#hes supposed to look different even in his makeup but still very similar and i THINK i achieved that... i want them to have very

[jesncin]

Caped Crusader, "Safe Diversity", and Catwoman

We're at a point where it's expected that a new incarnation of any story previously with a white-dominated cast would be reimagined with a "more diverse" cast. This can mean racebending them, genderbending them or making them queer, but for the purposes of this analysis we'll be focusing on racebends. Most of the time, executives will take the "safer" routes with diversifying their cast- pick a couple of unproblematic supporting characters to be incidentally "diverse this time". Other times, there might be "braver" takes where more prominent characters (perhaps even the main character) are racebent. This doesn't necessarily mean racebending prominent characters is an inherently better thing to do.

I've been more than critical of MAWS' portrayal of BIPOC characters but especially their Asian Lois before. Sometimes BIPOC representation is just a decorative palette-swap change for these shows. Caped Crusader however, is different. It's more complicated- but it's rooted in very similar problems. Unlike MAWS (though I can only speak for S1), CC is far more willing to take on political topics: classism, sexism, police corruption and brutality, even beauty standards in the entertainment industry! Yet, in choosing to portray these topics in their stylistically anachronistic 30s-40s set piece- it makes it so the show's reluctance to discuss race intersecting with any of these topics far more apparent.

(spoilers for all of Caped Crusader)

Take for instance, episode 2: "...And Be A Villain". The story is about Basil Karlo, a less than handsome actor who wishes his appearance wasn't holding him back from both love and playing roles saved for better looking people. He makes a deal with Jack Ellman, an experimental makeup artist who turns him into Clayface. This story is set in motion when Miss Yvonne Francis, a beautiful actress, goes missing. Miss Francis is a woman of color (brown skinned, unspecified) played by Lacey Chabert: a white actress. CC goes for a generally colorblind casting what with Stephie (a white girl) being voiced by Amari McCoy (a Black actress) but it always feels icky when a white actor voices a character of color. Prominent characters of color in CC are more accurately casted. However I do think animation should be wary of using their medium to get away with their show appearing more diverse than the actual talent behind it.

The episode's theme is pretty clear on how unfair the entertainment industry is in regards to who it prioritizes in leading roles. Basil is constantly emphasized as a tragically talented actor whose appearance is holding him back. "With your talent you should be a leading man, Basil." Yvonne says to Basil in a flashback. Meanwhile as Alfred is watching through movie clips featuring Yvonne and Basil together, he comments "while lovely to look at, Miss Francis is no Gloria Swanson." So Yvonne has the looks, but not the talent and still gets prestigious roles because that's showbiz. The only time this is weirdly inconsistent is when Yvonne calls out Basil/Clayface in the finale, saying:

"I don't believe your performance. You're chewing on scenery. Relying on makeup effects to enhance weak characterization. It's insincere, Basil. It's not real."

I honestly feel like this scene was just meant to quickly "subvert" Yvonne being a damsel in distress by having her call out Basil's acting. It's a moment that isn't reinforced by anything the episode set up. After all, according to Alfred, she's not as good an actor compared to Basil. That's supposed to be how they foil each other, so this moment feels unmotivated. Again, I get what they're going for, that Basil's performance ironically relies on his newfound appearance so much that even a bad actress like Yvonne can spot his meager acting. But it doesn't work when our protagonists were actually convinced by his imitation of others. She's still a damsel in distress character regardless of her having a bit of attitude when calling her captor out.

What I don't understand is: why make Yvonne a woman of color if this was the story you wanted to tell? It's not like they're paying homage to how her voice actress looks, after all. Why, in your story set in purposely anachronistic 30s-40s era noir, did the character who was meant to represent the epitome of "not talented but gets by the industry because of her conventional beauty and pretty privilege" a woman of color? We're missing the very obvious conversation here where Tinsel Town is a white industry with white biases to what it considers attractive. It doesn't matter how many attractive actors of color exist, they're still pigeon holed into stereotyped and often racist roles (especially back then), and have to work twice as hard to get the opportunities their white colleagues get. Why is Basil, a white man, the only one afforded a marginalized narrative when Yvonne is quite literally a woman of color right next to him? The episode is especially painful to sit through when Basil is afforded so much sympathy compared to Yvonne.

"He didn't have the right look. He didn't have the right face."

"The camera is kind to some, but cruel to others."

This is transparently a colorblind narrative. Yvonne is written and even casted as a white woman. The CC crew just decided she should be a WOC likely because "wouldn't it be neat if the beautiful actress in this story is POC" without thinking about how that would drastically change a narrative already critical of the showbiz industry based on appearances. It's not intersectional and flattens the narrative to being selective of the prejudices Tinsel Town has. This episode is a great example to what CC generally does with diversity. It's not afraid to be critical of society, but it gets oddly squeamish with discussing how race intersects with these topics- opting mostly for a palette-change type of representation.

It's not entirely fair to say CC doesn't ever touch on the topic of racism. It sort of does: if you read between the lines for why the mayor gives Jim Gordon his commissioner role, and more prominently with the Gentleman Ghost (a rich aristocrat ghost that steals from the poor, believing wealth is his right) being offended that his mansion is sold to Lucius Fox (saying "and you would sell it to rabble like this?")- racism is somewhat present in the world of CC. We see the women in this show experience misogyny, but it's ambiguous if any of their struggles are intersectional with that of race. But that's... just about it. Racism isn't discussed more than it is alluded to, whenever the writers decide it's relevant. Because of this, CC has a spectrum of hits and misses when it comes to integrating characters of color in their reimagined cast.

Here's how I would visualize that spectrum using canonized instances of Asian Lois Lane. I should emphasize that representation of people of color doesn't entail the narrative owing us "a racism arc" or what have you. This spectrum is more used to measure how much racial identity was integrated in the characterization of the character: whether that be cultural identity or history. Being a person of color isn't just "person who goes through racism".

This is how I'd personally place the prominent characters of color in CC on my "spectrum of racebends" chart. Generally most of the characters of color (whether reimagined that way or were originally POC already) are fairly harmless in how they were integrated into CC's world, but none of the characters feel bespoke as a reimagining of the character and are interchangeable with their white counterparts. To quote cartoonist Juni Ba (in a discussion on CC):

"...stripping characters of color in these time period stories of any cultural, [a]esthetic or social signifiers that’d make them true to the groups being represented. Instead they dress, act and speak very western."

In my opinion, the only character that is an exception to this is Linton Midnite (or as he's popularly known as: "Papa Midnite"). Midnite is a character so interlinked with Haitian culture and mysticism that even CC couldn't erase that aspect of his identity (important note: historically, the portrayal of Midnite since his creation is riddled in racism, but that's not my place to discuss here). Midnite at most speaks with an accent, dresses more nonconformingly compared to the western standard dress of all the other characters, and practices occultish stuff (though I don't think there was anything culturally specific in that episode, please correct me otherwise if someone has more insight!). That's a lot more cultural representation than just about any other character of color in CC. Midnite can't be changed to a white character, his African identity is too interlinked with who he is.

There are a few characters I consider in poor taste to be POC- that being Arnold Flass, Yvonne Francis (who we've covered already), and Harley Quinn (who will be getting her own post, as her case is complicated). So let's talk about cops, then.

I tend to be indifferent about media choosing to diversify cop characters because it feels like choosing the most "respectable to society" role for a marginalized character to play. Cops uphold bigoted systems of power at the end of the day, so that's a very comfortable place to represent your marginalized characters. It's why we keep getting gay or lesbian cops, which Batman media absolutely perpetuates as well with Renee Montoya. It's hard to cheer for two women of color being allowed to date and kiss in public when one of them is a cop, y'know? But this doesn't mean re-imagining cop characters doesn't have narrative merit.

In regards to Jim Gordon being reimagined as a Black cop, I'm gonna refer to La'Ron Readus' video on "Fixing the Batman's Copaganda problem" where he goes into detail about the missed potential of Black!Jim Gordon from Reeves' The Batman (2022). Generally, I felt that opportunity was missed in CC as well. While I love that Barbara Gordon is in CC, nothing about her being a WOC is integrated into this version of her. It felt like if either character was white, the story wouldn't be that different. The bigger issue here is the choice to racebend Arnold Flass- a previously white, blonde, cunningly smart, and brutally corrupt cop.

CC follows some of this in their version of Arnold Flass- he's paired with Harvey Bullock (also a corrupt cop). While Bullock is the brawns of the duo, Flass is the smarts. He's cunning and even implied to be willing to frame Bullock if the worse comes to it. It isn't an inherently bad idea to racebend a corrupt white cop into a Black cop. If the writers want to tell a story about how the police force assimilates people of color into the system and forces them to be just as if not more brutal than their white counterparts, then by all means tell that story.

But that's not what CC gave us. By rarely acknowledging race, we don't get to have a conversation or themes surrounding that delicate intersection of identities. We just have "diverse Flass". Look at these panels from Year One for example, can you imagine how Flass' casual disrespect for Gordon by constantly calling him "Jimmy" could be re-contextualized with a race change? Unlike other characters who just feel like missed opportunities for not integrating race into their characterization, Flass is an elephant in the room. To not acknowledge his race in themes of police corruption and brutality is to white wash the narrative with diverse paint.

I personally think the stronger narrative decision would have been to racebend Bullock as Black instead of Flass. Flass could still be the conniving cop, but he encourages Black!Bullock to be the more "violent brute" who does the dirty work for him. It would put a newfound racial layer to how Flass considers Bullock disposable. Then we could have some kind of commentary on how the police force encourages a system of abuse that makes even fellow POC turn on each other. It'd also make it so a certain scene would be better in optics.

I have many criticisms for the scene where Batman holds a gun to Flass in the finale of CC. It's a narratively unmotivated (see my criticisms for CC's Two Face here for elaboration) and weak moment that relies on metatextual shock value to cover up how underdeveloped this take on Batman is. But it's also just very uncomfortable optics-wise. It's a common and valid criticism that Batman as a character can very easily fall into copaganda, with his status, goals, and collaboration with the police force. In many ways, Batman is often written to be committing his own kind of vigilante police brutality.

Caped Crusader wants to be a deconstruction of a Batman tied to power and hellbent on his mission to eliminate crime. But because CC occasionally omits race from its narrative, the scene where Batman holds a gun to a Black cop-a man stripped of his ability to fight back-just falls flat for me. There's no acknowledgement in this scene that Batman basically gets to be an anonymous cop, "warning shots" and all. Batman shoots at an unarmed Black man several times. It's meant to be shocking to us how Bruce is willing to stoop to such a level and indulge in gratuitous gun violence, but it honestly hits too close to real incidents where this is racially the case for me to enjoy the narrative point of this scene.

You know a character who would be perfect for calling out Batman's many privileges? Selina Kyle. Let's talk about Caped Crusader's biggest downgrade.

I've heard just about all the arguments in favor for CC's reimagining of Catwoman and none have convinced me that this was in any way a good take on the character. I see people saying that this Catwoman is a return to her golden age roots, and there's a lot of misconception surrounding that assumption. So bear with me as looking at Catwoman's history is necessary to discuss race and how a character evolves.

Catwoman debuted in the 1940s as a jewel thief who disguised herself as an old lady. She was just called "The Cat" and would not don her more feline appearance until later. True to the mystery woman femme fatale trope she was inspired by, her backstory was left unknown for a long time. 10 years later, in Batman #62 it is revealed that after a plane accident bonked her head, the now named Selina Kyle got amnesia and went on a crime spree. Giving her leeway to reform and be an ally to Batman. This would historically inform how Selina Kyle toed the line between good and evil as an anti-hero.

Her origin would be revisited in 1983, in the Brave and the Bold #197. Although not canon to the mainline universe, it is still a crucial development for her character's history. In this story, Selina reveals that she lied about having amnesia to get out of facing punishment. Her true story was that she entered a life of crime to escape an abusive relationship with a rich man. The only loss her husband understood was material loss, loss of property, so stealing was how Selina fought back.

This crucial re-examination of her character transformed her from shenanigans inducing femme fatale, to a marginalized fighter. Shortly later in 1987 in Batman Year One, Catwoman is reimagined as a street-hardened sex worker in poverty. She is inspired by the Batman to become a vigilante for her own goals and gets annoyed that she's assumed to be his sidekick.

The moment Catwoman became marginalized by power, was the point where she became worthy of solo-character status. She was not only a compelling foil to Batman-capable of going toe to toe with him and make him question his motives even though she did not share his privilege-she could lead her own adventures reflecting a side of Gotham Bruce Wayne's perspective doesn't. She actively makes the setting of Gotham stronger because of how she's evolved as a character.

Catwoman's character would continue to evolve, with some iterations reimagining her as a latina woman and others where she's canonically bisexual.

While Catwoman has been portrayed by Black actresses before, I want to focus on the most recent and prominent iteration of a race-swapped Catwoman. When Matt Reeves' The Batman (2022) featured Zoe Kravitz as Selina Kyle, an explicitly biracial character within the text of the story, we see another step this character evolves. I think La'Ron Readus' video on "Why Race-Swapped Characters Are Not The Full Story" does a fantastic job of explaining why this is a narratively great race swap. To summarize (though I do encourage watching his video as he goes into depth about 2022 Batman's Jim Gordon as well among many other examples) and add analysis of my own: Selina being the byproduct of an Italian crime lord and a Black sex worker is a brilliant marriage of her original backstory (being connected to and abused by powerful men) and her modern backstory where she's poverty stricken (and tangentially related to a sex worker if we're talking about Batman Year One).

We understand why someone of her background would have an affinity for stray cats because of how she lost her mom at a young age, she is sympathetic to fellow people from the lower class, and explicitly calls out privileged white people- including Batman who attempted to over moralize Selina's partner as a sex worker.

"All anyone cares about in this place, are these white privileged assholes."

It's especially that last line that makes it so Selina's character isn't interchangeable with her white counterpart. She's a textually rich character to contrast Bruce in Batman 2022, and we can see how years of history and evolution has brought such an empathetic character to the screen. Interestingly, Readus feels that while 2022 Selina was an example of a race-swap that works, he believes it was great by coincidence, because of the miss that was Gordon's characterization in the same movie. I think with Reeves as a collaborator on Caped Crusader, that assumption was correct.

Selina in CC is back to being a rich socialite, but (unlike her Golden Age counterpart) she's not married into wealth- she's got generational wealth (with a dad serving jail time for tax evasion). Worse yet, she's taking what little remains of her money and spending it on superficially imitating the Batman to create her Catwoman persona. She even has her own reluctant Alfred, a Catmobile, the works. Selina steals things because. She likes shiny things. And is something of a kleptomaniac. Catwoman is instantly discovered to be Selina because of course she's not as good as Batman is with keeping a secret identity (another key difference from her Golden Age counterpart, whose backstory was shrouded in mystery for a decade).

It is laughable to me that CC touts that their version of Harley Quinn has an origin of her own outside of the Joker, only to turn around and make a Catwoman that is completely tied to copying a man as her origin (did they decide Harley's goofyness as a character needed to be replicated in Selina for some reason? In their supposed dark and edgy show?). What a strange choice to fixate on the part in Year One where Selina didn't like being mistaken for Batman's assistant despite being inspired by him and turn it into a quirky bit. It feels like such a regressive take that frames Selina as a sillier, whimsical version of Bruce that just spends money on a whim because women just aren't smart enough to know how to keep track of their money. They're too busy looking for shiny things to steal. The fact that both 2022 Batman and CC have a scene where Selina is looking through her many bills she's yet to pay is wild to me. How am I supposed to care for a Selina that has the expendable wealth to create a Catwoman costume, car, and gadgets, but delay paying her maid? One of these versions of Selina is far more sympathetic than the other.

Again, I get what CC is going for. Batman is characterized to be hellbent on catching criminals, Catwoman is supposed to serve as some kind of reflection of his obsession. They're both self destructive in their goals, but one is vengeance and the other is chasing thrills. But is that really as interesting a foil as having Catwoman be marginalized, just as skilled, and making Batman second guess himself? Is it a take that strengthens Gotham as a setting by shedding light on its lower class characters? Is it a take that makes her worth revisiting as a perpetual rogue and not a one off episode where's she's basically a shenanigans-inducing nuisance to Batman? Evolved takes on Catwoman have talked about her desire to seek thrills and paired it with how she dismantles power. So it's not like CC's take is particularly unique, it just lacks all the depth that usually surrounds Selina's thrill seeking.

In a show that is frankly desperate to make it so Bruce doesn't have a personal relationship to his rogues gallery because he's too busy being "A cold, remorseless avenger of evil, seemingly more machine than man. Forged in the fire of tragedy, every fiber of his being is dedicated to the eradication of crime." (according to promo) that's how we end up with Barbara as the foil and humanity to both Harvey Dent and Harley Quinn. How the show focuses on the police force more than Bruce. It feels especially pointed that Catwoman is characterized this way. When she doesn't contrast Bruce, she becomes less personal to him as a character that is poverty stricken but still matches up to him in skill. She can't challenge him or his worldview, he can't find her fascinating as an equal, all of their chemistry and intrigue is erased.

All this to say that of the characters revealed for CC, I was honestly surprised that Selina wasn't one of the many characters racebent. CC followed up on a Black Jim and Barbara Gordon, two characters that have been race swapped before in previous media. Most prominently! Harley is Asian in this iteration, something never done before. So why is it that Selina doesn't follow up on the many times she's been portrayed by Black actresses?

It's because it's an actual good racebend if written well. It wouldn't be a "safe" racebend because writing Selina this way means you'd have to acknowledge racism, and it would be much more noticeable if you didn't. There is no canonized version of Asian Lois Lane that parallels her relationship to Superman as an immigrant. But there is a version of Selina as a Black woman who directly calls out white people and is aware of systemic power. It's in something as prominent and mainstream as Matt Reeves' 2022 Batman. So instead it just reads as cowardice to me that CC couldn't follow up on this evolution of Selina.

Not only does it weaken Catwoman and Batman's relationship to regress Selina this way, but it actively weakens Gotham as a setting and the very themes of Caped Crusader. I personally think all the energy that went into Harley Quinn should have been shared with (or straight up gone to) Selina Kyle. Because unlike CC's take on Harley, the way Selina Kyle's marginalization intersects with race and queerness would have actually critiqued Gotham's class corruption effectively. As a Black queer woman, Selina would be among the most vulnerable people in Gotham. We don't have prominent characters in CC that truly reflect the lower class, there are these unnamed characters Harvey Dent sits next to on a train. There are some orphans with Batfam names. A proper Catwoman reimagining that takes advantage of her evolution would have filled this gap in their narrative.

But that's not how "safe diversity" works. CC would rather racebend and canonize the queerness of a character like their take on Harley Quinn. A WOC who gets to kiss a cop and call out powerful men, but not in a way that makes white people uncomfortable.

If I could edit the Sandman quote that "The great stories will always return to their original forms" for Superheroes, I'd say "The great stories will always return to their most resonant forms" because without iterations we don't get characters like the Kents, Alfred or Catwoman as we know her today. Classics are good to look to, but we like these characters because they evolve. In my opinion, none of CC's takes on these characters of color feel resonant. They're not definitive to the level of Mister Freeze's tragic love story in BTAS, among many standout narrative choices in BTAS that continue across media iterations.

In my opinion, CC isn't as thoroughly clumsy as MAWS is in regards to POC representation and race-swaps (all characters of color in MAWS get put in the left side of that chart I made. In the Sunken Place. Where they all Missed The Movement). However, I can't help but see Caped Crusader's take on the world of Gotham as nothing more than an anecdote in the evolution of Batman's story for the modern era. "It's BTAS but superficially more diverse and with less compelling narrative choices."

[stellar-solar-flare]

Hey, this is my first time sending you a request. I'm so glad that you're getting back in to writing.

Can I request Steve Rogers × reader based on Taylor Swift's Champagne problems but with happy ending please 💖 (I'm a sucker for happy endings)

Thank you for sending a prompt! I hope you like what I spun up. I'm definitely a sucker for happy endings, too, and I love Taylor Swift's music too, so this prompt was right up my alley.

Worthy - Steve Rogers/Reader

Mature - 18+ only!

You and Steve Rogers have been dating for a year. When a journalist is out to get you, you will have to stand together and come out stronger.

Romance, angst with a happy ending, fluff & hurt/comfort, protective Steve Rogers.

Word Count: 2,045 words.

Warnings: Press being nasty. Reader has unspecified past trauma and unspecified mental health issues as a result. Self-esteem and self-worth issues. Sexual content (not very explicit).

Alternate Universe: The Avengers Initiative (AI) continued SHIELD's work after its collapse to corruption, with Steve as the Head Strategist and Tony as the Director. The Avengers are living together in the Tower - Bucky has healed, and Civil War never happened because Tony and Steve worked through their differences like adults.

I do not own anything Marvel related or the Taylor Swift song. This is an unofficial fan work. No copyright infringement intended. This is a work of fiction. Any similarity to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events, is purely coincidental.

AUTHOR MASTERLIST | AO3

You heard the door of Steve’s floor of the Tower open and close and curled yourself up tighter against the corner of the couch as if doing so would make you disappear. You hugged your knees tight against your chest and hid your tear-streaked face from the world and your boyfriend, whose steps you now recognized even without seeing him.

Despite its impressive size, the piece of furniture refused to swallow you, and when Steve’s footsteps reached you, you were still there. Shame burned your cheeks. He’d come after you, even after you’d practically run out of the lovely, loud New Year’s Eve party upstairs, leaving mid-conversation while he’d been at the bar getting drinks. He would’ve had the courage to stand up. He wouldn’t have just run away.

“Oh thank god you’re here,” he breathed out, and you felt a pang shoot through your heart.

Steve deserved better than this. Wasn’t that the whole point?

“I’m sorry,�� you murmured to your knees.

“Love, please, look at me,” he said, and the sheer pain in his voice gripped your heart and squeezed tight.

You managed to lift your face up to him and weren’t sure what to make of his expression. Sternness, as if he was preparing for an impact. Sorrow. Despair. God, you had done this to him. It was supposed to be a fun evening, with both of you dressed to the nines, Steve in a navy three-piece suit and you in a matching evening gown and in professionally done hair and makeup, which you were fairly certain had not budged even now.

“Can I sit down?” he said, and you nodded.

He lowered himself on the couch, and reached a hand towards you, stopping mid-air, and then letting his hand rest in his lap.

“What did she say to you?” he asked, and as you shook your head, continued. “Love, I need to know.”

You did not want to talk about this. You did not want to remember the journalist’s gleeful face as she’d oh-so-innocently dropped the fact that she had somehow gained access to all the things you had never wanted to become front-page news in the kind of gossip rags you certainly didn’t want to be featured in.

“She knows,” you sniffled. “She knows, and next week everyone will know I’m not worthy of you.”

“Hey,” Steve said. “Hey, come here. Please. Please don’t talk like that about yourself.”

You should not. You should let him go, be grateful that you’d been his for over a year, be grateful for everything you had been given, and accept that he deserved better than someone like you. As the journalist had so kindly said in between the lines. Someone with your history certainly wasn’t worthy of being the girlfriend of Captain America, or god forbid, Mrs. Rogers.

And yet, it was impossible to stop yourself, to rob yourself of the solace only Steve could give, the warmth, the safety. You went to him when he opened his arms, crawling into his lap and burying your face against his neck. For a few minutes, his palm just ran over the jewel-covered back of your dress. You’d felt so beautiful today, and now you felt thoroughly rotten.

“I’m sorry,” he finally breathed out after you’d stopped shaking — you only realized you had been shaking when it stopped.

He was sorry? What the hell was he sorry for? The sheer surprise at his statement made you lift your head and shift to straddle his lap so that you could meet his gaze properly. His hands settled to rest on your hips.

“Steve?” you asked, and the sigh that left him seemed to originate from the very depths of his soul.

“It’s my fault,” he said. “I… If it wasn’t for me, they wouldn’t be infringing your privacy. I’m a public figure, whether I want it or not, and you shouldn’t… You shouldn’t have to cope with anything like this because of that. There’s nothing, nothing to be ashamed of about what you’ve gone through. And I am certainly not ashamed of you. But you should get to choose whether you disclose it or not. And now you can’t, because of me.”

He was gritting his teeth, his jawline so sharp it could’ve cut bulled-proof glass, and it occurred to you that of course this would happen. Of course he would end up blaming himself for this, for failing to protect you from the bad side of being a superhero in the limelight.

“Steve…”

It broke your heart to look at him. You knew he was right about the fact that there was nothing to be ashamed of for having a bad past and having struggled with mental health and having needed therapy and other medical assistance because of that. But he was also right that it should’ve been your choice to talk about in public, if you wanted to.

“It’s not your fault,” you murmured. “I just… I shouldn’t be ashamed but I am. And I’m ashamed of that. And I just… When she started talking about it, I just panicked, I just had to get out of there. I’m sorry I left so suddenly.”

“It’s okay,” Steve said, the back of his hand gently swiping the tears on your cheeks away. “It’s okay. It’s private; I am so proud of you for everything you’ve conquered, and since there is no putting this genie back in the bottle, I will be so proud of you if you want to spin this into you becoming an advocate for it. But I will be just as proud of you if you don’t want to do that. It’s tough, having the public eye on you, and I’m sorry I pulled you into this out of my selfishness. She had it the wrong way — it’s me who is not worthy of you.”

“Steven Grant Rogers,” you huffed. “You stop that nonsense at this instant. You couldn’t control it any more than I could. I chose this. I am here because I love you, and I’ll be damned before some stupid gossip rag writer takes that away from me.”

He looked at your stern face, and his forefinger trailed the edge of your jaw — as if he didn’t quite believe you were there. There was an awestruck expression in his eyes.

“There she is,” he breathed out. “I love you so much. You are so strong. And you very much are worthy of me. More than I could’ve ever wished for.”

You swallowed. There was a light on his face, something so kind and pure that it was impossible to resist, breaking through the clouds of the earlier conversation.

“So you aren’t mad at me?” you said with a tiny voice, and the shock on his face shot through your chest — before he could ask, you offered an explanation: “I ruined our night.”

“She ruined our night, and I’ll make damn sure her press privileges to AI events will be removed,” Steve said through gritted teeth, and a very, very pleasant — if out of place — shiver shot down your back. “But I am not mad at you. Not in the slightest. I want to be with you — I loved you before you told me, and nothing about that changed then, or now. It isn’t something that defines you. And I’m sorry I wasn’t there to protect you.”

You let out a soft breath, resting your forehead against his. Adrenaline was draining from your body, the panic reaction settling as Steve’s comforting presence made its way into every cell in your body, leaving a tingling warmth in its wake.

“You can’t protect me from everything,” you murmured.

He closed his eyes for a brief moment, a sigh leaving him.

“I know,” he said. “Sometimes I just wish I could. But what we will do is get the legal department on this, to see if there’s any way we can stop it — and see if they can find out how the hell she got access to it in the first place. It’s the kind of personal medical information that probably can’t be just aired out.”

You nodded, but you also knew that stuff like this tended to find its way through the grape wine, even if the legal department was able to stop it from making front-page news. Steve seemed to read your thoughts from your face and gently brushed your cheek with his thumb.

“But regardless of what happens, I’ll be there every step of the way. I’ll always be there for you, honey.”

You leaned your face into his hand and let the knowledge of that wash away the bad emotions still lingering inside you. You would have to live with your past, but Steve was right: it wasn’t something that defined you, and he would be there.

“I know,” you whispered. “And I’m so grateful I have you, love. You’re the best boyfriend I could hope for.”

Something lit up in his eyes; it seemed like he was almost grinning, even as his smile changed only a little, and his thumb brushed over your bottom lip. He trailed the movement with his eyes before meeting your gaze again.

“Well, I was actually wondering if you would give me a promotion?” he said, and now he was grinning even as your brow furrowed.

A promotion? From being a boyfriend…?

Oh.

Oh.

You swallowed, and you were fairly certain your eyes were the size of saucers when he reached for the inner pocket of his suit jacket. But could he mean…? He would never joke about this but this was ridiculous and silly after what had just happened and…

It was just right.

When he produced the little blue velvet box from his pocket, your eyes were brimming with tears for an entirely different reason.

“I actually had a little different plans for us tonight,” he said softly, snapping the box open with one hand and taking your hand with another. “I did intend to take you to the roof when the fireworks started and get on one knee there, but I… It’s about us, love. It’s for us and for no one else, and I think you know I wouldn’t just ask this to make you feel better. But I think the right course here is to not let anything ruin our night.”

Your heart raced in your chest. The oval blue sapphire, flanked with two smaller colorless diamonds in a platinum band — and really, smaller was a bit of a stretch here, with how the ring would likely be visible from Jupiter — glimmered in the soft light of the living room. It was gorgeous and your hand was shaking just a little in his grip. You managed to tear your eyes off the ring and look into a different kind of glimmering blue in Steve’s eyes. He swallowed, his voice just a little thick despite the soft smile on his face.

“You’re the one I want, love, and I love you more than anything. You make me a better man every day, and you give me a reason to fight. Would you do me the honor of becoming my wife? Will you marry me?”

Somehow, you managed to speak. Somehow, even as the world was spinning, your throat felt thick, your eyes were glazed over with tears, and your heart was exploding.

“Yes. Yes, Steve, I will. I would. I do,” you babbled, and he laughed like a spirit of a cloudless summer day when he pulled you in for a kiss.

“That last one you’ll have to wait a moment to say,” he whispered between the kisses. “But I look forward to hearing it, more than anything. I love you.”

“I love you too.”

And after he slipped the ring to your finger, he stood up from the couch with you still on his lap and carried you to the bedroom. And when he took you apart again and again with the meticulous care of a strategic man, when he whispered words of love and desire into your ear, when he murmured praise onto your skin, you felt like you were exactly where you belonged.

With him.

In his embrace, it was impossible to feel anything but worthy.

[cyberdragoninfinity]

Hm, I see you like yuri and aporia quite a bit.. :3 how do you think they'd react to each other? (It can be in your au too if you want :33)

The boy has eyes like a greedy dragon and a smile like a maddened cannibal as he examines Aporia's claws with delighted fascination. "So this is what it looks like to become one." The smile grows wider, hungrier. "We really are the same."

"I fail to see the similarity." Aporia huffs, recoiling his hand. The child simply snickers in reply, disappearing into the tangled curtain of wires and cables plugged into his back and arm ports. He reemerges a moment later on the other side, having to crane his neck to meet Aporia's gaze, even with the great and powerful Embodiment of Despair sitting ever so gingerly on the ground.

"Then maybe you should look harder, Aporia. We may as well be twins!" says the boy, leaning against Aporia's knee and giving him a fiendish little grin. "Metaphorically speaking, of course. We've both been parts of a whole, haven't we? Well, I suppose I still am, unfortunately I'm still trying to collect all of my pieces, but you… you did it. You reunited as one and unlocked your true power. I have to admire the efficiency! You make it look so easy." His smile twitches, sliding into a grimace as he glances at the cables and cords around them. "I would admire the rejection of humanity too, if you weren't so dedicated to being a machine." A disgusted sniff. "Why on earth would you want to become some cold metal Thing when you could just embrace your divine flesh and become a creature of true organic destruction instead?"

Aporia narrows his eyes. "You cannot fathom the divine touch that's had its hand in making me," he rumbles, a warning tone. "A holy machine is an existence beyond your very comprehension, little one. I exist unbound by useless, distracting emotions; I have no need to be a slave to things like your juvenile yearning for chaos and destruction!"

That earns him a nasty little glare. "Come now. My name is Yuri."

Something flickers in the corner of Aporia's mind. He pushes it back, hastily. Leans down as much as he can to bare his ever-sharp fangs at the boy. "Hmph. Another thing then, Yuri--you and I are nothing alike. Our goals and situations are night and day." He speaks slowly, syllables taking a particularly prickly edge. "The Three Emperors of Iliaster were made to become me. They're androids. They were built from my despair, built with reunification intended… and I stand as the sum of their parts. They merged into one by their own accord, for the good of completing the Circuit and saving the future. It was their decision. They wanted it."

Yuri matches his bared teeth with the lazy glint of his own devilish fangs. "And you think we don't?" he purrs. "Please. I know how badly the others are yearning to be one. They're desperate for it! I'm just the only piece ambitious enough to make it happen."

"Ambitious." Aporia snorts. Ambitious the way a vampire sinks its teeth into your neck, sure. "Perhaps that's the crux of how we differ, Yuri. My pieces weren't hunting each other."

"My, my. That's an awfully accusatory tone you're taking."

Aporia has had enough feelings for ten lifetimes. A hundred, even. His Z-one crafted mechanical makeup dutifully seals every distracting, useless emotion away, at his own insistence. And yet he's all too aware of something very close to frustration digging its barbs into his brain. Dancing around with that flickering something that's refusing to stay out of sight out of mind. "The Emperors are… were… a unit. A shared existence. Allow me to point out that you and all of your pieces have your own separate lives. Had, I should say. And it seems you won't rest until you've ensured the complete and utter ego death of every last one of them." He sits back, letting cables slacken. Hums. "My pieces weren't so eager to annihilate one another."

"Oh? Then why don't they come out to play?" Yuri quirks the second most ridiculous eyebrow in the room. "Ah, that's right, they can't! They don't exist anymore! Not in a way that matters, anyway. It's just you now, isn't it?" He purses his lips, smirks. "So presumptuous of you, old man. Acting like I'm the only one here annihilating people. Though I suppose "people" is hardly an applicable term, in your case."

Aporia clenches his jaw. "That's completely different."

"So you agree then? That your little--what did you call them? Emperors? How adorable--you agree that they aren't people." That increasingly irritating smile splits into a vividly vicious grin. "Just spare parts necessary to becoming whole. They may as well be gears and screws." A giggle, starting small then blooming into a full blown cackle. "Though I guess they already are!"

"Enough!" Aporia bellows, snaps forward to swat Yuri away like a meddlesome housefly. He ducks out of reach, though, nimbly grabbing hold of a particularly thick braid of wires and shimmying up it like a climbing rope. With a pounce he lands on one of Aporia's pauldrons, still laughing as he settles into a precarious crouch.

"Awfully cranky for a so-called emotionless machine, aren't you?" Yuri snickers. "Admit it, we're far more alike than different! All I've done is just accelerate the same process you went through. You wiped your Emperors from existence to become yourself again, and when I absorb my last two stray fragments, well, then it will be my turn." His turn to hum now, as he admires his nails with a thoughtful frown. "Honestly, why bother dying on such a morally righteous hill over something that's such a simple matter, anyway? It's just mutual exclusivity! Our pieces weren't born--ahah, created, to be separate forever, don't kid yourself. We've always been the ultimate end goal."

His gaze snaps up, meets Aporia's scowl with snake-split pupils. "And the only way our lives get to truly flourish is if theirs reach an end." Something wicked sparks in those violet, inhuman eyes. "But I think you know that. Don't you, Aporia?"

What a truly… aggravating little insect. So adamant, so filled to the brim with blistering venom and malicious glee. Clinging to arrogance a little too tight, like a shaky hand grips a rapier. This boy with a truly nasty smile and an even nastier laugh.

It would be clawing its way through Aporia's emotionless walls, lighting a flame of exasperated fury inside him right now, if it wasn't so familiar.

Isn't this precisely what you would do, if you were that age again? Postured, plotted, picked at sore spots, just to see a reaction? Fought feverishly with any adult who'd dare try to argue with you? Defended your choices, one of the few things left still well and truly your own?

For a moment as Aporia stares Yuri down he can almost see a flicker of long red hair, a wild, gleaming green eye. It's all certainly what Lucciano would do, isn't it? Right down to the hysterical madman cackle. If he focuses, Aporia can access every inch of his components' memories within his circuits and systems, see all of the child Emperor's schemes and outbursts and chaotic leanings. And while Lucciano was a despair-driven, exaggerated facsimile of his childhood, Aporia needs only glance at those memories for mere seconds to see the true shades of himself within them, the lonely child from a future he now hopes will never come to pass. The lonely child who screamed and sobbed and lost the ones who loved him most. The lonely child who never truly stopped being afraid.

It's like gazing at a painting and all at once understanding it, suddenly seeing the 'how' and 'why' in every brushstroke. The despair of losing those who love you… maybe Yuri was spared such grief. Maybe he wasn't. Either way, Aporia can't fight the pang of sympathy that awakens and pushes through the cracks in his "emotionless" walls.

He's just a kid.

With a sigh, Aporia shifts, an uneven motion that almost-but-not-quite shakes Yuri off his shoulder. "I do admit," he says finally, slowly, "If I was the more foolish sort, I would almost believe your vicious resolve about all of this was quite the display of compensation."

That rattles Yuri out of his self-satisfied staredown. "What--!" he spits, bristling like a particularly ornery purple cat. "What are you getting at? I'm not compensating for anything, you miserable bag of bolts!"

Aporia doesn't flinch. Just sits, watches him.

An uncharacteristic redness creeps onto Yuri's face. He crinkles his nose, bares his teeth, before the thickening silence can grow too great. "Answer me!"

"Mm. It's nothing important. You simply remind me of someone." Aporia looks away, diverts his attention to the thick braids of wires plugged into his arm. Runs the back of his claws along their dull sheen. "He spent a very long time being scared and alone, too."

"Hah!" The laugh is high and loud and knifepoint dangerous. "And just what is that supposed to mean? Do you think I'm some sniveling little scared-of-the-dark toddler? Shaking in my boots, trying to hide behind my other pieces, so the big bad monsters don't get me? Please! I am the monster, Aporia. And I am not scared."

Aporia slowly turns his head to look back at Yuri. He can almost feel a pitiful smile playing at his lips. "You admit to the loneliness, then."

The glower he receives in response could burn a wheat field to cinders, but Aporia's mechanical senses are too fine-tuned to miss what comes before: a single split second of eyes going wide, mouth twitching into a mortified wince. A child caught with a thieving hand deep in the cookie jar. Aporia's turn to prod at a nerve, it seems.

It still comes so naturally to him after all.

"Hmph. Perhaps placing my admiration in you was a very stupid mistake." Yuri hisses finally. He tears his sour gaze away and, quick as a viper's strike, leaps from Aporia's shoulder back to the ground, cape fluttering behind him. "Fine! Stay on your high horse. I don't care." He turns, flashes a mean, toothy smile. "Just remember which of us obliterated more souls to be here." The smile quivers, coils once more into a grin just short of diabolical. "If we want to count machines as having souls, anyway. But, ah! That's a moral quandary for another time. Either way, hopefully I'll be matching your record soon!"

Yuri crows and cackles like it's the funniest joke in the world, and the wires and hardware that were once Lucciano thrum with a wave of kinship so strong it nearly re-acquaints Aporia with nausea.

"Ahh, well, anyway. This has been oh so… fun," Yuri's lip curls with disdain. "But I really must be going. I am terribly busy, after all. Do think of me when the world's in ruins soon, won't you?" His eyes cut one last noxious pink inspection over Aporia's hulking form, and he smiles almost sweetly. "Enjoy your rust. Ta ta!"

Then, with a flick of his wrist and a flourish of his cape, the boy is gone, turning on his heel and marching off to God-knows-where to do God-knows-what. Aporia sits in the silence of his cord and cable jungle for a moment, letting their charge course through his inner mechanisms, his beautiful heaven-touched form. He sighs again. Of course it's a fool's errand to get Yuri to see their differences, to understand the merits of shedding the human for the powerful and perfect machine. He knows the adamancy in one's opinion only a child can hold with such vicious gusto. Sometimes it's truly the only thing you have, at that age.

Somewhere inside him a child who will never exist again yearns for a friendship that will never be, and Aporia can't help but wish Yuri a safer, better future than he himself will ever know.

((WOW I AM SO SORRY THAT THIS TOOK LITERALLY LIKE 3 MONTHS TO GET TO, ANON i got so inspired by this i ran off into the woods and had to write a fic about it. :,)

I loooved loved loved thinking about the way these two Certified Danaguys would react to each other... the fact that theyre honestly kind of similar is making me a little sick in the head i must say. something something reuniting into one, embracing a divine individual identity (in organic and mechanical flavors,) plant vines vs power cables... never mind the fact lesterlucciano and yuri are definitely the same breed of sadistic cackling 12-14 year old little fucker and would probably get along like a house on fire.

there's a bit in tag force 6 on Aporia's route, where he comments on how he never got to have a normal childhood/play with other kids growing up, and how lucciano has that same desperate aching for connection with other people. i just definitely think he'd be able to see a similar loneliness in Yuri too, past the nasty venom. traumatized child recognizing traumatized child Big and a Lot. wahhh

tysm for this ask! got me writing again which is a big deal for me :3

(meanwhile in kansas au i think they would lock eyes at the beauty supply store when yuri is shoplifting mascara. aporia wont snitch tho <3)))

[ihavetoomanyocsdealwithit]

Twisted Wonderland boys try Drag  

I wrote the thing about Floyd (link) and it wouldn't leave me alone, and then I asked myself, what about the others?   

Floyd Leech, Malleus Draconia, Riddle Rosehearts, Vil Schoenheit, Rook Hunt 

Floyd Leech 

He has to go to this event and it’s going to be boring. He knows that it's all for looks and he’ll do it because Mom has asked him. But that’s the only reason he is doing it with mild complaining.  

Until of course, Yuu runs in like a cat on fire, grin wide and manic.  

Whatever comes out of that sharptoothed mouth is going to be fantastic.  

“Floyd!” Yuu chirps. “I have an idea. And I think you could be the son of a gun that's gonna help me do it.”  

“And why would I do that, Shrimpy?” He knows that his grin matches, that he’ll do it anyway, but damn if seeing her like this isn’t fun.  

“Easy. It’s fun, it’ll cause large amounts of chaos and drama and it’ll make Betta Fish either envy, rage or a develop a strange attraction he won’t understand until several years later in therapy.”  

Well how he is supposed to say no to that?  

They have something similar, at least in the sea. Not so gender based, that’s more of a human thing which he still doesn’t fully understand, but the larger than life makeup, large jewelry, that sort of thing. He had no idea the humans had something too!  

There is a dress code they have to follow, and half of the fun of bending rules is knowing what rules you are bending. So they pick and choose, he does ship in one or two items for his own benefit. Mamaw even handed off some of her old jewelry once he told her what the plan was. He may want to give his parents a little shock, but his never kept secrets or surprises from her. She’s good at keeping her mouth shut though, especially if it’s fun. 

When the both of you arrive, it is old Hollywood glam. He’s turquoise hair looks stunning with finger waves, lined with rhinestones and his signature black streak creating such an interesting texture. He’s make up is more on the dramatic side, bright blush and bold lipstick but cheekbones softened in a classic style. The dress is one of the things ordered in, as there was no way you had any clothes that you could even slightly modify at Ramshackle, a blue full sequin dress with a center split that feels vaguely familiar to Yuu, but you can’t put a finger on it. You did add gold shoulder chains that trail delicately down his shoulders and arms for a faux sleeve that makes his frame look sleek and elegant.  

Yuu of course, is simply a compliment to the drag queen, old Hollywood suit and tie with a tall top hat, a painted beard with sharp angles and twisted waves, tight pin curls with bejeweled pins left in sporadically.  

Vil does in fact lose his mind, but he’s more upset that you have not told him about this than seeing it. He grills you the whole night, and then some. 

Floyd however, thrives, having the time of his life finally being able to wear his stilettos out without feeling mismatched. It’s something the two of you continue to do together, but he’ll incorporate things on his own. You see more long skirts and dresses in his closet, different tweaks to his hair, and definitely more experiments with his eye makeup. He looks especially pretty when he’s squeezing people.  

When he looks at you, it’s just joy that he gets to express himself more. If he requires that you are his date for every party now, even underwater, well who are you to complain?  

Malleus Draconia 

It pops into your head as both of you are talking about home. You had been to plenty of Drag Brunches with the performances and dance, but also just Drag crawls with nights of everybody showing up and visiting, letting people get photos and just visit.  

Malleus has always had a hard time getting people to give him a chance, afraid of just his visage alone. It’s a reputation well earned, but he was very much a child with the stories that circulate and didn’t even know what he was doing.  

“What if you weren’t you?” Yuu asks, head tilted as the idea forms more in her mind. “What if you were a different version of you?”  

He’s open to the idea at least, allowing different experiments with color, themes, outfits and make up to see what he’s comfortable with, though there are some that go completely out the window. 

It’s easy for him to look like the Thorn Fairy, so they do put together a simple outfit that’s more of a modern take of her classic silhouette. A simple black side split gown with a thrifted Diasomnia coat with the patch ripped out, added embellishments of purple dyed furs, and silver metal accent spikes, letting his natural elegance take hold and make the presence.  

Do you have more casual clothes for him for brunch type things? Absolutely. And he looks fantastic in his oversized long sleeve crop top and ripped wide jeans with fishnet. He’s accessories tend to be the louder items for him, and he’s make up has plenty of colors, but he will always find his comfort in blacks, greens and purples. He doesn’t tend to go as loud as other Drag Queens, but it still works. Apparently, he sees Lilia dress this way often, so it’s something familiar and makes him feel a bit closer to him.  

The first brunch type thing the both of you go to, you are dressed more like a gentleman to compliment. A simple white button up, suspenders, a tight pompadour and exaggerated cheekbones. He had gone with the long dress since it was more of a formal affair, dressed down with boots, a softer lilac cardigan from Yuu’s closet, and wig pinned back into a simple but elegant bun, the blue underlay shining like a whole scale.  

He’s amazed at how easily people talk to him, how they approach with no fear. He gets to talk, and any awkwardness is explained away by being raised in Briar valley, because of course he’s just a Fae, not a dragon, those horns are simply part of the costume. Their is one little child that stays with him the entire time, talking about gargoyles, grotesques, and other statues. Malleus’s tail, also a prop of course, is swinging the entire time.  

Malleus loves to go out to smaller venues, but does fear getting too much attention and losing this as an outlet. He will go to lots of underground events with you, even the raves he’ll do for a few hours, and enjoy the people there. That he happens to get to protect you to is an added bonus, though the first time he sees Yuu lay out a guy for an inappropriate comment, he falls in love just a little more.  

Above, sitting on a staircase and looking down at his son, Lilia tears up a bit. There is fondness, pain, so much pain, and love.  

Malleus won’t make the connection until years later, when he sees a picture of himself, but he doesn’t look like the Thorn Fairy. He looks like his mother.  

Riddle Rosehearts  

Riddle sees Yuu’s drag first and loves it. What started as an invitation for a historically accurate Red Court costume tea party had allowed Yuu to dive deep back into the hobby with ease. So much of Red Court fashion involved that over-the-top style and fun that it was easy to pull together a fantastic outfit.  

He is a bit more hesitant to get into it, especially once the two of you realize that what he pictures himself in is close to his Overblot form, but simple modifications can fix that. The make-up isn’t too difficult for him to learn at all, after all the Heartslabyul students apply their own everyday, and he does love his red eyeliner. He is a bit embarrassed on how comfortable he feels in the corsets and dresses, but she manages to pull him back in with the shoes.  

Afterall, it wasn’t uncommon for Drag Queens to wear platforms. He’s usual heels will give him a solid inch or two, but six? He’s a whole new person when he puts on a pair of platforms.  

The next historical tea party, he pulls up in a Queen of Hearts inspired dress, but there isn’t a trace of black in the design. White lace gloves, the card fan collar fun and playful looking, the red soft and romantic looking instead of bloody, white roses pristine and large red ribbons ballooning out like the bow of a present. His hair of course is a wig, the red not quite as strong as he’s own, decorated in pearls and diamonds with heart-shaped lips and strong eyebrows.  

Trey notices how differently Riddle acts, firm but strong, delicate with his teacup and firm with the flamingo handles as he plays. He seems...happier. And he looks especially regal when a student makes an unsavory comment, and he sends them flying with a commanding “OFF WITH YOUR HEAD!”  

Vil Schoenheit  

Now, Vil was normally a respectful gentleman, but when he saw the different sketches on the margins of your notes, he became intrigued, especially when you let it slip that it was for herself. Drag had a slightly different definition in Twisted Wonderland, and Vil already practiced this version. Basically, how close can one flirt with fashion or make up or demeanor to become a woman, but it wasn’t anything like what you had.  

But what you had laid out was more Avante Garde, more bold, more interesting. A living art piece, yes, that’s what he would call it! There were designs that Yuu wouldn’t try but thought would look amazing or simply didn’t have to skill or resources to do. That wouldn’t be a problem with Vil.  

There is some work with figuring out what works best, as he basically looks good in everything and already has experience with changing his shape and silhouette. But looking good in everything doesn’t mean that’s what is best for him, and that’s what Yuu pushes, showing more of the entertainment and songs, for what feels the most confident. Eventually, they figure out that Vil enjoys being able to do less entertainment and simply exist as something beautiful and untouchable.  

Vil’s next event, Yuu comes more as an assistant, as the outfit is going to take hours to pull together, but it will be a showstopper. Yuu has no interest of trying to compete with Vil on this one, and he needs no complimenting king. She still gets free food out of it though, so definitely no complaints there.  

Vil arrives looking like a perfume bottle, intricate and elegant and stunning. The bottom balloons out and trails with a black ruffle, studded with spikes, hips accented with leather pads and structured velvet dress and long sleeves locked into black accordion ruffles on his wrist. But the chest is exposed, a beating heart pulsing in a golden rib cage, inverted shoulder pads like wings rising with a crown that puts the puny tiaras around them to shame.  

His smile is hidden, black lipped and sharp, and Yuu thinks that he’s probably never felt as beautiful as he does now.  

Rook Hunt  

Does anybody else remember Prince Poppycock? He was an opera singer that showed up on American Idol and was my first exposure to anything like drag, especially drag kings. He has lived rent free in my mind ever since. Anyway, on to Rook!  

Rook sees you experimenting with different outfits from the closets of Ramshackle, fashions that have been out of season for maybe a century now, and he loves them. How strong, how romantic, the glamor of it! He at least does the polite thing by knocking on the door before begging to be your mannequin.  

Rook, similar to Vil and Riddle, has plenty of experience with make-up, but the full white face is something he has never done before. He does love how bright the colors come out on such a canvas though and makes several versions with different outfits he has sent in from home. The hardest part is the wigs, which are simply too modern or not the right colors for him. He gets a long-curled wig imported from home and asks to keep it at Ramshackle, and carefully styles it out his eyes. Yuu is also not surprised when other outfits and ribbons start coming in, simply hanging them out to get the wrinkles out. The matching silk robes are nice though, she’ll admit to that one.  

He gets his opportunity when you find a local theater troupe that does soliloquys, monologues, short songs and one act plays on Saturdays evenings that would be more than happy to have extra performers. Getting Rook to choose only one monologue is more difficult than choosing the outfit, but it’s easy to compliment his look with a similar vibe.  

It’s something Yuu has never had the opportunity to see before. The way that Rook preforms like this as opposed to the SDC is so different. He lets loose here, fully indulging into the character, and the audience is enraptured with him. Some of the upcoming actors and actresses are even pausing in practicing their lines just to look at him go.  

Sometimes over tea parties, him and Riddle really bond over historical dress, he’ll even sprinkle freckles on top of the white face paint. Yuu wishes he would let his natural ones come through sometimes, but maybe it is a work in progress.   

[huckleberrykai]

hueningkai ~ i thought we were in love already?

pairing: kai x fem!reader summary: kai tries to think of ways to get you to like him, unbeknownst to him you've been in love with him the whole time. genre: best friends to lovers warnings: nervous kai, food word count: 1k click here for my masterlist!

kai wants you to like him.

soooooo bad.

he's had a crush on you for about 3 years, so basically since you met. you started working as a makeup artist for TXT 3 and a half years ago and never looked back. you clicked with all of them straight away, and slowly you were incorporated into their friday night movie nights, into their joint vacations, beomgyu even joked that you were their unofficial 6th member once, despite not singing and dancing for a living.

being friends with the boys became as easy as breathing, and now it was more than uncommon to find you without at least one of them glued to your side at any given minute.

especially kai.

you had gotten close faster than anyone else, due to your shared love of anime, plushies and video games. you had similar music tastes, but still different enough to warrant you making each other playlists of songs you think the other would like.

in the beginning, you often had hangout sessions to play games and watch anime together, but these turned into cuddle sessions over time. slowly they became sleepovers, and eventually, it ended up with you crashing at the dorm at least 2 nights a week. you were usually snuggled up to kai, both sleeping peacefully on his small, plushie-invaded bed while taehyun just sighed, looking on from his side of the room.

the members had all noticed this of course. it was hard not to notice the lovesick puppy he became whenever you were around. the longing stares, the sharing of snacks, the comparing hand sizes just so he could touch your hand. they were getting sick of it.

so what do they do? sit him down for an intervention. obviously.

"i just don't know how to make her like me..." kai pouted, clinging onto a plush cat in a penguin costume that you had gifted him for his birthday.

"SHE TOTALLY LIKES YOU ALREADY!! ARE YOU BLIND!?!" beomgyu screamed in his classic beomgyu fashion.

"WELL SHE HASN'T TOLD ME?? and we dont keep secrets from each other so she can't like me! ha!" kai argued smugly.

"not to side with beomgyu.. but you haven't told her either.." soobin cut in. kai fell back into the couch in defeat.

okay so intervention wasn't gonna cut it.

"haven't told who what?" you strolled into the room casually, stealing a sandwich from yeonjun's lunch plate, resulting in him glaring daggers at you.

maybe the intervention would work better with you here.

you looked around, mouth full of sandwich. soobin looked very awkward, taehyun's eyes were wide, beomgyu looked on the verge of crying with laughter and yeonjun.. well his sandwich was stolen. >:(

kai was BRIGHT red. like a fire engine.

"how long have you been here?" taehyun asked. you shrugged, taking another bite, "only a couple minutes, i just got here. why are you guys being weird?"

yeonjun sighed, looking directly at kai, "PLEASE can you just say it. or i will if you want me to?" he asked him. the poor boy was malfunctioning, he wanted you to know how much he loved you but was petrified of your rejection. he nodded to the older boy, not trusting his voice. he felt small under your gaze, letting out a meek, "you can say it."

he shoved his face into his plushie as if an 8-inch tall cat was going to hide an entire six-foot tall man. oh well, he could try. yeonjun turned to you seriously.

"kai really likes you but he's way too nervous to ask you out. he loves you a lot but doesn't know how to say it. this was supposed to be an intervention for him.. or maybe more like a pep talk? but then you showed up." he explained, doing his best to tell you gently.

"oh. i thought we already knew we liked each other? was i supposed to not know?"

beomgyu couldn't hold in his laughs anymore, "I TOLD YOU!!" kai's face shot up in surprise, "w-what?" he croaked.

you tilted your head in confusion, stuffing your hands in the pockets of kai's hoodie. "well.. we cuddle all the time, we're always holding hands, you kiss my cheeks when i'm sad, we even have matching rings?" you wiggled your fingers, showing off your ring to emphasise your point. "i've been in love with you this whole time, i just thought you weren't ready to be in a relationship yet being an idol and all? did i read the situation wrong? oh god-"

"NO!! no you definitely read it right!" he frantically waved, making sure you understand. "i like you so much, and i DID want you to know.. i guess i just didn't believe you'd like me too."

"kai do you think i sleep in the beds of people i don't like? wear their clothes?" you pulled at the hoodie covering your figure. he shook his head. "i guess not."

"you're so silly." you made your way across the room and sat down on the floor next to him, taking his hand in yours. "will you be my boyfriend then? officially?"

you'd never seen kai smile wider than in that moment. he threw his arms around you and held you close to him. "yes please." his voice was soft but you heard it, turning to press a kiss to his cheek. you missed slightly and hit the corner of his mouth, and butterflies erupted in his tummy.

"YES!!" "FINALLY!" "congratulations!" "WOO!!"

your friends cheered for you as you held your new boyfriend in your arms, all smiles.

"anyway.. what i actually came here to ask, do you guys wanna get barbecue together later?"

somehow the cheers were even louder for barbecue than they were for Y/Nkai

----------------- bonus ✧˖° -----------------

after getting barbecue with the boys, you decided to sleep over. nothing out of the ordinary, but the first time you'd be sleeping over as kai's girlfriend.

"i love you."

"you've told me that 3 times in the last 5 minutes."

"yeah but i spent 3 years not telling you."

"go to sleep." you snuggled further into his chest, pulling the blanket around the two of you.

"not until you say it back." he held you tightly.

"i love you too kai. so much." you pecked his cheek, making him smile contently. suddenly taehyun's lamp lit up from the other side of the room.

"will both of you shut up and sleep."

[spicyraeman]

ᴏᴄꜱ - ᴛʜᴇɴ & ɴᴏᴡ

Saw a buncha chooms doin this lil trend and remembered that I had an old draft doing this very thing! Spiffied it up with even newer shots of my babes and it really makes me realize how far both me and my OCs have come :]

March 25, 2022 || June 24, 2023

The shot on the left is legit my very first oc shot in cyberpunk. Id taken some landscape shots before this but this was where the blorbo brainrot started. Vons definitely come the farthest in terms of design, from big beefy maelstrom to like.. wet rat white boy energy I guess lol. She still got a long way to go though, probably gonna be working on her forever, she's my favorite little passion project😌

June 2, 2022 || June 2, 2023

Didn't even realize these were exactly a year apart till I checked the dates!

Luis is basically the exact same as when I first made him, just the perfect design from the moment of creation😌He's the OC that really started my VP journey, I made him just to take pretty pictures of and learn the ropes. Glad I finally have the skills to show off his full beauty!

September 12, 2022 || June 14, 2023

Lynk's design is one that feels both entirely different and very much the same to me. Same overall vibe and style, but more refined I suppose. Less scrungly mess of wires and more sleek and sharp borg. Really love their current design now, still wanna make 'em custom tattoos but it gonna be a while till i'm at that modding level!

December 12, 2022 || June 1, 2023

Dallas was a design first backstory second kinda OC. I love her old design, think all the cyberware and makeup are really cool, but as I fleshed her out it just wasn't Dallas. Found myself in a comfy spot with her now though, even ended up making her her own custom complexion!

December 5, 2022 || July 9, 2023

Technically there's an even farther back design I could use for Sunny but it's so different I can't even consider it him. His old design looks so similar yet so very different its kinda weird😅Sunny's design now is probably the one I'm most content with, I might try and add back his arm tattoos but until then he's pretty much perfect.

December 8, 2022 || April 23, 2023

When I first made Midas my main goal was a dark moody playboy, which definitely stayed the same just in a radically different way. His OG personality was a playful and dramatic womanizer which I loved but I needed a straight man in this group of idiots and he had to be it. So instead he became a mysterious and gruff guy that has ladies falling over him whether he likes it or not, also he's a vampire now.

[yeets-ix]

Sonic King-Ohger AU characters interacting with their Sonic canon counterparts

Shadow (Gira): King Shadow sees Canon Shadow being his usual stoic self and assumes he must assume his own gruff “evil” persona to be considered worth talking to. Canon Shadow recognizes he’s acting and promptly declares he’ll step down to a casual level to chat respectfully. Eventually, it’s brought up that King’s Maria is alive (and a hedgehog,) but committed a long list of atrocious crimes as Queen that were ultimately all for the sake of her brother and the universe. Canon Shadow, who must admit his memory of Maria is clouded by nostalgia, isn’t quite sure how to feel - is this evidence she could have been as bad as Ivo if she lived, even if for a good purpose? (And have I really become as exaggerated as this “me” acts?) King Shadow can tell his Canon self has a lot to think about from this encounter, he’s good at reading people, and respects his privacy.

Surge (Yanma): King Surge’s thoughts on Canon Surge are not given a good starting point when she introduces herself by trying to steal his Ohger Calibur (she technically succeeds, but it’s useless in her hands.) His first realization is that a lot of her anger problems will be resolved once she figures out she’s a he and starts taking testosterone. His second realization is that she’s loudly picking on his friends and career choices while he’s thinking, and has rightfully earned a thrashing. His third realization is that, while this alternate Surge follows his “brains and guts get me through anything” ideal, she’s lacking in the “brains” department - which horrifies him. Don’t tell him this is how Surge the Tenrec is “supposed to be,” you’ll lead him to a complete existential breakdown… and maybe a multiversal plan to “rehabilitate all the dumb versions of me.”

Amy (Hymeno): Queen Amy sees Canon Amy and assumes she’s a malicious imposter (it’s happened before.) Once that’s resolved, Canon Amy is flabbergasted and given embarrassing flashbacks to her youth by Queen Amy’s absurd demands and standards (Sebastian is GADGET underneath all that makeup?,) and is very nearly convinced she’s been sent to some sort of evil mirror dimension, before a distraction (probably endangered Ishabana citizens who Queen insists on personally attending to) establishes that beneath her selfishness Queen Amy still has the same compassion and generosity. In the end, they recognize that the only real difference between them is that Canon Amy grew out of every girl’s desire to be a princess, while Queen Amy, being… a queen, grew up embracing it. 

Blaze (Rita): It’s up for debate whether guarding the Sol Emeralds or deciding the fate of every criminal in Mobius puts more pressure on you, but Canon Blaze would just LOOK at King Blaze, hiding their ice powers, their face, their voice, and even their gender, and go “and I thought I was emotionally repressed.” She even asks them if they’ve learned from Sonic for their sake, only to be casually informed that if they absolutely had their way their dimension’s Sonic would have to be executed for all manners of treachery. She eventually begs their retainer/"Morphonia" (most likely Silver) to provide her with any evidence they have some sort of outlet, upon which he gladly shows her King’s plushie collection and brief career as an idol… which promptly leads to screaming, gets Canon Blaze banished from Gokkan and threatens King Blaze and their Silver’s friendship (a little.)

Sonic (Kaguragi): Lord Sonic would warmly welcome Canon Sonic to Toufu, hail him for his heroics, and Canon Sonic, depending on the day, would QUICKLY realize he’s being psychologically buttered up. Not like he trusted a Sonic who actually accepted the responsibility and position of royalty, anyway… and yeah, it quickly becomes similar to the Amys’ interaction when Canon comes to understand and accept that Lord spends a lot more time dirtying his hands for his people (and in particular, his brother Tails) than sitting around. He is a bit concerned that this guy takes “I don’t mind being the bad guy” a little too far, but can only say “touché” when Lord casually reminds him of his IDW choices. Unfortunately, their chances of friendship are ultimately dashed by Lord, who’s a bit too passionate about Toufu’s cuisine, dismissing chili dogs as “N’kosopa-level junk food.”

Tikal (Jeramie): Queen Tikal is a 2,000-year-old Echidna Mobian/Spider Bugnarak hybrid who’s wandered her Mobius occasionally hibernating, while Canon Tikal is a spirit tied to the Master Emerald, so needless to say their interactions would be unpredictable and highly interesting. Both have tales to tell of horrifying ancient wars - Canon about how she lost everything and sacrificed herself to end the crisis, Queen about how she inadvertently triggered 2,000 years of hatred AND toiled to fix the mistakes she made. Queen is the insecure one, but would probably end up humbling Canon Tikal for all she was able to do, eventually successfully bringing peace between the two sides and becoming Queen of the Bugnarak, while Canon failed to protect her people entirely and died. Queen would probably end up spinning a triumphant reprise of Canon’s story to cheer her up, considering she once accidentally did the same for a war, did she not? (Also, Canon Tikal, used to Knuckles venting about his crushes, can read Queen Tikal's probably-canon-IDK-I'm-still-planning feelings for her Shadow like a book.)

[rogerswifesblog]

Truth will out

𝐒𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲: To skip the training it was necessary to lie to Steve....was that a good idea?

𝐏𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠: Dom!steve Rogers x sub!reader

𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: lying, alcohol, sneaking out, smut, spanking, fingering, oral, over-stimulation, deepthroat, facefucking, Captain kink, sir kink, daddy kink, dumbification....anything else? I really don’t know at this point

Keep in mind English is not my first language!

A big thank you to @jaqui-has-a-conspiracy-theory for beta reading

Don’t forget to like, comment and reblog!

18+

Friday night. It was Friday and you were supposed to be sitting in that stupid training room?! Especially while Natasha and Wanda would be out clubbing? Certainly not.

It was unfair that Steve constantly sent you to train. Mostly with him-which often ended with bruises. You were aware that he never wanted to hurt you, but your falls led to minor injuries, mostly the mentioned bruises. Today you did not have the desire for it. You wanted to relax. Have a drink. Have fun.

"Okay-you can do this," You whispered encouragingly to your reflection. A little bit of makeup and you looked quite sick - red under the nose and pale around the eyes, cheeks and lips. You rubbed your eyes slightly, to make them glossier...

Perfect.

Steve wasn't stupid, but he wouldn't want to overwork a sick person, would he?

Right?

Right??

You shook your head slightly. It's now or never.

A few minutes later you went to see Steve, who was in the gym, wrestling with Bucky on the mat. At that moment Bucky had put his Matalarm around Steve's throat and was holding him with his legs as well-Steve had no choice but to give up. Three light hits on Bucky's arm and he was free.

"St-Steve," You croaked as you stepped closer to them. "You look terrible, doll," Bucky said as soon as he saw you. Steve gave him a slightly horrified look and an elbow in the side for that. Bucky raised his hands defensively. "Sorry, she just looks pretty sick," he explains. Steve looked closely. Bucky was right. "Maybe we should skip training today? Ill get you some soup and-" "Thank you Steve....but I just want to lie down and rest" You croaked.

The corners of his mouth twitched slightly upwards as he stepped up to you and wanted to raise his hand to your forehead. "Steve - don't get too close to me," You said quickly. "I can't catch anything - But I want to check if you're getting sick" "I'm going to bed" You interrupted his sentence. Before you left, he nodded again, not being able to say anything.

After you were out of sight, you raised your hands in the air triumphantly. "I did it...", You whispered and hurried to your room. He would stay in the training room for at least an hour - in that time you had to get ready and leave the building.

And you managed to leave the building with Natasha and Wanda within this one hour. Wanda wore a black, long-sleeved dress, which had a wide neckline, décolleté as well as back. It reached over her knee. Natasha was wearing a green dress, slightly shorter than Wanda and with thin straps. Her back was also very open.

Your dress, which you had received from Natasha some time ago, was very similar to hers, only silver, more shiny and slightly shorter, because your figure was slightly different.

You looked great.

Nothing could ruin this evening.

Nothi- The next corner changed a lot.

When you turned the corner, you ran straight into the hands of none other than Steve Rogers, Captain America, himself. Bucky right behind him.

Shit.

"Not so sick anymore, I suppose?" Bucky was the first to speak. You had to swallow hard when you slowly looked up at Steve, who had a bag of groceries. A quick glance into it, indicated that he was planning to cook. For You. Soup.

„I...Steve..." You started, but he just shook his head. You were already afraid that he would be mad, but a smile settled on his lips. But it was different than normally. Still friendly, but...there was something behind it. His gaze slid over you. You felt blood rush to your face, making you blush a deep shade of red. "Have fun. But be careful...and we'll talk later, Y/N," he said.

Then they walked past you and left the three of you speechless. "He's angry...", Natasha said quietly, after which her gaze slipped to you. "But he seemed calm?" You said, confused. Wanda seemed confused as well. "Exactly. He's angry" the redhead repeated. Nevertheless, she then dragged you to the next club. "Don't worry, he will probably treat you a little harder during the next training session. But nothing more. Come on, let's have fun."

Not long after, you had already forgotten about Steve. The first thing you did was to drink a shot each. Then you went dancing.

It was after midnight when you came back. You weren't drunk, only slightly tipsy.

As quietly as possible, you tried to leave the elevator stepping into the lighted living room. "Shhhh," You whispered, silencing the two redheads behind you. But at the next step your heel got stuck on the carpet and you stumbled.

While Natasha wanted to help you back on your feet, but laughed too much, it got a little darker-something threw a shadow on you. Or rather, someone.

"Ladies, do you need help?" Steve's voice came from behind you. Giggling, you leaned back and leaned against his legs. While you were leaning on him a little, he looked back at Natasha and Wanda. "Go to sleep" With these words Steve sent your friends away.

"And now for you. I think we have something to talk about. Isn't that right?", said Steve. He took your hands and pulled you up. "My feet hurt....Can you take off the high heels first-" You started, but Steve lifted you over his shoulder. "Hey!" You giggled.

He silently took you to your room, where he dropped you off on the sofa. There was a small, satisfied smile on your lips. "Are you all right?" Steve asked while kneeling in front of you.

You liked this view. Him on his knees, just for you...

"It's all right, Steve," You said quietly, feeling yourself blush, thinking about him doing other stuff in this position. You felt your pussy clench around nothing.

"Did you drink a lot? Are you drunk?" Steve gently stroked over your calves. Sighing, you shook your head. "Just a few drinks, but that was hours ago"

Only now did you notice he started stroking your legs higher up. From your calf to your thigh. You had to admit it felt really good, to have his hands on your skin, this close to your throbbing-. "I don't like that you lied to me...It made me very unhappy..."

His voice was much different now. It was deeper, showed much more authority and some part of you just wanted to kneel for him.

When Steve got up, You looked up at him, apologetically. "'m sorry Steve...really," You said quietly and slipped forward a little. "I didn't mean to disappoint you..."

"But you disappointed me. You were a bad girl and your behavior was unacceptable...and for this you should be punished" "Steve, I'm-" "Captain. From now on it's Captain," Steve interrupted you. This made you swallow hard. You nodded slowly, while you pressed your thighs together, in hope of getting some friction.

God you were so wet, when did this happen?

You couldn't deny that you liked Steve's words, as well as the way he spoke. It went straight to your heat. Steve crossed his arms in front of his chest. A confident smile on his lips.

"Oh sweetheart, I can smell you from here. You want it, huh?" You looked at Steve with wide eyes, completely surprised over his words. Did you hear him correctly? Maybe your brain imagined something, after months of pinning?

His gaze made you press your knees together.

The corners of his mouth twitched upwards as he slowly got down on his knees in front of you. Your heartbeat started racing, the tingling between your legs only getting stronger.

He put his rough hands gently on your knees, pushing them apart. "Mmm...", he growled and began to gently kiss your knees-up to your dress, which he slowly pushed over your hip. His gaze rested on your lace panties. Then he looked up.

"Did you want to hook up with someone from the club and show these pretty little panties? Someone who couldn't even satisfy you?", he muttered against your panty clothed heat. Meanwhile, your breathing was so restless that you had to remind yourself to breathe at all.

"Steve-" "What did I say?" with these words, he bit your thigh, making you quietly whimper. "Ca-Captain...", You gasped and ran a hand through his hair.

Suddenly he took your hand out of his hair and looked up at you. "If you don't want something and you want me to stop, you say it, okay? And I'm going to stop" Steve spoke much more gently this time, giving you a kiss on the back of your hand. "Of course, Steve."

The next moment his lips were already on yours. You returned the kiss gently, but that changed quickly, he became more demanding, more passionate. He took your breath away -literally- which is why you had to break away from him. At that Steve started kissing your neck. His fingers found your clit, rubbing it gently, over the damp material of your panties.

Panting, you pressed yourself against him. Rubbing your heat against his hand.

"Tz tz, don't be so greedy. Only good girls are rewarded" with that he took his hand away. "But perhaps you will be rewarded after you'll get your punishment," said the blonde, opening his belt. "On your knees, sweetie."

You kneeled on the ground in front of Steve, watching him open his belt. Your hands stroked along Steve's thighs, up to his zipper, which you opened. He slid his pants down his thighs, no boxer shorts underneath. He had known he wouldn't need them after seeing you sneaking out with the girls.

His hardness sprung right at you. Your eyes widened - will he even fit in your mouth?

"It will fit." As if Steve had read your mind, he answered your unspoken question.

You licked over its mushroom tip, licking the pre-cum off of his slit, then over his length. You followed the pulsing vein on the underside of his cock, licking over his balls and back to the tip, leaving a messy trail of saliva behind.

Slowly you took his tip in your mouth and sucked on it, feeling the taste of him on your tongue. After that you licked around his slit again, looking up, batting your eyelashes at him. "Stop teasing," he growled, pulling on your hair. "Otherwise, I'll fuck your beautiful mouth...but I'd be far from gentle."

Provocatively, you opened your mouth wider and leaned closer to his tip, an invitation to whatever he wanted. "Mmm...so obedient...such a good girl" he muttered. You felt your pussy throb because of the praise. He thrusted into your mouth, deeper than you had taken it before, making you gag - but he pushed right through your gag reflex.

Despite the fact that you were afraid he wouldn't fit, he did anyway. As best as you could you relaxed your throat to take him deeper. To let him fuck your throat, like he pleased.

The tip of your nose touched his abdomen. "You're so beautiful when your mouth's full with my cock...at least you can't lie to me now." He growled as his shaft slid over your warm tongue, while he thrusted quick and hard into your mouth.

Tears stream down your cheeks, as you try to keep up with his peace. Saliva dripped down your chin. For a moment he stopped moving, seated deep in your throat. His hand slipped from your hair to your throat, which he squeezed, feeling himself moving. "I can feel myself in your throat..." he gasped. You only hummed, which made him moan softly.

Your eyes were burning from all the tears and you guessed that your mascara was running down your face. "You're doing so well...so perfect for me. Taking my cock so well" he whispered. Again, he began to fuck your mouth faster, with his thrusts becoming more irregular.

Again he pressed your head down on his dick, till your nose hit his pelvis- and you felt how he spilled his load. You automatically swallowed, which made him moan again. "do it again-swallow" You swallowed again, just like he wanted you to.

He felt your walls squeeze around his dick. He couldn't wait to have your pussy next.

After he had poured into you, he pulled out of your mouth. Salvia connected his tip to your lips, making you look at his tip. You already missed having him in your mouth. Steve was still hard. You licked your lips, still watching his dick hungrily.

"I have the feeling you liked this punishment a lot...did you like it? Did you like it having your Captain's cock in your mouth? How he used your mouth? Just like a hole to play with and fill?" he asked mockingly.

You nodded and pumped his length with your hand, already opening your mouth- however, he pushed your hand away.

"Sweetheart, don't be so greedy...get up and undress," he said. "Yes, Daddy," You whispered, not even noticing the word that slipped past your lips. But Steve noticed. And it went straight to his dick.

As he had ordered, you got up and slid your dress off of your shoulders. You noticed how his hardness twitched slightly when he saw your bare breasts. He definitely planned on fucking these at some point too.

You let your panties slide slowly from your hips, wiggling a bit teasingly. Steve watched silently. His clothes were all on the floor by now.

"You don't know how long I've been waiting for this," Steve muttered softly. With just one step, he was right in front of you and gently pushed you backwards so that you sat down on the sofa. This time he knelt down in front of you. His hand slid over your reddened knees. "Oh, sweetie, you have to be more careful," the Captain whispered gently, which gave you goosebumps all over your body. "Such a sweet thing, didn't even think about yourself huh? Just wanted to please daddy?"

His words made more slick gush to your heat. "Yes, yes daddy, just wanted to please you", you added.

Slowly he kissed your thighs, but moved away before he could come closer to your throbbing cunt. A whimper escaped your throat. „Please, Captain..", You whispered. Steve, however, just got up and pulled you to your feet.

He lifted you up. After that, he walked to the bed with you, where he dropped you - he quickly turned you on your stomach. "But you have to admit, I have to make sure that you won't lie to me anymore...now you get a real punishment - count it out loud, angel" You looked over your shoulder to him a little confused, as he sat down on the edge and pulled you face down over his massive thighs. But the next second you felt Steve's flat hand smack your ass, making you whimper. At the same time you felt like it only made you wetter.

"One"

And again - your legs twitched when his hand came in contact with your burning skin.

"Two"

Smack.

"Three"

Smack.

"Four"

You had tears in your eyes. Your skin was burning hot. Every slap was harder than the one before.

Why did you enjoy this so much?

Steve could see your pussy was drenched and throbbing. Fuck, he just wanted to bury himself in you. His pretty, sweet girl. But you deserved a punishment for lying to him.

SMACK.

"Five!" You sobbed as this smack was definitely the hardest. It was the last one, Steve gently caressed your reddened skin. But he couldn’t stop himself any longer.

His hand slid between your legs, where he gathered some of your juices. You moaned quietly, feeling his fingers rub through your folds. He took his hand away and you could hear a sucking. "Mmm...such a tasty girl, just for me," Steve whispered as he laid you back on the bed. Gently he kissed away your tears.

Steve stroked your legs, gently caressing your thighs. "Now you get your reward" and with that he lowered his head between your legs, making you push your legs further apart. He licked along your folds, making you gasp loudly. It felt so good. His tongue explored your wet cunt, eating you out like a man starving.

His lips closed around your sensitive bud, while two of his thick fingers slowly pushed into your tight channel. The stretch made you moan. His fingers felt so big-how would his cock feel?

"S-so good" You muttered, barely audible.

"Already so cock-drunk? I haven’t even started yet. My dumb little angel, just wait till I fuck you," Steve whispered as he kissed your thigh. His fingers continued to thrust deep inside you as he slowly kissed up your body. Steve took his hand away, which made you whimper. "No...please, Daddy" "Please what?" Steve asked cocky.

"You - I need you - Captain - please. I need you, Daddy" You sobbed. Steve’s dick was hard like never before - it was nearly painful. "What exactly do you want, angel?" he asked, gently kissing your neck. "Fuck me - I want you to fuck me..." "Yea? Need me to fuck you, till you can’t think straight?" at his words, a sob escaped your lips, while you started nodding.

"Please" these were your last words before you felt how he slid his tip between your folds. He pushed into you with one thrust, making you cry out in pleasure. You’ve never felt this full before. Without him moving, you already moaned quietly, feeling your body tremble.

Steve couldn’t stop himself from moaning. So wet and thighs. So perfect. He’d love to take his time with you, but not today.

He pressed his lips to yours in a bruising kiss, licking into your mouth, still tasting himself on your tongue.

"You feel so good around me, angel" he whispered, thrusting into you. With every thrust he hit your sensitive spot. His hand slid between your bodies, and he began to rub your clit. "Daddy, harder," You moaned weakly.

Steve grinned slightly but doing as you wished, fucking you harder. Hard enough for the headboard to move and hit the wall every time he thrusted deep into you.

You moaned loudly, grabbing his shoulders and scratching his freckled skin. Steve snapped his hips more forcefully against yours.

It didn’t take much longer for you to feel the tension in your abdomen building up. "I-I'm coming," You gasped, as your orgasm washed over you, making you clench around Steve, squeezing his dick.

"Look at me - sweetie - look at me" he whispered. You opened your eyes - only now noticing you had closed them at some point. But they rolled right back when Steve, once again, picked up his punishing pace, chasing his own high.

He hit spots in you, not even you knew existed, his hand did not stop to stimulate your clit. It was all so much - yet so good - but it was so much. Your cunt was fluttering around his dick. "N-no-I can't anymore," You sobbed.

"Are you sure you can’t, angel? I think you have another one in you - for me" he whispered in your ear - and in fact you could feel your muscles tense again shortly after. Your legs shook around him.

Steve's thrusts stuttered and you noticed how he was planning to pull out - but you quickly held him tightly with your legs. "No - please...i want you to fill me up" You whispered. "Daddy, please"

This was enough for him to keep fucking you, till his hips stilled, his cock pulsing deep in your cunt, filling you with his cum.

He loved the feeling of your warm cunt around him, pulsing and milking him.

Steve slowly pulled out of you, sitting back on his knees. Then you felt him pushing your legs apart, while he lowered himself between them - his face right in front of your dripping cunt. "No-" You whispered, exhausted. "It’s okay angel, I need to clean you up, sweetheart" "Okay Daddy" You mumbled, barely audible.

As soon as his tongue hit your leaking cunt, you moaned quietly, which sounded more like a whine. The pain from being so overstimulated only added to the pleasure, while Steve ate you out, licking and suckling on your clit. Then his fingers pushed into you, making his cum gush out of your abused cunt. He curled his fingers slightly, rubbing your spot. You're not the least bit surprised when another orgasm tears through you.

Steve stopped his assault on your sensitive pussy, pulling his fingers out and sitting up. A grin forms on his lips. He could definitely get used to this view. After giving you a gentle kiss on your lips, he stood up.

"I'll get you a warm bath ready, okay?" Steve's gentle voice brought you back. "Mhh...yes...sir," You whispered back.

But shortly after, Your eyes closed.

You didn't know how much time passed until Steve came back and woke You from your nap. "Hold on tight, okay?", at his words, You nodded and put Your arms around his neck, while he lifted you up from the bed.

He carried you to the bathroom, where he laid you down in the bathtub, climbing behind you too. His hands gently massaged your shoulders. "Are you all right? Are you with me?", he whispered softly in Your hair. "I’m with you, Steve...a little nap was necessary," You chuckled quietly, leaning against him.

You gave Steve a gentle kiss on the jaw.

You sat for about half an hour in the tub, before the water slowly became colder and your eyes threatened to close again. "Sleep?" Steve asked in your hair. "I’d love to..."

When you stepped out of the tub, you had to hold yourself on the sink, feeling how wobbly your legs were.

Steve grinned stupidly, wrapping a towel around his waist, also wrapping one around you. "Go to bed, I'll clean up here" he said.

You went to bed, putting on Steve's shirt. Laying down you sighed quietly, feeling how relaxed you were.

Steve came to bed shortly after, crawling next to you and pulling the blanket over you two. You could feel his warm, naked body against you. "Sleep well princess..." he whispered against your shoulder. "Good night, Stevie."

Bonus:

Next morning

"And did you and Steve-OH MY GOD-WANDA!" Natasha's voice woke you up and the slamming of Your door. “I saw America’s ass! I saw it!”, you still heard the muffled voices.

Confused, you raised your head. Then you looked to the side, to the-also slowly waking-Steve.

"Did Natasha just-" "Yup"

“And she saw my naked b-“ “apparently.”

You two laughed quietly, even though you saw Steve blush slightly, the red color creeping over his chest and face.

Grinning, you cuddled closer to his naked chest, he put his arms tight around your body.

That’s it! I hope you enjoyed reading.

Don’t forget to like, comment and reblog!

Feedback?

[bitchin-witchin]

CW in tags too but this post will contain mention of like... cosmic non-con (lack of bodily autonomy), mpreg (he's afab but he's a guy so, mpreg) and fpreg, and miscarriage happening with one underage Anakin. And like... cosmic incest? Anakin force shenanigans. Just tread with caution if any of these things sound upsetting.

about halfway thru under a space themed text divider is some stuff about an alternative timeline with some Tatooine slave culture where Anakin leaves the order and returns to Tatooine to start a revolution. I might post separatly so people dont have to wade thru the weird preg stuff to get to it.

Erm. That one hc where Anakin is something more like a clone of his mom but not totally bc of genetic variation from the forces influence. Or like a stem cell baby. The force didn't really do much for him phenotypically, so they're not total copies but appearance wise... but very similar.

We won't get too much into the nitty gritty bc it's just an excuse to get him pregnant like his mom did bc he got the organs for it from her >:3c

The first time he doesn't even realize it's happened. he's barely a teen, still in the midst of his padawan training. He has been feeling cramps and notices clotted blood, but it's so early that there's been very little symptoms and it doesn't feel or look too different from his normal cycle. he's never been good with tracking it anyway so he just assumes he's menstruating. The force had been feeling different around him but he doesn't recognize it for what it means and has a whole mess of other adolencent concerns he's focused on like his relationships with other padawans and jedi, his temple studies, the genesis of his festering mental illnesses... kdbvhjf.

The second time is, of course, during the passing of his mom and Geonosis (the process of miscarriages happen over a period of time like a few days to a few weeks depending on the situation). chronic stress, dangerous and excessive exercise (like killing a lot of Tuskens), lack of sleep, bad nutrition, it's a whole concoction (yes irl miscarriages are rarely from any of these things but hard to explain the magical baby being misdeveloped when it worked great the first time (birth of Anakin)). This time he DOES know, recognizes the feeling of the force as a new life form, has more obvious symptoms of pregnancy, and he is very scared and confused because he would have been a virgin when the egg was conceived. And when he sees Padme he's all self conscious about how his body might look, is it as obvious to her as much as it is to him? Will she be disappointed or disgusted if they have sex and she doesn't see what she expects? sexual intimacy scary.... if she finds out will she believe the truth of the situation? Or will she think him unfaithful? ;w; much to agonize over

The third time is during the war once its in full swing. Idk a specific timeline. could be really evil and say Rako Hardeen or Ashoka leaving arc. HMMMM. Ashoka leaving would ofc hurt.... Can't keep any of his damn kids. Somehow the "second" time feels worst than the "first". The guilt and anger and hopelessness compounded. Why does the force keep doing this? Is he not loved even by it? Cannot he not be in control of his own body even now? He is supposed to be free.... (why does the force do this indeed. My excuse is that maybe it's a well-intentioned-but-nevertheless-fucked-up-way to guide Anakin onto a different path, except even the force cannot get plans to go right when they revolve around anakin. it is both a most beloved and mourned aspect of its child.)

The next time kids are a potential future, it's Padme! Maybe they did the stem cell baby procedure, maybe it was the force again. maybe they were rubbing off on each other and fingerbanging so the force manipulates Anakin's makeup to make it possible for Padme to be impregnated. lmao. weird magic makes for many possibilities. If the force is responsible Padme would ofc also feel extremely violated. Either way, choice or not, Anakin has too much birth trauma to do it and out of the two of them shes least often in active war zones and such. So Anakin is like, surely nothing bad will happen now. And it looks like the war will end just in time so he can leave the Jedi on a good note and have his wife and kids! Oh no, what are these nightmares? and so goes the rest....

🛸　.　　•. 　🌎　°　.•　🌓　•　　.°•　　•　🚀 ✯. •. . •. 　.　•　★　*　　　　　°　　.　　🛰 　°·　　•. ๏ .• 🪐 .　•　•　° ★　• ☄. ๏ •. . •. . •. . •. • ▁▂▃▄▅▆▇▇▆▅▄▃▂▃▄▆▇▇▆▅▄▇▆▅▄▃▁▂

Alternative timeline perhaps: After Ashoka and after Clovis, Anakin is like no one loves me I hurt everything I touch everyone leaves me in the end time to go die in the desert I was born to. So he goes to Tatooine, gets a speeder, goes out into the dunes, directionless, no supplies, fully intending to never come back. But being who he is, he stumbles upon or falls into an ancient temple that has long forgotten ties to the force (Inspired by the idea of Tatooine being an old af planet and having old af strong relations to the existence of the force (it is where the chosen one was conceived after all)) and goes thru the painful but liberating process of spiritual renewal. He leaves the desert with revived dreams and newfound courage to live on to create a better world and change to be a better person. and!! this time he gets to choose to have his babies when he decides he's ready to try again. but first, he is going to accomplish his dreams freeing the first family he knew, help lead his people to free others, and eradicate slavery from the galaxy. yayyyy. Sometime here he has the twins bc a galaxy-wide slave revolution is a long ass thing. He'd be waiting all that time otherwise. Perhaps once Tatooine's freedom is achieved, then. Here he knows his children will remain free because he has done and will continue to ensure so as long as he lives.

He reluctantly returns to Coruscant as the people of this union of freed planets agree to elect him as a representative. Not as a senator though. The union wants to stay separate from the republic, but is willing to coexist. Anyways, his return allows for Padme and the Jedi (Obi-Wan!!!!) to meet the bebes, now like 4, 5 years old. Padme and Obi-wan only first see him in the senate rotunda tho and wow! what a shock that is. emotionally unrepressed and matured Anakin is crazy to see. Also his clothes FUCK. learned from him wife. Padme has moved on bc like, he LEFT. but it does hurt to see him again. and doing well without her. But they come to an understanding after a big conversation and then Anakin is like "wanna meet my kids?" LOL

Less fluffy and more in line with Anakin's political philosophy shaped by his childhood, he kind of ends up being a warlord. Not out of bad intentions, he wants to bring peace and stability but believes that is best achieved through certain sacrifice. There is no such thing as a bloodless revolution when the oppressor uses fear and violence to keep you oppressed through generations. Also. Dukkra ba dukkra. For those who might not know, the fan language Amatakkan (tatooine slave language) uses the same word for freedom and death. So I like to think by slaughtering slavers he believes he is freeing them from the chains of greed and corruption. He still has his babies and family is his everything. One of his primary motivators as a warlord is the control he gets to protect them. And it would make for a juicy senate meeting. Like yeah. this guy is unapologetically a killer and feels justified in it!! The senate, Padme, Obi-wan, and the Jedi order aren't really reconciling with that. And if the Republic refuses to let their union of planets conduct their own affairs they are ready to protect what is theirs. Dukkra ba dukkra. They will be free.

Just to go wild with this idea, Anakin has figured out Palpatine's identity as a sith lord during his time on Tatooine and spearheading a revolution (probably some key stuff revealed by the force when he ungoes his spiritual renewal and more discovered through his own research following those key reveals). Palpatine invites him to his office bc like, his would-be apprentice is stronger in the force than ever and is now a warlord lol. He needs to get a grip on things again bc this could fuck up his plans more than Anakin leaving did. Palpatine tries to manipulate him into compliancy by bringing up he knows about Anakin's kids but he doesn't realize Anakin figured out Palpatine was trying to groom him before and so no longer holds a scrap of loyalty to him for that. Anakin's love was his only protection from Anakin. And when Palpatine threatens the wellbeing of his kids? His family? That seals the deal. He will end this tyrant's reign too. Of course this doesn't go over well with the Republic and the Jedi order but palpatine's deception and crimes are gradually revealed, so it's... a smidge less bad. but still bad.

Anyways. I think i'll stop here. this post is so long 😭😆

[hel-phoenyx]

Willy and Lan Yue belong to @noa-de-cajou !

_________

"Pssst, Emerens-"

He's standing next to me, so awkward in his costume that's not supposed to be worn by seven years old children. We had to be very slick to not be noticed by mom or his dad, because they don't like us playing together ; it is why he stills speaks on a low tone, even now.

I turn my head towards him, still amazed at how similar we look. He's my cousin, but we share so much physical traits people sometimes mistook him as my brother. Mum and uncle hate it.

"yea ?"

"I saw Elvira getting out of her room and I have Carlijn's suitcase. Let's go dress up."

He asks me to dress up a lot. We both like this game. Elvira's dresses suit him, better than they suit me, and we have fun going through mom's makeup palette. Once I did his nails, and I never saw a bigger smile on his face since.

So of course I'm gonna say yes.

Who am I to say no to a smile?

***

"So this is not a phase ?"

We are sitting on my hospital bed. Elvira and Carlijn brought them in complete illegality to see me, and I know from the countless missed calls I am still hearing from my sister's brand new phone that it is gonna be nasty when they all get back, but I feel the selfish inclination to still be happy. I see so few people during my recovery.

They are looking at me, anxious, while I am telling them about all the people I talk to in the geriatric pole of the hospital. Gay people, trans people, and so many other words I wasn't aware of.

When I talked about some of my favorite stories, the ones of the girls that are boys that are neither and that are happy, they told me they were feeling this way too, and weren't sure if it was normal. So I could tell them of the people who discovered that is was.

I shrugged.

"I don't know. Maybe. I'm not in your head. i'm just telling you there are people like that."

"... I thought I was the only one, that it wasn't normal to... Not feel that your body is your body. Or that it was, but not like this. It's complicated..."

"Yeah, I didn't get it at first, either. You want me to introduce you ? Mr Hunchausen is adorable, I'm sure he would be happy to talk to you too."

A tiny smile grew on their lips.

"Yes, please."

***

"My name is Willelmien, by the way."

We met for Christmas, like every year. I'm back from Saint-Cyr, feeling the weight of the first year without Thibault, and seeing my cousin is probably one of the biggest if not the only joy of those holidays.

Her hair is a bit longer, as long as someone who appears as a boy could wear without nasty looks. It looks nice on her. I want to let mine grow too, but mom never agreed. She says it's unprofessional.

Hearing that made me smile.

"New name ? It's cute."

"Thank you, thank you. Also, look at this !"

She shows me her hand, hidden under a winter glove she didn't bother to remove before now. Under it is fingers laced with a beautiful ring, adorned with a splendid green nail polish. It matches our eyes.

"Wow ! It looks so cool!"

"I bought it myself, she said, brimming with pride. I saved all my Christmas money for this, but it was worth it. Mom and dad can't see it, tho. Please just pretend I'm cold if they ask."

Fair enough. Mother and father wouldn't like that either. I remember the time they caught me in the bathroom holding mother's lipstick. I will never forget father's stern lecture about how boys don't play with makeup. I can undernstand why she didn't want to be a boy anymore. Can girls be more left alone about that?

This is not only at home, though. Saint-Cyr is worse. We can't hug, we can't kiss, we can't laugh. And I miss my friends so dearly.

I really hope she won't live the same thing.

***

I landed in the hospital again. This time for an entirely different reason.

Everything hurts. I prefered when it was nothing.

This time I can't roam around free, or talk to people, or listen to stories. I can only read in my corner, too much in pain to pick up a pen again, and too unstable for visits. At least that's what they said.

The doctor still comes by sometimes, tells me he found a good edition company for my book, that they promised to read it in behalf of their good relations to the hospital.

I miss them so much.

But as much as I want to see her, I hope for nothing more than the fact she isn't in that hospital.

***

How many years has it been ?

I grew up so much since our times together. We weren't older that twelve when I said my goodbyes, and years later when I finally landed in France, I expected it to be forever.

And yet, after "van Heel, Emerens" the list calls for "van Heel, Willelmien" and there she is in the gymnasium, taller and leaner and so much happier than last time we saw each other. She heard my name and my Ultimate too, and she is searching in the room, too far away for me to see her face but yes not enough to miss the frenzy in her movements.

Finally, our eyes meet. And on her face appears the biggest smile I have ever seen.

Mine is probably the same.

***

Hope's Peak is both an enter towards future and a jump back in the past. I indulged in both during the past week, meeting new people, making new friends, and making up for lost time with my most beloved, my Sharon that, too, grew up so, so much.

And now I am with Willy talking about what has been, and she laughs when I mention my first attemps to play an electric guitar, funny enough for me to land my first time with a girl. People already know us as "the siblings of the school". I do nothing to correct them.

We sit on that bench near the sakura trees. After my exposition of pride about my books and my musical talent, all the art I let myself thrive in after all those years, she boasts about her skills in make-up, care and all the things that earn a woman the title of socio-esthetician.

"And grandma promised to pay for all my hormone replacement therapy," she says with that huge, sunny smile. "She doesn't understand a lot about transidentity, but she is so much better than the other old fucks. Living at her place really was an upgrade, you have no idea!"

She does not talk about how she landed at her maternal grandparents, as I do not talk about Saint-Cyr. I know that she knows, and she knows that I know. There is no need to open up old wounds. I hide mine too well under bands, and her under makeup.

"Old money paying for transness, best revenge ever, right ?"

I wink while saying that, and she laughs.

"Oh, fuck yes. Sadly that's not the van Heels', that would have been a huge slap in dad's face. But, eh, good enough. Still, can't depend on them for everything. I'm out of the will for sure now, and soon enough I'll have to earn my own shit..."

"Need some help in the meantime?"

A fist come hitting me right in the shoulder, his strenght countered by a hearty laugh.

"Oh come on, I do not need another trust fund! Don't worry about me, I'll manage. But I appreciate it, though. One of those days, when I'll be broke, old and unable to work, I'll aim for your bank account, pinky promise!"

That's the kind of promise I do not want to see broken.

***

"Say, Willy, how do you feel about having a girlfriend ?"

My dearest cousin sighs dramatically for the third time this day.

"Oh, please don't ask me! I'm DESPERATE for a relationship, and I can't spend my life in nightclubs like you do, I'll never get to your level of hoeing!"

"Woooooow. Ru-u-u-u-de!"

"Oh don't be sad, Rapunzel, no one can whore around as well as you do. But back to the matter at hand, why do you bring that on the table?"

I smile, albeit mischeviously.

"I want apologies or I'm not telling~~~~"

Acting like a little shit does earn you good things sometimes, but right now my only victory is Willy pulling on my hair. Not quite a victory per say, but hey, I'm laughing, and she is too.

"Oh come on, I know you take that as a compliment!"

"I do, but the condition still stands, Willelmien~"

"Fine, fine, I'm sorry, you little bitch. Now tell me, you made me curious."

"Good enough."

I stop on my tracks, noticing the silhouette of a splendid young girl, sat on a bench with her laptop. She taps on her keyboard completely ignoring the sunlight, only stopping in her tracks to put back a strand of blue hair behind her ear. Her clothing, not quite fit for january, show off a lot of her stomach, probably the source of protection against the cold. And the looks of countless starstruck ladies, including, I noticed earlier, my very own cousin.

"I have this friend that complained about not finding a girlfriend earlier in the week, and I happen to know a very single girl that could be very interested and is right in front of me..."

Willy burst into laughing.

"You wanna set me up a date ?"

"Not quite, not my job to do all the talking, my dear. But I was considering putting you two in a situation where you could talk, and maybe it would lead to something more... Well, not that something more," I add when noticing Willy's wink. "She's asexual and from what I know, sex is absolutely out of the question."

"Oh, I don't care, I want a girlfriend, not a hookup. Well, I hope she isn't fully exclusive, though. I can bear just fine, but van Heels and sexuality, you know..."

"Oh, I know too well. But she may be your ideal girl, because she's polyamorous as hell. So? Interested?"

I know her well enough to recognise that gleam in her eyes.

"Of course I am. Never thought my cousin would find me a date, the wonder of the world... Sure we're gonna hit it off ?"

I let out a laugh.

"I am never wrong in that kind of things."

And as always, I was right.

Because seeing Willy's smitten smile the morning after, holding Nako's phone number written on a beautiful note in one hand, is enough to lighten my whole week.

***

On the other side of the phone I hear a gasp in astonishment.

"You're coming over at the mansion for Christmas?"

"Elvira asked me, I grunted, trying to hide my frustration. I would have said no, but she already asked the old fuckers, so now I guess I'm expected. Never thought this would happen again, and yet..."

Silence takes place one second or two. Before Willy sighs in the mic, static ringing in my ears.

"I guess that's a good opportunity to convince her to get out of here. She missed you, you know. You may be able to make her realise this is not an environment suit for neither of us."

"That's what I thought. And afterwards, I'll go right to Louna's anyway. Her father is bedridden because of an injury and she wanted to be there all holidays, so I'll spend more time in the family-in-law than those other old bitches..."

Not that I ever wanted to see either of those old bitches ever again. The birth givers, the second roles, Leonard still being a rat and Carlijn probably searching for the best way to annoy her parents without paying attention to us.

At least I'll meet Annelies. From what I've been hearing, she's around six and very much not neurotypical. She'll need someone to gift her dinosaurs until she gets tired of that specific interest, because I'm sure as hell no one with money except Willy would try to listen to her.

And maybe I'll have the occasion to talk to Mareva.

Maybe.

My silence must be revealing, since the phone is not enough to mask Willy's worry.

"Hey, man. If you wanna talk about it, you can. And I promise I'll do what I'm able to for you to spend at least an okay Christmas. I know all the ways to sneak out from that rotten house."

"Don't get yourself in trouble because of me, tho..."

"I'll get in trouble for my very nature, Emerens. Let's get in trouble together."

Somehow, that is the most reassuring thing I have ever heard about that godsdamned Christmas.

***

"What the actual FUCK ?!"

I grit my teeth. Willy's reaction is exactly the reason I left her out of this, including the whole family trauma and a big ass lack of time. But I had to warn her at some point why we got a completely trauma Elvira staying at Lan Yue's, and also probably why I think they're gonna fuck in the next days or months depending on the situation and I'm not happy about it.

"Yeah. Father went too far this time. i thought he was a goddamn doormat, and yet..."

"This is not going too far, Emerens, this is goddamn illegal. Please tell me you're taking them to court."

"Oh, I will. But not now. I'm giving her, and us, time to recover. We need that. All of us."

Willy clenches her jaw, and sits down next to me, anger still plaguing her face. She is angry after my fuckers of parents, I know that, but that look in her eyes tell me she's also angry at me, and looking back, she has every reason to.

Still, there is no animosity in her attitude when she throws her arm around my shoulders.

"Fuck. This is insane."

"It is. Sorry for keeping you out."

"I am not happy about it, but I understand. This is high-level rich people fuckery. Nobody would involve someone on their own volition in there, even family."

"Especially family."

A sigh escapes my lips, and I let myself lean against her. I won't lie and say I do not need the contact. That was an awful week for me. Productive. But awful.

We got Elvira out of here with enough grounds to get her at least a restraining order against them, or at the very least a serious dent in their reputation. She won't ever return there, and I have one less reason to spend Christmas at the van Heels'. I finally managed to put words on what happened back at Saint-Cyr to another person than Senri and my therapist, and that person is my sisters' crush and one of my best mates.

Still, I feel like I've been dragged to the bottom of a garbage dump. Probably look like it, too.

Luckily for me, Willy does not push further. In place, she smiles, before poking my nose with her long-nailed finger in a classic Willy tease.

"And now Vivi stays at Lan Yuyu's flat? Lucky her."

I roll my eyes so hard I swear I saw the back of my very filthy brain.

"Oh please don't remind me, I am tired of being the overprotective little brother. I've just been so anxious all this time when I heard about their crush on her."

"Why anxious ? We are talking about LAN FUCKING YUE!"

"I know! Imagine if it was anyone else, my heart wouldn't handle..."

"Pitt-bull that you are, Rapunzel. I know she just got out of a very abusive environment, but she'll be fine."

"Yeah, we can only hope."

Because I want to see her fine. I want to see her happy. And Lan Yue can make her happy, I know that, I trusted him with my secrets and I would trust him with my life. I can trust him with my sisters.

I just don't want to lose her again.

Neither of them.

***

The call in the middle of the night took me by surprise, but when I see Willy's name of the screen, I have no choice but to respond. We do not leave family astray. At least, a specific part of family.

Sharon is sleeping next to me. So my first reflex is to rush to the bathroom, the most silently I can, before answering the call.

"Hey, Willy, are you okay-"

I'm cut short by incoherent stammering. Oh, for that nonexistent god's sake, I think she's hyperventilating... Is she having a panic attack ? why is her voice so far from the mic of the phone ? Jesus fuck, if only she wasn't currently in Amsterdam visiting her grandparents, I would have tried to reach her asap, I can't leave her like this...

I hate feeling powerless but in that situation, I can only try and take control of the conversation so she's grounded to something. Jesus Christ.

"Willy, I'm not going anywhere, take a deep breath. There. focus on my voice, okay? Whatever happened, I'll listen, I promise, but i won't be able to help if I don't understand you."

"Emerens-"

She takes a big breath. Her voice gets a little steadier, but I can still hear the anguish.

"I have a half-sister."

Whatever words I had in stock just end up stuck in my throat.

All I can do is hear Willy tell me about how her world ended crumbling.

***

A half-sister. Of course that was expected to happen. Mother noticed, Mareva noticed, of course I noticed my uncle was not as faithful as he appeared to be. It got worse after the old fucks moved to retirement home, when he just stopped caring about gaining something from being good.

I'd never have imagined it was bad to the point he didn't even take precautions.

She's called Rosaline. Pretty name. History student, around Justen's age. The daughter of a maid of their house, probably very young if I judge by the pictures. I wager she was about twenty when that motherfucker knocked her up.

When she reached out to Willy, it was to connect. But also because she heard about the family feud and wanted to drag her asshole father to the mud. So we're gathering proof for the most nasty divorce ever. With maximum consequences for my bitch ass cheater of an uncle.

And now I'm with Willy to meet her because she wanted nobody else around. Maybe because it's not my first trial against a van Heel, I know the drill. Or maybe just because she needed support. Who knows.

"This feels so weird," grunted Willy rubbing her hands against one another. "I'm meeting a sister I never even heard about months ago, and we're doing that to fuck up my parents marriage."

"No offense, but Diederik fucked his own marriage, not us. By fucking other people in his wife's back."

"None taken, and you're absolutely right, that ass had it coming. But it's still weird."

I let out an ironic laugh.

"Think about it that way, Willy, he fucked to much, and now he's gonna get fucked. Karma always comes to bite you in the ass. You can't fuck without being fucked. The eternal cycle of fuck..."

"Says the bottom."

"Bitch I'm a switch?! And I certainly don't want you to find out!"

"Oh, ew, please, no! There is enough incest in this bloodline already!"

We burst out laughing, and that is enough to forget even for one moment the situation we're in.

Family stick out for each other, huh. I didn't think that would happen again in my lifetime, and here I am, happy to be of the same blood of someone.

[isuckatwritingsobenice]

𝐅𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐫

Chapter one: Notes

Main Masterlist // Disney Nav // Taglist form

Notes: Modern AU-ish! They're all around 15-16 in this fic, This is not an X Reader fic!! Likes & Reblogs are appreciated !

Chapter 2

The music is loud as Violet brushes her hair, making sure everything is perfect. Today's the first day of the schools spirit week. They're supposed to be dressing up as a celebrity. So, Penny and Violet decided to have matching costumes. Violet would be Marceline from Adventure time, and Penny would be Princess Bubblegum. Thankfully, Violet didn't need to put that much effort into the face makeup, her pale skin being a perfect base for the light makeup she had done.

Penny however, was a different story entirely. She had gotten up at five in the morning, straightening the wig she had gotten and had basically looked like she was dipped into a bucket of pink paint. She had even ordered a crown similar to hers the week prior. She was prepared, and had even left her house an extra ten minutes early to make sure she got to school before everyone else did, so her outfit and hair didn't get ruined so quickly.

This year, Wilbur and Hiro decided to dress up as Men in Black, even though Hero had never seen the movies. Still, the two had arrived to school in black suits, matching ID cards and black glasses.

"Didn't we do that last year?" Penny asked as she saw the two boys. They all stood near her locker, now waiting for Violet.

"No, you guys did this for middle school. We do it better though." Wilbur says with a grin, and Hiro laughs nodding. Penny rolls her eyes and fixes her locker door to fix her hair in her mirror.

"Who are you supposed to be?" Hiro asks her as she fixes her crown.

"Princess Bubblegum from Adventure time. Violet is Marceline." Penny says, before checking her teeth to make sure they're white.

"Marceline is the vampire one right?" Wilbur asks, plucking a pack of gum out of Pennys locker.

"Yep!" Says Violet, approaching the three. Violet is dressed in white jeans, a red and white sports jacket with a grey shirt underneath.

"This doesn't look like a costume." Hiro says pointing to the two. Wilbur nods.

"Yeah, it just looks like Violet being Violet and then Penny living a barbie fantasy." Wilbur says, before the two boys laugh. Violet rolls her eyes and pinched Wilbur's arm to get him to stop laughing. "Ow!" He says, backing away.

"I think we look amazing, thank you." Penny says, and Violet nods.

"Didn't we dress up as Men in Black first?" Violet says as she looks at the two boys. Hiro groans.

"You guys did it in middle school." Hiro says, before Violet snickers.

"How unoriginal." She says, before pointing to another group down the hall, also in black suits.

"At least we stand out." Penny says, before Wilbur shrugs.

"I'd rather blend in than look like Barbies own personal doll." Wilbur says, before Penny shuts her locker.

"Ha ha, very funny." She says sarcastically. The four begin to walk down the hall, making small talk as they all go to their first period classes. Thankfully, they're right next to each other. Penny and Hiro on the left, which is the classroom in the corner of the hall, and Wilbur and Violet on the right, in the middle of the hall. The girls say they're goodbyes, walking into their classrooms while the two boys stand outside for an extra three seconds doing their handshake.

Violet sits at her desk, which is technically just a lab table. She puts her headphones on, changing the setting to transparency on them so she can still hear the teacher, and gets her notebook out. Wilbur takes his seat next to her, before realizing he doesn't have a pencil.

"Hey, Vi." Wilbur whispers, nudging her lightly with his elbow.

"Yeah?" She whispered back, before Wilbur pointed to her pencil case next to her.

" Can I borrow a pencil?" He asks, and she nods, plucking one from the case and giving it to him. He tried quickly to copy the notes off the board, but fails when his teacher changes the slide. So, he starts to copy off of Violet. It's only then he notices the small doodles on the sides of her page, and how neat and cursive her letters are.

Quickly, Wilbur flips his page and writes. 'I didn't know you could write in cursive' before sliding it over to her. It takes her a moment to notice the notebook is there, but when she reads it, she writes on the page underneath his original statement.

'i've always written in cursive, it's nicer.' She writes back, and he smiles before writing again.

'it looks complicated, can you teach me? :)' He scribbles, before sliding it quickly to her.

'If I teach you, don't be annoying about it.' She writes.

'When am I ever annoying about anything?'

'When are you not?' He reads from her, her cursive letters are pretty in all their glory. He smiles, before writing.

'That , is an excellent question.' He says, and watched her carefully as she reads it. He feels himself smile watching her laugh at his response.

The first few periods had gone by relatively quick, and lunch was quickly approaching. Violet had suffered a good forty five minutes through gym, Penny had gone through a geometry quiz, Hiro had to present a science project and Wilbur had to give an excuse as to why his wasn't done.

Penny and Wilbur had sat at their usual table, waiting for Hiro to finish getting his lunch, and waiting for Violet to come back from gym.

"Twenty seven questions. Who puts twenty seven questions on a geometry quiz? Before break? What kind of evil witch does that?" Penny rants and Wilbur nods, peeling his orange.

" Well did you fail?" Wilbur asks, handing Penny a piece of his orange.

"I don't know. I only remembered like, half of what we actually went over." Penny said with a sigh, taking a bite of the orange.

"Then you got half a grade, not too bad." Wilbur said, before Hiro slammed his lunch tray on the table, leaning in to whisper to Penny and Wilbur.

"Guys! Violet just walked in with Brick Jojo!" Hiro said, before nodding toward the entrance of the lunchroom. There stood Violet, holding her books close to her chest while Brick was talking? grinning from ear to ear. She had her hair in front of her face, a shy smile on her features. Hiro huffed, opening his milk carton is stubborn movements.

"Hiro, why don't you just tell Vi you like her? I'm sure she'll feel the same." Penny said, sipping her juice pouch. Wilbur stared curiously at Violet and Brick, before turning back to Hero.

"What would I even say? 'Oh hey I've liked you for a while now, so I know I just ruined our friendship but yeah', who says that?!" Hiro said, obviously panicking.

"Dude, if anything just try to get her away from him." Wilbur said with a shrug, eating an orange slice.

"Then that would make me a bad friend." Hiro said and Penny nodded.

"True. I don't know, either confess, or just support her from afar." Penny said, before Hiro shushed her.

"She's coming over, with him." Hiro whispered, before Wilbur changed the subject.

"So, did anyone see the guy in the huge dinosaur costume? He got yelled at by one of the teachers for getting stuck in the doorway." Wilbur said casually as Violet sat down, waving goodbye to Brick as he went to sit at his own table.

"Hey guys." Violet said, placing her books next to her, pulling out a tray of crackers from her bag.

" Hey Vi." Hiro said, trying to ignore the tension. Penny inhaled before blurting it out.

"So Vi, what was that about?" She asked, leaning on her elbow to grin at Violet. She blushed and hid behind her hair again, before laughing a bit.

"Nothing really, he was just asking me if I wanted to go out later." Violet said, taking a cracker out of her tray.

"Did he say what he wanted?" Asked Wilbur, eating another orange slice. Hiro was observant.

"He asked if I wanted to see a movie later." Violet said, and Penny nudged her with a smile.

"Oh? I think he asked you on a date." Penny said, before Violet blushed.

"I wouldn't call it that, I don't know." Violet said, and Penny knew why she was unsure. Penny had her suspicions, but knew Violet liked someone else. Even though she didn't tell her who, she knew Brick wasn't the one she wanted.

"Did you say yes?" Hiro asked, and Violet nodded.

"Yeah, why not. We wouldn't be alone, his brothers are going with their girlfriends. So it would be fine I guess." Violet said, and Penny nodded. Wilbur and Hiro were quiet, Hiro thinking over what she just said, and Wilbur staring at Bricks table. His brothers and him were known for causing trouble. Why would Violet want to go out with someone like that?

"So a hang out?" Wilbur asked, and violet nodded.

"I still don't know what movie we're seeing though." Violet said, and Penny pulled her phone out.

"I can check the showings for tonight, that way you know if you're gonna be bored or not." Penny said, opening her movie app to see the showings. Violet looked over her should, Hiro took his notebook out from his bag and flipped the pages, turning to Wilbur to ask for ideas on his new robot.

Hiro knew what he was going to do later. He planned on getting help, so going over his plans were important, especially with Wilbur.

[leffee]

Alright this one is all about vinnie

- he can’t say no a lot of the time he finds it hard not to disappoint anyone so he’ll stretch himself a little thin sometimes to make his friends happy

- he can rock any outfit he’s put in with confidence he doesn’t care what it is he’ll wear it which is why he doesn’t think about the way he dresses when he leaves the house (it bothers the living daylights out of Russell)

- anytime he’s around music he starts dancing or moving without thinking about it

- he’s still in love with Sunil and feels guilty about it…

- anyone can talk him into anything if they try hard enough (for example pepper once told him if he ran with milk he would make yogurt so he did until Sunil stopped him and had to carry a disappointed/ tired vinnie home

- he’s not much of a fighter but he isn’t one to mess with when he gets pushed to far

- no one messes with vinnie he’s like the baby in the group of boys (just like penny is with girls) if they do they’ll have to deal with the boyfriend, best friend and no one hurts shahrukuh’s little buddy!

- he’s vey forgetful sometimes he’s left so many things at friends houses, locked himself out of his car, heck he’s even forgot to wear pants a couple of times

- vinnie likes flowers the different colors/types fascinate him plus they smell so good! him and penny flower pick together often

- no one can beat him at twister they’ve all tried the only one who came close was minka

- he gets to dirty without trying so none of his white clothes ever stay white at this point Russell says he’s not allowed that color anymore lol

- he likes to be squished while sleeping or in general it makes him feel safe!

- since he has no fur he often wonders what it would be like to have some and he does get a bit jealous he has tried though first with coats and other furry clothes but that wasn’t good enough so his next bright idea was to glue fuzzy things to himself (it didn’t go well)

- lotion is his best friend dry scales are no fun to deal with along with hair gel you’ll always count on him to have a comb on him though at all times his hair could be long/short but still requires a comb

- the girls will often use him as a makeup tester to see what will look good he doesn’t mind to much sometimes he actually likes what they come up with

- whenever he gets any clothes he can never find and remove all the tags or stickers m. it never fails that someone will find a tag or sticker on him somewhere

- he’s not the first one to break away from a hug and if he’s hugged long enough sometimes he’ll start to cry

- sometimes Sunil and Russell have tried to groom him but he doesn’t understand it or if he’s supposed to like it

- he also doesn’t understand women at all they scare him sometimes

~That’s all I have for now I’m sure there’s more~

Oh man, so many headcanons? And all about my beloved? It's not even my birthday 🤭. No kidding, I would happily take such birthday gift over almost anything.

yes yes exactly. We're all focused on Penny Ling (I mean she had a whole episode for her dedicated to this) but what about Vinnie? He would definitely be like that too, maybe to a lesser extent but still. He really doesn't want to disappoint anyone and might overstress himself due to that saying "no" problem. He's happy to help but also "aaaaa". I swear him and Penny are so similar in many ways, I will die on this hill

ahaha, poor Russell. I say he just can't care less what he wears, he just wants to be comfortable. In my head he very rarely wears tight things like jeans. He's all comfort over how he looks. It doesn't have to match, he doesn't care enough for that usually. Also, he's lazy <3

yesss, I mean, he literally did that. In this one episode in which the pets were looking for Minka during Biskits' party he did just that. He at least rythmically thumps his foot, perhaps even unconciously sometimes. Hearing music is distracting for him

oh? I don't blame him ;-; Sunil is great. Don't worry though, he has the power of ✨hiding his emotions✨

I see this scene so perfectly in my head xD. Just Vinnie running around with milk for hours, excitedly waiting for his yogurt. And then Sunil sees it and is very confused so he asks him what on earth is he doing so Vinnie explains. And Sunil is like "w h a t" and explains that it's definitely not how this works. In a matter of milliseconds Vinnie's expressions changes from excited and anticipatory to such big weariness and shock and literally all energy leaves him. Because he's been running for hours but in his excitement didn't feel that weariness, but now it all came down on him. So Sunil just sighs, picks him up and takes him home while Vinnie is practically limp and doesn't want to talk or think about how he just wasted so much time. At least he's getting his fitness in I suppose hehe

yeees, I agree. Kinda, but I still like it. Just, he's not the first to start a fight or anything, he's too dead inside chill to do that. But if you push him too far he's all in and will fight you and probably win because he's just this determined. The thing is, he's not physically strong, like at all, until you rail him up and those intense emotions will carry him as well as pretty good stamina. Little destruction, am I right

baby boy, baby boy! I want to protect him so much, pls heavens. The funny thing is that, as I said in that previous point, he absolutely can protect himself etc (granted, won't usually do it), but they will still do it for him. And pls I just love that "little buddy" so much, Sharukh you sly dog, you! This Vinnie-Sharukh is really growing on me

is he really forgetful or did he do that on purpose so he can have an excuse to spend more time with his friends hehe. How did he forget to wear pants though 😭. Absolutely silly. What if he just has bad short-term memory but great long-memory? Like remembering down to minutes when all his friends were born but where the hell did he leave that mug he was drinking from five minutes ago will remain a mystery.

naww, aren't they just precious? Wait, what if... since he's so fascinated with flowers he also knows a lot about their symbolism? Like, let's say that someone whom Zoe is dating atm gave her a bouquet of edelweisses and in his mind Vinnie's thinking "Why did they give her flowers that mean cleanliness?? The heck do they want to tell her by that?" He literally overthinks that so much

omg yes, that's exactly what I mean by saying that he's really flexible, the most out of all of them, and yes, Minka is second. (Penny is third, Zoe is fourth, and Russell, Sunil, and Pepper all take fifth place bc they're just not flexible at all). He can pull off pretty much every pose that requires some crazy flexibility and can twist himself into absolutely unholy positions. Like?? You're not beating that in twister. He might as well not participate because everyone knows he's gonna win. I have this vague scenario in my head that one day they all met someone and it was clear that this person thinks they have the best flexibility especially among them and takes great pride in it and is a bit overconfident with it. And surprisingly Sunil immediately pauses that and says that Vinnie is literally way better for sure. So that person challenges Vinnie to try being better than them, but maybe Vinnie is tired or something and he's just like "Nah, thanks." and begins walking away but then that person in like "Hah! I knew it, of course he can't beat me. He's afraid to even try, because he knows he's gonna lose." And Vinnie stop motionless for a second before turning his head full 180, you can almost hear his neck bones snapping. So he says he will absolutely destroy them and does just that ^^. Because if there's one thing he's good at it's being flexible

okay, listen, but what if, after he grumpily agrees not to wear white, a truly devilish idea grows in his mind. In act of defiance he does something that not even Russell expects. He dyes his hair white. Sure, it's not exactly clothes but that's the thing, he still sticks to the deal of not wearing white, but will have white hair for a while for the sheer ridiculousnes and unexpectedness of it

honestly this is my favourite headcanon from this roster because it is. just. so. cute! Yes, squish him, he's so adorable, isn't he? I want to squish him and his little cheeks. He can (and should) be used as a stress toy (bc you know, you squish the thing ayaya). As for being squished while sleeping... weighted blanket! He finds it weird to sleep without it. Give him a weighted blanket

absolutely. You can't tell me he hasn't wondered at least a few times what it would be like to be a mammal, especially since in this way he's the odd one out in their group. To have fur and warm-blood, so basically not being cold most of the time. A bonus thought, I'm not sure if this is how it would work, but warm clothes, blankets etc probably wouldn't even work on him, I think. Because the way those work they trap your body heat not allowing it to leave so you get warm, but like, he doesn't produce his own heat, so there's nothing to trap. I think about that A LOT. He can only warm himself up by using active sources of heat like the sun, radiators orrrr another person who is not cold blooded, wink wink nudge nudge. This is one of the few characteristic that I ALWAYS give him, he needs to be cold, whether he's a pet, an anthropomorphic, or even just full human. He doesn't get being warm rights

I already said somewhere that yes, he always has a comb with himself (actually I said hairbrush but that's almost the same thing so). But what I really want to focus on is the lotion. Because you are so right and I don't think I ever thought of that?? It's genius, yes, he absolutely has that and uses it a lot. Damn scales. Damn not-having-scales mammals

yeah, fair enough. He just gets to sit and do nothing while they do all the stuff, he can get behind this idea. He can take it or leave it, and he takes it. He sends pictures to the boys "How do I look? Like it?" that are mostly jokes

if it doesn't scratch him or bother him in any way I honestly don't blame him. He probably just doesn't care enough about that because if it doesn't bother him then what's the point in wasting his time on finding all those little things?

yes, please! He craves a lot of touch, my bby is touch-starved he really like physical affection but normally won't say it but at the same time once he gets it he will try to get as much as possible without verbally communicating it. And that's why he will cry if hold him for too long, bc he's desperate

ahahah, he's just like "??" or thinking to himself "Is this some weird mammal thing?". But I like to think that he would actually really enjoy it once he got used to it, maybe. I have this headcanon that kinda plays into it: Zoe sometimes tries to get her friends to go with her to a spa for a massage (and maybe other stuff, but for the sake of this headcanon let's stay on massages). And when she asked Vinnie to go with her, he reluctantly at first but agreed. And he genuinely enjoyed it so much, at least mostly. He doesn't like being touched so much and throughly by strangers, but besides that it was really nice

hehe lol

Well that was satysfying, as always of course. I have-I have so many headcanons for him, I'm not okay. Feel free to send more when you're in the mood! Whether for Vinnie or anyone else. I eat up those headcanons, they make me so happy.

[followmetoyourdoom]

Fullmetal Alchemist Live Action Casting Choices

As a disclaimer, I will be focusing on the actor and the English VAs and only on certain ones that stood out for me, for good or for bad

The Great

Keisuke Watanabe & Todd Haberkorn as Ling Yao - absolutely phenomenal, Keisuke is perfect for the role in both acting and looks. Costume, hair and makeup design was perfect too. Even when he becomes greed, everything is still so spot on. I wish we could have seen more of Greedling in the 3rd film. Todd as always does an amazing job with his voice, no flaws, he is Ling Yao.

Seiyô Uchino & ??? as Van Hohenheim - Seiyô was fantastic, the best iteration of Hohenheim I've seen. I prefer him to the brotherhood version. Seiyô plays him as a father who doesn't know how to be a father but is still trying and still fundamentally cares. He looks the part, he acts the part, his facial expressions are spot on. The VA (who I cannot find the name of, apologies) was pretty good. Nothing that stood out, but they did work perfectly together.

The Good

Tsubasa Honda & Caitlin Glass as Winry Rockbell - Tsubasa's acting was pretty decent, though a little over the top at times. The scene where she told Al off however was perfect. I do wish the costume & make up designers had let her lean more into her mechanic side. They made her a little too girly girl and while Winry does embrace her feminine side, she also embraces her mechanic side and I did struggle to see that. Caitlin was great as usual, she delivered some of the lines differently and some very similar. I almost cried at 'give them back, give me back my mum and dad'.

Ryôsuke Yamada & Caleb Yen as Edward Elric - Ryôsuke makes for a very good Ed, the facial expressions he pulls are great, his attitude is perfectly Ed, and when he needs to be soft he is. Caleb Yen needed to step in as the new VA after the first film for obvious reasons. I personally struggled with the change, but it was a change that needed to happen and overall I'm happy with how Caleb made his own version of Ed's voice. I enjoyed the 'huuuh???'s immensely.

The Meh

Dean Fujioka & Steve Phelan as Roy Mustang - Dean was... Okay. But he was a little expressionless at times. Hair wasn't right either. Steve again, was okay but just, didn't really get the gravitas of Roy for me. Together they did a decent job of a military man, but he wasn't always recognisable as Roy Mustang.

Atom Mizuishi & Matthew Moy as Alphonse Elric - We only see a little bit of Atom at the end and yeah he's decent enough, it works. Matthew did better than Aaron Dismuke in my opinion bc of the voice change from Brotherhood to the live action. I'm sure it was the age difference between when they recorded it which, understandable, can't help that, but I just didn't like the new voice Aaron picked. Matthew did better, but only just. It kinda worked when Al was in his armour. It did not work when he was Atom. At all.

The Bad

Mackenyu Arata & Parry Shen as Scar - I had no issues with the acting of Mackenyu, my main issue is with the casting in general. They did brown face. They didn't need to do brown face. Why did they do that. Just. Oh my god. Why. Everything else was fine, the acting, the costume, the voice acting but just... *sighs* Really guys?

Chiaki Kuriyama & ??? as Olivia Mira Armstrong - Now, Chiaki did amazing, looks the part, acts the part, etc... Moving on: Olivia is in this category bc of her English voice actor who I cannot find the name of. Her voice was completely wrong, she was straining to be powerful enough and the rest of the time her voice was too soft. Olivia isn't soft. You cannot get someone with a soft voice for her. None of her lines hit. She hesitated at times when Olivia wouldn't and it just. It was bad. She'd be in the terrible category if not for Chiaki.

The Terrible

Kanata Hongô & Brian Anderson as Envy - oh boy. Kanata... Kanata's acting was... Lacking, to say the least. He played Envy as more emo and uncaring, when in fact Envy is supposed to be batshit insane and constantly being a little shit and grinning or snarling when things suddenly aren't going his way. Brain was okay, he was trying, but he had limited expressions to work with, and his voice was too deep in my opinion and not snarky enough. For Envy's true form they got the voice right, but that was mere seconds, if that. Overall, very disappointed.

Monroe Ron & Risa Mei as May Chang - my main gripe is that, not only did they hire a person in their late 20s to play an 11 y/o child, but then that actor wasn't even that good. Sure she played the part, but she never felt like May. The costume hair and makeup were great, yet this still felt like a fan doing a very good cosplay without stepping into the roleplay aspect of it. Idk what child actor laws are like in Japan, but surely they could have gotten someone better at acting to at least warrant the age up if they needed an adult. Risa was fine, again, worked with what she had, though her voice was a liiiil too ear hurty for me.

[marcmorrigan]

the B in Beyond Birthday stands for baby boy. and also beautiful. and also blood. and also... Beyond Birthday

[unlimitedhorsepower]

i know t&b doesnt make it fully clear whether yuri petrov actually has a scar on his face or not but to say its impossible is because people have a limited idea of what burn scars can look like and how they may be treated or covered up.

cropped image of his refrence sheet from official hero book 2 displayed on the wiki page.

the way its portrayed and the initial injury itself operate on looser logic than in real life (due to the length of time mr. legend held onto his face) but its possible for him to have a burn scar on his face and still retain his eyesight, hair, and eyebrows.

the clear shape of a hand and the way it cuts through his perfectly-preserved eyebrows are obviously fictionalized, but given that he already has superpowers, i think his scar being slightly unrealistic isnt an issue or proof that it only exists in his mind as a form of trauma.

from the colour and texture given to the scar, we can adhere that its a hypertrophic scar: the skin has thickened, raised from the unaffected skin, and turned purplish as part of the healing process.

the portrayal of scars in media isnt exactly good and different disfigurements people can go through are often portrayed only in very specific manner and often in a very bad light, but theres nothing inherently ugly, scary or wrong about having facial disfigurement.

hypertrophic scars can look very different depending on the person and the severity of the initial burn. heres a real-life person whose scar, in my opinion, has a similar quality to it as yuris does.

cropped image from a paper called “Pulsed dye laser in burn scars: Current concepts and future directions”

ive cropped the image because even if its censored, i dont feel comfortable using someones real face on a tumblr post about a fictional character.

even if yuris scar is fictionalized, i think its clear what its supposed to represent. i also think the way its portrayed was specifically chosen to pursue a certain aesthetic/conventional beauty standard, which is disappointing but nothing unusual in media.

im of the opinion that the initial portrayal of his scar in the anime and various panels in the manga shows that it was supposed to be real, even if later material has now displayed it suddenly appearing/disappearing.

its also entirely possible to cover it with makeup. many people with different kind of facial disfigurement make content on the topic! this article links to some youtubers with facial disfigurement who create makeup videos.

[hoodies-n-cola]

Finally finished drawing the designs for my Pony AU!

Details under the cut ( ꈍᴗꈍ)

Just as some general information

They all live in a shared home in Canterlot

They still go on whacky tacky adventures as per the norm

There's no Red Army, but they're all still friends with Paul, Pat, Yuu, Yanov, etc

Eduardo, Mark, Jon, and Todd live in Ponyville so they're not really neighbors per say, but if one of the guys mentions "the neighbors", that's who they're referring to

Now for individual notes

Edd

Born in Ponyville but only stayed for a year before his family moved to Canterlot

He's an artist by trade, but he did do work for an advertising company before quitting bc it was boring as sin

Any time he goes back to Ponyville, everyone seems to think he's related to the Pears or the Pies, but unbeknownst to any of them, he's actually related to Cherry Jubilee on his mother's side

He's actually really good friends with Rarity and they like to meet up on weekends and draw together over tea

Tom

He was born and raised in Cloudsdale before moving in with Edd in Canterlot

He's actually pretty small for a Pegasus, and that plus his eyes being Like That causes everyone around him to question whether or not he's actually a Pony

He and Rainbow Dash were childhood friends; they hung out with Gilda and were all treated as a misfit trio

He works at the Rainbow Factory on week days, and though everyone tries to convince him he should just move there for his job, he's not willing to leave Canterlot, regardless of the time it takes to fly there and back every day

He got his cutie mark when he was able to beat everyone at flight school in chess, making him think he had a chess based cutie mark, and most of his teen angst came from him finding out he's actually really bad a chess. Turns out his cutie mark is actually just a checker pattern bc he works really well with that pattern and can even make a checker patterned rainbow

Matt

He was born and raised in the high fashion, rich department of Canterlot, meaning he's attended several parties with the princesses

He very easily found a job as a model and was even listed as one of Photo Finish's favorite models to photograph bc he can absolutely charm a camera in every way possible

When he's modeling, he usually wears makeup to hide his freckles

He attended Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns and is actually a very powerful unicorn, but be tends to just use magic to make himself sparkle and look good

He's friends with all of the Mane Six, even Applejack despite how similar he is to Rarity

Tord

He was actually born in Griffonstone and abandoned there by his parents who didn't want to raise a child. Thankfully a sweet griffon took him in and raised him as her own, though it led Tord to believe he was a griffon for quite a number of years

He never did that whole search for his """real""" parents bc he didn't feel that a couple who ditched a baby in a foreign country would be a couple he'd want to know. He had his mom and that's all he cares about

Being flightless however did bother him, the other griffon kids made fun of him for being different, and that kickstarted his love for inventing- he wanted to build himself wings so he could fly like the rest of them

Thankfully his genius and talent with technology made him some friends and everyone was actually in awe of his talent

Now he works as a full time inventor, his specialty being flying machines and things that help disabled ponies live a normal life

(Also he's not supposed to be that short, I just suck at keeping sizes right)

And here's their color dolls (based on kturtle's MLP color reference sheet)