#i hope at least one of these points has been helpful
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I organized a booth at my local pride where we gave out free water and did a pay-what-you-can art store to increase accessibility for poor people at Pride. We raised enough money to cover the cost of the booth AND the cost for the 2025 booth AND some.
I also helped organize, alongside some friends of mine, a bake sale to help our friends keep their home, which was being threatened with foreclosure. These were disabled trans folks who had fallen behind on payments because of lack of access to transportation, limiting their job opportunities. We didn't raise enough to fully pay stuff off, but we raised enough for at least one of their mortgage payments, which bought them some time & wasn't nothing.
My friends helped pay for me so I could take a road trip with them to visit our other friend who lived a couple of states away from us. I got to meet an online friend in the process, and we all went on a float trip and to a really cool museum and a great production of Much Ado About Nothing. It was a lot of fun and I got to hang out with a bunch of my old college friends.
I started the year with the intention to interact more with my friends and the general community and succeeded. I joined a comic maker's group and got two of my comics published in their anthologies. The local queer art group that I founded back in 2018 started having in person meetings again after we had to stop in 2020 due to covid. I made an effort to reach out to the people I care about more than I had been able to in past years. My socializing really improved and my goal to meet new people and foster relationships with already existing friends was a success!
I started going to the library more, and tbh learned a lot about the things they offer there and found some really interesting books that would have never occurred to me to look for in a book shop.
There were some bad things that happened, too. Bad things are inevitable when you're living in poverty and your local government couldn't give two shits about you or your neighbors. But the good outweighed the bad, and I felt that I contributed positive things to my community and that my community came through for me as well.
Despite everything, my sense of self worth has seriously improved. My life has significantly improved in the last two or three years because at some point I decided I wanted to be an active participant in it. There were several years where I was extremely depressed, bitter, and isolated. Years of burnout and anger brought on because I took the extremely difficult steps to stop talking to my abusive family. I struggled with everything and felt like very few people would be there for me if I fell through the cracks. But you know what? I came out on the other side. My friends proved my paranoia that no one loved me wrong. It's not all perfect and there's still plenty of difficulties that I face, but I am generally happier and healthier and kinder than I used to be, and that's huge.
I know things look bleak and hope can feel foolish sometimes in the face of great hardships, but finding joy is an action you must take upon yourself when you can. Even if all you can find are the little things. And when you can't, I hope you have people who love you to make it hurt less. I hope good things come your way soon. I hope good things come for all of us. Let's do our best to make it happen for ourselves and the people we love in 2025!
hey honest question, did anybody have GOOD stuff happen to them in 2024? cause it was really bad for me and for most people i know, so it would be nice to hear about anything that's been going WELL for any of you. even if it's small stuff. just to know there's light out there.
#about me#good things that happened#hope#showing up for people makes you feel good#showing up for yourself is also worth the effort
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Death at the Farmer's Market
You guys all decided on this poll that Tommy should get stabbed at the farmer's market, so here you go! *no major character death, a murder/suicide plot is briefly discussed*
He supposed the farmer's market wasn't the worst place to die. He'd prefer to be elsewhere, but it could be worse than the farmer's market.
He hoped his dad never found out he died right by the fruitcake stand. He could hear the jokes now.
Actually, his dad probably wouldn't come to the funeral, but he'd have to tell his buddies at the bar at some point.
He'd either completely ignore the whole “he was right by the fruitcakes” part, or he's use it as a silly little anecdote to lighten the mood.
Either way, Tommy wished he would've been stabbed literally anywhere other than by the fruitcakes. The soap booth would've been nice. Or by the bracelet lady. Hell, even the woman trying to get rid of the clothes she purchased at the height of some MLM scheme would've been preferred.
In fact, the MLM woman was super helpful at the moment as she used one of her checkered shirts to apply pressure to one of his wounds.
Tommy had managed to get the man on the ground before the stabbing happened. He just wished he'd known the guy had two knives instead of one.
He hadn't been the target. Had seen this man storming toward a woman and her daughter. She must've known him; she shouted his name when Tommy tackled him to the ground.
Tommy didn't let go of the man- Charlie, he thinks- until he stopped moving. The pain didn't register until the little girl screamed, pointing at him. He looked down to see blood soaking his shirt, and a knife sticking out of his chest.
He collapsed to the ground soon after that.
Right by the damn fruitcakes.
Thankfully, someone had the brains to yell out and make sure no one removed the knife.
Miss MLM dropped down beside him and pressed her clothing onto the wound that was bleeding the worst.
In his slightly dazed state, he tried to reach into his back pocket for his wallet. Felt the need to pay this lady for destroying her product.
Beside him, some man took his hand. Reassured him over and over that it'd be okay, help was on the way.
Tommy had heard that line before. Hell, he'd told people that line before. Not that help was coming, because he was the help. But he'd often tell people they'd be okay. Especially when he knew they wouldn't be. It's easier to die when you think you won't.
Tommy coughed. Ignored the taste of copper in his mouth. “T- The wo... woman?”
“She's okay,” another woman said. Tommy couldn't see where that voice was coming from. “You saved her.”
Well, at least he had that.
Then, there was another voice. A very familiar voice.
“Maddie?” Tommy mumbled.
Someone had called 9-1-1. They'd put her on speaker.
“M- Maddie, no... no one- eight-” he was cut off by another coughing fit.
The phone must've been near his head, because he was fairly certain she heard him.
“Tommy?! Tommy, is that you?”
The man holding his hand patted it, getting his attention. “Tommy? Is- Is that your name?”
“Mmmhm,” Tommy managed to hum.
“Yeah, his name is Tommy.”
Tommy was sure he heard an, “Oh God,” on the other end of the line. If he wasn't in the middle of dying he'd tell her she needed to work on her subtleties. Then she was off the line. Whether it was brief, or for a while, he wasn't sure.
“Hey, hey!” Hand-man exclaimed, hitting Tommy's hand harder now. “Keep your eyes open, Tommy! Come on, hang in there!”
Tommy glared at the man. He didn't need to be told what to do. If he wanted to close his eyes, he'd close his damn eyes! What the hell did it matter anyway?
Suddenly, people were yelling, and sirens could be heard in the distance. A path was being cleared seconds later, and familiar people with actual names dropped beside Tommy.
“Well look at this,” Chimney said, and Tommy made a note that he hid his panic much better than his wife did, “here to save your ass, yet again.”
“I ha- have... I have s- saved your ass a- a bunch,” Tommy deadpanned.
“Yeah, yeah, don't rub it in.”
“He's not wrong though,” Hen agreed, cutting Tommy's shirt open.
Tommy was about to attempt a joke about how he wouldn't have skipped his workout had he known he'd be exposed like this, but he was stopped before he could start.
“Tommy! Tommy!”
Tommy's eyes drifted up as Chimney and Hen continued working on him. “Ev- Evan, I didn't-”
“Shh,” Buck soothed, running his fingers through Tommy's hair. “Don't try and talk, just- just relax, okay?”
And oh, it ran in the family, because Evan was not doing a good job at keeping his tears in his eyes.
“S'okay,” Tommy said. His arm flailed up limply beside him until Buck took it. “S'okay. I- I'm okay, E-” He was cut off by another round of coughing, followed by severe pain, and ten suddenly, everything went black.
*****
Tommy wasn't exactly sure how death worked, but he was fairly certain it didn't involve waking up in a hospital bed.
He groaned as he blinked his eyes open, his body feeling stiffer than it ever had in his life.
“Tommy?”
He looked over to see Evan sitting in the chair beside him, eyes wide and wet. Their hands were tangled together, Evan's knuckles white from the tight grip.
“M- Morning,” Tommy muttered, voice gravelly.
He managed to get a little smile out of Evan with that. “It's actually ten at night.”
“Oh. Sorry for, um, sleeping all day.”
Buck rolled his eyes, letting go of Tommy's hand to grab a cup of water off the tray table.
“Sip,” he instructed, and Tommy obeyed.
“So... not dead, then?” Tommy asked once he was finished with his drink.
Buck sat and took his hand again. “Nope,” he confirmed. “Couldn't let you die by the table of fruitcakes.”
Tommy laughed, wincing when a flash of pain came over him. “Thanks for understanding.”
“Of course.”
“What... What about the other guy?”
“He... He didn't make it,” Buck replied. “I guess you two were, um, st- stabbing each other at the same time?”
“Didn't know he had the second knife,” Tommy said. “I'm not upset h- he's dead though.”
“You shouldn't be. He had a note with him. He was there to kill his ex-wife. Daughter too, then himself.”
“They'll... They'll be okay, won't they?”
Buck smiled. “They've already contacted the hospital. They'd like to visit, when you're up for it.”
Tommy looked down at their hands, giving Buck's a squeeze. “A day or two.”
Buck nodded.
They sat in silence for a moment, Buck rubbing his thumb over Tommy's. “I have a question.”
Tommy shook his head. “Here we go.”
“Why were you at the farmer's market? Alone? On a work day?”
“Are you sure I'm not dead? Positive th- this isn't purgatory?”
“Tommy.”
“I may have told a little, tiny fib about whether or not I could get off work early.”
“Thomas Buckley-Kinard!”
“I wanted to get you some flowers!” Tommy defended. “And I- I was gonna get the house all ready. Make you a special dinner, dessert, th- the whole nine yards.”
“See, this is what happens when we lie.”
“We get stabbed on our second wedding anniversary?”
“Exactly.”
Tommy sighed, pouting out his bottom lip at Buck.
“Don't do that!” Buck whined. “I can't deny your pout!”
“It's because I rarely bring it out. Forgive me, Evan?”
“I can't not forgive you after you got stabbed.”
“It would be very unfair,” Tommy agreed.
Another eye roll and Buck stood, leaning over the bed to press a kiss to Tommy's lips. “I love you, Tommy.”
“I love you too.”
“Don't ever get stabbed again, okay?”
“I'll try,” Tommy promised. “Especially not by the damn fruitcakes.”
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thank you guys for pitching in for my bday goal on ko-fi, it means a lot to me <3
<< eleven | 😺 | thirteen >>
Eddie walks up the stairs faster than he should, and has to even out his breathing just like the first time. He barely knocks on the door before it opens, but he did say he'll be up shortly.
"Come in." Steph moves to the side to let him inside. Her hair is down now, and she's changed her jeans to a pair of sweatpants, looking soft and domestic. Having no idea what it does to Eddie's heart.
He rolls on the balls of his feet awkwardly, and spots Dart, blinking at him from his perch on the back of the couch. Steph picks up a small white bottle from the coffee table, and he focuses attention back on her.
"This is a leave-in, so after washing your hair and drying it with a towel, you rub a bit in your palms," she explains. "And like, rub it into your hair?" She frowns, nose scrunching adorably. "Like this." Steph hands him the bottle before showing the motion on her own hair. "And focus on the ends, maybe up to here." Gently pulling on a strand of Eddie's hair, she points to about half of its length. "Then you can let it air dry. It should help with the dry ends," she finishes off, absentmindedly running her hand through his curls.
He hopes it's a him thing, and not just a hair thing.
"Questions?" she asks, her eyebrows raising. Unfortunately, she seems to register her movements too, and drops her hand to curl it around her waist. Fortunately, it accentuates her breasts.
Eddie shakes his head.
"But, Wayne ordered me to keep you company before you go mad from talking to cats." He raises his hands when her eyes squint. "His words, not mine. I think he's just tired of me and wants me to bother someone else for a change. Which," oh no, he's rambling, but it's too late to stop it. "I'm not imposing myself on you, I can go grab some cigarettes from the convenience store. You had a long day at work, you must be tired. Of me, too."
His hand squeezes tighter around the bottle of conditioner. Steph's eyebrows are arched and unimpressed.
"Which one of those was a question?"
Right. Eddie licks his lips, and her eyes follow.
"May I keep you company on this fine evening?" he asks.
"You may," she accepts with a courteous nod and a small smile. Unfolding her arms, she turns to the kitchen, the last bits of tension seeping out. "Beer? Tea?"
"In your presence, milady, simple rain water will suffice." He presses his lips together. It's either rambling or nerdiness, when he's nervous. Usually both.
Steph only shrugs, one hand on the fridge handle as she looks at him expectantly.
"I just ran out, you have to pick something else."
"Beer, please." He smiles, relieved she's playing along.
She uncaps two beers for them and takes a look through her cupboards.
"I'd offer you a snack, but... all I have is popcorn. Do you want popcorn?" She looks over her shoulder at him.
"Salt or butter?"
"I have both."
"Salt, then. Don't like my hands greasy."
He doesn't like his hands greasy in the presence of a fine lady, that is.
While they watch the bag spin in the microwave, Eddie lets his mouth spit out what's been on his mind for the past couple of hours.
"Wayne's cast is going off this Thursday."
"It's been long enough," she nods thoughtfully. "Will he be able to walk?"
"With a crutch, yeah, but he won't be needing me anymore." He picks at the label on his beer. "So I'll be going back to Indy next week. Or this weekend."
"Ah, that's a pity. We just met." She pouts.
The microwave dings, Steph pops it open and the smell of popcorn fills the kitchen. Eddie isn't sure if her words were genuine or just a pleasantry, but she doesn't seem like pleasantries kind of person.
They move to the living room, at least one pair of cat eyes watching them curiously. Dart is still in his spot on the couch and doesn't move a muscle when they sit down.
"When are you visiting next?" she asks, popping a kernel into her mouth. "Thanksgiving?"
"Probably," he says, even though it wasn't his plan. He was going to wait Thanksgiving out and stay a day or two longer for the Christmas break. But if Steph was in any way interested in him, it would be worth the gas money and time spent behind the wheel. "Do you have any plans?"
Steph tucks her legs up on the couch, gets comfortable. The bowl of popcorn rests between them and Eddie can't wait for it to be gone.
"I'd usually go with Robin to see her parents, but I'm trying to wrap up on the salon thing. I want to tell Joyce before the year ends, maybe look at places in Indiana starting in January."
Eddie raises his eyebrows.
"I thought it was a more distant thing."
"Me too," she sighs. "But I'm probably just scared of change, and making it sound like more work than it is."
"Uh, I think opening a salon in a new city is a lot of work," Eddie points out, leaning forward to face her better. "And moving? It's a lot. But hey," he adds quickly, noticing that she has shrunk on herself. "I'll help however I can. Give you a couch to sleep on while you're looking for the perfect place."
She snorts.
"Thanks, I might take you up on that."
It would be weird, having Steph in his small bachelor apartment that he shares with a friend. But the idea sounds too alluring not to let it run his imagination for a second. Maybe she won't have anything to sleep in and Eddie would have to lend her a t-shirt. Something unmistakably Eddie-ish, like a brand telling everyone else to back off.
"I could show you around, too. I know the best pizza and Chinese places and which cafe's to avoid," he offers.
She cocks her head, watching him with a smile, the small but visible lines in the corners of her eyes crinkling.
"Planning a date already?"
Eddie's eyes widen. He kind of was.
But Steph doesn't seem repulsed, she's smiling at him with amusement, completely relaxed on her couch, beer in hand. So he shoots his shot.
"I hope I'll get a few before then," he admits, looking her in the eyes, straight into her soul.
She hums, the smile still present but somehow turning sour.
"When? You're leaving in a few days."
"That's a few days worth of dates," he counters.
"You're gonna sweep me off my feet and leave? That's not nice," she points out.
"I—" Eddie frowns. "Yeah, I know," he deflates. Steph's right, he already feels insane and it would get only worse if he got a proper taste.
She twists in her seat, feet landing on the carpet. He turns with a sigh, ready to be kicked out. He can always try next time, right?
tags: @wheneverfeasible @steddieinthesun @hattsy-likes-pretty-stuff @bumblebeecuttlefishes @phantomcat94
@tartarusknight @tinyplanet95 @steddiefication @estrellami-1 @disrespectedgoatman
@madigoround @tartarusknight @blasvemous @cryptid-system @hiei-harringtonmunson
@hellowhatthehellisgoingonhere @dreamercec @manliest-of-muppets
@bookbinderbitch @marklee-blackmore @icecat
#steddie#crazy cat lady stevie#transfem steve harrington#stranger things#steve harrington#eddie munson#mine#stevie harrington#steddie fanfiction#cw: age gap#fuctacles#steddie fic
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Yes, Rose fucked up. She fucked up interpersonally with the gems and with Greg. And those choices were hers. She should be judged by those actions.
But why exactly do you think she kept those secrets? You think it’s because she’s some manipulative monsters or selfish coward?
No, it’s because she grew up under a living hell under the Diamonds.
Lemme give you some context here, friend;
According to the art books, all four Diamonds are rough around 20,000 years old. To give you an idea how old that is compared to irl history…
There are figures early humans carved from mammoth ivory and spear tip of flint that were made when the bottom of the North Sea was still a mammoth steppe in Doggerland.
Subtract the time Rose spent on Earth after the war (give or take a few centuries) and assuming the craptastic treatment she endured under the Diamonds has pretty much been the norm for all that time, and she had been abused for roughly 10-12,000 years. Rose’s pain predates written language and agriculture.
I. Do not. Give. A single. Chicken. Fried. Fuck. How sad the Diamonds think they were after losing Rose.
Oooooh booo fucking hooo Blue sulked in the middle of a human zoo Rose never even wanted in the first place.
Yellow knew she wanted to spare Earth and wanted to blow it up.
And White’s first action seeing “Pink” return was to send a mind controlled version of her original Pearl to greet her as a power move. To remind her what happens when she doesn’t control her power.
They didn’t mourn Rose. They mourned the person they wanted her to be.
And that’s made all the more clear once they realize Steven isn’t Rose. No moment to think about how Rose being gone was actually their own fault, not the act of some outside gem. Not moment to think about why Rose was so desperate to run away.
“Aww Pink’s gone? Gee that sucks. Welp, time to find a new pink!”
Fuck dude, some people mourn Healthcare CEOs more than the Diamonds actually mourned Rose.
And yet they get that nice fairy tale happy ending where they can be quirky space grandmas who think what they’re doing will ever hope to make up for the suffering they caused.
Meanwhile, Rose’s own loved ones feel like they have to apologize for daring to mention her in a positive light and say they’re making excuses for her.
Steven by the time of Future isn’t facing any gems that are actually a threat (bluebird is a joke character she don’t fucking count). He’s spent 5 seasons demonstrating why it’s better to talk about your feelings and the gems offer to help him at pretty much every turn and yet Steven chooses to forego that in favor of taking everything out on Rose.
The Diamonds have been the instigators who make every worse without fail. They’re the reason Rose came out as such a broken fucking person and yet we’re asked to pass more judgement on her for not being enough of a perfect fucking princess to solve things Steven’s way?
Rose spent her entire goddamn life clawing her way out of that pit of misery but we’re supposed to scoff at her for getting mud on her dress along the way?
What the fuck was the point in showing that Rose spent that lifetime trying to be better to just end it with “maybe her family would be better off if they just stopped thinking about her altogether.”
There’s a fucking reason this stupid fucking fandom took glee in harassing me and friends of mine for not joining them in burning Rose at the stake and it’s because of how Future, either due to time constraints or genuine creative decisions, completely dropped the ball on her.
I still love this show. But I cannot and will not ever watch Future. And if Rose ain’t there to heal, than at least let me take comfort in making the Diamonds hurt.
Sometimes I think about how and why some people had such a *bad* reaction to the end of Steven Universe, specifically in regards to the Diamonds living.
Even though they no longer are causing harm to others and are able to actually undo some of their previous harm by living, some folks reacted as though this ending was somehow morally suspect. Morally bankrupt, even.
And I think it might be because so many of us were raised on a very specific kind of kids media trope:
They all fall to their deaths.
Disney loves chucking their bad guys off cliffs. And it makes sense- in a moral framework where villains *must* be punished (regardless of whether their death will actually prevent further harm or not), but killing of any kind is morally bad for the hero, the narrative must find a way to kill the villain without the protagonists doing a murder.
It's a moral assumption that a person can *deserve* to die, that it is cosmically just for them to die, that them dying is evidence that the story itself is morally good and correct. Scar *deserves* to die, but it would be bad for Simba to kill him. So....cliff. (edit: yes, cliff then hyenas. But cliff first. Lol.)
Steven Universe, whatever else it's faults, took a step back and said "but if killing people is bad, then people dying is bad", and instead of dropping White Diamond off a cliff, asked "what would actual *restorative*, not punitive, justice look like? What would actual reparations mean here? If the goal is to heal, not just to punish, how do we handle those who have done harm?" And then did that.
Which I think is interesting, and that there was pushback against it is interesting.
It also reminds me of the folks who get very weird about Aang not killing Ozai at the end of Avatar. And like, Ozai still gets chucked in prison, so it doesn't even push back on our cultural ideas of punitive justice *that much.* and still, I've seen people get real mad that the child monk who is the last survivor of a genocide that wiped out his entire pacifist culture didn't do a murder.
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31/32 with Seungmin from skz. I’m thinking he does something embarrassing in front of reader, maybe trying to impress them? I imagine him being so shy when trying to flirt for some reason!
idiot | kim seungmin
seungmin x reader
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▶• ılıılıılılıılıılı. mr. angel by tommy newport
notes. i saw a post about someone booking a hotel room in another country and couldn't think of something else
warnings. none
prompts. “You weren’t supposed to laugh!”/“This is, by far, the dumbest thing you’ve ever done.”
“This is by far, the dumbest thing you’ve ever done.”
A few hours prior.
Seungmin was a wreck, opening closing the same application on his phone every few seconds, he sat on your couch waiting for you to come out of your room. After weeks of tucking his tail between his legs, and pushing the date of asking you out, this was finally it… or so he thought. The thing was, you didn’t know it was a date, in his defense, he had really thought that his demand of going out with you, just you two, was clear enough. Apparently, in between his blabbering and messy line delivery, you had mistaken this as a simple friendly hangout. Friendly. That word sent chills down his spine. How had you not realize that none of his feelings for you were just friendly? Sure, he was aloof most of the times, hell some might even think he despises your guts but, it was Seungmin and, anyone who was close to him, knew how his brain worked. He teases what he likes, bothers what he loves, and apparently, he’s also a huge mess when it comes to asking people out.
At least, where the first steps of this new adventure were far from perfect, he knew he had dealt with the entire organisation side of the final product flawlessly. He had managed, calls after a calls, to book you two a table at a nice restaurant that kept popping up online, with only praises and good reviews, nothing too expensive but the food was apparently excellent. Afterwards, he had planned two tickets for this new film you had been talking his ears off about. Really, everything was perfect, so perfect, he hoped you might realize that one doesn’t usually put this much effort in a simple friendly hangout.
Finally, you come out of your room, dressed casually, but by all hell, you could sport a patchwork of ugly cloths and he’d still be in awe of you. He tries to play it cool, nonchalant even as he guides you out of your place, leading you through the streets. Whereas you were relaxed and behaving as usual with him, his eyes kept glancing at his phone to make sure he took the right route to the restaurant… something was up though. It has now been 20 minutes that you’ve been walking, and you swore you passed by the same store twice already. You tried to ask him if it was the right way, but, poor Seungmin all nerves and anxiety kept affirming that he knew what he was doing when quite frankly, he didn’t know shit about why they hadn’t reached the restaurant yet.
At some point though, reason come back to him and he sits on a bench with you, desperately fidgeting with his phone to understand what the deal was. He doesn’t notice when you pull out your own phone out to type in the name of the restaurant. He does notice though when you bark out a short laugh.
“This is by far, the dumbest thing you’ve ever done.”
He blinks twice as he looks at your side profile and he wishes that there wasn’t another stupid thing he had done, but it was useless now as you show him the screen of your phone, pointing to the address. Japan. He had booked a table for a restaurant, in Japan. Was the world against him this much or was he just plain stupid?
“What?” You can’t help but stiffle your laughter as Seungmin’s reaction adds in to the nonsense of the situation. “You weren’t supposed to laugh!” Seungmin is almost offended by your reaction as he furiously refresh the restaurant page, as if by magic the country would change. “And we were supposed to be in a restaurant right now, we don’t always get what we want.” This was perhaps, far more entertaining then if you had actually been in that restaurant. To see Seungmin like this, helpless and dumbfounded was funny in a way. “I swear, I checked a thousand times…” “Maybe you should have checked a thousand time and one more then.” He glares at you then, knowing you were just taking the situation lightly, as you should, it wasn’t even that big of deal but, he really hated himself for messing up everything from beginning to end.
Leaning back on the bench, he checks the tickets for the cinema too, if he had made a mistake for the restaurant reservation, he hopes he hadn’t made one for the movie theatre. What he sees on his screen is something he’ll never tell you. He had booked the film alright, simply, it was for the day before. Luckily his embarrassed tinted cheeks go unnoticed by you in the night as you turn to him, that damn smile still on your face. “So… What had you planned next then?” “Nothing… I planned nothing.” Seems like this dream date of his, have to be postponned.
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#seungmin x reader#seungmin x#kim seungmin#seungmin#stray kids#skz x#skz x reader#stray kids x#stray kids x reader
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tie tying doodles w ramblings on it in tags
#lobotomy corporation#lobcorp#angela lobcorp#benjamin lobcorp#lobotomy corp spoilers#technically? never sure what and what not to tag#its cute.. the idea of benjamin showing her how to tie it. someone else probably dressed her in the first place before she woke up so she#likely didnt know how before. and you know ayin's ass isnt going to do that. besides the tie is reminiscent to benjamin as well#small doodle. wanted to do more i might depending on if i get motivated but her perception would allow her to process it and probably to it#first try. would there be pride? the pride she was able to pick up on such a thing quickly? a promise for later on down the line she would#be able to adapt? perhaps a hope? along with maybe a pride on angelas end for being able to do so. a small joy of able to do it first try.#even if her slower perception granted her a privilege humans didnt. it wasnt so sore of a thing at the moment. the wounds of time and pains#werent as of a all encompasing torrent as the hell she would he sprung into would be. the small joy or pride when she tied it later knowing#the reaction and knowing she got it first try. how capable she was. then for it to fade into monotony and a motion to do. a void of what#used to be there. no one to see and only to remember only to ever remember when she sees the tie that had been so strikingly like his#its like.. the feeling when you were so excited about something maybe you think of being a little silly later. but then it becomes so gutted#and devoid of what used to be there new memories maybe soiling the past experience. only to be left with what a void that you knew had been#filled with a positive light. its not there anymore. 'first try?' what a joke. were now on a try of countless repeats that have lost all#meaning and any ability to even ascribe meaning to.#anyways its only short doodles because im trying to find it in me to make a carmy angela piece and a yesod one rn. little scuffed but i#wanted to draw benj of men and angie#... at least i think she woke up clothed. no damn clue . would make most sense for her to be#it would be a little tortuous if she wasnt. either ayin doing it himself filled with rage and what was created with his own hands that#could never even begin to contain her warm but a mimicry and mockery done by his own two hands#then having to get close and even speak. or order or look at. but if it was in that situation benjamin wouldve done it actually with ayin#just staring through the glass not very respondent as benjamin has to help her into something or tell her what to do. having the man he#followed and was faithful to just... standing there and silent as he tries to help someone confused and only just beginning to become#concious open their eyes for the first time. all in all she was likely clothed before hand. still a bit disconcerting. not even awake or#begining to think at that point all but a body but not even one of flesh but one mechanical and man made - a Doll. given aspects and clothes#benjamin likely gave her a tie at that moment there if she were to be clothed. maybe a small marking of work or pass down?
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You've done this before so this is exclusively self indulgent but can you give your thoughts on DRDT foil theory again haha... I'm enamored by it and think about it daily.
I'll point out as well that there's been a trend regarding which characters are relevant to the chapter's case based on the order of the foils so far.
In chapter 1 it was [Xander, Min, Teruo & Charles] while in chapter 2 it was [Eden, Arei, Nico, Ace] - following this train of logic next chapter's main players would be [Hu, Veronika, Rose, J].
Hu's arc has just started (her beliefs are being challenged), Veronika became worst + Arturo is going to be centered at the start of chapter 3, Rose's arc just started + a money motive would be relevant to her & J's conflict with Arturo is going to be centered at the start of chapter 3.
Feel free to ignore this if you feel it's too repetitive, I just like it when I see people talking about my theory lol.
Well, if the creator of the recap foil theory asks me to talk about it, who am I to deny? It's probably, like, in my top three theories about DRDT, so I'm gonna enjoy talking about it! :D
(Btw I totally get you about enjoying when people talk about your theory. Whenever I see someone mention one of my posts I always go ":O that's me :D" it's great lol)
CW: Murder, electrocution, execution, suicide, self-harm, eating disorders, discrimination against a non-binary person, manipulation, poverty, harmful environments during childhood.
As a quick recap (heh): at the end of the CH1 recap video, the characters are paired up in a certain way. The theory states that they're paired up in a way that represents some of the most important foils in the cast. And... well, it seems to hold up quite well! I'll talk about them here in the order they show up in the recap video.
1) Xander & Min
And what a start! These two are basically eternal foils, with everything about their characters being contrasted with each other in some way or another. From the very first moment they're seen together, in Min's introduction, they immediately start beefing simply due to their respective talents.
The biggest point of contrast comes from their past with education. From Visiting Graves, we know Xander used to be a diligent student like Min, but he stopped when his family died while he was away studying. He's come to the conclusion that the things taught in school are oftentimes kind of useless for most people's lives, and his rejection of the education system kickstarted his rebellion against systemic issues in general.
Min, for her part, actually has a lot of the same views. Her Bonus Episode makes that pretty clear; she doesn't think things like Hope's Peak's history are really all that useful, and feels insecure because she doesn't see the same value in her talent as she does in others. However, Min still wants to maintain her talent, at least in title, seen as her first instinct when the killing game started was to grab an anatomy textbook and start studying it. Meanwhile, Xander dislikes his talent title greatly, as he believes calling him a "Rebel" undermines the stuff he does.
All of this is literally baked into their first interaction, as mentioned before. Xander seems to project heavily on Min upon first meeting her, assuming that she probably has no hobbies or friends if she's the Ultimate Student and judging her for it quickly. Min isn't particularly thrilled over that, given he knows nothing about her life.
Speaking of backstories, there's other points in those where they contrast. Particularly, the involvement of large companies and rich people in said backstories. Duke Spurling did a thing that killed Xander's entire family, which was the inciting incident for Xander officially leaving behind his studious nature. Meanwhile, XF-Ture Tech helped Min's family out of property, but pushed Min into studiousness for the Ultimate Student title; more or less the opposite of what Spurling did for Xander.
The same can be said of their relationship with Hope's Peak, which is elaborated on in the Bonus Episodes. Xander went to Hope's Peak for some kind of ulterior motive-
Unnamed Classmate [BE2]: I think your ability to get back from adversity is really admirable. That determination of yours is admirable. If you set out to do something, then never give up on that, no matter what obstacles may stand in your way. Even if it's risky or against the rules, as long as it's for a good cause... I'll trust that you know to do the right thing. Xander: Yeah, of course. That's why I've come to Hope's Peak, isn't it?
-which we can somewhat confidently assume to be bad for the school given Xander's... Everything. For Min's side, just getting to Hope's Peak was Min's entire goal for the entirety of her childhood, playing right into the hands of the Ultimate Contest for Eminent Students, and thus into the school's hands.
By the way, if you go back and look at what Absolutely-Not-Mai says to Xander, the idea of "bouncing back from adversity" could be connected to Min's whole "mistakes are to be corrected" thing. This one's an insane stretch, though.
For another point, though I don't know much about this particular topic, I find even their designs are opposites in some ways. Although arguably that's more a result of them being foils in general and DRDT having good character design but y'know.
Both of them seem to wear some kind of school uniform, but in totally different ways. Xander does everything he can to stylize his, be it wearing his coat as a cape, or getting a tongue piercing specifically because they weren't allowed and he could hide it, as stated in a Q&A, doing everything he can to fight against this institution. On the other hand, Min wears hers normally, and several Q&A answers clarify that she finds comfort in the colors and style of her uniform. One fights against institutions, the other works withing their systems (Min even wants to be a teacher which is an extension of that idea), you get the point.
Also this plays into the theme of fate because of course it does. Just replace "institutions" with "fate" and you kinda get the point. Xander fights against it, Min accepts it. Or, she accepts the fate of being the Ultimate Student, at least.
Their relationships with other characters, Teruko and David in particular, is another point of foiling. I've brought this up before, but as a recap: Xander betrayed Teruko so she openly hates him even though her real feelings are much more complicated than that, while Min tried to save her only to then panic and try to win the class trial, which causes Teruko to openly hate her even though her real feelings are much more complicated than that. But Teruko takes on Min's philosophy of fixing mistakes in the second trial, which is notable because in the same trial, David calls Min pathetic before his magical girl transformation, only to reveal that he's following Xander's ideals a while later. And while Teruko and David may not be recap foils, they sure are foils in general, so the foiling Xanvid and Terumin duos are formed. Cool!
As a minor point also connected to relationships, I could see the angle that Xander's friendship with David might parallel Min's thoughts on Mai. This one's iffier because anything about Mai is iffy, but I think it's worth mentioning.
The starting point of the Xanvid thing is the fact that they both used to idolize each other, but eventually decide that they should just be friends like any other friends. Cue the whole "foxes and children" quote from The Little Prince that shows up in LGI in the "I hate the things I love..." scene- I don't know how many people can follow what I just said, but I hope the main idea got across, at least.
Xander [1-5]: Enough with these idols or role models, okay? Let's just be friends.
In the same way, everyone loves Mai, but Min's Mai quote is:
Min: An average girl with nothing special at all about her.
Which can kinda be said about Min too, but the whole point of the end of the Bonus Episode is how Min is special to Mai.
Think of David as Mai and Xander as Min. David and Mai are idolized by everyone who knows them (pre 2-11 anyways), but Xander and Min see them as regular people (post 1-5 for Xander), while Xander and Min aren't idolized (by most of the cast at least) but are special to David and Mai respectively. I don't really know if it works perfectly, but it's close enough for me to mention.
You can even try to fit in some kind of point about the theme of cooperation vs competition, though I'll admit it's a bit of a stretch.
Competition is greatly important for Min's character, but she doesn't often go out of her way to help others. She helps when asked, sure, as she does when Surely-Not-Mai asks her to help her study in BE1, or when Eden asks for help baking and the subsequent clean-up. However, there's several scenes where she avoids conflict by reading that anatomy textbook of hers, such as in her introduction and when Arei's yelling at the Baking Squad.
Meanwhile, Xander doesn't really compete on anything with anyone aside the arm wrestling contest (which isn't much of a competition anyways), but he constantly tries to butt into other people's issues. It happens in Min's introduction, in his chat with Nico in 1-5, right before stabbing Teruko, you get the idea. So, he constantly tries to cooperate even without the consent of the person they're trying to cooperate with. Again, a stretch, but kinda works.
All of these foils culminate in Xander's death and Min's murder. Xander, like always, is proactive and acts even with incomplete information:
Xander [1-5]: Then, why did I do this? I don't even know... Why? Just why did you ask me to kill Teruko?
Trying his best to cooperate with an unknown ally to, presumably, hinder the mastermind's plans; fighting against the killing game like he fights against any other system.
But then Min barges in. She was just trying to fix the mistakes of the past, aka cleaning up the remnants of the baking thing. But just like her being randomly sponsored by XF-Ture Tech was in some ways both a blessing and a curse, she once again finds herself in a situation where, depending on how you look at it, she's either in the right place at the right time (to save Teruko) or at the wrong place at the wrong time (because she'll end up dying from this).
Xander attacks, and there's a bit of brain vs brawn thing that happens. I hadn't mentioned that theme before because Xander is intelligent and Min is arguably not the smartest in the cast, but it's true that Xander's physical prowess and Min's intelligence are some of their most notable strengths. This is brought to the forefront when Xander tries to kill Min by overpowering her only for her to outsmart him with the light switch trick.
However, again similarly to how she was pushed into a corner by the XF-Ture Tech contract, Min now finds herself in a position where she must compete with others for her own survival. And not just any form of competition, but a class trial. Once again, Min has to compete under the rules established by an institution, as she did in the UCES. She ultimately gets executed, but kept trying to survive until the very end, fighting for her life the same way she'd been fighting for her future her entire childhood; by trying to give the right answers in a test.
Look, there's probably more foils (because each time I look at these two I find more of them), but I need to stop at some point. These are characters who foil even in their fucking custom weapons for God's sake. Xander's "gun" looks extremely dangerous, when in reality it's nothing but a piece of plastic; and Min's pen looks totally safe, while actually hiding a knife. If I keep looking, I'll keep finding, and I have to talk about 7 other foiling pairs, so I'll keep it at that for this post :v
2) Teruko & Charles
There's plenty to talk about with these two as well! The main point of foiling is their respective character arcs so far.
Charles started out as a prickly and judgemental guy, pushing the others away as he felt superior due to his talent. However, after the events of the first trial, he started opening up a bit more, and hanging out with the others, mainly Whit.
Teruko, for her part, started out friendlier. She made a quick connection with Xander, and we saw her socializing with the elevator scene with Ace and Levi, and the baking squad scene. However, she went the other way after the first trial, pushing the others away to avoid getting attached and trusting no one. She's swinging back to trusting now, but the point stands.
Basically, Teruko and Charles went in opposite character arcs in the first two chapters. In that sense, Charles exists as an early warning to Teruko about the dangers of pushing others away, as the only reason Charles managed to get through the first trial is because Whit trusted him and his hemophobia. So, trust, relying on others, important themes their stories share.
And it's not just the in-killing game arcs, as their backstories also vaguely foil. Charles had a pretty privileged upbringing, while Teruko obviously had a lot more issues with her luck and all. Funnily enough, this includes them having scars they don't properly remember getting. Charles believes the dog bite wound on his arm is a birthmark, while Teruko doesn't know where the scar on her back came from.
Which is what gets us to the theme of memory we got going on. Both of them have memory issues, albeit different ones: Charles has childhood amnesia, Teruko has prosopagnosia. They even both have a brother of indeterminate fate, what with us not really knowing what happened to either "Kyo" or Elliot. Well we know Elliot's dead at least but you get the idea.
Speaking of the Elliot situation, one can tie this pair to a theme I can best define as "challenged preconceptions." Basically the idea that there's preconceptions these two carried into the killing game which are challenged by the events within it. That can technically be said about a lot of characters, sure, but Charles and Teruko have a fair amount of very specific notions which are only begin doubting in the killing game.
For Charles, this would be the existence of Elliot; that's the point I was trying to make with that segue back there. Charles thought he was an only child, but turns out he had a brother at some point.
Charles [2-7]: From birth all the way to the present, there are probably many things that you had taken for granted to be true. Things you never thought to question before, like those frivolous lies about "Santa Claus" or the "Tooth Fairy." Or perhaps less frivolous lies, like the idea that your parents know what's best for you. Once you're given some hitherto unknown information, you may begin piecing together a bigger picture of your past. Things you had accepted as truth your whole life begin to reveal themselves as lies. And once all the pieces are in place, you realize you were blind for never seeing the whole story before.
It's what Charles' numeral in LGI references: "if you doubt, brittle things are broken."
For Teruko, there's a few preconceptions that get challenged over the course of the killing game, but probably the most notable one is the idea that she's doomed to live a horrible life due to her luck.
Teruko [2-16]: I have always said that my misfortune, my personality, the choices I make, everything was all a product of a bad luck that I can't control. That I grew up in such horrible circumstances, so I was destined to grow up to be a terrible person. That everyone else abandoned me, so it's not my fault that I'm alone. I want to say that it's fate's fault, and that I had no choice in the matter. But, even so... Even so... Everyone. Xander, Min, Arei, Ace. Maybe even Levi. Is it my fault that they died? [...] Whether it was the fault of fate, or my fault... I already knew the answer. I had known what the answer was since a long, long time ago.
I think you can kinda see the point.
Their aptitude in class trials can also be mentioned. Although Charles was sorta out of it during the first one, he was definitely pretty good in the second one. And Teruko is far and away the most influential character in trial discussion overall. The fact they're equally matched intellectually speaking helps them play off each other pretty nicely.
Like with Xander and Min, there's probably more to talk about, but that's enough for me in this case.
3) Eden & Arei
The girlies! Arei's playground breakdown very neatly captures a lot of the themes these two foil on. Mainly, the theme of kindness and being a "good person." Arei used to try and be kind, but she was hurt because of it and thus decided to fight back against her sisters through becoming mean. Eden, meanwhile, remains kind and compassionate even through the despair of the killing game. This also plays into the idea of strength; while Arei is physically stronger and more forceful when it comes to getting what she wants, Eden is stronger in her resilience, her ability to remain Silly despite the horrors. Both have their merits, as we see for example when Arei defends Eden from Arturo and when Eden manages to move Teruko in the 2-3 kitchen scene, respectively.
Meanwhile, when we speak of being a "good person", Arei's breakdown of what that means in 2-13 is really all we need to talk about. Eden's seemingly unending patience and kindness is not what's truly needed to be a "good person", as even she must have made mistakes and hurt people in the past (cue fork CG). Rather, being a "good person" just means trying to change for the better whenever you mess up, represented by Arei. Not to say Eden's not a good person; she is, but you don't need to be like her to be "good"- you get the point.
In the same ballpark, we have the theme of friendship, what it means to be friends. In fact, Arei's little 2-10 reconciliation speech connects both this theme and the last.
Arei [2-10]: Being a good person means doing nice things. So if there's anything you need from me... Whether it's defending you from scary jerks like Arturo or baking some stupid fucking cake... I'll do it. I promise. I'll do anything for you. Okay? Eden: I... Arei: Because... because... Because that's what friends do.
Arei believes friendship to be all about doing things for the other person, protecting each other. This is pretty central to her character, seeing as "Because that's what friends do" is her secret quote. Eden brings up the same thing when acused of murder.
Eden [2-14]: I just wanted to help Arei.... I didn't kill her... Teruko: You know I can't just take your words at face value, Eden. Eden: Please, Teruko... You're my friend, aren't you? Friends help each other.... So please, help me...
So. That.
One could also connect Eden's theming around new beginnings (birthday right before New Year's, favorite color is daffodil yellow and daffodils represent new beginnings, her name references the Garden of Eden which comes from a story about the beginning of the world) to Arei's redemption arc, as Arei gets a "new beginning" in the kindness she once showed. This even ties into Arei's death thematically, as Arei not only dies trying to be a good friend to Eden (tying into the theme of friendship), but she specifically dies in the playground, a place connected to childhood. So we once again get "new beginnings" by connecting her place of death to her origin point and the time when she was kind, if you get the idea.
Again, probably more here, and for this one in particular I'm not even sure I really scratched the surface, but I'll call this good enough for now.
4) Nico & Ace
So these two have a ridiculous amount of beef and that's not really new. Even their very talents have foils; both work with animals, but Nico loves all animals, while Ace hates them, especially horses.
Ace [1-5]: Animals are fucking lame, anyways. Seriously, they suck hard. If someone told me their cat was acting up or something, I’d give it a good punt.
But the main point of contrast is the theme of agency and taking control of their situation.
Ace’s thoughts on this are expressed quite clearly in his secret quote, “I don’t know what to do with myself anymore.” He feels he lacks control over his talent (forced into it despite being deathly afraid of horses), over his feelings (obvious), over his relationships with the cast, etc. And so he tries to feel in control by bullying Nico, especially when he gets their secret so he can try to blackmail them. Not that Ace doesn’t bother Nico before that, but it does get worse in CH2. He repeatedly does self-destructive things just so he can feel in control of something, be it killing Arei because he feels everyone hates him and he has no way of fixing that before he dies, or trying to find reasons to get mad at Levi so he can try to control his feelings towards him when they become inconvenient for the whole murder thing.
Nico, for their side, keeps having their agency undermined by people around them. They get pushed by both David and Ace into revealing their secret before they were ready, Hu keeps defending them even after they ask her not to, they keep getting spoken over during the trial, etc. You can even extend that to stuff like feeling like they have to present as a man at the start of the series because the people from their backstory don’t respect their identity, or more minor events in the killing game like Ace reproaching them for just… wandering around.
Nico [1-8]: The motive was on my mind. So I was nervous. I tend to pace around when I’m nervous. That’s not a problem, right? Ace: Seriously? You were ‘wandering around’ all alone? You’re definitely the killer!
Basically, Nico struggles to assert themselves a lot of the time, which means they end up going from 0 to 100 pretty fast on the whole “murder Ace” plan.
That’s how we get to the theme of victims/perpetrators, or rather, how sometimes things are more complicated than that dichotomy. The theme is explored throughout their relationship, with Nico originally being a victim of Ace's bullying, then Ace being a victim of Nico's attempted murder, then Ace being a perpetrator of actual murder, you get the idea. Pretty straightforward there.
Going further, this also connects to the theme of forgiveness and apologizing, which comes up a few times in the trial. Nico doesn’t apologize to Ace after explaining their plan because they still hate him and know Ace isn’t going to forgive them, so they see no point in doing it. This parallels how Ace doesn’t expect anyone to forgive him for killing Arei, though with Nico, the question of forgiveness is currently open-ended, as there’s several characters who either have shown a willingness to ignore their crimes (Hu) or don’t know what to think of them (Rose). Basically, Nico has a chance to move past their mistake, which Ace isn’t getting.
And as usual, Ace’s death is the culmination of the themes his character embodies. He kills Arei, who is connected to him via the theme of bullying. He does it out of fear of death, because he feels he doesn't have enough control over his life to avoid getting killed by the enemies he made by insulting them all. Arei was on the path of forgiveness with Eden, which Ace cut short. Ace replicates what Nico did to him because Ace’s murder is the conclusion to everything that’s happened to him in the killing game, with everyone hating him and all that. You get the point. Hopefully.
For a relatively smaller theme, we can bring up dissatisfaction with their body. Nico is non-binary, meaning they’re presumably not very happy with the sex they were born with. Meanwhile, Ace has an eating disorder, not to mention that he always wears gloves for some reason (hiding his hands), and he wears heels to be taller because he’s shorter than he’d like, even though he’s also tall for a jockey. Can’t win, this guy.
Again, probably more to talk about, but I’d like to get this post out at some point this year :v
5) Hu & Veronika
You mention in this ask that, since the first two recap foil pairs were important for CH1 and the third and fourth were important for CH2, it's possible that Hu-Vero and Rose-J could be important for CH3. That's certainly an interesting observation! We could also extend that to CH4, I guess, but that's a bit too far for me to talk about... so I won't! I will talk about CH3, though.
I'll get to Rose-J in their section, but I could definitely believe that Hu-Vero could be important for CH3. There's a fair bit of setup for both of them going through some kind of arc in the chapter, which you kinda mentioned in the ask (Hu has to deal with the fallout of the Nico situation, while Vero's reactions to Levi's near death and Ace's execution imply she's getting worse), and there's already a narrative connection between them through their pact about the secrets in the second trial. Not to mention that Vero's always given people CH3 death vibes, which I get even if I'm hesitant to say that myself.
But that's just speculation. What about the foils we already have? Well, the main point of contrast is their reaction to conflict, especially when it comes to a specific person they're particularly interested in. Hu always tries to mediate conflict and defend the people she considers good, mostly seen in her white knighting of Nico all throughout CH2. Veronika's the opposite. She enjoys watching conflict, stirring the pot with her psychoanalysis, and particularly enjoys whenever Arturo does some bullshit. Basically, Hu goes "I can fix them" while Vero goes "I can make him worse." Classic dichotomy there.
Then there's the matter of change, metamorphosis even. Hu’s character is designed around it, with her butterfly hairpin and the fact her name means “still lake”, as water is often connected to rebirth. And we know she has changed, from the hopeless child who attempted suicide three times into someone who seems quite attached to her life, if her secret quote is anything to go by.
Hu [Profile Source Code]: I want to pay for what I’ve done. But even then, I still want to live.
Much in the same way, we know Veronika in present is not the same person she used to be years ago. She mentions having been quite outdoors-y back in the day, some of that bleeding into her excitement about the playground, and of course her motive secret is that she used to self-harm, but no longer does.
And yes, the theme of self-harm/suicide is another one where these two foil, which has even come up with their motive secret pact in CH2. We don’t have many details on that yet, though.
That said, the reasons for why they harmed themselves seem to be quite different, which is noteworthy. Although we don’t know what exactly led Hu to attempt suicide, we do know that nowadays she desperately wants to be relied on so she feels useful, meaning it’s very likely her suicidal tendencies came from a feeling that her life had no meaning, or something equally depressing. Meanwhile, provided her secret is to be believed, Veronika just hurt herself when she was bored. Definitely very different reasons for self-harm there.
Looking over your original post on this (have I mentioned I’ve been cross-checking my own thoughts with your own? ‘Cuz I’m doing that), you also bring up maturity, which is indeed an aspect in which they foil. Hu’s character profile states she acts motherly, and the highlighted word in her subtitle quote (“Can you please try and act with a little more maturity?”) is, in fact, maturity. Meanwhile, Vero has childish tendencies, most evidently seen in the scene where the playground gets introduced.
There’s definitely a lot of things about these characters which we currently don’t know about, so I’m sure this section could get significantly larger in the future. But for now, this feels decent enough for me.
6) Rose & J
According to the extension of the original theory stated in this ask, J-Rose might be an important pair for CH3. And I can definitely see that! Rose's mental state has deteriorated a lot, so CH3 is primed to be a turning point for her character. Your point about Arturo being important at the start due to Levi's condition, and that possibly leading to attention being drawn to J, is also very reasonable. Not to mention that, as you seem to be aware of given what you said in the ask, DRDT's motives have so far aligned pretty well with the THH motives, with the first one being videos of their family and the second being secrets. This is important because, if that pattern continues, the third motive might be related to money. And one of the themes in which these two foil is wealth and poverty, which we'll get to in a moment, so it's entirely possible this pair could be quite relevant as a result of that. Not a bad idea in the slightest.
In any case, this is another set that mainly foils through backstory, at least for now. Rose was born into poverty, J was born into wealth. Rose tried to do everything she could for her family, J tries to distance herself from her mother as much as she can. Some parallels can be drawn between the influence the Spurling Foundation has on Rose’s life and the things Mariabella tries to force J to do. I can’t recall if this actually got mentioned in the series itself yet, but based on the childhood drawings post, we can tell J was probably forced to wear dresses despite disliking “girly” things per her profile, and from there infer that she was likely forced into doing a lot of things she didn't want to do.
These backstories can additionally connect to the ever prevalent theme of fate. Rose has accepted her fate, in a sense, believing that she’ll never escape her contract with the Spurling Foundation (see: her secret quote, “In the end, the only thing I can do is watch my wretched life go on”). On the other hand, J constantly rejects her fate by going against her birthright and hiding that she’s a Rosales (see: her secret quote, “Please don’t call me your daughter ever again”).
This is literally baked into their designs btw. Rose’s apron is stained all over, as if to signal she’s stained by the mistakes of her past, while J wears a hoodie as if to hide her identity as much as possible. Notably, J’s shirt actually has a paint splatter design, so she literally is hiding the stains (which in her case would be her last name) that Rose doesn’t bother covering up.
(Btw while I was looking at their designs for this I noticed J’s hoodie has two zippers, which threw me off a lot lmao. Apparently those are a real thing, but it still caught me off guard and I wanted to mention it lol)
On the topic of design, why do they wear the same shoes?
(Rose's on the left, J's on the right)
Like, Rose’s are a bit less saturated and maybe a bit more green than blue, but that’s the only difference I can see. I don’t think there’s any other pair of pairs of shoes that look this similar in the cast. Whit and Arei’s are similar to these, but they have a few different details. I don’t even think this is a foil thing I think Rose and J just have very similar taste in shoes. I find this amusing.
Anyways. Their talents are artistic.
…Yep, that’s the parallel! Admittedly, it does come up a bit, with J saying the decor looks new during the prologue, and Rose saying she could figure out a few things about the building if she could analyze the paint on the wall. They be detective-ing and stuff.
Arguably, the theme of betrayal can also be brought up, though it’s very minor. Rose got betrayed by Nico, who used her turpentine for their attempt on Ace. And something like that kinda happened to J around the same time, as she dragged Teruko into a dressing room to avoid Arturo and got a knife to her throat for the troubles. It barely counts, but given Teruko is one of the only people J seemed to genuinely like before that point, I’d say the situations are similar enough to mention, if nothing else.
Leaving it off there!
7) Arturo & Levi
Let’s get the obvious one out of the way. Their talents are aesthetic related, be it related to people’s physical appearance or the clothes they wear. These talents connect to some of the other themes of their characters, such as Arturo’s obsession with beauty and Levi “styling himself” as a good person by doing things good people do, if that makes sense.
Then there’s the other big one; their family situation. Arturo’s home life was likely pretty bad, which we can infer from how desperate he seemed to get the hell outta dodge; and his sister committed suicide because Arturo left. Levi also left his family behind, although in his case he says everyone was a “bad influence” on everyone. Plus, he directly killed his father for one reason or another. We did get to see how Arturo felt about Levi’s nonchalance about the death of his father in the second trial, and that furthers their foiling.
Arturo [2-13]: How could you simply *forget* that you murdered your own family member?
Yeah that.
Going back to the talents, there’s some contrast between how they got them. Arturo studied from a very young age and for years to become a Plastic Surgeon just as he entered adulthood, while Levi admits to being relatively new to fashion. They both kinda use their talents to escape their past in some way (it was part of Arturo’s plan to get the hell away from his home and Hope’s Peak is the reason Levi was never convicted for his murders), just that one had a little more planning behind it.
Then there’s the matter of protection. Arturo repeatedly resents the idea that because he has some medical training, he has to be the cast’s doctor every time someone gets injured, and panics when he’s asked to do something as serious as saving Levi’s life.
Arturo [2-16]: I–! I’m not that kind of surgeon! I’ve told you, over and over, I have no experience with saving lives!
Levi, conversely, actively wishes to protect the others, seen for example when he attacked MonoTV in the Prologue and when he jumped in front of Teruko right before she got shot at. It’s even clarified in the subtitle quote of his profile (“I will do my utmost best to make sure that you all are safe”). Levi likes to protect others so they see him as a “good person”, which segues nicely into a more vague theme of categorizing important people in some way. Levi wishes to be seen as a good person and thus is quite interested in those he considers good (eg Eden), while Arturo is only interested in talking to beautiful people. It’s very vague and I don’t have much to say about it, especially since we don’t know exactly where Arturo’s obsession with beauty comes from, but it’s there.
Speaking of that, another point of comparison is the way both of them seek the approval of one specific person in the cast. For Arturo, it’s J because of her mother. For Levi, it’s Ace because of what happened in the first trial. They do it in quite different ways, but it is a thing that happens, and the differences help highlight the main narrative points these plot points bring to the table.
I’m calling that good enough!
8) Whit & David
We sure left a pretty interesting one for last. This is probably one of the ones I’m the least clear on, mostly because both Whit and David are sorta unclear characters. However, there are still a few interesting things I can bring up.
Let’s start with the theme of idolization of the dead, because it’s quite literally what Whit’s secret quote references.
Whit [Profile Source Code]: We tend to idolize the dead.
Whit idolizes his mother, and thus tries to be like her in any way he can. He dyes his hair blond, he completely ignores the fact she’s dead, you know the drill. Meanwhile, David idolizes Xander. Take a pick from any of his 2-12 lines or any of the Xander related LGI bullshit to see what I mean by that.
Though, speaking of family members, Diana Chiem. Given we have no idea what the deal with her is yet, I won’t speak too much on it. But if you’ve watched my Vivisection of the David MV, you might know that there’s a theory brought up there that Diana may have died during Hope’s Peak time and that David’s started saying she never existed when that happened. The link sends you to that section of the video. It’s kinda insane, but there’s some basis for it, and it would create a pretty clear connection between Diana and Elizabeth (Whit’s mom) so I’m bringing it up.
Then there’s the theme of hiding/avoiding sad topics and the like. David is obviously not as happy with his life as he presents himself as, at least for most of the story, while Whit has a history of horrendously avoidant behavior when it comes to anything that’s even remotely negative.
David does occasionally talk about heavier topics, but always behind some kind of persona. Either as the inspirational speaker who takes on a leadership role in CH2 (see: revealing his family history of depression (which I think is true, even if he probably never thought that was actually his secret), comforting Arei in the playground) or as the cartoonishly evil person he pretends to be immediately after his magical girl transformation (see: “Arei was a weather spell” line). He’s seemingly a bit more candid when it comes to Xander in 2-12 for a bit, but then he mostly reverts back to just being an asshole most of the time, other than a few outbursts of genuine emotion (funnily enough, one of them being David shouting at Whit to take things seriously). Meanwhile, Whit (in my opinion) doesn’t seem to have a persona, per say; he’s just kind of an unserious person who repeatedly uses humor and other tactics to distract from the Horrors. He’s a deeply strange person, but that’s kinda just who he is.
Then there’s- say it with me everyone- the theme of fate. David believes people can’t change, that they’re fated to remain the same no matter what happens during their life. He’s made that stance relatively clear. Whit, for his part, has a much more optimistic view on humanity and the like, as he tells Teruko.
Whit [2-3]: Charles… No, everyone here… we might act callously, but we’re all only human. We're all real people with our strengths and weaknesses. You included, Teruko. Just like Charles, even if you’re acting cold, there’s still a part of you that’s good–
(And yes, “we’re all only human” can be contrasted with the whole “David doesn’t really feel human” thing from LGI and Tally 5)
Thus, his connection to fate is actually something that hasn’t been talked about in the main series yet, but rather comes from his character profile. All it takes is noticing the repeated references to luck and thing that are “guaranteed” (aka fated) to happen, and you can kinda piece it together from there.
Whit [Profile]: It’s said that if you get the Ultimate Matchmaker to find you a romantic partner, you’re guaranteed to have a happy and stable relationship for life. Unfortunately for Whit Young, he seems to lack all luck when it comes to finding a relationship himself.
And since that profile talks about his talent, I'll use it as a segue to look at similarities between Matchmaker and Inspirational Speaker. Both are talents based around influencing and advising people on how to achieve happiness, either in their love life or their… life life. Thus, both require some level of understanding on how people think and act, which manifests in Whit’s self-proclaimed intuitive nature and David’s confidence in his beliefs when it comes to people not changing and all that.
And… yeah I’m gonna say I’m okay with that for now.
-
Wow, that was quite a bit, now wasn’t it! And it still feels like I could find more if I thought about it long enough, but I hope this was enough for you. Thanks for the ask! The DRDT cast is really fun to talk about, though, so the excuse to do so is always welcome :D
#drdt#danganronpa despair time#ask#david chiem#teruko tawaki#eden tobisa#ace markey#levi fontana#min jeung#arturo giles#veronika grebenshchikova#j rosales#nico hakobyan#whit young#charles cuevas#drdt analysis#arei nageishi#rose lacroix#hu jing#xander matthews
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Flirting For The Mission (Luffy, Sanji, Zoro)
_____ Pairings: Luffy x Reader; Sanji x Reader; Zoro x Reader Summary: You go undercover and flirt for information, your boyfriend doesn't particularly like it. Warnings: Angst, Fluff, Comfort, Harassment, Unwanted Touching/Kissing [One Piece Masterlist] _____
- Luffy -
The man in front of you is charming, or at least that's what he claims as he talks to you. "Women just can't seem to resist me it seems-" You force yourself not to sigh and not to leave your place next to him as you try to remind yourself what is at stake. Your crew was undercover again, on an island full of powerful enemies, and half of you had gotten captured. In desperate need of information, you had volunteered to flirt with this man, but you hoped the grimace on your face had contorted into a believable smile.
Fortunately for you, this man is so in love with himself he barely seems to notice, but unfortunately for you, it means you have to try a bit harder to get him to spill the information for you. You lean closer tilting your head in mock interest and you force a laugh from your throat at a tasteless joke he spills. He looks up and meets your gaze, eyes sparking in what seems to be surprise and desire; maybe he had finally looked at you properly instead of getting lost in his rants about himself.
A short distance away, Luffy, Zoro and Nami watch from a distance. Unfortunately for you, Nami had already been recognised by the enemy earlier on and so she hadn't been able to take your place, more required to keep a low profile. She was eying you carefully whilst Zoro indulged in drinks and Luffy indulged in the meal placed in front of him. In all honestly, Luffy had been so distracted by the prospect of food he had barely registered the plan that was actively taking place.
"Numi whe-re's [y/n], 'might be hungfy foo!!"
An irk mark rises on Nami's forehead as she hears Luffy's words muffled with the plates of food he devours. "She's trying to get us information, idiot! Were you even paying attention to the plan?!" She whisper-shouts to her Captain who tilts his head in utter confusion, hands not stopping as he continues to reach for food. "Reaflly? Where?" He swallows another plate-full harshly as he grabs a piece of meat. Nami nods her head in the direction of you.
You had leant even closer to the man in front of you, to the point where you were reaching for his hand and causing him to flush red at the proximity. You smiled prettily and gazed up and through your eyelashes, your dress revealing soft flesh that the man couldn't help but admire. He whispers something in your ear that has light laughter fill the air, though Luffy only thinks of the fact that it sounds more strained than usual. Your Captain doesn't know why a sudden twisting feeling erupts within him at the sight of you and him.
"Wow, so you're a commander of this lot, are you?" You say in what you hope is a teasing tone, playing with the man's hands in what you hope is a believable flirt. You nod to the others who are at the bar where you and some of your crew reside; at the men who enjoy their drinks and their meals. "Impressive, isn't it sweetheart? You know, we even captured some of the Strawhat crew this morning. They're nothing compared to our strength-" Finally, a glint of a true smile makes its way onto your face at his words. "Is that so..."
Back at the table, Luffy pouts and suddenly and surprisingly to Nami, slows the pace at which he eats as he watches you. "Why's she there with him?" Nami sighs deeply, though she looks proudly at the way you seem to be getting them the information they so require. "I told you, she's getting information. We need to find out where they're keeping Sanji and the others." Luffy's frown remains on his face. "Why can't we just beat them up?" Nami keeps her eyes trained on you. "Because we don't want unnecessary fighting-"
Her words seem to die on her tongue however as she witnesses a sight she wishes she didn't have to.
You had been about to leave the man in front of you, having got the information you required. But, in your distraction and excuses, you hadn't seen as he leant forward, and suddenly his lips were on yours. Freezing in utter shock, you pushed him back and away as bile rose within you. You see a flash of his confusion before all of a sudden he is flung from the seat in front of you, your boyfriend standing from his seat with an outstretched fist in the air.
Steam seems to unravel from Luffy's skin, his eyes sharp with an anger you have only seen in battles. He pulls his arm back to him from where he has punched the man who had harassed you. "Hey, what do you think you're doing to [y/n]!!" The man you had just taken information from was now unconscious, but his subordinates took notice of your boyfriend's actions. "Hey, it's Strawhat Luffy!!" Zoro takes it as a cue to retrieve his swords but it is for naught as Luffy goes on a rampage, fists flying along with the bodies of men.
You look on in shock until Luffy finally finishes and makes his way to you. "Luffy I-" But before you have the chance to continue, he has connected his own lips to yours, making your words falter in your mouth. When he lets go, Nami and Zoro are looking at you dumbfounded as Luffy grins at you. "There, all better." You blink in utter surprise until a soft, true smile reaches your face, causing Luffy's insides to churn in warmth. "Thank you, Luffy." Your boyfriend grins wider, satisfied with your contentedness.
"No more kissing for information next time! We can just beat them up!"
You continue to smile and try not to roll your eyes.
"... okay Luffy."
- Sanji -
"You expect me to stay here while that no-good, brainless, revolting, bastard touches my [y/n]-chan so carelessly?!"
Zoro's teeth clenched together in blunt irritation at the crew's cook who looks like he is about to explode from the utter rage that fills him. "Yes, now would you control yourself, damn cook?!" Sanji's anger remains on his face, fire building in his eyes at the nonchalant expression on Zoro's face, vastly contrasting his own. "Get out of my way!!" Sanji tries to side-step the swordsman who pulls out two of his swords. "She said she can handle it!"
There is then a flurry of movements as Sanji and Zoro attack each other, legs kicking and swords slicing. They continue only for a short moment, however, as Sanji hears your light laughter from within the building they wait for you outside. The two men pause, looking into a window and at the elaborate party that takes place from within it. As Zoro looks for potential threats, Sanji's eyes instantly go to you.
You are adorned in an utterly beautiful dress that elegantly glides across the space in which you walk side-by-side with a man you try to pry information from. Your group - the Sanji, Zoro, [y/n], group - had come to this Island later than other members of the crew after being separated. However, you had all learnt that Luffy and the others had been captured, resulting in the need to know exactly when and where. The place you were at now was large and full of enemies, so discretion was necessary, thus you volunteered to flirt with one of the executives in charge, much to Sanji's dismay.
Sanji's heart jolts in his chest as he looks at you from outside. How can you be so beautiful? You were like a goddess, an angel. But inside, Sanji felt as though he was also thrown into the pits of hell. The man you talked to was old and rich and completely enamoured by you it seemed. Your flirts and charm were working, as the man seemed entranced by the younger woman on his arm, showing such keen interest in him; Sanji's woman.
"So, powerful man, large mansion, elaborate party, what's the occasion?" You look up with sharp eyes glinting hypnotically; the older man is no match for you. "Well, we captured the Strawhat Crew this morning, if you could call that a source for celebration. Especially their Captain, though his bounty would only be enough to pay for this one party." You smile and let out light laughter, the sound like ringing bells to the man next to you, but it sounds strained to your boyfriend who listens in.
"Care for a drink?" The man holds out a glass of champagne, and you reach for it, but his hands linger and pull you closer to him so you are flush against his side. You force away the sick feeling in your chest and fight to keep the smile on your face at the sudden proximity of him against you. "Thank you," you murmur, as an uncomfortable feeling erupts within you. But you remind yourself you are so close, finally having heard the utterance of your Captain's presence here on this island. Your thoughts, however, are unlike Sanji's.
"That slimy bastard!"
Sanji's anger erupts with such vigour, that he is practically clawing at the glass he looks through, causing Zoro to have to push him back and away from the visibility of those inside. "Have you lost your mind?!" Zoro basically shouts at the cook, but Sanji retorts just as quickly. "Have you?! That's my girlfriend in there-" Zoro tries not to slice off the head of his crewmate, not understanding why he finds it so hard to let you just do what you need to do.
Lucky for him though, amid Sanji's incoherent rambling you have finished your task and were running up to them. "Hey, guys!! I got the information!" Sanji instantly freezes his words and turns, whilst Zoro finally lets his headache ease. "Finally-" "My Love!!" Sanji turns to you instantly, heart in his eyes at the sight of you still adorned in your dress. His hands however then reach for yours, suddenly as serious as his sudden happiness had come.
"Are you okay, love?" You smile gently at the concern that brims in his gaze but you nod easily, finding comfort in the presence of your boyfriend. "I'm fine, but I think we need to go quick before he notices I haven't just gone to the bathroom." Sanji seems to tense once more at the remembrance of the man and how he had touched you, but you seeing that, gently kiss his cheek before guiding him away. "Come on!" Sanji can't seem to say no to you as he nods hesitantly, all the while Zoro grumbles under his breath about how the show of your love has him nauseated and confused.
"Don't pull that lovey-dovey shit while I'm around-"
"Shut up Marimo!"
- Zoro -
"... I don't like this."
Zoro's voice was low as he eyed your figure by the bar, teeth gritted against the other. You were adorned in a beautiful black dress, one you know that he loves, one the man in front of you is enjoying a bit too much. "She'll be fine, she can handle this." Nami rolls her eyes at your protective boyfriend and the permanent frown on his face. He could trust you in battles to take down a thousand men, but not one at this bar who looks to you in clear desire.
"Why couldn't you do this?" Zoro sharply retorts, grip tightening against his bottle of sake to the point where it creaks beneath his fingers. "[y/n] knows these people, and you know we need to keep a low profile if we want to find where they're keeping Luffy and the others." Nami sighed as she thought of the crew who had somehow become captured again by powerful enemies. They needed information, and you were their best bet; it was the best plan they'd got.
Zoro stays silent to Nami's words, eyes not wavering from yours. He can see how you force a smile, hands lingering on the arms of the man in front of you flirty. You batted your eyelashes and laughed, making Zoro's insides churn. He tries to control his emotions and his haki that threatens to spill out from within him, cursing the way you have him so wrapped around your finger. He takes a rough swing of his beverage and continues to brood in the low lighting of the room next to Nami.
You, on the other hand, are getting bored beyond your mind listening to this man talk to you about his role on this vast Island controlled by pirates. The only reason you knew anything of these pirates was because their Captain had taken a liking to you many years ago, before you joined Luffy. But now you see how lucky you were that you rejected his advances to join such a revolting crew. The man in front of you reeks at the proximity you both share and his hand is coming dangerously close to your upper thigh.
"We actually captured a bunch of rookie pirates tonight, the crew of some idiot with a straw hat." The man continuously seems to lose himself to the alcohol in his grasp, but your heart jumps at the mention of your Captain's name. Finally. But just as you are about to get him to expand, that is when his lingering hand finally grasps for the flesh of your upper thigh, his yellowed teeth flashing beneath a sickening smirk. "So, sweetheart-" His words are cut short with the sound of shattering glass.
"Zoro!" Nami whisper-scolds the swordsman and tries to tug him back to his seat to very little avail. "That bastard..." The shattering of glass had been from Zoro's bottle of sake, its contents now spilt upon the table and his unrest causing many eyes to turn to them. But Zoro doesn't care anymore. All he sees is the uncomfortable expression on your face, the grimace that you try to contort to a smile, the hands of a man that isn't his on your figure; the woman he's meant to protect. He witnesses you try to pry back the attention of the man as you lean close to him, making him sick.
"Zoro, come on, please!" Nami continues to whisper as eyes still linger on her and the swordsman. Zoro finally turns to meet eyes with the navigator and her touch falters on his shirt as she looks at the deadly glint in his eyes. Zoro knows what is at stake, but isn't used to being forced to stay put when you are so uncomfortable. He knows what is at stake, but at what cost? At least on battlefields, he can step in if he deems it necessary. He grits his teeth defeatedly and sits back down, eyes now trained on the table to try to control himself.
It feels like eons when you finally make your way back to them.
"Okay, I know where they are we can go now!" Zoro's eyes snap upwards to meet your warm gaze, before travelling behind you to the man asleep on the bar table, most likely your doing. His hand itches for his sword to go and make sure that when the man wakes, he will have no wretched hands any longer, but he recedes. "Let's go," Zoro's voice is short and sharp and he avoids your gaze. Nami rolls her eyes once more at his attitude as you give her a questioning glance, but she shrugs in response as you go to lead them to the crew.
Only a few moments pass when Nami goes to find the keys to where the crew are confined and you go to Zoro who leans against the wall of the room you are yet to enter. "Zoro," you murmur as his gaze reluctantly meets yours. "Are you mad? Look, it was all just to get information, you know I wasn't flirting with that guy on purpose I-" Zoro cuts you off sharply, as he eyes the way your eyebrows furrow together and he realises his anger of the revolting man had seemed like anger towards you.
"I know. I trust you."
Your eyes widen in surprise, and even more so when a slight flush reaches the tips of his ears. Your surprise then morphs into a sigh and a smile lingers on your face as you realise he had just been worried for you, and most likely trying not to commit murder of the man you had to manipulate for information. "If you want some consolation, I did give him a good punch to the ribs before he was knocked out." You whisper as you reach for his hand that had been clenched into a fist. It instantly unravels at your touch as he allows you to hold it and you guide it to the side of your thigh where the man had touched you.
Zoro's eyebrows seem to furrow, but he seems to concede to your words as he traces your figure, trying to eliminate the man's touch from your skin. "That's my girl." You grin as you look up to him when Nami sprints back to you, a hoard of men on her heels. "[y/n]!! Zoro!! Deal with them!!" In her grasp is the key to your crew's confinement and Zoro smirks as he readies his swords, seemingly more at ease now that you are next to him again.
"Mind if I take care of them?"
"By all means."
#x reader#reader insert#fem reader#fanfic#fanfiction#one piece zoro#one piece x reader#one piece sanji#one piece luffy#monkey d luffy#straw hat pirates#one piece x y/n#one piece x you#luffy x y/n#luffy x reader#luffy x you#zoro x reader#zoro x you#sanji x reader#sanji x you#sanji x y/n#strawhats x reader#straw hat luffy#straw hat crew#straw hat nami#one piece strawhats
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Fic for @carlyraejepsans bday! so of course it is soriel <3 (no warnings rated G pre-canon)
---
“Knock knock.”
“...Oh. Who’s there?” the door lady’s voice came a beat too late. Was she setting up a counter-joke?
“Guest.”
“Guest who?”
Nope, nothing out of the ordinary now. Maybe she sounded a little tired. Had she just been dozing off?
“If you opened this door, ya wouldn’t have to.”
The joke only got a modest chuckle. Did it hit too close to home? Well, he had been hittin’ his knuckles on her home…
Nah, there was no point in overthinking it. Every knock-knock joke was about doors. She would’ve ghosted him a long time ago if she’d been worried about that.
He rested his skull back against the purple stone and closed his eye sockets. Heck, he might doze off too if he got too cozy like this. It wouldn’t be the first time. Almost always, she was still here when he woke up, whether that was in five minutes or five hours. Which was interesting, since she definitely didn’t stay at the door constantly—there were days when a whole shift passed without an audience to his jokes.
So why did she wait for him? He hoped it wasn’t because she worried—nah, it was probably just so she could have the last laugh.
She wasn’t laughing now. Or saying anything. Had he been the one to space out this time?
“Who’s there?” he tried asking.
“........I’m sorry, my friend.”
“I’m sorry, my friend, who?”
A sigh filtered through the door. He almost imagined he could feel the breeze of it.
“I’m sorry, my friend who has been so kind as to attempt to cheer an old lady who is currently beyond cheering. I should have known better than to visit today.”
A light thud shook the stone behind Sans’s back. Her skull thumping against the door?
“Kind of a long punchline, but I’ll let it slide,” he said as she seemed to slide lower down. “Knock knock.”
“My friend—”
“Great, you already know who’s there.” He wished he could look her in the eye while he said this, or squeeze her shoulder, or… heh.
Bones weren’t supposed to be this soft.
“So the knock-knock jokes ain’t cutting it today. Eh, that’s life. Can’t bring the house down every time.” He shrugged. She’d be able to hear his jacket brush the stone, he was pretty sure. “Hope I’m not bringing you down, though. Believe it or not, I can shut up.”
“It is not you. Of course it is not you.” She sighed.
He hadn’t thought it was, but it was good to get confirmation. That meant he could stand to push a little harder.
Not too hard, though. It was a delicate balance they hung on these rusted hinges.
“Yeah, ‘course. You wouldn’t’ve come out if you didn’t want to have some bad laughs, right?”
A pause. Without sound, she might as well be nothing at all. He tried not to dwell on that, on sleepless nights—how easy it would be to lose her forever, and never know why.
(The sinking feeling that it’s happened before.)
“Either that, or… you wanted to talk about it?” he tried, like trying to coax a tough jar to twist open.
More silence. He’d probably twisted too hard. Was she there? Was she breathing? He thought she needed to; her laughs sounded like the type to come from wide, deep lungs.
“.....Today was my wedding anniversary.”
It was a good thing Sans didn’t have lungs. That would’ve punched the air out of ‘em for sure.
As it was, he forced a chuckle. Probably the wrong move, he realized a beat late.
“Uh. Sorry.”
He came up with about a dozen bad anniversary jokes he could’ve told, but out of respect, he buried ‘em in the snow. Or at least tucked ‘em in his pocket for later, in case he got the sense they’d help.
“It is alright. I… wish I could laugh about it.” An odd wet sound was probably her swallowing.
“That bad, huh.”
“It would be easier if it had been. ‘That bad.’” She breathed out shakily. “It was fine. Until it was not. And it has been… quite some time since then.”
Well, that told him basically nothing.
“Sometimes it feels as if… as if all I have to mark the days are tragedies,” she murmured. “And when the events are not tragedies, they have become so by their absence…”
Sans’s fists were clenched in his pockets. He’d asked for this. He couldn’t say he was in over his head now.
She needed a better way to keep track of time. Something to look forward to. Something other than another loop, another end—
He was projecting again. But hey, regular life could end up a lot like a time loop if you weren’t careful. If you couldn’t find some way to keep the days from running together… a new face to talk to, a new hand to put a whoopie cushion in…
“I am sorry. I knew I should not—”
“Hey, ‘s fine. Was just thinking,” Sans interrupted before she could dig herself a pit of guilt. “So, uh, ‘s your spouse still in the picture? On your side of this door?”
“No, thank goodness.” She gave a shaky laugh. “No. He is… the reason for the door.”
Sans’s marrow froze.
“Great. You want me to give ‘im a bad time for you? How’d that be for an anniversary present?” He wasn’t sure if he meant it as a joke or not.
“Ha.” Her laugh was too flat. Bad joke, then. “You would—you would like him. Most people do.”
Sans couldn’t see himself liking anyone who’d fumble a hilarious woman like this old lady.
Though, beneath five layers of guilt, three layers of shame, and at least one layer of irony, he realized he might need to be grateful for that guy’s mistakes.
He shook his head, hoping the thought would fly out and lodge itself in one of the pine trees across the path.
“Hey, we’re friends, right?” he said more brightly. “A friend’s gotta take your side against your crappy exes. That’s just how it works.”
She snorted a little at that. He hoped it was from amusement, and not because she didn’t believe him.
It was too bad he didn’t know the guy. Sans was sure he could’ve come up with a personal roast or two to get her really rolling. As it was, he’d have to settle for a different strategy.
“Thank you. Truly,” she said quietly.
“Don’t mention it.” He winked, for all that she wouldn’t be able to see it. “Hey, how long do you think we’ve been friends, anyway?”
He was terrible at keeping track of time these days. It sounded like she might not be that much better—
“Five months and ten days,” she said without missing a beat.
“Wh—really?”
“Yes, ‘really.’ Er, counting from the first time I heard you knock. Unless you would consider a later date the beginning of our friendship?”
Sans’s skull warmed. Wow.
“No, yeah. That’s—me too. I just, uh. You’ve got a good memory.”
“It was a special day.” She sounded like she was smiling, now.
Good. Maybe his idea could actually work.
“Hey, so’s today. It’s our five-month-and-ten-day anniversary.”
His grin was tense in the absent heartbeats that followed.
“Uh. Friendiversary?” He coughed. “Whatever you wanna call, uh, this thing we’ve been doing.”
That sounded almost worse. Wow. Maybe he should take some pointers from a human skeleton and bury himself six feet under the dirt.
“Nevermind. I just thought—I’d, uh—” Steal this day from your ex? Make you think about me instead? Geez, he hadn’t thought he was this selfish and pathetic. “—Forget it. Think I got lost on the way to the punch line.”
Despite everything, a giggle bubbled out through the crack in the door.
“I will not ‘forget it.’ I have a good memory, ‘remember’?” she teased.
He groaned.
“Besides, I like it,” she added. “Happy five-month-and-ten-day anniversary, my friend.”
…Well. She sounded happier than before. That was the whole point of this, right? Didn’t really matter how much he made a fool of himself on the way there.
He’d do a lot worse than that to make her laugh again, if it came to it.
“Happy five-month-and-ten-day anniversary, old lady.”
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Warning! There's gonna be Metaphor Spoilers for all the way to the endgame in this one!
You know, I think Louis could have turned out a lot different if he had just been childhood friends with the Prince.
Like, hear me out, it certainly wouldn't have erased any of the trauma he suffered, that certainly wasn't ever going to happen. But having at least one thing in his life that the flames didn't take away from him probably would have done a lot for the man.
I can see this going two ways:
Louis gets taken in by the palace when More comes to retrieve Will. That would probably change the trajectory of the whole story pretty majorly. I could see Louis either still going down the path of rising through the ranks in the army, or possibly becoming a knight so he can stick closer to Will's side. Again, the Prince is the one thing the flames didn't take from him, and by whatever god is out there, he's not going to let anything else do it now. That would probably result in him possibly still being a target that Forden very much wants out of the way along with the Prince, especially since in this situation Louis would have no reason to masquerade as a clemar. He's out there as the lone eldan knight in the entire force, or quickly rising to the rank of officer in the army despite everyone trying to put entire boulders in his way because of his tribe. Or, alternatively, he pursues a more magic-based career. Possibly either aiming to become a mage at the Royal Palace. Or he follows in his parents footsteps and continues his studies to become a doctor, which still involves studying all types of magic so he knows best how to treat anything that comes his way. Regardless, his ultimate goal is to remain close to Will. Which he probably does to a point where it's entirely possible that he manages to foil the assassination, or gets cursed instead of/alongside Will. Or he does fail, which later results in the runner group having an additional party member with Louis possibly taking over the Mage lineage from Gallica or bringing in his very own lineage (maybe some sort of parallel to his boss fight? Either Archmage or straight up Archangel or something of the sort? Regardless his lineage would 100% be magic based. Possibly like Seeker with a mix of both healing and offensive magic) Would make for a funny situation since he either immediately clocks Magla Will for the actual Prince but is utterly confused about it since he knows his best friend is either dead or near-death (Entirely possible he wasn't allowed to join the group that cares for the curse-stricken Prince, but Louis is terrifyingly smart so he probably figured out a lot of things on his own). Whoever this is, they shouldn't be Will. And yet. Just another mystery to unravel during this entire journey. At the very least whoever this is does seem very adamant about wanting to help the Prince, rather than replace him.
Louis is left in the sanctum, but at least knows that Will is out there and cared for. Still would leave plenty room to build up the funny insanity he sinks into during the game, something that still paints him as the villain for a lot of it. The moment the news of the Prince's passing reaches his ears, he essentially breaks. He was working his way up through the army in hopes of one day seeing the Prince again, but now even that has been taken from him, has it? Likely what causes his utter descend into insanity. Its what prompts him to kill the King, (after all, this old fool couldn't even keep his own son safe, what use does he still have to the kingdom?) crash the funeral and announce his plans to take the throne for himself. He remembers the days spent reading that novel with Will at his side, and if this world is intent on taking and taking and taking from him? Then he will raze it and build the utopia both he and the Prince have dreamed of upon it's ashes. Honestly? In this case there's a good chance by the time anyone can convince him the Prince is alive, he's possibly far too gone already. Doesn't believe any of that drivel. The Prince is dead. The flames had long come to swallow him up after having forgotten one last thing they could have ripped from his arms. The Elda candidate that snuck upon his runner must've been a little rat, an imposter using his face to try and gain fame and fortune. He should have eradicated him when he had the chance, but each time looking upon him made him falter because he couldn't see anyone but his friend. It's another tragedy, because by the time Louis might recognize Will for who he is, it's too late. The Royal Scepter is already in his hands, the magla is rapidly gathering, the future he has worked for is about to come to pass. Even the one person that had kept him grounded for so long can no longer stop him. And now it's up to Will to stop Louis. To put his friend out of his misery that this entire tragedy has driven him into.
#metaphor#metaphor spoilers#metaphor refantazio#will metaphor#metaphor protagonist#Louis Guiabern#headcanon rambles
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you know a character we don’t speak about enough? billy from burn. okay, not one of the best movies ever, but unpopular opinion: one of my fave characters. he’s just so SCRUMMY!
on that note: headcanons.
cw: nsfw towards the end (knife play, gunplay, rough activities), mostly fluff! drug usage, fire (mwah no skin), hinted (but is he really) death
• although he may have robbed a place, billy isn't an evil person. in fact, he's extremely well loved by the community. he's the type of man to help old ladies with their groceries, tip well at coffee shops ... at least as well as he can. this is why when it went public that billy had robbed a place, many people were in shambles. "you mean sweet, sweet lil ol' billy? are you sure? oh my goodness, what has that boy gotten himself into?"
• before he started dwindling in some not-so-great activities and found himself owing a bunch of money, billy was an 'aspiring' artist. he'd play his guitar sometimes at the local bars. people would tell him "you could be something one day, y'know," and billy would just scoff and laugh -- but deep down? he'd dreamt of maybe, just maybe getting out of his silly town and being something, but he knew it wasn't possible.
• billy wasn't always the mess he is now. at one point, he had a full on family, hopes and dreams, but he pushed almost everyone away in an attempt to keep them from being dragged into his mess of a life. that is, everyone except you. you'd been the constant shining star in his life, refusing to let him push you any further. you'd clean his wounds after bar fights, tuck him into bed when he'd drank too much, and even take care of him when you were scared he'd OD. he hated putting you in those situations, but he knew he could never get you to leave.
• billy is the type of boyfriend to not let you lift a finger, for the most part. you do so much to keep him safe, to take care of him when he is at his absolute worst, that he won't even let you so much as make your own glass of water. before you can even fully stand up, he's up on his feet, asking what he can do for you. "hungry, darling? need something to drink? a bath? what can I do for you? just tell me and it's yours." while billy was nice to everyone, he would only do anything for you.
• billy is super protective. given his traumatic past of losing people he loves, hurting people he loves, and witnessing awful things, he is constantly on edge. the moment something seems off in a situation, his eyes stay on whatever or whoever seems odd, his arms staying wrapped around you. he's ready to pounce at the slightest movement. on that topic, nobody wants to know what happened last time someone tried to catcall you. lets just say the guy left with a black eye and billy left with an upset partner who kept scolding him for going a little too far.
• he's a huge softie. he'll buy you flowers, burn CDs for you, sing sweet little songs in his sultry voice with a little rasp from smoking. he loves holding you and swaying to music, kissing behind your ear and holding you in bed. he's BIG on physical touch, because he's afraid if he lets go, you'll dissipate in his arms, ceasing to exist as if you were only a dream. while he is a major romantic, it's only for you. god forbid you point it out, or he'll get all grumpy and pouty, a deep crimson blush on his cheeks, grumbling on and on about how annoying it is when you point is out. "oh shut up, I'm your boyfriend, okay? I'm, like, just bein' good to you and stuff, like a boyfriend does."
• while billy is a sweet and gentle lover, in bed it's a different story. of course he'd take care of you after, but during, he'd ram into you with direct eye contact, hand wrapped around your neck. vile insults and strings of curse words would come out of his mouth as he'd continuously abuse your insides. he's a big fan of knife play, too, carving his initials into your soft skin, watching as it bleeds, knowing you'd never be able to get rid of his mark. on top of that, he'd let you mark him too, because while he loved making sure everyone knew you were his, he wanted everyone to know he was yours.
• okay, let's get the obvious out of the way here. billy is a die hard gun owner. he's got a pistol he uses, and sometimes, billy likes to take the bullets out of it, and push the barrel into you, watching as you squirm. sometimes he'll stick it in your mouth, watching as your pretty lips wrap around the metal coo'ing soft words to you. "oh god, you're so pretty like this, baby. yeah, 's a good job, keep sucking, gorgeous..."
• as we all know, billy gets charred. crisped. scorched. cooked. grilled. roasted. seared. burnt. this is what seems to be his ultimate demise, until it's not..... but then it is again, at least we thought. in reality, billy barely escaped. he'd awoken up, pain all over. he tried his best to make his way back home, somehow, by the grace of god making it. when he showed up back home to you, worried as hell, and a little angry at him until you saw the state he was in. your anger instantly turned to worry as you rushed to his aid, gasping as you begged for an explanation. billy, being the stubborn man he is, simply weakly scoffed out, holding up a shaky palm as if to say 'wait.' "no need to get all worked up, darlin', it's just a little burn." to that, all you could do is roll your eyes as you got to work on trying to save your burnt boyfriend.
#billy from burn#billy burn#billy parks#josh hutcherson#josh hutcherson x reader#mike schmidt#mike schmidt x reader#Derek danforth#Derek Danforth x reader#josh futturman#josh futturman x reader#burnt#crisped#charred#grilled#reader's bf is a lil cray#it ok we luv him#mike schmidt fluff#mike schmidt imagine#peeta mellark#peeta mellark x reader#jhutch#peeta mellark fluff
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I think Vi deserves to move on. I think she deserves to take a fistful of that Kiramman inheritance money and use it to open as many orphanages as she can possibly manage to build. I think she deserves to look at her wife and decide that they're going to use all this fancy cutelry and jewelry to fund public education. I think she deserves to look at Ekko and install art programs in every single place she can possibly afford to do so. I think Vi is not a very political person — at least not in S2 (which I do believe is kinda character assassination but that's not the point here) but I think she deserves to get her fighting spark back. She is usually more concerned with her family, but she should get to look at Zaun and realize that these people could be her family, too. Not chembarons and not the mob hands but the beaten kids and the kidnapped workers. I think she deserves to open a shelter, and another, and another. I think she deserves to demand that the other councilors, the other uppercrust families aid her in it. We know Caitlyn had basically the pull to do whatever the hell she wants (making a civilian an officer, for example) and I think Vi should get to use that for the betterment of those who need it. She has virtually nothing going on with herself in the finale, so I do, really, hope that if we see her again she is either peacefully resting or putting her energy towards helping other people. I think she would love taking in kids, brushing their hair, teaching them to box. I think she would understand them like no one else has ever, in their life. I think she should get to see Jinx in every single one of them, her eyes and her excitement and her once naive ideas. I think she should get to see prisoners, to ensure that they're being treated like criminal humans and not living punch bags. I think she deserves to see a damn therapist, even if someone has to drag her into the first few sessions. I think she deserves to look at Caitlyn and recognize that she's been hurt by her, and still chooses to stay, to love her. To make the conscious choice to live at her side and to forgive her for everything. I think Vi deserves to heal and I think that won't come until she can sit down, sore and tired and thirsty, and realize that she has done something. That Vander's dream is not achieved yet, but it's starting to.
But that's just what I think.
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Hey my love, you lucky i was like let me be nice and give you your husband for a request!
I'd like to request an ao'nung x fem!metkayina! reader. Ao'nung and reader can't seem to get along with each other, always picking on each other whenever they get the chance, throw in a little competitive with each other. But they always seem to get pull to each other like a magnetic force. I was thinking an enemies to lovers/secret pining going on between them. I feel like reader would hate him because of cocky he acts and how he bullied the sully family. But one night, they're at a party and somehow they find each other alone together and the pull is so strong that they can't step away. You can add smut in if you want, i also thought ao'nung saying something like "you still hate me" after they fuck will be funny feel free to change it however you want.
Somethings don’t change.
Pairings: AgedUp! Aonung x FemMetkayina Reader
Summary: When the lines start to blur can you really come back from that??
Warnings: MDNI, secret pining/mutual pining, enemies to lovers, p in v, choking. I think I covered it all.
A/n: I’m so rusty I’m sorry but I really hope you enjoy this!
꒦꒷❀꒷꒦❀✿❀꒦꒷❀꒷꒦MDNI꒦꒷❀꒷꒦❀✿❀꒦꒷❀꒷꒦
You wondered how you found yourself in this position, being fucked by the guy you were suppose to hate. Your mind reeled from the pleasure coursing through your veins.
You tried to focus and think over what led to this, what could have possibly gotten you into the position. On your hands and knees as Aonung’s thick length punishes your dripping wet cunt, each one of his thrust has your mind going blank. Each one deeper and rougher than the last as if he’s fucking all the pent up hate he’s felt for you, into you.
The feeling of his hands ghosting over the small of your back and slowly sliding up until his hand had wrapped around your throat. The applied pressure making you clench around him as he forced your back to his chest, and his lips pressed against your pulse point. Fangs gently grazing against your sticky skin had your body shuddering.
And even though your mind kept telling you that this wasn’t right, that you hated this male with everything in you. Your body wouldn’t allow the hatred to be felt through the overwhelming amount of pleasure he was providing you.
For fucks sake just earlier in the day you were at each other’s throats, arguing about something that was clearly his fault. But what could you possibly do? It’s Aonung, he’d rather start another argument than admit he was in the wrong and apologize in the first place.
Being around Aonung was exhausting, all the fighting and bickering drove you crazy. Even the smallest thing he did set you off, however he had to always be the one with the last word. Yet days without the little arguments felt like something was missing.
For as long as you could remember you and Aonung have always been at odds. Competition at every corner even with the smallest things. Not a moment went by without something happening between you too.
Even if you were in the right, and you were always right Aonung found a way to always set you off with one of his smart ass remarks.
However things have only seemed to get worse once the Sully family arrived. You took to helping them like it was second nature, no questions, no problems just instant need to help. Aonung however made this difficult.
Everywhere you turned he was always there picking on the Sully kids, even going as far as to start fights with you over teaching them. Most time you never knew what to do, arguing back to only seemed to make it worse. Even when you didnt retaliate Aonung seemed agitated to the 3rd degree. Nuts is what you called him, an entitled brat who needed to always have everyone’s attention and when he was not getting it his fits grew. At least that’s how you saw it.
What really set you off was the day he picked on Kiri, teasing her for having five fingers. You were upset, telling him off even after catching the aftermath of his fight with the brothers. Serves his ass right, they should have done worse. Stupid boy causing trouble. Such an Aonung thing to do.
It wasn’t until much later when you heard of the incident with Loak that you really blew up on him. When you had heard the news from Neteyam, you were livid.
You searched around the island looking around for Ao’nung. You were going to give him a piece of your mind and he was going to listen whether he wanted to or not. After about 15 minutes you found him near a secluded part of the island. You watched the way he paced back and forth in the sand wearing away at the particles. Got a moment there was an ounce of hesitation on your part but you decided against it.
You stomped your way over to him until you were in front of him and with all the strength you could muster you pushed him. “What is your problem! Leaving Lo’ak out there on his own? Are you that much of an asshole that you genuinely don’t care for others?”
You started pacing front of him. “You are so fucking entitled Ao’nung. You do not care about your consequences and show they affect others! If anything happens to him I will never forgive you!”
You stormed off, the decision already set in your mind. You wanted nothing more to do with Aonung, and in this moment you were determined to keep away from him. At all cost. Any cost for that matter.
When Lo’ak was found you were relived, he had become a very good friend to you as well as his siblings. You even had a soft spot for little baby Tuk. She was just the sweetest so the thought of anyone hurting the family in anyway felt wrong even if it was someone who you had such a close yet difficult relationship with.
After Lo’aks return and everything had settled the others decided there would be a party to celebrate just amongst the young adults and while you were in no mood to party you needed a huge distraction. Aonung had done everything in his power to try and get your attention. Each time he walked in your direction you’d turn and immediately go another way.
Speaking to let alone being around him was one of the last things you were worried about. Yet you continued to actively avoid him, and well… you had managed to succeed until you decided to drink. Aonung had managed to corner you while you were alone lost in thought.
The beach was always the prettiest at night, quiet, peaceful even. Until it wasn’t. “Y/n. You can’t possibly continue to ignore me.” Aonungs voice had your ears perked up but you said nothing. “Come on talk to me, stop being so dramatic.”
Dramatic? You? The nerve of this asshole yet nothing was said. You weren’t aware of his steps getting closer until he was in front of you, his signature smirk on his lips. “You seem angry, Y/n. You should do something about it, like yelling at me, hitting me maybe? But you can’t ignore me forever.”
You simply turned your head doing just that ignoring him and his advances to get to you. Though you weren’t incredibly drunk your senses were dazed enough to the point you didn’t see his hand reaching up, his gentle hold on your neck had you momentarily baffled. His hold sent a shock straight down to your cunt and you frowned, this was calming someone you hated you weren’t suppose to feel something like this from such a simple action.
“Please stop ignoring me, I know I fucked up. I messed up so bad. I can take everyone being mad at me.. everyone but you.” He whispered as he snaked his free hand around your waist, pulling your body flush against his own. “Please Y/n.”
Your eyes widened and your mouth went slack until you found the words to speak. “You’re such an asshole! Why would you even think that was okay? You left him out there! You’ve been nothing but ru-“ your small outburst was stopped by the feel of his lips against yours. Your body melting into the gentle kiss.
He broke the kiss to trail kisses against your neck. “I know.” Was all he whispered against your skin. His kisses and touches had your mind muddled, body alight with small bits of pleasure, you were lost in the moment not even daring to push him away. You let his continue to trail the light kisses against your skin the feeling of your covering’s getting in your way. You knew it was wrong but you wanted more of this more of him.
All it took was for him to kiss you, one kiss stopped all your fight. So simple not one complaint fell from your lips as Aonung had continued to kiss and explore your body in ways you never imagined.
The feeling of pleasure clouded all sense of judgment. His thrust began to slow down, forcing you to feel the way his thickness filled your dripping cunt each time he pushed back in. His grip on your neck tightened as his free hand slide down to tease and rub at your clit.
“Look at you, looking so pretty for me right now.” He whispered against your neck, his thumb moving in slow circles against your clit now. He was dragging out the pleasure, prolonging the moment you’d come all over his cock. “M’gonna..” he groaned loudly. “Come with me baby.”
The deep guttural noise that fell from him as he released his thickness filled seed inside you triggered your own release. You threw your head back as you cried out, body shuddering, walls clamping down tightly around his cock milking him for every possible drop.
Once the high passed and you both lay panting heavily against the sand he kissed your cheek before moving to nuzzle into your neck. “Do you still hate me?” Back was the arrogant asshole who you grew up with up.
꒦꒷❀꒷꒦༻❀✿❀༺꒦꒷❀꒷꒦༻❀✿❀༺ ꒦꒷❀꒷꒦
Taglist: @pandoraslxna @etherialblackrose @neteyamyawne @eywaite @luvv4j4ybe11 @quicktosimp @cardi-bre91 @torukmaktoskxawng @rivatar @thepeonysbackup @tallulah477 @anemonelovesfiction @erenjaegerwifee
#⋅ʚ♡ɞ⋅ xylianas asks ♡ ✧˖*°࿐#avatar twow#atwow#avatar smut#atwow aonung#Aonung smut#atwow smut#aonung x female reader#aonung x Navi reader
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In Book 2, Elystan will discover that his personal doctor has a son about his age, who is in a sanitarium (implied to be consumptive). This is quite a surprise, and Elystan wants to do something to help, but initially isn't sure what.
He ends up writing a letter to Raybert Gillisall, and they do correspond briefly until the letters abruptly stop at some point during Elystan's post-Book 2 breakdown era.
For fun, here's Elystan's initial letter.
Dear Raybert,
Can you believe that your father has been my personal physician for more than ten years and has never once mentioned to me that he has a son about my age? At least, I don’t remember him ever saying so. I don’t know why, because I would have wanted to meet you a long time ago.
You probably already know who I am, but I’m going to tell you anyway. Perhaps your father hasn’t told you much. My name is Elystan, Prince of Arclis. The king is my father half-brother. I will be twelve on the thirty-first of October. Sometimes I stay at Rhosemore in Loriston, which is my favorite place to be, but most of the time I live at Endean House in the country. You know how it is when they won’t let live where you want because it “isn’t good for you” or whatever ridiculous excuse they make. I used to live with my nurse, but not any more because I’m too old for that, and I have a tutor. His name is Mr. Faulkley and he doesn’t know what to do with me, so I mostly do what I want. It is the life, Raybert, I can tell you.
Do they make you do lessons too? What do you do where you live? No one will let me go there, but I want to know what it’s like. Do you read a lot? I hope so, or we’re going to have nothing to talk about when we become friends. Do you read the Morrick Hopeley stories? They’re my favorites. I’ve read them more times than I can count. Would you believe that Mr. L. D. Melbray’s wife used to be my nurse? Their daughter is my best friend. I’m almost certain that Mr. Melbray will dedicate his next book to me; I’m practically their family’s greatest patron. I also like Pirate Island and The Book of Dreadful Dragons and lots of other books, mostly adventures and mysteries and stories of magic. There’s a long list. If there’s something you want to read that you don’t have, I can have it sent to you.
Do you like to play board games? I like chess because I’m much better at it than my brother is. I read somewhere once about somebody famous playing chess by correspondence with a friend. Perhaps we could do that. But I’ll warn you now that I am very good at it and it will be a challenge. Perhaps you’re pretty clever at it yourself, and then we can make it more interesting by changing the rules. Sometimes the usual way of playing gets dull.
I hope you’ll write back to me. I’ve never had a friend who lives in a place like you do before, and I want to know all about you and how you pass the time. It gets tiresome, I know, when they won’t let you do anything exciting or go anywhere, but getting letters always makes things a little better. Let’s make things better as often as we can.
Yours sincerely,
Elystan
#The Blackberry Bushes#The Blackberry Bushes short stories#my writing#Elystan Liddick#Raybert Gillisall
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My five year old has his very first day of kindergarten tomorrow 🥺🥺🥺 I didn’t expect to be hit with such a huge wave of emotions but I’ve been a WRECK all day
#personal#he’s so excited#we’ve been talking about school for so long and he’s so excited that it’s finally here!#and a little nervous too he said but he keeps asking about the other kids and if he gets to have lots of friends now#he really liked his teacher when he met her and he’s excited to see her#the only thing that tripped him up a little was when I told him that me and his daddy are bringing him to the school but we can’t go with#that he has to just listen to his teacher and we’ll see him after school 🥺#I’m mostly worried that he’s not going to get enough food at school because he doesn’t eat very fast at home#he doesn’t focus well on meals#I’m hoping that positive peer pressure helps him with that#if he sees the other kids eating he will hopefully follow their lead#he’s going to be taking the bus home as well and I’m nervous about that for him too#even though it’s silly because his bus will pick him up in the morning and bring him directly to the school and then drop him off first#after school#he’ll be on it for maybe 20 minutes each day#I just worry too much#i worry about how issues he might have that I can’t help with like what if it’s too cold in just one room#but I don’t know that and send him in shorts?#or what if he gets teased for things I can’t anticipate right now? how can I best set him up for success with his peers?#I only know what he likes not what other five year olds like#I don’t want him to feel like the odd one out#but maybe that’s inevitable at some point#I can’t protect him from the world if im not there 😔#that’s the hardest thing about it#obviously this is supposed to happen and school will be so good for him#but he was a tiny little baby just yesterday#at least that’s how it feels#they say it goes by fast but damn
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series i’m gatekeeping from my family vs series i’m ✨ok✨ with my family knowing i’m into:
#‘why do you gatekeep hw from your irls?’ well. the thing is. i just ✨don’t want to✨#and. like. i’ve already led my family to believe that i bought bl manga when i was buying idol sengen at animate#so i think im already past the point of no return in that regard. so. um. yeah.#thank you village vanguard for the unexpected μ’s content in 2k24 you truly are yappa saikyou#i s w e a r falling back into my ll phase almost 10 whole years after i first got into it is unexpected tbh#compounded with the fact that i can now actually afford whatever im looking for. so. like. my wallet is in crisis lol#i had just reached my savings goal last month but now i’ve overspent bc i saw great deals on resold honoka-chan hoodies and i couldn’t help—#so now i have 2 identical hoodies lol. but i’ll keep one of them safe in its packaging bc im unwell like that ig#my merch whaling is out of control i s w e a r but my oshis are just too cute aaaaaaaaa#i probably should open another savings account instead… maybe that’d keep my spending under control…#b u t for now honoka-chan jersey im looking for you#tfw ur oshi is decently unpopular amongst the fans so hardly anyone resells her merch lmao#so ig the relatively fewer fellow fans she has are more dedicated to her than fans of other more popular characters lol#but at least her stuff (when resold) isn’t as overpriced as the actually popular members (birb and tomato)#so my wallet isn’t crying as hard as it could’ve been? ig? hunting for almost 10 year old merch is a pain fr though#either way. the grip idol series have on my wallet is truly insane#i wonder how many bags of chips i could’ve bought with the amount i’ve spent on hw and ll merch to date…#at least a thousand… i think. maybe even 2 thousand if my past gacha game whaling is taken into consideration…#…this is probably why it’s important to have a decent paying job ig.#oh well. at least i may be making b a n k this month with how much ot i’ve had to do this week so far…#i hope i won’t have to work till 5am again over the next 2 days… that had been a horrible experience.#help what am i even talking about anymore why am i having a life crisis right here and now u m.#anyways. dni if you dislike honoka-chan. thanks for coming to my crisis rant. see you when the last stage mv drops ig ok byeeeee
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