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tobiasdrake · 6 months ago

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Of the Danganronpa casts, which 8 characters do you think would best fit the Adventure Crests?

Ooh, that is a fascinating question to think about. I can't do an episode of Digimon today because I'm back at work after two days off so I not only have a lot of backlog to attend to but also end-of-week reporting to shoot out.

But this is a fun idea for an exercise to keep my brain moving through the day.

Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc

Courage: Mondo Owada. Mondo's issues with masculinity map well onto the Courage template. He's brave and impulsive to a reckless degree, driven by a desire to prove himself. His life has been defined by the virtues embodied in the Crest of Courage, both for better and for worse as his reckless bravery ultimately got his brother killed.

Mondo's story ends in a betrayal of his virtue. In the equivalent of Dark Evolution consuming his Digimon and driving it to kill him. But even this supreme act of cowardice occurs because he is shamed by the courage that Chihiro demonstrates. The virtue that Mondo has strived to uphold.

Friendship: Junko Enoshima. That one's going to take some explaining, but weird as it is to think, Junko's entire gambit as the Mastermind is a dark inversion of the virtue of Friendship. She knows each and every one of these people intimately, and she cares. She has to care for their deaths to bring her the despair she seeks.

The entire Killing Game is a form of self-harm, as despair-obsessed Junko inflicts emotional scars on both her friends and peers, and on herself. It's just like when she stabbed Yasuke; It only works, it only gives her the emotional response she desires, because she cares so much and knows so much about each and every one of these people.

Junko herself has the Crest of Friendship. Which she has corrupted in pursuit of despair.

Love: Sakura Ogami. Sakura is driven by love. Though seen only as a powerful and dangerous ogre by others, it's love that motivates her every action. It's love for Kenshiro that leads her to work for Junko. It's love for the rest of her peers that leads her to betray Junko.

Even her death, her final act in this world, was done out of love. Her final moments spent with a candy in her mouth; A present from a beloved friend. Sakura has a bottomless capacity for love.

Purity/Sincerity: Hifumi Yamada. A Purity-bearer is someone who is emotionally honest and sincere in their presentation. They wear their heart on their sleeve; What you see is what you get. They are, in every moment and every interaction, their truest unfiltered self. For better or worse, they shower everyone they meet in unrelenting emotional honesty.

Hifumi is often difficult to be around. His obsession with his favorite magical girl gets uncomfortable at times. But it cannot be said that he has any sort of filter or that he's concealing any part of himself. Hifumi puts his true self out there in every waking moment, even when you kinda don't want him to. He's not ashamed of himself and he's not going to pretend to be anything he's not. As such, Hifumi embodies the Crest of Purity more than anyone.

Knowledge: Kyoko Kirigiri. I mean. Obviously. Obviously the Ultimate Detective has the Crest of Knowledge. Kyoko is driven to find answers. So much so that she let Makoto die (or almost die until Alter Ego saved him) so that her investigation could continue. There is nothing that motivates Kyoko more than her own curiosity and need to find the answer.

Sincerity/Reliability: Kiyotaka Ishimaru. It can be confusing that there's two Crests named Sincerity in different versions. But they refer to different kinds of Sincerity. The Reliability Crest is exactly what it sounds like. It's the team mom. The most trustworthy person among us. Someone who is dependable and responsible for everyone's wellbeing, who steps up to make sure we're all cleaning our rooms and eating right and making good choices. Or at least tries to.

Up until trauma cracks him in half, that's Taka in a nutshell. A hard-working and diligent believer in effort over talent, Taka futilely tries to be the glue holding this group together and create a sustainable community within Junko's wicked game. He fails miserably, but it's still an effort worthy of the Crest of Reliability.

Hope: Makoto Naegi. He's literally the Ultimate Hope; Who else would this be?

Light: Sayaka Maizono. The Crest of Light is always a hard one because it's more of a spiritual thing than physical. The Light-bearer experiences reality in a unique way. They represent the force of life itself and are attuned to spiritual affairs beyond the mortal realm.

For me, that could only fit superstar pop idol and inexplicable mind-reader Sayaka Maizono.

Kindness: Chihiro Fujisaki. While not appearing in 01, the Crest of Kindness was added in 02 so I think it counts. Obviously there is no one more suited to Kindness than Chihiro, who would sooner give blood to a mosquito than smash it.

Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair

Courage: Akane Owari. Akane is Courage incarnate. Every bit as heroic, impulsive, and reckless as any Goggles Boy. Ready to fight at a moment's notice but disinterested in putting real effort into personal growth. She once threw hands with Monokuma hard enough to get one of her teammates killed; If that's not Crest of Courage material then I don't know what is!

Friendship: Gundham Tanaka. For all his bluster, Gundham cares a great deal for other people. Though he's uncomfortable with human contact, he's devoted his life to building relationships with others, even if they are primarily animal in nature.

Indeed, Gundham himself is no island, no single man standing alone, at any given time. He is accompanied always by his Four Dark Devas of Destruction, working together as a team of five to accomplish any goal. Gundham understands the value of teamwork and companionship like no one else alive.

Love: Fuyuhiko Kuzuryu. Though he tries to be the big bad gangster tough guy, the force driving Fuyuhiko has always been love. Love for his Ultimate Little Sister Natsumi and love for his dearest friend Peko, who he all but begged to deprogram from his family's conditioning.

Even before the Tragedy, Fuyuhiko had killed for love. In the Killing Game, he very nearly died for love.

Purity/Sincerity: Hiyoko Saionji. Again, she can be absolutely unbearable but for better or worse, she always puts forward her truest self. What you see is what you get with this foul-mouthed little bully who hurts animals and people for fun.

Knowledge: Sonia Nevermind. As the Ultimate Princess, Sonia is driven to learn much so that she can become a fair and just sovereign. The only reason she's even here is because she came to Japan to learn about the culture, and she also demonstrates a ravenous if amoral curiosity about macabre topics such as serial murderers.

Sincerity/Reliability: Nekomaru Nidai. As a coach, Nekomaru's dedicated to spending the very last years of his life to building people up. What time he has left in this world is his gift to the athletes training under him, and he will take a bullet for them in an instant. He is a responsible authority figure who selflessly and tirelessly works to build up everyone else, and for that reason he deserves the Crest of Reliability.

Hope: Nagito Komaeda. Again, this one's fairly obvious. He's a dark reflection of Makoto and Junko who embodies hope but in a twisted sort of way. Technically Izuru Kamukura gets called Ultimate Hope but that's just, like, the school administration's opinion, man. It's Nagito who has a complex relationship with the very concept of hope and so, I think, the Crest of Hope would go to him. Please use it wisely. (He won't.)

Light: Chiaki Nanami, of course. The digital human who serves in secret as one of the admins running the program, directly connected to the Neo World equivalent of Homeostasis.

Kindness: Mikan Tsumiki. This is another obvious one, I think. Of course the Ultimate Nurse gets the Crest of Kindness. Mikan struggles with her assigned virtue; she has some resentment in her, she's been abused so much she can't recognize positive reinforcement, and she enjoys the power trip of being in charge of others.

There is certainly a risk of a Darkness Evolution from Mikan. But I think those struggles only reinforce that importance and centrality of Kindness to her existence.

Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony

Courage: Tenko Chabashira. Tenko's a full-blown magical girl superhero. She's the Champion of Women, trawling city streets looking for rapists and abusers she can throw hands with.

In the Killing Game, she ticks all the boxes. Impulsive? Check. Reckless? Check. Heroic? Check. Does things without thinking to both the benefit and detriment of those around her? Check check check!

Friendship: Kaito Momota. Kaito well and truly believes that friendship and bonds of togetherness are how we're going to get through this alive. He's a serial adopter of isolated people, dragging anyone who doesn't have a friend into his own social group where he pushes them to become the best version of themselves.

In fact, his greatest flaw is having too much faith in people, blinding him to the darkness inside of them.

Love: Maki Harukawa. Furious though she would be to receive this Crest, Maki's capacity for love influences much of her story. Child caregiver for her orphanage, she became an assassin so that someone she loved wouldn't have to.

As the Killing Game progresses, Maki's capacity for love finds her again. Love is what drives some of her biggest and most influential actions.

Purity/Sincerity: Miu Motherfuckin' Iruma, shit-for-tits! If this were the Crest of Innocence, it'd be Gonta for sure. But this is about unfettered self-expression, and Gonta has to remind himself to conduct himself gentlemanly. He has fetters.

Miu, however, does not. Every last stray impulse or thought that hits her brain comes straight out of her mouth, even when it definitely shouldn't. She is honest and sincere self-expression incarnate, like no other.

Knowledge: Shuichi Saihara. Like Kyoko, this one's a no-brainer. Though he's reluctant to commit to the role, the Ultimate Detective is here to uncover the truth. His relationship with curiosity and the pursuit of knowledge defines his story throughout V3.

Sincerity/Reliability: Kirumi Tojo. Do I even need to explain why? The Ultimate Maid is the ultimate caregiver for all of these children. She is the pillar that makes living here sustainable, even comfortable. And she does it all without a single complaint. Caring for others is what she lives for.

Hope: Kaede Akamatsu. Though she isn't with us long, Kaede carries hope in her heart so strongly that it ultimately kills her. There is no greater gesture of hope in the entirety of V3 than Kaede's desperate gamble to try and corner the Mastermind. She risked it all on the belief that she could end everything right then and there.

She was wrong. But her effort earns her the Crest of Hope.

Light: Angie Yonaga. Cult leader and possibly oracle, Angie's life is downright haunted by her spirituality. She is already (allegedly) the vessel of Atua; She's the perfect choice for the vessel of Homeostasis.

Kindness: Gonta Gokuhara. This is the Crest that belongs to Gonta. Gonta is a gentle giant who loves all things big and small, but especially small. Though he can be scary at times, he means you no harm. He just wants you to meet his bugs. He loves bugs and he wants you to love bugs too.

Ultimate Team

So, of the three sets, who best embodies the virtue of their Crest? Let's assemble the team.

Courage: Akane Owari. Mondo ultimately falls short of his values. Tenko does a better job of it, but she's also terrified of pain and cracks easily under pushback, which holds her back from being a true icon of Courage.

But Akane gives zero fucks. She is, in every moment, the person that Mondo and Tenko aspire to be. Bold and headstrong to a fault, Akane Owari is officially the Goggles Boy of this team.

Friendship: Kaito Momota. Junko is hahaha no. Her subversion of the Crest's values pretty much disqualify her. Gundham and Kaito are close. However, while Gundham has a wealth of animal friends, he struggles with direct human-to-human interpersonal contact which costs him.

Kaito, meanwhile, is able to embrace the values of Friendship with open arms. An incorrigible friend-maker and support system for every introvert he kidnapped into his orbit, Kaito is a friend to all and a pillar that can always be leaned on for support, through thick and thin.

Love: This was a close one. Sakura, Fuyuhiko, and Maki all have their strengths, and they all perform incredible feats of love. Honestly, they all deserve the Crest equally. I agonized over this choice. But if I have to have to pick one, then I'm going to go with Maki. Because it's funnier that way.

Purity/Sincerity: Miu Iruma, queen of the overshare. Hifumi and Hiyoko are in-your-face with their personalities and proclivities too, but I feel like Miu goes above and beyond in the field of shameless, unapologetic self-expression.

Knowledge: Kyoko Kirigiri. Though Shuichi's story revolves heavily around deconstructing the pursuit of knowledge, he is by design a pale and unwilling imitation of Kyoko. Sonia's boundless curiosity puts her closer to Kyoko, but there's simply no competing with the Ultimate Detective in the field of pursuing knowledge.

Sincerity/Reliability: Nekomaru Nidai. Ultimately, Taka and Kirumi both crack under pressure, but Nekomaru holds true to his values to the bitter end. This is a man who would give everything for his athletes, and he puts his money where his mouth is twice over.

Hope: Makoto Naegi. Ultimate Hope. Contrary to the way later entries treat him, Makoto did not singlehandedly defeat Junko by shooting lightning from his eyes and disintegrating her. But he was the inspiration at the eleventh hour that burned away despair and made her defeat possible.

A triumph the series has never managed to truly recapture, despite two separate attempts.

Light: Chiaki Nanami. As the conduit to a digital god, it's hard to find someone more appropriate than a humanoid AI. You might think that should disqualify her from being a Chosen Child but I support AI personhood and also something something DR3 retcon says there technically was a real Chiaki so AI Chiaki can just use her Partner and Digivice. Nyeh!

Kindness: Oh fuck me, this one's pretty evenly split too. Chihiro, Mikan, and Gonta all deserve this slot on the team. I can't decide between them. So... I'm going to choose....

Hm, we have three DR2 and three DRV3 to two DR1 in this group. Alright, I'll give this to Chihiro so the numbers can be even. I didn't plan on it being even. But this would make them even and that's pretty neat.

Alright, there we have it. Three teams of Chosen Children and one Avengers-style Ultimate Chosen Children team. Holy shit, that was a hell of a thing. ^_^

#digimon #digimon adventure #danganronpa #danganronpa 1 #danganronpa 2 #danganronpa v3

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callmearcturus · 2 years ago

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can i just defend myself and explain why i am obsessed with mission impossible????? please? i know Cruise is a cultist and that is genuinely bad and makes this my ultimate Problematic Fave but also please god i need to ramble about this

ghost protocol, right?

this is a Leverage movie okay? there's a lot of pretty people with interesting motivations and they do ridiculous heists for the greater good.

the physical comedy element is off the chain from the start with the prison break sequence where Ethan Hunt has a nonverbal argument over surveillance camera with Benji Dunn to affectionately bully him into going off-script for the mission, and then blows him a little kiss of thanks.

the Burj Khalifa stunt, which is entirely practical and is not CGI and happened on the actual location, is so fucking bugfuck crazy that it makes my heart race every time, and on top of that it's a GORGEOUS sequence and its funny and it's character-driven and the greatest moment in the movie is Ethan's running leap to propel himself into the window at the end, only to bonk his fucking head and nearly die at the last moment. it's a miraculous sequence.

i love Carter so fucking much, and I am OBSESSED with Mission Impossible and gender. the number of times the expectation I would expect gets inverted is so crunchy.

Jane Carter has the most motivation of everyone, with her boyfriend getting fridged in the intro and propelling her to be more ruthless and reckless than the others. she gets the very dude-coded backstory and role, and it plays beautifully off Ethan because there is never a single moment of the movie setting her up as his love interest, not ONCE and so they have this wonderful equitable relationship where they've both gone through similar trauma and he tries to advise her on how to handle it, and it's SO NEAT

also speaking of gender stuff, the way Carter has to seduce the rich guy at the end but at every turn is being coached by Ethan on how best to seduce the guy, and everyone just accepts that Yep, Ethan Is The Guy To Help You Seduce A Man, mwah, love it, amazing.

also as someone who is Hugely Ambivalent to Jeremy Renner

(MOSTLY BECAUSE I literally know he can act, the first thing I saw him in was the fucking Hurt Locker okay but it feels like his agent is an idiot and keeps netting him Incredibly Generic Roles, but at least in Mission Impossible he's working with the material as much as he can)

ANYWAY I actually like Jeremy Renner in these movies instead of forgetting he exists which I think says something. and it was a small thing in 2011 but the blaise "Next time, I get to seduce the rich guy," moment really does work.

Rogue Nation

Fallout is the best MI movie but Rogue Nation is my favorite MI movie, because it is just a fucking comedy and it's the real start of Ethan's deepening emotional arc and I'm OBSESSED with it

also Ilsa fucking Faust, my god

Ilsa is one of my favorite ladies in these action movies? she feels like a boot to the face of Bond movies, she's beautiful but she's not a young woman, she has genuinely complex shit going on, she's the true fulcrum the movie pivots around, she has a very specific fighting style that stands out, and she's another Not Love Interest?

like, Ethan likes her and there's that moment when she asks him to run away with her, but the way the camera treats her makes me so happy? like if i were in a movie, i would want the camera to look at me like it does Ilsa, does that make sense?

also benji runs this entire movie. i love his growth and his comfort in his work. in Ghost Protocol, Benji was green, but in Rogue Nation he knows what he's doing, he resents being protected, he is reliable and thinks on his feet, and he yells at Ethan when Ethan is being a dick.

in another moment of Huh Gender Stuff, Benji is the one who is positioned as Ethan's Love Interest structurally. he is with Ethan the most, he grounds him but also sparks off him well, he is Ethan's connection to the world and the avenue thru which he shows the most emotion, and when Benji's kidnapped in the third act Ethan completely loses his shit and kidnaps the Prime Minister and basically does whatever it fucking takes to get him back, the degree to with Benji is Ethan's motivation in RN is kind of staggering.

also i love ethan hunt and RN is really where that starts.

Ethan can swing around the Burj Khalifa and do a 100mph motorcycle chase and well i guess the free swim didn't work out Great for him, but when he's not doing superhuman ridiculous bullshit

i'm obsessed with the growing emotional core of Ethan. his fatal flaw begins to emerge in RN, that his job is to save the entire world from certain doom, but his judgement is Fucked.

that goddamn glass box he's locked in. he sees a young IMF agent killed, and it sticks in him like a lodged dagger. he risks himself over and over to try and get Ilsa out of her own fate. he does Batshit Things to save Benji.

I know that James Bond has kind of become a reflection of itself, on how terrible James Bond, about how reprehensible a person he is. the Craig movies I've seen have been pretty upfront about that baggage.

but... he's still a misogynistic bastard who will kill people to finish his mission. and the movie acknowledges all that but it's still the driving force of the movies.

Mission Impossible doesn't just nod at "hey Ethan's kinda fucked up huh" and then keeps doing that. Ethan's flaws are getting worse and causing more and more problems for him and everyone around him.

Fallout

there are a lot of moments i love in Fallout but there is one I cannot dislodge from my brain

wait first: August Walker is amazing and i love him

i love that the movie makes no attempt to hide he's the bad guy. i love how he keeps trying to introduce himself to the IMF team and everyone no sells him, because everyone hates the fucking CIA. i love his arm reload and how brutal his combat style is compared to Ethan's.

he's so fucking FUN.

but anyway, the thing that Fallout does that I cannot for the life of me stop thinking about is Ethan and the traffic cop in Paris.

this mission has been on the knife's edge of disaster from the word go, Ethan has been mocked and pushed around and disregarded, Ilsa is after him, he's just pulled off an extremely treacherous betrayal and an even more dangerous escape, everyone is getting into the car with Lane, and they open the doors and there's someone RIght There. the wrong place, the worst possible time.

everyone freezes. Walker is ready to shoot her, just another piece of collateral damage. but Ethan spends an extended period just stopping and pleading in French for this lady to leave. Please, just go, please walk away, please do not get involved in this.

He could shoot her, or get in the car and drive, hoping she'll get out of the way, or let Walker take her out, or attack her and nonfatally injure her to get her out of the way. They really really don't have time for this shit.

But something in him is fucked because there is a nuclear apocalypse on the line, but Ethan stops to try and keep one bystander out of it.

POINTS

I'M OBSESSED WITH THIS CHARACTER. WITH THE GUY WHO IS LITERALLY GETTING MORE AND MORE COMPROMISED BY HIS EMOTIONS AS THE FRANCHISE GOES ON. THE GUY WHO KEEPS FUCKING UP BECAUSE HE'S NOT WILLING TO MAKE A HARD CHOICE AND LET SOMEONE DIE TO SAVE MILLIONS. THIS IS A PROBLEM, AND IT'S GETTING WORSE.

i love John Wick. I love the beautiful choreography of death. I love the showmanship.

But there's something about how Mission Impossible takes death seriously and the way Ethan tries to minimize harm even when he really shouldn't that captivates me.

also the cinematography is amazing.

THAT'S ALL. I love the Chris McQuarrie Mission Impossibles. It's SUCH a problem.

#long post #mission impossible #ultimate problematic fave

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mtdthoughts · 11 months ago

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Migi & Dali Character Analysis Pt. 6 (Dali)

Last but not least, we have the other titular character, Migi’s older identical twin brother, and my personal favorite, Dali!

Click here to return to the top of the thread.

As always, spoilers will be discussed.

As he and Migi have grown up together and have pretended to be one person for a while, they naturally share many similarities, but I won’t state them here because I already stated them in the previous part on Migi.

Unlike Migi, Dali is much more suited to the persona of the perfect boy Hitori, as he is very intelligent and perceptive to others’ needs. He seems to enjoy school and is a high-achieving student, likely with a preference for the sciences, and he enjoys more intellectual activities such as reading and conducting experiments. Nonetheless, Dali also has a childish and playful side to him (e.g. his hysterical laughter), though he tends not to show it that often. He’s also great at making plans and disguising himself (e.g. the Sali persona).

Compared to his brother, Dali is more serious, mature, calm, collected, perceptive, and logical. He’s not only the smarter of the twins, but he’s also charming and charismatic as he commands admiration no matter what role he plays (e.g. the perfect son, the cool and reliable older brother, the alluring and mysterious girl). That being said, Dali is also much more deceptive, manipulative, and cynical than his brother, which makes him less inclined to open up to others and pursue happiness as he can’t be honest with himself as Migi is. This also makes Dali much more vulnerable to anxiety and stress, as he places unreasonably high expectations on himself as the older brother, which led to him being overprotective and controlling towards Migi.

Indeed, a big part of Dali’s issues was his suppression of himself and his own emotions, and it was seen that he could be even more emotional than Migi. There are many hidden sides of Dali under his cold, tough exterior: a soft, sensitive (sometimes insecure), and caring side that wants to love and be loved, a fun and playful side, as well as a selfless and passionate side that is willing to do anything (e.g. risk his own life) to protect those that he loves.

Dali’s issues didn’t come from thin air. Unfortunately, due to Metry’s death, Dali most likely took it upon himself to replace his mother and raise Migi as if he were his child. Though Migi went along with this dynamic, it was unhealthy for both of them, especially for Dali, as the admiration he received from Migi seemed to only pressure him to maintain his image as the perfect older brother, just like Reiko and Eiji, and this was best seen with his bedwetting. He did not allow himself to display any sort of weakness in front of his brother, causing him to bottle his emotions, including his sadness, loneliness, and anger, and to close himself off from the Sonoyamas and Akiyama. With no one to notice his issues, Dali fell deeper into his obsession with revenge, which he saw as his sworn duty to his mother.

Eventually, his revenge came into conflict with Migi’s happiness, and his date with Migi as Sali was the first time he felt remorse for his actions, foreshadowing what was to come in his emotional development. He didn’t want to deceive Migi, but he continued the Sali ruse because he believed he was obligated to avenge his mother. After Migi found out about this and rebelled against him, Dali felt betrayed, as if Migi didn’t love him anymore. Of course, he knew that he was in the wrong for lying to Migi, but he felt bitter and that Migi was ungratefully paying back all of his years of love and protection with abandonment.

Unfortunately, this almost caused Dali to be consumed by revenge as he cast away Migi, but due to the events of Halloween, Dali realized what he had done. He realized that Migi meant more to him than anything, and that it was his ruthless pursuit of revenge that hurt him and almost killed him. Like Eiji, Dali felt immense guilt, and felt that Migi had hated him and that he had failed in his duty as Migi’s older brother, causing him to sacrifice himself.

Because of Micchan’s sacrifice, Dali wanted to keep Migi safe at all costs, once again treating Migi as a child rather than his brother. Despite Migi’s wish to go back, Dali was insistent on staying at the shrine, and even threw away their bicycle and beat up Migi. He was still insecure and thought that Migi didn’t love him, yet he was desperate to keep Migi safe. Migi’s words to return home together with Dali erased these insecurities; even though Dali had hurt Migi and wasn’t the perfect brother anymore, Migi nonetheless still loved him and even wanted him to be happy. For the first time in his life, Dali likely felt a huge burden being lifted from his back, as he really did want to live happily with Migi. It was at this point that Dali treated Migi as his brother, symbolized by letting Migi take the handles of the bicycle as they rode home together.

Through their mission to defeat Reiko, Dali was able open up to Akiyama and Maruta thanks to Migi’s help, but he still bore resentment towards Eiji because of his mother’s death. When the truth was fully revealed, Dali lashed out at Eiji out of anger and confusion, causing the latter to kill Reiko and burn the house down. He struggled to understand Eiji, who he saw as a stranger, but as Eiji was about to end his own life, Dali realized that Eiji was just like him, someone who was forcing himself to be perfect for the sake of his mother, and someone who was lonely and wanted love, but was burdened with sin and guilt. Just as Migi was able to save Dali, Dali wanted to extend this to Eiji to give him a chance at redemption.

He had hoped that Eiji could return home with him and Migi together, but Eiji’s arrest reminded Dali that reality is not so kind and that there were consequences for his actions. As a result, this likely caused Dali to force himself into Migi’s shadow as punishment for what he had started, but thanks to Migi’s love for him, Dali was able to gather the strength to accept himself and move on to live happily.

Before I conclude, it is worth noting again that Dali serves as a foil to Migi, and one of the best showcases of this is through the use of the moon as well as Fidelite to symbolize Dali. Like the moon, which has dark sides, Dali has many hidden sides, and it is through Migi’s love (i.e. light) that he avoided sinking into darkness. Like Fidelite, Dali is tough and cool on the outside but just as loving and playful as Migi on the inside. Furthermore, as mentioned previously, the twins with their duality are two halves that form a complete whole. In Dali’s case, it is best for one to be as wise and cunning as Dali but should avoid suppressing their feelings and pushing others away as Dali did.

Dali’s journey and development also provide quite a few messages to the viewers. For example, Dali’s journey in overcoming his past and his own sins shows us the importance of letting go and moving on from past grievances. Dali’s dynamic with Migi and his overcoming of codependency tells us that it’s okay to want to help and protect those we love, but we should also open with our own struggles as we’re all not perfect and should not place unreasonable expectations on ourselves. Dali’s betrayal of Migi shows us how important it is not to lose sight of ourselves, as we may hurt those that we love even if we think we’re helping them. Finally, Dali’s acceptance of happiness tells us that we should seek to live happily, not just for our own sake, but for the sake of those we love as well.

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Whew... I'm finally done with this! I hope anyone who managed to read through this entire thread was able to get a better understanding of the characters and how they were used in the story to develop its plot, themes, and messages.

#migi and dali #migi to dali #character analysis

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chidoroki · 6 months ago

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"hope is the thing with feathers" is actually the title of a poem by emily dickinson!!

I'm aware and it's not the only song from Robin's album that shares this trait either, as "If I Can Stop One Heart From Breaking" is also a song that references another poem by Emily Dickinson. First things first:

I'm not too great at dissecting poems, but the way I can connect the poem and song (or the situation it's heard in, at least) is how they both showcase how this feeling of hope is an undying emotion that's capable of enduring whatever kind of troublesome situations people may face up if they choose to embrace it, without asking for much in return. When the song switches up from instrumental to the full rendition during phase three of the Harmonious Choir/Sunday boss fight courtesy of Robin's arrival above the field, she undeniably lends your team a helping hand, not only because she's an iconic and reliable idol, but also joining in an attempt to personally remind Sunday of the dream they once shared and how she'll face any sort of hardships in order to achieve that kind of future alongside him if he regains his right state of mind. On a personal note, this is probably my favorite song from her at the moment. I can not praise Chevy enough for her fantastic vocals as Robin. (and Alice too of course. both ladies deserve the upmost praise for making Robin such a precious and memorable character.)

youtube

As for the second song.. ah, it's just a good heartbreak. Despite being another song by Robin, it's safe to say so many of us associate it more with Firefly due to how prominent it was during the rooftop scene where she told us a bit of her past, the Entropy Loss Syndrome she has to deal with and her hopes. After learning more of her backstory from her animated short and myriad celestia trailers, I think it's easier to see how the "I shall not live in vain" line from the poem fits her life. Being created as a weapon, her own life wasn't hers to live from the very beginning and ultimately leads her down a tragic path to the point where her comrades and entire planet is destroyed. The pain persists not only emotionally and mentally but physically too as her engineered body isn't fit for a normal lifespan, only getting to experience that kind of wish in Penacony's dreamscapes, where she "can ease one life the aching." Little fun fact that I heard about was that Analesa (Firefly's EN va) did that entire rooftop scene in just one take and to completely nail it on the first try by drawing in all that emotion due to experiences with their own chronic illness is nothing short of amazing.

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I was about to end the post there and toss in a mention of how much I also adore "Had I Not Seen the Sun" and it's probably my second favorite song from Robin, but.. surprise surprise! It is also a reference to yet another poem by Emily Dickinson that I haven't realized until this moment. The song is obviously about herself and Sunday, the different directions they've taken and the "eternal separation" that Elio said (or who we assumed to be him during that one 2.2 cutscene) they're doomed to face. How the siblings current situation reflects the poem itself.. hmm, I wanna say that because Robin was able to see a brighter future for the people and constantly strive to bring happiness into their lives, she was able to be spared from falling into darkness, unlike Sunday who basically became that patch's main villain..? Something like that, I dunno. These poems are so short honestly yet hold so much meaning that I can't fathom at a glance.

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(and not that it matters but since this was asked on this blog related to anime, I have a hunch that Robin made a deal with Jade to save Sunday's life, which is obvious enough due to the 2.3 ending cutscene sure, but I believe the price our idol paid was that the siblings could no longer see each other again. The situation itself reminded me very much of The Promised Neverland and the result of the new promise Emma made with the demon god; how all the cattle children could live and cross over to the human world but she alone could never join them, therefore being separated from them and losing her memory. I mean, being separated is bad enough, but if Jade is able to take Robin's memories of Sunday too.. oh boy. I'd hope not but it could be the reason why Robin referred to Sunday as the former Head of the Oak Family instead of by name or calling him her brother during the 2.3 story.)

#a wild ask appeared #honkai star rail #video #i am very normal about this game. sooo incredibly casual about it. yup. pffttt yeah right. if anyone hasnt had the chance #to try it out yet then you must definitely should!! if not for the great story or music (which id still praise so very highly) im sure #there's gotta be at least one character out of the entire bunch that'll surely catch your attention! i shall bet on it!

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taulun · 2 years ago

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I’m gonna write too many questions because I’m literally obsessed with your music au and I need answers, thank you very much. Some of these are gonna be weird (probably) or weirdly specific (I’m sorry in advance). So:

1. How close are Mari and Juleka? I’ve started wondering when you posted one of the memes on ig stories about Juleka scolding Adrien (more like >coming for Adriens ass<). Is it because she and Luka used to date? Do they live together when not on tour?

2. Does Mari smoke cigarettes or just Adrien?

3. This one’s gonna be weird but it’s the added question to the previous one - how do they smell? Like weirdly specific yankee candles smells

4. What happened before Mari realized that she has to break up for real this time with Adrien (maybe I’ve missed that one somewhere)? Because they were on and off together then broke up, then started dating again but like healthier?? Did I get this one right??

5. How long did this situationship last? I’m obsessed with dates so if you’re willing to place them on a weirdly specific timeline - I’m all in

6. I saw you posted once their sun signs but would like to give us more? Like big three or big six for at least Mari and Adrien (preferably for all of the characters)

7. What type of alcohol is their favorite? Like what would they drink on a night out (like when they got wasted after Exitiums concert in karaoke bar)?

8. If you could write one thing (you can always write more, I won’t be mad) about them that no one would guess (weird obsessions, funny stories, favorite teddy bear - stuff like that)

I’ll be back with more (I’m sorry) but I just wanted to add that you’re an amazing artist, bless you and your talent 🛐

First of all - I LOVE YOU FOR ASKING ME THESE, it makes me so happy that you're interested with my AU!!! Please always feel free to ask me more!!

Here it goes (I hope I can satisfy you with my answers❤️):

1. Juleka is Mari's bestest friend, and yeah, they got to know each other because Mari and Luka dated in the past - let's say it was like 5 years ago that they met. They're complete opposites - Mari is very emotional and pretty naive, cries easily, is impulsive and not very rational ig, while Juleka is pretty down-to-earth, sceptical, cautious, and reliable. She can call out Mari's BS, but she also supports her and is always there for her when she's in need. They complete each other as friends because Juleka, although she seems tough, is actually a sensitive person herself, and she actually likes Marinette's affectionate side. And for the second part of the question: Juleka lives with Rose somewhere in Sweden, they're married, and have a dog named Daisy! Luka lives by himself, so does Adrien, and Plagg (or actually - Peter). Ivan lives with Mylene, his wife, and they have a little daughter. Marinette lives with her mom in Stockholm.

2. She does occasionally! But she's not that much into it. She actually started smoking some because of Adrien, she just felt like "matching" his vibe - it's something that people with codependency issues tend to do. In Mari's case it was like:

Adrien: *lights up a cigarette after sex, as he usually does*

Mari: *grabs his pack of cigarettes and takes one herself*

Adrien: I've never seen you smoking before.

Mari: *smiles widely as she lights up her cigarette* It's my first one.

Adrien: I thought you hated the smell of it.

Mari: *looks him in the eyes, still smiling* I don't hate it anymore.

3. (I fucking love this question okay) Adrien usually smells like cigarettes (obvious XD), and cologne - idk how to explain the smell, but it's that smell of perfume that guys wear that makes you all fuzzy inside, it's intense but not because he uses too much of it. Marinette smells like Pink Chiffon perfume from Bath & Body Works (it was my fave perfume when I was a teen and I kinda associate that smell with her).

4. They were fighting, as usual, she said to him that she hated him because he made her fall in love with him, and that's cruel, blah blah, and he straight up told her "We were just fucking, okay? I never promised you anything. I never said to you that I loved you, and I never said that I will one day. I don't do 'love', I've said that already. You made it all up in your head. There's no 'us', we won't get married and build a fucking house together, get over it. It's not gonna happen." OR something along those lines, you get the idea. And he was never THAT brutal with her before, sure he was saying stuff like "haha I don't do love, we can have fun together but that's all", but that never stopped her from hoping and clinging to him. That fight ended up with her having a panic attack and him slamming the door as he left, like always, she got drunk af and sent a lot of messages to Adrien at like 3 AM (he never responded), then she wrote to Juleka sth like "I'm tired, Jules", and Juleka knew what was going on immediately. She came to the hotel room where Marinette was staying for a couple of days, and helped her get through the night. Then in the morning they had a talkTM, Juleka advised Mari to go back home to her mom, and stay there for a couple of days, cancel a concert or two, and just think it through. And she did. She sent one last message to Adrien after two weeks or sth that said: "I don't do love anymore, either. Goodbye, Adrien." And that was it.

5. A little more than a year. Let's say they met in June 2018, and they broke up in September 2019. They got back together a couple months later, in spring 2020 - late April?

6. Lmao actually I was doing some astro research lately to establish their big 6 😂 and so I've figured it out:

Adrien:

Scorpio Sun

Capricorn Moon

Aquarius rising

Scorpio Mercury

Sagittarius Venus

Scorpio Mars

Marinette:

Cancer Sun

Libra Moon

Pisces rising

Cancer Mercury

Leo Venus

Libra Mars

For the rest of the characters - I don't know now! Just their sun signs.

7. Marinette is a pink wine girl, but her fave drink is Pinacolada; Adrien is a vodka guy, but he drinks some beer, too, usually light beer. Nothing out of ordinary honestly. For the rest of Exitium: Juleka likes apple cider and flavoured vodka shots, Luka is a dark beer guy, Plagg and Ivan both drink whatever they are given.

8. Okay okay so:

Adrien - he's left-handed, he doesn't like sweets at all except chocolate, he was not his parents' first child - they had a baby boy before Adrien, but he died in labour; he likes thriller films and action movies, he drives very fast (many people told him that he needs to be more careful when driving a car because he'll end up on a tree), red is his favourite colour, he's pretty interested in Scandinavian mythology, he knows 4 languages - Swedish, English, French, and Latin (!), as a child he wanted to become an astronomer (and he used to obsess over space, planets, and stars).

Marinette - she's very close with her mother, even though they used to fight a lot when she was a child/teenager; she once died her hair red and she really liked it, but then decided that her natural colour - dark brown/black - is better; she's got some scars on her thighs and forearms from self-harm; she had an imaginary friend in childhood, her mom thought she was seeing ghosts but she actually just made that friend up; peaches are her favourite fruits; she loves Studio Ghibli movies, especially Spirited Away and Howl's Moving Castle (she even used to make a cosplay of Sophie); she can play five instruments total: the guitar, the piano, the violin, the cello, and the flute (yeah, crazy, I know).

THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTIONS AND YOUR KIND WORDS ❤️❤️ Srsly feel free to ask me more, I want to tell you guys more about this AU!! 🤟🤟

#miraculous ladybug #music au #taulun

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shinidamachu · 4 years ago

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I need some Inuyasha as a great father (more like DILF, amirite?) headcanons, can you help me out?

I'm here to serve!

• It isn’t until they’re happily married for at least one or two years that the possibility of children are brought up.

• At first, they took that time to relearn each other, enjoy their company and make the honeymoon phase last a little long. They did spend three years apart, after all. There’s so much time to make up for, so many catching up to do before they’d even think to throw a kid into the mix. Plus, being a modern woman, Kagome would know how to avoid pregnancy the best her new circumstances allowed and how important that time alone is for a newly-married couple.

• They never actually had the child talk because Kagome just assumed that’s where their relationship would naturally lead to, given her motherly tendencies and Inuyasha’s history of ultimately giving her everything she wants. For his part, Inuyasha knew she wanted to be a mother someday and he'd be lying if he said he never indulged the fantasy of fathering her children. However, he has serious trouble wrapping his mind around the idea that, in reality, Kagome would still be up for it if he were to be the father. He could never dare to ask of her more than she has already given him. Be that as it may, it was not a big deal because it was not a dealbreaker. Nothing was.

• But with time, Kagome would have noticed how good Inuyasha is with Hisui and the Mirsan twins. How his relationship with Shippo had developed from a sibling banter to a makeshift paternal relationship. How people like Shiori and Bunza would look up to him like he was some kind of movie hero. How every kid in the village seemed to adore him despite his grumpy demeanor.

• And Inuyasha would have noticed the way Kagome would look at him whenever he so much as interacted with a child, the way her smell would spike significantly.

• She, of course, was the one to make the first move, jumping him one night, after they had spend the whole day stuck with babysitting the Mirsan children and popping the question.

• Inuyasha was relutant. There was a part of him that was adamant on making her happy and even believed having babies would make him happy too. On the other hand, he was terrified. Terrified of how her body would react to childbirth, of if her spiritual powers would accept his demonic energy. But mostly, about what would happen once the baby was born. The last thing he wanted was for Kagome to go through everything his mother had to go through. Or for another kid to face the same prejudice he did. Besides, he grew up with no father figure whose steps he could follow. He didn’t know how to be a father.

• Kagome assures him that they won’t have a baby until they’re both ready and on the same page, that they have time and that Inuyasha will be a great father.

• Inuyasha believes her.

• Then it is him felling some type of way whenever he sees Kagome around kids. And something deep inside desperately wishes to find out what would their children look like, what would it be like to hold and take care of someone born from their love.

• Finally, he caves.

• Inuyasha wants a big family, considering how lonely his childhood was. Kagome finds it pivotal for their first-born to have a sibling, since she had Sota and their relationship was one of the most important things in her life. That’s why they’d have two children minimum, preferably a boy and a girl. However, giving how dangerous and uncomfortable childbirth can be, especially without the perks the modern era provides, I don’t think they’d have more than three.

• Naturally, Inuyasha relies on Miroku for advice and the latter is more helpful than not. Except for the times Inuyasha asks or says something that makes it way too easy for Miroku to mess with him. Like the time he told Inuyasha that if he doesn’t get Kagome whatever food she craves while pregnant, the baby will be born looking exactly like that food. And Inuyasha believed him.

• And if you thought Inuyasha was protective of Kagome before... oh boy! He’d be almost overbearing, but Kagome would see it as endearing. Most of the time. Sometimes, though, a woman has got to have her privacy. He also becomes more attentive, more gentle, sweeter.

• After their first child is born, Inuyasha gets a makeover of sorts. He’s always borrowing the Fire Rat to Kagome and the baby anyway, so he figured it’d be more practical to just pass the clothes on to them already and get something new for himself.

• It’s white.

• Inuyasha becomes taller, stronger. And often lets Kagome experiment with his hair with braids, top nots... and ponytails.

• Old Myoga is the first one to notice the resemblance. And it’s true. He’s the spitting image of Toga. Former enemies and allies often mistaken him for Toga and Kagome thinks the look on their (and Inuyasha’s) face is hilarious.

• Sesshoumaru does not care for it (I stole this one from @heavenin--hell).

• Inuyasha hates his human nights even more because now his vulnerability also means he might not be able to protect his family as he usually would (Together Changed by @goshinote and @lostinfantasyworlds inspired this one). Plus, the black hair and lack of dog ears confuses the baby, who cries and fusses for a good while until realizing it is, in fact, Inuyasha holding them (this one I saw in an adorable fanart I can’t find).

• But since he needs way less sleeping than humans and he spends the New Moons up anyway, Inuyasha gets a lot of quality time with their infant at night, which allows Kagome to actually get a good night sleep unless the baby is hungry.

• The Beads of Subjugation get dooled and chewed on. A lot.

• A little contest takes place between Kagome and Inuyasha about what the first word of their first child would be, with Kagome going for “dada” and Inuyasha going for “mama.”

• Kagome wins.

• Inuyasha’s fighting style changes. He still says some snarky remarks, but now it’s more to push his opponent‘s buttons down so they would get sloppy than anything else. After all, he has a child to think about and provide for now. He doesn’t have the luxury of gambling with his life anymore. He has a home to come back to and therefore won’t be taking any chances (credit to @born-for-eachother for this one).

• And so he becomes more lethal on the battle field. Pragmatic. Objective. Calculating. Decisive. Cold blooded. Much like... Sesshomaru.

• He had never been more offended on his life than the day Sango pointed this out to him.

• When the kids grow up a bit, Inuyasha and Kagome start to tell them bedtime stories, with the PG version of the story about how the met and defeated Naraku being their favorite.

• Kagome tries to be a reliable and calm narrator while Inuyasha exaggerates the events and the voices, almost always breaking objects of their house in the process.

• After hearing one too many times about the Beads of Subjugation, their child tries to “sit” Inuyasha. Of course it doesn’t work, but he still makes a big deal out of throwing himself on the ground every time they say the word just to hear them laugh.

• The first actual toy Inuyasha buys them is a ball, just like the one he had as a kid, at the same time accomplishing a childhood wish through them and ensuring that they would always have someone to play with.

• Kagome is more protective of their physical state while Inuyasha is more protective of their emotional one (see Fist Fight by @omgitscharlie)

• Inuyasha goes to Totosai and asks him to make a weapon out of one of his fangs to each of their children once they get old enough for it. Not necessarily a sword, just something of their choice and that better fits their personality.

• He would be a just father, doing his best to show no favoritism, treat his children equally and make sure no one felt overlooked or unloved.

• But truth be told, if one of their babies turn out to be a daughter, he would definitelly let her get away with almost anything, no matter how much of a gremlin she is. Daddy’s little girl would have him wrapped around her tiny fingers.

• Life never treated Inuyasha kindly. From a very young age, it was kill or be killed. It wouldn't be too far off for him to think the exact same thing could happen with his kids, therefore he tries to prepare them, to tough them up so they can take it.

• And I believe this sentiment would be significantly amplified with a son, because it would involve the whole “suck it up”, “men don’t cry” and “man of the house” aspect of it. The “it is your duty to protect your mother and sister when I’m gone” too, especially because he couldn’t protect Izayoi himself.

• It’s “tough love”, but it’s love nonetheless. And in the right dose, which I believe Inuyasha manages to nail, it can be very important for one’s development and growth.

• But it’s hard to imagine him being as tough with a daughter. Probably because he sees so much of Kagome on her that the mere idea of seeing her cry simply breaks him.

• Kagome would actually have to step in when it comes to disciplining and saying “no”, because he simply wouldn’t have it in him to do so.

There’s actually a really nice post by @keichanz I reblogged a while ago discussing precisely that, but I can’t find it to save my life (should I start to properly tag my reblogs? No, it’s a lot of work and I’m right not to).

Anyway, that’s all I got for now.

Peace out.

#This ask was actually sitting on my inbox for...#Woof #A while now #And I wish I could say it was a big move on my part to wait and reply exactly on Father's Day #Because I'm just so cool methodic and strategic #But it was sheer dumb luck #LMAO #This was fun by the way #Send me YOURS daddyasha headcanons #Thank you for the patience and for the great ask anon #Inuyasha

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alexiethymia · 3 years ago

Text

snippet (res ipsa loquitur)

“Look who’s here. Professor Yang’s favorites!”

Professor Yang raises an eyebrow at that, as if to say that he didn’t have favorites, but Professor Kim Eun Sook pays him no mind. Dear friend though he may be, and though she would trust him with any case, his hard-ass act didn’t fool her. He could say whatever he wanted, but his subtle actions belied his fondness for his once-students turned professionals. Just the fact that he regularly invited them back to Hankuk to discuss cases was just one example.

“I don’t know about Prosecutor Han here, Professor Yang’s protégé that he is, but I’m certainly no favorite when I had to be Erica Shin just to get him to eat with me.” Lawyer Kang has certainly grown up to become a balanced professional, but Professor Kim is happy to see that she’s kept that refreshing bluntness of hers.

“If being Professor Yang’s favorite means additional work like getting called back to school, then I’d rather be your favorite.” Prosecutor Han for his part hasn’t changed much either. Although he’s settled into himself now, becoming as calm in actuality as he sometimes presented himself back in school, that teasing gaze towards Kang Sol A was still present how many years later.

Professor Yang just stares deadpan at what he deems to be nonsense from his former students. “I never taught the both of you to be lax as students, much less as professionals.”

“We’re just joking, Professor,” Kang Sol A – Lawyer Kang now – can easily look her once-savior in the eye and smile, as Professor Yang just raises an eyebrow, “You know we’re always glad to help with whatever we can.”

“We must have inherited your curse as a workaholic, Professor,” Prosecutor Han jokes. Even when he was just Han Joon Hwi, and not yet Prosecutor Han, he never had that fear towards Yangcrates. Frankly, he admired him, though it had always been a complicated emotion with the way all their fates had been tied.

“Ehem. Who would have thought that when I asked you to come hand-in-hand to my office so many years ago as students, you’d be doing it again and again now that you’ve become professionals.” Professor Kim is only half-serious. Even then she’d had an instinct about these two – one with the sharp mind and logic and the other with the fiery heart and passion. They would balance each other out, though she wouldn’t have picked up on it if not for Joon Hwi’s propensity to be a knight-in-shining armor for his then frazzled seatmate.

Kang Sol A mock-scoffs before smiling prettily, while sharing a gaze with an amused Joon Hwi. It was good to see that they still got along marvelously so many years later.

Professor Yang stares long and hard at them as if they were a crime scene he was investigating, before going on ahead and asking Joon Hwi to follow. Eun Sook’ll poke at his thoughts later though she’d be lucky if he felt like sharing them.

“See, you really are his favorite,” Kang Sol A nudges Joon Hwi playfully, while he only chuckles. “No need to worry Lawyer Kang. You’re my favorite at least.” Both Eun Sook’s eyebrows raise at that. With time and his new position, it seemed as if Joon Hwi had gotten more direct, if at all possible. Ah but perhaps, Eun Sook thinks while observing how Kang Sol A just laughs in response, rather than time it was circumstances that forced him to change his approach.

A slight movement behind Professor Kim’s desk catches all of their attention, and a doting smile appears on Eun Sook’s face.

“Aigoo. Is this your daughter Professor Kim?” Kang Sol positively beams at the small curly haired girl hiding shyly behind the Professor’s desk. She was so adorable! It reminded Sol of Byeol when she was at that age. Looking sideways, she sees Joon Hwi sporting an equally wide and fond smile. It was no wonder. With how he was with her younger sister, first when they’d met and until now, Kang Sol surmised that he must be ridiculously fond of children as well. Distantly she thinks that he’d be a wonderful father someday, although uncharacteristically cynical, she also has to admit that she doesn’t exactly have any good bases for comparisons.

“Yes,” Professor Kim says, proud, like all mothers are, “Say hi to oppa and unnie here. They work with the law just like mommy.”

Funnily, it’s a race between them for the privilege of lifting Professor Kim’s daughter up in their arms, but Joon Hwi lets her win (much like he always does). Kang Sol A openly cooes, while Joon Hwi hovers closely to the both of them, also introducing himself to the young girl.

It’s such a heartwarming sight that Professor Kim almost wants to take a picture of it, even if it would be inadmissible as evidence later on.

They’re momentarily interrupted when someone enters the legal clinic.

“Ah Miss, it’s so wonderful to see you again.”

“Ahjumma!” Kang Sol exclaims happily upon seeing the lady who ran the Bad FaMa website enter the legal clinic. Seamlessly, she adjusts Professor Kim’s daughter on her hip, before transferring her to Joon Hwi who carries her on his arm. “How are you? What are you doing here? It’s not another defamation case is it,” Kang Sol asks worriedly. Of course, she’d defend her properly this time since she was now a full-fledged lawyer, not only giving half-baked assistance and having to rely on Joon Hwi because she wasn’t prepared yet.

“Ah no, no need to worry Miss – ah my mistake, it’s Lawyer Kang now isn’t it? You sure showed them didn’t you.” She smiles warmly, proudly, at Kang Sol, and Kang Sol gets happy flutters in her heart and stomach, “I volunteer here at the legal clinic sometimes. Professor Kim has been helping me out with lobbying for stricter child support laws, and the other lawyer who volunteers here - Lawyer Jeon - has been helping me with cases of single mothers. She’s been telling me all about you. I’m really glad to see you doing so well.” Though it’s been a while since Kang Sol has seen her – since when she was still a law student in fact – the older woman and that case will always hold a special place in her heart. She considers it as her first case, and though it did cause a slight rift between her and Joon Hwi, she had been the first person outside of smug Second Judicial Exam Passers and terrifying law professors who had genuinely thanked her for the legal service she provided. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that Kang Sol owes a lot to her for reigniting her reason for studying law in the first place.

“And Prosecutor Han, I’m delighted to see you’re doing great as well.” Joon Hwi inclines his head at her while responding in kind. Even with a child on his arm, he looks every bit the respectable Prosecutor, and Kang Sol could sometimes shake her head in amused resignation at how flawless her – (Friend? Best friend? Family?), - at how flawless Joon Hwi is. She shakes her head for a different reason this time around, to get rid of that brief interruption in her mind.

Ahjumma smiles, full of maternal care. “What a lovely daughter,” Joon Hwi and Kang Sol exchange wordless glances and smiles, fully agreeing with her assessment – Professor Kim’s daughter with her soft curls, and shy and polite demeanor really was just too cute for words, “the both of you two have,” – before freezing in their tracks.

Ajhumma seems not to notice the slight disturbance in the force, nor Professor Kim’s silent but far from inconspicuous chuckles, since she goes on, “Perhaps I’m just biased, but I’d always thought that the both of you suited each other well, even back then. And to see the both of you with a daughter of your own makes me really happy. We have enough parents who abandon their kids, but I know you would be such loving parents who would do everything and anything in your power to protect your daughter.” She grasps Kang Sol’s hands in her own and says sincerely, “Congratulations to the both of you.”

Prosecutor Han for all of his brilliance in court seems for the first time at a loss for words. It was a misunderstanding yes, but a reasonable one in Eun Sook’s mind. She would have probably thought the same, and yet for all that Eun Sook imagines they’ll just brush this off and regain their easy momentum, the pause lasts far too long this time around, and Professor Kim suddenly worries.

Kang Sol is frozen, and looks to be a million miles away. It’s to the point that the woman grasping her hands finds her smile slowly falling. There are no flustered denials, nor a hint of red anywhere. Kang Sol is blank, and this worries Professor Kim since the younger girl has always been full of life, of emotion, and to see this is disconcerting. Joon Hwi sees her from the corner of his eye, and Professor Kim is suddenly transported back to that Civil Code classroom so many years ago, for he once again saves her from having to answer, as always reliably following-up after her.

He slowly lowers her daughter down who immediately rushes to her. Upon seeing that, realization breaks across their guest’s face. “She’s not our daughter, but Professor Kim’s,” he explains smoothly, although it may be a bit redundant now. That seems to snap Kang Sol from the daze she’s in as she energetically reassures their guest that there was no need to worry regarding the misunderstanding.

Eun Sook picks up her daughter and sends a questioning gaze towards Joon Hwi who seems reluctant to meet it. He smiles that characteristic smile of his, the one that seemed to say that he had everything under control, that there was nothing that could trip him, before politely excusing himself from the room to follow after Professor Yang. “He must be tired of waiting.” He doesn’t rush, nor does he run. Both his voice and gait are measured and paced, and though he catches Kang Sol A’s eye in that form of wordless communication that Professor Kim observed was common to him, her, and even Professor Yang, Kang Sol A seems to break it first to rejoin her conversation with their guest and her.

Joon Hwi stares a little longer at her profile before exiting.

The warm atmosphere the legal clinic had when the two had entered earlier seems to have dissipated.

Professor Kim really cannot help but worry.

#solhwi #jtbc law school #netflix law school #joon hwi #kang sol #kang sol a #yangcrates #professor yang #professor kim #fic #fanfic #I will finish this fic #hopefully #eventually #post canon #fic writing #my writing

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fonulyn · 3 years ago

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So I'm reading this sad Chreon story - as one does (it's me, I'm one) - and I just had the weirdest epiphany? Like, I dunno, it's probably dumb and far from a hot take or some eye opening character analysis no one has done before but I noticed that people (including myself, so like not saying this in any kind of bad way) tend to write Leon as stand offish, apathetic, and cold. Like this story stated it specifically, said something along the lines of "this is what Leon gets for cultivating a reputation for being unapproachable, apathetic, and indifferent" and the insinuation there is that he's done this on purpose, put on this front to seem unaffected by things when in the presence of others, and I think it's pretty true for his character. Like anything post RE2, Leon is kind of. I dunno, I wanna say deadpan? He seems to express v little emotion, and when he does it's usually in the form of a quip, one-liner, or snarky come back. Sometimes awkward small talk lol. But it feels like he's built this wall, this persona around himself, not just to protect himself from losing more people (bc he probably sees it as some kind of inevitability, and with his track record I certainly wouldn't blame him), but to protect people from him. This poor man has spent so long fighting, trying to save people, and even tho he saves the day in the end, so many people get lost in the process, and Leon feels every single loss personally. Right off the bat we see it every time someone dies in RE2, then again in RE4 with Luis, who he knew for a short period of time and yet mourned so heavily for, and even Krauser to an extent. Leon is someone who is quick to trust, even as he gets older, and we see that in RE Vendetta, too. Like that's probably one of the big reasons he's so devastated after losing his team. Not only was he entrusted with a group (which doesn't happen often, as far as we have seen), but he probably put his trust in them as well, including Petrucio, the man who betrayed them. I just think Leon is such a complex character who hides so much of himself (which is convenient for bad writers at Capcom who can't write good dialogue to save their lives lmao, but I also think it's a decent part of his character now), probably so what happened in RE2 doesn't happen again. Bc that shit was probably so traumatizing, and Leon was still a baby! I'm only a year older then he was at the time of RE2 but like, as humans our brains don't finish growing until age 25, so that kind of trauma at that age is for sure gonna stick with you, and it seems he picked up some unhealthy coping mechanisms from it that's more than just his drinking problem. Anyways I guess I just wanted to rant about how Leon is the most "emotionless" character in RE but in reality he feels and cares so much, so much so that if he doesn't put up that mask of indifference then he'll destroy himself. This man would die so that others could live, he's saved the world multiple times without a care for himself past the need to finish his mission and keep as many people as possible safe. He's such a tragic character and I love him so goddamn much, like he's one of those characters who you aspire to be like, in a way. Selfless, capable, dependable, reliable, smart, passionate, caring. And some of this might be my own character building I've done based off of other headcanons and character analysis posts and stories I've seen, but I do think we see a lot of this in the canon content, too. I just really love Leon S Kennedy, okay? He makes me sad but also so so happy and I love him v much, he is a big time comfort character for me. Sorry for the rant, just needed to scream about this with someone who would understand lol 😅

oh anon, I get you, I dooo. I think that you're right in that Leon has kind of this shell around himself because it's the only way he can cope. but there are so many cracks in his shell, and he lets people in so readily even when it would stand to reason that he shouldn't trust anyone anymore. he gets attached to people lightning fast, and he'd die for them even when he's barely met them.

this borders on headcanon territory, definitely, but I tend to often write him as someone who gets attached easily and falls for people easily (be it friendship or romantic or anything), but then he doesn't know how to properly let people in because he's got his defense mechanisms, he's trying to keep himself from breaking, and what if he truly lets someone past those walls and then another disaster strikes and he never recovers from it?

and I think it shows a lot in how he's so awkward with small talk, he can throw in one-liners and dad jokes and try to keep his own (and anyone else's) spirits up with that. but oh man. beyond that? the boy doesn't know how to naturally talk to people. (even like in Infinite Darkness, with Claire, I think his "don't do anything stupid" was 100% meant to be a joke, both times, but it just didn't exactly land perfectly. poor awkward bby)

but like even though he might put up this unaffected front, he's still so very expressive? like... if you really pay attention to him? he's far from actually an expressionless and cold person. he just isn't very loud about it. (i was just going through ID screencaps yesterday and while Shen May is talking and Leon is on the background, he goes through such a journey in expressions alone :'D)

AND HE CARES. like, for example in Infinite Darkness, he sees Patrick is shaken and the first possible moment he has, he immediately asks him if he's okay and takes a moment to reassure him. they're in a hurry, he's supposed to get going and not check up on a guy he's never even met before, but he does it anyway. and I think it speaks a lot of his character. he's quick to offer support and comfort, and he genuinely tries to be there for others the best he can. he desperately needs someone to listen to him in turn, seriously. give him emotional support, damnit.

and I wanna highlight what you said:

in reality he feels and cares so much, so much so that if he doesn't put up that mask of indifference then he'll destroy himself. This man would die so that others could live, he's saved the world multiple times without a care for himself past the need to finish his mission and keep as many people as possible safe.

because yes. 100%. also this:

he's one of those characters who you aspire to be like, in a way.

like. yes. there was this one meme thing going around which was basically like asking if you feel like you're like your favorite character and I'm just. I fucking wish I was one tenth of what he is :'D

I know not even he is perfect, c'mon, no such thing as perfect people exist (not even in fiction, or if they do then they'd be really damn boring :'D). i'm not trying to claim he has no flaws, or that he never does anything wrong. he has and he does. but the amount of genuine caring he shows and how hard he tries to do the right thing? truly awe inspiring.

i just. I'm right there with you. I love him so damn much. and that's why I spend most of my time writing fic where he gets at least some of that happiness he deserves :'D i need him taken care of, damnit, and if canon doesn't give him good things then i damn sure will.

#whenever you want to talk about him anon #i'm right here for you :D #i love him so much #so muchhhh #anonymous #ask and i shall answer #re answers #leon s kennedy #long post

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timelesslords · 3 years ago

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So Under Freezing Stars is finally done 😭I’m incredibly sad it's over but also so happy with the finished product and with the response it's gotten over the past few months <3

I thought it might be fun to compile some little details about the fic- easter eggs and callbacks to the original books, little thematic details and symbols I included, chapter parallels, stuff like that! Everything is below the cut to avoid spoilers, but hopefully y’all find it fun and it’s an interesting way to top everything off :’)

Symbolism/Theme

the first time Annabeth drinks nectar, she can’t put a taste to it. This is because she’s in a transitional period with her identity, where she hasn’t quite solidified a sense of home. When she wakes up after being given nectar for the second time, her mouth tastes like apples because her and Perseus had split one together back on the ship. It’s the first food they shared together after she starts associating him with the concept of home, so the nectar takes on that taste. also apples are a sacred fruit of aphrodite so, ya know ;)

Water plays a big role thematically. There’s the obvious connection to Perseus (whenever Annabeth is looking out into the sea during an unrelated conversation, it’s sort of supposed to indicate that he’s on her mind) but also the more traditional symbolic meanings of water— washing someone/something clean, renewal, rebirth, etc. all of which are themes of the book anyways so it worked out!! Chapters to watch for water symbolism would be 18 and 32 in particular but really anytime there’s an emphasis on the sea

the quote I chose for the epigraph (”Understand this if you understand nothing: it is a powerful thing to be seen”) is from Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi, one of my favorite books! In the context of Freshwater, this quote is when the main character (spoiler) meets someone from their culture who helps them realize they’re a god. It just felt like a particularly perfect way to start off the story, given how many parallels there are to that moment in Freshwater to the entirety UFS. Even without context it frames the story of one of self discovery, but particularly self discovery in tandem with another, which is exactly what I think UFS is about at its core. Freshwater is an incredible book that I owe so much to in terms of inspiring UFS thematically and I def recommend it, though please look up TWs for it beforehand bc it does contain a lot of triggering content.

another more obvious meta thing, the chapter titles switch from Latin to Greek after Annabeth realizes she’s Greek and not Roman

Chapter Parallels

ch20 is called divinity because Annabeth views the sex as akin to a religious awakening— sleeping with her lover is both an act of worship and a revelatory experience wherein she comes to terms with the godly side of her identity. But chapter 33 is called mortal because the thing that makes them special together isn’t necessarily their parentage or their godliness, it’s their humanity. Gods can’t bare their souls to one another because they don’t have one. But mortals— vulnerable and breakable as they are— have that advantage, and when they sleep together the second time Annabeth is fully cognizant and appreciative of that fact.

The drooling in sleep thing is obviously a callback to the OG books (it’s such an iconic first line I had to include it somehow lol) but it also has a thematic parallel (one that Annabeth actually points out within the narrative). That was one of the first moments she recognized he was human and not some unattainable figure, so it comes back to her later in ch33 when she's thinking about their mortality

In ch14, Piper offers to fix Annabeth’s hair as a peace offering. In ch33, Perseus untangles her hair for her because the idea of doing it herself is overwhelming for her. I just really like the idea of caring for someone else’s hair being an act of love towards that person :’)

Easter Eggs/OG Book Callbacks

Blackjack asking for fried dough at the end of chapter 4 is a reference to him always asking for donuts in the original books (yes I did google “did they have donuts in ancient rome” for that lol)

The way they fight the hellhound in ch6 (Percy distracting in the front and Annabeth sneaking around the back) is their go-to fighting strategy in the books, which Percy comments on in BOTL

Obviously Jason passing out every 30 seconds is a reference to Jason getting knocked out like 3x a book in HOO (#brason)

Fai turning into a lizard in the Athens chapter is a callback to Frank the Iguana from MOA

the masthead of the ship being a dragon is meant to be reminiscent of Festus

Other stuff!

Chapter 16 is named calm and chapter 17 is named storm bc 16 is the calm before the (literal) storm

Annabeth saying “is your head full of kelp” to percy in ch13 is the closest I could feasibly get to her calling him seaweed brain lol. I think in chapter 15 she also comments to herself that she feels like his brain is made of seaweed sometimes <3

When Annabeth decides to let Jason and Piper wake up on their own instead of waking them up herself in ch32, it’s sort of a callback to previous comments she’s made about Jason not being a morning person. She’s still scared that he’ll be mad at her, and she doesn’t want to exacerbate that by waking him up early because she knows he’s in a worse mood in the morning.

In the final conversation with Jason, Annabeth says “you’re always too hard on yourself” which is kind of a play on her last words to Luke in the original books (“you always pushed yourself too hard”). I don’t know why but I’ve always really liked that line, it feels very Annabeth, so I wanted to include it somehow. Jason isn’t dying but she does love him like a brother so that felt like a good place for it to go.

something to generally look out for is how reliable or not reliable Annabeth’s narration is. She’s not like a Holden Caufield where she straight up lies to the audience, but her thoughts and observations are not always the most true version of what’s going on. This is probably most obvious in the Luke conflict (particularly chapters 21 and 23) but also when she has to read other people’s emotions and make assumptions about what they’re thinking based on that. A lot of times she’s straight up wrong and just doesn’t realize it (this is particularly relevant in ch14 lol)

another general thing to look at is chapter titles, particularly in the second half of the book. A lot of times the title of the chapter is one of the main themes of the story and that chapter is either an important plot point for that theme or a resolution of it!

That’s all I can think of right now! I might update this later if I remember more but this is already stupidly long lol. I would apologize for turning my fic into an English assignment but if you made it this far you probably thought it was at least a little interesting, so 😂

thank you guys again for reading <3 love you all!

#UFS #percabeth #don't read this until you read the ending!#i just had to post it now so I could link it lol #last chapter is coming in 2 minutes!

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sk1fanfiction · 4 years ago

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the many faces of tom riddle, part 4

-attachment, orphanages, and yet more child psych: time to add yet another voice to the void-

FULL DISCLAIMER THAT THIS IS JUST MY OPINION OF A CHARACTER WHO DOESN’T HAVE THE STRONGEST CANON CHARACTERIZATION, AND THUS ALL THIS IS BASED ON MY CONCEPTUALIZATION.

I'm going to be super biased, because my favorite portrayal of Tom Riddle is actually Hero Fiennes-Tiffin as eleven-year-old Tom Riddle, in HBP and I get to chat about child psych in this one, sooo here we go.

First of all, I’m just so impressed that a kid could bring that much depth to such a complex character.

This is the portrayal, I feel, that brings us closest to Tom’s character. Yes, Coulson’s brought us pretty close, but by fifth year, the mask was on.

We don't really get to see Tom looking afraid very often, but it's fear that rules his life, so it's really poignant in our first (chronologically) introduction, he looks absolutely terrified.

The void being the fandom's loud opinions on a certain headmaster. I wouldn't call myself pro-Dumbledore, but I'm certainly not anti-Dumbledore, either. (Agnostic-Dumbledore??)

Since I'm not of the anti-Dumbledore persuasion, I decided to poke around in the tags and see what the arguments were, so I don't make comments out of ignorance.

Most of the tag seems to be more directed towards his treatment of Harry and Sirius, but a few people mentioned that Dumbledore should have treated Tom with ‘exceptional kindness’ and tried to ‘rehabilitate’ him.

As I said in Parts 2 and 3, I am 100% in favor of helping a traumatized kid learn to cope, and I don’t think Tom Riddle was solidly on the Path to Evil (TM) at birth, or even at eleven. Not even at fifteen.

Could unconditional love and kindness have helped Tom Riddle enough for the rise of Lord Voldemort to never happen? Possibly, but...

Yes, I'm about to drag up that Carl Jung quote, again.

“I am not what happened to me, I am what I choose to become.”

The problem with this is that if you’re going to blame Dumbledore for this, you also have to blame every other adult in Tom’s life: his headmaster, Dippet, his Head of House, Slughorn, his ‘caretakers’ at the orphanage, Mrs. Cole and Martha, and possibly more. In fact, if we're going to blame any adult, let's blame Merope for r*ping and abusing Tom Riddle Senior, and having a kid she wasn't intending to take care of.

Furthermore, you cannot possibly hold anyone but Tom accountable for the murders he committed. (I should not have to sit here and explain why cold-blooded murder is wrong.) And if you like Tom Riddle's character, insinuating that his actions are completely at the whim of others is just a bit condescending towards him. He's not an automaton or a marionette, he's a very intelligent human being with a functioning brain, and at sixteen is fully capable of moral reasoning and critical analysis.

I've heard the theories about Dumbledore setting the Potters up to die, and I'm not going to discuss their validity right now; but he didn't put a wand in Tom's hand and force him to kill anyone. Tom did it all of his own accord.

And while yes, I have enormous sympathy for what happened to Tom as a child, at some point, he decided to murder Myrtle Warren, and that is where I lose my sympathy. Experiencing trauma does not give you the right to inflict harm on others. Yes, Tom was failed, but then, he spectacularly failed himself.

We also have no idea how Dumbledore treated Tom as a student.

In the movies, it’s Dumbledore who tells Tom he has to go back to the orphanage, but in the books, it’s Dippet. We know that Slughorn spent a lot of time around Tom at Slug Club and such, yet I don’t really see people clamoring for his head.

I regard the sentiment that Dumbledore turned Tom Riddle into Lord Voldemort with a lot of skepticism.

But let's hear from the character himself -- his impression of eleven-year-old Tom Riddle.

“Did I know that I had just met the most dangerous Dark wizard of all time?” said Dumbledore. “No, I had no idea that he was to grow up to be what he is. However, I was certainly intrigued by him. I returned to Hogwarts intending to keep an eye upon him, something I should have done in any case, given that he was alone and friendless, but which, already, I felt I ought to do for others’ sake as much as his."

Now, assuming that Dumbledore's telling the truth, I'm not seeing something glaringly wrong with this. No, he hasn't pigeonholed Tom as evil, yes, I'd be intrigued, too, and it's a very good idea to keep an eye on Tom, for his own sake.

“At Hogwarts,” Dumbledore went on, “we teach you not only to use magic, but to control it. You have — inadvertently, I am sure — been using your powers in a way that is neither taught nor tolerated at our school."

Again, it seems like he's at least somewhat sympathetic towards Tom, and is willing to at least give him a chance.

More evidence (again, assuming Dumbledore is a reliable narrator):

Harry: “Didn’t you tell them [the other professors], sir, what he’d been like when you met him at the orphanage?” Dumbledore: “No, I did not. Though he had shown no hint of remorse, it was possible that he felt sorry for how he had behaved before and was resolved to turn over a fresh leaf. I chose to give him that chance.”

Now, I think Dumbledore is pretty awful with kids, but I don't think that's malicious. Yeah, it's a flaw, but perfect people don't exist, and perfect characters are dead boring. I am not saying that he definitely handled Tom's case well, I'm just saying that there's little evidence that Dumbledore, however shaken and scandalized, wrote him off as 'evil snake boy.'

It's also worth taking into account that it's 1938, and the attitudes towards mental health back then.

Why is Tom looking at Dumbledore like that, anyway? Why is he so scared? What has he possibly been threatened with or heard whispers of?

"'Professor'?" repeated Riddle. He looked wary. "Is that like 'doctor'? What are you here for? Did she get you in to have a look at me?"

"I don't believe you," said Riddle. "She wants me looked at, doesn't she? Tell the truth!"

"You can't kid me! The asylum, that's where you're from, isn't it? 'Professor,' yes, of course -- well, I'm not going, see? That old cat's the one who should be in the asylum. I never did anything to little Amy Benson or Dennis Bishop, and you can ask them, they'll tell you!

Tom keeps insisting he's not mad until Dumbledore finally manages to calm him down.

I'm really upset this wasn't in the movie, because it's important context. Instead we got these throwaway cutscenes of some knick-knacks relating to the Cave he's got lying around, but I just would have preferred to see him freaking out like he does in the book.

There was extreme stigma and prejudice towards mental illness.

'Lunatic asylums,' as they were called in Tom's time, were terrible places. In the 1930s and 40s, he could look forward to being 'treated' with induced convulsions, via metrazol, insulin, electroshock, and malaria injections. And if he stuck around long enough, he could even look forward to a lobotomy!

So, if you think Dumbledore was judgmental towards Tom, imagine how flat-out prejudiced whatever doctors or 'experts' Mrs. Cole might have gotten in to 'look at him' must have been!

Moving on to the next few shots, he is sitting down and hunched over as if expecting punishment or at least some kind of bad news, Dumbledore is mostly out of the frame. He’s trapped visually, by Dumbledore on one side, and a wall on the other, because he’s still very much afraid. uncomfortable, as he tells Dumbledore a secret that he fears could get him committed to an asylum (which were fucking horrible places, as I said).

It brings to the scene that miserable sense of isolation and loneliness to that has defined Tom’s entire life up to that point (and, partially due to his own bad choices, continues to define it).

And, when Dumbledore accepts it, his posture changes. he becomes more confident and more at ease, as he describes the... utilities of his magical abilities.

"All sorts," breathed Riddle. A flush of excitement was rising up his neck into his hollow cheeks; he looked fevered. "I can make things move without touching them. I can make animals do what I want them to do, without training them. I can make bad things happen to people who annoy me. I can make them hurt if I want to."

Riddle lifted his head. His face was transfigured: There was a wild happiness upon it, yet for some reason it did not make him better looking; on the contrary, his finely carved features seemed somehow rougher, his expression almost bestial.

I do think Harry, our narrator, is being a tad bit judgmental here. Magic is probably the only thing that brings Tom happiness in his grey, lonely world, and when I was Tom's age and being bullied, if I had magic powers, you'd better believe that I'd (a) be bloody ecstatic about it (b) use them. And, like Tom, I can't honestly say that I can't imagine getting a bit carried-away with it. Unfortunately, we can't all be as inherently good and kindhearted as Harry.

Reading HBP again, as a 'mature' person, it almost seems like the reader is being prompted to see Tom as evil just because he's got 'weird' facial expressions.

So... uh...

Nope, let's judge Tom on his actions, not looks of 'wild happiness.'

To his great surprise, however, Dumbledore drew his wand from an inside pocket of his suit jacket, pointed it at the shabby wardrobe in the corner, and gave the wand a casual flick. The wardrobe burst into flames. Riddle jumped to his feet; Harry could hardly blame him for howling in shock and rage; all his worldly possessions must be in there. But even as Riddle rounded on Dumbledore, the flames vanished, leaving the wardrobe completely undamaged.

Okay, one thing I dislike is Tom's lack of emotional affect when Dumbledore burned the wardrobe, in the books, he jumped up and started screaming, instead of looking passively (in shock, perhaps?) at the fire. Incidentally, I can't really tell if he's impressed or in shock, to be honest. I think they really tried to make Tom 'creepier' in the movie.

This is one of the incidents where Dumbledore's inability to deal with children crops up.

I think he was trying to teach Tom that magic can be dangerous, and he wouldn't like it to be used against him, but burning the wardrobe that contains everything he owns was a terrible move on Dumbledore's part. Tom already has very limited trust in other people, and now, he's not going to trust Dumbledore at all -- now, he's put Tom on the defensive/offensive for the rest of their interaction, and perhaps for the rest of their teacher-student relationship.

Riddle stared from the wardrobe to Dumbledore; then, his expression greedy, he pointed at the wand. "Where can I get one of them?"

"Where do you buy spellbooks?" interrupted Riddle, who had taken the heavy money bag without thanking Dumbledore, and was now examining a fat gold Galleon.

But I'm not surprised Tom is 'greedy.' He's grown up in an environment where if he wants something, whether that's affection, food, money, toys, he's got to take it. There's no one looking after his needs specifically. I'm not surprised that he's a thief and a hoarder, and I don't think that counts as a moral failing necessarily, and more of a maladaptive way of seeking comfort. It would be bizarre if he came out of Wool's Orphanage a complete saint.

Additionally, I think given that the Gaunt family has a history of 'mental instability,' Tom is a sensitive child, and the trauma of growing up institutionalized and possibly being treated badly due to his magical abilities or personality disorder deeply affected him.

And there are points where it seems that Dumbledore is quick to judge Tom.

"He was already using magic against other people, to frighten, to punish, to control."

"Yes, indeed; a rare ability, and one supposedly connected with the Dark Arts, although as we know, there are Parselmouths among the great and the good too. In fact, his ability to speak to serpents did not make me nearly as uneasy as his obvious instincts for cruelty, secrecy, and domination."

"I trust that you also noticed that Tom Riddle was already highly self-sufficient, secretive, and, apparently, friendless?..."

And while this is all empirically true, these are (a) a product of Tom's harsh environment, and (b) do not necessarily make him evil. But the point remains that child psych didn't exist as a field of its own, and psychology as a proper science was in its infancy, so I'd be shocked if Dumbledore was insightful about Tom's situation.

But I've gone a ton of paragraphs without citing anything, so I've got to rectify that.

Let's talk about Harry Harlow's monkey experiments in the 1950-70s.

If you're not a fan of animal research, since I know some people are uncomfortable with it, feel free to scroll past.

Here's the TL;DR: Children need to be hugged and shown affection too, not just fed and clothed, please don't leave babies to 'cry out' and ignore their needs because it's backwards and fucking inhumane. HUG AND COMFORT AND CODDLE CHILDREN AND SPOIL THEM WITH AFFECTION!

I will put more red writing when the section is over.

This is still an interesting experiment to have in mind while we explore the whole 'no one taught Tom Riddle how to love' thing and whether or not it's actually a good argument.

Andddd let's go all the way back to the initial 1958 experiment, featured in Harlow's paper, the Nature of Love. (If you're familiar with Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, him and Harlow actually collaborated for a time).

To give you an idea of our starting point, until Harlow's experiment, which happened twenty years after Dumbledore meets Tom for the first time, no one in science had really been interested in studying love and affection.

"Psychologists, at least psychologists who write textbooks, not only show no interest in the origin and development of love or affection, but they seem to be unaware of its very existence."

I'm going to link some videos of Harry Harlow showing the actual experiment, which animal rights activists would probably consider 'horrifying.' It's nothing gory or anything, but if you are particularly soft-hearted (and I do not mean that as an insult), be warned. It's mostly just baby monkeys being very upset and Harlow discussing it in a callous manner. Yes, today it would be considered unethical, but it's still incredibly important work and if you think you can handle it, I would recommend watching at least the first one to get an idea of how dramatic this effect is.

Dependency when frightened

The full experiment

The TL;DW:

This experiment was conducted with rhesus macaques; they're still used in psychology/neuroscience research when you want very human-like subjects, because they are very intelligent (unnervingly so, actually). I'd say that adult ones remind me of a three-year old child.

Harlow separated newborn monkeys from their mothers, and cared for their physical needs. They had ample nutrition, bedding, warmth, et cetera. However, the researchers noticed that the monkeys:

(a) were absolutely miserable. And not just that, but although all their physical needs were taken care of, they weren't surviving well past the first few days of life. (This has also been documented in human babies, and it's called failure to thrive and I'll talk about it a bit later).

(b) showed a strong attachment to the gauze pads used to cover the floor, and decided to investigate.

So, they decided to provide a surrogate 'mother.' Two, actually. Mother #1 was basically a heated fuzzy doll that was nice for the monkeys to cuddle with. Mother #2 was the same, but not fuzzy and made of wire. Both provided milk. The result? The monkeys spent all their time cuddling and feeding from the fuzzy 'mother.' Perhaps not surprising.

What Harlow decided next, is that one of the hallmarks being attached to your caregiver is seeking hugs and reassurance from them when frightened. So, when the monkeys were presented with something scary, they'd go straight to the cloth mother and ignore the wire one. Not only that, but when placed in an unfamiliar environment, if the cloth mother was present, the monkeys would be much calmer.

In a follow-up experiment, Harlow decided to see if there was some sort of sensitive period by introducing both 'mothers' to monkeys who had been raised in isolation for 250 days. Guess what?

The initial reaction of the monkeys to the alterations was one of extreme disturbance. All the infants screamed violently and made repeated attempts to escape the cage whenever the door was opened. They kept a maximum distance from the mother surrogates and exhibited a considerable amount of rocking and crouching behavior, indicative of emotionality.

Yikes. So, at first Harlow thought that they'd passed some kind of sensitive period for socialization. But after a day or two they calmed down and started chilling out with the cloth mother like the other monkeys did. But here's a weird thing:

That the control monkeys develop affection or love for the cloth mother when she is introduced into the cage at 250 days of age cannot be questioned. There is every reason to believe, however, that this interval of delay depresses the intensity of the affectional response below that of the infant monkeys that were surrogate-mothered from birth onward

All these things... attachment, affection, love, seeking comfort ... are mostly learned behaviours.

Over.

Orphanages, institutionalized childcare, and why affection is a need, not an extra.

His face is lit the exact same was as Coulson’s was in COS (half-light, half-dark), and I said I was going to talk about this in Part 3. I think perhaps it's intended to make Fiennes-Tiffin look more evil or menacing, but I'm going to quite deliberately misinterpret it.

Now, for some context, Dumbledore has just (kind of) burned his wardrobe, ratted out his stealing habit, and (in the books only, they really took a pair of scissors to this scene) told him he needs to go apologize and return everything and Dumbledore will know if he doesn't, and, well, Tom's not exactly a happy bugger about it.

But interestingly, in the books, this is when we start to see Tom's 'persona,' aka his mask, start to come into play. Whereas before, he was screaming, howling, and generally freaking out, here, he starts to hide his emotions -- in essence, obscure his true self under a shadow. So this scene is really the reverse of Coulson's in COS.

And perhaps I'm reading wayyy too much into this, but I can't help but notice that Coulson's hair is parted opposite to Fiennes-Tiffin's, and the opposite sides of their faces are shadowed, too.

Riddle threw Dumbledore a long, clear, calculating look. "Yes, I suppose so, sir," he said finally, in an expressionless voice.

Riddle did not look remotely abashed; he was still staring coldly and appraisingly at Dumbledore. At last he said in a colorless voice, "Yes, sir."

Here's an article from The Atlantic on Romanian orphanages in the 1980s, when the dictator, Ceausescu, basically forced people to have as many children as possible and funnel them into institutionalized 'childcare', and it's absolutely heartbreaking.

There's not a whole lot of information out there on British orphanages in the 30s' and 40s', but given that people back then thought you just had to keep children on a strict schedule and feed them, it wouldn't have a whole lot better.

The only thing I've found is this, and it's not super promising.

The most important study informing the criteria for contemporary nosologies, was a study by Barbara Tizard and her colleagues of young children being raised in residential nurseries in London (Tizard, 1977). These nurseries had lower child to caregiver ratios than many previous studies of institutionalized children. Also, the children were raised in mixed aged groups and had adequate books and toys available. Nevertheless, caregivers were explicitly discouraged from forming attachments to the children in their care.

Here's a fairly recent paper that I think gives a good summary: Link

Here, they describe the responses to the Strange Situation test (which tests a child's attachment to their caregiver).

We found that 100% of the community sample received a score of “5,” indicating fully formed attachments, whereas only 3% of the infants living in institutions demonstrated fully formed attachments. The remaining 97% showed absent, incomplete, or odd and abnormal attachment behaviors.

Bowlby and Ainsworth, who did the initial study, thought that children would always attach to their caregivers, regardless of neglect or abuse. But some infants don't attach (discussed along with RAD in Part 2).

Here's a really good review paper on attachment disorders in currently or formerly institutionalized children : Link

Core features of RAD in young children include the absence of focused attachment behaviors directed towards a preferred caregiver, failure to seek and respond to comforting when distressed, reduced social and emotional reciprocity, and disturbances of emotion regulation, including reduced positive affect and unexplained fearfulness or irritability.

Which all sounds a lot like Tom in this scene. The paper also discusses neurological effects, like atypical EEG power distribution (aka brain waves), which can correlate with 'indiscriminate' behavior and poor inhibitory control; which makes sense for a kid who, oh, I don't know, hung another kid's rabbit because they were angry.

Furthermore...

...those children with more prolonged institutional rearing showed reduced amygdala discrimination and more indiscriminate behavior.

This again, makes a ton of sense for Tom's psychological profile, because the amygdala (which is part of the limbic system, which regulates emotions) plays a major role in fear, anger, anxiety, and aggression, especially with respect to learning, motivation and memory.

So, I agree completely that Tom needed a lot of help, especially given the fact that he spent eleven years in an orphanage (longer than the Bucharest study I was referring to), and Dumbledore wasn't exactly understanding of his situation, and probably didn't realise what a dramatic effect the orphanage had on Tom, and given the way he talks to Tom, probably treated him as if he were a kid who grew up in a healthy environment.

In case you are still unconvinced that hugging is that important, there's a famous 1944 study conducted on 40 newborn human infants to see what would happen if their physical needs (fed, bathed, diapers changed) were provided for with no affection. The study had to be stopped because half the babies died after four months. Affection leads to the production of hormones and boosts the immune system, which increases survival, and that is why we hug children and babies should not be in orphanages. They are supposed to be hugged, all the time. I can't find the citation right now, I'll add it later if I find it.

But I think it's vastly unrealistic to say that Dumbledore, who grew up during the Victorian Era, would have any grasp of this and I don't think he was actively malicious towards Tom.

Was Tom Riddle failed by institutional childcare? Absolutely.

Were the adults in his life oblivious to his situation? Probably.

Do the shitty things that happened to Tom excuse the murders he committed, and are they anyone's fault but his own? No. At the end of the day, Tom made all the wrong choices.

And, for what it's worth, I think (film) Dumbledore (although he expresses the same sentiment in more words in the books) wishes he could go back in time and have helped Tom.

"Draco. Years ago, I knew a boy, who made all the wrong choices. Please, let me help you."

#tom riddle #the many faces of #tom marvolo riddle #character analysis #character study #albus dumbledore

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twisted-imagines · 5 years ago

Note

Hello! May I request some sfw and nsfw relationship headcanons for the Savanaclaw dorm students Jack, Ruggie, and Leona please?

I... genuinely didn't expect it would take so long😶 It's finished now and I really hope I did the boys justice in these headcanons😅 A lot of them already circulate in the fandom or in the discord(thank you guys!), but I still decided to flesh them out and include here.

Whew, that's my biggest work so far, whooping 6k words. Also the boys required adding female♀️and male♂️-specific bullets, hope it's fine with you. Still no read-more, I'm sorry for every passerby out there.

Please prepare yourself and enjoy💗

Savanaclaw relationship headcanons (SFW/NSFW)

Jack Howl 🐺

Sfw

• So that's the men they talk about, behind whose backs you feel like behind a stone wall? Not only is he big in stature, but Jack is also very reliable. Except for being your boyfriend, he's also your best friend and the biggest supporter; fan, if you may. There's nothing you can't discuss with Jack or ask for help with.

• Actually, the process of transition from friends to lovers was very hard for him, mainly because of how shy he was at first. One day you speak like always, discuss college and laugh together, and the next day he's a blushing mess, unable to say a coherent sentence to you. That day you asked him, whether he was ill, but the ones you actually had to ask about his state were his seniors who, as a gesture of goodwill, confronted their dear junior about his not so obvious crush on you the evening prior and ultimately turned his world upside down, when he finally realized that he liked you more than a friend.

• His bashfulness doesn't go entirely, no matter how long you date. Holding your hand in his still makes his cheeks red, hugging you makes his heart beat faster and kissing? Rest assured, you're the one initiating it most of the time.

• Which doesn't exactly make your kisses less pleasant. Jack can kiss, and he does it exceptionally well. Jack's kisses are the most loving and passionate, starting out very sweet and slow, and gradually becoming deeper and more intense, leaving you breathless. He's a type to cup your face and hold it there just gazing at you with lovesick puppy eyes.

• Jack is an open book. Whether he's happy, sad, angry, tired, or just thinking about something, it's pretty easy to spot and after some time into relationships you won't have problems gauging his mood.

• But even in instances when his expression doesn't betray him, he'll still talk with you, Jack is pretty earnest. His goal is for both of you to feel comfortable with each other. He wants to know about your hardships and vent about his own.

• Jack doesn't let just anybody close to his heart, and when he does he can be very vulnerable with them. That's also why your arguments always have such a heavy impact on him. In the middle of a fight he's not going to back down, and it'll continue as long as one of you doesn't storm out, but when he calms down he's going to regret so hard. Most of the time, he would want to go and find you, apologize and mend things as soon as possible, even if he was indeed right. With his fluffy ears sticking close to his head and bushy tail hanging down impossible low, he would ask you to just speak with him peacefully, saying he didn't want for this atmosphere between you to last any longer.

• By the way, you and only you have the unique privilege to pet his ears and tail. It both stresses him, because of how shy he is, and turns him into a puddle of affection when you gently caress him. He swears to himself, he could spend his whole life on your lap.

Did he actually say it out loud?...

• Your boyfriend is plainly adorkable and you treasure him so much.

• Also consider chilling with him in his wolf form! He doesn't get why you're always so eager to see him transform, but as long as you're happy he'll oblige. Cuddling, or lying above wolf Jack is the most serene feeling in the world, it's like lying on the fluffy, warm cloud.

• Jack is a walking heater, he emanates warmth, when you just stand next to him. What a hot man~ You'll probably be so thankful for it in winter, cuddling up to him is just the best, and he won't complain much about your freezing feet, he loves you after all. But in summer? Wolf boy got used to your hugs and is actually offended you don't embrace him as much. You can't fathom how he doesn't boil from the heat by just holding you in his arms. Power of love, truly.

• Bear hugs? Who needs them, when you have wolf hugs! Definitely, a type to completely engulf his partner into a hug, even his tail curls around you. The spoon, and no elaboration on that. No matter who embraces whom, in Jack's mind it's already perfect.

• Definitely not the PDA type, Jack is pretty reserved, and the best you can get out of him when people are watching is a light peck to the head and hand-holding.

• Sometimes he sticks into troubles because of his temper and distinctive sense of justice. It's for you to de-escalate the situation before it can turn into something serious. He may grunt because those guys definitely deserved to have somebody teach them a lesson, but you try to explain to him that it's for the best, he didn't stay aside, and that already counts.

• He wants you to delegate him all physically taxing tasks, whether by carrying your shopping bags, giving you something from the shelf, or anything else really. Chances are, you're still weaker than him and he wants to take care of you, the boy feels so proud when he can help you! "W-what? Me, a good boy?! ",- yes, Jack, the best. He sometimes hates it so much, how easily you fluster him.

• He would like to create a morning routine together with you. If you're not as keen on sports, muscle building, or can't endure heavy physical training he will just be glad to have you doing morning exercises near him, he genuinely thinks of it as some form of bonding. You noticed that while being in relationships with Jack your lifestyle changed into a much healthier one.

• Jack can be very playful with you, at times reminding of an actual wolf. When he's in an affectionate mood he may discreetly nuzzle your face, nibble on your ears or pet your hair. Most likely he doesn't mean anything sexual by it, just enjoying your presence, by other times his touches mean an entirely different thing.

Nsfw

• He definitely didn't have any experience before getting intimate with you. He blushes so hard, you think he'll pass out from excitement and his tail is just a flurry of colors, with how fast it wags.

• The first time is messy and chaotic, he is totally lost and doesn't know where to place his hands and what to do. Thankfully he's a fast learner, the rate with which he improves actually amazes you.

• The first time he goes down on you is a disaster too. But he's getting better quickly, and where he still lacks the skill, he makes up with determination. He's not leaving his place between your legs, until you cum at least once; if his jaw locks, he doesn't care. Jack gets addicted to your taste and he's the happiest when your tights are around his head, hands tugging on his white locks and the smell of your sweet arousal enveloping him.

• The first time you go down on him boy dies and ascends. Poor wolf cums in a minute and when he sees you struggling to swallow his cum? Jack swears he has never become hard so fast. Blowing him means freeing a good amount of time in your schedule, because, even if he gets embarrassed about it later, he'll hold you down there for a long time. He feels just pure bliss when you suck and lick him.

• Before you even try to initiate something in public, he's already looking at you with judging face. He despises the idea, that some other people may do such things in public places, so Jack himself is not going to engage in them.

• Pet the dog the boy! Do it, he'll be ecstatic. The base of his ears and tail are his most erogenous zones. He'll let out the neediest whines when you touch him, it's a sure way to get him in the mood. If you take back your hand he will growl softly and chase after it.

• While his growling may sound threatening Jack doesn't mean anything by that, he's just trying to release tension from being aroused. He's actually very tame, never exceptionally rough with you, unless it's your goal to rile him up. Jack doesn't fall entirely into sub/dom classification, he's vanilla, but he prefers to be on top and do the most of the work since it means he'll get to enjoy your whole body and he's all about expressing his love to you.

• The boy is pretty animated, but he always minds the volume. It's mostly grunts and growls, with occasional moans you adore so much. And feeling him growl when he's performing oral on you? Priceless.

• He has a knot. Even normally his cock's base is pretty thick, compared to the rest of the shaft, but when he's in you he rarely can withhold from forming a knot.

•♀️With female significant other Jack won't hesitate to beg her to let him put it in. The feeling of being connected like that with you makes him very emotional and appreciated even. It goes away after some time, and if you're worried about him actually knocking you up, Jack is actually very diligent about putting a condom every time you have sex.

• While he likes to see your face, the expressions you make, and that he can easily spot if you're not feeling good, Jack's all-time favorite pose is doggy style, how obvious. Having you on your four under him inevitably brings out his most carnal desires. Best believe, he's going to rock your world.

Ruggie Bucchi 🐆

Sfw

• This boy is husband material. Intelligent? Check. Good with money? Check. Knows how to cook, sew, clean, pay taxes? Check. Nobody will judge you if you propose to him after the first few months, Ruggie is good all-around if you've already learned to love him for who he is.

• The hyena boy is not very confident early into your relationships. He feels like if he starts to open up, you'll get to know him better and eventually... break up with him. He's on guard the entire time, trying to be a picture-perfect boyfriend, but it's so different from the way he behaved before, you can't help, but think something is wrong. At some point, all the stress from college, dorm management, and your relationships is going to get at him, resulting in you consoling him on your lap after he breaks down and cries from overworking himself constantly. After he's let it out if his system, venting to you about how anxious he actually is, and how he doesn't want to lose you, when you have just returned his feelings, you can finally soothe him and address what he's said. When he's in such vulnerable state, Ruggie really needs to hear that you want to see his other sides, even if he thinks they are not beautiful, that you are willing to accept him no matter what and he doesn't need to be perfect for you to love him and you're definitely not leaving him any time soon. This talk does make him feel more secure afterward and it's easier for him to rely on you a bit more.

• His love language is definitely acts of service! He loves to be helpful, to hear your praise when he's cooked lunch for you, took your clothes to the laundry for you, fixed your tie or shoelaces when you didn't notice it was loose. It makes him feel accomplished and you being grateful and repaying him for that, unlike a certain lion, is definitely a nice bonus. His preferred way is to receive your love in gifts, but you need to be careful with them! He won't appreciate you wasting your money on something stupid or of no use to him; it has to be practical, but not necessarily expensive. If you present him with a handmade gift though, he's going to treasure it, no question asked. The thought of you, spending time to create it with him in mind makes Ruggie feel warm all over.

• Quality time between you is very important for him too. A nice evening together, without the college, annoying seniors, and other distractions is perfect for him. If you can concentrate your attention solely on him, lavish only him with your touches, hugs, smooches, and words of praise, Ruggie is the happiest man alive.

• For your dates he prefers to stay inside, prepare dinner together, dance and fool around without the care in the world, watch some show popular in Twisted Wonderland right now or groom each other. Yes, Savanaclaw guys do like self-care evenings from time to time, Ruggie in particular likes when you trim his nails, you find out that they're much harder than human nails, or comb his hair and pet those fluffy ears.

• If it's a special occasion, he won't be against going to some nice restaurant or cafe, he does know that it's important for couples to go out together, even if your budget may not be that big. Reserving pricey dates for holidays and important dates leaves him some time to save up money and feel prepared.

• The type that claims that's he's the big spoon, but the moment you lie down together, he's already cuddling up to your chest like the smallest spoon that he is. Ruggie loves to be close to your heart, listen to it's heartbeat, feel your warmth around him, it's such a blissful feeling for him. Just sometimes or when you ask him to, he'll hug you from behind and whisper sweet nonsense into your ear, assuring you that he'll protect you and everything will be okay.

• He may seem this confident, self-assured, and quite bold young man, who isn't shy at all to show his love for you, freely kissing and flirting with you. The truth is, as soon he's out of your vicinity, he's blushing like mad, while his heart is hammering in his chest. He's not used, definitely not used to courting somebody, it makes him so nervous, but it's not like he'll ever admit this.

• He doesn't like to be called cute, at all. Ruggie doesn't associate it with a compliment and he would rather have you think he's handsome, pretty or sexy but not cute, might as well say that he's weak or you don't see him as a man. He's can be pretty stubborn when he wants to, so what's left for you is to choose other words of affirmation.

• In Ruggie's mind kisses and embraces are an intimate practice. He can tolerate casual touching, give a friendly pat on the back, or even put an arm around somebody's shoulder, but he has to draw the line at kissing and hugging. He feels very grossed out when someone he doesn't trust enough tries to breach his personal space like this and evades it like the plague. Most likely, you're the only one who he has ever had close enough relationships with to do these things.

• Ruggies kisses can vary. Sometimes it's just a quick peck when you're passing by in corridors. Other times it's loving french kiss that leaves you both breathless, and which the boy tries to save for when you two are alone. But when he's jealous or feels threatened as in seeing a particularly noisy suitor of yours making rather bold moves, he won't hesitate to show his tongue down your throat right before them to get his message across.

• This hyena is very possessive. He still remembers how it's like to not being able to eat your food on your own, to not have a constant safe place to sleep at night, to feel like the worst, least deserving flea ever, not being able to protect what is yours. He still struggles, but he's no longer the scrawny, weak kid he was before, and he finally has the power to preserve what he treasures. And you're one of his treasures: the most beautiful and kindest being he's ever met. When you are by his side he feels like he could take over the world and waking up at the morning has never been so easy for Ruggie, for he knows he'll meet you today once again, and will be able to hug, and kiss, and hear that you love him.

• You'll have to learn it the hard way, that his history made an impact on his morality. As long as his ways are beneficial to him, to you or to his friends, Ruggie has no qualms doing the dirty stuff. It's not always violent in nature, but he broke bones with his unique magic before, you even was the one to out him on that, but it doesn't mean he gave up that mindset completely. It anything, he has now learned to go with more complicated, round-about strategies. Leave justice and righteousness to the folks like Jack, Ruggie is not as naive to think that the world is fair and he knows he has to work hard for the things he knows he deserves. But you're with him for reasons, and not letting him loose all his compassion is one of them. Sometimes it's important that you work as his moral compass and stand up and firmly tell him out of doing something that you deem wrong.

• Your arguments are almost nonexistent since most of the time Ruggie is the first to back down and accept your point of view. He almost never loses his cool and If he thinks you are not right, he'll still agree with you just to pacify you enough so you would discuss it with him and reach a consensus. Ruggie doesn't like to fight with you, he would rather fix the problem right at the start, so it wouldn't escalate, than wait until one of you can't keep silent anymore. By considering each other's opinion and working around them, your relationships remain healthy and beneficial to both of you.

Nsfw

• You can't help but question, whether it's actually his first time as he's said or not, but you aren't going to complain, with how he masterly finds and stimulates all your sweet spots.

• ♀️He will fulfill his position on the top without a fault, but if you seek something else entirely, he won't disappoint you either. Ruggie wholeheartedly thinks that the best place for him is where you say him to be. He will attentively listen to your commands and fulfill them to his best ability, just for a chance that you'll praise or reward him in some way. Handle him the way you want, he's already on the seventh cloud to be able to mate- oh, he meant to make love to you. In short, Ruggie is the best hyena boy, who'll submit to you in a breath.

• ♂️ The brattiest bottom, and none other than you got him. Prepare to wrestle him, quite literally, for a chance to have him underneath you, or just around you. Unless you prove that you're deserving of it, he's not going to relent. But the gratification for it is immense: the blushing, whining, breathless mess that Ruggie is when you're done with him is truly the sight to behold.

• Ruggie has nice stamina and can handle a lot, and is even somewhat masochistic, but degradation and punishments don't sit well with him and make him very uncomfortable in the end. If you want to discipline him for teasing you on public or getting it on without you, the best way to make him realize his mistake is through orgasm control. Crying from over-stimulating or from broken orgasm makes him learn the lesson, but not feel disrespected deep down. Just edge him for hours on end and he'll be as good as gold the weeks afterward, until he starts thirsting for your treatment once again.

• It's either raspy dirty talk or loudest, most sinful moans possible, no in between. Poor residents still can't figure it out who keeps them awake at night, the pornstar worthy cries just don't tie in with the image of petite vice dorm leader, and even if some of them understood, one glance is everything it's going to take to silence them.

• ♀️ He loves the feeling of being in you, how warm and tight it is, but don't hide the strap-on too far, he loves it equally as much, the devilish glint in his eyes tells it all when you first suggest it. Ruggie receives it very eagerly and is very supportive of the idea of adding it when you have some "alone time" together.

• He's a putty in your hands when you blow him. The hyena feels very special when you pay such close attention to his dick and can't handle it for too long. Blow jobs are definitely the currency he accepts for being an amazing boyfriend and it's a treat he always looks forward to.

• Considering his stature, he's definitely not the biggest one out there, but does he know how to use it, and what positions make both of you feel good. A grower, you sometimes question yourself, if it's some kind of magic.

•♀️You on top of him makes him not under the collar at any time, but especially when you fuck. No matter if he's penetrating you, or eating you out, he's overjoyed and so head over heels for you. And does he love to go down on you. Ruggie adores your clit, and always pays it the utmost attention. Hyena boy loses the feeling of time when he is there, smothered by your tights and licking, tasting, sucking, drinking your juices, and enjoying your moans. You'll have to forcefully remove yourself from his mouth because he's not stopping on his own, even if you're already tearing up from overstimulation.

•♂️ He's going to demand to be on top, even if he's the one taking it, he wants to have an illusion that he's in charge, even if you ram his ass like there's tomorrow. If you're the one receiving his cock, hands down(ha!), he positions you into a doggy style, the penetration is amazing and his hip game is top-notch, you'll have a hard time declining him a top position afterward.

• He can be pretty stealthy, when he wants to, so if you're up for it he will gladly finger you/give you a handjob under the table. The feeling of his calloused fingers in your most intimate place can bring you to orgasm very fast, not to mention how skillfully be moves his hand. Oral in a hidden alley? Not entirely out of the plate too. And the way Ruggie deals with accidental witnesses or uncomfortable questions still hasn't made you face consequences, so it's definitely working.

Leona Kingscholar 🦁

Sfw

• Stupidly sexy lion. He knows the hots you have for him are immense and he's going to use it against you. If flashing the cockiest smirk you've ever seen and whispering in your ear is all it takes to convince you to sleep with him, ditch your homework, to laze around with him or just generally pay attention to him, he's going to abuse it as much as he can.

• You feel like you've become ten times lazier since you've started to date him, he thinks that you just spend quality time together as a normal, lovable couple.

• It's pretty much impossible to make him do anything, even if you're his significant other now. He's not helping you with your crappy homework, neither will he buy you anything from the store or cafeteria, even if he's walking by it. Get your own shit. Even better, bring him something too, since you're going anyway.

• ♀️ That's it unless you're a lady with a more or less firm grip. There's definitely more respect he pays to you, having grown up in the pride of Afterglow Savannah. Ladies first and foremost, he can't ignore it. Suddenly he's the one getting his own shit and bringing you whatever you want with a silver lining, probably not looking the most enthusiastic about it, but you're his woman and that's what you deserve.

•♀️The dream boyfriend when you're on your periods. He's getting you the right pads without a fault, knows just what snacks to bring you, heating packs are already there and an even hotter lion is embracing you and petting your hair.

• Still overall Leona is not your prince charming, and your relationships are full of compromises and until Leona finally understands that it takes two to tango, it's on you to support them. Which can be pretty hard, but the pay off is big unarguably.

• Your arguments start out calmly, up till the moment Leona gets sick of it and then the worst starts. It takes time for the situation to escalate to that point, Leona does have some patience and sense in him, but once you both are angry and don't hear each other prepare for this fight to leave no stone unturned.

♀️With a lady, Leona will be pretty tame, and rather than shouting he'll be growling lowly, which isn't less aggressive, but the chance of him scaring or snapping at you is pretty low. He'll be the first to storm off, not having the patience to stand it anymore and unable to let it out because of his innate respect for you.

♂️It's brutal, even if he's meters away from you. He hates to be bossed around or scolded like a guilty kitten and you remind him of all the arguments he had with his family at home, which makes his blood boil. The best course of action would be for you to leave him alone for the time being and patiently wait when he's up to talking again.

Sometimes you talk and the problem is solved and you don't return to and quarrel about it ever again, other times Leona just plainly drops the subject before it comes to bite him in the ass and you have a fight again. You have to be the smarter one with a hot-tempered and prideful boyfriend that you have, for arguments to not shake your relationships, and even straighten them.

• When he's not sleeping Leona can be quite cute and affectionate with you, corny when he's on a mission to make you blush. He doesn't care if anybody is round, you're the only one who he sees and right now he wants his wake-up kiss and nobody can stop him unless they want a couple of broken bones. You got into trouble because of his careless nature a lot of times, but when you look at his charming smirk and naughty eyes you can't resist him which allows him to peck you ten times more until you either drag him to a hidden from prying eyes place, or others shout at you to get a room.

• One kiss is never enough for Leona, especially since he doesn't acknowledge close-mouthed kisses and not the one to ever restrain himself. The make-out sessions are frequent and very heated, with his hands roaming everywhere, low groans sending pleasurable chills down your spine. What a relief he's usually in the places where no noises and people can disturb his sleep, or "bonding time" with his mate.

• The biggest spoon, he almost never gives up his place. If you catch him at his sleeping spot somewhere at the botanic garden or square and he's awake enough to spot or smell you, he'll trap you in his grasp and not let go until it's either time to eat or return to dorm. Crying that you have important matters and you can't just rest like that is futile. He's pretty warm too and even more cuddly than Jack, so prepare to suffer. But it's also very sweet how pissy he gets when you try to leave, clutching your form closer still, employing even his tail just not to part with your comfortable presence. The only time he's willing to be a little spoon is when he lays on your lap, happy to receive pats and scratches to his ears, at times like that he feels practically blessed to be with you.

• He may not show it openly, but he cares. He cares so much about you. He knows your likes and dislikes, maybe not precisely, but it's already outstanding for a guy who mostly gives no shit about people other than himself. He knows how to make you happy when you're sad or stressed, and how not to worsen your state. He'll talk with you about your problems to help you find a solution, and when you thank him for helping you, Leona will just brush it off and say that you were the one to come up with it. He's also just fine with lending you an ear, even if inside he wants to turn into sand whatever or whoever made upset. Yes, if it's alive, they will probably not be happy that they survived, because the following day will be a total nightmare for them. Nobody in their right mind would harm the lion's mate, and Leona makes sure everybody knows that.

• He's quick-witted and can come up with smartest, most efficient ideas in no time, but he's always too lazy or doesn't see a point. If you're needing his help, he may consider it, but you still receive a negative answer sometimes. Unless you have something you can offer, which for Leona you always do. The answer is straightforward - you.

• When you stay at their dorm, Ruggie always dumps his usual responsibilities on you. Leona has to wake up to his morning classes and how you manage to do it is on you. And bring his breakfast, or he'll forget and by the time he remembers nothing is left for him already. Also, braid his hair, and exclusively to you, try to not be taken to bed once again. It's quite rare you complete your quest. Other times Leona just takes advantage of it and skips the day entirely, lounging around and doing stuff with you.

• Ruggie and Jack admire you for how you can put up with Leona's lazy lion ass and how you get along and accept Leona-senpai even though his character is like that each respectively. Both agree that it's quite a feat you didn't bailout in the first weeks. They notice how much Leona mellowed down, in a good way, when he got together with you and are quite glad that the senior found such a person to love as yourself.

• Jealousy over the roof, but you won't ever catch the wind of it. He's good at pretending, and he can't let you know that he's about to chew this poor soul head off, together with their limbs and flesh. In his mind you literally belong to him, only he is allowed to flirt and tease you. He'll try and lead you away as nothing has happened, but his blood is boiling.

• Being Leona's lover means getting the privilege of being called "aunt/uncle" by small Cheka. He loves you so much, the lion cub looks forward to playing with you and his uncle when he visits NRC. It's the rare instances when Leona doesn't conceal his jealousy and demands your attention back openly. You think it's funny how he feels challenged by the kid, but choose to watch from the sidelines, how instead of being scared of fuming uncle Cheka just goes to give love to him instead. Leona thinks that you get along well with children, and just sometimes imagines how would you look caring for your own cub. If you ask him why he's spacing out like that, he'll just huff, but the small blush will remain on his cheeks for quite some time.

• "And what should I do with you?"

"Love me, feed me, and never leave me."

This big ass cat just needs your TLC to enter his cat heaven.

Nsfw

• The ultimate pillow prince. Love him and fondle him, kiss and bite him, he'll take everything and then ask for more. He'll agree to everything as long as you keep the good stuff coming. He even tries and acts like he's the one in charge, but you know that you're the one doing most of the work and his bravado is just for show.

• But when he needs to really show you who is alpha here he won't half-ass it. When he's especially angry or jealous Leona is not releasing you from his room all day long and goes to extreme, by his and probably your standards, lengths to prove that you don't need anybody else, and only he can satisfy your every need.

• He has had sex before and that's a fact, but was he ever so emotionally connected to somebody else? If his intense gaze and low roars tell you something, it's that he has never dedicated himself to somebody, neither in or out of bed.

• Unashamed nudist, Leona will fuck you just anywhere as long as you both want this. Charm to the max, when you say that you're worried somebody will walk in on you. "You're not thinking about anybody else when I'm right here, kitten".

• Blowjob is not just a way to motivate him, sometimes it's the only way you can make him do something. Prone to throat fuck you on occasions when he has the spare energy. More often than not just lets you take all matters into your hands and do whatever you want. If not for those quiet grunts you would think he fell asleep again. He did not, the man is living his best life.

• Animalistic growls, groans, and grunts are heard in Savanclaw hallways when you make love. While he may not be the most vocal lover, he doesn't hold himself back either. You make him feel good, and he lets you know about it.

• Leona Kingscholar is massive and he knows it. As if the big dick energy wasn't already radiating off of him, he actually has a lot to stress it. "Not the most human dick" squad, he has the penile spines, though not as painful as in actual mammals, they just add more excitement to already satisfying feeling. Best believe, he knows what to do with this package to make you see stars.

• As long as you're above him he's content, missionary, cowgirl, 69 you name it, he loves it. Do mind that his trust power is bruising, not taking into account his size, as a result, you won't be walking normally, if at all if was especially fired up, the following day.

•♀️While you're up there, might as well sit on his face and let him have a snack from his personal five-star restaurant. He loves every minute of it and can probably stay for days there, making you come over and over again because he's so damn good at it too. He knows just how to lick, where to apply pressure, what to do with his fingers, and that rough tongue is plainly amazing. Never heard of it before? Now you did and it has the most mind-blowing sensation against your labia and clitoris. So messy, Leona is; when you finish with him he'll have your slick and cum smeared all over his face, which he doesn't mind at all, licking off what he can, successfully making you turn even redder from the erotic sight beneath you.

• ♂️ The sloppiest suck you'll ever get, nobody can challenge Leona on that. It would be nice if he just repaid you a bit more often. You'll probably learn to treasure his blowjobs, because of how rare and memorable they are simultaneous. The king, oh this irony, of deepthroating, you wonder if this man even has a gag reflex. Apparently, he does not, or just holds himself together very well, because he'll remove himself only to breathe in some air before he goes to town on you once again.

• Does he have a nice imagination, this lion. It's not rare for him to just daydream about fucking you in any setting possible, pop a boner, never do something about it and just drift off again. The reason he always turns your cutesy cuddly times into marathon sex is because he's always horny, but rarely acts on it and just opts to let off the steam together with you.

• Prepare to be littered with bites and scratches, the sex with Leona can be very wild. No matter your position you'll receive lots of marks all over your body, and don't raise your hopes - you won't be able to conceal it, for he chose very specific areas that are always seen by others, Leona is a possessive man after all.

#twisted wonderland #twst #twisted wonderland x reader #twst imagines #twst x reader #savanaclaw #jack howl #ruggie bucchi #leona kingscholar #twst jack #twst ruggie #twst leona #lemonade #mel writes

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thelightofthingshopedfor · 3 years ago

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I genuinely do not know how to engage with the Loki fandom anymore without regularly tanking my mental health, and I have no idea what to do about it.

the thing about my brain is that it sucks, see, and one of the big ways in which it sucks is that it is incredibly easy for me to miserably fixate on anything that upsets me, which then often expands to include all kinds of other tangentially related things that also upset me, thereby becoming a very bad spiral even if the thing that originally upset me was objectively not a huge deal. (I’m also really, really good at catastrophizing, which just accelerates the whole process.) at best, I then find it completely possible to do much of anything, like work on anything creative, or do my actual job that pays my actual bills, or in general remember that anything good can ever happen again. about all I can do to reset my brain when that happens is to ignore every single one of my responsibilities and do something really distracting like playing a game so my brain is engaged in something other than eating itself alive, or maybe just take a sleeping pill and go to bed. (if neither is an option, then it just sucks even more.)

for reasons that I certainly hope are obvious, that’s something I prefer to avoid.

the thing about Loki is, he’s been my absolute favorite character for about a decade now. he’s my comfort character. I can’t reliably write anything except Loki fic (which would be enough of a personal investment even if I hadn’t written a fic or two that helped me deal with the death of my dog a few years ago and my generally unhealthy feelings about death as a concept, but I did that too). I’ve spent a not-inconsiderable amount of money--again, over the past decade--on my collection of Loki stuff because it makes me happy, and I’ve invested probably even more thought and emotion than money into this character. Loki, in general, is very important to me, if for no other reason than that he’s been part of my life for a long time.

and the thing about the Loki show specifically is, I mostly like it. in part this is because I want to like it, because I’m invested for all the reasons mentioned above. there have been aspects of every episode so far that I’ve enjoyed without reservation or qualification...and there have been aspects of every episode so far that have made me cringe or genuinely upset me for one reason or another. but because I want to like it, and because I have that tendency to fixate on things that upset me in a way that makes me absolutely miserable and renders my brain completely useless for doing anything except continuing to be upset, it is genuinely unhealthy for me to spend much time at all reading negativity about the show.

some of the criticism I don’t totally understand and that’s less of an issue, but a lot of it has merit, a lot pretty obviously comes from a place of actual pain, and there’s a lot I agree with (or at least understand even if a specific thing doesn’t bother me as much). so if I read much of it, I will fixate. I will lose sleep. I will be pretty much unable to do things I actually need or want to do. if I want to avoid those things, it’s not enough just to avoid reading really intense criticism of the show; I have to actively seek out positive opinions, both to reinforce my enjoyment of things I already liked and to provide additional viewpoints on things I didn’t particularly like on first watch so I can keep myself from fixating on them (which my brain is quite happy to do on its own, without even seeing specifically negative posts, so you can probably imagine how much worse my brain gets having the negative opinions reinforced).

like--maybe this all sounds kind of silly, I don’t know, but I’ve lived with this garbage brain for more than three decades and I have a pretty good idea of how it works, at least in terms of what makes it even more garbage. to take care of my mental health, I have to approach certain things in certain ways, and I’m...working on not feeling like that’s silly all by itself. in this specific case, that means avoiding a lot of the negativity and making an effort to seek out positive opinions. as long as people tag appropriately, that shouldn’t be hard, right?

well you’d think so, except actually no, because I’ve had the worst time finding people who like the show and don’t also spend a significant amount of their time dumping on fans who hate the show or just, like, have any issues at all with any aspect of it for any reason. it starts to feel like people think that if you’re not worshiping at Marvel’s feet and loving every second of everything in this massive profit-driven franchise, then you are deluded, whiny, entitled, stupid, sadistic, or some combination of the above. and you know what, maybe it’s weird but I absolutely find that just as upsetting as negativity about the show itself. constantly seeing that stuff is equally bad for my mental health, equally likely to make me miserably fixate on it and lead to a spiral of “everything is bad and hopeless and nothing will ever get better in literally any aspect of life so why even bother trying?”

for reasons that I once again hope are obvious, I still want to avoid that! regardless of the cause! and apparently...I don’t have that option. people typically don’t tag criticism of criticism, or at least not with anything specific enough to be really useful, and it sure seems like I can’t look for the positive opinions that help me enjoy the show and avoid unhappily fixating on things I didn’t like, while also avoiding the negative opinions about other fans that also get me unhappily fixated on things that upset me. so the only alternative is, what, take several steps back from fandom entirely? well, I’d have to stop using Tumblr at all for at least a couple weeks, probably avoid the finale for quite a while, stop writing for the most part because Loki fic is too tied up in the overall fandom and I struggle too much with writing anything else, stop reading most fic for the same reason, stop working on customizing any Funko figures or other action figures that aren’t just for Etsy, and generally give up a lot of things that make me happy. weirdly enough, I don’t want to do that either.

if everyone in this fandom 1) tagged appropriately and consistently and 2) stopped being unnecessarily mean to and about their fellow human beings, I’m pretty sure it would be basically fine. and of course there’s no possible way I can make that happen. if I want to keep enjoying something that does genuinely make me happy often enough to be worthwhile to me, it seems like I just have to choose between two different types of mental-health minefields rather than, you know, being able to avoid all the mines.

so what am I supposed to do with that?

(this is...more or less okay to reblog if you’ve felt at all the same way, wherever you might fall in your opinions about the show itself, as long as you make sure to not be an asshole about it to anyone. this is not the place to talk about how much you hate the show, and it is also not the place to talk about how awful Those Whiny Fans are. take that somewhere else and for god’s sake put a useful tag on it.)

#loki #loki show #loki series #marvel cinematic universe #brains behaving badly #mental health issues #I don't know what else to tag this #loki spoilers #not really but just in case #really hope I don't regret posting this

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kerakitty · 4 years ago

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Hugo Lives AU Headcanons

Just wanted to share some headcanons from my Hugo Lives/Best Music Teacher Scarlemagne AU. Some of these might become fics at some point (a la A Gentler Night), but most are just fun little ideas. This post is pretty long, so headcanons are under the break.

Hugo spends season 3 in a more humane cell. The cell used in the actual show is nothing short of a literal torture chamber. No bed, no toilet, no privacy, no enrichment, no access to water. US solitary confinement cells still provide access to bedding and hygiene facilities, and even those are deemed inhumane by human rights groups like Amnesty International. In my HC, he instead is housed in a converted studio apartment style dwelling in Timbercat Village. The windows are covered with the same (presumably plexiglass) material that the cell in the show was made of. There’s a bathroom, a bed, and access to fresh water. There’s a sort of visiting area at the front of the cell with more plexiglass providing a barrier between the visitor side and the interior of the cell. There’s seating on each side of the barrier and a table on the visitor side. The barrier has a slot like the one in the show, but instead of being used solely for food, visitors are allowed to also transfer small items (e.g. books, puzzles, clothing, a certain star blanket). Items too big for the slot require approval from at least 2 out of 3 of the following individuals: Kipo, Lio, and Yumyan (Molly inherits Yumyan’s vote after he’s cured). The first large item to be approved is the electric keyboard Song gave him in It’s a Trap. In my HC he gets it a lot earlier. Kipo points out that he was more open to communicating when they played the piano together, so it’s given in the hopes that it’ll help with rehabilitation. He also has sound cancelling headphones to plug into the keyboard because having to listen to banjo makes him extra irritable and harder to deal with.

The Oak family spends way more time together. The family dynamics shown in the first 2 seasons are mostly put aside in season 3 in favor of the cure plotline, and I think this was a real loss. We got a little bit in Song ReMix and Wolf in Wolf’s Clothing, but I wanted a lot more. Inspired by @editoress , Hugo and Kipo jam regularly. She brings a guitar and they play and compose together. For Hugo, it’s the one bright spot in his incarceration. For Kipo it’s fun, but also how she tries to reach him. He’s more willing to talk when there’s music involved, though he still shuts down at certain topics. They also play board games with Kipo moving his pieces for him. Kipo has suggested he play with others as well, but he doesn’t trust anyone else not to cheat. Song listens in all the time. Both when Hugo and Kipo are jamming, or when one of them is playing on their own. She and the rest of the Oak family slowly build up an informal sign language for her to use. Some of it is based on ASL, but much of it is unique to them given their rather unique situation and Song’s extra limbs. The first thing she signs is ‘I love you’. Lio visits Hugo in the hopes of patching things up. I won’t go into too much detail on this one as I’m already writing the fic, but Lio goes to visit and they start to hash things out. The process long and difficult, but they make progress. Lio and Song both take an active roll in reining Kipo in when she tries to take on more responsibility than she can handle. Kipo is all too eager to play savior, even when doing so puts her health and safety at risk. Lio runs interference when the mutes are asking too much of her and Song has been known to pick her up and place her in front of her room then sign ‘sleep’ when she’s been awake too long.

Hugo is injured the crash. I already wrote a fic about this, so again: not going into detail. He survives with a few busted ribs then spends his recovery with the rest of the Oak family. He initially stays in the hospital, but eventually moves with the rest of the family into a restored house.

The Oak family finally gets to live together. After the series’ end, the humans (and any displaced mutes) pick out houses on the surface. These houses are then fixed up by the Timbercats. Song and Kipo choose the family’s house together. Wolf really only cares about having reliable shelter and Lio is just happy to have the whole family together. There’s 3 bedrooms, so initially Wolf and Kipo share out of necessity while Hugo’s using the third room. He moves out a couple months after recovering and into a Victorian-style mansion in what used to be one of the wealthier neighborhoods of Las Vistas. As much as he enjoyed spending time with the family their tastes just aren’t as refined as his and he needs room for his baby grand and a proper art studio. After Hugo moves out, Kipo and Wolf still share a room. Lio and Song make it clear that they can have their own rooms if they want, but they both express that they’d rather stay together. Until they decide otherwise, the 3rd bedroom is used as guest room/informal music studio.

The family has weekly game nights. Friends can come too (Benson and Dave are regulars), but the core group is the Oak family. When they have too many players, they’ll pair up in teams. Wolf and Hugo are not allowed to be on a team together. They did that once while playing RISK and not only utterly destroyed everyone else, they started acting like supervillains. They took it way too far.

Lio and Hugo reconcile… eventually. Even after the progress they made during season 3, things are still rough between them for a while. Hugo remains somewhat antagonistic towards Lio for much of his recovery. He does try to be better, but his default reaction to emotional discomfort is to verbally lash out at others and, given their history, Lio makes for a tempting target. Over time, and with a lot of work, the antagonism fades into good-natured ribbing. Hugo still crosses the line at times, but isn’t as slow to admit to fault and apologize. Every now and then an argument will break out. While Hugo isn’t as obstinate as he used to be, there are still times when he gets defensive and escalates rather than accept that he may have gone too far. The relationship is still pretty strained by the time Hugo moves out, but having his own space allows him and Lio to find a sort of balance. They can see each other whenever they want, but also have distance whenever they need it.

Hugo becomes a music teacher. The idea was Kipo’s. Given his love of music and how good he was with the mute kids, it just made sense to her. In a rare moment of agreement, Lio and Hugo both point out that most parents in Las Vistas would probably object to a former dictator (who may have mind controlled them) teaching their children. Song eventually comes up with the suggestion to start out giving private piano lessons. The parents of the mute kids he played with back at Timbercat village have formed a grudging trust for him, so they might be willing. Hugo exclusively gives private lessons for about a year. His students love the lessons (even when he gets a little manic) and their parents come to see him in a new light. Over that year, word of mouth reaches most of Las Vistas, and the idea of him teaching at the school becomes less and less objectionable. The school initially hires him on a part-time basis to test the waters, and he’s okay with that as it leaves him plenty of time for his private lesson students. Music and band rapidly become the most popular classes among students, and the school offers Hugo full-time hours. He accepts, but only at the start of the new school year. He adores his private lesson students and doesn’t want to just drop them. He gives extra private lessons in the months leading up to the new year, making sure each kid is confident in their abilities before they ‘graduate’ from his tutelage. At each kid’s final lesson, he lets them know that they can come by every now and then if they have questions or just want to jam. Every single one of them takes him up on the offer. The whole Oak family is immensely proud of Hugo, but none more so than Lio. Lio was the one who taught Hugo to play, and it was their favorite way to bond back in the old burrow. Seeing Hugo pass along the gift of music and get so much joy out of doing so makes Lio happy and proud in a way that makes his heart feel so full it might burst.

Wolf and Hugo bond. Neither one of them is initially thrilled to have the other as an adoptive sibling, but during Hugo’s recovery they begin to realize they have a lot in common. Mostly a pink-haired sister and taste for violence, but every relationship starts somewhere. After the RISK incident, they’re thick as thieves. They both still prefer Kipo over each other, but they’re partners in crime now. They continue to bring out the worst in each other.

That’s it for now! I have more, but I’ll save them for another post. This one is already super long.

#kataow #kipo and the age of wonderbeasts #hugo lives au #best music teacher scarlemagne #kipo headcanon #kipo oak #hugo oak #scarlemagne #lio oak #song oak #kipo wolf #wolfatha christie the fourth #kipo benson #kipo dave #oak family #happy oak family

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apparentlyaswarmofbees · 4 years ago

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I've been asking around this one question for a few people now, because I like hearing what people have to say about it...

So I wouldn't mind it if you shared a list on who's your favourite (from Most to Least) from the Obey Me! Crew (Brothers & Formally Undatables)...

Also, please feel free to ramble on about why you placed them in each space...

O-oh dear-

First off, you spoil an infodumper like me too much lol (I am happy sfjsjjdjn) and I am going to go overboard (and changing the order of things) for my own pleasure.

And so...

Second off...

Gladly

Here is My List of LEAST to MOST Favorite of The Obey Me Boys ^^

That I just did on spot because I didn't have one ready because it's hard for me to rate the characters as they all have their traits and even their flaws add something good to the character but I'll be dammed if I don't enjoy deep frying my brain for fun.

Please take note I am taking this literally and all characters in here are FAVORITES, just some will be more and some less, which mean I LIKE ALL OF THEM. Yes, I have changed my opinion on a certain two characters I have said to not like, and I am not ashamed to say I was incorrect.

So let's start this off with the right foot shall we?

#12 | Diavolo

He is still infuriating I won't deny that. And I won't pity him though he is a tragic character that is so lonely he overrates any kind of affection, that doesn't know how to interact with others without exagerating, that has no one to give an oposing opinion because of his status and so it's increasingly hard for him to learn to make good decisions, and with his goal to unite the realms I could almost say he is naive. He's a bit of a puppy always wanting some pets, but as a not dog person, I don't have enough in me to be always playing, so to me an overly needy puppy can end up getting annoying, though of course, I can't help it but at least give it a few pets before going my way.

#11 | Simeon

Yes in the end I actually liked him all along but was just in denial after I thought about it. Simeon is a good character, he's a dick even though he's an angel and he doesn't bother to be any different, he definetelly has his own set of rules he follows and I believe he would be a Chaotic Good just like me. He's well made. And as much as he is pretty unlikeable, the mystery, the questions, the fact that he has always been the same we just didn't get to interact with him much to see it, to have a naturally asshole character put down some of his walls to help us even if part out of possible self interest. And of course he's also fun. Simeon is charming, and I have come to appreciate all of him.

#10 | Luke

A kid. A brat and a tsundere. I Absolutely love the character development and it's extremelly adorable. He's now officially our guardian angel and I love that. He was just a prick that I rolled my eyes so hard whenever I encountered him in the game and now he's just a lil' bratty brother that is fun to tease and squish the cheeks off. He's a really nice kid in the end, just previously ignorant, but still nice because he was willing to learn and change despise saying he didn't want to. I personally can understand Luke as I was pretty alike as a kid. Again, he's a nice kid I would gladly buy some balloons and cotton candy for.

#9 | Barbatos

The number 1 buttler, he's just, a good dude l o l. He has his distance from everyone due to his position but that doesn't make him any less interesting. He is mysterious and powerful and yet he feels, so chill. He's also fun and actually has a pretty soft personality in which he knows exactly when to switch off to strict. He's a character I respect and wish existed in real life so I could be friends with (╥﹏╥).

#8 | Solomon

Shady sorcerer is actually a pretty good guy though mildly insane. He is actually responsable (and takes it pretty seriously seeing he's basically the representative of the human realm). He's kind though again, mildly insane, and diligent. He may have terrible food but the fact he does it with good intentions is pretty adorable, he just likes to follow his instincts and be spontaneous because he likes new and exciting things. He probably has quite a bit of angst to him due to his not only immortality in not aging but also by not being able to be killed but even so it feels that, contrary to how many human immortals end, he still hasn't lost the light in his eyes and can still enjoy things and enjoy being alive, and that is most likely thanks to other immortal/long living beings such as demons.

#7 | Lucifer

Yep. Lucifer is actually a really fucking great character, he's fond of his family, hard worker to the point of destroying himself, self punisher, elegant, pretty af, cute at times. But not exactly my most favorable cup of tea. Seeing I can see through his bullshit all his posessiveness, all his pettiness, all his actions just becomes ridiculous and annoying. And theres also a problem with the fact we always end up submiting to him, I don't want that. For every time he disrespects me I want him to kneel and kiss my feet. His pride collides with my own, and his decisions do too. But even so he is very reliable and so he has my respect for that, I do want to hug him and tell him he deserves nice things and that he can rest now this is not the war anymore you don't have to bow down to anyone anymore you didn't doom your brothers but freed them instead, but then again he makes bad decisions because he has zero braincells for emotional intelligence and that pisses me off and makes me just want to yeet him off a cliff. Yeah Lucifer, I would gladly kick you in the balls with ♡°.•love•.°♡.

#6 | Leviathan

Surprising is it not? But it's true, I often focus on Levi due to him not only being pretty alike to me but also because he's related to many things I have been familiar with since I was born: animes and games. His anxiousness is relatable, the outcastness is relatable, the awkwardness is relatable, the obsession is relatable, the references are relatable, the infodumping is relatable. He's very relatable to me, but not my most favorite, and all because of his envy. He's a guilt tripper, and though I am long immune to it in real life due to extreme exposure to it from my family, it still is enough for his rank to go down. I still love him though, but mostly as the character that represents the thing I am most familiar with in life: myself.

#5 | Beelzebub

Big puppy, he's the type of guy who will talk to plants. He has big and strong hands that could crush anything and yet he will do his best to handle some things gently. He's chill and non judgemental, loyal to the core. Once you win him over, you win him over, he would die for you. He is purposely childish at times and it's cute. He is amazing. I wish I could enjoy eating like he does. He's the only character I truly feel hurt for, as he is deeply inflicted by survivor's guilt and it just pains me I can't comfort him because he isn't real ಥ‿ಥ

#4 | Belphegor

Hoh boy. The brat. The fandom itself is pretty divided on their liking of Belphie and it's understandable lol. But I personally understand Belphie. To hide hurt behind anger, hate and spite, to turn to agression to prove a point but you end up just fucking up. But the guilt and wish to fix things can lead one to giving themselves up, and so it becomes a constant battle of getting close but not too close for the sake of both parties involved. I get this boy more than I wish I ever did, and that's why he's high on the ranking. And because he's cute ngl.

#3 | Satan

H o h b o y, another one that reminds me of myself, only it's the aftermath of the above where one bottles up all their negative feelings because being emotional is not being rational and who the fuck even wants to not be rational. Where you have no fucking idea who you are because all you know is to stomp your feet and scream for the sake of making an statement but that just proved all your enemies a point so now you turn to smarts to prove yourself. To make others angry, to make them frustrated and infuriated with your knowledge because you want to prove yourself, be reconized for who you are, to be someone and also, hopefully, change other people's ways, to make them understand they are wrong because you deep down actually want to get along with them. Yeah, Satan is high on the list, and it's also because he likes detectives uwu.

#2 | Asmodeus

What a fucking icon he is I love him okay. It frustrates me when people use cheating as a angst prompt for him as he's obviously someone who just isn't made for monogamy, and he's pretty honest and I feel he would have nothing to hide and would talk it all out with all his partners. He's a sweetheart that works hard on daily basis and hour after hour to mantain an image, he likes the attention, he wants to be loved. If anyone mildly self centered ever told me 'I love you as much as I love myself' I would marry them on spot. Asmo is just incredibly sweet and I love all his affection and respect him for all the work he does to make a good impression and look up to that self confidence even though most of it is actually just him trying to convince himself. Also perfect example off gender is an ilusion lol.

#1 | Mammon

Yep, our number 1, The Great Mammon, the most lovable dumbass that has been by our side from the start though with a bit of whining. This man is perfect. He has incredible self control over his powers, and as someone who used to be an angel to be able to use money all you want bro. I wouldn't feel bad either. He's our protector from start to end to the point he focuses on us instead of the queen in the Dame event. He isn't stupid just has selective focus just like me! And all the people with ADHD and many other neurodivergents. When he wants something he does is perfectly and diligently, he just needs the right push at the right time. He's the most good of all demons and even angels and he loves all his brothers deeply, he is always there to support everyone to the point of even allowing himself to be the punching bag for the sake of them not turning too much on one another. He was literally our first SSR card, our first call, our first pact, our first and the best. He IS great, truly.

#god I need to sleep #any typos are due to sleep deprivedness and I will be fixing later #obey me #obey me!#obey me shall we date #obey me! shall we date?

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