#i just want to point out that people tend to take references in wish seriously

[shadowjinx626]

Person A, after seeing the Mario movie: Omg, look at all these easter eggs! This movie is so cool!! IT's a masterpiece!!! Person B: I mean the easter eggs were nice, but it made the movie feel like a commercial. Person A: Omg, it's just a kid's movie! Why you gotta take it so seriously? Months later... Person A, after seeing Wish: Omg, this movie is nothing but easter eggs! And they're trying to make a Disney cinematic universe!! This movie is so terrible!!! Person B: The easter eggs are just references and jokes. They're not meant to be taken seriously. Person A: Omg, stop defending Disney you shill!!!

[jadeyarts]

Separate from that other anon I for one would personally love to hear your Peri and Harbinger/Foxglove headcanons

OMG YAYYYYY. I HAVE QUITE A FEW ♥ (for my own convenience i'm referring to them by their og series names for reasons)

the events of timmy's secret wish are what first planted the seeds of genuine, fully positive feelings and fondness for poof in foop's mind and heart... maybe even a puppy love crush. he seriously thought "well, dying in poof's arms wouldn't be so bad" and hoped that wouldn't awaken something in him. it did.

in a lot of episodes they often have differently colored eyes - foop has a darker shade of purple. i think poof's noticed, and i think he even likes the look of those darker eyes.

given how foop would cry out for poof to protect or save him, i think that poof grows to be incredibly protective of foop… poof will square up for his square!!!

hes the one telling cashiers that foop asked for no pickles, imho ♥

at some point poof stopped intervening in foop's nefarious schemes so i've kind of interpreted poof as just... not caring anymore. he can't stay mad at foop for long, and he finds himself not even bothered by whatever damages he ends up causing anyways. i think he might even find his antics amusing.

after the events of certifiable super sitter, foop actually feels comfortable with admitting that poof is his best friend-

it'd take a few more years to admit it to poof's face, though, it's too embarrassing for him! he'll gush to chloe constantly, though - she knows he's in love with poof before either of them does.

foop's first boyfriend was actually their mutual friend sammy sweetsparkle in high school, while poof had kind of an on-and-off puppy love situationship with goldie... until he kind of flipped out on her about constantly getting foop's name wrong in the middle of a jealousy induced break-down. foop was actually thrilled to hear that poof let his dark side show over wanting to be with him.

sammy and foop ironically broke up on good terms because sammy's best attempt at understanding the fairy/antifairy situation is that they must be soulmates and he didn't want to stand in the way of true love. he's their second biggest supporter.

technically poof confessed first but his confession was literally just screaming IF I DONT SPEND THE REST OF MY LIFE WITH YOU I AM LITERALLY GOING TO BLOW SOMETHING UP!!!! at foop, which was a love confession that would only appeal to foop.

chloe TRIED to plan the "perfect" first date for them but it was horribly awkward and not to their tastes. so instead their first REAL date was poof taking foop to a kelly clarkson concert where they got matching "my life would suck without you" t-shirts.

poof actually buys - WITH HUMAN MONEY, IN A HUMAN DISGUISE - every kelly clarkson album as it releases for foop.

they nearly elope several times but got caught by wanda every time. wanda doesn't really like the fact that poof is with foop but doesn't wanna turn into mama cosma about it so she comes to terms with it. she doesnt want them to just run away and get married when she doesn't think they're ready yet either, though. timmy has to be the one to appeal to foop's desire for attention to convince them to have a big wedding after they graduate. poof doesnt care whether he has a big wedding or just elopes - as long as foop is his. if foop wants a big wedding, that's what they'll have.

whenever people ask how long they've been together they tend to go silent because their first instinct is to say "about 50 years" even though they're only about 22-24, and they've only officially been a couple for about 6 or 7 years. foop's second instinct is also to say "from the very first moment i drew breath" like the dramatic weirdo he is. which isn't even accurate and they both know it.

literally so specific to my own little homebrewed post-canon that you can't even pretend it works with anw:

in my elaborate fanon after AC and AW abandoned foop in season 10, poof begs wanda to find someone who would be willing to take foop in. luckily, wanda knew just the fairies for the job.

after getting adopted foop changes his name to foxglove thimbleplight - poof changed his last name to thimbleplight when they got married so he becomes periwinkle thimbleplight. :3

they still call each other poof and foop - usually in the form of embarrassingly cheesy affectionate nicknames. we're talking "smoopy-poo" level cheesy usage here.

(actually that one still works with anw but the art i drew is clearly my own designs and not the anw designs and it's exceedingly cheesy so)

poof convinced foop to go to the fairy academy with him - initially foop was hesitant because he… wants to… but… antifairies cant become godparents, right??? poof was willing to do literally anything it would take to keep foop by his side though. he initially considers manipulating some poor unsuspecting godparent to quit on their godkid just so he can hijack the ensuing fairy idol for foop to win and take their job… it's devious, and he knows foop would have loved that he did something so malicious just for him, but in the end he just gets into a fight with jorgen and the fairy council about it. he argues that technically foop is legally a fairy now since he was adopted by fairies, so he should be allowed to become a godparent. they end up agreeing.

their relationship was kind of a controversial issue in fairyworld for a few years because of poof's high profile status - while they're not the first fairy and anti-fairy couple, they're the first recorded instance of a fairy coupled with their own counterpart in eons. the media did get bored of them eventually though.

they already wanted to get married after high school but they agreed to postpone the wedding until after they graduated from the fairy academy so they had enough free time to make it as over the top as foop wanted it to be. poof actually proposed to foop AGAIN with a diamond ring after they graduated from the fairy academy, even though they were technically already engaged - with the intent of being as over-the-top dramatic and annoying to the rest of their classmates as possible.

^ which is similar to what cosmo and wanda did as teens though details differ. cosmo is literally the only one who seems to realize this and audibly goes "WOW, DEJA VU..." when this all happens.

while wanda had to get used to poof and foop together, cosmo accepted it pretty much immediately. mostly because sometimes they reminded him of himself and wanda. (<- actually canon)

[reallyromealone]

Azul x Malleus brother male reader

Fae courting

A broach

A coin

And a paperclip.

These are the things that Azul had received from (name) Draconia within the past few days, the fae wandering to him at random points and placing them in his hand wandering off, leaving the octopus merman VERY confused as he held the shiny trinket.

what was this??? What's he trying to tell him?!

"Well I don't understand the political spectrum of box beetles but I'm sure we could work out something" (name) said softly, voice joyful and absent-minded. "Perhaps we could ask my brother to assist on this" (name) offered unaware of eyes on him.

Jade and Floyd watched in the distance, following their bosses order on figuring out (name)s motives but so far they saw him tend to mushrooms and talk to insects along with chatting with his brother about fae nonsense, nothing to raise suspicion.

"A... Iron frog?"

"Silver, iron doesn't like fae" (name) said airily as he played with Azuls hand "I was informed by the trees that a confectionery has bloomed in the east..." He said to the other who raised an eyebrow "ok?"

"I wish to be invited" (name) said looking at him with a smile and Azul just stared "so?"

"Perhaps someone could invite me and tell me tales of their whimsies" (name) looked hopeful but Azul wasn't getting it "I hope you find someone to do that with" and with that (name) was alone.

"He's my paramour yet he rejected my advances for an outing" (name) said to Lilia who smiled at his nephew figure who looked confused, not understanding why his beloved would not go to a cafe with him despite not asking but instead implying that he wanted to go there with him.

And now Lilia was dealing with a pouty prince "perhaps I should ask my beloved child of the sea to play his table games... Oh I should have considered his feelings on the subjects of our engagements" (name) looked upset with himself "perhaps take him to a cafe of sorts that has board games" Lilia supplied and (name) tilted his head confused "I will seek Council with someone to assist me on this" and with that (name) was gone.

'that sweet hopeless sparrow's Lilia thought as he watched him wander off.

"Oh? Hello (name)" Vil looked at the younger Draconia brother who handed him old coins "I wish to seek in conversation with you in regards to romantic rendezvous" (name) said seriously and Vil looked very confused "my beloved paramour Azul has rejected my proposition for a romantic outing and I wish to know what would fancy him instead" Vil wanted to laugh at this situation, the fae precious in his attempts to woo a man who Vil isn't even sure knows (name) has been pursuing.

"Well perhaps we can figure something out"

"By the seven he was asking me out" Azul said stopping in his tracks as he went over the earnings from the lounge "the coins... He was asking me out"

"Oh he thinks you're dating" Ace said casually as he sipped on his drink "what?" Azul looked floored at this "he refers to you as his Paramore, you accepted Fae courting gifts after all"

Azul needed to find (name).

Vil smiled as he dressed (name) up, the fae prince pleased with the flower crown and nice clothes that weren't too restrictive "now you go tell him that you wish to see his coin collection" Vil was supportive of the other as he urged him to go find Azul.

(Name) wandered the halls blissfully as he looked for his beloved ocean born lover "(name)!" Azul called out as he briskly walked to the other "hello fair ocean treasure, I was hoping we could eng--""are you telling people were dating?" He asked getting to the poing and (name) tilted his head "why would I not speak of our courtship"

Frustrated Azul sighed "because we aren't?"

"But you accepted my gifts?"

"That was a mistake"

Azul regretted his words at the simply heartbroken expression (name) held at the word mistake, it was a mistake? But... But he accepted his courting?

(Name) was a mistake to him?

"(Name), I di-"" very well, I hope you find yourself in good health... Goodbye"

And with that (name) was gone.

Malleus was protective of his younger brother, (name) was his kin after all.

So seeing him so visibility distraught as he clutched a flower crown in his hands "I wish not to seek romantic intentions anymore..."

"But what of your courtship with the ocean born?" Malleus comforted his brother who looked tearful "he claimed our courtship was a mistake!" He cried into his hands and Malleus felt rage bubble within him at his brothers betrayal.

"He is not worthy of your affections"

"That was cruel" Rook spoke up after seeing the interaction "he was so hopelessly in love with you too... Poor little thing" he sighed with false sadness "he had plans of asking you to do things you enjoyed too, he had Vil help him and everything..."

Azul felt like shit.

He missed the clear Fae courting traditions and (name) was hurt because of it, Azul couldn't deny be felt... Romantic interest towards the horned male but in the heat of it he spoke out of his ass.

Word got around fast about the "break up" and (name) seemed absolutely miserable, Vil comforting the poor fae as Silver showed him a very small toad to cheer him up.

Azul sighed as he held a hand held glass greenhouse with tiny mushrooms in it and (prefered treat) as he walked to the trio "if you wish to know, I have not spoken of anything" (name) looked down as Silver glared at the octopus and Vil sighed but saw the gifts "Silver, could you help me with something?" Vil dragged an angry Silver away as (name) fidgeted slightly, refusing to make eye contact with the other "I can assure you, I will no longer cause mistakes for you" (name) whispered and was ready to leave when Azul stopped him "please... Just listen" (name) continued sitting and looked suspicious and sad "I was.. an ass yesterday, I was thrown off and reacted horribly... Would you please accept this courting gift?" (Name) looked at the items hesitantly as he looked at the other.

"But I'm a mistake"

"No you're not, I was being a jerk and I didn't understand why you would want to date me"

"Because you are like the ray of dawn on a winter's morn" (name) said simply as he took the small terrarium and inspected it "a death cap?" He smiled and looked at the other "You are forgiven sea born, but if you tread in those waters again I will not be able to stop my brother" he said simply and Azul shivered as he remembered (name)s brother was literally one of the most powerful mages in existence.

"And by the way" Azul said softly as he walked with a still shy (name) "your gifts were very nice"

(Name)s smile at that moment could melt the sun, so brilliant and pure "those are fae coins, you collect coins so they would be good for your collection"

[classicslesbianopinions]

I get that a poll doesn't mean anything in the long run, and I'll get told to lighten up but I don't know! meme white guy who doesn't fit "tragic character" at all beating out Anthy (CSA and incest survivor) and Antigone (whose death comes as a relief) just sits with me badly. feels like people will only be dedicated to a bit if it's a white man.

yeah i mean i think there's just a fundamental disagreement in what the poll is for too... like i feel like i do want to actually talk about what tragedy is and what makes something tragic and what makes tragedy particularly effective and other people want to shitpost and like shitposting on a tumblr poll is 100% a correct thing to do at any given time but that doesn't mean it doesn't kind of annoy me.

and i don't know if i definitively agree that this is a "people are only dedicated to the bit because he's a white man" situation (although like. yeah that does tend to be a pattern when it comes to bits) but it is grating to see the same "DOOF'S PARENTS DIDN'T EVEN SHOW UP TO HIS BIRTH" joke rehashed over and over when it's like. that's literally so far beside the point. like i guess i wish people would actually engage with the tragedy even though i knowww that's not the point for most voters.

also i do dislike that like. if you take this sort of thing seriously people start making fun of you for it. like sorry for being autistic i guess? sorry for having an earnest opinion about a character and story that means a lot to me? that bugged me a bit during the lloyd poll too, like yeah it's not that deep it's just for fun but like. what if it was that deep. what then.

but then again i never watched phineas and ferb so i'm not really on that nostalgia train either. which gives me a bias in that not only do i not know anything about doof i also have the underlying bitterness of "i don't know the pop culture reference everyone assumes is universal because i didn't watch disney channel as a kid" (not that i had any interest in watching disney channel as a kid but you know how it is).

[dilatorywriting]

A concept- a brainrot, if you will- I wish to present to you on a silver platter, respectfully, as your Monster Mayhem series (and D&D talk eeeee) has inspired me:

Jack Howl as both the "huntsman" and the "wolf" in a Little Red Ridinghood scenario. The forest is very dangerous, but the dangers are unseen- think spells that delude the victim into hallucinations, guiding them into acid pits and other dangers. The forest wasn't always like this, which is why people don't take the warnings seriously and wander in. Humans always so foolishly challenge fate, after all.

So Jack decides to give these people a "seen" danger to be wary of- the big bad wolf stalking the outskirts. They live afraid, but they live safe. And the town's warden (sheriff? Something of the kind?)- Jack himself, in human form- assures them that he's leading an investigation and kindly stops people who want to attempt entry.

This is a pain in the ass for you- a young adventurer who is very aware that the forest has "gone evil" because your warlock grandmother is getting too old to tend to her patron's shrine, which kept the sleeping evil of the ancient forest (which is definitely either the grave of a dead diety or the bed of a great sleeping evil) locked away. You know it is a dangerous trip, but you aren't completely helpless, having some magic under your belt yourself.

If only this damn town warden would let you peacefully wander into this absolute nightmare forest. If only a large, snow-white wolf didn't keep blocking your path- oh, sorry, didn't keep "trying to kill you," though you're pretty sure he isn't, as he always stops just short of harm.

Bonus points if:

- The thing keeping your grandma from doing her shrine maiden very suspicious, definitely spooky warlock duties is something silly, but realistic as an old people problem (like 'i can't reach that high anymore, my back hurts too much' or 'the arthritis is getting to me and I can't draw the sigils')

- Literally any "Into the Woods" reference... "into the woods and down the del, the path is straight I know it well~" *five minutes later* "fuck, this ain't my forest anymore, why didn't grandma send me a letter sooner??? By the great gods I TOLD her to get a familiar to help out around here-"

- Jack personally knows your granny and panics when you, finally, tell him (in wolf form) that you're trying to get to her. (Jack helped clear her name in a "witch hunt," which is a little ironic considering the circumstances)

-You are very done with stumbling into another life-or-death evil forest situation after the 15th time. You grew up here! You took care of the forest with grandma! Could these damn human-eating trees be any less grateful?! (To be fair, they didn't have a taste for humans when you were little.)

-Rook appears. Yes, there are two huntsman now. Of COURSE Rook is enamored by the thrill of ancient evil and a mysterious wolf. Now Jack has to keep an eye out for his own hide, too...

-Smh, the idea of rook being involved just made me think of Vil as the "ancient evil" sleeping. A little drama queen who is angry that his ritual has not been performed to preserve his 10,000-year beauty sleep. Yeah, I've decided that "sleeping evil" is actually "sleeping eVil." The horrifying forest is a result of his anger from seeing ONE (1) adorable forest boy that was prettier than himself. The stress gave him a wrinkle. The wrinkle has caused this immense horror nightmare. Vil has decided to take an angry beauty-coma until the wrinkle has faded away. This is some petty god shit.

Lord I meant for this to be more Jack-focused but then I brainrotted really hard. He's just so.... nice? Stable? Sane? It's a lot more fun to brainrot over the absolute chaotic mess that is our boys with big egos and issues with pettiness.

Anyways, I will bow and make my exit! I'm a huge fan of dark fantasy genre stuff and, as a result, adore your interpretation of the Twst cast and the environments/scenarios you create for your stories! So I wanted to offer a dose of my inspired rambles, flavored by the sheer excitement reading your fics and posts has given me. Just in case it isn't clear this isn't a request I'm just HYPE rn.

*me intently scribbling all of this down as fast as possible and having an aneurism over the awesome and AHHHHH*

But holy fuck YES, I LOVE this idea. And then the Vil shit at the end, especially seeing that he and Jack are friends in canon! So like! More overlap! But also just! All of it!! AHHHH!!! My brain is on fire.

But holy shit I am just so in love with this idea. It's giving me so much fire-in-the-brain inspiration, and I do like Jack a lot, but I don't Love love him normally (I have my two undying favs, and they can never be displaced), but goddamn now you've got me wanting to write this so badly!!!!

[unholyverse]

travis is doing what now???

congrats. or not. you made it to part 2 of my explanation/summary of that. you can find part 1 here.

cw: some (not too graphic but still present) smut written by a guy who is friends with the people in this fic + discussion of religion in a very general metaphor way

this is the part i'm warning you about the smut and general nightmare feeling: chapter 4: brainwashed

in his author's note, travis wishes readers happy pride (if this is pride, i feel wrath) and starts questioning whether he should be continuing the fic (should've questioned that a long time ago) and then admitting he wrote 30 FUCKING PAGES for this chapter.

this chapter takes place over the course of a week, starting with awsten and geoff on a date where they start getting to know each other. geoff starts saying how he's working on a project in this place where he's interviewing people about their relationship to the in universe equivalent to christianity or some abrahamic religion if you add the pokémon knockoffs to them. so they get into a conversation about theology that was like reading the glup shitto post but religious bc seriously i don't know or care about these stupid fantasy names.

so then after all this they go to geoff's apartment to have fade to black sex that's only implied in the second day section.

unfortunately some of the smut is not fade to black from this point forward.

awstens horny wants more dick and geoff's just trying to get breakfast for them which prompts this scene.

is this a good time to remind you that travis is writing this about the friends he has in real life. he knows these people. personally.

thank you travis for restoring my faith in my smut writing abilities 🙏 because now i know at least i'm not writing scenes like these about my irls.

ok back to the fic they have SHOWER SEX after that and we also have to read that for some reason.

so after that they watch some old show together and awsten asks if geoff has any pets and this is the part where i find out there’s normal animals and pokémon ripoffs in this universe which is weird.

geoff summons a recreation of his dog for a bit (that’s a thing i forgot to mention that mostly bc i do not care) and the day ends with him musing on that saying he misses his dog.

the third day section is a literal paragraph about them having fade to black sex. that’s it for that.

the fourth day section finds awsten going home for an hour to pick up new clothes to stay at geoff’s more and after that him and geoff go on a date outside.

it’s this point when geoff asks awsten if he can interview him for his project about people’s relationships with religion. awsten says yes, but pretty reluctantly.

so they get on with the interview which gradually gets awsten more uncomfortable with the personal questions.

this entire part is travis’ heavy handed way of approaching religious themes that are supposed to be in the album and my god does the allegory feel as heavy handed as the sparse religious references in intellectual property. considering this is a universe where travis tends to ignore things he’s not comfortable with writing for whatever reason (cough cough otto), i think considering this is a universe where all his friends are gay and yknow. the general relationship between gay people and religious can be pretty complex it just makes me wonder the implications of leaving that out too. if the topic got too real.

anyways.

awsten cuts off the interview and geoff starts opening up about his life which just means travis airs out the shit geoff has been going through for the past couple years minus the polycule.

is this a good time to note that geoff’s dog irl is named eevee (renamed here for obvious reasons) and said dog is still actually with his ex and kid. travis why are you airing this out and at what point in writing this chapter did it dawn upon you that this was a bad idea.

this section just ends in awsten wondering what else he doesn’t know about and then they make out.

the fifth day section starts with geoff trying to cook them food after the umpteenth time of them fucking. geoff makes a light joke that his cooking is only world famous to his daughter which makes the lines after that 10x worse

everything about this is actually terrible. the fact that geoff was trying to cook naked. “giving Geoff’s penis a light tap”. MANHOOD????

so anyways they cook a grilled cheese together and they talk and geoff ends up dropping that he’s seeing a pokemon knockoff tournament with a guy named pulo, another travis oc. geoff says they’re not exclusive or anything but awsten still feels like shit bc he probably thought him and geoff were at least. ouch.

the sixth day section is awsten musing about the new geoff revelations but then ending up having fade to black sex with him anyways.

the final section (of this chapter but. god that was long) is awsten finally leaving geoff’s apartment after a week there. meaning they make out for a long time at the door before awsten has to leave.

i can’t believe someone who knows both of them wrote this entire thing about them and posted it online. it genuinely baffles me how travis didn’t cancel writing the fic here before he could post it. but if you know what happened before next chapter posted, you’d know why he went on with this.

so travis lives in austin, texas (it’s the only way he can say he’s in awsten and it’s true). and so for the austin show, him, jawn, and zakk all got onstage for war crimes wearing something awsten had and travis was reveling this especially towards the end when he was hugging awsten and taking his damn time presumably whiffing him as much as he could under his mask.

and then this happens.

travis just gets to shake awstens ass in front of this audience twice 😭😭😭 might i remind you this is a show that rivers cuomo attended without anyone knowing until the day after.

so yeah that happens and then travis gets brought up again for awsten to hold him like a doll while he plays cherry red for travis to horribly sing.

so after this, i was like travis is either going to go home and jack off to this or he’s going to write the next fic chapter and i was definitely right about one of those things but still probably right about the other.

so now we’re here to the most recent part of this which is chapter 5: 2 best friends.

awstens all bummed about geoff hanging out with pulo so he goes out with travis and jawn to take his mind off things. the entire chapter is essentially travis being a very ooc party boy drunk (bc i think travis realizes how lame and nerdy his actual personality is) while him, awsten, and jawn all hang out and do dumb shit.

ok with that out of the way lemme just say it does not feel like i’m reading three different characters it just feels like i’m reading travis, travis, and drunk travis.

so anyways they all do shit but it doesn’t keep awsten from thinking about geoff in the end.

oh but that’s not everything nope not at all bc the ending is awsten and jawn. HOOKING UP.

oh my god. considering how awsten has slept with most of the male population in this fic except travis, i feel like travis writing this is just fueling some cuck fetish of his bc WHAT THE HELL IS ANY OF THIS SERIOUSLY.

anyways that’s all i have :) this fandom and the people involved with parx are actually insane on so many different levels i didn’t know were possible. i just want to interrogate travis for everything about this fic (with a knife in my hand)

[one-blaze-of--glory]

you should talk about Howard the Duck!!

okay okay okay

so today is the 37th anniversary of the howard the duck movie!! it's like.. a lot-

it's a really weird movie for sure I guess i should list the pros and cons. let's start with the cons so we end on a positive note :

cons

-it's really not a faithful adaptation. like the writers straight up pretty much admitted they don't understand the source material which is veeeeery questionable

-the movie just can't decide what age it's for. like it tries to be a kid's movie but there are too many weird sexual references for it (i guess nothing too blatant just duck boobs for a few seconds, Howard's weird duck condom, that infamous scene that ultimately never went beyond kissing and well okay the worst one is probably that weird bathhouse scene. i legitimately don't understand why that even exists.)

-the weird genre switch. it's SO out of nowhere and it's just.. a really jarring transition. one second you're watching a romcon about a duck and singer and the other second you're in a high stakes sci fi and you get basically no time to adjust you just have to accept it

-phil blumburt tends to be the most annoying man sometimes. and then sometimes he's just a funny guy. they can't decide i guess.

-THE FUCKING 7 MINUTE CHASE SCENE I HATE IT SO MUCH

-sometimes the duck puns can be a lot

okay but of course I don't hate this movie at all it's actually a big comfort for me so

pros

-Lea Thompson as Beverly Switzler is such a casting choice she SLAYS it genuinely changed my life her version of Beverly is the most iconic to ever

-also Chip Zien voicing Howard. can't get better than that. he's a damn good voice actor tbh. people say they wish the movie kept Robin Williams but tbh? they're cowards. Chip Zien Howard is best Howard i take no criticism

-the howarly plotline is definitely the heart of the movie and it's set up so well. it's a liiittle cheesy but it also makes me squeal every two seconds. they've got the angst the fluff and everything in between and you KNOW I'm a sucker for them! seriously they made a point to show how much they understand each other and care for each other and Howard basically makes it his life mission to fix all of Beverly's problems while Beverly makes it her life mission to protect Howard from this wirld that tries to hurt him and they're just so soft and i love them they have SO MANY big moments in this movie and it feeds me

-THE. MUSIC. OH MY GOD. between John Barry's score (the howarly leitmotif titled you're the duckiest is genuinely BRAINROTTING to me) and Thomas Dolby cherry bomb songs (ughhh they're all perfect) the music is such a strong point in this movie

-speaking of: cherry bomb!! they don't have a big part in the movie unfortunately but Ronette, K.C. and Cal are just so charming i want a sequel just focusing on the band without any of the alien stuff. i want more spotlight to my girls!! and of course also Howard and Beverly and even Phil but i need my girlies to get something!!

-this is bit of a minor thing but every single outfit Beverly wears is iconic

-there's some very explicit acab messaging and Beverly aims a gun at a cop <3

-just. the vibes. they're fun. i wish people would just accept this movie as a fun time instead of expecting some kind of deep philosophical whatever because then of course it will disappoint them! take it for what it is! because for what it is it's cute and fun and comforting! and i love it.

[ramblings-of-a-mad-cat]

I think with the new year 8 Jam City may go with the alternate reality way and have MC feature heavily in Harry's story or MC meets him briefly on Diagon Alley and that's it (he met many people in leaky cauldron and as we know he tends to forget anyone who is not important to his story) from datamines we know mc works as some sort of investigator (I think but I'm not really sure so correct me if I'm wrong) and chances are that they won't have mamy chances to visit hogwarts (that are not work related). So it's 50/50 how it can go.

But my wishful thinking is that mc and Harry bond over having to constantly save the wizarding world at such young age and harry can have a "competent" (non-lying) mentor even though mc is dumb as shit.

Now having seen the climactic battle of Y7CH57, I have to say I genuinely have no idea what they're planning for Beyond.

Because according to Moody, "R is no more." We've finally beaten R, and they are defeated forever. And here's the thing. That can't be true. But it may wind up being true for the purposes of this game. I don't know, at this point. The writing team has shuffled around a lot and it's been clear for a while that certain unresolved plot threads are never getting revisited.

What I keep going back to is that R is a worldwide organization. They have branches all over the globe. We know this because Moody himself told us at the beginning of Year 6. Now, perhaps when Moody says that R is no more, he's referring exclusively to their activities in the U.K. Maybe, as far as Moody is concerned, we've done our part and others will take it from here. Where R still exists in other countries, the Aurors from said countries' Ministries will be handling it. But if so, why not just say that?

Oh, and Peregrine. I know he fell off the bridge and Moody told us that there was no possibility that he could have survived the fall. But the fact is, that amulet is still in play. It wasn't recovered. What's more, a good rule of fiction is: If you don't see the character in question die, if you don't see the body...then until proven otherwise, they're not dead. I'll believe Peregrine is dead when I see it. Until then, he's potentially still in play as well. (Man, this gets into a bigger issue, but for the first time in a while, my old suspicion of Moody is stirring...)

The other problem is all the unanswered questions. By now, we have a basic understanding of what R is and what they want. But we still don't know how the group came to be. Who the Founder was. How Peregrine got himself set up as Leader. Because unless MC's bloodline has always been in R, I'd like to know what Peregrine did to earn that job in such record time. And if Peregrine is from an ancient R family, MC should be told as much. Actually, who cares about any of that. I just want to know the Cabal's damn name. Seriously, what the heck does it stand for? What is "R" short for? We never found out! What gives?

Sorry to go off topic, but all of this connects to what the plot of what "Beyond" is going to be.

Jacob has been freed. The Cursed Vaults are all open, and MC is graduating Hogwarts. Peregrine is (allegedly) dead. Even Merula's questionable loyalties have seen resolution. So essentially every aspect of this game's original plot has been solved. What more is there to do? I'm not saying I'm not grateful, that I don't want to have Beyond, but I'm not seeing what the plan is. If we're not done with R, then so be it, but if we are...is this just going to be a slice of life game now? An adventure adjacent to Harry's? Kind of surreal to think that there was a time when people were predicting that MC would die, or that everyone would forget them, to explain Harry not knowing them...

It could be interesting to see how MC navigates the Potterverse, during the timeline of the original books, except from the outside. Not within the walls of Hogwarts. This feels like the kind of thing people would turn into fanfiction. Jam City is on a very strict leash when it comes to respecting the canon, so sadly, we're not gonna see MC play a major role in the events we already know of, or have them engage in meaningful interaction with Harry. But there are a few ways in which they could be involved in the story. Let's see, off the top of my head?

MC meets Harry amid the crowd of other people that do in the Leaky Cauldron. That totally flies.

MC potentially meeting up with Remus again, either before or after he takes the D.A.D.A. job, same goes for Lockhart, Moody, and Umbridge.

MC and others are the team who picks up Norbert. I'm gonna guess Liz and Barnaby are involved. This is getting tricky though because if MC meets Harry (even just in passing) too many times, Harry would logically start to remember them.

MC meeting Dobby periodically throughout COS and learning about their plans to try and send Harry home.

MC helping Sprout brew the Mandrake solution to petrification.

MC interacting with Lucius and the School Board during Chamber of Secrets, potentially seeing the vote to suspend Dumbledore and/or him getting kicked off the Board.

They could also encounter Dumbledore while he's on suspension, or visit Hagrid when he's in Azkaban.

MC potentially being there at Azkaban (for whatever reason) when Sirius escapes. Could explain the Padfoot sprite dataminers found that never got used.

More scenes with Dobby, MC could be there when he gets the job with him when he gets his job in the Kitchens. We could see Dumbledore and Pitts.

MC encountering Wormtail while he's on the run. Or perhaps meeting Bertha Jorkins on vacation. Maybe even being there when they meet. (Remember, MC has forgotten Wormtail.)

MC coming to watch the various Tasks at the Triwizard Tournament. (Which raises the question of what there is to see for most of them...)

[blackbird0blog]

Naruto Fanfic Recs

A great crack OC/SI-insert. I just wish there was more!

Summary:

Being somehow reincarnated into a world you previously thought was fictional and is filled with bullshit ninja magic killers isn't fun. It is even less fun to find out that any foreknowledge you may have been able to use to your advantage is pretty much as useless as your ability to quote pop culture references like a champ.

Preview:

Once upon a time, a long, long time ago, and very, very far away, I did not have to deal with this shit. This kind of language may shock you, but while I look like an adorable eight year old, in actuality I have almost twenty eight years of experience and the temperament of a crotchety old man. If I had a lawn – oh man you can bet no one would be stepping on it.

I raise a darkly tanned hand to the sunlight and sigh, blowing a wisp of blue hair out of my face. I had initially been overjoyed upon realizing that I had maintained a relatively similar skin tone to my original body. My curly hair also returned for a second round. But, of course, I cannot have nice things.

I may be in an anime, but my hair color is just ridiculous. I have blue hair. When I say blue, I mean blindingly bright HEY I’M RIGHT HERE CAN YOU SEE ME I will burn out your eyes aqua blue. Not even the nice shade of blue main characters get. It is pretty awful. And with this whole ninja gig it’s probably gonna get me killed.

Oh, yes. Ninjas.

Lucky me, I was reborn in the Narutoverse. Apparently. Huzzah.

Honestly, this was not a hit my already waning sanity could really afford. Not only was I pushed on into reincarnation instead of facing the pearly gates, but I found out I was spit out into a supposedly fictional world.

I mean, after a couple months of my baby self drooling all over myself, I could kinda get over it. The whole “reincarnation” thing. Well, as long as I never think about my family, all my friends-

-painpainwhyaretheygonecomeback-

-Yeah. As in, can’t think about that at all. Ever.

…Hm, where were we?

Ah, yes. Basically, I can get over the whole “reincarnated” part. Not so much the whole “living in a military state that fully endorses the use of child soldiers and freedom is a thing of the past” part. I am an American. I was practically suckled on the sweet nectar of freedom.

(I may no longer take myself or life in general seriously. If you hadn’t guessed.)

One must also consider the blazingly ridiculous things that happen to this world. I could only stomach so much bunny goddess before I was out. Like, how would I even go about fighting half of these things without OP to the max abilities? Well I’m not planning on it, so I suppose it’s a moot point.

To put this in perspective, while it has some relative good points, I really dislike most of the Leaf’s dictatorship, freedom sucking, shove-you-full-of-propaganda self. My life is in ruin.

I sigh again and gaze at my elevated hand, “Poor Yorick. Alas, alas.”

Hm. What was the rest of that quote?

I hear a sigh, “Miki-kun, please stop interrupting class.”

I look up and see Iruka-sensei staring at me, his gaze slightly pained. His hand is frozen half-way in his now habitual motion of massaging the bridge of his nose. Ah, that poor man. He is some of most fun I have in this life. I can’t help but feel a bit bad though. The only other kid that gets his blood pressure this worked up in Naruto.

Even then he tends to resort straight to yelling with that one. I can tell he doesn’t know how to deal with me. I’m too out of the norm from what he’s used to. My personality, or mostly my seeming babbling words, tends to put most people off kilter. I don’t make many friends this way. But I also tend to be able to do whatever the hell I want without much censure. Are you going to talk sense into crazy?

I blink guilelessly, my arm still posed in the air, seeming to be ignorant to the stares of the whole class. The kid next to me slowly scoots away. I say, “Ah, sensei, I am very sorry. I’m sure no one could concentrate, that having been such a half hearted recital. Perhaps again…”

I sit up straight as if to project my words, but only get out an “Ala-” (ah, now that I think of it, “Alas” goes first, right?) before being cut off.

“NO, no, that’s just- fine. Miki-kun. Please keep further comments in your head unless they are related to class.”

The rest of the class laughs as I bob my head complacently. I consider the pros of telling him why the works of Shakespeare are relevant to all matters of life, but decide not to push him. Iruka-sensei is a good guy all things considered. I don’t like to mess with him too much.

Too much.

He goes on to lecture about whatever this class is on. I think I’m in history. It would be super interesting if the amount of propaganda being shoved down my throat didn’t make me want to choke. Like, this is North Korea level of censorship right here. I’m kinda surprised we don’t pray to the first Hokage, given how much he’s propped up in our books. To the point he is literally called the god of shinobi. Then again, I guess the appointment of real Ninja God goes to the Sage.

I mean, it’s not that I think all the facts in this damn book are straight wrong. If Konoha wins (we always win), it’s recorded as a win. If we lose (Konoha has a history of very few tactical retreats), we lose. This happened then. These institutions were established here. The spin they put on everything is what makes me dizzy.

“The honorable first Hokage singlehandedly brought the entire world of shinobi out of the dark ages. He established Konoha and brought prosperity to the land, making a safe haven for all of her citizens. Now it is your turn to uphold the First’s Will of Fire and keep Konoha safe for the generations to come. Blah, blah, blah.”

Come on, the textbooks tell you to do things. This is not even trying to look like unbiased learning. It hurts us.

Most of the cultural and historical stuff goes like this in every book available to civilians and academy students. I can’t vouch for stuff available to ninja level, but it’s overall disappointing. Having been an International Studies major, cultural stuff is kinda what I do. Did. Whatever.

I can piece stuff together from what I knew previously and what I can get wading through politically charged texts, but it’s not easy going. If I had been a Clan Kid I may have been able to get my dirty paws on some choice info, but no such luck. You’re looking at an Oliver Twist. Olivia Twist? I still can’t quite grasp the state of gender equality here. Kunoichi are generally badass, but a significantly less amount fill out the forces. In fact-

I’m ripped from my musings by the ring of the bell. The kids quickly fling themselves from their seats and run to the door, ignoring whatever Iruka is trying to yell over them. The kid next to me seems particularly eager. I casually take a look at my hand and see that I had accidentally been carving pieces of wood from my desk. Again. Oops. Time to go before sensei notices.

I push my hands against my mutilated desk and attempt to casually mosey my way to the door. I skip down the steps, not trying particularly hard to avoid the stragglers. I take a glance at Iruka out of the corner of my eye. My inattention causes me to bump into someone. Red fills my sight.

Small hands quickly push me away, causing me to stumble. Bright blue eyes glare into my brown ones, and a sharp tooth scowl fills my vision. “Hey, watch where you’re going!” Uzumaki Naruto growls at me, his spiky red hair disheveled.

Ah yes, did I forget to mention that Naruto has red hair and the plot is shot to hell and back?

Silly me.

[vote-gaara]

Juuuuuussst gonna jump right on this and say....

YES.

I really don't tend to take the "Gaara is jealous of Sasuke/Hinata/LiterallyAnyoneElse" stuff too seriously in this fandom because I have always viewed it as more of a light-hearted, inside joke meme for the shipping community. Like: "Haha, Gaara babe Naruto just doesn't see you, honey...🥺" type vibes.

However, as the OP states, believing that Gaara holds any animosity or ill-will towards Naruto's friends is a complete misunderstanding of his character, because as was said, Gaara's love is completely self-less. And you don't even have to look that hard for it, either!

Sasuke, for example: I see lots of people joking that Gaara is jealous of Sasuke, but that is really, truly and utterly not the case at all. In fact, Gaara actually tried really hard during the five Kage summit to talk to Sasuke and redeem him because all Gaara wanted was what would've been best for both Sasuke and Naruto; partly because Gaara wanted to see Sasuke given the same forgiveness that he had gone onto receive after his redemption, but also because Gaara knew Sasuke was important to Naruto. In fact, it was Temari and Kankuro that were like, "no fuck this bitch" who had to remind Gaara to keep his personal feelings out of it, and that the only option would be to arrest Sasuke for his crimes.

Gaara really had no choice but to be pragmatic about the situation when the man lead with his whole heart first in order to save an already hopeless situation.

Even when Gaara found Naruto afterwards, he broke the news as delicately as possible, referencing the importance of Naruto's dream of being Hokage, and that Naruto had to do what he needed to for Sasuke - meaning getting his ass in jail - so that Naruto could go on to make that dream a reality...And save the world, I guess.

Furthermore Gaara does it all without ever even telling Naruto that he had vouched for him. Why? Because Gaara wasn't looking for brownie points, or to argue that he was a better friend for Sasuke, because Gaara was, like a true friend, only stating the facts to look out for his friend's best interest, not to spare Naruto his feelings.

Gaara actually even THANKED Naruto even after Naruto swatted his hands away:

"In the past, 'friend' was just a word to me..." If you read between the lines, Gaara is referring to Naruto's impact on him, and how much it improved his life. Gaara is also saying how much he believes in Naruto, and you really can't get anymore anti-jealous than that.

One interesting fact, too, is that people consider Gaara to be jealous, when actually Gaara was envious and none of that involved Naruto at all.

For example, Gaara was envious of Rock Lee because of how much Guy sensei cared about him; which rocked Gaara so much, he forfeited the chunin exams match! (And then goes onto try and kill Lee).

Gaara also shows compassion towards Kimimaro and again envy towards Lee in the Sasuke Retrieval Arc, their whole conversation comprising of Gaara saying, "Ha, you're a loser cause you have someone who cares about you! ........I wish I had someone who cared about me, even if they were an asshole :("

Gaara was also envious towards Sasuke before Naruto got involved because Gaara would see how strong Sasuke was, and he was angry with him because he also had friends. Actually, Gaara was so envious of Sasuke that he was goading him to join his "I fight for myself" club...After all, misery does love company!

Incidentally, I actually don't think Gaara was ever envious towards Naruto. Really, he didn't have the time to before Naruto beat him up and then became an example that Gaara wanted to be like, which was really just resorting back to who Gaara was at his core:

A sweet, loving baby who has a heart that is too big and pure for this world.

[strawberrymilkgeorge]

Part Five. "You guys gossip about boys without me?"

warnings: swearing, mentions of emotional abusive/manipulation word count: 3.2k (not including pictures)

behind the screen (irl dream x f!reader) series masterlist ultimate masterlist

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Y/n dropped her phone on the bed and slowly rolled off and onto the ground with a soft THUD. She grunted, falling harder than she expected but the dull pain now present in her right shoulder felt deserved somehow. Why did she think she deserved it? Maybe because she was an unconfrontational worm even when the person needed to be confronted because he hurt her more than anyone ever had.

She closed her eyes and wiggled to get comfortable on the thin carpet in her room. Laying on the ground was relaxing to her, forcing her gamer back to straighten to how it was intended. It helped her think, being on the floor. She didn't know why but she didn't question it. Just laid on the floor in acceptance with the dirt and forgotten candy wrappers.

Why didn't she want to respond to Peter? Well, years of being with him and even the months of not being with him had taught her that her ex liked to get his way and liked to take his anger out in her verbally when he didn't.

You could say she's heard some terrible things over very simple inconveniences.

Y/n slowly pattered to her desk and slid on her headphones, finding the discord server Dream said he and George were on. It was a server that a lot of their friends were in, one that Y/n hardly went in since she still hadn't met a lot of them and wasn't super comfortable with talking in it yet.

She scrolled through the various text chats, one for boredom, one for stream questions, one for memes, one for pictures of pets, one for.... discussing the inevitable takeover of rats...? Y/n wasn't sure what that was about but she knew she didn't want to find out. The list went on. She was pretty sure they had made a channel for every possible message someone could ever send.

There were equally as many voice channels, most of them titled with the names of different games for when they only played with each other and didn't stream. Some of them were just random names and she noticed there was one to match the rat takeover text channel. Okay, who was responsible for that?

After what felt like an entire scavenger hunt and with many new questions in her mind, Y/n finally found the voice channel Dream and George were in and clicked on it. It was called memerz-only.

"I'm not a memer, am I allowed in here?" she asked. She hadn't realized how messed up her voice was since she hadn't talked all day.

"Holy shit, Bug, you sound awful."

She scoffed a laugh. "Thanks, Dream. Really means a lot." She did sound pretty scuffed. Her voice was a little scratchy from not talking literally all day.

"You doing okay, Bugsy?" George asked kindly, to which she hummed.

“I just have one quick question...”

“Mhm?”

“This is simple, please don’t elaborate further. There’s a channel on this server... did you guys mean rat as in BadBoyHalo’s dog or rats as in rats?”

Neither of them spoke for a minute before George understood what she was referring to. “Oh! Rats as in rats.”

“Okay, thank you.” 

“Yeah, Quackity—“

“No!” she interupted. “No! I said I don’t wanna know. I really don’t. I’m too afraid to understand.”

“Wha- HA, okay.”

“Good choice, Bugsy. I wish I didn’t know what it’s about. It’s a lot weirder than you’d think.”

“Now that that’s settled,” Dream said with a laugh. “How are you doing, Bug?”

"Neither of you are streaming, right?" she asked, doubling checking the twitch app on her phone to be sure.

"No."

"So I don't have to pretend to be happy and bubbly?"

"No, you can be as mundane as you'd like," Dream said. "We don't mind."

"Yeah, honestly, most of the time when Dream and I are on calls alone it's just us being super boring and hardly talking."

"That's..." she paused to find the right words and decided with, "actually really cute. You guys just enjoy each other's presence."

George scoffed and Dream giggled. "See, even Bug says we're cute, Georgie! Why can you tell me you love me?"

"I'll leave right now if you don't stop," George threatened. "Can we go back to how Bugsy's miserable?"

"I'm not miserable, I just..." she hesitated. She had already told George about why she was having a bad day, but Dream?

She didn't want to tell Karl because she knew he would yell at her. She didn't want to tell Sapnap because she didn't trust him not to tell everyone (on accident, of course). For some reason, it was a different kind of hesitation than with the others that made her not want to tell Dream. She didn't want to tell him because she didn't want to be... embarrassed? Maybe that was it. She thought it would be embarrassing to tell Dream about how her ex-boyfriend treated her like shit and how now he wants to get back together with her. Plus, she knew how everyone else individually would react but Dream was a complete mystery. Maybe he'd yell at her too and say she's stupid for being affected by an ex. Maybe he'd break down crying for some reason? Who knows?

"You don't have to tell us," Dream stated. "Seriously."

"It's embarrassing," she said, tucking her feet beneath her on her seat. As she said the words, she decided they felt right. She was embarrassed. "But George already knows."

Above everyone else, Y/n was okay with telling George about her situation because he and her tended to talk about their troublesome relationships quite often. He always came to her for advice and she to him. They were very similar in their ways of thinking and seemed to have lots of similar dating stories, even if neither of them knew what the hell they were doing. She knew he'd never judge her for thinking unclearly since he tended to do the same.

George hummed, not knowing what to say since she hadn't said much. She could tell he didn't wanna say something that might make Dream more nosey and start hounding her about telling him.

"What hap—never mind. Not my business," Dream said quickly.

"No, I mean, I kinda wanted to talk to George about it again anyway so I guess you can join in on the gossip." Guess my mouth decided for me on this one, she thought.

"Wait, what? You guys gossip about boys without me?"

"Oh my gosh, don't say it like that, Dream," George groaned. "Bugsy and I talk about relationship problems a lot, yes. Not just boys."

"How did I not know this?"

"Because you don't know a lot of things?"

"It's normally George sending screenshots of text conversations with girls and asking me how to let them down gently," Y/n explained with a giggle.

"Or Y/n talking about her asshole ex."

"George! What do you and Karl not get about not calling him names?"

"I'm so lost," Dream mumbled.

Y/n sighed. "Okay, well," she cut herself off with a groan. "It's so embarrassing. Basically, my ex asked me to 'chat' this morning which is code for he wants to get back together—"

"Do you know that for sure?" Dream asked.

"Yeah, we already decided that," George snapped. "Let her finish."

"Sorry."

"So he wants to get back together and I feel stupid for wanting to listen to what he has to say."

"How is that embarrassing?"

"Because he hurt me and I feel like an idiot because him even suggesting that means he doesn't realize how badly he hurt me. It makes me feel like, I don't know, like all the time I spent being upset was for nothing," Y/n explained in a soft voice. "And because his simple, like, five word text made me freak out all day to the point of exhaustion."

"I don't think you should be embarrassed, Bugsy," George offered.

"Have either of you, uh, have you ever considered dating an ex?"

"Didn't you just say he hurt you badly?" Dream asked. "You aren't thinking of getting back with him, are you?"

"No... but I want to stay friends so maybe I should hear him out?"

"Well, I've never gotten back with an ex," he said bluntly. "But to be fair, all my relationships have ended badly or for bad reasons so I've never wanted to see any of them again. Staying friends depends on why you and he broke up, I guess, but..."

"Um, how do I put this..." she trailed off. "He was mean to me."

"Then no? Simple."

"But I've forgiven him and I think he's changed."

"People don't change that easily. Didn't you break up like, a few months ago?" George asked.

"Yeah, but—"

"Honestly I think if a guy was ever mean to you he doesn't deserve any more of your attention," Dream decided. "So, no. Don't even be his friend. Don't listen to a single thing he has to say."

"That's what I told her," George agreed.

"If that were the case, you guys shouldn't be friends," she argued. "You're mean to each other all the time."

"But we know it's a joke," George defended.

"So you're saying if someone is ever purposefully mean to you just once, you drop them forever?"

"Well, no," Dream said. "Not exactly. But it sounds like he was super mean to you since it's why you broke up."

She took a deep breath. She didn't want to go into detail. She was already uncomfortable enough talking about her personal life so much, but she trusted both of them and needed to get it off her chest and they were there and willing to listen. They had already established wanting to listen to her if she wanted to speak and right now, she wanted to speak. Maybe not the full story, but at least some. "He, um, well, the mean things he said, he said because he was trying to get me to see what he thought was the truth about myself."

Both of them were silent for a few moments. "I'm still confused," George admitted.

"Me too... But you don't have to tell us." Dream explained again. She thought it was sweet that they kept reassuring her that.

"I know, but I want to. If it's not too much for you guys..."

"No, go ahead, if you want."

"Uh, he lowkey emotionally manipulated me by telling me I wasn't good enough for anyone and stuff and how he was the only one who could ever love me. The second part he said truly believing that he was being romantic. There are a lot worse and specific things engraved in my brain but that's the gist of what he would tell me. He made me believe that I could never leave him because I could never be loved by anyone else. But he said it all in a way that... he thought he was just... letting me in on something no one else had the guts to tell me."

George gasped. "What?! Bugsy, I'm so sorry, I didn't know it was like that."

"Woah, what the hell? No. Absolutely not. Don't give this guy a second thought. Cut him off for good," Dream said sternly, angry that anyone would say that to anyone, especially to someone like Y/n. "Wait, so, you broke up with him?"

"Yeah. After Karl yelled at me a lot and explained his outside point of view, I finally realized Peter was gaslighting me and emotionally abusing me and stuff so I dumped him. I guess right now I'm just upset by it because I thought we were past this and I was healing and him reaching out affected me again. I'm just emotionally exhausted. Like I said, it hurts to know that he doesn't realize what he did to me."

"I'm really sorry, Bug," Dream said softly. "Gimme his address and I'll punch him for you."

She laughed through her nose. "That's okay. Thanks."

"Yeah, she can go set his house on fire if she wants. She's proven that already."

"Shut up, George," she said with a small laugh.

"Wh......at?" Dream stuttered and George briefly explained.

"Well, Bug, just so you know, in case you weren't aware, you're really cool and sweet and funny and we really like having you around–" Dream started.

"Oh, ugh, no don't do this," she tried to joke but he ignored her as he continued his speech.

"–and you're way too good to be hanging out with either of us, and whatever that asshole was showing you wasn't love. 'No one could love you like he did' because what he was doing was not love, it was abuse." Dream's voice had a certain gentleness to it as he spoke that comforted Y/n and made her believe him. He was blunt but it didn't stab her in the heart like it should have.

If Y/n ever cried, she might have just then from how sweet they were both being. But she didn't because that wasn't something she did. She never cried over anything Peter said, never cried during movies, and didn't cry then. But she did smile very fondly at the Discord screen in front of her.

"Thank you, Dream."

"You know I'm not good with words, but, yeah, what Dream said," George said. "I'm sorry you had to go through that thinking it was normal. Please, please, do not get back together with him and please don't be friends with him."

"He's fine as a friend though."

"Bug. Whether he's fine as a friend doesn't matter, he doesn't deserve to have you as a friend. He treated you like shit, it's okay to be a little cold to him."

She sighed. They were right. "Okay." There was a long pause before, "thanks, guys. Sorry for coming in here and dumping my problems on you—"

"Don't be sorry," George said. "We're the ones that asked you to come in and share. We knew what we signed up for and don't regret it."

"Seriously, Bug, we care about you. You're allowed to, you know, talk about yourself." How did he know that's what she meant by that sentence? The way he could read her mind was heart-warming.

"Also, George knows this but Dream, there's a strict no-telling policy about this kinda thing. Please don't tell anyone."

"I wouldn't even think of it," he promised. "My lips are sealed."

"Good."

A soft animal noise came from one of their mics and Y/n strained her ears to listen. "Was that a cat?"

"Patches has entered the chat," George joked.

Dream chuckled. "Yeah, my cat just jumped on my lap."

"Aw, you have a cat? Lemme see lemme see lemme see!" Y/n begged. "Partly because I would love if we could stop talking about my ex-boyfriend and the other part because I love cats."

"There's pictures of her in the pets channel on Discord—"

"No, no I want a picture of her on your lap. Is she all snuggled up?"

"Yeah, she is."

"PleASE, Dream. I need to see the snuggly cat."

"Fine, fine, if you insist. Give me a second."

A few moments later, she got a DM from Dream and smiled at the picture. His room was dark but the computer screen cast a cold glow over a ball of fur on a lap clad in sweatpants. "Awww, she's so cute."

"Dream, I wanna see it too," George whined. "Send it to the pets channel."

"I'm literally making this my lock screen," Y/n informed, making Dream laugh.

"No, George, it's only for Bug. She's had a bad day so she gets exclusive Patches content."

"What? That is so messed up."

"You know what's messed up, George?" Dream asked. "You never come to me with advice on how to reject girls. We're on the phone for 12 hours a day but you can't talk to me about girls? Do you know how that makes me feel?"

"You'll just make fun of me."

"Why would I? What makes you think that?"

"Because Sapnap and I make fun of you? So obviously you and him would make fun of me?" George said with a laugh.

"....that's fair."

Y/n locked her phone and clicked the home button to admire her new lock screen. "I love her," she whispered.

Dream and George both laughed. "I'm regretting sending you that. You're gonna, like, make a shrine or something."

"What would be wrong with that? She's precious. She deserves a shrine."

"Yeah, Dream, you're the one that feeds her gormet cooked food," George teased with a laugh. "You probably have a shrine."

"That's normal! That's what people feed their cats! That's completely normal!"

"I don't," George countered.

"Then what do you feed your cat?" Dream asked.

"I dunno, normal cat food?"

"Wait! You have a cat too??" Y/n asked. "I feel like we're missing a huge detail and it's that George never told me he had a cat."

"And a dog."

"WHAT? GEORGE! Send me pictures!!!!!"

"I can't right now, it's like three am. They're sleeping. Look in the pets channel."

"You're the worst," she grumbled, clicking and scrolling to find his pets. She saw a lot of cute pictures of other peoples pets along the way but couldn't find George's.

"Hey, do your animals have English accents?" Dream asked, making Y/n laugh.

"What?" George scoffed. "You're so stupid."

"How would that even sound?" Y/n asked.

"Like..." Dream thought, preparing to test out how it would hypothetically sound. "Meow," Dream meowed in his best accent, failing miserable.

"Oh gosh, never do that again," Y/n begged.

Dream laughed into his mic. "That was disgusting. George, I really hope your pets don't have accents."

"They're animals, so probably not. And if they did, it definitely wouldn't sound like whatever that was."

"Oh come on–"

"OH I FOUND THEM." Y/n announced as she found a message from George in the pets channel with the message 'heard we're sharing our pets'. "GEORGE. THEY'RE SO CUTE."

"Are you gonna make them your background picture now?" George asked.

"What, no way! It's Patches!" Dream scoffed.

"Yeah, I'll make George's pets my home screen. Oh, what a good day." As soon as she said it, a metal bowling ball fell to her stomach, reminding her of all the reasons it was, in fact, not a good day.

She got off after a while, feeling the weight of a particular idiot man's stupid simple text catch up with her again. She thanked Dream and George for letting her join, they invited her to always hang out with them, and she went on her way.

Y/n fell on her bed and curled up under the covers as her mind started to wander from Peter to Dream. She was really glad she met him. He was a really good person and he was always so incredibly kind to her. George and Sapnap and Karl were all great friends, so caring and understanding and always looking out for her, but Dream was different and she didn't know why.

Maybe it was because he seemed untouchable still, like he had no reason to hang out around someone like her. But he wasn't untouchable in the celebrity was since he had a large following, because all of her friends did and they didn't seem untouchable. Then what was it? What set him apart from, say, Karl? She trusted Karl with her life and had known him for quite a while. She knew Dream for maybe a few weeks and almost trusted him the same amount.

Why?

She picked her phone up off the bed and pulled up Twitter, deciding to DM Dream since he was already existing in her mind rent-free. Might as well make him pay his rent by bothering him.

*********

PREVIOUS | NEXT

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A/N: EEEEEEEE I hope that all made sense lmaaoooo basically yn ex = gaarrbbaaagggeeeee and ruined her self-worth a lot!! not poggers!!!!!!  THANK U GUYS FOR BEING SO SWEET ALL THE TIME ALL FOR ALL THE POSITIVE FEEDBACK ON ALL THE  CHAPTERS!!! I love seeing you guys make predictions and tell me how aljkDFB chapters make you feel bc same :/

taglist: OPEN (at the time) @hydrate-tion @loraleiix @tinaswagbd @charsdummb @smileyyuta @1ghoste1 @cerberus-hellhound @gaysludge @queestionmark @carnations-red @letsloveimagines @the-fictionwriters-hairdo @boiled-onionrings @a-cryptic @fee-btheweeb @letsloveimagines @erwinss @just-a-stan @axths @kayleigh2703 @furiouspockettoad @sometimeseverythingsucks @powerpuffyn​ @itshaileyn @millavalntyne @automaticcomputerpaper @nikkineeky @fivedicksinatrenchcoat @sprucekot @jabby16 @mae-musicbitch @hungoverhellhound @dreamyteam @kuroo-icedtea @stuffforreferences @menacingaesthetic @sapphic-soot @fangeekkk 

[hana-akari]

“Do you not remember our vows? I can be a blessing or a curse. I can heal or I can destroy.” It was prior to telling him what she was, so it was in reference to her gods but now looking back on it, it was clear she was speaking as that god not for it, “I should not introduce too much blood shed onto myself, it could corrupt my healing abilities. It’s rather frustrating that I have to be mindful to keep a balance.” If she had too much of one and not the other, it would greatly affect her abilities, and might possibly warp her as a person. Sakura always had a fear of losing control. Becoming some dark being that someone would have to kill before she tainted the lands with her rage. 

“Not to criticize your leadership but my men would never stoop so low. Such actions aren’t tolerated. Had they been one of my men, they would have had their hands cut off.” As peaceful as her kingdom seemed they still had their own set of violent customs, “Both. They don’t look like much, I might grow bored fighting them one at a time. I expect them to be dirty fighters too, no? Perfect. I wish to prove my strength to your people. I suppose our people.”

Sakura let out an amused snort at the two men’s words, “My arms aren’t skinny, my clothes are just big.” To prove her point, she pulled back her sleeve and flexed, showing off that she was in fact muscular. A few scars decorated her arm from training, “Call me a bitch all you want, it will not change the outcome of this.” She was pleased that Jiraiya was taking her side on this and not his men. That was certainly winning some points with her. Sakura was a bit surprised about it. She was certain he would take his men’s side.

‘For children…’

She whined out in dismay, “Being small is a curse…” Sakura stated in a depressed manner. What a blow to pride that she had to wear children’s clothes, “If they’re easier to move in than this heavy dress, I’ll take it. I also want all this jewelry off me. The wedding is over, I don’t need to be all dressed up like a doll. I don’t want to wear my crown either. I don’t want it to be damaged during the fight.” Even if it did look sturdy. Sakura was sure that if she wanted to, she could bend and break it.

Sakura reached out and placed a hand on Jiraiya’s, looking at him seriously, “Promise me you’ll stop me before things get taken too far. Once in battle, I tend not to realize the damage I’m causing until it’s too late. If you don’t want to lose two of your men, you have to stop me.”

"It's awfully ironic. A small girl, dispositioned as a healer but she's capable of destroying just as much as she can fix." Jiraiya notes with a hint of poetic. "I don't doubt you'll do just as you say."

His brows raise when she points insistently at what was essentially his third and fourth best. They're his best due to their more brutal natures. They don't hesitate. And unfortunately they aren't keen to respect or treat women well. So.. maybe this is a good thing.

"I agree. There should be some semblance of honour. I certainly don't condone them touching you in such ways. But I can't enforce it beyond telling them not to." Jiraiya explains. It did rub him the wrong way they had assaulted her. "Do you feel confident in dishing out respect on both of them at the same time? Or one on one?"

"This bitch wants to fight us?" The first one, Tatsu, scoffs.

"She looks as if she couldn't hold a pebble with those skinny arms." The second, Koro, was just as cocky and smug.

"Careful." Jiraiya warned in their tongue. "She speaks and understands you now."

He dismisses the others to go back to their groups. The man set for his grievance looked a little put out at his match being stalled. Jiraiya waved to him, dismissing him from the ring. "My wife will fight on your behalf to avenge your grievance." He promised. Said man looked a little doubtful but reluctantly retreated to the higher level.

The warriors exchanged looks, offended that Jiraiya was believing in Sakura more than them. Which he did. He was interested to see her fight unrestrained and down right feral. He was curious to see how his warriors will react too.

"Do you need a change of clothes? We have garments that would fit you, I admit they are for children as they enter training. But they'll serve you better than your wedding gown." Jiraiya offers her.

[herinsectreflection]

Would you ever consider airing some of your spike thoughts with a warning for those who may not wish to hear them? I feel like you express yourself so well and would love to hear how you parse this very complicated character but obviously understand your reservations x

Yeah, it's not like they're unspeakable or anything. I just don't bring them up unprompted like I do most other thoughts that spring to my mind.

I'll put under a Read More because I'm going to tag this for my own system and if you're the type of person who tracks the Spike tag then you might not enjoy my thoughts (even though I adore Spike). Also if we're mutuals and you're a Spike fan please forgive me I do not mean it personally.

Honestly, the "problems" I have with Spike boil mostly more down to fandom perception than the character in canon (although I also find him to be a big problem in S7 (but not as much as is sometimes made out)). There is a tendency to soften him to the point of painting over his worst qualities, and to present him as this secretly-good uwu softboy who loves very purely and who always has Correct Opinions. Basically, I love Spike as a character but I think he is a much worse person than is often made out by other people who love Spike (this could also apply to nearly every character. this fandom in general could do with relaxing and just enjoying characters being awful sometimes).

I've also found myself growing irritated at the "lesbian Spike/lesbian Spuffy" reading that has grown itself a niche of popularity. I understand this isn't an issue at all outside of a very specific section of Buffy Tumblr, and even there is I think mostly a meme/joke. But it ties into some other things that bug me about the fandom perception of Spike, and as a lesbian it has started to actively grate on me. It's starting to feel very "female-coded Kylo Ren".

Spike is a man and Spuffy is an opposite-gender relationship. It seems trite to say but I saw a tag the other day that referred to faith and spike as "two lesbians in love with buffy" and it made my eye twitch. Because look, Faith is not canonically a lesbian. I can't honestly call her "representation". But there is a plethora of evidence within canon to read her as one. I read her as one. Faith can be a lesbian within canon, because she is a woman whose feelings for another woman can be read as romantic. Spike cannot, because Spike is a man. He cannot be a read as a woman - there is no evidence for him being anything other than a cisgender man (and no, painting his nails does not count). He expresses a lot of toxic masculinity, including sexual violence and blaming women for his own emotions. This behaviour is gendered, and it is a misreading of the text to ignore that aspect of him, and of Spuffy. A little coding and queer resonance in the Spike/Buffy arc does not make it a queer relationship.

Again, this is really just me being grouchy of a minute sector of fandom that is mostly just having fun. And I feel bad, because I have mutuals that I like and respect who I know enjoy this reading, and I do not want to make them feel sad or disrespected. And I know a lot of this is just having fun and not meant in total seriousness, which I respect (honestly, a lot of my posts are not meant in seriousness either, and I could see someone who isn't fond of Fuffy for example get annoyed when I put on my Fuffy goggles and do some silly gay liveblogging).

So when I get annoyed by a common Spike take and need to grumble in a way that I know won't go down well on Spike/Spuffy Tumblr I just vent it into the drafts and watch it bob there like a horrible grouchy turd. Not because I fear retribution - there is nothing especially scary about Spike/Spuffy fans - but because I'd feel bad. As I said, I am a fan of Spike's character and have written a lot of meta about him, and as a general rule my feelings on the show tend to overlap a lot with a lot of Spuffy fans, so I am following/mutuals with a fair few of them. I'd feel I was spiting them.

(Also, when I've made tongue-in-cheek dunks on other characters or ships I occasionally get reblogged by people who actively hate those characters/ships and get involved in the shit-flinging, and that's really not my bag. I make shitposts but I want to analyse Buffy as a literary text first and foremost, that's why I keep my Good Writing pinned).

But hey, in the interest of airing turd-covered laundry - here are some of the cheap shots that I have kept from public consumption because I just can't be bothered to deal with the fall out (and I only partially agree with them myself). Enjoy. Or don't enjoy. It's not meant personally.

(The especially bitter one I thought but didn't make where I do the D.E.N.N.I.S system but with Spuffy because the post doing it with Bangel that went around a few weeks ago very much irritated me and is the exact kind of ship-based squabbling and hypocrisy I can't stand).

[linkspooky]

Wild Tiger - Gojo and Yuji

If Megumi and Geto together represesent the black yin, then their respective counterparts Yuji and Gojo both embody the white yang. Thus, Yuji and Gojo as mentor and student are two characters who are very similiar in nature. Rather than passive, feminine,  yin standing in the shadows they both are active, masculine yang standing in the light. More on the foiling between Yuji and Gojo underneath the cut. 

1. The Strongest

There are a lot of similarities between both Yuji and Gojo you can point out right away. They are both light haired. They are both the more lighthearted person in the duo, the cheerful, silly ones in comparison to their dark haired more self serious counterparts. Yuji and Gojo both tend to come off as normal teenagers, they drop pop culture references, flirt with girls, read manga. If Geto and Megumi tend to be the more brooding ones, removed from the world around them and stuck inside their own heads it’s Gojo and Megumi who are actively taking part in the world as much as they can.

Basically, in any situation they’ll be the ones less inclined to take that situation seriously, whereas Geto and Megumi are prone to be the ones to take the situation too seriously. Despite the fact that Yuji and Gojo are the more childish of the duo and act like teenagers (Gojo acts like a teenager even as an adult, isn’t he impressive) and more prone to being emotional rather than overthinking there’s also a serious level of distance between themselves and their feelings. 

Gojo notices this about Yuji right away, despite the fact that curses are by some definition “alive”, Yuji doesn’t show any hesitation at all in fighting against them and killing them. It’s odd for what was a normal teenager before this point to act this way, to not even be a little scared by curses. Gojo marks Yuji out as one of the “crazy ones” like him right away because they both suffer from this disconnect between their head and their heart. 

Yuji and Gojo are parallel. Yuji’s craziness is Gojo’s craziness. They even go on similiar journeys before becoming the strongest. In the beginning of Yuji’s character development, and the flashback chapter for Gojo they both experience the same thing. First, a near death happens at the hands of an enemy. Until this point Yuji and Gojo have always been the strongest. Yuji has always been like olympic levels of athletic (for some reason), both Yuji and Gojo were always good at whatever they tried when they were younger and never tasted a serious defeat. 

That is until they experience their near-death and taste weakness for the first time. 

After this point they both flip. Rather than being humbled by their near defeat they become arrogant. Yuji’s flip is more literal, he flips from the dominant personality Yuji, to the other personality within him the curse Sukuna. Gojo, after unlocking the secrets of reverse jutsushiki and perfecting the unlimited becomes more arrogant. These moments are meant to be paralleled to each other, we’re supposed to see Sukuna’s arrogance in Gojo’s apparent flip after becoming the strongest because they both quote the same text “ Tenjou tenge yuiga dokuson. It means “Above heaven, under heaven, I am alone worthy of honor”.

These scenes are further paralleled, because they also fail to save someone. Gojo fails to save Riko, because he let Toji through when he promised Geto that he would cover his back as the strongest.

Yuji similiarly fails to save Junpei, after offering him a chance to come back to Jujutsu High with him and fight together. They also both fail to save the person they wanted to save for the same reason, because they failed to take the situation seriously enough and got sloppy. Yuji forgot Nanami’s warning to him to watch out for the patchwork faced spirit, and Gojo got so arrogant he dropped his guard around Toji.

After these failures however, Yuji and Gojo’s solutions is always to become prouder rather than to humble themselves. They always end up seeking out more and more strength. When Yuji loses Junpei, his response is to flip to being angry and killing Mahito. When Gojo loses Riko, his response is to go on a power trip. They always both double back on strength. This is a parallel to this. 

Which is why Gojo and Yuji click and get along so well, they think the exact same way, they both are convinced the solution to every problem is to just try to be the strongest so you will never lose. Yuji and Gojo have this weird understanding of each other, Yuji thinks Gojo is an admirable person and is always listening to him just because he’s the strongest, Gojo thinks Megumi should learn to swing for the fences more like Yuji. 

2. I Alone Am the Honored One

Yuji and Gojo’s strongest character trait is both their pride, the pride they take in themselves, the pride they take in being the strongest. However, pride isn’t a sin. It is for the both of them a strength and a weakness. Yuji and Gojo are both people dedicated to improving themselves, to lifting themselves up to be the best individuals they can be. While they’re obsessed with becoming stronger, they also use their strength pretty unselfishly. Megumi and Geto are both people who choose who to save. Geto only cares about sorcerers, Megumi only cares about what he arbitrarily deems as good people.

 Gojo is someone who is constantly working to save the masses, he does the most missions out of all the jujutsu sorcerers and is constantly busy exorcising curses for the sake of everyone to the point where his job is his whole life. He also, doesn’t just force everyone to submit to his strength by killing all the higher ups until he’s left. He’s not a tyrant. He works within the system to help people because he’s always choosing his actions along the lines of what will help the most people possible. 

Gojo and Yuji are both self centered people who use their strength in an unselfish manner, though for different reasons. Yuji is emotionally moved to helping people, and Gojo is tied down by using his powers responsibly. However, despite using their strength for the sake of other people they are also both strongest when they are alone and this is a weakness for them. 

They both make the same decision and the same mistake in the Shibuya arc, which is to run off ahead alone even when they have back up they could have waited for because they assume that everything will just be better if they handle it entirely by themselves.

Gojo goes all the way down to the subway alone and gets boxed. Every fight that Yuji faces alone in Shibuya arc (against a name character that matters) he loses. He loses to Choso, as a result of deciding to run ahead of Megumi instead of waiting for backup. He was completely losing to Mahito, and would have died had Todo not shown up to give him backup. Kamo Noritoshi Sr. even tells this to Yuji directly to his face, you alone are not enough. 

Yuji fails to get Gojo’s box back by himself, and once again has to be saved by people working together as a team, the Kyoto students led by Utahime (somebody Gojo dubbed as weak) showing up to interrupt the fight. Yuji and Gojo are both the most active characters always running off to save people, however strength isn’t enough to save people, especially when they’re acting alone. This leaves both of them feeling insecure, because they try alone, and fail alone, they believe that they themselves are not enough. 

These scenes once again are parallels. They try to save people, and then when they fail hold themselves entirely responsible. Their habit of acting alone also comes from this distance between themselves and their emotions which I described earlier. Yuji and Gojo only see themselves in their utility to the other people around them. Yuji has to be doing something in order to help others. 

Both Yuji and Gojo are consumed by what I am going to dub the “chosen one complex” where they have to believe there’s a reason that they’re given such tremendous strength. They have to use their strength in order to help others. Otherwise, why do they exist? Neither of them allow themselves to exist unless it’s in service of others. Yuji can’t live on unless he’s helping people like his grandfather told him. Gojo HAS to hold the whole Jujutsu World on his shoulders. 

In other words they see themselves and their relationships with others in this way. People can’t simply like Yuji and Gojo, they need to need them. Yuji is surrounded by allies because he is useful to them, because he’s strong enough to be around them. They see everything even themselves through the lens of strength. Nobody would want to be with them if they were weak. Geto didn’t like Gojo, they were only together because they were the strongest together.

If you’re not strong people will leave you behind. That is the only way Yuji and Gojo can comprehend their tangible connection to other people. That’s also why we see a similar emotional denseness for both Gojo and Yuji. It’s not that Gojo is uncaring, he does actually take notice of people’s feelings and tries to be considerate in his own way.

They both notice small little details about people while missing huge ones. Gojo noticed something was off about Geto because he was interested in him and observing him that close, but he took him at his words that he was fine when he was in the middle of his mental breakdown and was caught completely offguard by it. There’s an entire chapter about the small little details that Yuji notices about people. 

However, Yuji and Megumi fail at basic communication and are constantly hiding secrets from each other, the same way that Geto and Gojo once did.

They are at the same time extremely observant, and emotionally dense, and this is entirely about how they see themselves. Yuji and Gojo can only exist in service to others. They’re only going to be surrounded by people if they are strong enough. Which is why they also wish for what is exactly the same thing. Yuji wants to die surrounded by people, and Gojo wants allies that are just as strong as he is. However, they both go about it in the entirely wrong way. What Gojo wants is people who are as strong as him to be equal with him. However what Gojo needs is to emotionally open up to people and allow other people to be equals with him on an emotional level because they don’t need to pass some physical test of strength. 

Gojo and Yuji are both characters who want to be surrounded by people, and yet they’re always running off ahead of everyone else to die alone. That’s the contradiction about themselves they need to fix, in order to keep living as more well balanced people. That’s why they both need Geto and Megumi as the other halves of the equation, because they can’t solve it on their own. 

[ptergwen]

tastes like cherry

w/c: 2.7k

warnings: swearing, hints of cheating, and suggestive themes

summary: peter is into you, but you’re into mj... and peter

a/n: i love this concept even tho it’s unhealthy? let’s take it as a cautionary tale :D also this is my last full oneshot of the year!! i’ll do something quick tomorrow tho

━━━ ➳❥

“sorry, peter. i’m already going with mj.”

you shut your locker, revealing an oddly unphased peter behind it. he doesn’t understand what you mean.

the two of you make your way through the hall. you’re about to head some so you can get ready for liz’s party later. she told you about it first since you’re good friends. you asked mj to come this morning, which was liz’s idea. she’s been trying to set you two up for a while.

“ok, that’s fine. i’m sure she’ll understand if you-“ you cut him off before he gets too excited. “like, as a couple. she’s my date.” peter’s face falls.

you and mj? no offense to her, but he could never see you liking someone so... dry. he’s always pictured bubbly and sweet people to be more your speed. himself, for example.

“that’s,” peter clears his throat. “that’s cool.” you smile to yourself, thinking about spending the night with mj. he’s thinking about how he can show his support without sounding jealous. “since when did you, um, have a thing for her?” “i don’t know. liz helped me realize, honestly,” you nudge his arm.

“maybe you can hang out with her tonight.” peter turns to look at you like you’ve said the most insane thing ever. you’re already looking at him. it brings a blush to his cheeks, which you take as him liking her. you smirk and stop when you get to the doors.

“i... i don’t think that’s a good idea,” he decides with a nervous smile. “think about it more. see you later.” you push open one of the doors and skip outside. you’re already gone when he responds. “yeah, see you.”

he needs to come up with a plan, fast.

-

“dude, that’s rough,” ned can’t hold back a laugh at the story. peter is at his place, the two of them about to leave for the party. he told him what happened earlier in hopes of getting a second opinion. if he’d known ned would react like this, he would’ve kept it to himself.

“this isn’t funny, ned. i need help,” peter almost whines, flopping back on ned’s bed. ned is fixing his hair last minute. “i’m sorry, bro, but i don’t think y/n likes you that way,” he says sympathetically this time. peter sits up again. they both make eye contact in the mirror. “how do you know that?” “uh, she rejected you?”

puffing some air out of his cheeks, peter watches ned run a comb through his hair. the silence gives him time to reflect on your conversation. he suddenly remembers a key part of it.

“she only said no because she’s taking mj,” peter repeats, ned squinting at his friend’s reflection. “not because she doesn’t like me.” ned puts the comb down, satisfied with his look. he sighs and faces peter again. “it’s too late, dude. try again some other time.”

peter disregards everything he said and keeps plotting. he snaps when an idea comes to him. “all i have to do is get y/n alone for a while.” he looks up at ned with hopeful eyes. that can’t be good.

ned doesn’t approve of messing with your love life. he wishes peter could be just happy for you and move on. that being said, he is supposed to be peter’s wingman. he’d be a pretty terrible one by saying no to whatever he’s about to ask. he mentally apologizes to you before giving in.

“what am i gonna do?”

“can you distract mj for me?”

-

kids are still piling in when peter and ned arrive. they follow the line of people leading the way. it’s easy to forget how popular liz is because she does academic decathlon with all of you, the most uncool club midtown has to offer. this puts it in perspective.

liz is greeting people at the door. another reason she’s not your stereotypical popular girl is that she’s actually nice.

peter heads in first, ned behind him. her face lights up the second they step inside.

“what took you so long?” she playfully questions the two of them. “ned’s hair,” peter answers, earning a laugh from her. ned elbows his side. “it looks great, ned,” liz compliments him and winks at peter. “oh, thank you.” he tries to act humble about it by running a hand through the style.

peter peers over liz’s head to see if he can find you. he’d have to stand on his tiptoes to really make progress, so that’s done. liz still picks up on it.

“looking for someone?” she raises an eyebrow at him. ned shifts from one foot to the other uncomfortably. “um, do you know where y/n is?” peter clenches his jaw. “in the kitchen with mj. she told me you might wanna hang out tonight.” she’s sort of studying his face, widening her eyes. he averts his own to his feet.

“i should really find her. i’ll... i’ll catch up with you later.” his lips press into a forced smile. “come on, ned.” the two of them set off for the kitchen. ned tells her goodbye and follows peter, leaving liz standing there shocked.

“you could’ve been a little nicer, dude,” ned concludes from the encounter. they’re on their way to the kitchen. peter shrugs his shoulders with both eyebrows furrowed. “i wasn’t mean, though. i’m just, you know, busy.” “so is y/n.”

you’re laughing about something mj said, your arms tightening around her waist from behind. one of your hands has a drink in it. the other searches for hers. she laces your fingers together and rolls her eyes, probably calling you a dork. it’s in a loving way, unlike when she uses the same nickname on peter.

ned might be right. it seems like you’re having a really good time. who is peter to take that away from you? he’d rather you be snuggling up to him than mj, but what matters beyond anything is that you’re enjoying yourself. he should listen to you and spend some time with liz. she’s at least interested in him.

he completely changes his mind when your lips brush mj’s cheek. back to his plan.

“you’re here!” you announce as peter and ned enter the kitchen. mj nods her head at them. “thing one. thing two,” she greets, holding out her free hand to fistbump ned. “hey.” peter grins at you, then gives mj a slightly smaller one. she notices. he sticks his hands in his pockets.

“did you say hi to liz?” you check with your eyebrows raised in anticipation. ned answers for peter, who bites down on his lip. “they’re gonna hang out later.” mj snorts at the idea. “why would she ever wanna do that?” “because i told her to,” you sigh and glance at peter. he’s so stiff.

“and why would you do that?” mj deadpans, looking peter over. he glares back. he hates being talked about like he’s not there. ned forces out a laugh to clear some of the tension between them. you don’t realize any of this is happening.

“i mean, she set me up with you. i wanted to return the favor,” you explain and rest your chin on mj’s shoulder. her face softens. she tilts her head back to look at you with a smile. “aw,” ned coos and draws a heart around you two with his fingers.

he’s secretly rooting for you and mj.

peter points at the snack table, his eyes going from mj to you. “i’m gonna... get a drink.” “ooh, fun. i picked them out,” you beam at him. mj pulls you closer to her before he comes over. she’s not happy with the way he keeps looking at you. you’re not completely oblivious to it either. you just don’t know what to think of it.

you pick up your cup to take a sip of soda. peter has to pass by you to get his own. right as you bring yours to your lips, peter ‘accidentally’ knocks into you. the drink spills down the side of your dress. this is all part of his plan. you squeal and step away from mj.

mj hits peter’s arm with the back of her hand. “idiot. look what you did to my date.” she only refers to you as her date so he’ll take the hint and back off. he ignores her and tends to you instead, a frown on his lips.

“i’m so sorry, y/n. i didn’t mean to-“ “it’s fine. ned, can you hand me a napkin?” you do your best not to let your frustration show.

he goes to get one off the counter. peter turns to him and mouthes ‘don’t’ before he gets the chance. ned mouthes ‘why not?’ back. peter says ‘because i said so.’ their silent conversation doesn’t go unnoticed by mj. she huffs and pushes past peter. “what the fuck, i’ll get it.”

peter gives him a look that says to do something. panicking, ned pushes the stack of napkins onto the floor. they all end up scattered around.

everyone waits for him to address it. “oops,” he chokes out. “you’re both idiots,” mj grumbles, getting onto the floor to pick them up. this should keep her distracted for a while. things are falling into place.

“i’m gonna see if i can borrow something from liz,” you tell the three of them in an exhale. peter rushes to your side. “do you need help with your dress?”

not sure what to say, you look over at mj. her and ned are busy cleaning up. she probably won’t mind. “this is my fault. i feel bad,” peter continues on.

you leave your empty cup on the snack table and nod. “come with me.”

-

you bring peter up to liz’s room and shut the door behind you. he has to bite back a smile while you search through her drawers for new clothes. sorry to liz, looks like the two of you are spending the night together now.

your change of clothes ends up on the bed. it’s only a t-shirt and jeans. you’re actually kind of bummed about your dress because you bought it specifically for tonight. not that mj would ever care what you wear, but you felt like dressing up. a few compliments from her wouldn’t hurt, though. she’s not the best in that area.

“can you unzip me?” you ask peter, eyeing him over your shoulder. he’s quick to come up behind you. he puts a hand on your lower back. his other slowly tugs the zipper down. “this is cute,” he murmurs, swiping his thumb over the material of your dress. the feeling and his words give you goosebumps.

“sorry i kind of ruined it.” “are you?” you’re only teasing. peter answers seriously, his voice lower than usual. “no.” you take a step forward when he finishes with the zipper. “it did feel pretty staged to me. you’re not that clumsy.” there’s emphasis on ‘that.’ he hums in a rather suggestive way. you face him again.

the back of your dress gets left open. peter’s eyes trail down your body, his hands not quite leaving it yet.

you’ve always seen him as this harmless, infinitely nice guy. he’s almost too nice for you. it’s why you never considered him as more than a friend. mj has an edge to her, and you like that. peter might have an edge, too.

this new side of him is starting to make you rethink his spot in the friend zone. you feel like you might be rushing into things with mj. should you really have taken liz’s advice? or, should you have came with peter?

“why’d you do it?” your gaze shifts down to his lips. he moves closer to you. that inspires you to take another step back. “i had to get you away from mj.” “she’s my date,” you say unconvincingly and keep walking backwards. peter follows until you end up against the wall.

it’s the perfect spot for him to corner you in. so, he does.

his arms are on either side of the wall behind you. he leans his head down. your faces are dangerously close to each other. your mouths are dangerously close to each other, too.

“you’re... you’re supposed to be with liz,” you breathe out. peter brings a hand up to caress your cheek. “she probably has better things to do.”

it’s almost impossible not to give in to his touch. his fingers run over your skin gently, contradicting the intense way his eyes stare into yours. you lean your cheek in the palm of his hand. you’re still having doubts.

“well, i’m supposed to be with mj,” you try to remind the both of you.

peter considers it for a moment. you two definitely shouldn’t be doing this. the selfish side of his brain takes over then. it’s not like you and mj made it official yet.

“supposed to be doesn’t mean you want to,” he rasps, his thumb moving down to your lower lip. he runs it across. you watch him with hooded eyes. as much as you crave his lips on yours, it wouldn’t be fair to mj. you care about them both.

“what if she’s looking for me?” your voice is just above a whisper. “ned has it covered,” he reassures you. “we’re okay.” we. you really like the way that sounds.

you’re not sure what’s going on with your head or your heart right now. all you know is that you want, no, need peter to kiss you. you’d never forgive yourself if you let the chance pass you by.

“you thought of everything,” you remark, winding one of your arms around his neck. peter’s breath fans over your face. he grabs your waist, you pushing your body flush against his. there isn’t an inch of space between you two. “because i like you, y/n.”

“i like you, too,” you finally admit to yourself and peter. your lips are so close to his they’re ghosting. “but, i also like mj.” his fingers press into your side. “can we worry about that after we kiss?” a grin crosses your face. “good idea.”

peter lets his lips land properly on yours, both of you melting into the kiss. this already feels so right even though it isn’t. he sighs in content and drops a hand down to your hip. you use your hand on his neck to deepen the kiss, your head against the wall.

he pulls you up by your hips, signaling for you to jump. your legs wrap around his middle while he snakes his around your waist again. he’s easily holding you while his lips attack yours.

“shit, you’re so strong,” you giggle into his mouth, an airy laugh escaping him. “think so?” peter kisses over to your cheek. one of your dress straps falls down your shoulder. you leave it. his lips kiss their way back to yours, getting messier with each one. you give him a lazy smile. he pecks your lips one more time, softly.

“you taste like cherry,” peter mumbles, now moving down to your chin. it’s shiny from where your lip gloss smeared. “cherry coke. the one you spilled on me,” you explain with a scoff. he keeps kissing down the center of your neck, his fingers tugging at the end of your dress.

“wonder what else tastes like cherry.” he’s half joking and half serious. actually, more serious. you gasp and tilt your head to the side more. you can feel him smirking while his lips dance across your skin. “peter, i can’t believe you of all people would say that.” “i’m full of surprises,” he hums, sucking a little too hard on one spot.

it’s hot having him take control like this, but this isn’t the time or place for a hickey.

“wait, i don’t want mj to see.” that’s the least of your problems. still, it’s a very big one. it comes right after choosing between which one of your friends you like more. you’re so screwed.

“alright. let’s do something else,” peter suggests, tightening his grip around your waist. he carries you over to liz’s bed. you giggle into his ear and throw your other arm around his neck. he drops you right next to your change of clothes, which you forgot about. they’re the whole reason you’re up here.

there’s a lot to unpack in this situation. you’re in your best friend’s room making out with her crush, while your sort of girlfriend has no fucking clue where you went.

good thing peter and his kisses are here to distract you from it all.

[zsocca55]

this might be a weird question, but do you have any opinions on Hungary's characterization or anything that annoys you about her character/anything you find fitting about her character?

Thank you for the question!

I thought about it and wondered if you meant Hidekaz’s characterization or the fandom characterization, so in the end I collected a few thoughts on both. (I’m a history teacher graduate by the way so I feel like I have more insight than an average person but my opinion is still just an opinion and not something that should be taken too seriously.)

Hidekaz’s characterization of Hungary: I find this approach quite appropriate. The whole story about ‘Hungary thinking she was a boy and then found out she is in fact not’ works surprisingly well with the way our historians describe how Hungary used to be a serious power in Central Europe until the second half of Middle Ages came and she somehow got stuck behind. Simply put, the male countries around her grew stronger as puberty hit, haha.

But from a historian point of view, Hungary is considered a very masculine nation in characteristics, even today. And this is shown in the series too.

Also her emotional, easy to anger and aggressive nature fits Hungarians quite well. One thing is slightly off though: Hungarians are not this happy-go-lucky on a daily basis. In the series she is shown as somewhat an optimist with a bright smile on her face all the time. Meanwhile in reality, even we admit is, we are pessimistic, hard to approach, borderline gloomy, and we complain a lot. You could say an average Hungarian is whiny. Bad habit, and we often call ourselves out for it. We have a harsh tongue and we critique ourselves a lot. (And other nations too if they hurt us in some way. Oh and we hold grudges forever. We don’t forget. We will bring it up. Again and again.)

Hungary’s realtionship with other nations is also an interesting thing in the series. Historically, we have very little to do with Prussia. Germany is an other case, as Hungarians tend to worship germans for some reason (if something is german-made it surely is the best etc.) and we show unique respect towards them when they visit our country.

Poland is a beloved nation, our best friend, as we have often fought for each other and refused to attack the other during world wars. But this isn’t shown in the series at all. I miss this, as Hungarian-Polish interactions happen on a daily basis, especially in the online world. This missed opportunity is the biggest disappointment I find regarding Hungary’s interactions.

Lets not forget Austria too, as he deserves a spot in our history books....yeah, he takes a lot of pages. Here is another little mischaracterization in our relationship: Hungarians and Austrians had a love-hate thing with each other. Austria was controlling, Hungary was rebellious. But in the end, when Austria was in trouble, we would dive headfirst into battle and save him, or just intentionally miss opportunities to backstab him. Hungary wanted her freedom but she also never wanted to quit his Empire. It’s....complicated? We are fascinated with him, though. One could say an average Hungarian envies an average Austrian and wishes they could live there. We also call them “in-laws” for being family. They call us their “favorite neighbours” and sometimes refer to us as family too.

That thing about generally not liking Romanians is true as well. Ugly things happen even nowadays. It’s all because of Transylvania. It’s a touchy topic.

So yeah, all in all, her character and her relationships are more or less on spot.

Fandom characterization of Hungary: The palette is broad, so I try to point out the most prominent trends I’ve noticed.

Aside from the fact that her gender role is all over the place, people like to think in extremes so she is either written as the girliest girl or an overconfident tomboy. In my opinion she is neither. She has embraced her femininity but she also knows her strength and isn’t afraid to show it. No need to overthink that.

As for historical accuracy, I noticed that an average fan usually doesn’t do enough background check when writing her character. It’s not like I say someone’s required to read a whole history book just to get her character right, but at least her correct name (which is one of the sore points for me) and the main national traumas should be kept in mind before writing Hungary. These are the things that had shaped her way of thinking and these are what make her tick. Even today, Hungarians are quick to get offended when their national traumas get ignored or disrespected. These traumas are: Ottomans (Turkey), Habsburgs (Austria), Soviets (Russia) and the worst of all Trianon. So when writing interactions with her and these characters listed, one should thread carefully and do some research.

Otherwise, I find the slightly mischievous, soul of the party characterization of her appealing and on point. Hungarians aren’t all that bad, we know how to get some fun afterall! :D

But again, everything is up to interpretation and there is some place for author’s creativity too! I hope I answered your question! :)