#i can't control plot bunnies

[colourful-void]

Let's Talk about Glasses for 1700 Words Straight - A Tiger and Bunny Analysis

And what those glasses represent!

So one of the things that stuck out to me in Episode 9 was Kotetsu's reaction. I think it's really interesting how it's like presented, because we see Kotetsu isolating himself from the rest of the team, not trying to get particularly close, his eyes hidden from the audience.

Now this is, of course, part of a set up. It's funny! Kotetsu lifts his head up, and he's wearing Bunny's glasses, joking about how he's never allowed to touch them. But the moment before is important.

At this point, we're viewing Kotetsu from an outside perspective, we can't judge whether his perceived upset is part of his joke or if its genuine, and the joke is a quick cover up. Here's my obligatory shout out to the dub because it's neat to see how things are interpreted by others. The dub takes the line "Bunny never lets me touch these." and adapts it to "Oh, just keeping an eye on Bunny's glasses." The dub version lends itself a bit better to an interpretation of a quick cover up, and the sub to the other side.

I think both of these make sense and have merit, so really lean towards whichever you want to go with is best.

Either way,

He's distracting himself. I believe this is part of how Kotetsu is coping.

When Bad Things Happen, people deal with them in all sorts of ways, I'm sure everyone reading this is already familiar with this idea. But how Kotetsu appears to cope, from my view, is a strategy of "I'll Fix Everything". It's a distraction, and a distraction that makes him feel somewhat more in control.

Time to bring up Tomoe! Direct parallels between what's happening now with Bunny and what happened with Tomoe are drawn explicitly in the show, with Antonio asking Kotetsu about it point blank. They are, very similar situations, and if you wanna take the dubs words for it, it's the same damn hospital too. No wonder Kotetsu's on edge.

But what's different about Tomoe and Bunny, beyond the obvious "one of them was his wife!" thing? Tomoe was dying of an illness. There was nothing that could've been done to prevent it, there is nothing Kotetsu can do now. Bunny is injured like this because of a conflict. This could've been prevented if he activated his power only a few seconds later, if someone had been there to catch him, if Vincent Carl hadn't become a villain, if, if, if. And what can Kotetsu do now?

Two things. First, his much more explicit of his quest to find Vincent Carl, which Agnes specifically calls out as a direct result of Bunny's injury. And second, in how he tries his hardest to comfort everyone around him.

Kotetsu's being optimistic, isn't he? Oddly optimistic, repeating out loud for the benefit of his teammates and daughter and likely himself, that he's certain Bunny will wake up soon. He's sure of it.

Something to keep in mind.

But of course, we're talking about the glasses here. They're used first as part of this joke, but they don't just vanish after this.

I think now is a good time to mention that most bits of symbolism, a lot of Good Symbolism too, can be explained away as "it doesn't mean anything, it's just practical, how things are done, its just convenient for the plot' etc etc etc. However this is a reading of this episode/scenes through a lens of symbolism, so keep that in mind.

Kotetsu puts the glasses away, into his breast pocket. The pocket over his heart.

By now I'm sure you've caught on. The glasses are a symbol. But for what? Glasses, conventionally, symbolize things like logic, wisdom. But what we see of how they're treated, as something Kotetsu clings to and "protects", the idea of wisdom doesn't really fit. In fact he's specifically noted as being 'irrational', bending rules and getting 'over emotional'. (to clarify i think his reaction makes perfect sense I'm giving points from the business side as presented in the show). For this we're going to have to look specifically inside the show. I'm not going to waste anymore time on this, the glasses represent Bunny. They're his glasses, they belong to him and Kotetsu's holding onto them because he can't hold on to Bunny right now. (and we know he wants to, as soon as Bunny wakes up his immediate goal is to hug him). But there's more to it. It's his glasses specifically, not any other object of his. What do we know about glasses? Glasses are breakable. Fragile. What do we know about Bunny's glasses in particular? He doesn't wear them in his suit. The screens and data mean he doesn't need them, his powers make his vision stronger than ever before. What do we know about Bunny's glasses? He wears them when he's not being a hero. He wears them when he's not invincible.

The glasses represent Bunny. Bunny as human, Bunny as breakable, Bunny and NOT Barnaby Brooks.

It's perhaps easier, at least visually speaking, to draw a line between Wild Tiger and Kaburagi Kotetsu. There's a clear difference between Pao-lin Huang and Dragon Kid. A lot of superhero media focuses on this divide between identities. Who you are in any given setting fluctuates, it's part of being human. This is especially true in the world of Tiger and Bunny, where Heroes are Celebrities, coated in advertisements. There's Blue Rose, sponsor for Pepsi/Coolish, adored hero and there's Karina Lyle, pretty normal girl in her late teens who wants to be a singer, not a hero. They're different, and they're the same person.

But Barnaby's lines are blurred. They're blurred by design, by his choice and Maverick's influence.

Bunny in season one devoted his life to finding his parents killer and avenging their deaths. Everything was secondary to that. Who he was as a person didn't matter, all of his being was simply a vessel to complete this goal. We can see it in how empty his apartment is, in his lack of motivation to socialize, etc etc.

But this is season 2. and we get to see Bunny grow.

Part of Bunny's growth comes from embracing more of himself. Letting himself have an identity outside heroism and revenge. Letting himself be a hero out of his own choice. Season two has a few examples of this, of how his plants and rekindled friendship with Mattia. Going with the plants metaphor; earlier his apartment was empty, the only things he needed were basic necessities, a bed to sleep, a chair to sit in, a computer to research. And now? The apartment is filled with plants, and life. Plants that Bunny clearly cares a lot about, watering them with a little spray bottle, talking to them, using special plant food. it's sweet and it shows how much he's changed since we last saw him.

These plants are private. This isn't part of Barnaby Brooks appeal as a hero. This isn't a selling point, this is just something he likes.

The differences between Bunny and Barnaby are growing.

When making the distinction between Tiger and Kotetsu, there's a mask, a physical eye mask, he wears. Blue Rose has blue hair, Karina is blonde. And Bunny? Bunny wears glasses. Barnaby does not.

The glasses represent Bunny. Bunny as a human, Bunny as breakable. Bunny's humanity in a sense, as opposed to him as a symbol.

It's Barnaby in the hospital. It's Barnaby who was injured. The glasses are off. It's not until he wakes up that the glasses come back on, he's back to being Bunny, a person, not a hero.

So what does it mean when Kotetsu is carrying them around?

Kotetsu carries Bunny with him. The idea of him as a human, breakable. He keeps that idea of him safe, putting it in the pocket against his heart. The only other time we see the glasses outside of the initial joke is here. When Kotetsu visits after the train crash, tells him to wake up soon, it's hard working alone.

And what's the next line directly following this shot?

"I thought we were supposed to go out for drinks."

Kotetsu is clutching onto Bunny as Bunny, onto his partner, in more than just hero work. The guy he wants to go out drinking with. The person he cares about so much. Not just as a partner in crime fighting. As a partner, full stop.

As I close this up I'll give my disclaimer reminder, this is just a little analysis for fun about symbols and stuff! and second, I'd like to wrap this up by speculating a bit!

After the scene holding them in his fist, the glasses aren't seen again. We see Bunny wearing glasses when he wakes up, but I believe these are a different pair of glasses. There's not a good place close to the bed in Bunny's room where Kotetsu could leave them. The last time we saw him with the glasses, the door was closed, so it's not like he even could've gotten in to leave them. The likelihood of Kotetsu passing them off to a nurse or doctor is extremely low. He was clearly attached to them by how he held onto them and wouldn't have given them up.

I believe that the glasses Kotetsu is holding were the pair that Bunny was wearing before he was blown up, and the pair Bunny wears in the scenes following him waking up are a separate pair. What happens to the pair Kotetsu carries around remains a mystery. Are they in his locker as seen in the intro? His house? Pocket?

There's lots of possibilities and I think they're all really intriguing.

After all, if the glasses represent Bunny as human, where do you think they should be?

...

Hey you made it to the end, I hope you enjoyed it! It was a lot of fun to write so I hope it was fun to read. Answer my questions or give thoughts in the tags if u want, I love to see em.

Thanks again for reading all this~!

[lilahisntsadanymore]

When Y/n has nothing to do, she watches her boyfriend study. This sight slightly turns her on.

My first attempt at smut, don't hate it pls (but if you don't like it I'll delete because it's embarrassing lmao)

Of course it's 18+ but I can't control who reads my stuff so just idk pls don't read if you're under 18 I guess?

Pairing: dom!Remus Lupin x sub!reader

The reader pronouns: she/her

Words count: 963

Tw: basically just smut with a little plot lol, bad English probably because this isn't proofread

Contains: 'intelligence' kink or something (basically Y/n being turned on by Remus being smart), dumbification, Remus being mean, the use of a petname 'bunny'

It's all consensual and all characters are above the age of 18

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

So smart

It was a busy Saturday, everyone was occupied with something today. James and Sirius had to practice quidditch and Peter wouldn't be himself if he didn't watch. The girls were out in Hogsmeade. Remus was alone in the dorm, studying for the last exam. Last, as in the last of all exams, so very important. Y/n seemed to be the only person, who didn't have anything to do that day. She sneaked in the boy's dorm.

"Hey, Rem, whatchu doing?" She asked, sitting on the bed next to Remus' desk.

"Oh, hi. I'm studying for the potions test." The boy replied, not moving his eyes from the book he was studying from. "You can stay if you want."

He looked so focused, so smart. Y/n considered his intelligence very attractive. And he wasn't book smart, he was a naturally smart person with the passion for studying.

Y/n watched him study. The way Remus truly paid attention to every word his eyes traced somehow turned the girl on. Even if Remus looked attractive when focused, Y/n had to interrupt him. She stood up and moved to sit on his desk.

"Hi," she gave him a flirty smile when he looked at her.

"Ummm, hello," Remus awkwardly weaved at his girlfriend even though she was a few inches away.

"I can't help, but feel horny when I see you all smart and focused."

Remus chuckled at the confession. "Bunny, I appreciate that, but I have to study. You should consider it as well."

"But I need you..."

Y/n took her boyfriend's hand and placed it on her lap, sliding it under her skirt. Remus gulped, he felt a bulge growing in his trousers.

"I, I, uhhh, I really need to study, you have to understand that, Y/n." He stuttered, but it rather sounded as if he was trying to make himself believe that.

"We both know you don't need to." Y/n put Remus' fingers on her thongs where her clit was underneath. "You're so intelligent and genius. It turns me on so much, d'you now?" Y/n moaned when her boyfriend's fingers were circling her clothed clit.

Turned on by this sight, Remus got up from his chair and stood between his girlfriend's legs. He grabbed her under her thighs and moved to the bed.

"What if someone walks in?" Y/n questioned.

"Please, don't act like you care suddenly." Remus snickered.

He started kissing her neck, sucking the skin occasionally. They both knew he'll leave hickeys, neither of them minded that.

"We ought to be quick, I still have to study." Remus announced in a completely serious tone of voice.

Realizing how little time they have, the couple didn't bother to take off the upper parts of clothing. In fact, Remus didn't even bother to take off Y/n's skirt, he just quickly slid off her thongs and took off his own pants and underwear.

It was no secret Remus had a big dick. Being aware of his size, he was always careful and gentle in the order to not hurt Y/n. Or at least not hurt her in a way she didn't want to be hurt, because sometimes she begged for it. Not today though.

"So wet for me." Remus whispered as the tip of his cock teased Y/n, sliding up and down her pussy lips.

"Fuck me, Remus." Y/n begged.

"What was that?" He slapped her thigh. "Where are your good manners, bunny?"

"Please, fuck me, please."

"Now that's more like it."

Without any more teasing, Remus easily slid his dick inside. At first he moved slowly, making sure everything's alright.

"Faster, please." Y/n requested and so her boyfriend did.

The sloppy sound of wetness mixed with moans and groans filled the room. Y/n put her hands on her face when she felt her orgasm approaching.

"No, no, no, I wanna see your pretty face when you cum." Remus ordered, grabbing Y/n's wrists to pull her hands away from her face. "Your brain must be so empty right now, huh? So dumb, just the thoughts of how good my dick is making you feel."

"Mhm." Y/n nodded. She couldn't speak, it was impossible at the moment. She was so close.

In seconds, Y/n felt the weave of orgasm washing through her body. For a moment her vision went blank, the world didn't exist for a brief moment.

"Ugh, fuck." Remus groaned, experiencing his own orgasm. He grabbed Y/n's hips, aggressively thrusting into her. "I love how your pussy feels around my cock."

Remus pulled out and with one quick move of his wand cleaned Y/n up. She was still lieing on the bed in her post-orgasm bliss. Remus grabbed her face in his one hand and placed a kiss on the top of her nose.

"So stupid, so precious." He whispered, causing Y/n to smile.

After putting back on his underwear and his trousers, Remus got back to his book. Y/n decided to stay on the bed. It wouldn't be a very good idea to get up with trembling legs.

Suddenly, the door of the dorm opened and the three other Gryffindors walked in. Both James and Sirius were dressed in the house's quidditch team uniforms, both covered in dirt. Yeah, they trainings are never clean. Nor normal. Peter was clean though.

"Hello," Remus greeted his friends with a short weave of hand.

"Uhh, what are you doing here?" James questioned, seeing Y/n still not quite back to herself and with messy hair.

Y/n pointed at Remus, who had his eyes fixated on the book again. "He's just railed the shit out of me and now he's studying as if nothing happened."

[tanoraqui]

Ask meme can I get a uhhhh Necromancy Thing 3 please.

this is one of those things where a short story idea blooms into a novel idea, and then you gently drop it because you're not really interested in writing that novel, but also, it haunts you as a Cool Premise, and maybe you thought about the magic system so much that you made a chart to explain it when you should've been taking notes in a staff meeting.

Worldbuilding premise is: magic is the manipulation of spirits living or dead, so it's basically just necromancy or what amounts to mind control...or some help with emergency healing, if you need to keep someone alive long enough to sew them up. (Or, rarely, manipulation of non-sentient living things or even inanimate objects, which teeechnically have spirits as well, but that takes so much power that it's basically impossible.)

Plot premise is: a new "witch" (wise woman/healer) has moved into the hut in the woods near Teen Main Character's rural town. TMC either figures out that she's secretly a necromancer or just that she's more interesting than anyone else here and begs an apprenticeship...but before she can start, royal soldiers come to arrest the witch, or at least to take her back to the capital city, because she is a) definitely a necromancer, in fact, supposed to be the Royal Necromancer ie royal healer and emergency military resource but we don't admit that, and also she's a princess, younger sister of the crown prince.

And! Tensions are high in this country for some reason, and the soldiers are dicks, and there's the start of a fight between the locals and the soldiers and TMC is killed!...very briefly. Because Princess-Witch/Necromancer brings her back before anyone can notice! And then is like, "Fine, I'll go, but I'm bringing my apprentice" (and to TMC: "You have to stay close to me or I can't keep you bound to your body.") (Her body is dead, this magic system doesn't do full resurrection. But it won't rot or anything while her spirit is tied to it.)

Partly the princess did this out of "this was my fault" guilt, and mostly she did it out of ruthless practical "I ran away for good reason (notably: my brother is a dick) but if this Nice Young Woman dies it could spark serious civil unrest and I don't want that."

So now TMC gets to have all the adventure she dreamed of (except maybe not this much of it), learning magic and dealing with deadly politics (except she's already dead and nobody must know) in the royal palace! By the way, "Royal Necromancer" is an old title but as of a few generations ago when this family defeated the previous ruler, a classic Evil Lich King, the Royal Necromancer in conjunction somehow with hte bearer of the crown is responsible for keeping subdued the giant army of skeletons which their great-great-grandparents didn't destroy so much as...weaken and bury. Possibly the crown prince wants to raise them and get conquesting? Which is why the princess ran away? Except, note, that didn't actually solve the problem even if she hadn't been found. Their mother the Queen is old and ill/dying, ofc.

By the end of the book, TMC can necromance well enough to keep her own spirit bound to her undying body, which technically speaking makes her a potentially-immortal lich. It's fine. Also, her less adventurous best friend from home showed up at some point with plans to rescue her from whatever she'd gotten herself into and they would've kissed but TMC is ace (with aceness exacerbated by being dead), so instead they just cuddled and defeated a giant skeleton army together. Idk what happened to the throne.

I wrote about 5 pages of a first chapter and then stopped. But man, now I'm looking at my erratically maintained list of original plot bunnies and feeling some itch... There are short stories here that I could probably write...

Shoutout to the multiple fantasy worlds, classic and modern, for which I have thorough magic system worldbuilding and the barest concept of a plot. I could do an ask meme about just those.

[rogue-durin-16]

ROGUE-DURIN-16'S STRANGER THINGS MASTERLIST

Key: f=fluff || a=angst || f-a=fluff+angst || ≈f=mostly fluff || ≈a=mostly angst || os=oneshot || hc=headcanons ||mp=multipart || ?=request || db=drabble/blurb

Monster-Hunting Squad Fanart (x)

• EDDIE MUNSON

Eighteen, crazy [Prologue] [Part I] [part II] [part III] [part IV] [part V] [part VI] (f|mp)

Summary: With her highschool experience coming to an end, Y/n finally grows tired of her parents' long lasting effort to make her the perfect girl; if they refuse to let her live her best life, she'll make them live their worst and what can possibly be worse than having your lovely daughter mingling with Eddie Munson?

He would have (≈a|os|?)

Summary: Eddle can't stand how close Y/n and Steve have become, mainly because he knows he can't compete with the latter. Not knowing how to handle himself, Eddie pours his heart out in the most inappropriate moment.

Friday night (f|os|?)

Summary: After catching Eddie hanging out in their house, Dustin's sister has the choice to tell their mother —who didn't allow Eddie at home—, or get something out of it. Let's just say, 'Henderson' and 'snitch' didn't go well together.

My stupid, stupid hero (a|os)

Summary: when the fate of the world and the lives of his loved ones are at stake, Eddie Munson decides to stop running away. Thankfully, he's not alone.

Liar. Traitor. Backstabber. (a|os|?)

Request: Plot bunny. Female!Reader is an undercover agent working in a case against Eddie. She's fallen for him but he just found out the truth.

But years pass and I love you the same [part I] [part II] (≈a|mp|?) (sequel to Liar. Traitor. Backstabber.)

Summary: Back in 1986, Y/n broke Eddie's trust and heart. He's on top of the world now, his dreams are coming true, and yet he can't help but wish things had been slightly different. A letter serves him as an excuse to aim for a second chance.

Kitchen scratcher (f-a|os)

Summary: For years, Eddie's go-to scratcher has been his beautiful neighbor. When looking in the mirror becomes unbearable, it's only fair for Y/n to be the one tattooing his scars away.

• STEVE HARRINGTON

Sunglasses and lipstick stains [part I] [part II] [part III] (f-a|mp)

Summary: after having his heart torn in half at Tina's party, Steve finds comfort in the most unexpected person. Who would have guessed he would develop such a strong connection with someone he's barely spoken to?

• EDDISSY/HELLCHEER

Fanart (x)

86, baby (≈f|os)

Summary: the gone-missing Head Cheerleader turns out to be alive; the resident freak is cleared of all charges thanks to her testimony. If Hawkins High seniors thought that was as wild as things could get, they were in for a surprise at their graduation.

Brains over brawn (≈a|os)

Summary: using herself as bait in order to protect Max, Chrissy is dropped at the Creel's residence, with Dustin and Eddie as her guardians. Unfortunately, someone tips off Jason after spotting Dustin outside the murder house.

Meet me in the woods tonight [part I] [part II] (f-a|mp)

Summary: an arranged marriage, an impossible love, a controlling mother and dark spell. A dangerous mix that, along with her yearning desire to be set free, sends Princess Christine's stifling life into a cathartic breakthrough.

• STEDDIE

King Steve vs. jocks (≈a|db|?)

Summary: after the spring break disaster, Eddie is lucky to have Steve and his nailed bat around at all times.

[wolfpropaganda]

so. Mirror. he's a character. I drew him

This is a color/form test for my version of Mirror, so it's 'sketchier' than most of my other digital paintings. I plan to stylize his design more, but my version has some unique traits that I wanted to figure out. This Mirror never possesses anyone—he doesn't need to due to some altered lore/plot. With certain changes I made, him possessing Relda would be...redundant. I also wanted him to be 'himself' because it works better with his interactions with other characters once he's out of the mirror—and I wanted Relda to be around in book 9 to complete her character arc.

Instead of being a possession-type villain, this Mirror is more along the lines of an inhuman being that appears to be human—until he doesn't. My version of Mirror isn't organic, meaning he can't be injured in the 'typical' way (in this AU, Jack takes him out with an anti-magic object in Book 1). I wanted to give him a unique form/magic that sets him apart from the human magic users, so he's essentially an intelligent glass/metal/magic being. He can change his shape and appearance and transform his magical energy into heat—which is the ability this painting is trying to figure out. I think this works well for Mirror's character because it helps him compete in terms of danger and memorability with other villains.

It also has a 'metaphorical' element because I LOVE metaphors babey! Mirror's physical form isn't that dangerous unless he's physically damaged: he only gains the ability to change his form of his own free will around book 6, so he doesn't have enough fine control to create a sharp edge. Part of his body has to be broken, shattered, or removed. He doesn't experience pain the way a human would, but part of my version of his character is kinda exploring whether it is pain if it's not felt in the normal way. Mirror wouldn't be a villain if he didn't know some form of pain—but I think he'd deny that's what it is. There's also the fact that metal is highly conductive—that’s kinda a funny pun with him being the Master, but if you see rage and heat as being one and the same in a character like this there's a bit more to it.

In terms of neat design lore: Mirror's thumb is at an impossible angle for most humans. I couldn't find any references of overstuffed key rings, so I did my best. In addition to the metal/glass effect, I wanted to give Mirror a kinda sunset palette—because Sabrina's is probably going to be similar to a sunrise. Mirror also has a family resemblance to my designs for Snow and Bunny—even though they aren't biologically related.

[thejakeformerlyknownasprince]

I was recently re-reading Eleutherophobia and my favorite one is still City of Lost Children - but while I was re-reading the story, a plot-bunny struck me down: what if Essa 412 used Jake's perceived drug addiction to convince Jean and Steve that Jake should join the Sharing to get better? As a matter of speaking... did Jake ever figure out that his entire family was convinced he was doing heavy drugs while he was fighting the war (and did he consider using that misconception in his favor)? - just a lot of things to think about :D

Interesting, and evil, and interesting idea. The problem I see with that is that Sharing membership has to be voluntary. (Until they make you a full member, of course.) It's not like those "scared straight" programs that will LITERALLY kidnap teens at their parents' behest; it's a community nonprofit. Its only tools for getting and keeping non-controllers long enough to make controllers are all manipulation, not literal physical force.

[Pause for a moment to wonder how many times, exactly, Visser One had to shout something to that effect at Visser Three.]

We do see evidence in canon (#16, MM4) that Jake's parents know he's going through a hard time, and wish he'd be a little bit more like Stepford-Tom by, say, joining the Sharing. The yeerk implying that Jake's not just having a hard time but self-destructing doesn't necessarily add a ton of fuel to that fire.

And even if Essa 412 does go running to Tom's parents like "check out this brick of white powder I found in Jake's room!", then the most the 'rents can do is tell Jake to join the Sharing. The option for Jake simply to refuse is still on the table. That'd end up damaging his relationship with his parents, which would be heartbreaking for Jake, but doesn't result in yeerks taking the planet. Or it'd end up with Jake seeing a counselor, which is kind of a best-case scenario. But Jake is suuuuper motivated to refuse the Sharing — the lives of everyone he loves would be ruined if he gets yeerkified — and the Sharing can't do anything about that while still keeping its crunchy-granola reputation.

[vrabbiit]

hi... so i really like your Jekyll and Hyde interpretation for Vanessa and Vanny mostly because i (personally) dislike the "William Afton is not dead yet" side plot (or is it the main plot? idk, i find it really confusing)...

so i ask about some "not glitchtrap involving"* headcanons for Vanny.

general and shipping.

(i myself can't think of any, other than, judging by her animations, how playful she is)

*(if that's possible, i know that in game she's really related to his story)

aa tysm and i'd be delighted to, anon! small note that some of this will be related to her being ness from the AR game since i'm pretty sure that's also a canon part of her story (although i will steer clear of anything glitchtrap related! also, i wasn't sure if you were specifically asking for headcanons for vanny by herself but still wanted the interpretation of her and vanessa being the same, so i tried to keep it vague in the general headcanons - in the shipping headcanons, she's her own person, hope that's ok! :)

🐰Vanny Headcanons 🐰

Contains

General Headcanons

Shipping Headcanons (SFW)

General HCs

Vanny has always been... a bit of an oddball. She has a sort of eclectic nervous energy about her that makes people feel unsettled even as she seems completely content and unaware. She's pleasant enough, but there's a weird vibe about her if you catch my drift.

Like her animations suggest, she's very playful when she's in costume. I have a small headcanon that she might have actually been a cosplayer in her spare time, and that's how she managed to explain away the... odd purchases mentioned in Special Delivery. It was all for a costume project, she'd said to ease people's concerns, and technically she hadn't been wrong. It was just that the costume was for a much more sinister purpose than a convention.

Even before everything, her favorite animal was a bunny! She's always thought they were cute. I imagine that she, like others in this universe, was aware of the shady history behind Fazbear Entertainment long before she was ever involved, and in fact the incidents were what piqued her interest - she has a morbid interest in crime that helped lead her to where she is today, acting as a sort of copycat killer to the stories of the 80s.

A talented hacker - she had to be, to take control of the Glamrocks without anyone noticing anything was off. She spent a long time working on coding behind the scenes, and it's why she landed a job at Fazbear Ent. in the first place. Long story short, she's good at sneaking around behind the scenes to get the information she wants.

I imagine that in any scenario, Vanessa or not, she feels more comfortable in costume than out. Something about donning the mask and suit and being able to play a character helps all of her worries ease away, and if she hadn't become a murderer, she would have done well to consider acting. Very theatrical.

Shipping Headcanons

If you’re interacting with Vanny in any capacity, I’m gonna assume you’re trapped in the Pizzaplex for whatever reason. This doesn’t bode well for her plans, so when she sees you she’s already planning on how to get rid of you. She’d pretend to help you, sending you on meaningless journeys and trying to lead you into the path of the Glamrocks, but by some stroke of luck you managed to keep avoiding death to get her what she needed.

You’re unsettled but fascinated by her - she’s very much a person, not a robot, so why does she wear a costume? Does she work there? Every time you see her, you try and get more information about her. She’s flippant and dismissive at first, but once she decides you’re not going to make it out of the building her tongue gets a bit looser. Soon, she’s spilling more than she intended to and feeling a weird sort of fondness for you.

Eventually you catch on to her true intentions behind her “help”, and you confront her - in the resulting scuffle, the two of you end up on the floor, with you on top of her. You pull her mask off and finally face the woman who’d been leading you on a wild goose chase all night, and you’re taken aback because despite everything, there’s part of you that thinks “oh fuck, she’s cute.”

The fight ends not too long after with Vanny, at a loss, conceding and letting you leave the Pizzaplex (or at least claiming to) with the threat that if you tell anyone about her presence, she’ll come for you herself. At six, you stagger out of the just-opened security doors, scaring an early employee half to death. You decide you won’t be going back to the Pizzaplex if your life depended on it.

You cave in about a week, your thoughts flooded any time you stopped to think with questions about the mysterious rabbit woman. This time you knew the Pizzaplex better, and hid in a bathroom until everyone was gone and the doors were closed again. You didn’t want to subject yourself to another night of this, but you had a feeling it wouldn’t go the same way. You step out and call for Vanny, who is extremely shocked that you would even consider returning. Her curiosity is piqued, but she’s still distrusting.

Over time, you learn more about Vanny and she about you. It’s a weird, tense situation, but after a while the threatening tension is replaced with… something else. What could go wrong?

[superbattrash]

I'm not really in superbat fandom (I'm not on any discord and I don't post on tumblr, I just sometimes send someone ask or comment about their work) but I really want to talk with someone about fics. I.e. your WHON/WHOE are soooo gooood! And all this mermaid au flying around. And yesterday I read fic with superbat hockey!au and I AM OBSSESSED (I read 95k words in one day, I can't control myself). I have mighty need of fluffy domestic stories or plotbunnies or headcannons, please send help...

The good thing about being in a fandom is that the door is always, always open - and there are no rules dictating when you’re “in”, so if you wanna poke a toe in the superbat waters, you are more than welcome, dear anon. If that’s all you wanna do, that’s fine, and if you find joy here, please enjoy your stay 🙏🏼✨

Listen, I barely know anything, I work based solely on “oh, that sounds neat/hot/heartbreaking” when it comes it my babes Supes and Bats. I am always down to talk though!! About mine or other people’s fics (if I’ve read them obvi).

The mermaid au, lorrrrrrd almighty. I think @ivebeenghosting is the original poster on the one I’m dying over rn and when @jellyfitzjelly gets involved? Nooooo, I am a weak man. I’ve never really been into AUs - I like my superbat as super and bat as possible. Canon divergence, sure, but actual, proper AUs? Didn’t think it was my cup of tea. IT IS NOW THOUGH, DAMN. Merbruce gives me life, okay.

Aaaanyway, yes yes yes. My first jump (back) into fandom was literally just reading like 100k of fics a day until that wasn’t enough and I made a new tumblr. (We don’t talk about the old one) And how I got properly started was when @katsuyacrimson asked me a bunch of little questions, like.. How’s their first kiss? Who leads when they dance? Who says ‘I love you’ first? (Made those into fics) Who’s the better cook? Stuff like that.

So here’s my question, love, because I desperately want to talk stories, plot bunnies and headcannons too: Who do you think is the cleanest of Clark and Bruce? Who’s the “neat-freak”?

Is it the well-mannered reporter, who was raised by a loving couple, taught right from wrong, who is used to working on a farm? Pretty sure Ma Kent wouldn’t let him inside the house if he was dirty.

Or is it the lonely man, raised by a single parental figure (who also happens to be a butler), and who has to control everything? Hmm? :)

[mylevisdontfitanymore]

Have a potbelly, uh, I mean plot bunny:

Following is a Steve Rogers × Bucky Barnes belly kink headcanon containing bloating (Bucky) & light bladder control (but it's offscreen)

On a day when they've got nothing to do Steve comes up with a plan to make the day more... interesting 😏😏

Steve has Bucky drink bottle after bottle of the well stocked sports drinks, soda, and bubbly water (among other types of drinks) they have in their fridge. Bucky drinks everything he's passed - handed off in a way that Steve intentionally makes seem thoughtless - until he's all bloated with it. Round and sloshing whenever he shifts. Subconciously rubbing his tummy because it suddenly feels so substantial. Heavy. However, he never actually gets up. He just shifts around on the couch, uncomfortable soon enough thanks to being so fucking full and bloated.

Steve makes sure he doesn't have to go anywhere; even though he's not hungry (Bucky's too full of liquid to feel anything but full), Steve gets him food, Steve gets the other man more to drink, Steve gets him his book, his phone, the remote to the TV, anything he could want, whether he needs it or not.

Bucky doesn't move all day.

And it's just as well, he's not so sure he could get up anymore. His stomach full of the liquid he's downed. Heavy. Sloshy. Full. So full that the brunette's muscles have started to complain; abs feeling too stretched out with so much weight behind them. There's no way he can suck in anymore. Bucky just has to let his bloat fully unround, forming a solid, smooth dome that sits in his lap heavily.

And Steve just passes him another bottle.

The blond clearing his throat when he doesn't instantly crack the seal and begin drinking.

Bucky knows an order when he hears one. Usually, at this point in his life, he'd ignore any order. But not this one. He likes Steve's orders. He likes the games they play and... with his eyes focused on his lap (or rather, his gut where it takes up a healthy portion of his lap), he figures he likes them a little more than he ought to. As one can see on his frame. Indulged. Well-fed... maybe... over-fed.

Steve continues with his plan regardless, just a little antsy with how large Bucky is getting, irrestible and drawing him in like a siren. Drawing his eyes to the beach ball of his gut, tacked onto his front and slowly peering out from his previously well-fitting shirt as if he's swallowed pounds and pounds of metal and there are magnets behind Steve's eyes. He can't help himself. But he won't pounce yet.

Steve's plan prgresses. Waiting until Bucky has to pee. Then, he makes him drink more. Again. Continuing on the path they've been on already. Full steam ahead.

Bucky opens his mouth. He shuts it. Opens it.

"C'mon," Steve fixes Bucky with his best puppy dog eyes, knowing that he will melt, especially when his force of will is stretched thin. Stretched by the bloat of his belly, trying it's hardest to contain everything inside it, "you can fit more. I know you can. You don't look that bloated-" but he does "-and, besides, there's gotta be more room in this tanker of a belly now, right? Some of it has gone into your bladder now. 'Cause you have to piss."

"I'll get you another Pepsi."

It sounds like a bribe to anyone but Bucky. Bucky knows it's not just like he knew he wouldn't be able to protest against being allowed to get up and use the bathroom. He just- he knew. Steve has that glint in his eyes. The one that says he wants to be bossy and pushy and-

Guh.

Steve returns with his drink. And Bucky has started drinking before he's stopped thinking.

Bucky is pretty sure he's can feel the liquid sloshing down his throat and bloating him an inch bigger. And another inch. The carbonation is...

Oh, God.

So full.

Bucky has to pee so bad. But he doesn't move to stand up. He takes another swig. He rubs himself, trying to work burps out as he clenches his thighs together, willing himself to not have to piss so bad. Willing away his desperation...

This repeats and repeats, Bucky asking- eventually begging to be allowed to use the bathroom but not being allowed and instead handed another drink until Bucky has to piss so bad that he's teary eyed, his metal hand gripping his dick to keep himself together, and his belly is sticking out into his lap like he's pregnant and overdue. Maybe even with multiples.

He's so round.

Everytime he breathes out, Steve swears the skin of his stomach (now totally exposed, the fabric of his shirt having long since rolled up, too small) turns pinker. The demand of all that liquid inside him flushing his skin. More stretchmarks on their way.

Steve can't wait to lick those stretchmarks. He can't wait to trace them and whisper about how much worse he'll make them because he's only going to encourage Bucky's greedy-ness. He's only going to excellerate the speed at which he's exploding outward. Heavier and fatter and fatter still.

When Bucky is beginning to think about safewording before he pisses himself on their couch - one hand desperately rubbing his gut and the other clenching his dick to keep from leaking - Steve seems to read his mind. Leading Bucky to their shower, herding him in, right on top of him because he's so fucking sexy like this. So round that he can hardly move. Waddling with protective hands on his tummy. He's so desperate that he can hardly talk, only whimper, rubbing his packed tight, full belly.

Steve joins in now that they're in the shower, pressing him against the shower wall while whispering, so so turned on, about how sloshy and full he is. He can feel it. He keeps talking as he strips Bucky (who moans with every lost garment, anything to relieve the pressure), telling him how big he looks with the bulge of his entirely stuffed and forced full stomach- big on top where his gut barrels forward from his ribs with recent chugging, big on bottom with the past drinks he downed all day, and big even lower down (where normally he doesn't bulge) thanks to his full-to-bursting bladder.

"You look like you're gonna pop, babyy, poor thing. So full, aren't yah?"

Bucky can only pant. There is so much pressure inside him that he can hardly stand it. Bucky ends up with more tears blurring his vision, breathing like he's sipping through a straw because there's no room for his lungs to expand anywhere, his gut and bladder monopolize it, and with a whimper falling off his lips. The high, needy sound says, oh, GOD. It's so much. So full. Please. Please-

Bucky's body is flushed and everything feels like so much. Having Steve rub his bare, taut- fucking bloated beyond belief belly feels like a hand down his pants, rubbing the head of his dick. Shit. Moaning unashamedly, Bucky tries not to just give in to what he needs. What his body is screaming and wailing for. There's so much pressure. He can't think, he needs so much, so badly-

He doesn't know if he wants to be allowed to orgasm, to pee, or to lie down more. He doesn't know!

Slowly, Steve starts pressing harder and harder on the tight, solid orb of his belly until he tells Bucky to let go. He commands it. And he does, a sob and guttural moan choking out of him as embarrassment courses through him so strong that he feels like he's about to burst into flames. Pissing himself with immense relief only...

The second he's done - shaking from the pleasure of release so grand that he can hardly keep upright- Steve is pinning him in place with one hand while his other stretches out to snag the shower hose.

In slow motion, Bucky watches Steve unscrew the showerhead from the hose, starts the water, adjusts the temperature, slows the stream, and brings it to Bucky's lips.

Exhausted and already so full, yet aching to test his limits and to be the biggest, fattest, fullest water balloon he can, Bucky lets his mouth stay open. Panting around the hose as it slides deeper into his mouth and then throat...

He doesn't even have to swallow.

All he has to do is s w e l l .

Swelling with even more liquid taking up that little bit of room that he just emptied.

To make matters worse, Steve wraps his huge hand around his so-hard-that-it-hurts dick, jerking him off while he fills up the last little bit. Swollen- bloated beyond belief. So spherical. So heavy with liquid. Bucky can't believe the feeling in his own body. He's so big. So round. And Steve is biting his jaw, groaning, "gonna keep you this full and swollen all the time. Gonna fill you up all the time. Gonna see how much you can take until you grow to take even more. Maybe we'll keep you desperate to go with your stomach full like it is but we'll also-" Bucky moans, the idea that there could be more is overwhelming "-give your hole something. Yeah- I think that's right, we'll give you an enema and really fill you up from every angle. Gonna train you to take so much for me, Buck. Gonna blow you up so huge. All you're gonna be is belly. My personal lil water ballon to fill as much as I want, huh?"

Bucky comes so hard, so suddenly that he blacks out.

[cc-2020]

One of my favorite trope is Cody being so Competent that he fight his chip in his planning. While making clearly good plan for the Empire (he's a good soldier who follow orders after all), he smuggle all of his brothers out. Or fake Jedi's death. Or funding slavery freedom trails. Or being a nuisance. To nat-born, of course. The annoying little brothers decided to hurt their head and get a full brain medical check up at the result. The ingrateful brats disappeared in two fucking day, bastards.

CC-2224 finishing his report on the freed space in the training facility of Kamino, to himself : "Yes, selling all the cadets to slavery is a good plan who will reimburse the damage caused by the terrible Traitor Jedi! Yes, the pirates are from the Hutt and their first stop is near active Rebellion zone with a lot of Clones deserters. You see, they will clearly kill each other, Hutts will lose money, space will be more safe, Rebel loses their limited resources taking care of the little brothers and the Empire will stand proud. No other secondary goal are met in this process.

CC-2224, already hiring a new Gard for Coruscant : "Fox and Co get out of my sight, Vader will be annoyed, Rebels will lose ressources rescuing defending themselves against the Guard, taking the Guard bait, so the incompetent natborn peoples that Tarkin will not stop bragging about will finally be kicked out. Five buildings that the Empire can't outright destroy get blowed up, and we will see the security flaws while getting a media storm in our favor. Who care of the rest, not my juridiction."

(long fuckin ask, so sorry! Plot bunnys wanted to get out in the wild...)

OKAY I NEED YOU TO LISTEN

everyone perceives cody as a very loyal purge trooper and they are not wrong but cody does fight his chip effectively by using all the loopholes in contracts and manuals

the republic has fallen, the jedi turned against them and cody watches the new empire arise and is super stressed because he SAW how the republic has fallen - the jedi became traitors and the clones had to turn against them

so naturally cody wonders what would happen to the new empire if the sith become traitors, because the republic didn't survive the betrayal of the jedi and the new stormtroopers are supposed to be greatly loyal to the sith, making them incapable of turning against them when they should

to ensure that the empire will survive such an incident and the loyalty of the stormtroopers to the sith won't get into the way, cody starts researching about the clones' creation and ends up reading about the (official) reasons of the inhibitor chip

and he's like mmmMHmHm if there's a chip that prevents behavior, maybe it can also trigger behavior

so cody ends up manipulating some files and talks to some experts (very privately, of course, but no one doubts him because a) he wants to safe the empire or b) the person is so amused about this purge trooper wanting the stormtroopers to optionally kill all the sith they legitimately cannot NOT help)

a new chip comes into the world which gets implemented in all the brains of the soon-to-be stormtroopers and makes them fight the sith whenever they hear order 707

cody's job here is done - so he now starts to wonder why he should keep his own chip. if it prevents him from going to his full potential, then it is a great disadvantage for all the missions he's attending

hence he gets rid of his own chip

and that's how we end up with commander cody, back in control of his own mind, sitting in the middle of the empire with the power to make everything go bonkers because he pulled out the biggest uno reverse card he could find while just wanting the best for the empire

[thusatlas]

3, 21, 30 :)

Oh hey friend! I can answer these for you!

Behind the Scenes of fic writing: ask game

3. Do you write fics from start or finish, or jump around?

I write things from start to finish. This is because, I've discovered, I'm only capable of discovery writing. I've tried outlining (Bohemian Nights), but I've found that by doing that, I inadvertently spoil the story for myself, and therefore lose all motivation to write (hence the really long pause of BH). So to try and find some motivation, I tried jumping around the outline in BH just to get the fic moving, but then I found that my lack of self-control caused more plotholes as I wrote earlier scenes because I would start to drift away from the outline (and future already-written scenes) because I am incapable of taking instruction (even when it's myself giving the instruction).

So, in short, I write from start to finish because I have zero self-control and I am allergic to organisation, and therefore the only way to have a semi-coherent thought is to let the plot-bunny wander freely and follow it blindly until the end, wherever it may lead.

21. What is the one fic that got away?

I refuse to let any of my WIPs go at the moment. I am determined to finish them all. (I may be in denial - I'll revisit this question in a year's time).

However, there is one plot bunny I had, that I started writing ages ago and have shelved indefinitely. The idea was 8th years dramione, head boy and girl trope. The whole fic was them being absolutely horrid to each other, being rude and cold, but begrudgingly working with one another, until their insults actually turn into terms of endearment, and they become affectionately mean instead of actually hating one another. And then they fall in love and live happily ever after etcetcetc.

But, as I have come to realise, I am fucking useless at writing fluff. Like, it's almost pathological at this point: I start writing fluff - someone dies just because... How dare the characters be happy.

So yes, I have indefinitely shelved that plot bunny because I can't write it. I really want it to exist though, because I think it could be wonderfully hilarious and cute, but I am just not good enough to do it justice... plus I don't want anyone to die in it from a random falling piano or something.

30. Tell us an idea for a longfic you want to write in the future.

CYBERPUNK! Omg I have had this one brewing for over a year now. A Cyberpunk AU, Draco is the heir to a conglomerate. Lucy Malfoy is all doing shad(ier than usual) dealings (I'm thinking something black market, organ harvesting). Draco is an arse hole. Like, top-tier cold-blooded psychopath in a designer suit.

Hermione is a street-rat. One of the super geeks who do designer bio-enhancements.

I haven't a clue what the plot is, but the general gist is Draco hires Hermione off the books, to help take out his father... I think. I don't know. All I know, is there's a scene in a hotel room that I really want to write. I've even created a bloody playlist for this fic. I think once I get through the WIPs, I may give it a go. Or I'll turn it into an original. Not sure. As you may have realised at this point, I have no idea what I'm doing and I am incapable of making a plan to figure it all out.

Thank you for the ask!! <3

[pocketfulofrecs]

Dee - So! We have a little game in our discord server where writers write a fic together, blindly, without any plot. One writer starts a thread, other follows up, and then another joins in. Our first run produced the story you see below. It was a game between @auspiciouscandy, @whiteflowercrimsonparasol (or justdoityoufucker) and myself or @vrishchikawrites.

We thought it should be shared with everyone. That's why Ju and I decided to start a new section on Pocketful called Storytime with Bunnies. We'll publish all stories that we write there on Pocketful and eventually on Ao3.

Personally, it was a great deal of fun and I'm so happy that we're continuing it! I hope you like the story! It was written by three people and still turned out so smooth!

-------

A Strange Encounter

by Vrishchika, justdoityoufucker, and auspiciouscandy

-------

It is dark, but Wei Ying has never been afraid of darkness.

The juniors shuffle nervously behind him, sticking so close to his back, he can feel the warmth of their bodies. Suddenly, there is a noise - loud in the silence of the night and out of place. Wei Ying clutches Chengqing tightly, ready to strike. He turns in the direction of the noise only to suck in a sharp breath and try to suppress the sigh threatening to overtake him.

He’d mostly been following the juniors, letting them take the lead to hunt the nest of low-level yao that had been terrorizing the small mountain town. They’d done well, so far, and had dealt with half of the yao without incident. The problem started when they’d run into a higher-level yao, which was to be expected given his luck on night hunts, but he hadn’t expected to see a strange man.

He seems almost as tall as Chifeng-zun had been; Wei Ying can't see his features clearly, but his instincts warn him to be cautious. The man says nothing as he steps forward. He doesn't have a corpse's stiff gait. Each step brings him closer and reveals more of him. Pale skin, dark eyes, lips as red as blood, almost unnaturally still features.

His beauty is disarming, but Wei Ying is unmoved. He's married to the most beautiful man in existence, after all. But he is curious. What is this strange, beautiful man doing in the middle of the woods? And while he looks the man over, cautious of any sharp movement the man could make, he steps forward. Though contrary to his beautiful appearance, his body is but a corpse and it is difficult to hide when he staggers and what appears to be his arm drops down onto the floor. Wei Ying hears someone gagging behind him, but he cannot take his eyes off the man; every instinct in his body is screaming about the danger in front of them.

Just when he is about to speak, the man's face changes to a look of pained horror, a look that the stiffness of a corpse shouldn't be able to achieve. There is something about the way his jaw moves, that makes it seem as if he was trying to speak, but no sound leaves his red, red lips.

"Stop," Wei Ying says, putting the force of his cultivation into the word. The corpse's mouth opens even wider, and Wei Ying senses it before anything, "Cover your ears!" he shouts, but it is too late, there are some indistinguishable whispers he catches before his hands reach his ears, and he doubts any of the juniors were fast enough even as he hears their swords immediately drop to the floor.

He wracks his brain to match the odd corpse with any of the descriptions he remembers from his studies and it suddenly clicks into place. He remembers tales of bewitching creatures. Beings that can ensnare and seduce with their voice and their beauty. Beings that can control the living mind as Wei Ying controls corpses. He remembers tales of how cultivators of immense strength would drop their swords and simply submit to these creatures, allowing them to consume their Qi without protest.

His eyes flicker towards his juniors, alarm stirring in his chest. What can he do? Think. Think, Wei Ying!

And he reaches a conclusion, the corpse uses its voice to control, to influence, and had Wei Ying not used his own to do the same? Resentful energy and spiritual energy are almost similar, it's risky, but there isn't much else to do. He already perceives the juniors trying to walk past him, and he is overcome with waves after waves of compulsion from his small amount of exposure, so Wei Ying does the only thing he can think of.

He gathers the power towards his throat. His voice laced with command, he opens his mouth and sings not a real tune, at first, but simply unbridled power that cuts off the corpse's control over the juniors.

But he cannot just wrest control; he needs to suppress the corpse, and that takes more than random notes. He slides into a familiar song, lyrics that Lan Zhan shared but have never been sung before in deference to their usual duets. The juniors have never heard Wei-qianbei sing before; they have heard his tuneful humming, whistling, and music, but not his true singing voice. It renders them silent. Wei Ying's voice is resonant and it bounces off the surrounding trees and rocks, becoming amplified. The effect is otherworldly, unlike anything they have ever experienced.

It halts the strange creature in his tracks. He sways dazedly. Something about the expression is almost covetous.

Wei Ying hears Sizhui whisper his name in worry. He is his father's son and has somehow inherited all of Hanguang-jun's protectiveness. Even now, he takes a shaky step forward to stand before Wei Ying. But there's no reason he should worry; Wei Ying's control over his power is absolute, his control over the corpse-creature the same.

He changes the intent of his power, the tone of his singing, to lure the creature to lower its guard and step closer. He trusts that Sizhui knows what to do, that the other juniors will assist as his voice lulls it into submission. The creature stumbles forward, his hand stretched out towards Wei Ying. He sways with every step and Wei Ying tracks his movements carefully.

"Good boy," he croons, maintaining a singing tone in his voice, "Whatever shall we do with you?"

The corpse's hand is still outstretched and his expression is still mesmerized. Wei Ying reaches out and closes his fingers around the hand, keeping his voice mellow and soothing. "You're a strong one, aren't you?" he sings, ignoring Sizhui's alarmed noise.

The corpse will only need to twist his grip to break Wei Ying's arm but something tells him he's safe. He leans forward, curious, "Wei Ying," and Wei Ying freezes. He doesn't let off his control but it is enough for the corpse to pull him closer, a hand reaching up to caress his hair—he is aware of the gasped whispers by the juniors of, 'Hanguang-jun,' the juniors who were just beginning to take control—but this is something out of his expectation. A normally high-level corpse of this type would be troublesome on its own, but one that could mimic?

The danger levels have increased far more than what juniors can handle; Wei Ying pivots in his singing, pulls Sizhui behind him and crowds back, keeping the juniors behind him. He pauses, for the barest moment, to say, "Flare."

That snaps Sizhui to action, and as Wei Ying resumes singing, voice louder and louder, he draws a flare out of his robes and sets it off, the sparkling blue of the fireworks temporarily catching the creature's attention, making Wei Ying snap forward and cup the corpse's face, physically drawing his attention back towards him.

It is intimate, the way he angles his body and draws the creature in. Something burns in him. He has never touched anyone but his Lan Zhan like this, with so much tenderness.

The creature that mimics his husband's voice seems to mimic his affection too. Wei Ying cringes as cold fingers trace his cheek, trailing dangerously close to his neck. One slip, and Wei Ying could potentially lose his life.

"Wei Ying," The corpse whispers in his husband's voice, and something dark stirs within him. His lips twitch into an alluring smile and Wei Ying has his hand slowly reaching up and caressing its cold skin. He thinks the eyes shimmer an amber shade, for they are nowhere near the molten gold of his husband’s. He's all too aware of this cheap imitation's intent and responds in kind.

Wei Ying ignores the yells of his nephew, the sound of another flare going up into the night sky; his hand is coated in resentful energy as it reaches the back of the corpse's neck, and he maintains eye contact with it, his voice softer to only reach the corpse.

It is completely enamoured, that is why when Wei Ying makes a hand sign to the juniors to tell them to leave, the creature doesn't react. It is like a careful, possessive lover, but, unlike his husband, there is no real care behind its actions as it closes in on him. The resentful energy on Wei Ying's hands increases, solidifies, a black, hateful knife.

When he drives it directly into the corpse-creature's neck, spearing it up into its skull, the creature makes a weak, pained groan in that facsimile of his husband's voice, and Wei Ying shouldn't feel the way he does—it is but a creature who had taken up the face of his beloved—but to hear the wounded noises it makes, trying to garner his sympathy, Wei Ying cannot help but feel that sympathy. Wei Ying should know that the hands around his neck are the ones that wouldn't hesitate to kill him, so very cold, lacking his husband's warmth.

He raises his voice, and sings a sharp tune, and the corpse whines once more before it’s rendered mute, opening its mouth wide with a final hissed, “Wei Ying!”

Wei Ying's eyes widen because, for a second, before he tightens his hands, he catches a glimpse of his husband, pain and grief on his face that he hasn't seen in years. The corpse falls, its weakness stabbed through, unable to move again and Wei Ying shudders, feeling so incredibly off-kilter.

He needs to see Lan Zhan. Lan Zhan is fine, he's sure, but the look on the creature's face, the timbre of its voice--it's almost enough to overwhelm.

The juniors, still near enough to catch the sudden silence, creep back through the trees, worried looks on their faces as they take in the look on their teacher's face, the still form of the corpse-creature on the ground.

"Xian-gege?" Sizhui starts, clearly shaken if he's reverted to that form of address. He continues forward as if to grasp Wei Ying's shoulder, but Wei Ying needs a moment. Maybe it is the leftover effects of the corpse, maybe it is his own fears and concerns.

But he takes in a sharp breath and pulls his mouth into a smile, "Now then, shouldn't we return? I assume none of you are hurt?" He looks them over, ignoring the sneaked glances from the dazed juniors as they stand up on their shaking legs, "Come along now—" he places his hand on top of Sizhui's, which shakes almost unnoticeably.

Sizhui wants to reassure him, but he knows already that Wei-qianbei wouldn't feel comforted until he lays his eyes on Hanguang-jun. Sizhui has seen enough of their love to know this is one of the few things that can rattle his indomitable Xian-gege. If anything happens to Hanguang-jun, Wei-qianbei would—

Sizhui draws his mind away from grim thoughts and watches as Wei-qianbei steps forward to the body, pulling out his qiankun pouch. Suddenly, there's a twitch of movement from nearby. As if called by Wei Ying and Lan Sizhui's thoughts, the austere white of Lan Zhan's robes appears, and he comes to a graceful halt near the corpse-creature.

"Lan Zhan," Wei Ying can't help but exhale in relief, "We're fine."

Hanguang-jun casts a look at the corpse-creature, then back at Wei Ying. He looks over Wei Ying completely before turning his gaze towards the juniors while moving towards Wei Ying, almost a split second of a glance but enough to know they're fine; it wouldn't have been noticed if Sizhui hadn't been looking for it. Then, he reaches up to caress Wei Ying’s face and Wei Ying melts into it, feeling the warmth seep into his skin.

"Wei Ying," Wei Ying can't describe how relieved he feels when the familiar scent of sandalwood envelopes him. It takes but a glance for Lan Zhan to see past his welcoming smile and glimpse the truly shaken core of him.

"Go forth, Sizhui, we'll join you soon." Lan Zhan commands and Wei Ying almost protests. He doesn't want the children away from him. Lan Zhan just shakes his head and pulls him close, "Breathe, center yourself."

Wei Ying presses his forehead to Lan Zhan's shoulder and sighs. Lan Zhan is here. Lan Zhan is safe, solid, and strong. That's all he cares about, and he feels his arms encircling him so he completely rests his weight upon his husband, his head on Lan Zhan's chest, hearing his heartbeat go thump thump thump.

He feels the earlier fight leaving his body as he relaxes against him, matching their breaths together. Wei Ying wants to stay there with him, the forest trees and the silence that was eerie and offsetting earlier feels serene and calming. But they can’t, because they have to get back, everyone in need of rest, the kids in need of checking to see if they're all actually okay.

Then there's the issue of the corpse-creature; research will need to be done when they are back in Cloud Recesses, to figure out what it is and if there might be more. Wei Ying breathes in the sandalwood scent of his husband, then steps away, qiankun pouch in hand. The corpse is where it had fallen, and he kneels next to it, Lan Zhan a comforting presence next to him.

"Aiya," He says, "They tried but couldn't get close to your perfection, Lan Zhan."

His husband huffs but keeps a steady, warm hand on his back. It is a reassuring presence that makes it easier to examine the body. Wei Ying runs his eyes along the tall body, mind stirring, "Who could be behind this?" How and why did they mimic Lan Zhan of all people? Wei Ying can't help but feel concerned. Lan Zhan hums in response but offers no commentary; he's probably still in a protective, vigilant state. Wei Ying smiles fondly and kisses him on his cheek, "let's return then,” he says, and gets up after putting it away.

Lan Zhan pulls him closer to himself; maybe he knows what worried Wei Ying as he keeps a comforting presence by his side. They walk to the Juniors standing ahead, who stop their whispers as soon as they get close. Wei Ying looks them over once again. They look at him with a slightly dazed look, but are steady on their feet. Wei Ying frowns, maybe it's the effects of leftover energy?

Jin Ling starts to say something about heading back to Jinlintai. As if Wei Ying would let him! It's almost midnight, and the night hunt has taken them to the far reaches of Gusu-Lan territory, a long trip of a couple days to Lanling-Jin territory. "None of that," Wei Ying chides, feeling like himself again. "Back to the village for all of us; Hanguang-jun needs to make sure there are no lingering effects."

Jin Ling half-scowls, but doesn't deny or try to argue back, and there's a blur as Sizhui all but pulls Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji into a hug. Jin Ling sees Sizhui’s shoulders shake slightly and he looks away. Terrifying situation or not, that illusion had felt all too real. It was as if it were Hanguang-jun standing before them, the mannerism, the voice, how he...he—

Before he can think more he feels a pull at his wrist and he feels the warmth of another person around him. He hears Jingyi make a startled noise as the other two are also pulled into a clustered little group hug. Jin Ling’s face flushes red and he opens his mouth to protest but doesn't push them away.

“You're safe,” Wei Ying says, as the teens start to pull away after a few moments. If a few of them have reddened eyes, or barely-there tear tracks down their cheeks, neither he nor Lan Zhan mention it.

"Aiya," he gives Sizhui an extra pat on the head, a smile finally pulling at his face as he takes in the juniors' despondent looks. "What is all this? I would think someone died if I came upon you all like this! Come now, back to the village.”

"Wei Ying!" Lan Zhan calls suddenly and Wei Ying doesn't understand why. He looks up at his husband, only to see his eyes shining with concern, perhaps even some panic.

"What? Lan Zha—"

An abrupt wave of dizziness overcomes him and he falters, feeling something dripping down his nose. He touches his upper lip shakily, his limbs starting to feel heavy. His vision swims and Lan Zhan catches him immediately as he sways forward. Something cold is settling within him. "Lan Zhan," he croaks. His vision is turning black from the corner of his eyes, and Lan Zhan is saying something but he can't hear it, it’s muffled and sounds so far away.

Wei Ying hates the feeling that floods him, the wave of cold dread that he hasn't felt in a long time. His hair stands up as he feels ghosts of the touches. They linger on the back of his neck, his face, his arms where the corpse had touched him, among the distant noises, he hears a clear, sharp "Wei Ying," but it sounds so odd, so unfamiliar despite it being his husband’s voice and that's when he crumples, losing all control of his limbs.

The cheer and safety of mere moments before has fled, and Wei Ying can't stamp out the panic that grips him as his breath hitches. He's vaguely aware, as if he is not truly in possession of his own body anymore, that his sweet husband, his Lan Zhan, has pulled his body up into his arms.

That awareness lessens even more as Lan Zhan's distant, warped voice sends out some sharp commands, and then he feels the slap of wind on his face and something isn't right. His senses are fading but he has practiced dual cultivation with Lan Zhan for several years now. He's intimately familiar with his husband's core. Something isn't right because—

—they're running. The wind is against his face. He remembers the trapped look of despair. His husband commands the children but something isn't right. He's leaving something behind. The arms carrying him are familiar but recognition slips him and he becomes increasingly aware as a sharp pain increases from his arm and he gasps, because it feels as if fire is under his skin, it moves from his arm and reaches up to his neck and it increases. Wei Ying has always had a large tolerance to pain, but he is in little control and he cannot stop himself as he lets out a pained scream, the wind feels faster as Lan Zhan—

—not right, not right, not right—

—he wakes up to the dark wood and white paint of the Cloud Recesses. He does not move, cataloging his body, the sensations, what he remembers. There was an oppressive feeling of pain, of wrongness, that is now mostly gone. Did they fly back? How long has it been?

He feels like he's forgetting something, forgetting; he thinks it over, the body, the pain, and reaches up his arm and sure enough, there are bright red marks, beginning from his arm, spreading out like spilled ink on paper, they resemble a spiders web as they crawl upwards, up along until they disappear into his clothes and he had no doubt they reach till his neck. What about his face? He reaches up to try and touch but before he can, the door slides open as Lan Zhan steps through.

Wei Ying's entire focus shifts towards the Second Jade. Lan Zhan looks pristine as always, calm like nothing can disturb him. His movements are steady, unhurried. He sets his things aside and walks into the Jingshi casually. There's no trace of urgency or worry in him. Wei Ying feels his heart grow cold. His Lan Zhan wouldn't have been as calm, nor would his Lan Zhan look at him the way it did, unmoving and—the same way that thing had.

"Lan Zhan" comes and sits by his bed, eyes lock over him, dark and amber. "Wei Ying," he—it—reaches up a hand, and cradles his cheek, the same way his husband did. Except, its thumb inches towards lips and it is colder than ice. Wei Ying acts unbothered, showing a soft smile as he puts his hand over the one on his face.

"I'm fine, Lan Zhan!" he says softly. The suspicion grows when he remembers the red veining on his body, when he realizes that the touch isn't as tangible as it should be.

Touching the creature's hand feels like holding a dust mote, and he abruptly realizes that he isn't sure if this even is the Jingshi. It is the same pristine colors, of course, but their possessions seem blurred, as if only half-existing. There is no familiar, comforting scent of sandalwood. Is it an illusion? A dream? Is this creature a figment of his imagination? Or is it something else? He tries to access his core and can't grasp anything. He tries to summon resentful energy but it slips through his fingers like water. His only choice is to get information.

"What happened?" he asks in a soft tone he reserves for his husband. He angles his body to be welcoming, like he would with Lan Zhan. None of his actions give any indication of his suspicions. "Are the children safe?"

Lan Zhan nods, "They're safe. Lan Xichen is looking after them and a healer is examining them. You are the only one to be harmed. We do not know the nature of your injuries—" Verbose. Too verbose. Lan Xichen, not xiongzhang or Xichen. Even his imagination wouldn't conjure an illusion so inaccurate. This isn't just a simple case of his mind making things up.

The last thing he remembers is Lan Zhan, his Lan Zhan sending waves of spiritual energy and holding him close, so he can rest assured his body is safe. The hand slips from his cheek, as the "Lan Zhan"—no, the corpse, raises his chin making him look directly at it.

"What is Wei Ying thinking of?" it croons and Wei Ying looks away from it, and bites his lip as way of disguising his eyes roaming over the interior of the Jingshi, now that he looks carefully, the arrangement of the bed, the dresser, everything is out of order—the hand on his chin tightens, "Wei Ying, I'm right here."

The meaning is subtle, and Wei Ying turns to it, his expression as if hesitant, "I..I'm worried about the kids.." he takes on a concerned expression, not entirely faked, "Can you take me to see them?"

A pulse of Lan Zhan's--his Lan Zhan's spiritual energy abruptly floods him, and then is gone. It is a miracle he is able to keep his expression level and unbothered by it, but he's beginning to put the pieces together. He needs to keep the creature distracted, talking.

"Wei Ying," the creature wearing Lan Zhan's body says, almost chiding, "they need their rest, and you need your own rest. I am here with you; do not worry about them for the time being.”

Wei Ying knows it isn't the right time to push. He decides on a different approach, "You know how I get when there's a mystery to solve, Lan Zhan!" he protests with a playful smile, "You can't expect me to rest without any explanation? What happened? How did I get hurt? What did the healers say?" Simple questions, things he would've asked Lan Zhan in any case.

There's a lingering heat of Lan Zhan's qi swirling around within him, too weak to actually heal him or bring him out of this state, but enough to sharpen his perception and remove his pain. He knows his husband is trying to save him and there's no person more capable than his Lan Zhan. Something in him settles at that. Let Lan Zhan work from the outside to resolve the situation. Wei Ying will work from the inside to get more information.

The expression that crosses the corpse's face, of being caught off-guard, seems so foreign on Lan Zhan's face, but it composes itself and lets go of his chin, and seems to contemplate before deciding on an expression of utmost gentleness and care. "This," it says, as it reaches to touch the back of his neck, where one of the webbings must be, "is a mark of possession." A hint of darkness, desire, flashes in its eyes, "It means Wei Ying's qi has been flooded with another’s—" Wei Ying tenses, but the corpse has no suspicion in its eyes, meaning it was referring to that moment in the forest—"and Wei Ying is one of the few who have been able to reject it, so these," it reaches down to his arm, tracing over the red, "remain as a reminder." It looks enthralled, pleased even.

And Wei Ying feels his lips press flat. "I don't like them at all!" He pretends to whine, shows how he absolutely abhors the idea of it, feeling satisfied when it frowns in displeasure. "I don't like any marks other than the ones Lan Zhan makes,” he adds, looking at the corpse through his lashes.

Its facade almost slips, with the anger appearing on its face, and Wei Ying fights back a smug smile when another rush of his husband's warm spiritual energy wraps around him. The corpse-creature's face blurs for a moment, with that rush of qi, but then resettles. It looks distinctly displeased, though it tries to mask the expression with one of fondness that looks laughably fake. Wei Ying does not laugh.

"If my Lan Zhan wanted to make some marks," Wei Ying says coyly, trailing off in a suggestive manner. The creature seems to freeze and flicker, as if it is wholly unsure of what to do with that. And Wei Ying pulls back just as the corpse makes a hesitant hand gesture and says, softly, "Of course I'm joking Lan Zhan, you know your Wei Ying, I can't relax until I see the kids, and—" he adds seeing it fume "—you too, I know you're worried about them but they're strong! So they'll be fine!"

Wei Ying finishes his 'assurance' and Lan Zhan succeeds. There's a towering surge of qi coursing through him, ready to pull him back, his to command. By now, he is so familiar with his husband's qi that he can use it as his own. He sees how it makes the creature's eyes widen and falter. He smiles coyly, tapping his chin as the binds holding him to this place snap one by one.

"Now, who are you, my dear friend?" he asks as Lan Zhan's power unseals his own. The core he has cultivated so diligently pulses with power and the remaining binds disintegrate. Before the illusionary world around him can disappear, he reaches forward and slams a palm against the creature's chest, a smile of triumph curling at his lips.

"There you are," he whispers and drags them both to the real world that awaits them. His eyes flicker towards the real Lan Zhan, who looks pale and strikingly furious, and smirks coyly, "Lan Zhan! Someone had the audacity to steal your Wei Ying from you!"

The fury in his husband's eyes brightens into an inferno ready to destroy the most powerful of foes, and Wei Ying can't help but quiver in delight, in satisfaction. No words are needed between them, their souls and actions in perfect harmony. The creature that had taken him, and now is beholden to him, collapses and rebuilds itself, now not in Lan Zhan's form but again the form of the corpse he and the juniors had first encountered. It tries to fight against his power, but it stands no chance.

Lan Zhan steps forward, Bichen already unsheathed and ready to cut the corpse down, but Wei Ying shakes his head. He turns to the corpse, "Now, my friend, let's figure out what you are."

Wei Ying slams a talisman on the creature's chest and watches in satisfaction as it binds the creature completely. It squirms and tries to break the binds but to no avail. Seeing that the prisoner is secure, the juniors, healthy and hale, rush forward, gathering around him in concern.

Wei Ying smiles and meets Lan Zhan's eyes over their heads. 'Ah,' He thinks with something like heat curling in him, 'still furious.'

Indeed, Lan Zhan is furious. His eyes are dark and tracking all of Wei Ying's movements. His smile takes on an edge and he tilts his head to the side, baring his neck just slightly. Lan Zhan's eyes narrow and lips thin.

"Aiya," he pats the children indulgently, "Let your senior go, your Hanguang-jun is getting impatient."

The juniors flush red, and mutter excuses to leave. Wei Ying looks at Lan Zhan and reaches forward to pull him, but that movement shifts his sleeve to show the red markings and he finds his arm in the other’s grasp as Lan Zhan pulls him closer, so Wei Ying’s weight is entirely on his body as if he's hugging him. He's startled.

"Ah, Lan Zhan what're you—" he cuts off mid-sentence as Lan Zhan curls one hand around his waist, holding him close, and the other raises his hair, letting air brush against his nape. The sensation tingles; Lan Zhan knows his weak spot and with the energy flow from earlier it's sensitive, and Wei Ying flushes figuring out—"Lan Zhan, wait, wait—Ah!!"

His back arches and he shivers as Lan Zhan’s lips infused with spiritual energy land on his neck and he continues with a sharp bite, one that lets Wei Ying know just how displeased his husband is, how worried he had been and how thankful he now is that they are safe. Wei Ying can't help the squeak that comes from him at the action, but he is not hurt. The bite is followed by a tender kiss, one that spreads his husband's spiritual energy through him, chasing away the redness of the spider-webbed marks on his arms, filling him with comfort and at the same time lighting a fire in him.

"Wei Ying is careless," Lan Zhan says, lips moving against Wei Ying's skin when he doesn't even pull away to speak, "I have been worried, Wei Ying was gone, alone."

He says the last part softly but Wei Ying hears it anyway with their bodies together, he can feel his warmth, their heartbeats and breaths mingling together, he can feel him and Wei Ying feels at ease, Lan Zhan’s words make his heart ache, 'Aish his beloved', "Lan-er-gege," he begins, his voice mellow and teasing, "Lan-er-gege, I felt you," he says, tracing Lan Zhan's back with his fingers as his breathing hitches. "I wasn't alone,” he finishes.

After waiting for a moment to soak in the comfort, Wei Ying leans back and looks at his husband, before leaning in to pull him into a kiss Lan Zhan leans into him, desperate and fierce. A strong arm curls around his back, holding onto him tightly. Wei Ying feels fond as he cups his husband's face, making soothing noises in the back of his throat even as the kiss grows heated. He pulls away with a gasp, chuckling when Lan Zhan doesn't let go, dipping his head to kiss along his jaw, "Aiya, husband, we're in public. Your uncle could arrive any moment now."

Lan Zhan doesn't let go and Wei Ying yelps when sharp teeth sink into his flesh once again, "How cruel to your poor Wei Ying!"

"It would seem you're well, Wuxian," An amused voice interrupts them and Wei Ying startles, looking beyond his beloved to see Lan Xichen watching them in amusement. Wei Ying pushes Lan Zhan away and, this time, his husband parts with him reluctantly to bow to their brother. There's not even an ounce of shame on his beloved's face and Wei Ying feels flushed. How unfair.

He turns to greet Lan Xichen. "Da baizi! Yes, I'm okay!" Lan Wangji's arm around him tightens and Wei Ying squirms slightly. Their robes are already in a complete state of disarray. "Lan Zhan!" he whispers though he's pretty sure it’s still loud, and, sure enough, he hears a chuckle as Lan Xichen shakes his head slightly.

"That's a relief," he smiles at them, which Wei Ying returns just as bright, "I will not hold you up further," he says gently, and adds a joyful and teasing, "I'll go let Uncle know."

To not disturb you is left unsaid as he turns to leave and Wei Ying hides his face in Lan Zhan's neck as he hums in agreement, completely unrepentant. "Lan Zhaaaan" but doesn't say anything else as the door closes. The smile remains on his face; everyone is home safe, Wei Ying is happy, and it all feels right once again.

[lilbit-of-kizzy]

Live blogging the 9 miraculous season 5 episodes on Disney+ below the cut! (Spoilers obviously lol and it's uh...long and rambly 😅)

Ep1

Gabriel looks absolutely ridiculous omg 🤣

Bunny cat!

Me:....did he just die???

Chat: did we just...defeat him??

Me: nah fam he dead welcome to orphanhood

Someone please get this girl some real therapy my god

Ya gotta feed your pets Gabe jesus, I love how the kwamis were just willing to let him die 😅😂

The bunny miraculous makes Chat's face so cute lol

Get. His. ASS NATHALIE

Ep2

Omg grand master's shoes 🤣🤣

Thank you Plagg we've all been saying that for years

Love square reverse here we go

Uh-oh scetti-os

Ep3

Oh hey...they actually said "yeah no one's that stupid, magic literally stops you from recognizing the holders" also I love the Kwamis annoying Gabe lmao meanmeanmeanmeanmean

"Tom? Is it really the time to be baking croissants?"

"Yes dear the plot demands it"

Gabe just....doing all this shit in front of two pajama clad teenage girls while Marinette and Alya just.....stand there looking so confused 🤣🤣

Reunion?? Later????? TAKE THE MIRACULOUS WHY ARE YOU MONOLOGUING??????

Told you 😮‍💨

Aw baby boy :(

Oh shit

Dude the rings look even more stupid 🤣 but the cocoon transformation is pretty bad ass

Ep4

Why does everyone have clones?

Phht banana Adrien

Well damn Tikki

"it's probably just a bug" lol puns

Ooooh it's both their gift that's fascinatingooomg that baby doll kill it kill it with fire o.< Nooo they're multiplying....oh no my babies :(

Oops you made him mad....oh jeez really mad...

Giiiiiirl

(real talk a: therapy, both of them b:....the problem with teenagers is, when not shown the actual consequences of an action...that action becomes much easier to repeat.....ie I know smoking is bad, but I can't see or feel it affecting my lungs so it's probably fine........Adrien baby boy I know the part of your brain that controls executive function is still developing but fight it my dude)

Ep5

*hissss*....*HISSSSSSSSS*

Omg Nino's look of disgust at being lied to

Whyyyy does Mari have 3 plates of spaghetti?? (I'm gonna just assume it's not spaghetti but why 3 plates 😂)

Publicity stunt, though yeah Nino

This is the 2nd time Mari's used her klutzieness around Gabe to get away with something but uh...has she been klutzy lately otherwise?

"and lack of dietary quality of the cafeteria" why must he be funny?

Gabe stop mentally abusing his son for his own gains challenge

Oh that's interesting....he didn't go with being mad, just being a bad father....ummmm

Dramatic much

Phht Nino the condiment names gotta stop

......*hisssssssss*

Nino....pick different names

I love that everyone is outgrowing Mari, the fact that they're all growing at all is pretty cool

Ep6

Reverse love square pt2: Adrien is still dense af (my boy gotta thing for eyes)

Omg she actually answers in Spanish I thought that was a meme 🤣 (is it Spanish in French as well??....what do they use in the Spanish dub??)

It's uh called hormones my dude...hormones kicked in

A few DAYS ago??? It's been weeks right????? Continuity people it is important

I like how they're handling this, cause Mari is absolutely right, she's built up a fake person

Lol Luka and Kagami are just like "stop" neither of them are gonna let her cop out of this 😂

Cat slipped out there for a sec lol

Ofc she carries measuring tape

Poor baby boy (how many times have I said that?)

Luka do you know how to OPEN those doors??

Oop Reverse love square Mari: Oh No He's Hot (I knew this was coming lol)

The sword wasn't a meme 🤣

Oh look trauma

Ya waited too long...wait a bit longer it'll all sort out... hopefully lmao

Ep 7

Oh he's got it baaaad

Plagg....you were pushing him towards Mari like 2 days ago

Get his assssss, I love how worried she is for Adri....YASSS QUEEN

Not well Adrien....not well

Can uh....can people see when they're paralyzed?....nope 😮‍💨

I really like the swap designs

Oh no the overflirting comes from Plagg 😂

"My suit has a really weird influence on you" yeah that's the cheese crazy kwami

Aw Adrien's voice is deepening

Tikki is so full of anxiety

Does Alya just live with Mari now 🤣

Aww 🥺

Ep8

Hey Alix went to NC!!!

Forsooth!

Oh look....someone being corrupted by social media...topical!

Trivia boy lol

Omg the history lesson 🤣

👍🏻

*gasp* Gib (if you understand that I applaud your taste in musicals)

Plagg spit is radioactive be careful Adrien

Ep9

And a bell!

Alya: touch grass

Oh uh-oh actual marichat wow (also what does she say in French for Chat Noir lol I wanna know)

Aww he's nervous

Uhhh Mari if he likes you he won't like Ladybug... they sure are cute though

Mari you aren't in a suit....you should not be that high up that precariously

Oh noooo they're so close (at least he knows she loves both of him)

She booped his snoot :3

Good job Adrien, that is not easy to do but exactly the right thing to do

Oh ok that's one way to do it but god poor kids

Aw that neck touch

You're melting my butt!

Why are they still going with the charms? They don't work 🤣

Gabe's rotting arm is uh...really disturbing to think about

Mari you're 13...you have so much time to figure love out

Welp... that's it lol

[mgsapphire]

Ethics and morality... and how they're not the same...

Weird title, and I don't even know if I'll properly approach this one with all the topics I wish to this discuss in today's The Devil Judge essay, because a lot of things peaked my interest, I was debating on doing a separate post for each subject, but I'll do them all in here:

Starting simple

I know we're only 4 episodes in, but I want to break down the things that I often look for in a new show:

Cinematography

Soundtrack

Character building

Plot devices

Social commentary (sometimes)

Of course, these are things most people would consider basics, but I find that a lot of TV shows don't have enough balance in them. Also, cinematography and soundtrack are pretty up there for me because when a plot gets slow, or something like that, I stay for those two (biggest example: King Eternal Monarch).

The soundtrack in The Devil Judge is amazing and the cinematography can be a character of its own. They really get me hooked and are used as tools to properly tell a story. And I'll get into that further down this post.

The onlooker will never understand the actor

Experience is your best friend not only applies to job hunting, but it's true in the real world too. You can't truly weigh in on something unless you've experienced it yourself, you can give it your judgment and everything, but when bad things happen to someone, you'll never truly understand their pain. Am I bringing up because of the difference of mind in Judge Kang and Judge Kim's opinions? On how the public treated the minister's son? No. I'm talking about a very specific scene, where the cinematography told me to think that way and not the dialogue (it's that easy for my mind to be swayed). In episode 3, when the rich are about to dine right after the foundation's commercial for a better future, we see this aerial shot:

What's interesting about this? The seclusion and the enclosed feeling it conveys as a counterpart to the poverty shots we were just shown. Yet, these are the people making ads for a better future, what do they know?

They live comfortably behind concrete walls with no windows to see what goes on apart from the bubble they live in. This idea is further enforced at the party in episode 4, where they're not even a part of the donations, and watch and mock from afar as spectators. Yet, these people call the shots. They even call it commenting, as if they were watching the pain of others on TV.

The intriguing personality and the duality it encites

Now, this was a costume and wardrobe decision, but it was also very well thought of:

Judge Kim wears white and Judge Kang wears black. One is morally perceived by viewers of the show as morally good and the other is perceived as morally dubious at best. However, besides the costume and wardrobe thought put into this, we also have to think about the delivery of this scene and how it may further affect my detailing of this section. Judge Kang brings down the coats, and hangs over the coat to Judge Kim, he's the one who is making that annotation: You're pure, I'm tainted. This can have one of two interpretations:

Either Judge Kang believes Judge Kim to be pure and innocent due to his status as a rookie in the field

Or he believes Judge Kim to be morally white and himself morally black as he's looking at his brother's face and not at Judge Kim's heart.

Because most of the back story we're unveiling is through Judge Kim's perception, there's also an inherit bias we're having as well, because in Judge Kim narrative, he believes he's doing what's right and believes Judge Kang to be evil. In being served information about Judge Kang through Judge Kim's eyes, our bias is inherently skewed.

Another thing is that, when they put on the coat, they're standing in front of the other, as if the producers of this series are telling us they're two sides of the same coin.

The duality is made in more deceitful ways, which include:

A difference of classes that implies one has suffered while the other has not.

A difference of experience that implies one is more tainted while the other is pure.

A difference of age that implies one is a sly fox while the other one is is bunny about to be eaten.

A difference of temper that makes one erratic and the other logical.

Power dynamics

This one, in this one I could make a whole thesis based on just a couple of scenes in the drama. And you know I have to mention it: director Jung being the puppeteer.

It may not be as unexpected at first, nevertheless it brings forward a lot of things I've wished to touch upon for quite some time now. A woman being a puppeteer of an old man in the portrayed dystopia that The Devil Judge is painting makes much more sense than more common demonstrations of these dynamics where it's either a:

A man of power being controlled by a bigger man of power.

A man of power being controlled by a seemingly man of a lower status.

A woman being controlled by a man of power.

Although, there's nothing wrong with those power dynamics, and if they were to be used, a message could also be conveyed, this one in particular works as a megaphone.

A subversion of power in such a way can be interpreted as a true indication of the weak overcoming the powerful. Why? It is not that woman are naturally weaker than men, but that in society, patriarchy has been a big factor in taking voice away from women in order to give it to men.

In order for Director Jung to achieve her purposes, it's smarter for her to do it under the pretense that an old rich man in power is the one calling the shots.

This is better exemplified by her stance when the old man tries to excuse his behavior, and what her moral compass is. I'm not saying I agree with her unethical conduct, but that her morality is directly impacted by the perception of the public of her as a weak woman:

Just because a dog bites a human does the person get dirty?

This is telling on how she perceives the actions of the old man in gropping the waitress. She didn't do anything wrong, even if you touched her, you are the dirty one.

While she's evil, it's a refreshing and deep evil.

The public's opinion and how there's actually logic in the show's portrayal

The public opinion can make or break a person, even if it's not on a public trial like this. While "cancel culture" barely works in today's society, a person's reputation is forever tainted. The show does tell that, but it also exhibits the scary downside of it, by showing how easily it was to make people accept flaggelation as a fitting punishment.

There are many experiments that have tried to test the effect of societal pressure on an individual's decision and the effect of the authority's enforcement of power in the outcome of these decisions. Furthermore, theories based on analysis of human behavior not necessarily relying on experiments can also help break this down. What do I mean? Here's a small attempt at explaining:

Milgram Experiment on Authority: which measured the individual willingness to carry out actions that go against their conscience due to an authority's approval.

Argument from Authority; The idea that people are more likely to use an authority's opinion on something as an argument for their reason. This is often seen in science, where trusted authorities have done the research and offer it to the public. In here, authority bias also plays a role, as we often believe, at first, that an authority must be right.

Moral disengagement: basically speaking, because this is evil or bad, I'm not part of it and I most probably am not actively participating in it. One may disengage by moral justification, which means that before engaging in something that has been previously perceived as immoral, I'm changing my stance on it based on what I tell myself to be logical arguments. This particular form of moral disengagement is very effective in changing the public opinion. I'll be touching on another form further down this post.

Other factors played a part, but these ones in particular came to mind when public flagelation as a form of corporeal punishment was wildly accepted. First, an authority is the one telling them it's correct, to go ahead. Secondly, another authority (the minister) had previously shown approval to such unusual punishment. Thirdly, they are not the ones to be engaging directly in the act, and even if they were, it would be acceptable because an authority has told them so. They may even believe the punishment to be a necessary evil for the greater good.

In fact, the minister's son was actually correct when pleading his case, they were accepting it because it wouldn't affect them directly.

Regarding the cinematographic descent of the public opinion regarding the situation can better be exemplified by the old man we've seen through the episodes.

Does suffering justify misdeeds?

Today I came along the difference between excuse and reason. You may give a reason for your behavior, but it doesn't excuse it.

Not because I've suffered through shit, means I have to make you suffer too.

I may explain myself, but it's on the other side to excuse me.

Why I hate the unreliable narrator and why I love it so much

This story has been told mostly through the eyes of Judge Kim and what he hears and sees regarding Judge Kang, if anything, the narrative is very close to that of the narrative we've seen in The Great Gatsby. An enigmatic man is being narrated to us from the eye of a man who hasn't known him for a long time.

How is that an unreliable narrator? The narrator has their own set of bias and moral standards which function as lenses through which they see the world.

Another way of putting it would be the way teenage romances are often written in a first person narrative where either of the two teenagers is the narrator, so the author can sell to us something as simple as offering a pack of gum as the most romantic act on earth. We're perceiving interactions through rose tainted glasses.

In this case, we're seeing the interactions through Judge Kim's eyes who doesn't trust Judge Kang from the get go due to his own preset bias.

The narrative becomes even more unreliable as we're not exactly sure if what Judge Kang disclosed himself is a fact.

The reason why I love this narrative is because it leaves a lot of space to make simple plot twists to a narrative and make them seem grand, and can elongate a story without making it obvious.

The reason why I hate it is because sometimes, in tv shows mostly, we as viewers can see the other side of the story and grow increasingly frustrated with the main character's prejudice and misunderstandings (I'm looking at you my beloved Beyond Evil).

Also, because I have to wait for a long time before I actually have a clear picture of it.

[disniq]

5, 7, 24, 25 or 32? :D

[writer ask game] Hope you don't mind me answering all of these anon :D

5. How many wips do you have?  What fandoms/pairings are they for?

Hoo boy, well. Let's narrow it down to just the DC ones, and just the ones that are more than a one sentence plot bunny, which leaves;

Titans fix-it part 2 (gen)

the unofficial JayTim sequel to part one

Too Many Hits Off This Memory (JayDick)

Say My Name and His in the Same Breath (JayHarvey)

They Take and Take Until You Give (Titans, gen)

JayRoy body swap (angsty)

JayRoy body swap (fluffy)

Alcoholic Jay (gen, probably)

Cowl Cam shenanigans (WFA, gen)

BruJay timeloop

Haunting of Hill House AU (gen)

Jason SI (gen)

Gotham Knighs inspired UTRH AU that I am NOT SUPPOSED TO BE WRITING DANGIT

7. Post a snippet from a wip.

JayHarvey, set vaguely during TFZ:

Jason's hand snaps out to Harvey’s elbow before he can process the thought, and he leans forward to place a chaste kiss to the side of Harvey’s mouth.

He doesn’t know why he does it, except that it’ll royally piss off Bruce. After this whole Month of the Living Dead debacle, maybe that’s reason enough.

Harvey pulls back just enough to give him that considering look again. Jason imagines it’s his DA look, that one reserved for cross-examining witnesses and facing down criminals across the courtroom - it’s a look that says, ‘I can see right through you and I’m deciding whether or not to use it against you.’

Jason kind of wants him to.

24. How do you choose whose POV to write in?

I usually have one character that I click more with that I shamelessly project onto sort of default to, but sometimes it's just a feeling thing I guess?

Like, the first three drafts for chapter 1 of If I have to be who I was were Jason's POV and then draft 4 was Dick's, and none of it was really working until I realised Tim is being introduced to the situation at the same time as the reader, and then that whole first scene basically wrote itself

25. What’s your favorite part of the writing process (worldbuilding, brainstorming/outlining, writing, editing, etc)?

Probably editing. I have a very nitpicky brain and no matter how many writing advice guides say to not edit until your first draft is done, my brain will not leave it be (and, yay, executive dysfunction; well, if I *can't* edit then what's the point in writing at all >:( ) so I find it's easier to let myself read what I've already written and edit it as a warm up before writing anything new.

32. Do you take fic requests?  Why or why not?

I mean. I'm happy for people to send ideas? But I do not control the hyperfixation, y'know, and I absolutely cannot say if or when an idea would grab my attention for long enough to do anything with ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[saintrocklee]

I totally tagged you in the WIP thing because I am chewing my arm off in excitement over your upcoming spicy projects. And let me just say.

FERAL KISAME.

FERAL KISAME.

F E R A L K I S A M E!!!

MY CAPS CAN'T GET ANY MORE CAPITAL.

That is all. ❤

feral kisame OWNS me - he has me in a choke hold and gives no fucks about my inability to breathe. that man is a MENACE and unforgiving and we love him for that. i'm trying to decide on a location for that lil segment - but the summary is kisame meets up with reader from Dive right after fusing with Samehada and is ... very out of control. ahem.

for the Spice Project (i cannot decide on a title so that's what i'm calling it for now) i actually did a TON of writing last night (watching jeff goldlbum run from dinosaurs really had the plot bunnies flourishing) so i'm gonna include a lil' snippet under the cut for y'all!

“She’s all worked up because of what I said - good luck getting her to do anything.”

Itachi hums and meets your eyes again. You scoff, handles trembling in your lap, and shrug your shoulder, hoping to remove Kisame’s hand. He chuckles and you stand when his hand falls from your shoulder, chest heaving with effort.

“I’m not worked up and I’m not injured. You two are ridiculous.”

You leave, missing the way the two nin looked at each other, and slam your bedroom door shut behind you.

“You scared her off.” Itachi comments lightly and Kisame snorts, leaning back in his chair.

“Nah, she’s just shy.”

Itachi huffs a laugh and stands, wincing at the way his joints crack from laying down all day. It’s a shinobi’s worst nightmare, not doing anything for days at a time.

“You shouldn’t have told her all of that.” Itachi’s tone is even, but chastising, and Kisame grins up at his partner, not bothered in the least that he’d heard their entire conversation. He knew Itachi wasn’t really asleep.

“You can’t smell her like I can. I meant what I said, shit’s fuckin’ torture. Trust me, she’s close.”

Itachi sighs, and makes his way to the bathroom, ignoring the way Kisame’s words sent thrills up his spine. He’d been awake the moment you came back and heard everything, wanting to know what happened while you were gone and curious to see what angle his partner was working. Itachi wasn’t surprised when Kisame overstepped - his knack for being inappropriately blunt usually got them into some kind of trouble.

He was right though.

You were close.