#he doesn't have enough experience to have likes and dislikes for a lot of things

[softer-ua]

See people frequently hc Bakugo as the top dog in middle school, like he’s got the skills to put his money where his mouth is so obviously kids would suck up to him out of fear or for his potential fame, but I don’t think that’s right.

Not being picked on doesn’t make you popular.

I think his inferiority complex was more than just Mitsukis bad parenting, I think a lot of people did look down on him growing up, it wasn’t all in his head.

I think he was very much the stereotypical bully who’s only friends were his lackeys and he was generally disliked by the rest of his class. Deku kind of hints towards that in the light novels Valentine ch.

For a kid like Bakugo I highly doubt that his encounter with the older kids trying to fight him on his way home from school was his last one. People throw rocks at things that shine.

He was left alone because of his aggression, and he’s agressive because it ensured he’d be left alone.

I doubt anyone beyond his lackeys (and a younger Deku) ever congratulated him on his accomplishments, instead each win was just another reason for the kids to dislike him, partially out of jealousy but also because he’s such a poor sport and a bragger

By the time middle school hit he probably felt like a bit of an underdog because so many people hoped he would fail.

That feeling is only compacted by his treatment in his first few months at UA, because he comes at everything already on the defensive and his defense is offense so he appears as just a spoiled arrogant ass and built the same reputation he had in middle school

What no one but Deku is privy to is that winning is all Bakugo had when he entered UA, he’s developed the core belief that he’s not likable and that being the best is the only reason anyone would ever put up with him, if he’s not the best than he’s not anything

Talent and potential is all he can offer, but those are shallow traits and I think a part of him resents people for praising him, but he also hates it when they don’t

That’s why he gets so flustered when he knows the praise isn’t shallow

When he knows the praise isn’t just for him winning but for all the effort he put in, and because they’re genuinely happy for him; that it’s less about the win and more because they like seeing him do well and are proud of him for his efforts, and that they’d still be there even if he’d lost(which he thinks makes them losers)

It’s one of those things he didn’t understand about Deku when they were younger, he was smart enough to see a difference but didn’t have the context to place it.

Just because Deku was different than others didn’t give Bakugo a reason to believe it was a positive difference, in 15 years of life Bakugo doesn’t seem like he’s ever met anyone other than Deku who was nice just to be nice (his dads nice, but like that’s his dad)

Bakugo seems completely unfamiliar with the concept of unconditional love, of doing something kind in silence with no expectations of return, of wanting what’s best for him with no agenda

Selfless love is always costly; fear can't afford it, pride doesn't understand it. -Bob Goff

The majority of Katsukis experiences of others being kind to him were because certain kids want to be seen with him, because of his potential for fame or to deter other bullies, or they just want to keep him from possibly bullying them.

At some point his mother decided tough love was the only way to go, his dad could hardly stop her, and all his teachers were exasperated with his misconduct. Bakugo has no personal role models who express anything more than simply putting up with him because they have to.

People think he’s admirable in the way they might admire a painting in passing, but scoff when they see the selling price and think it’s unworthy because they don’t understand the skill and dedication it took to make it

Or they think he’s admirable because others do, everyone else thinks it’s a good painting and they don’t wanna look uncultured or stand out from the crowd and risk being asked to explain themselves, but truthfully to them the paintings worthless and forgettable

Deku admires him and understands the uniqueness of each brush stroke, that the technique used was practiced deliberately and took years to master.

He knows that there’s dozen’s of scrapped rough drafts, that it’s true this piece is amazing because of the artist’s natural creative talent, but it’s also true that creative talent couldn’t have brought them this far, this work takes drive and practice.

He knows better than anyone that envisioning a picture doesn’t put paint on a canvas, putting paint on a canvas doesn’t guarantee an idea come to reality. Only practice and patience will ensure results, and even that isn’t always enough to give life to your imagination

You have to know not just how colors play together and how perspective works but you have to know your materials too. How will the paints react to the air, the canvas, other paints? In what ways do your brush strokes show through, can you cover a mistake? Do you have the materials ?

Deku knows this all so deeply and is so in awe of the results, he’s more than willing to save up and pay the asking price because he wants to spend his life reading into the way some colors blend and bleed into each other while others form distinct lines of separation

His old school mates admired but they didn’t appreciate. Deku, and now others, admire him and find something new to appreciate about him all the time. And not just the finished piece but all the steps it took to get there.

The first person other than Deku to do this is Kaminari, because the art itself didn’t impress him. Katsuki’s skill and success didn’t matter to Kaminari in the face of his terrible personality and he says as much, and I just think that’s really neat

He looked at this boiled sewage of a person and went hey that’s kinda fun, and then they were pals for life

[kneworder]

angry at the oscars barbie nominations but in an annoyinger way (i think nominating ryan reynolds makes sense but the best picture and best supporting actress noms are ridiculous)

[dontmixpaintinyourcoffee]

This one goes out to all the bitches who love some good Safehouse Era Horror. It's me, I'm bitches. I want Jon and Martin to be fucked up and eldritch but I want them to be fucked up and eldritch and loved

(Notes under the cut because I can't help myself. Heads up, I do go into some detail of how Jon gets injured so I can explain my thought process for how I designed his scars. All canon-typical and fairly clinical in tone.)

Here's how I picture Safehouse Jon!

He doesn't need glasses anymore by this point, so he should just be wearing empty frames, but I drew this before I settled on my glasses headcanons. This drawing looks better with the reflection anyways.

He hasn't gotten a haircut since before his promotion to Head Archivist. He doesn't love the weight of it on his neck, but he also uses it to fidget, and he really doesn't want to go through the whole process of cutting it. He's disliked haircuts since he was a kid (People: Bad. Small talk: Bad. Touching: Bad. Loud sounds: Bad. People talking all at once: Bad) and since his time with the Circus he's only grown more reluctant to go and get it done.

At this length his hair is naturally pretty curly but he is. Not taking care of it. I actually put a lot of effort into trying to make it look brittle and tangled (I have a lot of experience lol, my hair is quite thick and I've always hated taking care of it. Yes I am also projecting my feelings about going to a hairdressers onto him why do you ask.)

The various scars were a bit of a strange task, but anyone who has seen my takes on The Bad Kids knows I'm not averse to selective realism in my fiction. Easiest one was the neck, I always pictured Daisy making a vertical cut based on "through the voice box". The larynx is longer than it is wide, so I think Daisy would go for the method that dealt damage across the largest total surface area. Yes I am aware that I'm speaking the same way Martin does when he explains his corkscrew.

The worm scars were easy because I barely drew any. There are a few marks on his cheek, but they're just surface bites. I picture most of his encounter with Prentiss showing on his legs, particularly on the right side, with enough damage there that he starts using a cane after the incident to keep weight off his right leg. More research to be done on this particular detail.

Finally the burn on his hand from Jude. This was the weirdest one to figure out just because of the nature of the injury. How do you quantify the damage done to an epidermis by a living manifestation of sometimes-boiling wax that can heat and cool at will? I settled on it being a second-degree burn that healed supernaturally fast, containing the damage to the space Jude had direct contact with. He'd probably have some mobility issues there as well. I know there are ways to help with mobility and pain after a severe burn, but I don't know how much of it Jon would actually. Do. Like I said, definitely further research to be done on these last two.

Hey so I'm gonna ask you to stop and consider the horror of the watcher. The helplessness. The guilt. The inherent terror of being a spectator, a participant by proximity but not by action. The horror of not being able to look away, of being a bystander. Jon forgets to blink sometimes. But wouldn't it be so much worse if there were no eyelids at all? That's how I interpret the description of The Archivist being "All Eyes" :D

I love a good Many-Eyed Jon, so I whipped up my own interpretation here. I think the more he Becomes the more he starts to resemble the thing from the dreams. He has a lot more control of it in S5, but it still creeps up on him and he has to consciously go back to a human shape.

[zombolouge]

The thing is, it's not about the Therapy Speak. It's not that everyone who disliked DAV hates healthy communication as a dynamic in fiction. It's not even about only being allowed to be a good guy, really, because most of us did do that anyways (though the option not being there is a loss I grieve even if I never chose it myself, but that's another rant for another day).

It's that DAV does all that stuff at the expense of being believable. At the expense of characters being permitted to have personalities. At the expense of emotions behaving the way emotions actually work for people. At the expense of letting the plot build tension through the stakes we're forced to grapple with.

Half the fics out there take the conflicts between the characters in the previous games and resolve them. I do it myself ALL THE TIME because I like to find a path to resolution through just about any conflict, that's what fascinates me about telling these stories. But the higher the stakes, the harder a conflict is to resolve. You CAN resolve any conflict, you CAN communicate healthily through any emotion, but you can't skip the time it takes to process it all to even be able to communicate it. As someone whose got CPTSD and recovered from many Traumas, I can tell you that the TIME it takes to work through it is not something you can fast track, and the ups and downs of your emotions on that journey can't be skipped. It doesn't matter if you know exactly how to do it, exactly how it's going to feel, or exactly what the end state will be, you CAN'T speedrun it.

DAV has stakes that are astronomical, but nobody treats them that way. Nobody experiences denial - a common psychological reaction to being presented with information that shatters your worldview. Nobody expresses any distrust in the establishments handing out this information - something common among cultures that have at times been at war, even if those wars are "resolved" in the present. Nobody really ever breaks down - something that any person is capable of under extreme circumstances, especially when facing multiple crises of faith that challenge everything they thought they knew about themselves. Nobody blows their lid because they've been repressing the hell out of everything. Nobody grieves for southern Thedas, the entire thing dying off screen and giving you, the player, NO way to engage with it in any way.

Not to mention there are barely any inter-party conflicts, when there should be a lot more. Why is everyone (except Spite) fine with it if Emmrich sacrifices Manfred to become a lich? Why is everyone fine with Illario potentially being set free if he was working with the venatori and Elgar'nan, two sources that have actively attacked everyone in the party? Why doesn't Neve resent Lucanis if Treviso is picked? Why doesn't Harding get pissed off at Nevarra for having a secret society of liches that never helped during the Inquisition's war against the breach and corypheus? Why doesn't Harding feel ANYTHING about Ferelden and the rest of the south? Shouldn't Harding resent the fact that she's stuck in the north while her home dies?

All of these conflicts ARE resolvable, but not easily. And it's not believable that they're never brought up. It's not believable that these characters skip through everything that happens with like, barely a frowny face most of the time. In DAO, Alistair leaves if you don't treat his conflicts with respect. In DA2, your party members try to kill each other if you don't pay attention to their conflicts/emotional needs. In DAI, people can leave or betray you, Cassandra throws a chair at Varric and tries to body him out a window. ALL of these can be resolved but it takes effort, and the characters get to SHOW that they're bothered by them and struggling the way a person would when faced with those emotions.

The problem isn't the therapy speak, or that everyone is loyal and won't leave, or that they aren't mean to each other enough. It's that it's toxic positivity. It's toxic as fuck to imply that anger or grief should be smiled over or else you're giving up, and it's damaging to people to avoid engaging with their own negative emotional responses to extremely negative stimuli. It's pasting optimism over very real, very weighty issues, sweeping it all under the rug, and you keep waiting for the lid to blow off the pressure cooker that creates, but it never does. It never becomes anything that emulates real emotions, which is why the whole damn thing feels hollow. Everything's dying and nobody cares, not even about themselves, and that's NOT healthy communication.

It's bullshit, half-assed storytelling that didn't tell us the actual story, just the vague idea of what it could have been.

[yesimwriting]

i NEED to see Louis having the biggest crashout of all crashouts over reader. He don’t play about the people he loves in his life.

Also, Im so curious about how he reacts/talks about her without her being in the room. We know he’s caring and funny to her face, but I want Daniel to notice Louis indeed does have someone close to him in modern age and ask him about her. Will Louis show Daniel her paintings Louis has in his home? (anonymously purchased with the highest offer, just so his bestie racks in some dollars. Bc we all know bestie reader would give him her work for free)

a/n i can't put into words how much i love this. louis is so lighthearted around reader, but he becomes so deeply un-chill the second something reminds him of her mortality.

omg the interview potential is too good 😭. i love that you used the word 'notice' bc i think daniel would pick up on a vibe (similar paintings all over the penthouse, louis periodically looking at his phone and smiling, louis occasionally using phrases that feel gen-z) so when reader actually comes up daniel's like yeah. there it is.

anyways, here's a fic that explores both louis talking about reader and louis crashing out over reader and her mortality :)

----

There's something about the painting serving as the living room's focal point, and the smaller piece in the foyer, and the art work decorating the guest room. Not necessarily a style or a specific theme, but some underlying quality that conveys a sense of unity between them.

"Are you recording yet?" The prompting is small and far from an accusation. Daniel still finds himself shifting slightly, his gaze tearing away from the painting as if he's been caught staring at something not meant for him to notice.

"Uh--yes." It takes him a second longer than it should to meet Louis's stare. "That's an interesting painting."

The corner of Louis's mouth tugs itself upwards at that, not quite a smile but something that feels incredibly warm. He turns his head slightly, looking back at the painting as if to re-experience the details of it. "It's from a dear artist of mine."

Daniel's immediately thrown by the phrasing. His attention shifts away from Louis and onto Armand, whose lips are pressed together but is otherwise giving no indication of how he feels. "...An artist of yours?"

"Don't get him started." Armand's warning feels much too tired to be amused.

Louis halfheartedly glares at his companion before returning his focus to Daniel. "There's an artist, and she's..." Louis trails off, his eyebrows drawing together as he thinks through the best way to make his point.

"His very best friend in the world," Armand finishes for him, the words flat in their blatant sarcasm.

"Stop it," Louis sighs, the defense so halfhearted Daniel has to believe that this is an argument they've had regularly enough. "She is my friend, but it...it sometimes feels so much more important than that."

Okay. So Louis has a friend--an important friend--that Armand doesn't seem to like. It's hard to imagine them embracing other vampires these days, but the thought of a human girl so casually and openly important to Louis and disliked by Armand is even harder for him to grasp.

"Yes, she's like you," Louis offers after a beat, "And it's not like that. She's--like family to me." Daniel's questions are distracting enough to dull the usual annoyance he feels when Louis enters his mind. "And Armand's a lot more accepting of her than he'd ever say."

Armand's gaze flits towards Louis. His lips are still pressed together, but he's not exactly frowning, and there's something behind his eyes that almost feels thoughtful. It's not so much his expression as it is his blankness. It's a neutrality that almost feels methodical. "Clearly."

Daniel reaches for his pen. This 'friendship' seems like the kind of thing that might warrant a few rewrites of the more current chapters. He'll need extensive notes for the sake of continuity.

"So," Daniel starts, "This artist..." Louis provides your name. Daniel writes it down, making a mental note to look you up online before his revisions for the sake of accuracy. "How old is she?"

"Twenty-two." It's not the most surprising thing. They've mentioned other friends and acquaintances in passing, and they're often close to the ages they resemble...but Daniel's never seen evidence of them in their home. And Louis has never spoken so fondly of a human before.

Daniel looks at the painting again. He still hasn't been able to decipher what makes your work feel so cohesive, but he's starting to think it might be feeling. For the briefest moment, it's almost enough to make him wish there was a way to keep someone he doesn't even know away from them.

"I know," Louis says flatly, something behind his eyes briefly hardening. "But we're...careful. I ne--"

"Does she know?"

For whatever reason, the question seems to remind Louis of his fondness for you. "She knows." Daniel resists the urge to sigh. Twenty-two and willingly running around with vampires. He's not exactly in a position to judge, but it's difficult not to.

Louis relaxes slightly, his hand moving to rest against his knee. "She even knows about you."

"Really?"

"Please, they don't go long enough without speaking for her to not know anything." Another passively-aggressive comment from Armand. Still, there's relevance in what he's implying. How close are you and Louis? And why does he choose to spend so much time with you?

Daniel hums once in acknowledgement of Armand's words as he finishes writing down his last thought. "Why?" The question feels like something crafted by a very bad journalist. Daniel tries again, "Why her? What about her made you want to be her friend?"

Louis is quiet for a long moment, and to Daniel's surprise, Armand allows it to pass without any sort of comment. "When I'm around her, I can almost remember what it felt like to have sunlight touch mortal skin."

There's an affection there that's impossible to deny. If Daniel didn't think you needed to be a part of this before...

"She sounds--nice."

Louis eases at Daniel's tentative approval. "She's funny, too." He relaxes, allowing his shoulders to slouch as he leans forward. "And talented--during her gallery debut, an anonymous bidder paid a hundred-thousand dollars over asking price for her first piece." Daniel writes down the detail. "I've got more paintings I can show you later."

Daniel has a feeling this isn't as much of an offer as it is an inevitability. He agrees anyway, "Yeah, later." He turns to a new page in his notebook, writing your name at the top before drawing a bullet point beneath it. He'll need to figure out where you fit within the larger narrative. "So how did you meet her?"

----

Interviewing vampires isn't that different from interviewing humans. Not when you disregard the lack of effort it'd take them to end your life if they dislike your line of questioning and focus on the stiffness that characterizes the beginning of each interview.

When individuals, human or otherwise, are made to dissect their thoughts and memories, they tend to be slow to share until they've answered a few questions and start to feel like they're having a genuine conversation. Daniel's used to the phenomenon, used to the shallowness of the answers provided earlier in the evening. What he isn't used to, however, is Louis's irritation.

"It felt like what you'd assume it'd feel like." The answer is so nondescript, Louis might as well have not said anything at all.

Daniel's instinct is to ask for elaboration, but Louis gives him a look that feels like a warning not to. Daniel glances at his notes, thinking through his latest line of questioning. Is this...a sensitive subject?

"Don't mind Louis." Armand's responds, answering the question that Daniel has yet to ask out loud. "He's beside himself because his darling angel hasn't answered him in almost two days."

Louis turns his head to look at Armand. "I'm not beside myself." The correction is sharp, but Daniel can't help but feel like Armand might have a point. Louis straightens to face Daniel again. "It's not like her. She either answers or tells me she's going to be busy."

It's a concern that's almost unnerving to witness. "...The artist?" Louis dips his chin downwards once in silent confirmation. "She's twenty-two, she probably just forgot--"

"She wouldn't forget me." There's a harshness to the interruption that Daniel sometimes forget Louis is capable of.

"No," the response is more a result of an instinct for self preservation than a genuine attempt at agreeing with him. "I didn't mean it like that." Surprise aside, there's something interesting about Louis's defensiveness. "There are a lot of reasons for someone to not answer their phone."

Louis's quiet for a moment, his expression slowly morphing into something more neutral. He's not exactly easing, but it's a step in the right direction. After another second of silence, Louis parts his lips. Before he can actually speak, he's interrupted by the ringing of a cell phone.

Louis picks up the phone from the couch. He accepts the call so immediately, Daniel already knows who's on the other end. "Give me a minute," Louis mumbles as stands up.

Daniel sighs, leaning forward to pause the audio recording. At least Louis has a reason to come back in a better mood.

----

"No texts, no calls, you turned off your location--"

"I didn't want you to freak out."

The response only amplifies Louis's irritation. You didn't want him to freak out. What do you think he's been doing for the last day and a half? And what could possibly be so bad you needed to cut him out completely to keep it a secret?

Louis resists the urge to scoff. "What happened that was so bad you needed to keep it a secret from me?" The words are sharper than he usually is with you, and his phrasing isn't exactly fair, but he's not feeling very patient right now.

"It's not a secret--I just needed a second to deal with it before telling you." The vagueness only annoys Louis further. "I hurt my wrist." You pause, thinking through your wording, "I was out with a friend, and someone tapped the back of his car and I instinctually put my hand on the dash, and the pressure snapped my wrist."

What. "You were in a car accident?"

"No, it--" You cut yourself off with a partial sigh as you think through how to proceed. "It was a total fender bender. Josh's car isn't even totaled."

That's nowhere near as assuring as you think it is. "Thank God for that. Your arm's broken, but Josh's car is okay."

"My arm is fine." The defense means very little to him. "It's only my wrist." Louis rolls his eyes at the technicality. This is what he gets for leaving you alone. "But it's in a cast now, and in four to six weeks it'll be off."

The thought of you existing in New York by yourself, even more vulnerable than usual leaves a pit in his stomach. "I'm scheduling a flight."

"You don't need to do that." There's nothing surprising about the protest. "It's not a big deal, I've been checked out and the only thing wrong with me is my wrist." When Louis doesn't respond right away, you continue, "A lot of people break things."

Louis has never liked that kind of argument. You're not meant to be lumped into such a general category. "Those people aren't you."

The directness of the comment seems to soften you. There's a moment of hesitation, and then a reluctant sigh. "You're busy, you've got your book thing, and Armand--"

"If he has a problem with it, he can come, too." This should be enough to make the suddenness of their trip seem a lot less dramatic to you. Armand and him visit you semi-regularly, and they are over due for a trip. The thought of Armand being there might even be easing to you.

There's a brief stretch of silence, and then a careful, "You guys don't need to stop everything because I'm accident prone."

It'd be fair to argue that this isn't a result of your clumsiness. You were in someone else's car, and they weren't paying attention to the roads enough to keep you safe. Josh--you've mentioned him a few times in a variety of contexts, and Louis has yet to find a reason to be a fan. But that doesn't matter right now.

You're alone and even though you're not complaining, Louis can't help but imagine the pain you're probably in. You don't need to be lectured, and you don't need to hear anything that might make you worry about Josh. After a moment, he offers you something small, "Not your accident."

He wonders if there's a chance that you're injured in any other way. You said that you only broke your wrist, but that doesn't mean the accident didn't result in any superficial injuries. "Thanks." The word feels small. "I didn't call during a bad time, did I?"

Louis briefly thinks of Daniel and Armand waiting in the living room. "It's never a bad time to hear from you. Even when you're calling to tell me you've been in an accident."

"I considered texting, but I didn't want to give you a heart attack." He can hear the smile in your voice. "I really didn't like not talking to you."

It'd be easy for him to hold onto his worry, onto his anger, but he can't stand the thought of you being physically and emotionally wounded. "I didn't like it either." It didn't take much to hide this from him. There are so many ways in which you could be hurt, in which something could happen to you that he'd have no way of knowing about. "I also don't like the thought of you all alone."

There's the briefest crackle of static and then a soft sigh that feels like a yawn. "You sound like my mom."

"She's not wrong."

You sigh, the sound so familiar in its exasperation Louis is almost comforted by it. "You two have been on each other's side since Christmas."

The memory of meeting your mother when she came to visit you during the holiday season is one he's extremely fond of. It had been a brief shift, a small window into who you were before him, but everything about it had made him feel so normal. "I can't help that she's always right."

The crackly hum of movement briefly returns. Louis can picture you adjusting your hold on your cell phone. The thought is so tangible it only adds to the weight of your absence. "Why don't you come here?"

"Really?" He can hear the excitement bleeding into your voice. You recover quickly, the gentle static of movement briefly taking over the other end of the line. "You--you think that'd be okay? You have that writer over, and you're doing your--"

"Daniel's fine." In all honesty, Louis isn't sure if Daniel will mind another person around, but it doesn't matter. Injured or not, he can't imagine ever telling you to stay away from him. "He may even want to ask you a few things." That's true enough. Daniel was intrigued by the thought of Louis having a mortal friend. You'd be a good way at rounding out the modern era.

You're moving again. It isn't difficult for Louis to imagine you in your bedroom or on your couch, a heavy throw blanket on your lap. "I get to talk about you to a journalist?" The words are much too amused. "I'm going to tell him about the--" You're interrupted by your own laughter. "The club in Milan, with the LSD guy that smelled like--"

"Don't," it's a halfhearted attempt at stopping you, "We said we'd never tell anyone about that."

"I don't know, I think it's a story that deserves to be immortalized."

It's only an expression to you, but the reminder of the concept of permanence tarnishes the little peace the conversation has managed to bring him. Without intervention, you'll eventually vanish and leave him the sole holder of your shared memories. If he's not careful, that day might come sooner than it needs to. However, with intervention...

He pushes against the thought immediately. The prospect of turning you, of separating you from your soul for the sake of keeping you here is one that he only considers when he is at his most selfish.

Besides, he doubts he'd be able to bring himself to turn you himself. Armand is repulsed by the idea of having a fledgling, but there's a chance that he'd come around to the idea if you were the one to ask him. For all of his complaints and your shared bickering, something about the way that Armand never attempts to retaliate against you makes Louis think he might have a greater soft spot for you than he'd ever admit to.

Still, if Louis is allowing himself to imagine a completely self indulgent reality, the thought of Armand turning you doesn't fully fit into his ideal version of your transformation. Not when Armand's blood doesn't flow within his own veins. He banishes this thought more immediately than the last.

"Maybe I could be convinced to let you share that story if you agree to something."

You sigh in a way that's so incredibly telling. "You're not flying to New York to help me fly to Dubai."

Louis's not sure if he's more amused or irritated by your ability to read him. "I don't like the idea of you traveling by yourself, especially with a broken wrist."

He can practically feel you rolling your eyes. "It's this or no trip."

Louis doubts that you're extremely firm in this position, but he's willing to let you have a win. "You wouldn't do that to me."

You yawn, the sound low and tired. "Tough love."

"I'm not keeping you up, am I?" It's not particularly late, but there's a chance your body's exhausted. He'll have to read up on human injury before you get here. "You sound tired."

"The doctor gave me some pain killers for my wrist, and they make me kind of drowsy."

Great--you, all alone in your apartment, with a broken wrist, and painkillers in your system. The sooner Louis can get you here, the better. "You should get some sleep, I'll send you the flight information as soon as I have it."

"Okay." Your lack of questioning reveals more about your drowsiness than your words ever would. "Do you want me to send you my credit card info?"

"I've got it."

You let out a small breath that indicates resistance. "Louis."

There has to be a line somewhere. "It's this or no trip." He means the echoed phrase as much as you meant it, and Louis is convinced that you can that you can tell.

His hollow threat works. After a second, you give in with a small, "Okay." Wow, you must be more tired than you're letting on. "How long should I pack for?"

Louis isn't in the mood to think about your eventual departure. Fortunately, there's one topic that almost always works as a distraction. "Pack light, we'll go shopping when you get here."

"You so get me."

Louis smiles at that. "I know." The silence that follows feels a little less like a choice on your end. "Get some sleep, I'll send you the flight details tonight and I'll call you tomorrow." And then, just because he's not ready to let go of all his worry just yet, he adds, "Please answer."

"I was trying to spare you."

He doesn't doubt that at least some of your motivations were noble, but he also knows you, and he knows how you feel about his general wariness of the world around you. "That was the opposite of sparing me."

"Fine." You let out a breath, and Louis can practically feel you rolling your eyes. "My beloved Louis de Pointe du Lac, I promise to never intentionally ignore your calls again." The sarcasm in your voice isn't enough to taint the sentiment. You really do mean it.

Louis is nearly overwhelmed by his fondness for you. Things will be better, easier when you're here. "That's all I ask." You're quiet in a way that makes it impossible to not feel your drowsiness. "Goodnight, love you."

"Goodnight," you echo, "Love you. Tell Armand I said 'hi'."

"I will," he says, "Now get some sleep."

You mumble a response he can't fully make out before hanging up.

----

It's earlier in the evening than Louis wants it to be.

You're asleep in your own apartment, but it's difficult to not think about things much more gruesome than that. You kept the accident from him so easily, and you're at a greater physical disadvantage than you usually are.

You're also alone, not that you're safer when you're with others. The thought of the boy that allowed the accident to happen only adds to Louis's irritation. Josh. Josh, who crashes vehicles. Josh, who must have done something to make you think the accident was your fault in some way.

Louis pushes against the feelings. Josh, the details of the accident, the state that you're in. There will be time to deal with all of it later. He just needs to get through tonight. You'll be here tomorrow.

"It's still early," Louis's words are sulkier than he wants them to be, "We could go out for a bit."

"If you want to." Armand's response is slow and almost painfully nondescript in a way that suits the way he's been all evening.

Louis lets out a partial scoff. "What is it?" Armand angles his head to the side slightly in a display of synthetic confusion. "You've been passive aggressive all evening. What is it?" Armand doesn't respond. "Was it my worry? The phone call? The fact that I can't leave her alone like that?"

"You shouldn't have left her at all." The response is surprising enough to briefly silence Louis. "I told you it was only a matter of time before something happened to her."

The novelty of Armand almost expressing concern over you fades, leaving an unstable irritation in its wake. What right does Armand have to accuse Louis of abandoning you? Maybe if Armand didn't treat you like a puppy he didn't want, you would have wanted to live near them. "I didn't leave her--she chose not to move."

"You could have tried harder."

Louis blinks, his surprise clouding the potential anger. "Maybe if you didn't threaten her after every comment."

Armand's eyebrows draw together as if the possibility of you not enjoying your halfhearted spats had never occurred to him. "I have never once attempted to hurt her."

The distinction means very little to Louis. It's a statement that doesn't need to be made, because if Louis had sensed so much as an inkling of actual malice towards you on Armand's end, Armand would have never been allowed to be alone with you.

"We're different than her." The words are directed at Armand, but Louis's thoughts still latch onto the ways in which they apply to him as well. "After awhile, it has to be off putting to always be reminded of that."

Armand notes the thinly veiled self hatred immediately. As exhausting as it is to constantly hear about the poor saint cursed to be surrounded by such vile creates, it's even more draining to watch these sentiments impact Louis...and you.

He stands from his spot on the couch slowly, approaching Louis with slow, measured steps. "If you believe she's afraid of either of us, you are severely underestimating her."

Louis eases, the corner of his mouth tugging itself into something that comes close to resembling a smile. "You're not wrong about that." Armand extends an arm, placing a comforting hand on Louis's shoulder. Louis reciprocates the gesture, his hand coming to rest against Armand's forearm. "It's just hard not to worry."

To Armand, the response is a painful understatement. Louis worries about all that could happen in his absence, he worries about all that's wrong about his presence. Things would be so much easier if he'd get over the paranoia of 'ruining' you.

"You wouldn't have to worry so much if she was here more." Armand drags his thumb against Louis's shoulder. "Maybe this visit should be a little longer."

Louis's expression softens at that. "I'll do what I can to keep her here while she has a cast." He's never once asked you to leave, but he's aware of the temporary nature of your visits. You start missing your home and the access to whatever you need to create whatever you want. "But she starts to miss her home, and her studio."

"There's space here," Armand offers carefully, "You could give her a room." Louis's eyebrows pull together at the suggestion. "You're different when she's with you." Armand continues to trace patterns against Louis's shoulder. "And it's important we preserve that."

Louis's eyebrows draw together again, his confusion a little sharper this time. "Preserve it?"

"Human emotions are fleeting. The more time she spends away from you, the more likely she is to find more permanent relationships." Armand doesn't have to meet Louis's gaze to know that the implication has served its purpose. "And if she finds other people, falls in love and gets married, you can't expect things to stay the same between you."

Armand squeezes Louis's shoulder a little more firmly, a gesture meant to convey something comforting. "As your companion, I'm capable of grasping your relationship and even then, sometimes it's difficult to accept. Do you think some human boy would have the same patience? The same understanding?"

Louis frowns. Worrying about losing you to your mortality is a simple thing, but accepting the fact that he could just as easily lose you to change is nowhere near as easy. "I'm--I'm not going to make her do something she doesn't want."

Armand has to work at keeping his expression neutral. Louis's obsession with your free will is often a limiting thing. "Then we'll make sure she wants to."

----

manipulation is a love language, i promise <3

[srslylini]

The thing about Act 1 of season 2 is that, while in context with the rest of s2 it was bad, they actually did set up a good story and continued season 1 pretty amazingly.

There were still some problems but genuinely most of those problems stem from the rest of the Episodes not delivering and not on the first 3 setting stuff up.

Act 1 giving us the tree being sick? Really good idea, perfect set up even the connection between the hextech and it being sick? Nice as fuck. It's what they did with it (nothing) and how it didn't matter (at all) that destroys Act 1.

Caitlyn's set up was absolutely not bad, and a lot of people were praising it. It made sense for her character and it also didn't seem like they thought she was right. Not with all the other episodes after Act 1, though. Contrary to populer believe I like morally not so good (evil) characters if they make sense. Caitlyns narrative was promising to be interesting they just didn't do anything with it and acted like what she did in Act 1 was fine and excusable and alright. It wasn't. Had they actually done something with what they set up with her, well I wouldn't be standing here now.

They also promised this season being a Vi focused season and while I would say that Act 1 did actually give us a lot of Vi, in context with the other Acts... no. In hindsight there was no need to make her an Enforcer. "But the lore-" I'm gonna stop you right there, they also completely changed Viktors lore, and even Jinx' lore. So?

CaitVi was also something that, in Act 1, I was way more ready to get behind. I was a CaitVi shipper in season 1, I did like their dynamic and wanted it explored. I liked their kiss. I did not like what they did after that. Not Caitlyn hitting Vi and then getting to hit her again and never apologizing. I am a lesbian and here I am telling you: Everything that happened with them was weird.

Act 1 also gave us this genuine good found family between Isha, Sevika and Jinx. It was so moving and well done even in such short of a time (there is still stuff to criticize about it but the consensus is that it is awesome so yk I can overlook certain stuff). And then they turned around and wrote Sevika completely out of the story and killed the plot device that was Isha. When Isha should have mattered.

I didn't even originally dislike how many new characters they introduced because season 1 once mastered characters like this. Maddie seemed promising, until she wasn't. Loris seemed interesting and well thought out until he wasn't. Lest was such a good addition until she was just written out of the show completely. Don't even get me started on Steb.

Ambessas ploy in Act 1 was also something that I genuinely liked. Even Mel figuring out a mystery was good. Until they decided "well that doesn't matter anymore".

In Act 1 I did actually like the subtleties. I liked how Caitlyn saw the Violets and how, in episode 3 of s2 she saw one through her rifles lense (I have no idea what that is called, sue me haha) floating over Jinx. Because it was a nice add on and nothing that would destroy your viewing experience if not noticed, and it wasn't on the nose.

While a lot of directions they took, I was already questioning (the Smeech stuff took up way too much time) I was ready to give that a pass because it didn't destroy anything, yet.

Up until episode 4, it all seemed well enough, and while the prison scene also made me question stuff (that god damn Enforcer pants joke oh my god I will never let that go what was that) it wasn't anything too bad, yet.

The reason Act 1 doesn't work now is because of Act 2 and Act 3. Had Act 1 stood alone or had Act 2 and Act 3 delivered on Act 1, we wouldn't have that much of a problem. As it is the further Acts destroy what Act 1 seemed to carefully build up.

In the end what seemed purposefully and artistically done in Act 1 now seems like something the writers actually believe.

[shantechni]

Natsume's Fear of Thunder

I'm gonna be honest, this can hardly be considered an analysis. It's more of a "sporadic and unnecessarily deep observation" of how Natsume's astraphobia has been presented in the series over the years, both in the anime and in the manga. So, please for the love of God take all of this with a grain of salt.

Yes, I'm using the term "phobia" very loosely, but I'm not about to get into that rn. Natsume has an irrational fear and strong dislike of thunder, that's an undeniable truth.

Before I dive in, I'd like to briefly explain why, of all the little bits of information Midorikawa has given us about Natsume, this one is the one to ceaselessly bump around in my brain like a DVD logo. This series is not in the horror genre (it's serialized in LaLa DX after all), but it does get suspenseful, and pretty disturbing depending on whatever topic it touches or the types of situations the characters may find themselves in. I don't fault anyone, particularly Natsume, for growing up with valid fears and preconceived misconceptions about most youkai; they can sound scary, they can look scary, and they can do some scary stuff if they really feel up to it.

That's why I'm so fascinated to see Natsume develop and still harbor an irrational fear for something like the everyday phenomena of storms. He's landed himself in all sorts of trouble and has come face to face with many beings, both natural and supernatural, who didn't have his best interests in mind, and yet the clap of thunder somehow keeps its spot on the list of things that has him scared stiff.

Aight, spoilers for both the anime and the manga beyond here, you've been warned👏🏽

Our first introduction to Natsume's fear is near the beginning of chapter 42, when he and Tanuma accidentally stumble across Taki's home while seeking shelter from a sudden shower. He questions how Nyanko-sensei ended up at her home as well and the youkai, much to Natsume's visible dismay, cheekily explains:

That doesn't end up happening since the rain remained light until its swift end, and the mention of Natsume's fear is glossed over rather quickly to save him the embarrassment, but it's an interesting mention made by Midorikawa nonetheless since it adds another layer to whatever image the audience has of Natsume and the series itself. Nyanko-sensei, having been around this kid long enough to know a lot of his vulnerabilities and insecurities (even the ones his dreams unwittingly reveal to the youkai), has seen and grown accustomed to a side of him that the audience had yet to be formally introduced to for once.

Right about now, you may be wondering how the anime adapted this scene. It didn't💀.

While the start of the episode (S3 EP5) is a one-to-one recreation of the chapter with virtually the same dialogue and scenery, any mention of Nyanko-sensei following Natsume to pick on him when it thunders is nonexistent and entirely skipped over so the gang can go straight to cleaning out the storeroom.

Most fans who have read the manga will tell you how notorious the anime is for excluding some of the characters' lines or scenes that take place in the manga, or just straight up rearranging or changing up those same factors. Sometimes those alterations work wonders, and other times they leave more to be desired, mainly if you know what happened in the manga counterpart of the episode. This such example is one of the times that'll leave people scratching their heads and wondering what warranted getting rid of a scene so insignificant that it'd have no effect on the plot of the episode whether or not it stayed. The only answer I can think of for that is the directors likely wanting a smoother progression of events to make for a viewing experience better tailored for an anime episode rather than a manga chapter.

Or, they genuinely didn't have enough space in the episode to squeeze in that little bit, which I highly doubt, but what would I know, I don't work for them. At the end of the day, we didn't get to see that scene in the episode.

After some more anime switcheroo shenanigans go on behind the scenes, along with an original episode pulling a retcon during a lightning storm, we receive our next moment in a surprising scene from the anime team in S3 EP10 (adaptation of chapter 28). Though the scene itself is short and not exactly an example of Natsume's astraphobia, I feel it should still be included because of its relation.

The chapter originally starts with Natsume and Nyanko-sensei searching for a tree that was struck by lightning during a storm the night before. However, the anime makes an addition of their own by rewinding time to that very night and showing Nyanko-sensei excitedly watching the storm take place while Natsume is tied up with his homework.

Nyanko-sensei goes on to tease him by suggesting that he doesn't want to watch the storm because he's scared, but Natsume dodges the youkai's mocking and begins to tell him to close the curtain before a crack of lightning cuts him off and illuminates his room.

Not only does Natsume not simply deny Nyanko-sensei's claim of him being scared, but his reaction to the thunder is seemingly more sudden than Nyanko-sensei's. Both of these points could subsequently lead the audience to interpret this entire sequence as the anime's first acknowledgement of his phobia, and it'd make for a very intriguing choice on the anime team's behalf after taking their ommitance of the previous scene into consideration. It could be a stretch though ngl, I tend to stretch like crazy, it makes sense to close a curtain when a pet is being noisy—

Finally moving on from S3, we eventually reach the most overt instance of Natsume's astraphobia, and potential origin or exacerbation of it, in the S4 finale (adaptation of chapter 46). This three episode arc is a largely intimate and heart wrenching one as it focuses on Natsume's journey to revisit his childhood home before it gets renovated by its new owners, a task he initially denied himself the permission of doing before realizing Touko and Shigeru would never deny him something so personal. Of course, he wouldn't be Natsume if he didn't attract a youkai along the way, and he's being pursued by one that seeks to feed on the tragic memories he formed while staying with the Aoi family, who was strongly implied to be the first family (if not, one of the first families) he was taken in by after his father's passing.

One of those memories shown to the audience is a younger Natsume relaxing in a shrine while memorizing where his childhood home is located, all in the hopes of gaining more discernible memories of his father and no longer being a burden to Miyoko and her parents.

Unfortunately, he falls asleep at the shrine and consequently loses track of time before having his slumber disturbed by a violent boom of thunder. He's so frightened by the ordeal that he can't even bring himself to rush back to the Aoi family's place, and his exhaustion puts him back to sleep until he's eventually found by some of the neighbors who went out searching for him.

The anime, with the natural strengths it has over the manga, goes the extra mile by not only keeping this portion relatively untouched, but further setting up the scenery and depicting just how rapidly the area goes from peaceful to turbulent. The character animation and voice acting make for a splendid combination and do a wonderful job of capturing this image of a helpless childhood version of Natsume.

What comes soon after this scene is a depressing sequence of events on its own, even more so when we can see he's still reeling from the storm and believing he caused the Aois to get into trouble by not getting back before dark. The adults obviously don't fault Natsume for getting stuck in the storm, but he doesn't see it that way in his shocked state.

The way Miyoko reacts by throwing her frustrations onto him doesn't help either.

And so, after aimlessly running off in his last unsuccessful attempt to find his childhood home, the memory fades away with a somber note as his present self recalls the moment he finally stopped calling for his long gone father.

Now, one could argue that Natsume had his fear of thunder prior to his time with the Aois since we don't have much reference material to work with when concerning his short period of time with his father, and they could be right for all I know. It's common for children to be startled by loud noises and bright flashes since they just aren't quite accustomed to those loud noises and bright flashes being customary for weather disturbances. Natsume, who we know grew up to be pretty sensitive to the things that go on around him, may have been one of those children who felt apprehension anytime a bad storm rolled in, and his father may have been the one to quell his fears back then. So, if we go with the conclusion that his fear didn't originate here, then this scene likely could've aggravated it. But I'm personally leaning a bit more towards the concept of this being the cause of it (partly due to how appealing that conclusion is to the obsessive part of my brain).

His initial reaction to the thunder is seemingly one of surprise rather than fear, and his behavior suggests that he's more concerned with making it back down the mountain before the thunder halts his progress. Although he's seen trying to talk himself down and fails to do so with how relentless the thunderstorm is proving to be, he doesn't need to have preexisting fears or anxieties over thunder to resort to calming himself down.

The dialogue differences strike me as something to consider too, but they're likely irrelevant.

Setting aside everything I just ranted about in the above paragraph, I should specify that I'm not simply pointing to the storm scene as the singular root cause for his future woes. Many psychological problems often aren't so black and white that someone can definitively point to one person or thing as the sole reason for the existence of their psychological problems. And phobias obviously don't always develop as a result of going through or observing a traumatic event; people can grow to fear or strongly dislike something merely by its association with an unpleasant memory or stressful situation. I know I'm starting to stretch hard rn, and this part of the post is getting awfully wordy, just hear me out—

Going back to that aforementioned short period of time with his dad, it's plain to see just how innocent of a time that was for Natsume. He was playful and affectionate with his dad like many children growing up in a healthy environment would be at that age. He doesn't even appear to have an awareness of youkai (if so, only slight enough for it to not become a problem for him just yet). We're shown later on that he would commonly draw around the house too, as evidenced by the nearly two decade old pieces of artwork his father never removed from the kitchen area and closet.

Natsume even proceeds to make a comment about this childhood version of himself likely being the mischievous type for him to run around drawing on surfaces without a care in the world.

He undeniably had his own troubles at that stage of his life though, with one of those troubles being his mom and the empty spot left behind by her passing away. Apart from his heartwarming portrait of a family with both parents, he's also shown lamenting to Miyoko after the death of his dad about not being able to remember his mom. We've seen with those two examples that her absence indeed left an impact on him early on in his life, but he doesn't stay too broken up over her considering how little he got to bond with her, and he doesn't openly despair about the loss of his dad until his growing sense of loneliness and longing becomes too much for him to smooth over.

The point I'm trying (and admittedly struggling) to make here is that after moving in with Miyoko and her parents, the worries on Natsume's plate increased tenfold and weighed him down far more than he was willing to accept at first. Suddenly, this kid had little to smile about in life, taking a glance at his only picture of his parents causes grief and envy to flare up in his chest, he's afraid of being a burden to those who took him under his wing, he's eating less than Miyoko because he's concerned with coming off as too greedy, he feels responsible for Miyoko getting picked on because of his relation to her, he's still learning the way back to the Aoi family's home, and now he's surrounded by all of these weird creatures that apparently no one else can see.

Suddenly, he's no longer that carefree toddler we saw sitting on his dad's lap as the two of them watched over his late mom's garden.

I feel moderately certain about Natsume's experience with the storm, coupled with this pivotal and devastating shift in his life, being the plausible cause for him developing his irrational fear of thunder as a child.

After this arc, we aren't greeted with another scene featuring or centered on his astraphobia until chapter 85 (which doesn't appear to be adapted in S7 judging from the PV😭), and it focuses on Natsume, Tanuma and Taki viewing a limited exhibition at an old inn that has a deep history with youkai. Not too long after the owner engages in conversation with Taki, Natsume and Tanuma briefly comment on how peaceful the inn is making the both of them feel, and a sudden lightning strike cuts through the tranquility of the inn.

It catches everyone off guard and, unsurprisingly, has Natsume frozen in place as Tanuma asks him and Taki if they're alright.

Much like Nyanko-sensei's first time mentioning Natsume's fear, the moment doesn't last long as the gang soon realizes they'll have to spend the night at the inn while they wait for the sudden storm to pass.

By this point in the manga though, Midorikawa has evidently decided to make Natsume's astraphobia a recurring element of the sorts. She could've easily left his astraphobia as another facet of his that we get to see once or twice and never again since it's not serviceable to the story as a whole, but she's started using his phobia as an additional means of displaying his discomfort in any given situation. Having a thunderstorm suddenly appear during a moment of serenity, immediately after Natsume tells Tanuma the place is making him feel strangely good, was a brilliant move of jarring him. And it works especially well here as a sign of the looming threat that'll find its way into the inn over night and slowly creep upon the group the longer they remain there.

Midorikawa pulls this same stunt again to slightly greater effect in chapter 117, where Natsume, Tanuma and Nyanko-sensei happen upon the Kisaragi Manor and find themselves taking part in a ritual for summoning youkai.

It starts with the trio meeting up in the evening to view the bamboo lanterns, but a woman claiming to be in search of a mansion requests their help to find it before it gets too dark, as well as to avoid getting caught in a downpour should the drizzle grow heavier. While Tanuma shows interest in the ritual, and the people they meet are treating them somewhat cordially, Natsume is disconcerted by the arrangement they've found themselves in. He's surrounded by five women he's never met in his life, is once again in an unfamiliar place that feels weird in Nyanko-sensei's own words, and is thrown for a loop by everyone's enthusiasm with the idea of meeting youkai rather than being put off by them.

The group isn't even a minute into their summoning ritual when a huge boom of thunder shakes the room and causes a power outage, sending them into a brief stint of darkness until Hitomi relights the candle.

While waiting for the candle though, Natsume answers Tanuma's question by for once admitting that he's bothered by thunder, leading to Nyanko-sensei characteristically picking on his phobia by calling him a chicken.

Again, the moment is subtle and restricted to one corner of the page, but it sticks the landing. Instead of using the lightning or thunder as a sign of things to come as she's done before, Midorikawa uses them here as an integrant of an already somewhat concerning scene slowly veering towards being disturbing. In addition to selling just how uncomfortable of a situation this is for Natsume, it also depicts how far along he is in his friendship with Tanuma to be honest about an irrational fear we know he'd rather not speak of.

Alas, chapter 117 was our last time seeing thunder scare Natsume, at least until the next time Midorikawa chooses to use his fear to her advantage, unless the anime miraculously surprises us with its own original take as we've seen it isn't afraid to do. What we've been given so far though is plentiful in comparison to many other plot points or quirks that get reused or called back to far less than this one. I won't throw a tantrum if his never gets referenced to or utilized again (which I doubt will happen knowing Midorikawa's writing), but I eagerly anticipate seeing it again should it reappear.

It's captivating to watch this minor detail frequently make it's way back into the story somehow, to the point that it eventually cemented itself as a miniscule yet effective way of shedding different shades of light on the many complexities of Natsume.

[detectivekirigirislays]

SOME MANGA SPOILERS!

i really do believe that damian and anya are somewhat similar to yor and loid in ways:

damian and yor are similar in the sense that they're the ones who quite literally fell first, they also seem to struggle with properly expressing how they feel and thus retort to violence and lashing out (violence for yor and lashing out for damian)

anya and loid, on the other hand, are obviously similar in the sense that anya and loid use these silly tactics to swoon over their specific target (or partner for loid), though in the end there's always a high percent that the tactic or plan backfires big time, which does give it a comedic sense.

but there's more.

anya and loid are similar in the sense that they start feeling comfortable around damian and yor respectively. not even realizing it, they slowly learn to open up to only these people, and it's baffling to them because they don't fully grasp the idea of feeling so secure and comfortable with another person, but it happens.

like in the latest chapter, where anya admits to damian (although he doesn't believe her) that she IS indeed an esper because at that moment SHE FELT COMFORTABLE WITH HIM. she felt that she could relate to him and felt secured enough that he was understanding of her.

loid, on the other hand, may still keep his secret well, but slowly and surely, before even realizing it, he literally drops to his knees with yor because he and his body are unconsciously already so comfortable with yor that he doesn't understand it at all.

loid and anya do things due to the fact that they feel comfortable with yor and damian WITHOUT EVEN REALIZING IT.

more parallels are that each pair can sympathize with one another because they have gone through the same thing or really remotely similar.

for instance, damian and anya; anya understands damian's loneliness and crave for validation and familial love because SHE IS THIS SAME. she craves validation and familial love because she's been lonely all her life hence her attachment to loid and yor. damian craves it in the sense that his family is not close with one another and is rather distant. with that, they can both sympathize with each other and realize things about one another that many others do not see.

yor and loid, on the other hand, share similar experiences as they have lost a lot from the war. losing family, becoming tools and weapons to their native countries and organization, somehow losing a part of themselves in the process of growing stronger, they find that lost part of themselves through EACH OTHER. when yor doubts herself, loid is there to support her and reassure her that she is doing great. even if loid somewhat dislikes asking for help, yor willingly offers to help him, she stands as a pillar and backbone for him. yor offers him advice and gives him another point of view he can work with, and loid lifts yor's spirits and supports her from behind.

in conclusion: damianya and twiyor supremacy🥰

[rivendell-poet]

May I request what the Fellowship would do if Reader was terrified of thunderstorms? Like, hide under beds/tables level of terrified. If not, that's perfectly fine! If yes, take your time and please don't feel rushed!

Thanks so much for the request - sorry it took so long, but hopefully you enjoy this! Also thank you so much for the last part - it really means a lot <3 (Will confess I'm lucky enough to not be terrified of thunderstorms, so instead based this off my experience of hating the dark. Hopefully it's still enjoyable.)

*･༓˚✧❝𝐟𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐚 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐰𝐡𝐨'𝐬 𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐬❞‧͙⁺˚༓˚✧ « headcanons »

○ Aragorn ○ Legolas ○ Gimli ○ Boromir ○ Merry ○ Pippin ○ Sam ○ Frodo ○

GN!Reader | TWs : Stress/fear (over thunderstorms and loud noises) | Wordcount : 1.6k

𝐀𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐨𝐫𝐧

✧ Is actually very knowledgeable of your struggles. Grew up with the Sons of Elrond (who have the horrible luck of heightened hearing while still being frightened by thunderstorms).

✧ Always gives you time to prepare beforehand; as soon as he can sense a storm coming he will tell you - and is more than happy to make a plan with you.

✧ Doesn’t judge if you hide under something, and will often join you if you’re ok with the company. Lies down next to you and gently talks, trying to drown out the thunder without being too noisy.

✧ If you’re in the wilderness he’ll be by your side in an instant, talking to you and trying to get you to focus on him. (And makes sure to keep you away from trees.)

✧ Instead of trees, he’ll get his cloak out and hug you - pulling it over you so that you can’t see the thunder and have the weight of something above you.

✧ Assuming there’s a big enough height difference, he likes to rest his head on yours when you do this - telling you an unrelated story or whispering comforts.

✧ Very gently covers your ears while in a hug, guides your eyes back to his and tells you that you’re going to be fine, and to keep focusing on him.

𝐋𝐞𝐠𝐨𝐥𝐚𝐬

✧ Also not great with thunderstorms, although that’s more for sensory issues than it is terror.

✧ His tactic is to stare at them so he can see it as it makes a noise - therefore it’s less startling to him. This does actually help cheer you up, seeing him in a starring contest with the weather.

✧ When you dive under the table he sits next to you - cross-legged and much to serene.

✧ Tells people that it’s his sensory issues and you’re there to comfort him if you don’t want people to find out about it.

✧ Gets so used to walking under something that he starts to walk under something even if you aren’t with him - then looks around for you.

✧ Finds white noise comforting so will often hum to you and to himself.

✧ Asks if you have any requests, and you two teach each other songs to hum while you’re waiting out the thunderstorm.

✧ Becomes a little game - try to guess the song in the shortest possible time (both of you insist that you’re the better player).

✧ Always gets sad that he can’t go under trees, although in turn he’s bright when you're in an open space. It’s pretty reassuring to see him grin in the rain, the only things around you being him and the earth.

✧ (Constantly asks Aragorn if there’s a storm coming up. Has sometimes forgotten he’s asked the ranger and immediately does it again.)

𝐆𝐢𝐦𝐥𝐢

✧ To be honest with you, Gimli doesn't entirely get the fear of the loud noise - he's grown up in mining communities, so that's pretty constant.

✧ However, he completely understands the general fear of it - as he dislikes it too. The sky should not be able to send down bolts of death, in his humble opinion.

✧ Will sometimes startle when there's a particularly loud noise, but tries to prevent you from seeing it so he doesn't worry you.

✧ "It just caught me off guard - that's all!"

✧ Naturally takes note of the different alcoves and other things you could hide under. Gives you notes on their pros and cons.

✧ Will compliment whatever you find yourself under. Looks around at it and nods wisely. (Gives weirdly knowledgeable and hyper-specific answers).

✧ Realises that dwarves must have something to combat the loud noises, and promises to get you the finest in all the land (once this quest is over).

✧ Gives you the dwarven equivilant of ear-defenders. One in every colour he can find.

𝐁𝐨𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐫

✧ Boromir is also really scared of thunderstorms. Is someone who would also love to hide under beds and tables.

✧ You don't realise until there's a large crash of thunder and you see him flinch for a second before straightening.

✧ When asked if he's ok he does that awkward evaluation between trying to pretend it doesn't bother him while also not wanting to invalidate your feelings.

✧ Joins you the second you ask him too, visibly calms down and thanks you.

✧ Tries to teach you the techniques that Faramir taught him. Keeps his mind off the storm by telling you stories and trying to make you laugh.

✧ Does hugs quite a lot - listening to his heartbeat instead of the thunderstorm. (It still jumps a little bit he's trying.)

✧ Eventually he's the one dragging you under tables, thunder being seen and catching each other's eye.

✧ Always pulls the duvets of beds when your with him, and is surprisingly good at making essentially pillow-forts. Insists that these blankets are all the protection he needs against the storms.

𝐌𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐲

✧ Is a big believer in blanket fort supremacy as well. Anyone who isn't afraid of the storms?

✧ Well, their bedroll has been commandeered for the greater good. Can generally get six or seven and then invites you in.

✧ Makes it very obvious that he's the one who made it - and you are his distinguished guest.

✧ It's actually very good at muffling the noise from the thunder, especially when combined with the gentle with noise he creates.

✧ Doesn't really talk out of fear of overstimulating you - but certainly talks if that's what you want - and instead creates more subtle noise (the sound of pages turning, a little laugh as he reads a line).

✧ Also always checks with Aragorn to see if there's thunder coming. Keeps a little notebook of dates and predictions.

✧ Is great with tables and beds because it's legitimately comfy for him to fit under - makes sure you don't feel bad for the fact he's in these positions.

𝐏𝐢𝐩𝐩𝐢𝐧

✧ Has a mix of thinking it looks cool, but also hating the sound of it.

✧ Will join you in the pillow fort and cuddle up next to you, putting his ears on your body so he can be comfortable and not hear anything.

✧ Often scouts ahead to see where you can duck under and makes sure to tell you beforehand. Hides blankets near to furniture he knows you might want to dive under, or puts it directly under it if it won’t be seen.

✧ Braves the outside world to go and get snacks for the two of you.

✧ Sometimes will say ‘you cover my ears and I’ll cover yours’

✧ This ends with the two of you covering each others ears while staring into each other’s souls.

✧ If Pippin is looking out at the thunder he gives them names and personalities, and jokingly tells you what they’re doing. Will assign the same name to different thunder-bolts and pretend it’s the same one.

✧ “Oh, look - Sherry is back again! She’s a lot smaller though, not as feisty anymore.”

𝐒𝐚𝐦

✧ Is the first to notice you get anxious when Aragorn mentions there’ll be a storm coming.

✧ As soon as there’s a quiet moment he’ll go to you and ask if you’ll be ok in it and what he can do to help. Reassures you that Pippin has trouble with it too, so it’s really nothing to be ashamed of.

✧ Will do practically anything to help you. If you need him, he’s there. He’s there so quickly.

✧ Most of what you need he actually already has; if you want something to cover up the loud noise? He’s got a few different textures, and he can probably change the colours for you.

✧ Do you need a snack as a way to distract something? He’s got so many, all of the snacks and will make something for you?

✧ Do you just need a bit of white noise to distract from the thunder? Sam’s not as good at telling stories as Mr. Bilbo is, but he can certainly try as hard as he can to make the story entertaining for you.

✧ Also very receptive to any and all feedback you have. If something isn't working, or there’s something that’s acting up more than usual, he wants you to let him know.

✧ Actively asks for feedback once the ordeal is over, and checks in on you for a longer time afterwards than most of the others.

𝐅𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐨

✧ Frodo is the quietly supportive friend, the one who you truly know doesn’t judge you when you do this.

✧ If you express an interest in him staying with you, he’ll be right behind you when the thunder starts - holding a book and a cloak while seeing where you’ll choose.

✧ He opens doors for you, or holds up tablecloths if that’s the closest thing nearby,

✧ Even if you don’t ask him to stay with you he’s still nearby, generally with a book and glancing over to you every chapter break.

✧ The storm never seems to phase Frodo, nor does he spend time dwelling on it or acknowledging it, so he’s actually a very calming presence.

✧ If you ask him to talk to you he happily will, about whatever’s caught his interest or a passage out of whatever book he’s reading.

✧ Once you ask enough he keeps a specific book as his ‘thunder book’ so that you don’t miss anything, and he can enjoy the plot with you instead of having to explain it to you.

✧ There’s one occasion where you simply hide without thinking, and are glad when he doesn’t come to find you - knowing anything more than thunder would have tipped you over the edge.

✧ And then, when the thunder dies down and you get out, you see Frodo in the corner of the room.

✧ He barely says anything as you get out, just looking up and giving you a little nod - checking that you’ll be safe. And confirming he’ll be here for you, always.

A/N : Hope you enjoy! And sorry for not posting on scenarios, first date is quite a big one but should be done pretty soon. I hope. Also, thanks so much for the kind words and support everyone's given me - as well as passing 100 followers! Genuinely so thankful so many people are liking my work, and I'm glad I can make our days a little better <3

thank you for reading *･༓˚✧ Taglist : @celestialhole, @starwars2222, @xiaoseminence, @withasideofmeg, @ferns-fics, @chewgazellechew, @fleurdemiel-145, wish to be tagged?

[gxthicupid]

𝙃𝙄𝙎 𝙎𝙒𝙀𝙀𝙏𝙃𝙀𝘼𝙍𝙏

💭 @multifandom-hcs Hello!! I hope you are having an excellent day / night! May I request some dating Macaque hcs?? Please and thank you! ^^

💬: Thank you so much for the request. I'm sorry I have taken so long to finish. I hope you enjoy : )

➨ Let's be real here. Macaque has never been in a relationship before. Probably a fling or two with someone in the past, but didn't have enough experience to understand deep connection romantically.

➨ So he's just as new and awkward as you are. But he doesn't want you to know that. He'd hide his awkwardness and nervousness behind his charismatic charm in the beginning of your relationship.

➨ I feel like Macaque would most likely have tons of boundaries for you to respect until he allows it to be surpassed. Since you know, his previous strongest relationship ended so badly, he doesn't want to talk about how bad it affected him.

➨ So go soft on him. He's trying his best to be there for you, but he does want to be respected for his privacy. Wait until he's ready.

➨ But I think, if you manage to break down those walls he’s build up, he eventually become more open and try to is willing to be a lot more genuine with his affection towards you, as being a tease and flirtatious were the most romantic he could ever be before trusting you with listening to his problems.

➨ Also I'd think he wouldn't show that kind of vulnerability in front of anyone else except you. He is NOT going to put up with Wukong and his nonsense.

➨ I headcanon that Macaque is more touch starved than Wukong. Don't get me wrong, Wukong is touch starved for sure, but I believe he's been surrounded by adoring fans as they see him as the ‘hero’, and no one really pays attention to Macaque.

➨ Macaque is definitely an introvert, but does consider taking you out for dates somewhere in Megapolis or somewhere isolated for the both of you to not get interrupted. I think he preferably wants to either cuddle or Netflix and chill at his dojo or your place.

➨ I'd assume as you and Macaque got to hang out with each other and understand your likes and dislikes, he would be able to do things to make you blush, smile or laugh; whether it's a little joke or a thoughtful gift.

➨ Macaque loves being intimate with you. Like, once he gets comfortable being physical, he'd start cuddling or pulling you close by the waist as he gently holds you.

➨ He won't say it out loud, but he will let you know that he adores you when you give him the same kind of treatment he does for you. Like if you were to seek the security of his arms as you casually on the couch, cuddling. Just you know that he internally cherishes that moment forever. Or if you shower him with kisses, Macaque will absolutely melt from the affection.

➨ I wouldn't say that he is extremely possessive over you (as much as most people seem to headcanon) I'd believe he entrusts you with defending yourself, but whenever things get too serious, then he steps in and protects you.

➨ When it comes to nicknames for each other, if you were to create nicknames that refer to his shadow abilities or moody demeanour, Macaque would eye roll, but deep down, feels flattered.

➨ However, the nicknames that he'd give to you would be like babe, sweetheart, darling and lovely. These were the default pet names in the beginning before he got creative, like referring to you as cutie, babycakes, sugar, doll, and his personal favourite: ✨sugarplum✨ (I'm bad with coming up with nicknames)

➨ Judging from his liking to shadow plays and performing in general, I'd headcanon that he observes the romantic aspects to the play, and tries testing them on you to see which one you would like or not.

➨ While observing these plays, he developed his romantic language as he learned new compliments and picked up lines to use on you. But don't test him. If you try to be snarky about your flirting skills, he will immediately turn the tables and it will end up you losing and as red as a tomato.

➨ On the topic of Macaque being a theatre fanatic, BIG fan of music, especially musicals and classical music. He'd show his interest with you by letting you listen, and if you like his genre of music, both of you would end up talking about your favourite musicals or opera or whatever it is you like, and probably rant about the remakes that aren't as good as the original.

[iheartjohnlennon]

The Beatles NSFW Alphabet - George   

@heiterhund >>> #1 co writer

Oopsies for any grammatical errors

A is for Aftercare (How he treats you after sex, what happens after sex, etc...) 

• George didn’t even know it had a name. He just thought it was common practice to be caring and giving after sex.

• He usually runs you both a shower, quick to support your body as he rinses and cleans you off. He’ll offer you a clean blanket after the act, just to be sure you feel comfortable and at ease. The bed will be all done up, fluffed pillows, enough space, all for you and him.

• Super, super sweet guy. If you wanted a drink he’d probably already have it ready at the bedside. 

     

B is for Body part (His favourite body part of yours) 

• George loves your eyes and mouth.

• He loves the way your eyes light up when you see something you like. The pretty gleam when you make eye contact with him has him weak in the knees. He feels like a lovesick dog.

• Your smile is so precious. He loves the way your teeth look, no matter how much you may dislike them. He thinks they’re perfect. 

• Your eyes and mouth are so beautiful to him...especially when you’re taking a mouthful of his cock with your eyes watering.

     

C is for Cum (Everything to do with cum!)

• George likes to cum in your mouth.

• He especially likes when you swallow his cum and don't spit it out. He likes the filthiness of that.

     

D is for Dirty secret (Something utterly filthy that he did and/or does/and or wants to do behind your back.)

• George wants to do anal but he thinks that you would think it's gross.

• He knows it'd feel way tighter than your cunt and he wants that feeling. With your consent and some lube, he'd be fucking you like a rabbit. George definitely teases the hole as well. It looks so cute, so tight, so warm - perfect for his cock. 

• George thinks doing anal things would make him feel more dominant. You'd be his bitch, taking it up the ass.

• He doesn’t know how to ask or tell you about it directly, so he usually gets off to the idea of it. He feels quite odd for liking it…maybe one day he’ll confide in you.

     

E is for Experience (How experienced is he?)

• Georgie has little experience, little knowledge, so he just finds his way. 

• He lost his virginity with his friends cheering him on in the next room, in a cold, dark room to a German prostitute, and he didn't last very long - I'm sure that says a lot!

• His thrusts are sloppy but he tends to hit your g-spot either way. But not due to expertise...it’s just because his cock is sizeable.

• But he’s a quick learner!! Tell him what feels good and he’ll do just that and improve.

     

F is for Favourite position (How he loves to fuck you)

• He's very much into doggy style. He likes having you face down, ass up on the edge of the bed as he pounds and ruts into you senselessly. It always makes him feel alive.

• It also gives him an excuse to dig his sharp teeth into your shoulder. He's so possessive like that. He also likes pulling your hair back as he fucks into you.

• It doesn't have to be all rough though, he can slow down and be all sensual.

• He has a big cock as well, that position is perfect for him and for you. 

     

G is for Goofy (How silly is he during sex?)

• He’s not really goofy or joking during sex. He thinks it’s too special to be joking.

• He thinks sex is a special bond between two people, and if he’s speaking or talking - it’s either him complimenting you, or saying pure filth.

     

G is also for Goal (What's his goal and/or dream in relation to sex.) 

• George just wants to make you cum.

• In fact George wouldn't care if he doesn't end up cumming, just as long you do - in the best, most drawn out, most satisfying, most toe clenching, most sheet drenching, most impregnating, most draining way possible.

     

H is for Hair (How well groomed he is, does the carpet match the drapes, etc..)

• George has a lot of pubic hair, especially around his balls. His hair peeks out below his navel, a cute little happy trail.

• It’s not bad, by any means, there’s just a lot of it.

     

I is for Intimacy (How romantic he is during sex, etc..)

• George is naturally very soft, very romantic and very kind.

• He doesn't always go all out with candles and rose petals and champagne but when he can he does.

• He always does a bit above the bare minimum though, there's no just going at it like bunnies - there'll always be a nice track on in the background, always foreplay.

     

J is for Jack off (Masturbation headcanon.) 

• If it’s his only means of getting off, he’ll do it. It ’s not his preferred choice, but if you’re not available, he has no other option.

• He has some photos of you that he uses. for his birthday, his gift to himself was booking you a photo shoot. The photographer was sworn to secrecy and told to destroy the film he had after it was processed.

• Those photos are kept in his billfold, always in his pocket and used during desperate times.

     

K is for Kink (One or more of their kinks in relation to you.) 

• George has a sub kink for sure, and though it's not often he lets you dominate him, he does love it when you're rough with him.

• He revels in you tugging at his hair, calling him names, riding him - sometimes that stuff just brings him a joy he can't put into words.

• So yeah, sometimes he just wants to be your bitch.

     

L is for Location (Favourite place to do the deed.)

• George definitely likes doing it in hotel rooms and all that jazz. He travels a lot, so of course hotel rooms are his natural favourite.

• He also has taken quite the liking to fucking you in the studio. Whenever anyone is out for lunch, he’s there dragging you to bend you over the amps and have his way with you.

     

M is for Motivation (What turns them on about you, gets him hard, makes him cum, etc..) 

• George is deeply turned on by your confidence and the way you carry yourself. Your self-assured attitude drives him wild.

• He loves it when you take the initiative, whether it's initiating a kiss, a touch, or suggesting new things to try in bed. Your boldness excites him.

• George is especially turned on when you affirm how good he makes you feel. Hearing you moan "it feels so good, Georgeeee" or praising his skills in bed just does it for him in so many ways.

     

N is for No (Turn offs, what pisses him off, etc..) 

• He dislikes very rough or overly aggressive behavior in bed. George prefers a more sensual and intimate approach to sex.

• George is also turned off by any kind of dishonesty or insincerity. He values genuine connections and can't stand it when things feel fake or forced.

     

O is for Oral sex (Does he prefer giving or receiving? How does he give, how does he receive?) 

• George will never admit this, but at his core he’s a slight bottom. He loves the attention he gets when you’re on your knees and gagging around his length.

• His hand usually cups your cheek, thumb brushing the soft skin there as you stare up at him through your lashes.

• He loves the feeling of your mouth around him, the warmth and the wetness driving him crazy. The sensation of your tongue swirling around his tip makes him groan in pleasure. There's no feeling like it.

     

P is for Pace (Fast or slow? Rough or sensual? Ect.)

• George's pace tends to be slow and sensual, reflecting his desire to make each moment last and savour the connection with you.

• He prefers to take his time, exploring your body with deliberate and tender movements. He believes that building up the anticipation makes the climax even more satisfying.

• He’s not opposed to picking up the pace if you ask for it, but his natural inclination is to be gentle and loving.

• During more passionate encounters, his pace can quicken, becoming more intense and urgent, especially if he's particularly aroused or if you've been teasing him all day.

     

Q is for Quickie (His opinion on quickies, how often they happen, etc..)

• Obviously he doesn't hate them but would much prefer you to have sex that's comfortably timed.

• When they do occur, it's in desperate times, like he hasn't seen you in weeks or he can't get rid of a boner.

• He can finish quickly and fuck you hard so you don't possibly get caught.

     

R is for Risk (What kind of risks will they take.)

• George is cautious by nature and generally avoids situations that might lead to getting caught, preferring to keep your intimate moments private and sacred.

• However, he does have a bit of a spontaneous side. He enjoys the thrill of doing something unexpected, like pulling you into a quiet room during a gathering or surprising you with a passionate kiss in an empty hallway.

• George’s idea of risk is more about breaking routine than being public. He loves to surprise you with spontaneous intimacy at unexpected times, like when you’re in the middle of a conversation or doing something mundane.

     

S is for Stamina (How many rounds he can last, how quickly can they cum, etc..)

• George has a steady stamina; he might not go for marathon sessions, but he’s certainly capable of giving you a few solid rounds.

• He typically lasts a good amount of time, enough to make sure you’re fully satisfied before he lets himself go.

• He’s more about quality than quantity, focusing on making each round deeply satisfying rather than trying to stretch it out unnecessarily.

     

T is for Toys (Does he own toys, use them, what kind of toys, etc?) 

• George isn’t someone who naturally gravitates toward sex toys, but he’s not opposed to them either if you personally want to use them. He just won't engage because he trusts himself to give you pleasure.

• He’s more into the connection between the two of you rather than relying on...accessories.

     

U is for Unfair (How much does he like to tease you, how does he tease you, etc..) 

• George has a teasing streak, but it’s always playful rather than mean. He loves to draw out your pleasure, taking his time to get you worked up before giving you what you want.

• He enjoys the build-up, like whispering sweet, naughty things in your ear, lightly brushing his fingers over sensitive areas, or pulling away just when you think he’s going to give you more.

     

V is for Volume (How loud is he, what noises does he make, what does he say, etc..)

• George is relatively quiet during sex, preferring to express himself through soft moans, deep breaths, and quiet gasps.

• He’s not one for loud, vocal expressions, but the intensity of his breathing and the occasional groan lets you know just how much he’s enjoying himself.

• He loves hearing you, though, and your moans often encourage him to be a little louder, especially when you’re both close to climax.

• In those moments when he’s overwhelmed by pleasure, you might hear a slightly louder moan or grunt, but it’s always controlled and subdued.

     

W is for Wildcard (Random sexual headcanon.)

• George has a surprising playful side that comes out in the bedroom. He loves experimenting with sensory play, like using feathers or ice cubes to tease and stimulate your body, enjoying the mix of sensations and how they heighten your pleasure.

 

You shiver slightly - George is trailing an ice cube along the curve of your neck, watching intently as goosebumps rise on your skin. He smiles, leaning in to kiss away the cold trail he’s left, the contrast of his warm lips against your chilled skin sending a thrill through your body.

     

X is for X-ray (His cock.) 

• 7 inches, slim but not skinny, aaaannd not circumcised. (I want him so bad.)

       

Y is for Yearning (His sex drive, how much do they want you?)

• George's sex drive is somewhat understated but powerful. He might not be as overtly aggressive, but when he wants you, it’s an intense and all-consuming desire.

• He often finds himself thinking about you at the most unexpected times - while strumming his guitar, during a quiet moment in the studio, or even while out in nature.

     

Z is for Zzz (Sleep afterwards?)

• You and George go to sleep at roughly the same time because you both talk until you fall asleep. 

• You talk about anything really. Your day, the weather, your jobs, how good his cock just was - everything! 

• And sex doesn't always come before sleep. Sometimes you'll both decide to watch a movie before you drift off, or maybe you'll have a really late dinner.

Ringo, last but not least...

Check out the masterlist!

[gammija]

idly thinking about an AU where Jon and Martin do manage to land in the same world, in roughly the same location, but separated by time.

Lots of time.

Jon arrives in Britain, in 1988. Martin also arrives in Britain, also in the 80's - the 1780s. Maybe it's the Web putting the pieces in new starting positions, maybe it's just happenstance. Who can say.

The first thing Martin does is look for Jon, of course. Unfortunately, he realizes pretty quickly that, if Jon is here, he's not anywhere near him. But Martin's not giving up that easily. If he's going to find him, he needs resources. So, with a knack for lying to wealthy old men, and using a minimal amount of historical knowledge, he makes a modest name for himself. Hopefully enough so that Jon will be able to find him, when he looks for him -

Because Martin hasn't been able to find a trace of him yet. Not as a real person in the world, and not as a reference in any old texts or stories about odd appearances of men with alien clothes, lots of scars, or piercing eyes.

A few years pass, without Martin finding any sign of Jon. Slowly, he has to come to terms with a few facts:

Firstly, that the Fears are definitely also in this world. In his search for Jon, he's come across far too many accounts that sound eerily familiar. Though they seem to have popped up in the world around the same time he did; He doesn't have any earlier records that consistently line up with the patterns he's familiar with. Which most likely means that they - he - are responsible for their existence in this world... Martin tries not to think about it.

Secondly, thankfully, this must mean that Jon didn't arrive centuries before he did, living and dying without anyone taking notice, which Martin had gotten more and more worried about. He wouldn't have arrived without the Fears being there too. No, if Jon is going to appear in this world, (and Martin is not going to think about the alternatives), he'll arrive in his future.

Maybe so far into the future that Martin won't even live to see him. In which case, however much he'd like to avoid thinking about it, Martin has to create something here and now. Something that will last beyond his lifetime. Something Jon will be able to find as soon as he looks for Martin, so at least Jon won't have to wonder what happened to him, will know that he did not arrive completely alone, that Martin did not abandon him.

Thirdly... through his search for Jon, Martin has amassed quite a little collection of esoteric and weird stories. And, though he did it 200 years in the future, he does have some experience running an organization that ostensibly researches the supernatural, which would also be a good way to keep track of any potential new Jon leads. He thinks of naming it after Jon, of course, but it's not like Jon is going to look for his own name first, is he? And it'd raise more questions than if he named it after himself.

Cue the bittersweet ending where Jon falls out of the sky on a sunny day in the middle of London, asks for someone named Martin Blackwood, and finds Blackwood Organization, a public collection of ghost stories dating back to the 1800. He is given a set of personal letters from the founder, to be hand delivered only to a man called Jonathan Sims as soon as he would walk in the door.

...Or -

After yet another few years, in which Martin has set up his organization and is part of a decent network of people with similar interests (though he dislikes most of them), he bumps into someone. Jonah Magnus. It's an incredibly odd experience, though in hindsight, it was bound to happen, considering the information he's after. Martin has the urge to kill him right there, but the man doesn't seem to be from the future. He's just a creepy guy. Younger than Martin, too, which is also weird. But he manages to shake it off, and doesn't see him again.

Though he does keep tabs on him. Seeing him has set Martin thinking. He's been getting older, and his modern constitution isn't faring great in Georgian times. The organization is doing okay, but he's not sure yet if it's really going to survive after he's, well, gone, which would defeat the whole point. With a few more years, could he make it stronger? Could he maybe even reunite with Jon in person?

Furthermore, with the Fears being now well established, it's only a matter of time before someone tries a ritual. No, Martin isn't going to try and do one first, that'd be really stupid, not to mention evil. He just has to make sure that the world actually survives for Jon to appear in it.

A plan begins to form. One he really doesn't like. But one that, the more he considers it, is very possible. He's quite sure now the Fears mostly operate on vibes. Sure, he's maybe not a full avatar, but through letting the public read stories about the fears, hasn't he kind of spread awful knowledge? Hasn't he seen a lot of terrible things in turn? The Eye was already fond of him, according to Jon.

And even if it were to go wrong... Martin would die in either case, and the only other person suffering would be Jonah. He can't find it in himself to feel too awful about that.

Jon falls out of the sky on a sunny day in 1986. After a short and panicked search, he walks through the doors of the Blackwood Organization, Hilltop Lane 148, Oxford. The receptionist greets him. She seems somewhat shocked as she does so, tells him to take a seat as she makes a call. He doesn't know what else to do, so he sits. The chairs are surprisingly comfortable.

A few minutes later, someone he doesn't at all recognize enters the foyer. He looks at Jon, stops, freezes. Jon stills as well.

The man is unfamiliar in every way. He's short, for one, his skin a darker complexion, hair curling in a way his never did. But those eyes, as soon as he sees them, he recognizes. Those are the eyes of the man he trusted to kill him.

[niyana-the-ambiguous-mobian]

Since you did the angst headcanons for Movie Shadow, do you have any sweet and wholesome ones, to even the scale?

Even the scale, you say? Challenge accepted.

Link to the angst headcanons if anyone is interested: LINK

Pre-Sonic 3

Before Maria had met him, Shadow had only used nonverbal expressions to communicate with Gerald and the other scientists. She helped him learn basic letters and numbers and even taught him how to speak by teaching how to say "yes" or "no" to questions, asking how he feels about an activity they did together, even finding his favorite type of music he likes to listen to with him humming along with the beat and singing the lyrics.

The start of Shadow’s addiction to coffee beans was completely on accident. Basically, Gerald left his unbrewed coffee on the counter, Shadow got curious, took a few of them, and nibbled on them. Next thing you know, the entire can was empty, and he was sitting on the floor trying to tear open the already empty can to get to the crumbs.

One of the reasons why the blanket tent was always up in the main room of Gerald's quarters was because Shadow liked to sleep underneath it whenever he would feel the need to sleep. The little nest of blankets and warm color glow of the lights brought him relaxing comfort to where he'll actually sleep soundly for a while. You'll just walk past it, and you could hear soft snoring and seeing his air shoes sticking out on the floor.

He used to go with the random dance sessions because it made Maria happy, but he actually did find the fun in it once they started dancing more and more as time went on.

Due to knowing how much being in the lab and being experimented on makes him feel depressed, Maria will try to get him out of them each time with her own plan. They wouldn't always work, but he was grateful when they would

After the notorious drawing Maria drew on his lab tube, he wanted to try and draw it as well and would practice drawing the shape and other details over and over until he matched Maria's drawing. Best to say, a lot of paper was used.

He absolutely dislikes laser pointers. Maria could never figure out why, but she tried to see what he thought, pointed the laser at the ground, and it sent him running away at near Mach speed to get away from it. Gerald tossed it out immediately afterward.

Even though he's not much of an eater for food in general, he will partake in Maria's annual snack heist. They would go and sneak into the kitchens when it's quiet and snatch whatever interests them and rush back to her room. Most of the stuff he would get was for her since he knew what her favorites were.

Shadow was the one who made the friendship bracelets Maria wears in the flashbacks. It took some difficulty due to his fingers being bigger, but he managed to get it down and gave it to her as a gift.

He is the #1 hide and seek champion on the base. Finding Maria was always easy and quick, but she always had trouble finding him due to him being able to hide pretty much anywhere. Although, there were times he would just walk closely in the back of her and move around her whenever she would move just because he found it humorous.

He is a bit of a cuddle bug, not too bad, but once Maria introduced him to the art of snuggles and cuddles, he will seek them out if he is touchstarved enough.

As much as he doesn't want to admit it, he loves it when Maria gives him forehead kisses. Whether it's in a tender way or an over-the-top goofy fashion, he likes the affection. Based on the artwork made by @butterflyscribbles

Another thing he likes to do is listen to the sounds of rain. Whenever he gets near the entrance of the facility or goes to a part of the site where he can hear it easily and would listen to it for as long as the rain would fall.

One of Shadow’s weaknesses that only Maria fortunately knew about was that he is pretty ticklish on his sides. She found out on complete accident, helping him try to brush his fur after he had trouble doing it himself.

He was confused about how it worked until she explained to the best of her ability on how it worked, with Gerald filling in the rest for him. Although she had successfully launched a few surprise attacks on him, he would launch a counterattack thanks to Gerald giving him some pointers if she ever tried to tickle him randomly.

Speaking of counterattacks, he totally raged waged war via popcorn after that one time she flicked a piece at him during their movie watch.

Post-Sonic 3

When he eventually recovers after the events of Sonic 3, he wanders around the countryside. Looking at landscapes of nature, watching the animals as they live in the environments and stargazing.

There were times he came upon small towns as he wandered and contemplated exposing himself to the humans, but decided against it due to him still not trusting anyone he fully knew from before.

He eventually makes his way into the state of Idaho and stays there for a while.

During this time, he ends up accidentally befriending a little stray cat after he sees it in an alley and swipes some meat from a nearby deli to give it some food. Due to this action, the kitty imprints on him almost instantly and doesn't leave him alone.

He tries to get it to leave him alone, even teleporting a far distance away from it so he doesn't have to harm it, but somehow the kitty ends up tracking him down and constantly stays by him.

Much to his genuine surprise, Shadow actually gets accustomed to the cat's company and decides to care for her at the best of his ability, even giving her the nickname of "Motor" due to her purring reminding him of a motorcycle engine.

[lostinforestbound]

And for my grand finale of my Rolan brainrot thoughts, the moment you probably have all been waiting for:

Rolan NSFW Headcanons

MDNI

Disclaimer: If you think differently than what I write here that is totally okay! These are just opinions!

First and foremost, I believe he's a switch (or a Verse)! It can also depend on his partners preference, but he doesn't mind doing one or the other. I will say that he can have trouble bottoming/submitting super early on because it can be a very vulnerable experience, and he may get overwhelmed quickly. Will he admit that? Of course not, he's too prideful and his communication skills are horrid.

There's a lot of talk about with whether Rolan is a virgin or had a couple flings in the past during his time in Elturel, and I like either one! The most important thing is that he's definitely inexperienced. He doesn't know what he likes or dislikes yet, and would like to explore that with his partner once he's comfortable.

Bite him! Mark him! Give him hickies! Gods he goes absolutely insane for them, especially when he's on the receiving end. He would prefer all of it to be under the collar, but one of his favorite places is that tender spot right between the jaw and ear. It's one of the many ways to get him mewling. He'll definitely bite back if his partner likes it.

I would say he's pretty vanilla in general, but is open to trying something new if his partner is kinkier. It's something he would have to work up to as it can be intimidating, but with enough reassurances he's willing to try anything once. Besides, if he doesn't like it, he's pretty vocal about it and they know not to try again.

He wouldn't like being heavily restrained or gagged (at least at the same time), it feels too demeaning for him. I think he would like the idea of him being blindfolded, but would request that his partner keeps a hand on him at all times so he knows that they're still there. This would be a once in a while type of deal as it can get overwhelming quickly.

Speaking of dislikes: deliberate pain is a turnoff. Anything that would intentionally hurt he's not into. So things like whipping, harsh choking, smacking around, or any kind of pain infliction, he can't do it whether it's giving or receiving. (But he would still be into marking like I said earlier!) I don't think he would outright dislike degradation but those kinds of nights are on the rare side.

Now for the likes: Praise!!! For the love of the gods, praise this man, he loves it and his cock throbs when he's receiving it. It's the best way to get him worked up as well. Ordering him around is also good, he's very obedient and an incredible listener.

The act of intimacy is private for him, so public sex is definitely a big no. He wants everything to be private and only with his partner. He doesn't want to be anxious about getting caught while in the middle of things, it ruins his mood. Besides, his partner wants to keep his whines, moans, whimpers, and begging to themselves. They're such pretty sounds.

He tends to feel guilty whenever he's not in the mood or has to stop anything they're doing, it's instinctive and frustrates him. He knows he has no reason to feel guilty, his partner reassures that all the time, but sometimes that guilt crawls into the back of his mind. His depression and panic disorder cause him to have low libido, so he's not in the mood for intimacy most days. Though he's still just as satisfied with purely focusing on his partner and not himself. (When he works on himself and finds solutions to help him with his mental health, his libido increases!)

King of Oral Sex. After learning about his partner's body and practicing for a few sessions, he's incredible at it. It ends up being one of his favorite things to do, some nights he evens pleads for it, begging to taste them.

The best way his partner will find out he's horny is the way the base of his tail arches upward. That tail has a mind of its own, and he can't quite control it. He uses his tail a lot, using to either hold their thighs apart or wrap around their torso desperately. (Or if his partner is a tiefling/dragonborn, wrap around their tail!)

His more sensitive areas besides his neck are the insides of thighs and his pelvic area. If you play with his chest enough though, that becomes sensitive as well.

He definitely starts bringing in magic bedroom as soon as he gets comfortable. Imagine what they could do with some of these spells! Mage hand (or multiple of them), disguise self, entangle, maybe fly as well...ah, telekinesis is also a good one! How about enhance ability? If either him or his partner can't use words, they'll both gently cast detect thoughts to check in.

Aftercare is extremely important to him, whether he's giving or receiving it. He and his partner switch depending on who wants to do it that night. Though being on the receiving end of it, it makes him feel so loved. It won't take long for him to start purring, falling asleep in their arms. When it's his turn, he takes his time and is incredibly tender. He'll get anything they ask for and more.

(And we're done! I hope you enjoyed!!! I had a lot of fun making these and I hope to make more in the future when I reopen requests! If you have your own headcanons, please share!)

[le-fruit-de-la-passion]

I keep seeing people worship Christian Linke for some shit he’s said and ignore the fact this man is antisemetic and heavily insensitive towards non white and straight characters HE IS NOT YOUR ALLY

I genuinely think people just don't know how much of a shitty person he is. Seriously, that dude was quite possibly the worst person to put in charge of a project like Arcane. Here are just some of things he's said that you should know of:

• Linke said the death of every character in Arcane was a direct result of their own actions : "Every single big beat in the end with our characters, whether it’s a death or not, is a consequence of their choices."

So, I'd like you to explain to me how Vander's death was his fault, because I don't quite remember him agreeing to becoming Warwick. Also, maybe having the three characters portrayed as suicidal in the show (Jinx, Viktor, and Jayce) all die, and go on to say it was just the consequences of their own actions... isn't a good message?

• Linke has declared Viktor as asexual on his own, with the sole purpose of discouraging JayVik shippers : "There is a love. I don't think it's romantic [...]. To me, Viktor was always asexual".

Now, the issue here isn't having an asexual character, its having chosen VIKTOR, one of the most important characters for disabled rep in animation and popular media, to be asexual. I've went on and on about how infantalizing that is to disabled/chronically ill fans, because we NEVER get to be perceived as sexual beings. Having a body that's visibly different from the norm, or limits on certain abilities, turns off people, makes them uncomfortable. That's why you just never see a sexually active or a sex positive disabled character on screen. That's why, in all his "sexy" skins in LoL, Viktor is given a six pack, has no visible marks of illness on his body (scars, fatigue lines), and has no medical brace or crutch.

Viktor was always intended to have a sexual swagger in season 1 ("this isnt my bedroom") and that was EXTREMELY important to a lot of us in the community. I've seen a very similar response from the asexual community as well, who feel like Linke is using their identity and experience as a shield from fan interractions he dislikes, and without actual care for what it means to the characters. Don't fall for rep that isn't actually meant to represent you.

• Linke has directly and openly compared the Zaun and Piltover conflict to the left and right in the United States, and put both sides on equal moral footing : "If you’re asking me whether we were inspired by two sides of one nation who are incapable of even talking to each other anymore at a certain point, yes."

So, I don't think I need to explain how bad this is. Remember that Piltover is the city of wealth and enforcers, and that they've gazed the district of Zaun, dumped chemicals around their water suplies, directed brutal and deadly repressions of civil uprising and protest, offered no financial support to the struggling communities of addicts, disabled people, and orphans, refused Zaun any implication or decisional seat in the city political life, AND THAT'S JUST ON TOP OF MY HEAD. Now, think about what that means with the USA politics comparison, and the idea that they should "just listen to each other". Yeah.

Now, if you know me a bit, you know I live in Canada, so maybe you think this doesn't affect me personally, or that it doesn't affect you because you live outside the US. To that, I want to tell you about a neighbour of mine, who lives on the street parallel to my house, and this truck he owns. The truck has a whole lot of fun stickers and flags on it: the quotes "TRUMP ARREST TRUDEAU" and "CANADIANS FOR TRUMP", the israeli flag, the confederate flag, christian crosses, the blue lives matter flag, and an anti BLM sticker. Now, I'm sure theres more cool things, I've just never gotten close enough to look at the smaller stickers and ornaments because, as a very openly bi arabic woman, I'm scared to death of that man. But maybe I should just hear him out, right?

Tldr, do not think that the state of american politics doesn’t affect the rest of the world.

• Linke has called the people of Zaun and specifically Silco "Svengali", which is an antisemitic name that implies Jewish people are crooks / dirty / thiefs / sexual degenerates. There's a great post on Tumblr that goes more into detail about this (https://www.tumblr.com/endearing-dalliance/769693230696677376/another-blow-against-arcane-anti-semitism?source=share). I'd just like to insist on how bad calling someone "svengali" is. His character was used in many pieces of propaganda in Nazi Germany to picture the "Evil Jew", and to dehumanize Jewish communities by portraying them as ressembling Satan (forked beard, can do unholy hypnosis, targets women...). Linke could have chosen ANY other term to talk about Zaunites, the oppressed community getting gazed by a police state, but he chose that one. That was not an unconscious decision.

I'm a firm believer that it is possible to separate art from artist/studio/company, and to appreciate something while still being aware the person behind it is not a great individual. However, if you're defending all the decisions made in season 2, these are things you HAVE to be aware of.

[rottenpumpkin13]

You inspire so many new HCs that my brain shall one day break~

 

New HC(s):

Everyone has stickers they give Sephiroth at random times for random things because he deserves them.

Zack always puts one on his face. Sephiroth has gone through an entire meeting with a sparkly rainbow star on his forehead. (Zack is also responsible for the "no trying to sneak into Sephiroth's apartment to play 'Late Tooth Fairy But With Stickers' when he's sleeping" rule. He's responsible for several new rules in regards to sticker giving, tbh, but he maintains that that's part of the fun. He tactfully doesn't say how the deep sighs Angeal and Lazard give him for it are also part of the fun of it.)

Genesis gives Sephiroth's a laminated, wallet sized card full of empty square/box-like spaces, similar to that of a punch card, and when he's had all slots filled Sephiroth soon after finds candy mysteriously left on his desk. The candy type frequently changes, but he never receives one that he's disliked. If Sephiroth finds that he dislikes the newly tried candy that's been left on his desk, very mysteriously, then the next day he receives a replacement with something that he does like. (The first was a Banoran specialty sweet which narrowed down the list of suspects greatly. The fact that it was also 'sweet red apple' flavored narrowed it down even more so.)

Angeal mixes it up what he gives, but it's always something reminiscent of mostly normal childhood memories that Sephiroth should have had, like the rest of them*. Sephiroth receives a lot of little things that needed water to "come to life", including the occasional tiny plant. He finds them intriguing, as is evidence by his very feline-esque pupils growing as he watches the process entirely. It "sparks joy", as one would put it. (*Angeal maintains that Zack is also an outlier to most of this and they cannot account for the long favored Gongagan festivals' backwater game of 'Touch-Me Wrangling'.)

Cloud gets the gist of the whole sticker reward happenings, but it's not a Nibelheim thing so he's never actually experienced it either. Instead, Cloud gives Sephiroth what his childhood experiences were made of; practical things or cool things made with/gained by doing something practical/necessary. (He shyly explains this to Sephiroth when he offers him a handmade necklace with a Nibel Wolf fang from his own very first kill, mythril thread woven messily yet artfully around the leather cord. What Cloud doesn't explain is how deep the meanings of the first kill items are.)

+Lazard heard of what the boys are doing, the why of what the boys are doing and, well, he's nothing if not one who cares for his gremlins children Soldiers — even if that care is shown in the form of shouting and chasing the heathens them with a broom sometimes. Reward Stickers, thankfully, do not factor into any of those times. He sneaks little golden stars onto Post-Its attached to whatever papers he hands over to Sephiroth. When it seems like Sephiroth is having a bad day, Lazard makes a constellation around the star sticker. (He might not admit it, but seeing the little quirk of his lips when Sephiroth notices, a genuine smile or near enough if it, is held as a very special sight to him.)

Oh this fills my heart with joy 🥺💚 makes me think this conversation would go down though:

Hojo: Sephiroth, why in the blazes do you have a golden star sticker on your shoulder guard? How utterly unbecoming of a specimen of your caliber.

Sephiroth: It's my reward for not stabbing you with that spork you gave me when I was 7 to eat whatever that gray lab sludge was you called sustenance.

Hojo: