#he does not see the point in maintaining relationships with acquaintances

[painom]

What is their biggest insecurity? for Ayato (You should have known I would have said him at some point for this blog lol) - Mimikyu

Okay before I start with this, I know you know this, but let me just say that Ayato is a fictional character. What I mean by this is that I don't believe he'd be very realistic as an actual person. Thus he does not follow the same rules that regular people would. Added to this, he is an actualized person. Any insecurities that he may have had in the past have been worked through and handled. There is not much that bothers him anymore. So anything I bring up as an actual insecurity probably is not very much one anymore. 

Okay? Okay, good. Analysis below.

I'm going to use enneagram to determine what I best believe to be his insecurity. Is it going to match completely? No, it will not. This will be because, as I said before, Ayato is not a realistic person, and he is actualized, so this insecurity does not bother him much anymore. Added onto this, Ayato is very much NOT a figurehead of his type. He is an outlier. 

First, let's figure out what Ayato's core emotion would be: shame, fear, or rage. The instinctive triad are concerned with not being affected by their environment. They strive to have the most control over themselves. The feeling triad is concerned with self-identity. They don't know who they truly are, and thus try to project an image in order to truly become it. And then the thinking triad is concerned with security. They try to gather as much support and guidance they can to approach the world. Judging by the three below, I believe the one that matches Ayato best is the instinctive triad.

As a whole, when we see Ayato, he does not allow himself to be affected by the world. He is always removed from it. There's always a line between Ayato and the outside world. He's never emotionally affected by things. He always has a straight head. He's clear, methodical, and in control. 

Now the question is, how does he maintain this control? In each triad, there are three ways a person engages with their core emotion. They externalize it, they internalize it, or they do both. 

The way the instinctive triad externalizes their rage is that they assert their dominance in the world. They are very much controlled by rage. They fiercely protect themselves by attacking and pushing back anything they perceive is coming after them. These people are very aggressive and are quick to fight. This type's (ennea 8) core fear is being harmed or controlled by others .

The way the instinctive triad internalizes their rage is by asserting full control over the self. These people become obsessed with self-control and being perfect. They hold themselves to high standards and other people as well. This type's (ennea 1) core fear is being bad, corrupt, evil, or defective.

The way the instinctive triad does both is by not allowing themselves to be affected by both the external and internal environment. These people do not assert their wants and needs. They believe these things don't exist. By not having any needs, they don't let themselves be bothered by the world. This type's (ennea 9) core fear is of loss of connection, of fragmentation

If you want to see a list of all core fears, here they are below. Ennea 2-4 are the feeling triad (dealing with shame) and ennea 5-7 are the thinking triad (dealing with fear).

Now what ennea do I think Ayato's is? I wrote out this whole explanation for ennea 9, but looking at it more, I believe he is an ennea 1. Ennea 1s are described as having a greater purpose in life. They are methodical, calm, controlled, and have high standards for themselves and others. For Ayato, his whole purpose is family. Everything he does is for his family. He prizes loyalty above all else and expects this strictly from others. Though he may seem laidback, I believe he holds himself and others to high standards. 

Does this mean that Ayato fears being bad, corrupt, evil, or defective? This would be his core fear, his insecurity, after all. I'm not sure. However, I can see it sitting on his mind. He looks at the things he's willing to do for his family, even go against the Shogun of all things, and him wondering if he's doing the right thing. What his sister would think of him if she knew what he was up to in his pursuit to do what's best for the family. I can also see him wondering if he's defective in some way. He knows that he doesn't have emotional reactions to things and are otherwise unbothered, so him wondering if he's fully human. I can see deep down, these things bothering him, but him choosing not to dwell too much on them. What Ayaka doesn't know, she doesn't need to know. 

But anyway, yeah, that's my analysis. However, going back, what's important to know is that Ayato is both unrealistic and actualized. He does not have any insecurities that would bother him like how they would someone less mature. Also, Ayato is not a standard 1. 1s are known for having sticks up their butt, but that's very much not Ayato. If I had to type him completely, I believe he'd be a 1w9 sx/sp. 

[heliads]

Hi! Hope I’m not too late, could I request a Derek Hale x reader where she (already knowing ab the supernatural) gets tired of Derek constantly disappearing from her life whenever he does that Derek thing until finally she’s fed up with it being the one to disappear this time idk how to end it or go from there but I was thinking of an angsty hurt/comfort with a happy ending🥺! Hope it’s enough, thank you!!

'the one who leaves ' - derek hale

masterlist

The hardest part of both being a werewolf and knowing a werewolf is, and will always be, the horrors. The attacks that never cease, the blood always shed. The second hardest part is the strain of being with someone whose life is always in jeopardy purely because of who they are. Although it doesn’t feel nearly as important as the constant threat of hunters, or the latest monster to decide that Beacon Hills should be its new domain, sometimes you swear the second part hangs even more heavily about your heart than the first. Then again, maybe that’s just because of Derek Hale.

Derek is one of the most complicated players on the supernatural chess board. You met him what feels like a lifetime ago, when one of seemingly dozens of supernatural attacks had threatened the lives of Beacon Hills citizens. Derek had saved your life. A month later, you’d saved him from some hunters. The back-and-forth of life saving went on and on until the two of you decided you were better as friends than people a little too important to each other to be acquaintances, and then the boundaries were shifted again when you started dating.

Sometimes, though, on rough nights after long fights and darker ones when you haven’t seen Derek in weeks and he doesn’t seem all that inclined to answer your texts or voicemails, you start to think that entering into a relationship with you is one of Derek’s biggest regrets. It’s not that he doesn’t care for you; Derek has assured you many times over that his feelings for you are stronger even than his loyalties to his pack, his commitment to killing the hunters responsible for the Hale House fire, yet the problem remains.

Derek is all too familiar with the struggle of having a weakness. When his ancestral home burned down with most of his family trapped inside, he learned for the first time that sometimes a mortal blow capable of destroying his life doesn’t have to threaten him specifically. When he loves someone so much that he prioritizes their safety above his own, Derek creates a weakness that hunters and other supernaturals can exploit. He would never forgive himself if you were hurt as a tool to get to him, so Derek has been doing his best to limit the fallout of any supernatural fight onto you.

However, this only seems to drive the two of you apart. Yes, by not being seen in public as often anymore, Derek lowers the possibility that a hunter would try to kidnap you as a hostage, but it also means that you see him less and less frequently. When you do finally manage to meet up, after thoroughly checking to make sure you haven’t been tailed, and only after dark in one of your houses, you’re both exhausted, wrung dry of the same life and spirit that had brought the two of you together in the first place.

It’s not the same anymore. You hate to admit it, but it’s true. Loving Derek is no longer the beautiful victory it had always been. Instead, you feel as if you’ve lost the war. Derek isn’t yours anymore. If he was, you wouldn’t have to hide what the two of you share, you wouldn’t have to constantly stare at the long list of missed calls on your phone and wonder when he’ll ever pick up, if he even wants to anymore. Derek is doing a great job at keeping you safe, but somewhere along the line, the two of you got your priorities mixed up. Now you’re alone and he’s alive, and you don’t know that you’re any happier about it than you would have been if one of you were lost to the hunters.

At this point, why try? Why even bother with the pretense of maintaining the ruse? The two of you might as well not even be together at all. It doesn’t feel like you are, certainly, when you go so long in between visits. Even when the two of you are finally face to face, Derek is harried and brief, hardly staying longer than a few hours before rushing off again, never to be seen for another few months.

It wears away at you like a river at a stone. Your sharp edges, the ones that pierced through his shell so easily at the beginning of it all, have been smoothed to nothingness. Each of your attempts to break through to Derek and coax him into staying even a little longer are brushed off with simple excuses. It’s like you don’t even exist to him anymore.

Fine. Fine. If you’re not a person to him anymore, he will not be a person to you. You pack up your things and leave Beacon Hills early one morning, only telling Scott McCall and Deaton over at the vet so they can contact you if need be. You don’t say a word about your absence to Derek. Why bother? He’s not even in town, hasn’t been for months. When he comes back– if he attempts to come back at all– he can ask one of his friends and hear the same answer that he would from you right now. There’s no point in wasting either of your time any longer.

You’re still engaged in fighting the good fight against the supernatural. Deaton is a longtime friend of yours, and he’d been hearing rumors of a peculiarity a couple of states over. He couldn’t afford to leave Beacon Hills for an extended period of time, being so important to the town as one of its last defenders, so you offered to go instead. It would be good for you, you said. The trip. Being able to clear your head.

Odds are, Deaton had been able to see through that excuse as he has many of your others all throughout your life, but he had just nodded and said that he was grateful for your help. With that, you left town. You’ve been in Beacon Hills for your entire life, excluding brief excursions in the name of school or work or family trips. Never before have you left like this, not entirely sure if you would ever come back, uncertain that the person you love most of all would be there to want you to return.

At first, the trip feels like a terror. Then you roll down the windows and let the early morning light touch your face with soft, bright fingers; then the breeze cools your face, running over your skin in loose circles; then you start to breathe at last, for the first time in what feels like years. Then you remember that you are still a person worth saving, and maybe even if Derek Hale cannot do that, you can save yourself by leaving.

The miles pass by in moments. You’re long gone by the time anyone starts waking up. Scott knew that you were leaving and told the other teenagers in his pack so they wouldn’t freak out, but he still texts you anyway. Hope you find what you’re looking for.

So do I, you message him back at a red light. Stay safe.

Thanks, he responds, then no more.

You end up in the state of your choice by the middle of the afternoon, booking a room at a hotel so you can have a home base while properly surveying the area. You don’t have a supernatural’s knack for telling when something is wrong, but the hairs on the back of your neck prickle anyway, letting you know that the currents of the wind around this city have a magical edge, a certain element that sets them aside from a normal town. Good. You could use something fantastical and uncommon.

You don’t know when you expect to hear back from Derek. Never, maybe. You had assumed that he wouldn’t try to reach out to you until he got back, which might be anywhere from a few months from now to never. Once he returned to Beacon Hills, Derek could hear from Scott as to why you weren’t there anymore. You and Derek hardly spoke at all anymore, except out of an obligation to make sure you were still alive. He probably wouldn’t care at all.

Yet not a week has gone by before you start getting frantic texts from Derek.

Y/N. You in town?

Why is your house empty?

Scott tells me you left town. Why didn’t you tell me?

Y/N. Please text back. I’m getting worried.

Three missed calls.

Please pick up, sweetheart. I’ll drive over there myself if I have to. Just tell me you’re alive.

You stare at the notifications for a long time, reveling in how they build in intensity, then tap out a message of your own at last:  I’m alive and well.

Derek immediately responds. And you didn’t tell me you were going?

The bright glow of your phone dulls your senses. Nothing feels right, but nothing feels wrong anymore. Loving Derek used to make you feel invincible. Now, you’re just tired, and wishing this exchange would end.

Didn’t think I would have to. You’ve been away for months, and you never tell me when you’re going. Why should I?

Derek doesn’t like that at all. It’s different with me, sweetheart. You know that.

You don’t bother to grace that with a response. Setting your phone on ‘do not disturb,’ you shove the device back in your pocket. It’s good that Derek is unhappy with this turn of events, you decide. For once, he should be the one panicking when he wakes up alone, when he wants to be with the person he loves only for them to disappear without a trace. Why should it be you all the time?

You carry on with your task. As it turns out, the case at hand, the utter unraveling of the supernatural presence in this town, is due to an overactive ancient curse on the town. Deaton talks you through how to shut it down, and once the job is done, you return home, proud of yourself and your accomplishments.

You’re fully expecting Derek to have left town again by the time you got back. He’s been messaging you non stop, but you’ve been leaving most of those messages on ‘unread’ since they all say pretty much the same things:  why wouldn’t you tell me you were going, are you alright, come back ASAP. You message back occasionally to assure him that you’re still alive, but mainly, you think a bit of silence would do the both of you some good.

After arriving back at Beacon Hills, you stop by your house to drop off your belongings before visiting Deaton to debrief. He’s glad to hear of your success, but once both of you have ensured that the town was handled accordingly, he breaks protocol to talk about your personal life instead.

“I think you should talk to Derek Hale,” he says uneasily.

You frown at him. “What?”

Deaton glances around to make sure no customers can overhear you, then continues on. “He’s been a wreck ever since you left. He keeps stopping by the shop to demand information from me. He insisted for a long time that I give him the name of the town you were visiting so he could check on you himself, but I kept it from him because I thought you would need to focus.”

“That was the right call,” you assure him. It would, after all, have been more difficult to juggle both an errant curse and a supremely ticked off boyfriend.

Deaton chuckles good-naturedly. “That was what I had assumed. I would still recommend talking to him, though. These sorts of conflicts are best handled sooner rather than later.”

You nod your agreement, and, after talking a few minutes longer, head out towards Derek’s apartment complex. Although you’ve felt bitterly triumphant in the fact that Derek now knows what it’s like to miss somebody like you’ve been missing him, you fell in love with him for a reason, and that reason was that you liked being around him more than you did with anyone else. You still love him, even if the two of you have been on the fringe of an argument for a while now.

That’s what drives you to his building, what carries you up the interminably long elevator ride, what brings you to knock twice on his door and wait until a quiet voice from inside announces that the door is unlocked.

That’s the first sign that something is wrong. Derek never leaves the door unlocked. Some could call it an overwhelming concern for safety, or just plain paranoia, but Derek’s experienced enough tragedy in his life to go overboard in making sure that he keeps all potential avenues of risk firmly blocked off. The fact that the door is unlocked disquiets you more than you like to admit.

Slowly, carefully, you push the door open. Immediately, you’re struck by the gloomy atmosphere of the place. Derek pulled the curtains over the wide windows of his apartment, making the whole place darker and more lifeless than usual. The lights are off. You can assume that Derek can see thanks to his werewolf senses without needing the fluorescents, but for your human eyes, the whole place just seems as dark and grave as a crypt.

“Derek?” You call out hesitantly.

Silence. Then, a husky voice from the back. “Y/N? Is that you?”

You still can’t see him in the gloom, so you cross the apartment to open the blinds on the large windows, hoping to toss some light on the situation. You know the layout of the place from memory, so many visits here help to solidify your knowledge of each piece of furniture in the apartment. Still, you’re not expecting to see Derek crumpled in a chair on the corner, looking significantly the worse for wear.

You’re at his side in an instant. “Derek? Are you alright?”

“I’m fine,” he says listlessly. “Not like you knew a thing about that, though, disappearing like that.”

Your concern for him starts to fade away, replaced instead by a burning irritation. “So that’s what all of this is about? You’re so hurt that I was the one to leave that you’ve become comatose?”

Derek sits up a little, eyes flashing. “You vanished without a trace and didn’t tell me where you went. I thought you were dead, Y/N. I had to pry information out of Deaton so I even knew you were alive, and when I tried to contact you, you ignored my messages. What the hell was I supposed to think?”

You laugh, although it’s not a happy sound. “Finally, you understand. This is what I deal with every time you leave town, Derek. You never tell me where you’re going or what you’re doing. I sat here in Beacon Hills for months, wondering if you’ll ever come back. I was gone for half the time you usually are and yet it’s far too much for you to handle. How do you think I feel?”

Derek’s lips flatten. “I– I didn’t realize you took it like that. I was just trying to keep you safe. You know how the hunters watch me, and–”

You cut him off, feeling the anger coiling through your stomach. “I know that, Derek. I know that every supernatural in your life that isn’t a part of your pack wants you dead. I know that in your head, this is how you keep me safe, by constantly cutting me out of your life, but has it occurred to you that this isn’t what I want? You could have asked me if this was the way to handle it. If you had even talked to me at all, I would have told you that I don’t care about being safe. Not if it means we’re like this. Not if it means I don’t get to have you at all.”

Derek stands up slowly, until he’s hovering just a few breaths away from you. One of his hands reaches up to cradle your cheek. “I never wanted to hurt you,” he whispers. “I’ve lost so many people in my life. I can’t lose you, too.”

“I know,” you murmur back. “But if you keep going on like this, if you keep pushing me away, you’ll lose me anyway.”

He flinches. “I should have asked you,” he admits. “I can’t erase the past, Y/N, but I can apologize for the present. Will you forgive me?”

“Only if you stay with me,” you answer him.

A ghost of a smile plays upon his lips. “I’ve never had a problem with that. It hurts like hell, leaving you. Always.”

“Then don’t do it anymore,” you urge him. “Stay with me, Derek. Keep me safe by staying with me.”

“I will,” Derek promises.

People in love make a lot of promises. Some are kept, some are broken. Some are forgotten about entirely. Looking at Derek in this half-darkness, though, you have a feeling that this one will be cherished for quite a long time indeed.

teen wolf tag list: @mayfieldss, @rogueanschel, @lovesanimals0000, @rafecameronswhore, @bellabadacadabra, @watchreadfangirlrepeat, @23victoria

all tags list: @wordsarelife

[destielaureversebb]

Coming soon for the @destielaureversebb: “Where the Oakhearts roam” 

Author: SakuraKitty @wolfiepyxie Artist: anyrei @anyreiart

Rating: Mature Archive warnings: No archive warnings apply Length: 50,000 words Tags:  Viking Dean Winchester, Oakhearts, Magic, Acquaintances to Lovers, Slow Burn, Dean Winchester Has Trust Issues Relationships: Dean/Castiel

Summary:  

Injured and separated from his clan, Dean stumbles upon a man living in isolation by the name of Castiel, whose only company are creatures named the Oakhearts.

Certain that trusting Castiel will be his downfall, Dean goes about his recovery days being constantly on guard and vigilant of the man he barely knows who has taken him in. And with each passing day he gains more questions than he does answers. Who is Castiel? Why has he secluded himself away from other people? And furthermore, why does he cause such confusing feelings within Dean?

Excerpt: 

The man before him certainly had the build of a warrior with broad, strong shoulders and powerful thighs that filled out the man’s breeches in ways that Dean was not accustomed to seeing. Or rather, he was not accustomed to noticing such things. The man in question, though not appearing to bear the crest of any known clan, was so akin to many Norsemen he knew and yet not simultaneously. And as Dean finally looked at the man’s face he, surprisingly, found himself lost in the most intense pair of blue eyes he had ever seen. They were the deepest of blue, much like the ocean that had been Dean’s home for quite some time before they made ground here.

It was more difficult than expected to break whatever trance the man’s eyes seemed to put him in, but Dean managed as he continued to assess him. The sword at his hip further proved that the man was a warrior but many, even those who were not warriors, still carried a weapon on their person to defend themselves with. So the fact that the man has a sword does not make him a warrior, it would be his prowess in battle that would make him one.

“Who are you?” Dean demanded as he pointed the blade of his ax at the stranger. If he can’t kill him and if the man has no intention of doing the same to him then the least he could do was get some answers.

“I am Castiel,” the man, Castiel, said as he continued to maintain a respectable distance. “My apologies if I startled you. I saw you lying here and grew concerned that you may be injured or worse,” he said and it was odd because he did sound truly concerned for Dean.

Posting date:  March 10, 2025

[darklinaforever]

Lestat's biggest mistake was forcing Claudia to watch Charlie burn, we'll never know how Claudia would've developed otherwise. I'm sure he didn't mean for that to happen, but the action itself was intentionally sadistic. I found his words spiteful? when he was forcing her to watch. The words about not getting close to humans. Not to mention hypocritical, because he's gotten close to plenty of humans. And to make things worse, Claudia proved him wrong, she did find a beautiful companionship. Nothing from what we saw indicates that Claudia hated Lestat because he turned her. Nor did Louis 'twist himself in the best possible light' < that's a lie, are you smearing Louis to absolve Lestat? The turning itself is inconsequential at this point because they had a wholesome family life in ep4. I don't want to get into into the discussion about abuse, and no, nothing Lestat did deserved being murdered, but I'm pointing out that Lestat made the biblical mistake which ruined their family. So it wasn't Claudia or Louis' mistakes that broke their family, it was Lestat's because he started the chain of mistakes.

Pardon ? Don't you see how Louis gave himself a better role in Claudia's transformation ? Did you see the version he told vs the reality ? He downplayed his role in Claudia's transformation but maintained the opposite. Louis says it himself in the show.

So no, I'm not smearing Louis to absolve Lestat ?

And if you find that there is nothing to indicate that Claudia is angry with Lestat mainly because she considers him responsible for her current situation, I don't know what to tell you other than to rewatch the series, especially the trial in season 2, read the books, see the film. It's literally something present in every format of this story.

Also, when Lestat is close to a human, he usually ends up transforming them. Like with Nicolas, Louis and Antoinette. Generally speaking apart from that, no, Lestat is not really close to humans. He does not form a close, long-term relationship with them. Or you consider acquaintances as close relationships...

And what Lestat did with Charlie for me was simply confront Claudia with her mistake and tell her the hard truth.

Lestat is more harsh and drastic in nature with Claudia than Louis. He always was. But that doesn't mean sadistic for this scene. He didn't even seem to take any particular pleasure when he made her watch ? He has a rather closed face more than anything else.

And then, the point is not to know who destroyed the family dynamic first. The goal was to talk about Lestat's so-called abuse of Claudia and sorry, but for me, this scene with Charlie is not part of it. The other thing I talked about was what caused Lestat's affection for Claudia to spiral into antagonism and clearly, that was when she made her killing. Claudia, yes, obviously it was from the end of episode 4 like I said.

[txttletale]

idk how to put this sorry if this comes off as rude/confrontational I'm not trying to be — when you say stories about forgiveness/reconciliation, do you mean more the type about forgiving & reconciling with family, or more generally (so like including - this isn't the best example but I can't think of any better rn - catra for example? where it's about being trapped in hurting people because of trauma and breaking out of that)? or is the thing you dislike more stories' framing of forgiveness as a moral imperative?

sorry if this doesn't make sense I'm just curious what you think bc you've raised some interesting points and would really like to see you elaborate on them

don't worry you don't come off as rude whatsoever! while i think my points apply broadly to how forgiveness is treated across media (rare actual example of cultural christianity) -- i obviously am not, like, against forgiveness or stories about forgiveness on principle. what i dislike about all the narratives about people forgiving their abusive parents is that:

like you said, it's always framed as a moral imperative. there is always an underlying assumption that forgiving the abuser is the 'right' and 'correct' thing to do, that not doing so would be wrong. this is tremendously insulting to survivors who have every right to not forgive their abusers!

in most of these narratives, the parent barely does shit to be forgiven. there's very often a narrative equivocation, in fact, between parent and child. like, sometimes the parent won't even be expected to apologize -- sometimes, even more grotesquely, both the parent and child apologize for their shared supposed 'wrongdoing'. this is also obviously insulting to survivors, who are not in any way responsible for their abuse or for having a poor relationship with their parents.

the reason why this in particular pisses me off so much is that it mirrors and in turn contributes to the cultural expectation on abuse victims in real life to maintain contact with their abusers, the constant casual pressure from everything from strangers to friends to acquaintances saying 'well, can't you just put it behind you?' or 'look, he's changed' or 'she's your mom' or 'you'll only have one chance to have a relationship with your siblings' or whatever the fuck. the sanctity of the family is a cardinal value across a lot of societies and this sanctity means a constant, neverending societal pressure to bow to sweeping abuse under the rug. i've seen many people i care about struggle deeply with feeling obligated to maintain relationships with family members who treat them like shit and make htem miserable every time they interact bc of exactly these sorts of sentiments being everpresent in their cultural environment. & these narratives always paint that sort of pressure as being well-founded and fair and ultimately for the better, which is absolutely repellent to me.

so, yeah. i am not against narratives where an abusive person actually confronts their actions and changes and repairs that relationship (that's another fucking thing, these narratives always put the onus and responsiblity on the character who was abused to forgive rather than on the abuser to earn forgiveness, just like in real life familial abuse victims are always fucking expected to be the ones to repair the relationship). i think such narratives can be powerful and compelling and explore questions of what the value of 'forgiveness' or 'redemption' even are, as well as dispel the mystique and exceptionalism often attributed to the 'abuser' as a holistic malevolent figure that can be cleanly separated from every other parent/grandparent/sibling/etc.

what i'm against is narratives where someone who is abused has their feelings delegitimized -- their rage is wrong, counterproductive, they need to let go and move on, they need to forgive their abusers and let them back int otheir lives because oh, they did something wrong too or oh, their abuser had a difficult life, or whatever the fuck. to which the answer should be a flat -- no. they don't. all the more power to people who choose to do that if that's what makes them happiest and safest but absolutely nobody has a moral obligation or need to forgive an abusive family member. obviously i am exaggerating slightly when i say every abusive parent subplot should end with the parent being killed with hammers, but i'm using the hammer murder as a synechdoche for a narrative treating an abuse victim's antipathy towards their abuser as something legitimate and justified and obviously reasonable rather than a flaw or something they need to move past.

[checkoutmybookshelf]

You Have My Attention: Bridgerton First Lines

I literally cannot believe I haven't done a First Lines for Bridgerton yet!!! Thanks to the Netflix series, Bridgerton itself needs little introduction. However, Julia Quinn still had to catch her readers, and those first sentences are crucial for that. House rules for this one are that we will do the prologue and first chapter first lines (with the exception of When He was Wicked, which just doesn't have a prologue for some reason), because let's face it: We want to meet both our love interests. Let's see how she does it!

Prologue

The birth of Simon Arthur Henry Fitzranulph Basset, Earl Clyvdon, was met with great celebration.

Chapter 1

"Ooooooooooohhhhhhhhh!" Violet Bridgertin crumpled the single-page newspaper into a ball and hurled it across the elegant drawing room.

Her daughter Daphne wisely made no comment and pretended to be engrossed in her embroidery.

-- The Duke and I

Prologue

Anthony Bridgerton had always known he would die young.

Chapter 1

"Please don't tell me," Kate Sheffield said to the room at large, "that she is writing about Viscount Bridgerton again."

-- The Viscount Who Loved Me

Prologue

Everyone knew Sophie Beckett was a bastard.

Chapter 1

"Sophie! Sophieeeeeeeeeeeeee!"

As screeches went, it was enough to shatter glass. Or at least an eardrum.

-- An Offer from a Gentleman

Prologue

On the sixth of April, in the year 1812--precisely two days before her sixteenth birthday--Penelope Featherington fell in love.

Chapter 1

"Look at this!" Portia Featherington squealed. "Colin Bridgerton is back!"

-- Romancing Mister Bridgerton

Prologue

It was ironic, really, that it had happened on such a sunny day.

Chapter 1

Eloise Bridgerton smoothed the well-read sheet of paper across her lap.

-- To Sir Phillip, With Love

Chapter 1

In every life there is a turning point. A moment so tremendous, so sharp and clear that one feels as if one’s been hit in the chest, all the breath knocked out, and one knows, absolutely knows without the merest hint of a shadow of a doubt that one’s life will never be the same. For Michael Stirling, that moment came the first time he laid eyes on Francesca Bridgerton.

Chapter 2

For all his faults—and Francesca was willing to allow that Michael Stirling had many—he really was the dearest man.

-- When He was Wicked

Prologue

There were four principles governing Gareth St. Clair's relationship with his father that he relied upon to maintain his good humor snd general sanity.

Chapter 1

"Why do we do this to ourselves?" Hyacinth Bridgerton wondered aloud.

-- It's In His Kiss

Prologue

His lungs were on fire. Gregory Bridgerton was running.

Chapter 1

Unlike most men of his acquaintance, Gregory Bridgerton believed in true love.

-- On the Way to the Wedding

[markantonys]

I feel like the show is gonna do Randgwene breakup justice just based off of how Maddy and Josha talked about their relationship in the interview. And faith that their relationship won't be weird like it was at this point in the books. Like they said there's no secrets between them anymore cause of what they've both been through. Which that is a change but it makes sense?

oh interesting, i thought they meant there are no secrets *shared* between them anymore, i.e. they haven't been telling each other things and don't really know what's going on in the other's life these days...........okay, i went back to get the exact wording!

josha: it is like home, and i do think there’s real love between rand and egwene, but it is a love that’s from the past. and they are together, but they’re still scratching the surface because they don’t share any secrets together. maddy: they feel like home, and they’ve both been in such insane situations in season 2 and so when we find them in season 3, i think they’re really trying to grapple with everything that they’ve had to endure, but i think being honest with each other means that they have to be honest with themselves first, and that can be terrifying, to actually face those demons, so it’s definitely a complex relationship.

so! slightly odd phrasing of that Secrets sentence, maybe a bit of a Josha ESL Moment (in the sense that "they don't share secrets together" isn't incorrect, but just feels a bit off/unclear to my native speaker's ears), but i think he does mean "they don't tell each other their secrets" rather than "they don't have any secrets between them", especially with the added context of maddy's followup comment. (i'm also not sure if he means "they are together" as in they're physically together in the same place when s3 picks up or as in they're still in a relationship with each other when s3 picks up.......then again, i'm guessing rand and egwene are just as uncertain as i am if they're still in a relationship with each other when s3 picks up!)

anyway! regardless of these details, i agree with you that it sounds like the show is very focused on ensuring randgwene's relationship feels Emotionally Realistic and i think the breakup will be handled very well and more seriously than in the books, as is appropriate for the pre-breakup relationship having been more serious than it was in the books (though the comedy of book!egwene and rand going "the other person is being sooooo brave about me sibling-zoning them, i hope they aren't TOO heartbroken" as egwene sends elayne in to take over rand from her will always be iconic in my heart).

and with maddy's comment, it's possible we might see that rand and egwene DO succeed at being honest with themselves and then moving on to be honest with each other by the end of the season. who knows! i think it does feel thematically important yin-yang-foils-wise for rand & egwene to drift apart to some extent particularly in the later, Darkest Hour era of the story, before they then come back together and trust each other and work together as equals for the last battle, but i think the show will be able to put a deeper emotional spin and more pathos on what often feels like petty Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus-type bickering in the books.

based on various interview comments, it seems like the show is going to maintain the book vibe from this era of there being some fraughtness among the friends, especially between rand and the others, but that the show is ALSO keeping focused on how much deep, genuine love there is and always will be between the group. so that i think we'll get a vibe of "growing pains within a tight-knit friend group that don't change the core love there and will eventually be overcome" rather than the book vibes of "the EF5 gradually drifts apart until they feel more like awkward high school acquaintances who don't really know each other anymore when they do cross paths again 7 books later". and the latter vibe always broke my heart, so i'm so grateful that the show cares so much about keeping the love there always between my emotional support found family!

[caesarflickermans]

I wanna hear a true unpopular HG opinion, it can be abt anything! I like ur takes so I’m just curious lol

To me the fandom en large overestimates friendships between characters. I understand this is coming from the depth of the source material and the wish to find connection for characters in trying times, but I simply do not think it is realistic.

It is true that victors share a unique bond due to understanding each other‘s trauma. However, they at most spend 2-3 weeks per year together, and none if they aren't mentors. Their means of communicating outside of that time is defined by surveillance, thus suppressing the discussion of sensitive topics that might further any such friendships. There are examples that I would see as exceptions, such as Chaff and Haymitch & Finnick and Johanna, but I see these as a rarity to the norm. Neither of these friendships survived the circumstantial time, so whether these would survive after the war is also an open question.

A prominent example of this fanon is Annie's and Johanna's fanon friendship after the war. I simply do not see that being based on anything but wishful thinking. While Johanna knew Finnick and they were indeed friends, Johanna has no relationship with Annie. For all we know, as Annie is unlikely to have ever mentored, Johanna might have met Annie at most a handful of times. I do not see Annie's pregnancy as a convincing reason for Johanna to move to District 4. Even if she did, I doubt these two would last living together for more than a week. In my headcanon, Johanna dies young and alone as she does not have a support system that can help her with her morphine addiction. Her life is a tragedy! That's the point!

I have seen the same being said about Plutarch and the rebels, whereupon their acquaintances amount to fully-fledged friendships. Especially Panem-wide friendships, i.e. with Haymitch or Beetee, are simply unrealistic in the face of constant surveillance—and the fact that Haymitch doesn't even have a phone. The time in 13 is significant but short, and I do not think that anything comes out of it as the time and environment are a whole separate setting which do not aid in keeping in touch once that time and environment is no more. I've seen even more egregious cases with Plutarch specifically and can not ever envision him to befriend the likes of Effie or Coin, simply because he would find the former irritating and the latter suspicious. Fellow rebels fulfil a use for Plutarch, so he would not care to establish or maintain a friendship with someone like Tigris. They are fellow rebels fighting to bring down that system, not friends caring about the other's life.

Overall, I see most of these headcanons as constructing a fanon more comforting than the actual canon at hand. It's comforting to imagine everyone deeply cared about one another instead of the circumstances that brought together strangers and separated them once the time passed.

[magnolia-sunrise]

i was wondering like. at what specific point could wolfgang be sure that bastien likes them afterall. i think iirc you might have mentioned they propositioned him pretty early on and kept a sense of intrigue anyways, i guess this could be a really specific moment in time? what signal made them go 'wait a minute this guy is into me afterall'

second specific question u mentioned wolf would have been in other relationships during these many years they spent w bastien. i guess these are multiple questions, would wolfs other partners notice that theyre somewhere else with their mind? would bastien be jealous or sad or just resign hinself to it? would wolf want for bastien to be jealous or is it more like. happenstance. does this make sense asking like this??

ahh thank you so much for sending this! it is a rare treat to be able to talk about this backstory stuff a bit more <3

lets see, first question, to start off i wrote out a sort of timeline of their acquaintance over 8 years in this post . you remember right, Wolfgang propositions him when they actually get to meet for the second time and talk for a while. they can tell he is kind and selfless in a way that many humans aren't, and also, more importantly, he's hot (and he did save their life and they're very grateful). Bastien politely declines as he's in a comitted relationship with Matteo at that point already (and still very much in love with him), but its fair to say theres a lot of mutual physical attraction, and it's very fun for Wolfgang to flirt with him and tease him through the years as they grow closer.

Bastien falls in love first, but he's also become very good at hiding those feelings and putting them away into a drawer somewhere far away in his heart. iirc i haven't talked about what would've been *The* moment for Wolf - they have an affection for him, but i think it takes them a few months to catch up on the fact there's something more, that his touch is softer, more tender perhaps.

but there is this event that happens early on when the actual story would kick off, around year 7/8 of them knowing each other, when they witness something really gruesome and in their attempt to follow the perpetrators they get hurt, but its significantly worse on their mental state - they can't unsee the things they saw and they grieve the lives they could've saved if they were faster. in that state they drag themself to the clinic late in the night and only Bastien is there. he takes care of their wounds as usual, except nothing is really 'as usual' anymore, and they can't stop sobbing through it. it's probably the most vulnerable they've ever been with him at that point. Bastien doesn't come home that night, he stays with them and holds them without asking questions. he knows he shouldn't but he can't bear to send them away. from that time i think Wolf finally understood just how much Bastien loves them, even though he tries to hide it. (he is even so good at hiding it that Élise tries to talk some sense into Wolfgang and that they shouldn't pine after him because it's a lost cause)

second question -- this is a bit tricky because its my fault for being the unreliable narrator here who hyperfixates on the "main love interest" in Bastien, without showing much of other people in either of their lives. in the early years, Bastien is not necessarily the most important person in their life at all - he's intriguing, sure, and he's attractive and they become genuine friends but that takes years, and Wolfgang knows other interesting and hot people they fuck and date in the meantime. one of their previous partners they actually meet at the clinic (another android patient). they also maintain a kind of fun friends with paid benefits relationship with Élise. so i would say they very much pay their full attention to whoever they're with, and their primary intent is definitely not concerned with thinking about what Bastien might feel about it. at least initially.

does Bastien feel jealous? oh yes, even though i don't think he would be able to identify that emotion correctly. more than once he sees them making out with someone or other in the alley behind the clinic and he can't help but feel - well - he gets angry at himself mostly, full of jealousy and envy, and then pushes it all down. he probably thinks he deserves to feel miserable and guilty.

when they get to the point they're both aware of their mutual feelings, Wolfgang doesn't really even have time to pursue any relationships. at most they fuck their friends, but the emotional mess that's between them and Bastien just keeps getting messier and more desperate, and they don't want to seriously involve anyone else in it. it's bad enough that Bastien still lives and sleeps with Matteo. in a moment of spiteful weakness maybe they would try to make him feel jealous of them sleeping with someone else, but all it does is just make them both more miserable so there's not really a point to it - it wouldn't change Bastien's decision. their worst fear is losing him as a friend, they can't push too much and they can't leave either. so for months they're both trapped in this mutual misery of yearning and lingering touches and things left unsaid until it all boils over

[xanadontit]

Had a chance to catch up with D and quelle surprise: her husband made her cry ON Mother’s Day.

D has a rough relationship with her mom, who is very likely an undiagnosed narcissist. One of D’s longtime friends who is a therapist sent her a ton of articles and book recommendations and said “I don’t like to diagnose people I’m not treating but uhhhh... yeah.” She’s not a loving or involved grandmother either, and while D doesn’t actively limit exposure, she will not allow her kids to spend unsupervised time with her mom. Visits are usually just gatherings with her brother (the golden child) and his wife and son. 

D and her husband took the kids to Target to buy Mother’s Day cards for the grandmas and D was making jokes about how a lot of them weren’t applicable to her mom. “Thanks for all you do? Nope!” The toddler wasn’t registering this and the baby is, well, a baby. D wasn’t actively talking shit, just kind of laughing about the reality of the situation. As she and I have joked “If we don’t laugh we might cry.” In the moment her husband was gently scolding her but didn’t seem that upset.

For some reason on Mother’s Day the husband decided to yell at D in the car in front of their children about how she’s a disrespectful daughter and needs to model being respectful of elders/family members. 

Please take a moment and let the irony sink in. This was his pitch? Screaming at her to be kinder? K, bro.

Also bear in mind their big Mother’s Day plans involved 4 hours in the car to see HIS mommy and his family who at best ignore her and at worst say racist things about her and their children. D lets a lot slide in the name of maintaining peace and because she wants her kids to have grandparents in their lives (although I’d argue that grandparents who are racist should be cut off but no one asked my opinion). For Father’s Day he has a guys’ day planned with his buddies while all the wives tend to the children. So, you know, normal day. 

I’m coming to terms with the fact that this guy isn’t just an oblivious ass and is actually abusing her. Who yells at their partner 1) in a space where she can’t walk away and 2) in front of their small children and 3) to the point where she’s reduced to tears and keeps going? An abusive asshole, right? And why does he think he gets to dictate the terms of her 40+ year relationship with her mother? She’s a mess and doesn’t deserve all this consideration beyond the basic decency you’d show an acquaintance! Shut up!

Guess it’s good I’m seeing my cousin the therapist this weekend because I need some help here. 

[inkykeiji]

hi clari! i have a few questions about touya-nii’s reader’s personality. from what we see she seems to be a very sweet girl, but let’s say for a second she’s not that way; would touya even care as long as she was still sweet to him? wouldn’t it even be more beneficial to him if she’s not the nicest to everyone she meets?

alternatively (going back to her original sweet personality) what if she were to gradually become more short and snippy with other people, almost like it becomes an outlet to the negative behavior she can’t give to touya. would he not like this / punish her for being rude no matter who it is? or, again, would he not care as long as it’s not directed at him?

for example, she starts finding fuyumi more and more annoying as their relationship progresses to the point where every interaction they have if they ever cross paths is very obviously forced, or she’s just plain rude to her face, or even talking bad about fuyumi to touya after they leave. of course she’d be nice to her friends (keigo) because she actually likes him, but would negative behavior towards them not be tolerated by touya? would he discourage her from talking bad about anyone she doesn’t like, classmates, teachers, etc?

lastly, what rules to her behavior that she has with touya extend to natsuo? is she allowed to be more sarcastic, bratty, jokingly mean, etc to natsuo or is that not allowed? taking from that small piece you wrote where she made a snarky remark to him when he was watching her that ended up with her getting in trouble with touya, i’m guessing that she obviously has to be careful around natsuo, but was that just because she was disrespecting an order from touya or is it the same for any behavior towards him?

i hope you’re doing well and taking care of yourself!! looking forward to your future pieces, you’re seriously one of my favorite writers <3

hello bb!! c: ah very interesting questions!!! fair warning: my answer is super duper long! <3

i mean, she definitely has the capacity to be snappy within her, as we see her ready to march right out of that bedroom and confront fuyumi in my christmas series, and she would have, had touya not been coming up the stairs. i’ve said this before, but she finds shreds of autonomy and self-serving strength whenever her relationship with touya, or touya himself, is brought into question. she is FIERCELY protective of him in every way, in all aspects and regards. and he fucking loves this about her. 

so you kind of touch on this in your questions, but the answer is basically, it depends. most of the time (about 80% or so), as long as she’s on her best behaviour with touya, it’s fine. she’s human, so she’s obviously going to slip up and possibly be a little short or curt with others, but touya’s got her so well trained that she’d rarely make those mistakes with him (they still happen, of course, she can’t always control that mouth of her + her thoughts, but it’s seldom). he does technically prefer her to be kind to others, as is her true nature in the way i wrote her as a ‘character’ (who she is at her core), but he also thinks it can be pretty cute when she’s a bit of a bitch, too. 

that being said, touya definitely gets a kick out of reader being bitchy with fuyumi and ranting to him about it afterward. he thinks it’s hilarious and adorable, and it only adds to the sense of superiority and power he maintains not over just reader, but over fuyumi (and reader’s perception of fuyumi) too.

if he feels like she’s getting ‘out of control’ with her rudeness with strangers or acquaintances, then yes, he’ll probably punish her in some way or at least issue a stern verbal warning to behave. again, it’s highly dependent on the situation itself—who it is, how reader is feeling, how touya is feeling, what’s going on around them, where they are, etc etc etc. 

for example, reader is extremely rude toward the girl who took touya’s virginity when they accidentally bump into the woman many years later, and touya thinks it’s just the best, cutest thing he’s ever seen. he loves it, he gets off on it, he loves to see that fierceness in her when it’s related to him, that possessiveness and that greediness. i’ve said this before as well, but reader herself carries a lot of the same yandere traits and tendencies touya does, they just manifest themselves in different ways and to different severities. touya is callous with nearly everyone around him because that’s just who he is, but reader becomes extremely cruel whenever her object of obsession (touya) is brought into the equation. she’d kill for him if she had to, and she’d do it without a second of hesitation. they are both extremely twisted for one another. 

touya is less likely to tolerate nasty behaviour toward people he cares about (ie keigo, like you mentioned), especially if this behaviour is unprovoked and excessive. it’s one thing if she’s getting angry or snippy with someone because she has a decent reason to—in that case, touya may laugh a little and give her a light warning, and if she’s REALLY upset and cannot control herself and her emotions, he will take her somewhere private to calm down. it’s important to note here, tho, that touya himself must also consider the transgression to be something she has a ‘good reason’ for getting upset or angry over. he’s a lot more lenient with this kind of stuff when it comes to others versus when it comes to himself and her behaviour toward him (as we’ve seen him punish harshly on far less). touya’s world is organized in hierarchies, and he considers his friends and associates to, more or less, deserve a certain degree of respect—maybe not as much as he expects her to treat him with (because he’s king of the world, duh), but close. sometimes he’ll find a bit of brattiness or snarkiness toward his friends and associates cute or amusing, but this is really only if it borders more on playful than serious. 

he would definitely discourage her from bad-mouthing others—it’s not polite, it’s not what good little girls do—but he’ll understand if she needs to rant or complain about a prof or classmate she doesn’t like. it’s when she’s being mean for no reason that he really has an issue with it, and he is more than willing to put a prof or classmate back in their place if they’re upsetting his little sister. 

now natsuo is a very good question.

so in touya’s world’s hierarchy, natsuo sits directly below himself—which translates to reader needing to treat natsuo with a high degree of respect, but it still isn’t as intense as how touya expects her to treat him/isn’t on the level of respect touya expects her to treat him with. she’s most definitely allowed to be ever-so-slightly snarkier with natsuo (again, touya’s always looking for reasons to punish her (funishments? in his mind? sometimes? depends on his mood) and exert power over her, so he’s a lot quicker to reprimand her for silly little behaviours and speech (tho he does like it when she gets ‘playfully bratty’ with him—as does she—because it always results in those ‘funishments’)) but she rarely is, especially when it’s difficult to tell what’s acceptable and what’s deemed ‘rude’, especially when natsuo and touya are constantly moving those goalposts and revising the definitions to fit their own moods and needs.

so, for example, in the piece you’re talking about, natsuo has no intention of punishing her or using her until he sees that opportunity arise, in which case his whole demeanour switches and he channels touya (touya would be and is v proud of this btw HAHAHA). until reader starts getting freaked out and begging natsuo not to tell touya—because reader knows such a comment would’ve gotten her in serious trouble with their big brother—natsuo doesn’t have any issue with it at all, and actually finds it quite cute and amusing. it’s only when he realizes ‘hold on, i can use this to my advantage’ that he changes his whole stance on her little comment. 

but even in that piece, at the beginning, we see reader pushing back against natsuo in a way she probably wouldn’t do with touya (she rarely questions touya’s decisions, having full faith in him and his choices for both him and her 97% of the time). 

the piece you’re talking about has a bit of a deeper backstory to it, though. reader is feeling angry because natsuo and touya always get to do whatever they want—in particular and more specifically, natsuo gets to do almost whatever he wants and rarely gets reprimanded by touya for it, whereas reader has all of these super strict rules, and she feels like that’s a little unfair. she’s a little jealous by just how much leniency natsuo has beneath touya’s rule. natsuo vies for touya’s approval and praise, just like she does, but natsuo doesn’t seem to have as much at risk (ie his entire self worth and personality) and in some cases seems to achieve it even easier than she does (ie she has to work harder for her praise), and on a subconscious level that pisses her off. natsuo loves his big brother and would crawl across burning shards of glass for him, but natsuo also has his own life and his own autonomy and decisions. reader is kind of torn here, because she (has been conditioned to) LOVE serving touya, but she can’t help but feel a little envious of natsuo’s freedom. on top of this, and what truly adds insult to injury, is that natsuo seems to get away with a hell of a lot more than reader ever could. touya’s punishments are rarely as vicious and harsh with natsuo as they are with reader, and natsuo doesn’t have NEARLY as many rules as she does (precisely because of their relationship—natsuo is just touya’s brother, reader is his whole fucking world. this is a huge distinction in touya’s twisted mind.). 

so, to sum up my incredibly long answer (or a tldr): it heavily depends on 1. who it is (if it’s someone touya himself also doesn’t like, a stranger, or someone touya does like/respect), 2. the severity of her behaviour (is it teetering on playful snark or is it genuine rudeness), and 3. the reason for the behaviour (does he feel like it’s justified and deserved? can he understand where her anger is coming from?). 

i hope this answers all of ur questions anon!!! thank you so much for sending them in! c:

[torment-deviser]

1, 2, 3 and 18 for the reborn mc ask?

What was their life like before going to Reborn? (were they a pokemon trainer already? Were they studying to be/working as something else?) Answered here

Why did they go specifically to Reborn for the league? (no league in their region? Interested in Reborn specifically for any reason?)What's their starter and/or ace pokemon?

This is a really good question and it has to do a bit with question 1, which I answered previously. His reason for going to the Reborn league is both personal and practical.

Starting with the practical, which has to do with why he didn't challenge the Unova league. Is his past with gang associated crime in Castelia. Through several circumstances, he got into what would be considered witness protection program after leaving the gang he was part of. (Basically, he snitched, though the situation was a bit more complex than that). As such, participating in the Unova league would inevitably end up with him having to return to Castelia at some point which he decided: "no thanks".

Now, why Reborn instead of any other league? Well for one I hc that Reborn is in the same landmass as Unova (And Orre). So it was preactical to go to Nimbasa and take a train from there. The second has to do with his mother.

See, in this AU his mother Livinia Amsel was a member of the cult of Arceus with both Solaris and Elias. In fact in this AU she was expected to be part of a Trio with them in terms of managing the cult, kinda like Elias her family served Solaris' but they were focused on record keeping and maintaining the archives of the cult. As such they grew up together.

However, she became disillusioned with where Solaris was taking the cult once they started leaning on the Team Meteor stuff. And so she left and her parents were excommunicated once they started seeing what made their daughter leave.

Anyway, she left to Unova along with other members, some who moved further to sinnoh. Which is where she met Vidar's dad Artemy. So Vidar grew up with stories about reborn and both his and Seth's (Vidar's younger brother) first pokemon were shinies from Reborn that Livinia asked an acquaintance for.

So when Seth dies, and then his mom soon afterwards, well Vidar's dad was in prison so in the end he wanted to learn more about the region his mom loved despite having left decades ago. He thought it as a way to connect with her beyond her death.

3. What's their starter and/or ace pokemon?

His first pokemon was a Reborn shiny Mankey named Hervor , and he bring with him Seth's first pokemon as well a Reborn shiny Fletchling named Hadjet. Both of which I have mentioned and elaborated on before here and here He does acquire a starter (which I differentiate from his first pokemon) which is a non-shiny Froakie named Aegir. I headcanon that since he does have pokemon with him when he arrives usually he wouldn't get a started. But since he was involved in the whole train explosion incident Ame gives one to him as a way to apologize but also cover for the league a bit.

18. Speaking of umbrals, which character(s) were they the happiest to get back? Are there any that they wish didn't come back?

Honestly Vidar was happy to get back most of the characters. Though the standouts would be Ace, because they really bonded before their betrayal of Vidar. Vidar really bonded with them in regards of being in so deep that you're continuing to protect those you care about.

The other would be Radomus and Gossip Gardevoir. He became a bit of a father figure to Vidar, and both him and Gardevoir have really helped him at times. So he was glad to have them back, also for the sake of Noel and Anna.

As for not wanting them back, I dont think any really. Even with fern at that point in the story he has kinda ended in a mutually respectful relationship with him. They're not friends no, but he doesnt wish him that fate either.

I guess the closest would be Terra, but again it's not that he didn't wish her back, it's more of a. "Oh Arceus there goes the peace and quiet" but I wouldnt say he regrets itm

[ectojester]

Why did Jazz kiss Svoboda at the end? Did that feel completely out of left field for anyone else?

Him kissing her made some sense, he had dropped enough innuendos at that point to make his interest in her believable enough, but at no point in the book did she seem to express any mutual attraction to him. Her behavior around him seemed more like she had completely slotted him in the "friend" category (completely forgetting that she was wearing nothing but one of his shirts when he stared at her? C'mon.) Surely this isn't just me right? It seemed like she considered him a friend. She expressed disgust at the idea of having sex with him or kissing him multiple times. A spur of the moment "I didn't kill hundreds of people" kiss, sure, maybe, but the non-bet at the end implied that they hooked up after the book ended.

Is it because there's some unspoken rule where female protagonists aren't allowed to be single at the end of a book unless its in widowhood? Is it because Jazz (for some reason) has an unfounded reputation of promiscuity and someone (the author, the publsiher, idk) felt her victory would not be complete without a shag? Is it because one of those people felt Svoboda needed to be rewarded for being a good friend to a pretty woman? Was it a bad way of conveying that she had trauma with her previous groomer boyfriend that led to an inablility to maintain platonic relationships with men? I am so confused, why did that happen?

Hopefully it's not just me, because at no point could I have predicted that she would ever see Svoboda as a sexual prospect, let alone actually persue him. Lowkey disappointed that the book called Artemis is about a smart, independent woman who does not actually appear to have any female friends and does, in fact, have an apparently romantic subplot, unlike Weir's books about men :/

And while we're on that, Jazz appears to only have three relationships (a stretch, more like vague acquaintances) with other women in the entire book, and two of them are antagonistic. We don't even hear about any female friends from work, childhood, or even the bar she frequents, but we do hear about her previous boyfriends. This books technically passed the Bechdel test with Jazz and Ngugi talking about ZAFO, but man, it sure doesn't feel like it

[sanakotsu]

Romantic? Date Translation

Quantified Feelings of Love and Hate/Chapter 4

Writer: Akira Season: Winter Characters: Tetora, Arashi, Tatsumi, HiMERU

Translation: Sankotsu Proofread: @boozuru

HiMERU: (Seriously what is this? A hallucination? Surely not. It looks scarily too real to be fake...)

〈The next day. HiMERU’s dorm room〉

HiMERU: (In the end, we ran out of time yesterday and still couldn’t get an okay take.)

(ALKALOID, still being pushed forward by ES, has to attend to another job. Tatsumi had to go there instead.)

(Despite Crazy:B being left with spare time, HiMERU does not want the others to know that he couldn’t finish his job and had to stay behind to continue experimenting.) 

(HiMERU could tolerate all of Amagi’s teasing but he could never deal with the thought of Shiina and Oukawa treating him like a helpless toddler.)

(Because of this, HiMERU ended up using the SSVRS headset to play Love★Star all day yesterday.) 

(He had to play it in order to figure out what kind of game Love★Star was. By doing this, he can get a rough estimate of what the producers want to see from him.)

(He needs to figure out the producers’ “right answer” and grasp it.)

(To have male idols HiMERU knows flirt with him endlessly is nothing but pure agony.)

(HiMERU will just think of this as a necessary hardship he must endure in order to maintain his image of the “perfect idol.”)

Tetora: HiMERU-san. HiMERU-san!

It’s morning~! You gotta get up or else you’re gonna be late for school!

Actually, hold on. HiMERU-san, you don’t go to school, do you?

Arashi: It’s hopeless, don’t wake him up like that, Tetora-kun. HiMERU-chan was messing with something late into the night so let him rest a bit.

Tetora: Ah, now that you mention it, it’s like you could hear HiMERU-san monologuing to himself in bed. I’m starting to get a little worried too on whether or not the guy’s getting enough sleep.

Arashi: Surprisingly, you’re the kind of guy to get worried about stuff like that, Tetora-kun. Seems like you’re the nervous type.

Tetora: Yessir. I’m kinda jealous of you though, Narukami-senpai. You’re always doing things at your own pace.

Arashi: Oh, are you implying that I’m inconsiderate? Well, I was in such a deep sleep anyway.

HiMERU: …Good morning to the both of you.

Arashi: Oh, you finally got up.

Tetora: Sorry for waking you! It’s fine if you head back to bed~ We already got ready and we’re heading out soon!

HiMERU: ⸺I was wondering why I could hear everyone’s voices but couldn’t see anyone. It seems as though I had fallen asleep with the SSVRS headset on. 

I was playing Love★Star in bed and fell asleep. It was an accident.

Tetora: Love★Star?

Arashi: Ah~ It’s that popular game. I don’t like it because of how they changed my character to be different from me.

Tetora: Umyuu. I kinda guessed you wouldn’t like seeing yourself fall in love with women.

Arashi: Well since it’s only a game, I won’t let it bother me since I know the difference between what is and isn’t real considering there’s no correlation to real people anyway.

HiMERU: …

Arashi: ? What’s wrong, HiMERU-chan? You’re staring… I’m sorry, I don’t mean to make anyone feel bad for liking Love★Star.

Or rather, no. I don’t want to make you feel bad for liking it.

It’s not the first time I’ve been treated like an ikemen idol.*

HiMERU: Actually, HiMERU wasn’t playing Love★Star because he liked it. It was because⸺

Huh?

Arashi: ...?

【Arashi Narukami / Relationship: Acquaintance / Status: Moody / Friendship points: 22】

HiMERU: Narukami-san, what is that mysterious display of text above your head?

Arashi: Display of text? What do you mean?

Tetora: ? What d’ya mean? There’s nothing above her head though, HiMERU-san.

【Tetora Nagumo / Relationship: Acquaintance / Status: Unwell (Sleep deprived) / Friendship points: 34】

HiMERU: …? The same thing is above your head as well, Nagumo.

Tetora: …? …? There really isn’t anything there though?

Arashi: Oh dear, surely you’re still half asleep, aren’t you, HiMERU-chan? Maybe some more sleep would help.

HiMERU: But I truly do see it. There’s a string of text with something about friendship points above both of your heads.

Arashi: ? If you’re trying to make a joke, I don’t get how it’s supposed to be funny.

【Arashi Narukami / ↓↓ Friendship points decreased ↓↓】

HiMERU: ...?

(Seriously what is this? A hallucination? Surely not. It looks scarily too real to be fake…)

Tatsumi: Pardon me, is HiMERU-san here?

Tetora: Hm? A guest? Um, you’re Tatsumi Kazehaya from ALKALOID, right?

Tatsumi: That’s right. I apologize for barging in so early. Good morning. 

Arashi: Good morning~♪ HiMERU-chan is here, but for some reason he’s acting a bit weird. I can’t help but worry for him, y’know?

Kazehaya-senpai, do you know anything? Wasn’t HiMERU-chan and ALKALOID working together yesterday?

Tatsumi: Yes, I was going to talk to HiMERU-san about it.

HiMERU: …

Tatsumi: Ah, HiMERU-san! Good morning! Fufu, it seems like you really did just wake up…♪

HiMERU-san is always so proper and perfect that it’s nice to see you in such a dazed state.

【Tatsumi Kazehaya / Relationship: Close friends / Status: Happy / Friendship points: 89】

HiMERU: ⸺HiMERU doesn’t understand why and it’s incredibly unpleasant!

Tatsumi: Huh?! I-I’m sorry, it wasn’t my intention to insult you…?

【Tatsumi Kazehaya / ↓↓ Friendship points decreased ↓↓】

HiMERU: (What is this? What on earth is happening? Has the world become strange or have “I” gone insane?)

❀ ꘎♡━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━♡꘎♡━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━♡꘎♡━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━♡꘎ ❀

ive had these chapters tl-ed for like over a year but i forgot to post it until I saw engstars do a stupid. whoopsie!

*: Ikemen meaning handsome man. She's most likely referring to falling in love with woman AS a "handsome man" idol that she takes issue with.

➸ previous ❀ all ❀ next ❀

[bottleofbabes]

RULES: repost, don’t reblog. just pick a muse of yours and fill it out.

MUSE: Dante

— basics

▸ is your muse tall/short/average?

6’3″!

▸ are they okay with their height?

He is very good at using his height as an intimidation device, but he doesn't really think about his height much until he bumps his head on something.

▸ what’s their hair like?

It's sandy blonde or ash blonde depending on the lighting. His hair is naturally slightly curly and kind of falls whenever it wants if he doesn't keep it very meticulously styled and managed.

▸ do they spend a lot of time on their hair/with their grooming?

He used to, but he's so used to styling it and keeping it the way he likes that it doesn't take him that long to get it the way he wants. He uses a surprising array of product in grooming and maintenence and he is very strict about what goes on it.

▸ does your muse care about their appearance?

Dante takes a lot of pride in his appearance, especially his clothing. His preferred choice in style is business to business casual. You will never see him in overly casualware like shorts, jeans or sneakers. He owns these things but he is always seen in blazers, slacks, button ups, etc.

▸ does your muse care about what others think about them?

He does want people to take him seriously when conducting business, so yes to a certain extent.

— preferences

▸ indoors or outdoors? Indoors

▸ rain or sunshine? Sunshine

▸ forest or beach? Beach

▸ precious metals or gems? Gems

▸ flowers or perfumes? Flowers

▸ personality or appearance? Personality

▸ being alone or being in a crowd? Being alone

▸ order or anarchy? Order

▸ painful truths or white lies? Painful truth

▸ science or magic? Science

▸ peace or conflict? Conflict

▸ night or day? Night

▸ dusk or dawn? Dusk

▸ warmth or cold? Cold

▸ many acquaintances or a few close friends? A few close friends

▸ reading or playing a game? Playing a game

— questionnaire

▸ what are some of your muse’s bad habits?

Trying to take everything on by himself. He is very overprotective of people he loves to the point where he will shoulder any and all burden if it means they can be safe. He has a habit of over analyzing, which is fine in his profession (most of the time), but sometimes can be a minor detriment to him and his people. He almost never speaks about his emotions and will hide them away. Unfortunately this results in pushing people away or lashing out in anger.

▸ has your muse lost anyone close to them? how has it affected them?

Dante and Emilio (@strawberryxdreams) lost their parents when they were very young, causing them to end up in several different orphanages. They weren't all bad, but Dante being the older of the two and his brother being very small and meek caused him to become aggressively protective of his brother. He got into a lot of fights with other kids and even adults in order to protect them both and this unfortunately put them in and out of different houses and orphanages. Because of this, Dante struggles to trust people, build real meaningful relationships (outside of work) or be vulnerable around anyone.

He only just recently allowed Emilio to work under him in Jungle, having completely forbade it for fear of endangering his little brother. It was slowly damaging their relationship as Dante spent more time working than being with Emilio. Sometimes he would be gone for weeks at a time, causing Emilio to worry so much he stopped sleeping. Eventually, with the help of other Jungle members and Avalon (@strawberryxdreams), Emilio was given a codename and allowed in.

▸ what are some fond memories your muse has?

He has a lot of fond memories of spending time with his brother playing video games or catching up on TV shows. Dante also organizes a lot of events such as competitions to keep Jungle members interested, devoted and maintain a physical standard for their members. While it's still work, it creates an opportunity to bond with them.

▸ is it easy for your muse to kill?

Absolutely. He will not hesitate if that's what he has to do and he will not regret it. He's killed more than once already.

▸ what’s it like when your muse breaks down?

Lots of anger at himself for both allowing it to get that bad and even breaking down at all. Depending on the situation, there would be a lot of yelling, breaking things. Dante's anger is explosive. He's not much of a crier and probably hasn't cried since he was a child. He doesn't like being vulnerable around anyone so most of the time he'll disappear for a long time without telling anyone and won't reach out until he is ready to.

▸ is your muse capable of trusting someone with their life?

It took years and years, but he will only trust a very select few with his life.

▸ what’s your muse like when they’re in love?

He's never been in love (until Avalon), so he doesn't even realize what he's like. He's a very private lover. In public, the most he'll do is a peck on the cheek or speak a little more softly. In private, he's very affectionate and will almost have some form of physical contact happening. He wants to be close to you and love you while he can because he doesn't know when his deeds will come back to bite him.

TAGGED BY: @strawberryxdreams

TAGGING: Anyone 💙

[somehowmags]

i love rook the most but he also deserves everything bad that happens to him thus i would never defend him HOWEVER the way people misinterpret the relationship between rook and vil has me galloping straight to heaven like. my lips are trembling my eyes are watering the very image of both rook and vil are evaporating before my eyes.

the one thing i see people primarily take issue with is rook commenting on vil's weight gain in one of their lab vignettes. now, i've never personally read through it so i dont know the log line for line. but i do have a basic gist of what happened.

like.... you've got to stop interpreting the meaning of this line with such shallow knowledge. though im sure for many people this is an extremely insensitive statement to make, you have to keep in mind who it is said to, why it is said, and who says it.

sure, if rook made this statement to literally any other student, rook could be rightfully criticized for it. but do you not remember rook's role as vil's vice housewarden and right hand man? rook is known to never mince his words, despite their flowery and ostentatious quality-- much more so when he's speaking to vil of all people, who prefers upfront and straight to the point critique.

rook, for all his intrusions onto people's boundaries (see; rook commenting about ruggies fur being used in an fur based item), is also very purposeful about what he says. he's very purposeful about everything. in most cases, you can likely categorize the intent behind his words as either to gauge someone's reaction (whether for personal satisfaction or other means) or to provide advice.

so when he says things like this, it's not because he seemingly cannot grasp the concept of boundaries. he very much does. he's incredibly observant and the thing that he does not know, and thus seeks out, is how people react to the possibility of their boundary being tested. not the actuality of it.

the point is that he also very much understand vil's boundaries. he understands what makes him tick, what gains his approval, what he needs, what he wants, what his approach would be.... etc etc. that is because they've been extremely close friends for the past 3 years. rook would not say these things to anyone else but vil-- just like how you'd bully your close friends, but not acquaintances, because there are different rules of what is socially acceptable between these different relationships. in all these years rook has known vil, rook has come to understand that because of vil's current status in the entertainment industry, he needs to mirror vil's standards with himself if he wants to genuinely help vil.

it's why he's called vil's mirror-- because he's observed him closely the most, so he can provide an accurate and objective judgement on vil. that's the point. it's what vil needs and what rook provides; accurate, without bias nor filter. if rook wants to see vil thrive, he has to help him keep in shape and maintain vil's standard of perfection when vil cannot because he knows vil would appreciate having a likewise, external aide.

vil keeps rook by his side because of rook's extremely eccentric honesty. rook doesn't care much for what would be conventional behavior but he is sensible enough that vil can entrust certain duties to him. one of them includes being the one to check vil over. use his watchful eye to never let vil falter in a way vil would despise.

you also have to consider vil's reaction to what was said about his weight gain; he did not object, he did not rouse in anger, he did not argue. why? because vil considers the seemingly harsh criticism and assesses it's verity and how he could use it as improvement. i don't remember what happens in there, but it's likely he accepts it.

vil isn't a pushover. he would probably fucking beat rook to death if he so much so made an out of line comment about vil's looks-- something he takes deep pride in. he's capable of it. the thing is that this isn't out of line in the context of vil's career and rook's responsibility. they're quite literally in pomefiore regardless of vil's career, where the housewarden should be the shining example of diligence in looks and strength. rook has mentioned the reason he takes such a backseat isn't only because it's in his nature to most often simply observe rather than actively contribute, but because vil is so strong willed that anything else other than verbal suggestions, constructive criticism or praise would be struck down. he'd have been met by his 13 cm heels and rook finds no issue in that. he has to say things in moderation in order for vil to accept them in face of his tenacious nature and he knows that. vil is heavy on improvement and rook is a surefire way to gain insight on his next step towards it.

regardless, as much as i love rook, i also understand why people would be off put by his hypocritical tendencies, his less than conventional moral code, and his other eccentric traits. however, the weight gain statement very much lacks any real reason to be used as criticism against rook when you consider that it's being said to his best friend of 3 years and the housewarden with big dick energy vil schoenheit. i need people to STOP thinking vil lacks a spine in this situation when his spine could literally be used as a baseball bat. besides, rook met vil by spouting his head off about vil's performance. if vil was hurt or off put by rook's nature, he would not have talked with him for hours, even as it snowed.

IM SO INSANE ABOUT THEM YOY DONT KNOW!!!! i want to deep fry rook and use vil as a surfboard i love them so much. i love vil because his development is so beautiful and yes seeing him finally realise he can be plain old vil schoenheit in chapter 6 is gold and seeing him be so excited to see epel GRGGARSGSRAHDT IM RIPPING MY HAIR OUT I LOVE THE POMEFIORE FAMILY!!!! funny story i actually used to HATE vil schoenheit and look where i am now. thank you for being insane with me did you know your swag is so of considerable size. love you tumblr user!

ohhh this is also so true. i had to go back and read the vignette (its vil's labwear one if anybody wants to check) and like, yeah, as a fat woman and as someone who has body issues, if someone said that to me, i would want to take off my shoe and start hitting them with it! and indeed vil goes later "wow, that was so fucking rude of him, who does he think he is?" which is imo entirely deserved. that IS a rude thing to say and had he said it to anybody else they would be very entitled to hit him with their shoes and also whatever other objects were close at hand but he DIDN'T say it to anybody he said it to vil. vil is a world class supermodel- much as that industry infuriates me it does mean that part of vil's job is to, well, be skinny. do i like it no do i think its healthy no but unfortunately that is the reality of the situation. it's not something ordinary people like you (assumedly lol) and i would say to our friends, but vil and rook aren't really normal teens. he's not even really mad about rook saying it; he complains to trey later that rook is rude (and he and trey have a nice conversation about sweets and being a vice housewarden in a way that contrasts vil and rook and riddle and trey) but all in all he does appreciate rook pointing it out so he can figure out what caused it.

and you're so right if vil had a problem with him saying this He Would Tell Him. he would just say it. vil is not the kind of person to keep his thoughts to himself! he would just tell him to shut up if he didn't want rook saying that to him!

i really genuinely do not think pomefiore is fatphobic like...vil is not gonna make you lose weight he would just be like "ok cool but are you meeting your own personal goals for yourself" that feels much more in character for him. rook too he finds beauty in literally everything you can't tell me he'd be intentionally fatphobic

and you're also right about rook being purposeful about everything he says and it can at times make him such a menacing character which is so !!! like him saying he'd like to try hunting leona in his labwear vignette or trying to get information on malleus and lilia in lilia's pe vignette like. he Knows how he comes off! he's doing that shit on purpose! it really fits with his huntsman character i love it. its also so funny that he met vil by popping out of a tree to be like "damn this script sucks" to his face i wish i had the audacity tbh! i dunk on him for his awful haircut and being a little weirdo but honestly he's such an intriguing character. gotta put him in the soup pot as well

AND I LOVE YOU ANON its always so fun when people come into my inbox to be absolutely insane about their favorite characters! i love doing analysis but i always have to be prompted to do it so getting these asks is like throwing a meat stuffed pumpkin into my enclosure