic authors (does a lot of series, which gets you really emotionally invested!). I suggest you read literally every single Destiel story written by this author, ‘cause it’s consistent in character portrayal and in invoking emotional response and I’ll probably explicitly write down at least one more story that I particularly liked from them. This one’s about them being college roomates who’re basically oblivious to sharing sentiment of wanting to be in relationship with the other, so they pine emotionally while having exceptional we-are-strictly-fuck-buddies sex)

Version 2.0 - by elizabeth1985 - Words: 75,937 - Summary: Life is nothing but a series of processes. We rise, we work, we function within the walls we’ve designed for ourselves. Dean Winchester does not deviate from this system. Heavily tattooed and a certified genius; Dean necessitates control. Relationships are a no-go. Too messy, unpredictable. And yeah, he knows having casual sex with his best friend, roommate, and business partner is a dumbass move. But Cas’ suggestion is impossible to resist.What Dean doesn’t expect and couldn’t possibly predict is the unique way Cas manages to shut down his mile-a-minute mind, giving him a level of inner peace he’d thought to be unattainable.What starts out of convenience morphs into a dynamic emotional slide neither of them were prepared for, forcing them to decide what they’re willing to risk. (Cas and Dean being business partners turning to fuck buddies turning to mutually pining idiots, where Cas won’t let things progress further ‘cause Dean is so entwined in every single aspect of his life that he’s absolutely terrified to lose it all. But Dean makes an effort to show him otherwise!) + It’s hard to fool around in a tent (Words: 5,861)

Any little heartbreak - by followthattardis - Words: 76,897 - Summary: Dean Winchester knows everything there is to know about the human heart. Well. Anatomically speaking. (Very Grey’s Anatomy-y, Dean is a thriving cardiosurgeon, Cas is his new surgical nurse assistant, there are so many well written characters, so much gossip, gratuitous sex and eventually a relationship. It’s so lovely, ugh I love this writer.)

A crash course in computer safety - by followthattardis - Words:  85,269 - Summary: On the day of his 29th birthday, Dean receives an email from his old nemesis: Michael Milton, the guy who got him kicked out of college and stole his girlfriend. The email contains encoded images with top secret CIA/NSA intelligence – and now their only copy is in Dean’s brain. Both agencies send their best operatives – Castiel Novak and Victor Henriksen respectively – to handle their accidental asset and protect the invaluable data in his head. To justify their sudden appearance in Dean’s life, they adopt covers: Victor as Dean’s new co-worker and neighbor, Cas as his new boyfriend. Needless to say, Dean’s brother and his girlfriend are thrilled to see him in a relationship they believe to be real. Clearly, there’s no way this could go wrong. (This is a NBC: Chuck AU and one of my top 3 fics ever. I haven’t watched Chuck at all and regardless of whether you have or not, I don’t wanna write anything else in this section ‘cause I enjoyed discovering every bit of information on my own. I’ve literally taken this fic and studied/analyzed it as a writer myself to take pointers on accurate character portrayal and writing style. It’s book material, I’d literally buy anything this author writes. It’s becoming a series and more content is to come so I suggest subscribing.) + Curtain up (Words: 10,311)

La hantise (The only work in progress fic here) - by quiettewandering - Words:  87,468 - Summary: Castiel’s mother dies, leaving him the family home that sits abandoned on the moody coast of Maine. He’s forced to return to the past ghosts of his trauma, as well as meeting the mysterious and nomadic Dean Winchester. Dean offers to help Castiel fix up the house so he can sell it, which quickly becomes problematic as Castiel begins to develop feelings for Dean; especially when details of Dean’s troubling past come to light.This is a story about the sea, second chances, and two broken, forgotten people building a love between them while restoring a broken, forgotten house. (Romance, ghosts, house renovation, cliffhangers, angst - I am awful with WP’s, never read them till they’re done ‘cause I’m an impatient one but this is the one I couldn’t resist and thoroughly enjoy)

Ignore the butterflies: best friend advice from Dean Winchester - by impatient14 - Words:  114,837 - Summary: Dean likes his doctor, but his doctor doesn’t like him.Accidental friendship ensues, heartwarming bonding type moments occur, and oops!friends become best!friends.But best friends aren’t supposed to feel the way Dean feels about Castiel. He knows this. So he ignores all the things that he can’t help feeling. When he sits and watches a movie with his best friend or when they are arguing about which method of coffee brewing is best, he pointedly doesn’t look at his friends lips, or the adorable way he tilts his head when he doesn’t understand.Dean ignores his feelings.That’s the way he knows how to keep his best friend.Just ignore the butterflies. (Dean is a heroic firefighter who ends up in stand-offish Castiel’s ER and flirts mercilessly with him, but to no avail. Cas is not made of stone, though, he’s just trying to protect his little heart ‘cause Dean does scary heroic things. It’s super emotional, go read it.)

Keeping you in sight - by gingerswag - Words:  136,374 - Summary: Castiel valued his solitude, and was happy to stay hidden away in the mountains for the rest of his life. But when his seeing eye dog dies, that solitude is suddenly broken when Gabriel shows up not with another dog but an actual human slave. Castiel doesn't believe in slavery, but he can't turn away the very hurt and broken man he's given. (This is a slavery fic, look up the tag warnings! It’s extremely angsty, it has a very human and rational ending which not might satisfy those looking for a conclusive, expressed fairytale ending for these two. It’s about Dean having gone through a lot of trauma and Cas being extremely lonely and two of them trying to mend each other while going through an excruciatingly painful healing process. I don’t think I can summarize it in a way that envelops everything that happens in this fic - it’s a tougher read but absolutely wonderfully written and very angsty)

Stay with me, sweetheart - by mandalarose - Words: 142,926 - Summary: A single moment's distraction ends with a serious car accident that leaves Castiel trapped in his vehicle. Fortunately for him, fire fighter Dean Winchester is there, never leaving Castiel's side as the rest of his company work to free him from the mangled remains of his SUV.When the two meet again in the ICU, Castiel finds himself just as drawn to and comforted by the handsome fireman as he was during his accident. Dean is certainly attractive, but single father Castiel doesn't have time or space in his life for a romantic relationship.Then again, there's no harm in making a new friend, is there? (Dean is so whipped, so is Cas but he tries really hard not to get invested ‘cause everyone leaves and it’s not a commodity he can afford now that he’s got a baby. Thankfully for him, Dean is all-in kind of guy who’s gonna make all the right choices, one after another, fighting to show Cas that he can have what he desires and deserves, even after multiple attempts of Cas’s to push him away. Love conquers all!)

Four Letter Word for Intercourse - by bendingsignpost - Words:  194,739 - Summary: As a grease monkey turned college freshman, Dean's constantly three seconds away from being stressed out of his mind. It hardly helps that he's finally figuring out his sexuality in his thirties.What might help with that stress is a little phone number (and a big credit card bill). If he can't figure out how to be bisexual in person, he can at least give it a go over the phone, right? (I think I probably read this story a hundred times. Fantastically written fic where Dean is a student discovering his sexuality through a phone sex line, struggling with having to take over family business and Cas is a professor with a sidejob, with whom Dean interacts wordlessly at the library. It tackles on mental health, on wonderful sex dynamics, coming out and lots of other stuff. It’s one of the best writen fics out there, along with the other works in this series that I highly suggest to read: A Little Anal - Words: 18,805 and What makes a man kneel - Words: 9,920)

[papers4me]

Fruits Basket, SE02, Ep23

Love is in the air is the theme of this ep! All kinds of luv~ for everybody!~ kyo/tohru (main), yuki/machi(new!!), rin/haru(on going), Arisa/Kureno (dead-end?), hiro/kisa (babies to luvers...), hana/tohru/arisa (sisters love!) yuki/kakeru (friendship), momiji/tohru (cutest friendship!) kyo/haru (underrated friendship), hana/kyo/arisa (living to tease*torment* you friendship!XD), kyo/kazuma (parental love!), Haru/kisa (big brother care), yuki’s fanclub (toxic love), hana/food (OTP). What an ep!! One of a kind where you start off crying of laughter & end up crying from broken heart!

-Arisa’s second outburst:

The best thing abt this play is that you can’t tell if they’re following a script or not for the most part. XD, However, for some it IS clear when they bring in their personal feelings. Arisa was fine acting her role with improvised jokes on kyo’s expense. However, due to kyo’s refusal to meet the princess, she got angry to the point of screaming in front of the whole school & visitors? The outburst was treated seriously with climatic music, audience reaction, fellow actors surprise & narrator-san pointing out it IS personal & not scripted. But afterwards arisa is fine. Even though I’m not into love at first sight, I acknowledge it exists in fiction & in reality. No problem. But the extreme intensity of kureno/Arisa’s love is higher than everybody’s without enough basis from those two meetings they had before... Sure, she can fall in love with him, wish him to meet her.. but her outburst is too much, too painful, too heartbreaking. However if you look at her outburst as a plot device to get kureno involved once again & complicate things, bingo, you get why it was planted there. Momiji’s footage will reach him. cool. but too forced in my opinion.. everything abt their interaction is too forced, from her first outburst at his few words that got her to cry her heart out & leave the restaurant & get nearly kissed on the lips to her second outburst in front of the entire school. Arisa likes ppl who are tohru-like. The narrative hints that kureno is tohru-like. First, his clumsiness, second? being content with his unjust life? what is tohru-like abt him so far that gets arisa to scream her heart out? I’m sure we’ll see more of his tohru-like qualities. but so far, it comes across too forced for me.

-Machi SEES the real yuki:

It seems that the confirmation that any female is heading to yuki’s heart is to be bullied by yuki’s fans. lol.  Machi not seeing yuki as a prince is her unique thing. Everybody including tohru see him as a prince & put him in a pedestal. In the play yuki descended from the sky, emerged from underground, said deep lines & glowed. Yet, machi saw thro the acting. I was cheering for yuki to step in & put these toxic girls at their place. Machi can be saved by kakeru’s indirect plan, sure, but this toxic behavior has been going since ep1. tohru was saved from them by hana & arisa. Bullying is always used as a plot device in furuba & unfortunately a comedic gag (there’s an entire ep dedicated for the fanclub). Sure furuba isn’t going to fix every issue or even provide solutions. It can’t. it shouldn’t. bullying is one hell of hard issue to solve. furuba wants to use bullying for plot. no problem. but also decides to comment on it quickly? yuki & kakeru’s argument abt the proper reaction towards bullying with each one of them taking an opposite opinion while machi herself is being bullied behind them felt too philosophical & untimely. Only for all this to end with a gag. Yuki is stuck paying the consequence cuz they’re his fans?.. ok. I’d love if the entire scene didn’t involve this argument. For example, yuki finding the girls, him listening to machi’s opinion abt him, him about to step in & defend her, then kakeru makes a prank abt photo-session with yuki, unknowingly saving the situation. Cuz the whole point of the scene is for yuki to know machi is different & sees the real him! Not that I hate how things played out, it is just furuba’s treatment of the issue of bullying is always weird to me. Similar to its treatment of violence, sometimes it’s serious, sometimes it’s comedy.

-Tohru’s best visual presentation ( show-NOT-tell): YES!

I’ve complained plenty abt furuba not treating tohru with enough visual presentation when it comes to hints for her issues or thoughts. but NOT today! This ep is tohru’s heaven! Tohru was torn apart between too many things & she didn’t inner monologue abt anything, YET, the visual imagery was enough to talk in her behalf!!! They showed tohru’s reaction to arisa, they showed tohru noticing haru/rin connection, they showed tohru react to Hana’s words without showing any of her inner thoughts & it works 100%. I’m so satisfied with this kind of treatment. You can show tons of silent emotions & trust the audience to make the correct conclusions without making your character spoon feed the audience on what they’re feeling. Hana’s “ do you plan to keep on deceiving yourself, locked in the castle, until you die?” is too close for comfort! it triggered kyo to react & say exactly his reasoning behind his decision without bringing the real world “ So what if I do? Does it hurt anyone else?” Kyo is sick of believing that he’s causing harm to his loved ones (mother, father, kazuma, kyoko, tohru). He agrees to be locked till death cuz this way no one will be harmed. ONLY him. he thinks he DESERVE it for existing & causing harm to these same ppl. His response prompts tohru to forget herself & react. What did tohru say? ( you are loved? you need to live? don’t hurt yourself? ) NO. It is NOT abt kyo. it IS abt HER!!! It is the (true form ) scene again but this time symbolically with 10 times harsher consequences!!! kyo’s true form’s final scene is NOT abt kyo deciding to stay, it IS abt tohru saying what she wants. That day tohru talked abt HERSELF. “ I want to listen to your complaints cuz u listened to me”. “ I want us to stay together” By demanding things & acknowledging herself, she got kyo to come back. This time, too, she react cuz SHE wants kyo to stay. “ I wouldn’t..” It is ME. I’ll be hurt if you’re locked. it is abt ME. I need you. I want you. I’m too scared to loose you. You’ve been my true support for long time now. Don’t Leave me, too!!!. Tohru stops herself cuz tohru doesn’t allow herself to want things or even acknowledge that she is worthy of things!! Just focus on her dialogue with others “ if I’m not troubling you, it is forward of me, please allow me” she’s talking to her friends! tohru has the lowest self esteem in furuba!

-Kyo, being an expert on reading tohru, knew the rest of the line. Kyo notices she’s in love with him. but again sinners don;t deserve love! You can’t love monsters? you’ll end up hurt!! hello!! tohru bled in the true form ep. he can’t hurt her again!!! NO way!! Enough causing her pain & tears. “ I wont take anything away from you again” he said in ep, 9. So, kyo forces himself to NOT see the truth. Forces his eyes to close tight. He’s an expert on that. Last ep, his eyes were forced to open to the reality that he doesn’t really hate yuki, but hates himself. Now, you want him to un-hate himself a little & acknowledge tohru’s love? if he did, where will it lead to? they’ll both confess & live together without him telling her abt kyoko?? that’s deceit! Him telling her abt kyko? she won’t forgive him, she’ll hate him! it is better to leave with happy memories than leave after causing tohru harm. Heck! tohru forgiving him or not IS not the issue, at all. the issue is HIM. he can’t forgive himself. he’s unforgivable!

-The most tragic Foreshadowing: (Symbolism DONE Right!)

They meet after the semi-confession, things are not the same anymore! they try to awkwardly get back to normal. Kyo says “ it couldn’t be, (I won’t let my self think it)” we know why. tohru says “ I wont (let my self think it)” WHY?!!! what is the show hiding for tohru? we know kyo’s issue. it is the BEST untold issue!! but tohru? What is stopping her more than her denying herself? it gotta be convincing & deep. otherwise, the writer would ruin the best complicated emotional dilemma that she is building her climax on! I know I’ll like what’s in store for tohru. No way such writer will miss on this. This will be EPIC. The tear between them is one of furuba’s greatest visual symbolism. One image only causing enough heartache to balance & take away the laughter from the entire ep!! One image leaving you with a punch in the gut. leaving you frustrated as to “Nooooooo~ stop! get back together”. I’m not usually into romance as I’m not a romantic person, but furuba has weaved this tale of emotionally abused children with traumatic experiences & tied them together with faint romantic direction & one of the best slow burns in anime! steadily building up their romantic connection without making it forced or in your face or apparent. I still can’t pinpoint when it first happened! Well-done writer & anime team. 10/10 scene!

Side Notes:

Narrator-san is the BEST! He kept everybody in check! & did it in style!

I’d like to thank the director for bringing their A+ animators to this ep! Kyo mostly looks hot & handsome but not HD, but there’s this kyo animator that kills the kyo animation!! kyo’d have three long strands of hair on his nose & his eyes would have more light animation than the mono-light. You can TELL the eps they bring this animator on! (such as Se01,Ep5, kagura ep, etc. ) & tohru!!!! my girl was done right!!!! no weird animation, no extra small baby hands, no shoulders that start around chest area, no bangs that are drawn like they suddenly ran out of brown ink mid coloring! lol. yuki is pretty & HD in every ep & so is hana!!

Hana is the prettiest furuba character hands down! 

Let’s be honest, yuki could’ve said 1+1=2 & the school would’ve celebrated his wisdom! XD. I kinda wish he’d deliberately say sth stupid jst for the heck of it. part of breaking the perfect yuki image. XD.

The opening gag of the men ogling kisa is the most unnecessary scene in furuba, eww~ Not funny!

why is every character MUST be part of romantic couple in furuba? Even children? & they have their own mini love complications with jealousy & misunderstanding, pinning & all. lol

Kazuma. that’s it. that’s the note.

Hana was mocking fiction tropes (animosity in families, traditions pressuring youth, helpless heroine, love at first sight! XD, romance for romance, happily ever after romance, main male protagonist loving main female protg, magical beings saving the day). Best play ever!

why does it feel like kyo just came from war? XD. He was in last ep. perhaps cuz he was absent for most of the season after kagura’s ep, with cameos here & there, few lines & not much focus. But they made up for it & brought his face expressions game up! from annoyed, cat ears, love struck, teased, blushing, a white cartoon-ish cat with an orange cat inside his mouth, shirtless hot, childish jealousy for his papa, his fangs, his cat reflexes. Name it & you bet there’s a kyo face for it. XD.

Speaking of funny faces, prince yuki got one today! all thanks to machi. that’s what I call women power! XD.

What is this weird skin-colored thingi? school mascot?

I love that hiro is questioning the play. XD

momiji is back, I feel that it’s been long as I last saw him!

haru is hot. Haru is kind.

I love the small awkward tension between kyo/tohru as they met after the play, tohru’s faint sweat drops as she does her closed eyes smile & kyo’s sweat drop as he takes the food from her & talks abt shisho.

Shisho & kyo mini manga. is it published yet?

kyo & hana’s interactions are life!!!! XD.

Ayame deserves praise! costumes on point!!

Hana wins the one liners game. sorry haru, XD.

You know it is serious when kyo monologues! I used to think, it happens ONCE a season (ture form SE01,Ep24, akito confrontation, SE02,Ep,9)!! but he got one or two inner monologues lines today, if you count him repeating tohru’s line! Sh*t is going down! Will I hear more before the season ends???!! or will the honor goes to tohru?!! I can’t even imagine what’ll happen next!!!!

[dumbassfander]

I have noticed somethings in the fandom I do not like:) 1. people hating ships specifically remrom. Now personally I don't care about remrom I don't like it, I don't hate. Mostly because I don't think about. The ship doesn't interest me. And the reason I am not stressing out or berating other fanders about liking remrom is because this is a fandom about a man and the different parts of his personality. All ships in the fandom ship the same guy with himself. I have seen people tell remrom shippers to kill themselves and this is not ok. And I don't think Thomas would like people in the fandom telling other fanders to kill themselves

2. Character hate or hate on people who like a character. I have been seeing a lot of hate for Virgil,Patton and Roman. I understand if people don't like a character but you shouldn't send hate to people who do. I have gotten hate because Virgil is my favorite character. I like Virgil because he reminds me of me after all your favorite character most likely than not is one you can project on to. And yes Virgil can be an asshole sometimes but we also have to remember that he is anxiety. His resting heartbeat is probably a panic attack. And people react differently with each attack. Personally I curl into a ball and silently cry most of the time. Anxiety while needed can be overwhelming. It can block out logic and over ride rational thought (why Virgil cuts of Logan so often). And there are different types of panic attacks. So depending on the situation Virgil's reactions will differ. He is also responsible for Thomas's safety so if Thomas perceives something as a threat so will Virgil ( how he treats Janus and Remus ). As for Patton he is Thomas's morality and emotions it's his job to make sure Thomas is a good person and react to what happens in Thomas's life on an emotional scale. And with Thomas being raised as a religious man being raised religious myself I can say the church put impossible standards on what makes you a good person. So Patton probably bases what good is off of the standards of the church. And with what has happened in the past 3 episodes Patton is extremely scared and worried that Thomas is a bad person. So of course he's not going to acting like our happy pappy Patton. And finally Roman Thomas's light creativity and ego/pride/confidence. All his life he saw himself as Thomas's hero meant to protect him from the world and help him reach his wildest dreams. Who always was afraid he was more like his brother than he thought. Roman for the longest time thought the "dark" sides were villians he was meant to defeat. And the only reason he accepted Virgil was because he was forced to see why he was important to Thomas. When Thomas began to show trust toward Janus it made Roman panic. That's why he made fun of his name. All of the sides have their flaws. Logan has anger issues and can be insensitive. Roman has an inferiority complex. Patton can be overbearing. Virgil has a tendency to shut people out. Janus is a compulsive lair and Remus is a pervert with no filter but all of them want what is best for Thomas

3. Hating people who don't ship your ships. I find that a lot of people in this fandom get angry at others for not shipping something. For instance I do not ship moxiety. Patton constantly refers to Virgil as his dark strange son. So I don't think the two would ever end up in a romantic relationship, I feel the same about remrom. There are plenty of ships I don't care about and that is just how I perceive it I don't need people in the fandom hating me because I don't like their otp.

In the end of the day we have to remember this is a series about self acceptance and is meant to entertain and bring people together not divide.

[when-he-writes-stuff]

okay you seem really nice lol, but idk if you take random prompts and its fine if you don't but i've really been feeling a "they get tied together and derek is in the back with stiles pressed against him omg-" fic ever since i saw a fan art like that for one of my other otp's,, so like if you could??? thatd be great

Oh heck yeah, I’m always down for a random prompt! And oh my gosh, this one is absolutely fantastic.

- -

Stiles thought this sounded like the beginning of a bad joke.

Two people get tied together back to back— an Alpha werewolf and the local token human— and one tries to get loose and accidentally ends up in a compromising position. What happens then? Absolutely nothing good for the innocent teenager that said Alpha werewolf is currently pressed up against.

Stiles hated everything sometimes.

It started when Stiles had been used as bait for the newest threat of Beacon Hills. He thought hunters were a little tiring, especially because they’d just come off of a bloodthirsty witch and that had been the ride of a lifetime. So when Jackson offered him up to be the hook, line, and sinker, he didn’t even try to argue. Their pack could handle a few hunters, after all.

Stiles had been wrong before.

He decided later, with a bloody nose and black eye as he lied tied up on the cold floor, that he hated everything. Hunters, werewolves, all the jazz. Stiles just wanted a nap and then maybe some curly fries.

After this, someone was buying him curly fries.

Stiles tried not to wince as he heard the sound of approaching footsteps, trying to draw into himself as much as he could. But the hands bound behind his back didn’t help. Nor did that fact that his entire body screamed in pain every time he dared to move an inch.

The hunter knelt down in front of him and Stiles got an eyeful of brown teeth.

“We’ll ask you one more time, boy. Where is the Hale-McCall pack?”

“Dude,” Stiles said, trying to roll away. “Breath freshener, whitening toothpaste, or something. Please invest.”

Stiles’s words were rewarded with a kick to the ribs, which he really should have expected. That didn’t change the fact that his breaths leaped from his lungs, though, or how he curled in on himself even more, choking out a small cry of pain.

Brown-teeth sneered down at him. “Wanna try that again?”

“I thought you were only asking me one more time.”

Stiles got another kick, harder this time. He tried to bite back his noise of pain but it came out anyway, more of a whine than a cry through gritted teeth. Laughter rolled around the room and Stiles gasped welty into the floor, tasting blood in his mouth.

“Come on boy,” the hunter said, crouching down again. “Is the pain really worth protecting a bunch of mutts? Tell us where we can find the Hale-McCall pack and we’ll let you go.”

“Minty gum works too,” Stiles said in a gasp. “With the stench at least, if you’re too lazy to brush.”

“Mouthy little shit—”

Before the hunter could strike him again, a loud roar filled the air. Stiles’s heart leaped and he tried to look up, only to groan and curl back in on himself. His everything hurt and honestly, he was surprised he was still conscious right now.

He heard… a growl. A single growl. Nothing else, no resounding howls or thankful sounds of rescue. Stiles blinked a few times as a gunshot filled the air followed by the sound of cheers.

Stiles’s heart plummeted. In five seconds, someone was being tossed next to him and he didn’t have to look long to realize who it was.

Stiles swallowed the taste of blood in his mouth. Derek laid next to him, a glowing bullet in his shoulder while his chest rose and fell in pants. Slowly, despite himself, Stiles raised a brow.

“Hey there, Sourwolf. You come to save me?”

“Shut up, Stiles.”

“I’m feeling very good about this entire situation right now. Thanks a ton.”

“Stiles.”

There was a footstep right behind Stiles’s head. He winced and cursed as brown-teeth leaned down again, glancing between them. Derek snarled weakly and Stiles only rolled his eyes.

“Well,” the man said. “The Hale Alpha and the pack human?”

“I never get a cool title,” Stiles grumbled. Derek gave him a red-eyed look, which Stiles pointedly ignored. He was aware of a hand on his arm, yanking him up, and his entire body screamed in pain at the sudden movement.

He didn’t mean to make a noise, but it just slipped out. Derek snarled again and the man laughed, dragging Stiles to his feet. But he didn’t make it all the way before his world was dipping in and out of darkness. Stiles tried to stay conscious— he really did.

But it was a losing battle from the start.

By the time Derek was trying to rise to his feet, only to get kicked back down again, Stiles had given into the black. He heard the man call his name, was aware of the floor coming again, too fast this time. And then… nothing.

Nothing.

Stiles thought that right now, he liked it better that way.

-

So where was he? Oh yeah, the beginning of a bad joke.

Stiles woke up with his hands bound behind his back. The first thing he thought was that his head pounded. The second was more along the lines of how hot he was— and not just to the eyes. Stiles felt like he was being pressed against a space heater. 

His third realization was that he basically was.

“Stiles,” Derek said, shifting carefully. “Are you awake?”

“No,” Stiles whined. “Or at least, I don’t want to be. Knock me back out again, please.”

The man sighed. 

Glancing around, Stiles realized they were alone. He didn’t know if that was a good thing or not, attempting to shift in his bonds only to groan. The pain pounded through his head and rippled all the way down the rest of him, like a full body ache he couldn’t escape.

Until Derek caught his hand, that was. Then slowly, some of the pain ebbed away.

“Okay,” Stiles said tiredly. “What now?”

“Someone will find us.”

“Someone like Scott? Who occasionally gets lost trying to find his own shadow?”

“Someone like Lydia,” Derek said. “Or Boyd.”

“Yay for Lydia and Boyd.”

“Would you rather be stuck alone in this?”

Stiles thought about that for a moment. Derek growled at his silence and Stiles couldn’t help smirking a little, feeling much better now that the man was taking some of his pain. But then Derek pulled away and Stiles whined again.

“Hey, no, dude, put your hand back on mine. I hurt!”

“I have a bullet in my shoulder, Stiles.”

Oh yeah. That was a thing too.

“Well,” Stiles said, refusing to be cowed. “That’s usually what happens when you come bursting into a hunter’s safehouse alone. What the hell is even with that anyway? Why didn’t you bring the rest of the pack?”

“I didn’t think I’d need them.”

“You didn’t— oh my god, Derek, I hate your Alpha ego sometimes.”

Derek only huffed. Stiles really hated him.

“Fine, is there anything you can do? These are ropes, have you tried like, chewing your way out of them or something?”

He was pretty sure the man tried to shoot a glare over his shoulder. “Wolfsbane infused, Stiles.”

“Well, that’s just fantastic.”

“Your comments aren’t helping.”

“Should I start screaming for help instead? I mean, that might end up attracting the hunters, but I can scream pretty loud when I want to. The pack might hear if we’re lucky.”

“No, Stiles,” Derek said, sounding pained. Stiles sighed.

“Fine, but neither of us are dying here. Not you and your stupid shoulder wound or me and my stupid everywhere else wounds.”

Derek tensed against him. “Are they bad?”

“They?”

“Your injuries, Stiles.”

“Oh,” Stiles said, shifting a little bit. “Okay, no not really. Just a bruise or two, a black eye and a split lip. I think brown-teeth might have cracked a rib but—”

“Brown teeth?”

Stiles grinned, despite himself. “Am I wrong though?”

Derek huffed.

“Okay,” Stiles said. “What if one of us managed to wiggle out of the ropes. I mean, I could probably do it. I’m small and wiggly and—”

“And you have a cracked rib.”

“I should’ve known not to tell you about that.”

Derek sighed. Stiles squeaked in surprised as the man was suddenly moving, and then the ropes across his chest were twisting and moving along with Derek’s attempts to break free. In a matter of moments, Stiles realized the man was in a whole new position, but it was definitely not free.

“Derek,” he said, blinking at the opposite wall. “Please tell me you didn’t.”

The man didn’t answer. Stiles glanced to each side and nodded as he spotted the large legs straddling him. Because yeah, this was just his luck. And things couldn’t get any better.

“I swear to god,” he said, wishing Derek could see the venomous look currently on his face. “The next time you don’t let me do the wiggling because of a ‘cracked rib’, please remember that things like this happen.”

“Shut up, Stiles.”

“I’m just saying,” Stiles said. “This right now? This should count as a cruel and unusual punishment.”

“I could make it cruel and unusual.”

“Please don’t say things like that when certain parts of you are literally pressed against certain parts of me.”

“Stiles.”

“What, Sourwolf, are you going to tell me to shut up again? Because I’ll have you know I’ve had just about enough of that and you and— Derek.”

The man didn’t answer, but he’d gone rigid pressed up against Stiles’s back. Stiles closed his eyes for a long moment and took a deep breath, trying to calm his sudden rapidly pounding heart. It didn’t help much.

“Derek,” he said, voice cracking. “Stop that.”

“I’m not doing anything.”

“Some part of you is doing something.”

“Shut up, Stiles.”

“Why, is me talking a turn on? Oh my god, me talking is totally a turn on. Derek! Stop that!”

“I’m not doing anything,” the man snarled, breaths hot against his ear. And suddenly, Stiles’s heart was pounding for a whole new reason. This was so totally not fair.

“You are doing everything right now, asshole.”

“Then stop talking!”

“I always lived under the impression that my talking was a boner-killer, not the magic spell that brings one to life!”

Silence fell over the warehouse. Stiles’s face was red and hot and he forced himself not to shift, trying to relax against Derek’s chest instead. But then Derek made a small noise at the back of his throat and Stiles realized that wasn’t an option either.

“Okay,” he said softly. “How did I never know this was possible until we were literally sitting on death’s door?”

“I hate you.”

“Clearly, not all of you does.”

“Stiles, I swear to god—”

“Okay, okay,” Stiles said. “We don’t know how much longer we have until the hunters come back. Now, as terrified as I am that they come to kill us, I’m even more terrified of being caught in this position right now. So can we please try to figure out how to get out of these ropes?”

Derek didn’t answer for a moment. Then the man sighed. “I can’t break them, but maybe you can.”

“Maybe I can? How.”

“I don’t know, Stiles, use your teeth or something.”

“You want me to bend over,” Stiles said, his heart thudding against his chest even harder. “And attempt to chew through the ropes.”

Once more, Derek was silent. Stiles scoffed.

“I thought so.”

“So you’d rather we just wait here to die?”

“I’d rather we not be in the position at all, Sourwolf!”

“Oh, it’s that bad, is it?”

Stiles clenched his jaw and didn’t answer. He glared at the wall for a long moment before glancing down at the ropes circling his chest. He supposed he could try. After all, what dignity did he really have left?

“Okay,” he said quietly. “If I try this—”

“You don’t have to, Stiles.”

“I’d rather get out of here alive than dead, Sourwolf.”

Derek sighed, breaths warm on the back of Stiles’s neck. He still shivered, despite himself, and then tensed even more when he heard the man murmur a quiet “sorry”.

“Uh, dude? What for?”

“I don’t,” Derek said, and then cursed. “I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”

“Oh,” Stiles said intelligently. He blinked a few times before it really sunk in. “Oh. I mean, dude, I’m a little hot right now. You radiate warmth like a space heater, you know that? And the ropes are rubbing a little uncomfortably across my chest—”

“Stiles.”

“Okay,” Stiles said quietly. “You’re not making me uncomfortable. I just… didn’t realize?”

“Realize what.”

“That clearly, dude, you’re all about this hot bod.”

Derek’s sigh was one-hundred percent pained. But Stiles grinned a little bit to himself, wishing he could meet the man’s gaze. He startled as Derek rested his chin on Stiles’s shoulder and the man’s lips brushed against the shell of his ear, making him shiver.

“Stiles,” Derek said softly. “Get us out of these ropes.”

“Oh my god,” Stiles squeaked. “Right away.”

Except, before he could even do anything, the door across the warehouse burst open. Stiles startled so hard, he spilled sideways. Faintly, he heard Derek shout his name, blinked as the world started to tip, and then they were both crashing hard against the floor, the impact making Stiles feeling like he’d cracked another two ribs or so.

“Oh,” Stiles said, voice cracking. “Ouch.”

“Dammit, Stiles.”

The sound of laughter filled the air as a couple pairs of footsteps approached. Stiles felt his face go hot and fixed his gaze on the floor, even as brown-teeth stood over him.

“Trying to go somewhere, boy?”

“No,” Stiles said. “Just, uh, hanging out. You know? Having a hell of a time right now.”

“You amuse me. I might kill you last.”

“... Is there any way I can dissuade you from killing me at all?”

The man chuckled and grabbed Stiles by the hair, starting to tilt his head upward. But suddenly there was a bang, a crash, and then a series of howls that struck the air.

Stiles had never felt so relieved.

Brown-teeth let his head fall back down and Stiles grunted in pain. But he’d take the stars flashing before his vision if it came with a rescue. Derek shifted against his back and Stiles felt warm breaths against his skin again.

He tensed as someone moved around the room toward them. Stiles snarled at the back of his throat as a shadow fell over them again but then Erica laughed and Stiles went silent.

He turned his head upward, blinking at the beta. She was smirking from ear to ear, eyes flicking from Stiles, to Derek, and then back.

“Well, it looks like you two got in a messy situation.”

“Erica,” Stiles groaned. “Just get us out.” 

“Hm,” she said, glancing at the ropes. “That’s wolfsbane. Have you tried using your teeth?”

Derek growled, but the beta only smirked wider. Stiles had to remind himself that murder was illegal and he was the Sheriff’s son.

Still, relief crashed over him like no other when Allison came running across the room. Stiles had never been so happy to see another pack human in his entire life.

Allison glanced over them, shared an amused look with Erica, and then dropped down, slicing through the ropes. Stiles slumped forward, wincing a little as the extra weight was put onto his rib cage. In a moment, Scott was moving across the room toward him, but Stiles waved a hand through the air, gesturing toward Derek.

“He’s the one with a wolfsbane bullet embedded in his shoulder.”

“No,” Derek growled. “He’s got a cracked rib.”

“Two now, I think,” Stiles said in a groan. “But that won’t kill me, asshole. Stop trying to be heroic.”

“You stop—”

“Okay,” Boyd said, cutting in. “There are more of us than you. Derek, do you need Deaton?”

“I need a bullet. And Stiles needs a hospital.”

“Oh my god,” Stiles said. “I hate you so much sometimes.”

“Lie.”

“Shut up.”

“Um, alright,” Scott said. “We’re going to do one more sweep of the warehouse. You two… figure this out?”

Stiles gave his best friend a withering look but Scott only smiled apologetically and backed away. As the rest of the betas followed, Stiles turned the look toward Derek. But at the man’s sweeping gaze over him, with concern in his eyes, any and all irritation melted.

“So,” Stiles said. Derek rolled his eyes, shifting a little with a grunt. 

“Shut up, Stiles.”

“What, are we just never going to talk about this again?”

“I don’t want to make you uncomfortable,” Derek mumbled. Stiles looked at him for a long moment before cursing everything. Why was Derek always so difficult?

A spastic teenager and an emotionally constipated werewolf try to admit their feelings. Sounded like the beginning of a bad joke.

“Derek,” he said softly. “You don’t make me uncomfortable.”

The man eyed him dubiously. Still rolled his eyes.

“Okay, but not in a bad way. Only like, when I’m trying not to get an inappropriate boner during shirtless trainings, or when you give the betas red-eyed looks, or when—”

“Stiles.”

Stiles frowned. “The point is, I’m—”

“A teenager.”

“Eighteen.”

“Who can’t control himself, but I should be able to—”

“Derek, shut up.”

Derek gave him a sour look. Pushing himself up with a grunt, Stiles leaned forward and cupped the man’s chin, studying his face. 

“Is this control?”

“That’s not what I meant and you know it.”

“This,” Stiles said. “Is control. And this,”  he leaned closer, touching his lips to the man’s forehead, “is proof that maybe I would like to lose it sometimes, but in every good way possible—”

Derek cut him off by turning his face upward and catching his lips. Stiles grinned and hummed his approval, making Derek growl. 

They were cut off by clapping behind them. Erica looked smug, the other betas looked uncomfortable, and Scott just looked a little confused. Derek glared but Erica only grinned wider.

“Too bad all the hunters are dead. I totally would have thanked them.”

“Erica.”

“I mean all that unsolved sexual tension—”

“Erica.”

But Stiles only grinned back at her. Because a werewolf and a human get tied together; sounds like the start to a bad joke. That’s what he thought about three hours ago, at least.

The punchline though? Stiles supposed it was satisfactory in the end.

To say the least.

- -

I never realized how much I wanted to write this prompt until now. I had so much fun with it! You’re fantastic, nonnie, I hope I did it justice!

(if you enjoy my writing, consider supporting your underpaid student writer? You can also request a prompt if you’d like!). https://ko-fi.com/rh27writer