Tumgik
#i love the evil snake man and i also love finding the positives about things
thetxtdevil · 2 months
Note
GIRL I LOVE YOUR WRITING ! now I have a thought :
thoughts bff! Yeonjun having a huge crush on reader he literally ogles at her like a perv a mini skirt has him reeling inside his head but he keeps cool in front of her and acts unbothered. Because you're so pure, and he's scared of what you might think of him if you know about his dirty thoughts about you 🤭🤭
However little does he know you have the biggest crush on him since day 1 , everytime you go to his concert and see him performing you literally kick your feet and go insane over how hot your best friend his and how you want him to rearrange your insides but you keep quiet, one brush of his hands as he tucks your hair behind your ears or pulls you closer to him nakes you wet af but he can't know
There's just so much sexual tension....
can u please expand on this 🥺 pretty please ??
--nsfw--
Yeonjun sits in his makeup chair preparing for the night and... other things... Other things like the fact you, his best friend also your crush, is attending today's concert. Of all concerts you've attended he was especially excited about you going to this one. The choreography was different making the band nervous, but it excited Jun thinking that this may finally get you excited too.
You were standing amongst the crowd, phone at the ready. Yeonjun does a little dance and getting to the center of the stage then ripping his tank showing off his toned torso. You felt your face drop, you never expected this. Yeonjun knew where you were in the over populated field of fans, he sees your reaction just in time fueling his performance of grinding the hard floor and hip thrusting the air. You felt dizzy, the phone's angle was long gone, you were too stunned to do anything but stare, watch, drool.
Yeonjun finished his number doing his signature - pushing his hair back then tilting his head before looking into the camera. His piercing blue eye contacts felt like they were shooting lasers, he looks at the camera and then glances at you. He smirks at your bulging eyes and you squeeze your knees shut.
---
"So did you like my performance?" Yeonjun flops down on the sofa still sweaty from the show.
"mmhmm" you hum sitting as far away from the man legs crossed.
"What did you like about" he fixes his positions spreading his legs. You couldn't help but to look at his dick print through his sweats.
"I liked that you proved your work at the gym."
Yeonjun chuckles, glistening cheeks pinching his eyes, "What about the grind move? Seems like moas like that one"
"uhh yeah- that was... good"
Yeonjun notices your lack of eye contact, you seemed so cute flustered like this. He launches out of his spot finding a new one next to you. His body warm against yours, all you wanted to do is to touch his soft skin and other parts.
The man snakes his hand on your bare thigh leaning to whisper into your ear, "Why are you so quiet, cutie? I thought you would be yapping that mouth about my performance."
You wanted to look away, hide the fever-like heat on your face, but you couldn't. Gazing in your best friends eyes, the usual comforting sparkle was faded with a lustful darkness. You glance down at his lips which were smirking with pure evil. Breath hitching at the feeling of Yeonjun's fingers dancing under your skirt.
"Or do you want me to make you yap my name on the top of your lungs?"
A nuisance,
TxT's Devil
taglist: @inkigayocamman, @naoristerling
74 notes · View notes
liketwoswansinbalance · 4 months
Note
I am really curious to see your take on Aric and Japeth's relationship. I mean, the beloved author and creator of the series have addressed this issue with 'in their own sick wicked way they had loved' so yeah it's cannon cool. But I feel like the further implications of this? We saw evil 'unable to love'/ 'only ever have true love'. From what I remember Japeth mentioned Aric more than once, how they would write letters to each other how Aric 'begged' for Japeth to come to him but Japeth never did so and then bro spent the last of his life trying to bring Aric back to life. There are so many implications, the dynamics, the context, everything, but I love how you theorise and explore all sorts of ideas so I can't help but wonder how you view all of this :D.
Thanks for taking the time to read this and have a great day/afternoon/evening/night!
Sorry to disappoint, but I should probably start off with the fact that I don't ship Japeth and Aric. While I like Japeth, partly in thanks to @discjude winning me over, and further recognizing the tragedy surrounding him, his relationship to Aric never canonically does him any favors. And, with Aric, I think I'm apathetic enough towards him that I don't actively hate him; I just don't care about him. In truth, if not for Aladdin's pitiful existence actively hammering on my nerves, Aric would probably be my least favorite character.
The first thing I want to address is that Evil being "unable to love" or "only Evers have True Love" is actually false, despite the many times the series puts forth this claim. Yes, we are explicitly told this "fact" in book 1, but the book's point was to subvert/deconstruct the myth.
First, by the end, with her self-sacrifice, Sophie proved Evil's capacity to love, meaning: Evil being unable to love is just a commonly-held belief in the Woods, not the absolute, be-all, end-all truth.
(And the belief could've been perpetuated by "Rafal's"/Rafal's way of running his institution that literally shapes the Wood's perceptions and the future. Alongside this claim about love, consider the existence of the Doom Room, created to punish a singular mutinous class of first-years, based on a now-revised philosophy about Nevers' learning from harsh treatment and (probably) disproportionate retribution that an excessively stubborn dead man already too entrenched in his old ways never had the chance to change because he died—and this is all aside from the fact proven by the display at the very first Circus of Talents, that Rafal's students did indeed learn better when he finally listened to them and mentored them as an equal in their position (as Fala). In addition, the statement: "Nevers learn from deprivation" similarly reveals how the Woods really do generalize about Nevers—until Sophie, the "exception" and iconoclast, comes along.)
Second, Sophie's non-romantic True Love at some point was said to be Agatha, and I think this established fact is consistently maintained throughout the series, even if other elements overshadow it, so not only Evers can have True Love.
My take on Japeth and Aric is that Japeth's love for Aric, however twisted or sincere it was, drove him to become the Snake, follow along with Rhian's Camelot ambitions and initial staging-terrorism-and-hostage-scenarios plot, and commit all his other, duplicitous, villainous acts throughout TCY, later by his own will, which is a motive I find fascinating (and contradictory about the nature of the Woods' Good and Evil souls, whenever Japeth is set next to the rather grey Rhian).
So, while Japeth's devotion to Aric could be viewed as romantic, it's just not appealing to me, personally, due to the relationship's ambiguous one-sidedness in particular. And, I think I once may've read something about Japeth as a Never fighting for True Love (or his perception of "True Love") and Rhian as an Ever fighting for power (the Nevers' ideal fairy-tale ending) being ironic or inverted in some way. That's also some world-building fodder to consider, or even just another point that could overturn the Rules as we know them, yet again. I'm not surprised by that subversion honestly. Japeth is very much like his parents. Nearly every SGE villain Soman has ever written has been motivated by the pursuit of love, or by the overwhelming force of their own (often obsessive) infatuations (with the exception of somewhat flatter, less-developed, secondary villains, like Aric, Vulcan, Marialena, and Peter Pan).
Also, thanks for the compliment!
36 notes · View notes
saras-devotionals · 6 months
Text
Quiet Time 3/26
What am I feeling today?
I’m in a bit of pain that’s been lasting for about four to five days now and I had hoped I’d have gone away by now but hasn’t. I’m also saddened by the bridge collapsing in Baltimore earlier today, could you imagine how terrifying that must’ve been? To be driving across a bridge, it’s breaking and collapsing, and then you and your car are plunged in the river below in the middle of the night, surrounded by darkness? It breaks my heart, that must be truly traumatizing and I pray that they recover everyone and that they’re all okay. On the bright side, I get to travel back to my home city again and I’m bringing one of my friends and niece and can’t wait to show them Pittsburgh! It’s always nice going back home🥹
Luke 11 NIV
(v. 2-4) “He said to them, “When you pray, say: “ ‘Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation. ’ ””
Here’s Jesus giving us the example of how we’re supposed to pray. I don’t believe we are meant to say this word for word every time, more so to use it as a template. Praising God first and thanking Him for what He’s gone for us. Petitioning and making our requests before Him. And finally, forgiveness for our sins because even as disciples, we sin daily, none of us can say that we’re without sin.
(v. 9-13) “So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
I know that I ask God for a lot. Every day I present requests to Him but I know that I don’t actually deserve anything. Not to put my worry down or anything but God already gave us His son when she didn’t need to. That’s already a gift that we’re unworthy of but He gave Jesus because He loves us. And He’ll give us other things we pray for (as long as it honors Him) because He loves us. Also, in the verse beforehand, at the end of the parable Jesus is giving, he says that it’s given because of the man’s “shameless audacity” and honestly it made me laugh because it’s so true! Who are we that we feel we are in any position to ask God for whatever we want when we’re not even really worthy of life (but are now bc of Jesus).
(v. 24-26) ““When an impure spirit comes out of a person, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, ‘I will return to the house I left.’ When it arrives, it finds the house swept clean and put in order. Then it goes and takes seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that person is worse than the first.””
I think this is kinda terrifying, but also annoying. Terrifying in that even when the impure spirits leave us as we come into our lives with Christ, then be back and even stronger, with more wicked spirits. I say it’s annoying because they’re coming back, like come on! really? y’all can’t just leave us alone in peace but gotta keep attacking us? but, with the word of God and with Jesus and the Holy Spirit in our lives, we can resist these attacks and stand firm in our faith.
(v. 28) “He replied, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.””
This! It is not enough to just listen to the word of God. We can listen to the Bible for every second of our life, but if we don’t do what it says, then it’s all been in vain. I think this myself sometimes, every day I sin and I’m aware that I don’t obey everything as I should. I can catch myself, and note where I need to improve, and make a daily effort, but I also know I’ll always fall short.
(v. 34-36) “Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are healthy, your whole body also is full of light. But when they are unhealthy, your body also is full of darkness. See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness. Therefore, if your whole body is full of light, and no part of it dark, it will be just as full of light as when a lamp shines its light on you.””
I had a bit of a hard time understanding this so I went to some commentary for clarity:
Here Jesus addressed himself to correcting his hearers’ inability (through their sins) to appreciate truth, and to read God’s sign, when they should finally see it. It was not at all the nature of the sign that needed correction but the quality of perception in his sinful audience, the evil generation which confronted him.
8 notes · View notes
ozimagines · 4 months
Note
Hello, I was wondering if you had any thoughts on a NSFW alphabet for Enrique Morales? If not thats totally fine. I hope that your recovery is going smoothly! Thank you
I am honestly so happy people find David Zayas as attractive as I do. Would love to write Morales more often. ❤️❤️
(And thank youuuuuu! It’s going alright. Bent my knee 90°!!)
NSFW Alphabet with Enrique Morales…
Tumblr media
A = Aftercare (what they’re like after sex)
I think he’s a gentleman so after sex he wouldn’t be too mushy but he’d be genial. Toweling you off. Getting you a glass of water. Asking if you’re okay. Just a decent guy. There wouldn’t be sweet nothings until very far into the relationship, and his “sweet nothings” mostly amount to “you know I’d kill for you right”, and kinda takes you out of the mood.
B = Body part (their favorite body part of theirs and also their partner’s)
His face. He thinks he looks like Casanova with his mustached and trim hair. Plus he always liked his stocky build. Gave him an aura of respect.
On his partner, his favorite body part would be their back. Nothing like a nice slender or broad shouldered person, smooth skin and just so kissable creases. Often kisses their back during sex. Just can’t help himself.
C = Cum (anything to do with cum, basically)
He’s a gentleman but he’s also a man lol. His favorite place to cum is breasts and asses. He’ll never complain about coming inside someone though. The one thing I will say is affable evil here will still never come in hair. Good man.
D = Dirty secret (pretty self explanatory, a dirty secret of theirs)
Wanked it to Fiona a few times. Well… maybe more than a few. (But c’mon who can blame him, it’s fucking Fiona St James.)
E = Experience (how experienced are they? do they know what they’re doing?)
Medium experience. He’s handsome enough but people are mostly attracted to his money and status. He uses it to his advantage and has had serious partners in the past where he’s gotten experience, but I don’t think he’s carving up the town like Chico Guerra. 😂
F = Favorite position (this goes without saying)
Layer cake or stacked snakes I’m calling it. Anything full body contact, when he can feel your warmth. Prefers stacked snakes because he likes looking at your back and ass as he rams into you and kiss the back of your neck whenever he wants. Also lets him pull your hair.
G = Goofy (are they more serious in the moment? are they humorous? etc.)
Very. Very. Serious. Will take it personally if you giggle in bed. Like will get angry and sulky if he thinks you don’t take him seriously or respect him. That’s what it’s all about for Enrique Morales; it’s about respect and power.
H = Hair (how well groomed are they? does the carpet match the drapes? etc.)
Actually no, because I don’t think there is a carpet. Like maybe a few hairs but I think he’s bald bunny ain’t got no fur down there. He is very well groomed though and his hygiene is impeccable.
I = Intimacy (how are they during the moment? the romantic aspect)
I think he tries to be romantic. It comes off a little creepy/aggressive at times but he’ll most certainly try. It’s mostly for himself though. Likes his reputation to be one of pleasuring his partner, or perceived to be good in bed. He’ll kiss you and whisper things to you, but they’ll be a little generic at first.
J = Jack off (masturbation headcanon)
Doesn’t really jack off all that often. Sometimes he’ll give himself a tug just to wake himself up as it were, but really finds that most of his pleasure is him having a partner present.
K = Kink (one or more of their kinks)
Power play is one of his kinks. Like teacher/student, doctor/patient, things like that. Also into ass play on his partners. Into the mostly non messy things. Like not piss play or blood play. It’ll get on his suit.
L = Location (favorite places to do the do)
Likes private locations. Bedrooms and offices and such. Places where he can really get in his mindset and concentrate. Isn’t an exhibitionist in the slightest. Prefers a good bed, but will settle for a counter or table. Will NOT do it on a couch though. Fucks up his back.
M = Motivation (what turns them on, gets them going)
Ear stuff. Kissing his ear, licking his ear, sticking your tongue inside. It’s lewd and he’ll admonish you but it won’t be long before you’re in the bedroom, because he just can’t help himself anymore.
N = No (something they wouldn’t do, turn offs)
Wouldn’t be degrading towards his partner. Like even if you wanted to hear something filthy and mean, he just wouldn’t be able to say it to you. Like calling you a slut. You’re his, and what you are is a reflection on him, so you’re the most perfect creature in the world in his eyes.
O = Oral (preference in giving or receiving, skill, etc.)
Prefers receiving oral. Loves a good be, his hand in your jaw, or tangled in your hair, gently guiding your head on his. Isn’t the kind of guy to buck or push you into him. He’ll be kind. And when he gives oral, he prefers giving it to people with vaginas, but I think he’d make an exception for someone he cares about. Slow and steady with blowjobs.
P = Pace (are they fast and rough? slow and sensual? etc.)
Slow and sensual but almost painfully so. Like the kind that just drags out and you’re panting and sweating by the end just begging for release, but he’ll slowly and steadily work it out of you.
Q = Quickie (their opinions on quickies, how often, etc.)
Doesn’t appreciate quickies the way the other guys do. If he’s doing it, he’s doing it RIGHT. How you do anything is how you do everything. That’s his motto.
R = Risk (are they game to experiment? do they take risks? etc.)
Game to experiment within reason. He wouldn’t try ANYTHING once but he would be open to suggestions on new ventures. You have a to approach it like a business meeting though. A proposal and field questions at the end. He’s formal, so what?
S = Stamina (how many rounds can they go for? how long do they last?)
I think two rounds but two LONG rounds. Like hours. Make a say of it. (Pack snacks, lol) He knows his shit and can stave himself off if necessary for his partner. He’ll be breathing really steady and deep, but he won’t cum until you do.
T = Toys (do they own toys? do they use them? on a partner or themselves?)
I think he doesn’t own any toys but would like to. Take this man to a sex shop, stat! Likes paddles and ropes mostly. And sexy lingerie. Like costume lingerie. Sends him over the edge if you come out dressed like a sexy doctor or schoolteacher.
U = Unfair (how much they like to tease)
LOVES to tease his partner. LOVES to be teased. For him, it’s all about patience. And he’s got patience. Patient for touches and words of affirmation and release. His personal best is a week of no release followed by the best orgasm of his life.
V = Volume (how loud they are, what sounds they make, etc.)
Quiet. Very quiet. Even when he speaks it’s in that low, serious tone of his. “Come on, baby, you’re doing so good.”🔥 Lots of; “like it like that?”. Some almost silent growls, like purring.
W = Wild card (a random headcanon for the character)
Into role play. Especially with a power element. He is the one with the power I. This scenario. He won’t go over the top with props and shit but a little dress up never hit no one. (Don’t get me wrong, only thing he’ll wear is his suit, YOU have to dress up. Although you got him to dress like a mechanic once. It. Was. Glorious.)
X = X-ray (let’s see what’s going on under those clothes)
Wow. This question I just want to add a picture of all the guys in solitary but they’d take away my account lol. He’s a stocky guy, thick in the waist and the face. Actually likes his dad bod. Makes people take him more seriously. Dick, moderate length, above average thickness. Hairless balls.
Y = Yearning (how high is their sex drive?)
I know I’m answering moderately for a lot of these but he’s a sexual guy who can hold his thirst when necessary. When he’s in the mood, he’ll start to give you back massages or kiss your neck standing behind you.
Z = Zzz (how quickly they fall asleep afterwards)
Moderately fast. Will do the whole “how was it for you” thing and put your head in his heart afterwards so that the beating lulls you to sleep. He’ll fall asleep right with you, both of you drifting off at the same time. Bliss, in his mind.
3 notes · View notes
suikka · 5 years
Text
the OK KO finale and how it handled Venomous’s character
i don’t usually post fandom meta on tumblr like, ever, but i just have SO many thoughts about the OK KO finale i’d love to share, especially regarding professor venomous’s character arc, so i’m here to bring out some of my personal analysis about it! 
Tumblr media
all along i was prepared that we necessarily wont get an explanation to everything because of the time constraints the team had (thanks a lot CN) and i know a lot of people aren’t happy with how venomous’s character was handled in the finale and i, too, hoped that after all that build-up we would’ve gotten at least a little bit more satisfying conclusion to his character arc. he is my favourite character in the show so of course you could also argue that my expectations were a bit higher
that said i really did like the finale for what it was and after analyzing certain parts in more detail i think there’s more to venomous’s development here than meets the eye. i have a lot to discuss so buckle up folks this is gonna be some serious stream of consciousness
before i get into the actual analysis let me start by making clear how i interpret venomous’s character as a whole. i feel like many of his fans see that venomous, without shadowy’s influence, is a pure uwu bean who doesn’t actually want to do anything bad ever and i think that’s…. well, i don’t wanna use the word “wrong” because people are free to interpret him however they want but it doesn’t feel right to me. venomous is a villain. he’s evil. he’s selfish and power-hungry. he ENJOYS being a bitch and doing bad things even without shadowy’s influence. even ian jq himself confirmed he indeed is evil and not just bitter. he is good to the people he does actually care about (fink and boxman) but we’ve seen him be terrible to pretty much everyone who isn’t a villain and even as laserblast his morals were already questionable enough.
something we never got a clear confirmation for was whether or not venomous was exactly.. happy with how merging with shadowy turned out, if that was the kind of power he really wanted. ian told that he willingly accepted shadowy offering him power but i feel like he didn’t completely understand the consequences of doing so. he’s VERY weak-willed and insecure when it comes to the subject of power. he didn’t think through that it would mean shadowy completely overtaking him and hurting the only people that are truly important to him
Tumblr media
when TKO punches shadowy out of existence and venomous turns back into his normal self, all that anger and hatred shadowy had is completely gone. since he’s back in control i think he realizes that he made awful choices, he fucked up bad and now the only people he cared about will probably never forgive him. it’s subtle but i think the pained expression tells me enough that he regrets that and he’s ready to face the consequences. he doesn’t talk back, no evil monologue, nothing. instead he’s like fuck me up TKO, i deserve it for ruining the lives of my daughter minion and the love of my life
he only gets devastated when fink runs up to sacrifice herself, because even if he probably believes that he doesn’t deserve her forgiveness, he still deeply cares about her and doesn’t want to see her hurt. even though venomous is evil, this still shows the core difference between him and shadowy as shadowy didn’t really give a shit about fink’s well-being
Tumblr media
so let’s fast forward to the part where everyone gets to live their best lives and venomous is given his own planet to destroy because even after all this, he still wants to be the most powerful. you could say he learned nothing after all this, right? well, i don’t think that’s completely true. we can see him wear the laserblast helmet again and that is now the only power he has, which imo tells that he learned to embrace the fact that he already had plenty enough power all along, that his own power, albeit artificial, was always enough. this time he’s the one in control and he can do what he loves the most with fink by his side: being evil and wrecking shit up. this was a time-out he needed to spend time alone with fink again and fix their bonds and also finally live out his power fantasy; this time on his own terms, not under shadowy’s influence. as weird as the whole planet ordeal was to me on the first watch, it makes more sense to me now
Tumblr media
so what about that part where venomous and fink come back to destroy plaza? i mostly think that was just meant to be a fun cameo and nothing too deep, but if i were to delve more into it, i like to think this could possibly be a turning point when venomous starts to realize how much he misses the times when he was attacking the plaza with boxman. when he says “we're back to finish what we started”, i don’t think he refers to the complete destruction of the world shadowy was after but the times he was simply attacking the plaza for the fun of it. the key being the fact that he says “we” as in him and fink, since as we know fink was never really up for shadowy’s antics
anyways, once venomous is over his tantrum, he realizes that simply being powerful didn’t fill the void in his heart. he’s had a lot of time to himself to reflect on everything and when he’s finally come in terms with himself, he’s ready to return to the person who filled the void in his heart to begin with: boxman
Tumblr media
excuse me for delving into the voxman aspect of this all for a moment but i think it was actually better that they took time with them making up instead of, for example, it happening during the final battle. it feels more realistic to me and it gave both of them have some time to themselves and fix their personal issues before getting back into a relationship. and i think it’s absolutely sweet how it happened this way around instead of boxman trying to pursue venomous despite the fact that boxman has usually been the more clingy one. venomous truly regrets unintentionally hurting him and wants him back and even if he doesn’t really know how to express it, he is really trying (i think it tells something that he seemingly made the cake himself despite not being able to cook)
as for his relationship with KO, i do wish we would’ve seen a conclusion to that, but judging by what we see in the finale they no longer try to connect and you know, that’s probably for the best. i do believe venomous was at least trying to somewhat genuinely get along with him in let’s get shadowy and i’m happy we at least momentarily got that, but KO was clearly uncomfortable with him most of the time and venomous couldn’t connect with him because their interests and morals are like night and day, so in the end he couldn’t bring himself to truly care about him. he was a pretty garbage father to him and it only shows that sometimes it’s okay to not get along with someone just because you’re blood related. KO was still genuinely happy that venomous got to live his best life that doesn’t involve him in the slightest
in conclusion, yes i wish they had fleshed him out more at the end or at least have him face the consequences (P.O.I.N.T. deserves to beat the shit out of him tbh LOL) especially since he played a pretty big role in the show’s main plot, but i’m happy he at least got his happy ending and i’m not blaming the crew for cutting things short. they had lots of characters to give spotlight to in the finale and in the end, the show is about KO so it’s obvious that if they had to give someone more focus in the short time they had, it’s him. but at the end of the day, thank you for watching the show leaves us a lot of gaps to fill in ourselves so i’m just going to assume venomous goes through more development off-screen and hey, that’s what fanworks are for. i personally am plenty satisfied with just the fact that he gets along with boxman and fink again but i know not everyone will agree with my thoughts and that’s okay
i just truly love this show and i will miss it so much
P.S:
Tumblr media
THEY’RE CANONICALLY MARRIED AND I’VE NEVER BEEN HAPPIER
177 notes · View notes
Note
ace ruggie azul jamil for the character bingo! if four is too much, just ace ruggie and azul is fine!
Tumblr media Tumblr media
Character Opinion Bingo for Azul here!
Character Opinion Bingo for Ruggie here!
***Standard disclaimer: These are just my personal opinions of the character(s); regardless of what I may think of them, sharing my thoughts is NOT meant to offend or to shame anyone that thinks differently.***
Tumblr media Tumblr media
HEY IT’S J WORD
... Oh, wrong J word 😔 IT’S OKAY, I LIKE JAMIL TOO
I’m going to be real with you, I’ve got a thing for butler/bodyguard characters, and since Jamil is presented as Kalim’s caretaker (kind of like a butler) AND Jamil is professionally trained as a bodyguard (confirmed in episode 6), he checks off a lot of boxes for me. I actually feel kind of guilty for liking Jamil because of those attributes though, since he has stated that he dislikes his position in life 💦 I do like other aspects of Jamil, though! It’s just the butler/bodyguard vibes that initially drew me to him, along with his appearance. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a character with a hairstyle as intricate as Jamil’s??????? But it’s really pleasing to look at (and probably really pleasing to listen to, like just imagine all the little hair ornaments clinking or jingling as he walks)! His eyes are also interesting; they look kind of blank at first glance, but upon further inspection I kind of understand what Leona meant when he said Jamil has eyes that “always glare”.
I think the best thing about Jamil is how... understated he is? He has a resting bitch face, and he acts so unassuming, but when he’s given a chance to speak from the heart, he can be petty and passive aggressive 🤣 which I think is a real treat! As I mentioned in my character opinion bingo for Vil, I love characters who operate under the radar or scheme in the shadows, and Jamil definitely does so it shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone that I like him. Jamil also gives off those intense “tired mom”, “disappointed but not surprised”, and “I’m so done with this shit” energy, which I find extremely relatable. I feel bad for him when I see him suffering (because I know I would also be exasperated if I were in his shoes), but at the same time I have a sadistic part of me that wants to giggle, thankful that I’m not him right now. If I stop pointing and laughing at Jamil for a second, I’m happy that he finally has a little more wiggle room to act freely; the poor man’s been through a lot and he REALLY deserves a vacation and some freedom.
I think Jamil plays off of other characters so well, particularly when he’s being petty with them or is fed up with playing babysitter. One of my favorite character dynamics is Jamil and Azul; Azul’s eagerness to befriend and/or recruit Jamil to his dorm and Jamil vehemently resisting and firing back… I find it funny in a dry kind of way.
Weirdly enough, I don’t enjoy Jamil as much when he goes unhinged because he makes uncomfortable and unflattering facial expressions when he does ashdbaosydasdsd ALSO, LIKE. I don’t know if this is just me, but Jamil’s brand of “evil” feels like he’s trying too hard????? So it ends up coming across to me as more pathetic than how Jamil wants it to be perceived... especially when he laughs like that and has extended monologues about how great he is and how he has finally succeeded with his plans. It feels like I’m watching a Saturday morning cartoon where the villain is making their speech about how it’s too late to stop them RIGHT BEFORE THE HEROES CRASH IN AND STOP THEM. I’m also not a fan of his Overblot design, especially the weird hair-snake turban and the ink goatee thing??????????? THAT’S SO UGLY AND JAMIL DESERVED BETTER 😭
I think Jamil gets it kind of bad when it comes to fandom takes. I don’t believe I’ve seen anything that outright paints him as a “bad” person completely in the wrong after the events of episode 4, but I get the distinct impression that people oversimplify Jamil’s issues. “Oh, Kalim can just set him free when he succeeds the Asim family”/”Kalim can talk to his dad about it”, as if it’s just as easy to do as Aladdin wishing the Genie free. Kalim himself acts like it’s something can be easily done. It’s not, and to believe that it is as Kalim does demonstrates a sense of naivety. The fact of the matter is that this is something that extends far beyond what Kalim or Jamil can do individually to resolve it; it’s not a problem between just them, but between them and the systems that their families have become so accustomed to. You cannot just shatter or overturn a generations-long relationship just like that, which is exactly why Jamil is forced into a position where he HAS to continue serving under Kalim post-episode 4. Believing that it’s so simple undermines Jamil’s struggles and paints him as someone who was overreacting to a problem that could “easily” be resolved. I think a large part of this ideation comes from EN’s intentional censorship of how dire Jamil’s situation is 💦 which is a shame, as that really undercuts his motivations and how desperate he is… (EN makes Jamil and Kalim “employee” and “employer” not “servant” and “master”. Additionally, EN removes Jamil’s lines about his whole family will be thrown out on the streets if he defies the Asims.)
Another common take I see about Jamil is that he apparently hates Kalim and Kalim specifically (especially seeing as Jamil goes off on a rant post-OB about how much he despises Kalim’s smile and having to serve him). I believe it’s true to some extent, but that it’s also not the entirety of the picture. Why does Jamil hate Kalim? Because he’s forced to work for him? No, what Jamil truly hates is what Kalim stands for, the people who happen to be born in higher social statuses and are ignorant to the struggles of the people below them. He just happens to project his anger at Kalim in particular because he’s an easy target and someone he’s always with. “As long as [Kalim] exists, I will never be free,” Jamil says. Why? If Kalim dies, won’t Jamil just be relegated to serving the rest of the VERY extensive Asim family? Therefore, literally being rid of Kalim and Kalim alone would do nothing to alleviate Jamil’s distress. This leads me to believe “Kalim” in that line is metaphorical and refers to the establishments that Jamil hates, the thing that Kalim represents, rather than Kalim himself.
In episode 6, Jamil demonstrates holding similar vitriol for other people, such as Leona, and expresses disdain toward others and feels as though he cannot trust anyone at all to be competent. He directs a lot of hate to the people around him, but often just keeps it to himself to maintain a veneer of politeness... and I don’t think that’s healthy for him 😔 Good on Leona for talking some sense into him-- Jamil could literally be so powerful if he wasn’t busy blaming others for his own complicated emotions and being held back by his own ego.
I’ve already mentioned that I relate to Jamil a lot in terms of his energy, but even more than just that, I relate to Jamil in terms of his struggle against a society that doesn’t understand or find value in his desire to be free. I’m not going to go into too much detail about my own issue, but I know what Jamil is feeling and how difficult those feelings can be. I know what it’s like to feel helpless and like nothing can be done to help myself when it seems like the whole world and all of its systems were designed to work against you... but I also have way too much pride and too little trust in others to speak openly about it. Maybe I’m thinking way too hard about this or maybe I’m just projecting way too strongly, but Jamil is so much like me that it hurts 😭 I want to break free too, Jamil... I get you, my dude. LET’S BE FRIENDS--
Tumblr media Tumblr media
I’m very split on Ace. On one hand, I don’t tend to like immature characters (which, let’s be honest, Ace is), but on the other hand, he has a kind of charm to his brattiness. His bright personality touched with mischief is refreshing, and I particularly adore the voice impressions he does of other characters (they’re really cute!)~ ... But at the same time, I really cannot stand it when Ace talks for too long, because he inevitably ends up doing or saying something to make me regret ever thinking he was cute to begin with (like when he dodges responsibility or blames other people for his fuck-ups). I also do not care for his selfish side or when he speaks without a filter; he needs to watch what he says a little better, because it constantly nets him trouble and makes me facepalm.
I guess I would liken Ace to a little brother? Like, he constantly gets on my nerves, but I end up forgiving him sooner or later because he’ll do something cute or say something snarky that temporarily redeems him right before he does something stupid or terrible again to make my opinion of him do another 180. I just kind of want to squish him into a little pouch and carry him around on my back so I can keep my eye on him at all times and make sure he’s not causing more trouble for himself or for others 😔
OKAY, NOTHING AGAINST HOW ACE LOOKS BUT HE HAS SOME OF THE MOST “GENERIC ANIME PROTAG” HAIR I’VE EVER SEEN with maybe only Deuce being the character that one-ups him in terms of “generic anime protag” hair-ness. It works well with Ace’s cheery (yet sassy) personality, but every time I see him I can’t help but think “Wow, you look like such a protag.” The funniest part about that is Ace acts NOTHING like a stereotypical bland nice guy protag, he’s such a fucking asshole 😂 which, again, I’m very conflicted on because sometimes his asshole-ry or brutal honesty is funny or warranted (like when he calls Riddle out), but other times it’s straight up just mean for no good reason (particularly when he bullies Deuce). 
The ONE thing I will firmly defend about Ace is that he is a lot more clever than people usually think he is. The fandom frequently refers to Ace and Deuce together as “the single brain cell duo” (sometimes trio, if Grim is included in the count), implying that they’re all pretty dumb. It’s definitely true that Ace is lacking in terms of his grades, but that’s moreso because he is too lazy to put effort into studying, not because he is inherently “stupid”. Ace is the REVERSE of Deuce, because Deuce is the one that actually puts forth an honest effort to be an honors student but lacks inherent classroom smarts, whereas Ace is the one that CAN be smart if he applies himself in lessons but he’d rather slack. He is a very quick thinker and an adept liar when he wants to be, and I think Ace deserves more credit for that.
Something that’s been bothering me about Ace is his lack of presence in recent main story content. He was gone for most of episode 4, barely did anything in episode 5 except for getting cursed and being mean to Deuce, and then in episode 6 he gets knocked out along with Deuce, so he can’t go along with Pomefiore for the rescue mission. I was really hoping to see Ace getting jealous of Deuce’s unique magic or feeling left out or useless because he hasn’t gotten his own yet 🤔 With how long of an episode 6 is, it feels so weird having this large span of the main story (even if, in universe, it has only been a few days between 5 and 6) where we get NOTHING on Ace’s feelings post-VDC. Episode 7, it’s all up to you now... Please let Ace reflect on his own actions and question his own abilities or something, PLEASE LET ACE GET HIS UNIQUE MAGIC TOO.
87 notes · View notes
wisteria-lodge · 3 years
Text
Archetypes: Sorting Hat Chats
I’ve been asked about my rationale for naming different primary/ secondary combinations. I did this originally as a tool to help me sort characters - I wanted to see how these types tend to be used, so I could more easily see what subversions looked like. I'll run through my thoughts, but know there’s a lot of variation within each category. But even WITH that variation, I do think that each one has its own specific energy that makes it interesting to talk about. An explanation of the terms I'm using.
DOUBLE LION “THE REVOLUTIONARY”
Pretty straightforward. The Lion primary knows something is wrong, they know it in their bones even if they can’t articulate it, and they’ve got to go out and do something about it. Probably charging at whatever power structure is directly in front of them. It’s unlikely you find a character leading a revolution who isn’t a Double Lion. These guys are intense, inspirational, single minded.
The villain version of the Lion primary tends to be the person who “went too far" or "became the monster they were trying to fight.'' But I think that the much more interesting Lion primary villain trope is the Traitor. Since Lions work from their feelings, and their philosophies can’t necessarily be articulated or linked to individuals outside of them - they can definitely have their head turned while still feeling moral about it.
One of my favorite examples of this Revolutionary archtype is actually Christian Bale‘s character from Newsies. He’s the spark that starts the unionizing revolution, but 100% needs his Badger and Bird lieutenants to keep him focused and keep him from defecting
LION SNAKE “THE ROBIN HOOD”
These guys are similar to the Double Lion - they will recognize a cause or injustice revolutionary style - but Robin Hood doesn’t go up and bang on wicked Prince John’s door. His move is the snake secondary one: confront the problem indirectly. Undermine the regime by stealing tax money and re-distributing it to the poor. Be simultaneously Robin Hood the outlaw and Robin of Locksley the noble, infiltrating and getting information. The Lion Snake is more likely to work within society (or deliberately separate from society) versus just breaking everything down.
LION BIRD “THE LAWMAN / THE VIGILANTE”
The fact that the Lion Bird can either be the Lawman or the Vigilante shows off the very clear hero/villain split you get with Bird secondaries. We also see this with the Snake Bird (simultaneously the Mastermind and the traditional Villain) and the Double Bird (either the Scientist or the Mad Scientist.) This is why I think I had such trouble naming the Badger Bird. I wasn’t leaning into the duality of the Bird secondary enough. The Badger Bird can be the King Arthur, or he can be the Mob Boss, and he’ll look kind of similar either way.
The Lion Bird also has that Lion primary conviction and drive, but they want to follow up on it with investigation, evidence, and plans. I actually think there need to be more stories about Lawmen turning into Vigilantes and vice versa. Because Lion Birds are their Cause no matter what external alignment gets attached to it.
LION BADGER “THE LINCHPIN”
This is my own sorting - although when I came up with this name I still thought I was a Double Bird. The linchpin is the pin-axle thing at the center of a wheel that prevents the whole thing from falling apart, and I think it's a good way of talking about the energy of this combination. The Badger secondary means they’re a lot less single minded than the other Lion primaries: their power comes from being part of a group. They become the emotional “heart” a lot, and have a way of quietly keeping things together just by existing. They can be leaders, but a Double Lion will lead from up front while a Lion Badger will lead from in the middle (if that makes sense.)
I do think it’s really funny that this is a common sleeper villain trope. Peter Pettigrew, Prince Hans, and Randall Boggs of Monsters Inc. all became integral to a group, and then exploit their position within it. They’re kind of the evil bureaucrat. Maybe that's a good trope for children’s media
DOUBLE SNAKE “THE TRICKSTER”
This is another straightforward one. Double Snakes are in it for themselves (and maybe like three other people.) They're going to be clever and tricksy about how they get what they want, and will not mind doing things backward and unofficially. And they won't mind if you know that's what they're doing. There’s something very unapologetic about the Double Snake which makes for very attractive characters. They are consistently voted the sexiest... and when they’re villains they’re fun villains. You know what they want, and what they want is not that complicated. I think that’s a big reason for the appeal of Snake primaries in general. They’re the easiest primary to understand and explain.
SNAKE LION “THE LANCELOT”
I used to call these guys “The Rebel,” which... is too generic, doesn’t really mean anything. So I started thinking about the Lion secondary as the Knight secondary, and I liked that. Double Lions are the Crusader Knight, riding for their Cause. Bird Lions are Grail Knights, riding for their own personal truth. Badger Lions are Champion Knights, here to help the helpless and defend the innocent.
And if that's that case… Snake Lions have to be the Knight Errant, the knight who rides for his lady. It is that simple. Lancelot might be a Knight of the Round Table, but he’s riding for Arthur the person, not Arthur the King. And for his lady, Queen Guinevere. I feel like his dilemma is one that’s common to a lot of Snake Lions: what happens when they’re forced to split their loyalty? It’s tragic, but Lancelot can’t have Arthur and Guinevere simultaneously.
(At least not until my awesome Arthur/Guinevere/Lancelot OT3 which I will totally write at some point :)
SNAKE BIRD “THE MASTERMIND / THE VILLAIN”
The classic. We see a little more of the Bird Secondary split, and well… this is your stereotypical villain. They want power. They’re going to use an elaborate plan to get it. There’s a lot you can do with this sorting, but I actually do think it’s fun that whatever you do, this slight undercurrent of villain and/or mastermind… never quite goes away.
SNAKE BADGER “THE LOVER”
The Love Interest sorting. Chances are very good that if there is a love interest (who does not serve some other role in the story...) they're going to be a Snake Badger. Devoted to one person, solving problems by caretaking. This is the Badger secondary who is likely to have the smallest group, which is just going to make them look excessively devoted to their friends. This type is pretty gender neutral, which is fun. A lot of female love interests, but also your Mr. Darcys and Peeta Mellarks.
One of my favorite things about this trope (mostly just because I think it’s funny...) is that if you write a character who is not supposed to be a love interest, but who is a Snake Badger... subconsciously I think people are going to read them as a love interest anyway. Looking at you Jaskier, Horatio, and even Captain Barbossa.
DOUBLE BIRD “THE [MAD] SCIENTIST”
I think that (especially if you aren’t a Bird Primary yourself) your response to hearing a fictional Bird Primary’s motivation is kind of …huh. That seems random. Or oddly specific. You get your Hannibal Lecters, whose entire motivation is... wanting to eat people while drinking nice wine.
Double birds seem especially unusual, just in terms of society. They are Bird secondaries and they interact with the world through gathering data, but their Bird primaries mean that data can literally lead them to any conclusion, no matter how potentially wacky. These guys consciously build themselves from the ground up, and that can make them kind of detached - either in a logical way, or an unmoored way. They're written as either really stable, the rational mentor figure. Or really... not. And that’s how you spot a Bird villain. They’re not after money/power/safety, they’re after something weird.
BIRD LION “THE GRAIL KNIGHT”
This is the trope of Perceval or Galahad, questing after the Holy Grail chalice... which is really just meaning, and truth. It’s a personal quest. Grail Knights tend to ride alone, and a lot of the things that concern them are metaphysical, to do with identity, purpose, things like that. You can have extremely different Bird Lions, but I do think there is a sort of spiritual core there. Doctor Harleen Quinzel sees freedom and truth in whatever the Joker is doing, and then once she recognizes his hypocrisy, has to go build her own meaning.
I actually think these guys are pretty easy to spot because of that Lion secondary. When they change direction, they change direction, and there’s probably a period of despair between the direction changes. I’ve talked about how Bird Lions having a habit of falling apart pretty dramatically, and that’s where this idea comes from.
BIRD BADGER “THE SURVIVOR”
A rare sorting, but an interesting one. I call this one “the Survivor” or “the Last Man Standing” because, well, they seem to be. They seem remarkably stable. This is the Bird primary least likely to be a villain, and maybe the sorting least likely to be a villain. I think what’s going on is that they are grounded and integrated in whatever community they happen to be in (because of that Badger secondary), but they can define themselves and rebuild themselves in the Bird primary way. This makes them uniquely suited to building a new version of themselves for whatever situation they happen to find themselves in.
Maybe a better name for these guys would be “The Adapter.”
BIRD SNAKE “THE ARTIST”
Like all Bird primaries, these guys are inspired by their own projects and their own worldview, but because of that Snake secondary, Bird Snakes have a more easy-going ‘take the world as it comes' kind of energy. They are “the Artist” because everything they do is art: they want to use themselves and the world around them, put all of that towards whatever their Bird primary happens to be interested in.
You can have villains like the Nolan Joker, or the Talented Mr. Ripley, who kind of turn the world into their own personal philosophical social experiment. Or Scotty from Star Trek whose meaning is solely the well-being of the Enterprise. Maybe they just like traveling, and that's all they need. (It's a way for the Bird primary and the Snake secondary exist very happily together, so I wouldn't be surprised if that was pretty common.)
DOUBLE BADGER “THE PEACEMAKER”
Badgers are interesting, because while I think they’re generally regarded as “correct,” they’re also seen as kind of boring. That’s the case with both Badger primaries and Badger secondaries, which means it is doubly reflected in the Double Badger. They often get written as simplistic, the sweet Jane Bennet type who loves everybody and caretakes everybody and just wants everybody to get along.
They are often the targets of what TV Tropes used to call “Break the Cutie.” What could be more interesting than making this character, who wants to be happily part of a community, be forced to build protective models, be all tortured and angsty? I actually think we’re seeing a return of the Double Badger as an interesting character in their own right, with people like Aziaphale, and I'm here for it.
BADGER LION “THE PROTAGONIST”
What can I say? There are a lot of protagonists that are Badger Lions. They want to help the group - so we know they're the good guys - and then they charge and make stuff happen. Lion secondaries are very useful in fiction - you drop them into a situation and stuff just happens. I also think of this as the Starfleet officer sorting - because if you’re a Starfleet officer, either you are the sorting, or can model it really well.
I will say that this is kind of the stock Protagonist sorting, the way that the Snake Badger is the stock love interest and the Snake Bird is the stock villain. There’s just something sort of generic good guy about this one, which is why I want to see it used as a villain sorting more. Badger villains - mostly people who define ‘human’ very narrowly - are insanely terrifying.
BADGER SNAKE “THE ADVISOR”
Possibly “the Power Behind the Throne.” This is another one I had difficulty pinning down. I called it “the Politician” for a while, which unfortunately came off as a little bit more negative than I meant it to, since I think this sorting has a lot in common with Lion Badger, the linchpin of a heroic team. The difference is that Lion Badger takes on that role kind of unconsciously, while the Badger Snake does it very consciously.
Their loyalty is to the group, but their skill set is all about subversion and different ways of going around the group, which is why there’s an interesting contradiction at the heart of Badger Snake. A lot of real life Badger Snakes struggle with feeling like “bad people" and it's too bad. These guys are ridiculously powerful and competent when they are sure of themselves, and I love seeing them in action
BADGER BIRD “THE KING / THE MOB BOSS”
Another difficult one, despite (or because) I really like them. I was calling them “the Architect” because “The City Planner” sounded too boring… but that’s what they do. They’re all about the community but they problem-solve the way all Bird secondaries do, by prepping, and gathering knowledge. I talked more about this in the Lion Bird entry, but Bird secondary seems to have this villain split going on, and that’s what I see here too. This is a controversial love-them-or-hate-them sorting, and I think that’s why. There’s a lot of room in whether or not you see this sorting as villainous.
288 notes · View notes
flyinglotus777 · 3 years
Text
Netflix’s Squid Game
SPOILER ALERT! If you are interested in watching the series, I HIGHLY suggest you do so. This article will be an overall synopsis and my review of the show. For an in-depth analysis of the symbolism of the show and ending, scroll down to the fourth to last paragraph.
The Netflix show, “Squid Game,” written and directed by Hwang Dong-hyuk is a phenomenal Korean drama centered around our victor, Seong Gi-hun, played by Lee Jung-jae. Contestants were recruited to play in a life or death competition due to their lack of luck, financial knowledge, and influx of impending debt they have accumulated throughout their lives. We first meet Gi-hun as he is down on his luck. Living with his elderly, overworked mother (which in countries outside of the United States is not strange nor uncommon) Gi-hun was a friend to gambling, but that toxic love caused him to be in debt to a gang of (what seemed to be) loan sharks. When luck finally strikes him on the race track, life simultaneously decides to take an excrement on his reality. His debt seekers catch him on his hot streak and involuntarily sign him up to be a participant in the Squid Game.
Similar to many other of the 456 participants, they all shared a common denominator of being in situations it seemed only money could fix. Upon arrival the contestants were asked to voluntarily sign wavers in order to participate in the game, while unknowingly risking their lives, for the opportunity to win 456 billion won (which would be roughly over $3.5 million in US currency). The challenges were mostly based on nostalgic childhood games, both based in the United States and South Korea.
Now I knew due to the explanation in the introduction of episode one that if any player were to lose, they would die. So during the first challenge of red light green light, when players were bulletly penalized for losing I was not surprised. After the game, the players decided to rally together and quit playing. The influence of the cash prize split the decision down the middle, leaving the old man, player 1, to be the final decision. To my surprise he actually chose to decline, freeing all of the players. During the voting, many players screamed at each other as to why they would choose to stay in the hell hole as other players responded that the outside world was not any better if not the same as the harsh environment they were already in. This reality struck many contestants as they returned back to their reality of debt, dependents, and for some bounty hunts, thus resulting in them returning to the game.
During the whole season, I was trying to find the purpose of these games. We knew why the participants felt motivated to play, but I wondered what was the purpose of having them fight for their lives in the first place. When the PlayStation faced soldiers forced the doctor (player 111) to dissect the bodies for organs to sell at the black market, at first I thought that it was what the original game maker wanted which I thought was genius. Soon to learn that it was actually a violation to a code of equality that was placed inside the arena applying to all of those who existed, soldiers and participants alike. Which struck me as odd due to the soldiers being able to tote guns and wear masks based on their own hierarchy and the participants being collectively isolated and given numbers as if it was a remake of the Stanford Prison experiment. Nonetheless many soldiers faced the same fate as the players, and my pondering would meet the solution come the finale.
Let’s discuss players. I only favored Gi-hun because he was the protagonist, but throughout the story he grew on me as his big heart prevailed through the madness. I knew Choo Sang-woo, the embezzling business man and hometown friend of Gi-hun played by Park Hae-soo, was a psychopath when I saw him in a fully filled bathtub with his suit on. Running from the police, in debt or not, that’s just as much of a red flag for serial killer tendencies as sleeping with socks on or having too thin and highly arched eyebrows. The episode that he crossed Ali, the father of one from Pakistan with the missing fingers, made me hate Sang-woo for the rest of the series. I was infuriated and frustrated with Ali for being that naïve to believe that they could escape the round as a duo, but understood his perspective since up until that point Sang-woo was a dependable, trusted ally to Ali. However after that episode I didn’t care who won, I was just ready for Sang-woo to die.
Kang Sae-byeok, the skeptical and beautiful warrior from North Korea played by Jung Ho-yeon, deserves her own paragraph. Along with her beauty, her presence and demeanor was so bad ass. She was thrifty and intelligent, as her talent being pick pocketing. I was waiting for her to just be so bad ass. As the punk disguised to be gangster, Jang Deok-su, pushed her around which seemed to be normal behavior between the two, I was ready for Sae-byeok to twist his arm, send a plunging round house kick to his nuts, and cut his snake tattoo right off of his face. Although her exterior was tough, her heart was made of malleable gold which we got to see as she opened up to her female companion during the marble challenge and sobbed from her loss afterwards. Although she was not the killer bad ass queen I had wanted her to be, I still call her a warrior because of her resiliency throughout life’s and the game’s many obstacles and her drive to provide her younger brother with a better life.
Thankfully Deok-su got what he deserved as Han Mi-nyeo poetically decided to take both of their lives during the glass challenge. “You said we would be together till the end,” she said before diving into her inevitable death with her short lived lover. Mi-nyeo was incredibly annoying as I would often pinch the inside corners of my eyes and scratch my eyebrows when she would appear. However that crazy bitch served justice, and I love her for that.
I was highly disappointed by the demise of the detective Hwang Jun-ho, played by the handsome Wi Ha-joon. I was rooting for detective Jun-ho, as I’m sure we all were, on his pursuit to find his brother. I was not surprised that his brother was Front Man, as I had suspected that his brother must’ve died or been apart of the game making due to his absence in real life and the current game. After discovering his brother was the victor of his year, to me it only made sense that he would be apart of the game enforcement. As we saw from Gi-hun, a normal life is impossible to live after experiencing something so traumatic as a series of death ridden children games. However I was saddened and surprised that detective Jun-ho was unsuccessful in closing down the whole operation. I mean the man was close to performing forced, aristocratic fellatio in the name of serving and protecting the law. I truly thought because he had gotten so far and was so close to exposing the operation that the only choice he had was to be successful. At last he was shot and killed by his own blood, the one he had been looking for; providing us with a cinematic and heart jerking ending to detective Jun-ho.
Lastly lets discuss the old man, player 001 named O Yeong-su, whom I also nicknamed Poppy during the series. Deceivingly innocent and weak, I genuinely liked Yeong-su throughout the game play. I thoroughly enjoyed his relationship with Gi-hun and saw him as a valuable player in most instances. I believe he was one of the main reasons that Gi-hun continued to lead with his heart. Gi-hun claimed that Yeong-su was the reason he returned to the games and later found out that Yeong-su was the reason there were games in the first place. The climatic episode of the marble challenge was when their relationship had been defined as “gganbu” (which is a term for trusted, close friends in Korean, as explained in the series), thus Yeong-su establishing a special place in Gi-hun’s heart. During the challenge, Yeong-su begins to have an episode of what we all assumed to be dementia as the arena they are playing in is designed like his old neighborhood and he abandons the game to take a trip down memory lane. Gi-hun screams in frustration at the old man to play with him only to end up losing in their even and odd game and resulting in deceit, tricking the old man to let him be the victor. Now if I was Gi-hun, I would’ve convinced Yeong-su to let me hold his marbles for safe keeping and let him have a fun time reminiscing on his life while he ran down the clock. Then when it was time, I would’ve turned in all 20 marbles just as Sang-woo did and went about my business. It would’ve only been right for the old man to forfeit as he was already on his death bed, or so we innocently thought. Before I get into the ending, I want to talk about the last match between Sang-woo and Gi-hun.
Finally, the last game to see who would be victorious in a highly anticipated game of Squid between Gi-hun and Sang-woo. It seemed as if it were a battle between good vs evil; Gi-hun representing a more benevolent side as he would often optimistically look to help other competitors and extend the kindness he had been shown versus Sang-woo who represented a more vindictive and ruthless side, determined to hurt anyone in order to receive his highly coveted and long awaited prize in an arena that erased any foundation of morals or ethics as soon as the light turned red. Luck was on Gi-hun’s side as he had the opportunity to play offense. With a cunning mind and a vengeance for Sae-byeok’s death, Gi-hun delivered a can of whoop ass to his opponent. As the saying goes, the good shall always prevail. Perhaps his heart was too pure as Gi-hun halted from crossing the finish line and offered Sang-woo a chance to live, thus forfeiting the prize money. Needless to say, I applauded when Sang-woo committed suicide as it was the only right thing to do in his position.
A year passed by and Gi-hun seemed worse than before. Physically his style was bummy wealthy, a look pioneered by Bill Gates, but mentally he was in shambles. How could you blame him? Gi-hun discovered that the responsible party for these horrendous events was none other than his ggangbu, old man Yeong-su. The biggest, jaw dropping plot twist of the entire series. As they were joined on Christmas Eve and Yeong-su on his death bed, they placed one final bet on an assumed to be drunken, homeless man who sat on the streets as it snowed and waited for help to arrive. Yeong-su explained how he actually wanted to help people and give his money to people who needed it, but wanted to do it in an “entertaining way.” As Gi-hun flared with outrage towards the old man for finding amusement in killing people, the old man rebutted using horse races as an example of people’s amusement. Yeong-su also said he participated in the games because it was more fun to play than to be a spectator, which I had noticed him treating the competition as if it were adult summer camp. I had just assumed since he was old, he didn’t care if he had died or not.
I think most people will think that this show was a metaphor about how money and rich people are evil. However I think it can be seen as commentary on society as a whole, not just the wealthy. Yeong-su says on his death bed that it’s a test of humanity, and asks Gi-hun if he still has faith in humanity after what he has experienced. Although money was the luring motivator to win the game, people still chose to return to the competition to escape their problems. Sure, money was apart of their problems as all of the players (excluding Yeong-su) were in debt, but that was due to choices that they had made. Whether it had been through embezzling, gambling, lack of luck, or financial ignorance, it was the people who had gotten themselves into those situations. Money doesn’t have a personal vendetta against anyone nor does it have an inherent quality of good or evil. Money is a neutral energy used to be exchanged for goods and services. It’s people who designate that energy to their humane or inhumane desires.
Leading to the next point of the wealthy and how they are seen to be evil due to having wealth. Although I do believe that there are some wealthy people who act as villains, money didn’t create the villain inside of them. Those people were going to behave maliciously whether they have money or not. The VIPs, who were spectating the finale of challenges, were tied to a bank devoted to the wealthy and gambled on the competitors who played (and most likely helped subsidize the events). We place judgement on them, but as Yeong-su said, people gamble on horse races. Although people are not animals and by my knowledge I don’t believe most or any horses die during these races, it is still the principle of watching an entity being tortured for amusement, which is not only confined to the wealthy population. When the concept of killing and tormenting living breathing beings for amusement is normalized within society, the lines begin to blur on who is okay to perform and who is not. Take the audience of this show for example, we all watched a show where hundreds of people were mercilessly killed for the desire of winning a cash prize for our own amusement, thus making “Squid Game” the number one show on Netflix at the moment. Although the show is fictional and brilliantly written, this Hunger Games concept is not new. We come in contact again and again with the idea of people who are disadvantaged given an opportunity to better their lives through inhumane means, including risking their own lives or actively sacrificing the life of another, and being spectators on the edge of our seats who can’t seem to look away. It is no different than a Roman gladiator match in a grand colosseum, which in modern day would be a MMA fight at the MGM hotel. We blame it on the rich who are ridiculed for creating these events, but at the end of the day it is the people, rich,poor, and everyone in between, who continue to still go along with it and to some extent desire it. Which makes me question, what does that say about humanity, and do I actually have faith in us? Although Gi-hun went through hell and back, he still remained pure of heart and used his wealth to enhance his life and those around him; proving that wealthy people can still be benevolent and desire righteous good. Similar to Gi-hun, the optimist in me wants to believe that there are still people in this world with good hearts, but I guess we just have to wait until the time comes to see.
Ultimately the show was phenomenal, and definitely sparked a desire inside of me to watch more Korean dramas. I don’t think the show will have a second season. Simply because I think the story line would be better cut off there, thus leaving the audience always wanting more. However if season 2 ever comes out, I’m ready for Gi-hun to take a Liam Neeson approach to ending the Squid Game and hopefully with a beard. Thank you for reading my article. I know it was incredibly lengthy. I have just finished the season after a 2 day binge watch, and have a lot of emotions and thoughts ruminating in my brain. Let me know what you think of the show and what you think of the article. Did anyone else notice the paintings of the games on the walls of the dormitory?
God bless.
42 notes · View notes
bloodxbat · 3 years
Text
(Part 1) Triple W Mafia George x Fem! Y/N series
Tumblr media
Warnings: Swearing! that’s it really (unless I've missed something then please let me know)
Word Count: 2,174
Summary:  George Weasley is a renowned Mafia boss who took over from his Father Arthur once he retired, to carry on the Triple W mafia legacy. The only mafia known to be able to keep the Death Eaters (their rival mafia) at bay. However there is one item that they stole from the Triple W’s which George is determined to get back...his mothers necklace, the family heirloom. Y/N Greyback has been forced to comply with the Death Eaters wishes as her family are high up members. What happens when George and Y/N meet? And what happens when they fall in love?
Series Masterlist 
The lights were dim in the what looked like to be an old bar room, the red hue coming from the red lamp shades hitting the walls. Smoke from cigars fogging up the top half of the room barely keeping the floor below visible. At each table there were groups of men, all sitting in perfectly tailored suits, sipping on their glasses of whiskey, laughing and having a good time. At the back of the room however, sat one man, alone. His elbow propped up on the arm of his chair, his finger brushing over his top lip as if he were deep in thought. His other hand held the same glass as every other man in the bar, lazily not caring if it were to fall and smash everywhere.
The man, George Weasley, a tall ginger man who’s eyes were the dark but kind shade of brown. Although seemingly intimidating, George had a kind heart, if he seen someone being attacked or robbed in the street, everyone would end up feeling bad for the attacker by the time George was finished with him. He had no time for the scum who go out of their way to make someone else’s life a living hell in order for them to feel a small, temporary taste for a God complex.
George had only recently taken over the title of the Triple W Mafia Boss, when his father Arthur had decided it was his time to retire and pass over the family ‘business’ to one of his sons. George was one of 6 sons and one daughter within the Weasley family. His identical twin brother Fred was technically supposed to become the next Mafia boss, as he was the older twin. But, he had decided that his brother George was more fit to the job than he was. So, George gratefully took over the role and appointed Fred and his younger brother Ron, to be his sort of ‘Body Guards’ although, of course George was far from needing any form of help when it came to beating or killing a criminal, it was still always good to have a little back up sometimes.
“Hey Georgie, what’s the plan then? What we gonna do about these damn Death Eaters?”
George sat, not moving, deep in thought. ‘What was he going to do about those Death Eaters?’ He has no where to start, the bastards are constantly on the run. He was determined to find their whereabouts however, as they had stolen something very precious to him, his mother’s necklace. The Weasley family heirloom.
-
In a room that was very clearly abandoned and covered in moss and mould, sat groups of men and some women in black cloaks with peculiar pointed hoods. These people, in contrast to that of which the Triple W members, appeared extremely intimidating. The members of Triple W were intimidating,  but these were the sort of people no one would want to encounter in the streets, day or night. There was no smoke from cigars in this small dingy room, there was however and eye watering stench, that was so strong some of the Death Eaters swore they seen a slight foggy green haze floating around the room.
All cloaked members were sitting in a circle all surrounding their leader Tom Riddle, or as he likes to call himself ‘Voldemort’. A tall man (not as tall as George) with black, short curly hair. He wasn’t wearing a cloak like his ‘followers’ but was wearing something that looked more like a bath robe, it was all black of course to fit in with the rest. All were listening in carefully to what he was saying, all apart form Y/N Greyback, daughter of Fenrir Greyback, a man who is considered very high up in the Death Eater mafia. She was sat in the corner, wearing a contrasting blood red dress that hugged all of her curves perfectly. Her Y/H/C hair was curled at the ends in neat ringlets, and she had some makeup on but not too much so she looked ‘dolled up’.
“We all know that the Triple W are cowering out in some fancy old bar, trouble is we don’t know where, I’ve had a few out scouting round the area, unfortunately they have all been caught” Riddle speaks out gesturing and engaging with his followers.
“What do you suggest we do then sir?” Said Fenrir who was sitting right next to where Riddle was parading around the room.
“I say we send out our most valuable member, of course, real them in, make them vulnerable” he smirked
“You don’t mean…”
“Oh yes, but I do, your daughter shall make excellent bate my dear friend, for she wears what Weasley most desires” Riddle finishes
Y/N too busy sat in the corner reading an old book, didn’t even notice that every Death Eater members eyes were on her, all smiling to themselves.
This may actually work, if we send out Y/N who is wearing that incredibly expensive looking, diamond necklace, it may just lure the idiot ginger straight to us” Fenrir laughed.
So their plan was set, send Y/N as bait and hopefully George would follow.
-     George still hadn’t moved from the position he was sat in, he hadn’t taken a single sip of his drink, his eyes focussed and barely ever blinking. He was seemingly ignoring every person who tried to get a word out of him for some sort of plan to take down their Rival mafia. Sure he had killed a lot of spies they had sent out, but he was getting absolutely no leads on where exactly they were coming from, Riddle was smarter than he thought. It seemed he had Death Eaters coming from all over the country in all different directions and disguises. George had to find some way in order to track down where exactly they were based.
The sounds of other members arguing, specifically Fred and Ron who were standing right next to where George was sat, started to sound like a horrible ringing noise, it was driving him insane, how could he concentrate when these buffoon’s were yelling nonsense at each other.
“WILL YOU ALL SHUT UP” He yelled now getting up from his seat and walking to the middle of the smoky room.
“I can’t fucking think when you’re all fighting and arguing with each other on what we’re going to do. I am very aware that those bastards are close to finding us, alright? They’ve gained more members in the past few months than I can count on my two hands. Problem is, they’re coming from all over the country, there is no set direction from where they’re all coming from, meaning that they aren’t coming from their base. This brings us to our next problem, what we’re going to do about it. The only thing I can suggest right now, which I believe may actually be our only two options, is either we leave and find a new base OR we send out multiple people all round the general area of here just outside the boarders of this town where the forests are. Each mile will have two of our members, armed and ready to capture and interrogate anyone that comes from outside the town. This includes anyone who seems innocent to the eye I.e. a mother and child as we all know by now there are families who have been a part of the Death Eaters for years, long enough for them to welcome their children. If you see a mother and child however, you of course don’t attack them straight away, you take them for questioning and more importantly, you look for that damn skull snake monstrosity that they all have tattooed on their left forearm.”
George stands looking between each of his guys trying to gauge what they were thinking by their faces.
“So what’s it to be? Hands up if you think we should move”
No one put their hands up and George smiled knowing that everyone in Triple W are too loyal to the town of Diagon to even consider leaving.
“Good choice boys, now” he rubs his hands together “who’s volunteering to be part of the watch team?”
- Y/N couldn’t believe her ears when she heard the plan to trick Triple W into following her back to the Death Eaters. She also had no idea that the beautiful silver diamond necklace that hung lazily round her neck was the stolen Weasley heirloom.
The actions of her family disgusted her, she knew that what they stood for and what they were doing was wrong, but putting her in harms way all over a stupid rivalry, AND tricking her into thinking that the necklace she had was a gift. She felt so stupid for believing them, Y/N had no options but to accept that she was going to have to go along with their horrendous plan and bait George and other members of Triple W into following her back into her family and Riddle’s evil grasp.
“Perfect” Riddle smiled grimly when Y/N accepted
“But of course, we can’t just lure them in, in one mere night, no, you have to spread this out over the course of a few days. Have him become intrigued by you, follow you a little while. You’ll be staying in a place called the Leaky Cauldron, don’t let him see you in there, it’ll blow your cover. Make sure he only sees you walking through the streets. Got it?”
Y/N tentatively nodded her head
“Good, and then, when the time is right, you’ll lead him straight here. We’ll be in communication with you, don’t let me down”
Y/N shakily made her way to Diagon, bags packed and the necklace still hanging round her neck. She had since changed into a black, silk dress, helping the bright silver of the necklace stand out against the dark colour of her clothes, further, of course to draw George Weasley’s attention.
Once she had settled into her room at the Leaky Cauldron, she was given specific instruction to make sure she wondered round the street at night, as that is most likely when Triple W members will come out from wherever they were hiding.
Y/N took a step out into the cold crisp night air, her heels click clacking off the stone pavements. She couldn’t help but take in the beauty of the town, cobblestone roads winding all through it, the windows on each building slightly askew but somehow didn’t seem out of place. It was as if she were walking through an old victorian town.
Snapping her thoughts back to the task at hand, she pulled her black shawl over her shoulders more and continued to wander aimlessly round, trying to find some form of clue as to were Triple W were hiding.
- George was more than satisfied with the outcome of the meeting they had today. He had 40 people on a list to keep watch each mile surrounding Diagon, meaning that all 20 miles would be covered. They all had their instructions ingrained into their heads and were ready to get to work the next day. Fred and Ron as usual would stay within Diagon with George, communicating to those who were out surrounding the area getting updates and passing round information. George had also decided to send a few extra spies out, including his younger sister Ginny to be on the look out for any Death Eater members who may still be lurking round the town.
George, Fred and Ron made their way out of the old bar room, and onto the streets. George made sure that they each had means of contacting each other. Fred whom George would normally live with, agreed that they each should have their own flats or place to stay in order to cover more of Diagon, and therefore be more accessible to those out in the forest. With their last goodbyes and a few phone calls to book places to stay, the three brothers separated all going in opposite directions.
George headed down the street, his hands becoming slightly red from the cold, and he could see his breath in the air. The dim orange streetlights barely lighting up the path as he walked past the old crooked houses and shops.
Just a George turned the corner he bumped into someone, a woman, dressed in a black dress and shawl.
“Oh I’m so sorry miss, I wasn’t looking where I was going properly, these damn street lights barely light up 2 feet in front of you. Are you alright” George asked looking into her eyes with worry
“I’m perfectly fine, sir, thank you” she smiled back and walked away
But George followed her with his eyes, more specifically he followed her neck, because what was hanging from it made him do a double take. He knew those diamonds from anywhere, they way they glistened brightly in every light. Was that, his mother’s stolen necklace?
Taglist: @amourtentiaa​ @love-peachh​ @pens-and-roses​ @rosietoesy​ @comfortwriting​ @famdomhideout​ @dracofknmalfoy​ @pandaxnienke​ @georgeweasleysbabe​ @le-weasley-simp​ (MESSAGE/ASK IF YOU WANT TO BE ADDED)
137 notes · View notes
shijiujun · 4 years
Photo
Tumblr media
Hope everyone is partying (by yourself, spiritually, or with people, all are totally fine) well into the Christmas weekend! I am back with even more recs (I’ll prolly give it a rest at the 10th one sorry for the spam guys)! This one I just finished a few days ago, because CHINA BOOKSTORE PUBLISHED THIS ON CHRISTMAS WITH MANY GOODIES!! And I was like oh cute long-hair dude, let me read this.
Anyway this is a fengshui + supernatural + body-switching type of novel, with a heavy focus on fengshui! I don’t know if everyone knows what fengshui is (I will prolly do a list for Chinese New Year) and I am no expert, but it’s basically like Chinese geomancy where you can calculate a person’s fate, wealth, marriage suitability etc. with things in an individual’s environment. 
So a lot of Chinese people, for example businessmen when they have new offices or when couples renovate their homes, they may get a feng shui master to arrange furniture and add crystals or talismans or whatever to increase wealth/prosperity/happiness or harmonize bad energy etc., just an example. When you want to check the compatibility of yourself and your SO, some people do go to the fengshui master and calculate their 八字 (day, hour, time they were born + other things) to see when is an auspicious day to marry etc. 
My ex-editor really believes in feng shui masters because hers really predicted a year that her husband got into hugeee trouble like almost to the day itself apparently. And she always wear an accessory with a snake on it because the master said
Written by the same author (Xi Zi Xu) who wrote Kaleidoscope of Death!
- Part of Min’s ‘Why You Should Read’ Series -
Summary:
This book is set in the normal, regular, law-abiding modern city world where fengshui is heavily believed in, and skilled masters can see spirits, bad energies. Where dogs can be reincarnated as humans, and there are demonic pets that humans can keep, and paper dolls can come to life basically.
Zhou Jia Yu is a government office worker who dies in a car accident one day, and wakes up in the body of another Zhou Jia Yu - a handsome man whose name is the same as his. He’s brought back by this spirit bird in his head called Ji Ba (pun not intended), who says that Zhou Jia Yu is fated to save Lin Zhu Shui, the young, blind fengshui master who has caught him.
Unfortunately, this second Zhou Jia Yu is a con-artist who has cheated the money of several families via fraudulent fengshui schemes, and his scams have led to the death of several children in the process. Legendary fengshui master Lin Zhu Shui and his disciples have caught/imprisoned this Zhou Jia Yu, not knowing that original conman Zhou Jia Yu has died (and therefore his soul is gone), leaving good citizen Zhou Jia Yu in the body of a conman.
Lin Zhu Shui intends to kill conman Zhou Jia Yu (not really kill, kill but probably will do something to his soul, considering there are laws against murder you know) when good citizen Zhou Jia Yu wakes up in this body, but because he has come back from the dead, his body and soul is considered an extremely yin (cold) body, which allows him to attract more bad spirits and energy, giving him an extraordinary, gifted ability to excel in the fengshui line. Of course, being the master that he is, Lin Zhu Shui also realizes that this Zhou Jia Yu (and his soul, in particular) is not the one he caught, and as he has an extremely yang (hot) body, the both of them are compatible with each other. Lin Zhuo Shui realizes that he can train Zho Jia Yu and then takes him on as his disciple.
Cue Zhou Jia Yu being tossed into a dangerous fengshui competition as he figures out just what Ji Ba wants him to do about Lin Zhu Shui. In the meanwhile, he falls in love with amazingly handsome, cool and aloof Lin Zhu Shui (who threatens to murder him if he doesn’t come out first in the competition), who keeps him warm when he gets unbearably cold due to his body condition. They also have to deal with an evil person working behind the scenes, and how Zhou Jia Yu eventually returns back into his own body at the end.
Read:
Novel (Online) | Novel (Print) - Dec 2020 Print | Novel Translations 
Characters:
Tumblr media
1. 周嘉鱼 Zhou Jia Yu (third from right) - A really cute government office worker whose soul was pulled into a conman’s body, who has the same name as he, when he got into a car accident. Has an extremely yin (cold) body which attracts spirits (good and bad), and allows him to see, smell or hear them more clearly than everyone else except for Lin Zhu Shui. He cooks extremely well too and is considered a treasure in the household by Lin Zhu Shui’s other disciples because none of them can cook for shit. They don’t initially know that this Zhou Jia Yu is not conman Zhou Jia Yu, although they suspect it, and once they fall in love with his cooking no one doubts him anymore HAHAHA.
He gets a feng shui tattoo personally done by Lin Zhu Shui who already knows that his soul was switched, a tattoo which is supposed to help him in feng shui matters. Gets a paper doll son halfway through the story, who he calls Xiao Zhi (little paper), which calls him Dad (and calls Lin Zhu Shui Big Dad - da baba) ;-; It’s the cutest shit ever.
There’s a mystical creature in the back of his head that speaks to him and helps him out on certain feng shui things, and helps him to explain what he’s seeing, but aside from telling Jia Yu that he’s supposed to save Lin Zhu Shui, the mystical bird thing is unable to tell him anything else. Within a few weeks of him waking up in this body, he’s sent by Lin Zhu Shui on an international feng shui competition without having any sort of basic knowledge, only innate talent, much to his panic XD As Lin Zhu Shui continues to protect him, teach him and tease/smile at him, Jia Yu, who is certified gay af, falls totally in love with the seemingly aloof and strict feng shui master.
They probably would have continued like this if not for Jia Yu’s body deteriorating because his body is technically not his and not compatible with his soul, and Lin Zhu Shui tries to find a way to save him, after seeing the future where Jia Yu’s body is rotting as he dies slowly over months and begging Lin Zhu Shui to kill him and let him die.
2. 林逐水 Lin Zhu Shui (third from left, right next to Jia Yu) - Long-haired, wears changshan perpetually and is blind, but can see more clearly than most people. He knows where everyone’s positions are exactly, and can see spirits etc. very well despite being blind. Considered a genius of the feng shui world and is the patriarch of one of the big feng shui families in the world - the Lin family. He’s a master at drawing talismans, carving crystals/gems and feng shui tattooing.
He’s so well-known that everyone wants to be his disciple, everyone wants to get a talisman/crystal/tattoo from him, everyone wants him to come and look at their houses, but he can’t be bothered with most people. He’s also super handsome? So a lot of girls (and guys) are always drooling over him.
He has an extremely yang (hot) body, which is supposed to naturally help to repel spirits and what not, but because of this he suffers a lot in the summer. His body condition is very rare and when he was younger, others said he would not live past 18 years old, and his parents gave up their lives to change his fate so he would survive. The feng shui master also predicted that Lin Zhu Shui would experience another calamity when he was 30 (thereabout), and that year, thankfully he has Jia Yu as his entire house caught on fire in the summer while he was in it (and cooling talismans and the house item placements meant to keep the house entirely cool in the summer were no longer working). Jia Yu helped him to cool down with his incredibly yin body.
Knows right off the bat that this is a different Jia Yu, and starts teaching him as one of his disciples. Can only eat the food hat Jia Yu cooks because his yin qualities transfer to the food he cooks as well, and Lin Zhu Shui usually cannot eat anything else that’s cooked outside. Gives Jia Yu a carved jade pendant he made himself that’s apparently worth thousands of dollars to keep him safe, and is a dumbass when it comes to confessing to Jia Yu hahahaha (although he’s successful at the end!)
3. 沈一穷 Shen Yi Qiong (second from right, dark skin tone) - Lin Zhu Shui’s youngest disciple and also Jia Yu’s best friend, technically. Brash but smart, and is always thirsting openly after his shifu Lin Zhu Shui, it’s hilarious! He’s a little jealous in the beginning because his shifu is showering Jia Yu with so much attention when he’s only been around for a week etc., but quickly gets used to it and supports Jia Yu. Jia Yu always makes fun of his tanned skin, then makes fun of his singlehood HAHA, while Shen Yi Qiong provides emotional support to Jia Yu, and by emotional support I mean when Jia Yu asks him what will happen to him if he loses the feng shui competition, Shen Yi Qiong pats him on the shoulder and asks him to choose a vase/pot pattern (like a ceramic pot where you put cremated ashes) = shifu will kill him if he loses the competition, so gets Jia Yu to choose a pot he likes so Shen Yi Qiong can help him put his ashes in HAHAHAHA. He is the last one to find a significant other, but the one he finds is like a legendary mystical creature who half deceives him into promising to marry him and then keeps chasing after Shen Yi Qiong so he can marry him XD
4. 林珏 Lin Jue (first from left) - Lin Zhu Shui’s cousin but technically his older sister because she brought him up after his parents died. Spends most of the novel being sad about her past lover who died because of an illness, and is wooed a few years later by a legendary golden dragon.
5. 小纸 Xiao Zhi (that little cute white thing on top of Jia Yu’s head) - A paper doll who’s given to Jia Yu after he helps out at the paper doll village/tribe, and grows up with Jia Yu and Lin Zhu Shui taking care of him. Is the cutest little shit ever, can speak, and calls Jia Yu ‘baba’ and Lin Zhu Shui ‘da baba’ i.e. dad and big dad. Very strong, and can protect Jia Yu very well.
Other Things I Like in the Novel:
Jia Yu basically goes to the feng shui competition and destroys everyone else because he’s just gifted in this aspect - When he wakes up, and in the days leading up to the competition, he doesn’t have a cellphone (Lin Zhu Shui and his disciples live in a remote part of town, a traditional-type house, one with nature) and after he wins the competition, other people want his phone number to contact him and he’s too embarrassed to say that he’s basically too poor to have a phone after rising from the dead, so he bluffs everyone and says “My shifu says that handphone signals and radiation will interfere with advanced feng shui readings so I don’t have one” and LITERALLY half of the feng shui training population gets rid of their phones on that day, gullible af
Everytime Jia Yu runs cold, he has to drink some of Lin Zhu Shui’s blood mixed with water/milk, and the man’s yang blood warms him up immediately
Jia Yu has to deal with four of Lin Zhu Shui’s disciples, all who are really suspicious of him because they think he’s the conman, and Jia Yu doesn’t realize they already know it’s not him until they defend him in front of other people, and he’s so touched
Shen Yi Qiong gets his marriage fortune told during one of the cases by accident. He asks when he’ll get married, and the thing replies “Seven Three” AND HE’S SO DEPRESSED BECAUSE he thinks that it means he’ll only get married when he’s 73. It’s a source of jokes between him, his other shixiongs and Jia Yu, but then towards the end he realizes what it means - His supposed match, a legendary mystical male weasel who’s 73 years old XD
Jia Yu keeps thirsting after Lin Zhu Shui, fully aware that he’s very gay himself, and he’s confessed to while he’s stuck in the haze of a high fever, so he thinks it’s a dream. Lin Zhu Shui doesn’t realize he forgot/thinks it’s a dream and is pissed that he’s rejected HAHAHA and then Lin Jue reminds him to not be a dumbass and confess properly, and so he does so again in an empty amusement park, after summoning evil spirits so they can fly in the air and make a heart shape just for Jia Yu while they’re on the ferris wheel XDDDD
98 notes · View notes
fakeloveaskblog · 3 years
Note
I think you. should ask Janus to "slither" over to your house! But also give him options! Like, "would you like to join me for dinner at my house? Or do you prefer to just go on a walk? How about we go to a fancy restaurant~ My treat~. Or maybe just enjoy each other's company at a park? You don't have to of course!"
(Words: 2095)
Logan: "Ah yes wonderful tactics stranger! This will surely be useless in my upcoming attempt!"
It was nearing the end of the day. Janus was closing up. Meanwhile Logan was trying to calm his nerves by reminding himself that he was objectivly very cool. He had on one of his best sweaters to look extra good (it had the tardis on it!).
"Alright. Looks like we can go home and have an existential crisis about the passage of time" Janus said motioning towards the exit.
Logan took a deep breathe before grabbing onto the sleeve of his crush' shirt "Please wait just a moment. How long have we known each other?"
"I guess since I started working here...so around 6 months? Please don't tell me you’re quitting! Work would just become soooo much more enjoyable"
"I was actually wondering if you mayhaps would like to accompany me on a so called 'hang out' during our leisure time...Today...Or some other day! If you want to! You don't have t-"
"No! No I would hate to!- Love! I mean I would love to!" Janus couldn't stop himself from grinning.
Logan flapped his hands in happiness "Good! So would you maybe like to go to the park nearby or-"
"No! Yes! Yes!"
"Great!"
Logan walked out of the library and held the door open for Janus. After quickly locking they walked towards the park. It was a simple small one. Just some trees, lots of grass, lots of people smoking grass, a pond, angry ducks, even angrier swans and exactly 1 ice cream shop.
All Logan wanted to do was take his crush' hand. It would be hard to do even if he tried to because Janus was constantly fiddling with his gloves. He was barely even looking at where he was walking.
"....I'm sorry for the weird way I talk sometimes" Janus quietly confessed "With the backwards talk. I kind of lie when I get nervous? I think?"
"Oh I know" Logan replied.
"You kNOw?" Janus' voice went up a tone.
"It is very noticeable but it is also quite charming if I may say so myself" It took a moment before he carefully added "Besides I have read that compulsive lying and also vitiligo can come from great stress or bad...events so even if I did not find it charming I wouldn't hold it against you either"
A small smile played on the edges of Janus' lips "Thanks"
"No need"
He took an impressively deep breathe before he stopped in the middle of the road and dramatically grabbed onto both of Logan's shoulders to stop him. He stood on his toes to make himself taller and stared into his love's eyes.
"I do not think you are also charming at all!!!" Janus very loudly announced.
Logan let up into a chuckle. He forced himself to keep eye contact "Well thank you"
Janus let go of him and kept walking very very quickly to try and distract from his red cheeks and heavy breathing. That was flirting right??? He had flirted??? He had done it??? He'd flirted??? The little voice in his head that he was starting to think was his self confidence trying to break through to him would be so proud!!!
“So would you perhaps like an ice cream in these trying times?” Logan asked. He was walking with his hands clasped behind his back.
“Oh right I would definitely love something high calorie that would just make me even more gross”
“Somehow your thick layer of sarcasm was the part of that sentence with the least falsehood in it. We can share one? Or if you get uncomfortable eating desserts in front of other people we don’t have-”
“SNAKE!” Janus interrupted him. 
He ran out into the grass of the park and hunched down to gently pick up a slippery snake. It was small enough to keep in one hand. He was repeatedly hitting his other arm against his leg and putting his fingers in uncomfortable positions.
Logan happily sat down next to him. Janus ungraciously shoved the snake right up near his face.
“It’s a baby northern watersnake! It’s not venomous I promise. It hunts fishes in the water. Isn’t that cool? It’s also one of the few species that doesn’t lay eggs! It can even put out musk to protect itself!! It’s so-”
He realized how much he was ranting and immediately forced himself to stop. He stopped his arm as well. He was so annoying.
“I apologize. Sometimes I just run my mouth and I do these stupid motions”
Logan boped his nose “The only stupid thing about that is you assuming I wouldn’t want to hear you rant. Or see you....stim...? I literally flapped my hands 5 minutes ago. I do not judge”
Janus shrugged at the stim question “My mother did always say that my father has adhd but that was in an insulting way. When I have done research on adhd I relate to a lot of it but it’s not like I have a diagnosis or anything”
“Bitchass mother” Logan mumbled under his breathe “I do not have diagnosed autism either but I do still now I have it.....Besides....Not to brag but I have both a deegre in both psychology and medicine so I can basically diagnose myself anyway”
Jan was already too overwhlemed to ask how the hell he had had the time for 2 bachelors deegre only to end up at a library.
“Anyhow we don’t have to talk about psychology...now...............maybe one day though” Logan did a little robotic evil laugh “For now maybe you can infodump about that snake, then we can get a shared ice cream and then I can infodump about glorious star trek. How’s that for a plan?”
His crush took a deep breathe before nodding. He stood up and cupped the snake in his hands. “You want to go to the pond don’t you little guy? Want to hunt and murder a few fishes don’t you?”
He turned to Logan and shuly said a few more facts while they went to the pond. He patted the snake on it’s head before carefully setting it down among the plants at the water’s edge.
The friends sat in silence for a few minutes, watching the snake as it looked for prey. (Though Logan spent most of the time adoring Janus’).
When the snake caught a small fish and swallowed it whole Janus broke out in happy flaps. He let out a happy squeal while pointing at it. Logan nodded back at him. He mimicked his flapping. 
He’d never seen Janus’ smile that brightly. Logan took his hand. Intertwining their fingers. They stimmed together until Lo pulled in his hand making his crush stumble into him. 
Jan sat with his head leaned against his chest. He looked up at Logan with blushing red cheeks. He forced himself to move back even if he didn’t want to.
“Sorry”
“No need” The nerd assured.
He stood up and held out his hand to help Janus up. They didn’t let go of each other’s hands as they walked towards the ice cream shop.
“To piss off homophobes” Janus lied up the explanation while motioning for their hand holding.
“Of course”
They ordered a scoop of lemon ice cream and sat down by the tables outside. Janus had taken off his gloves.  Their hands laid on top of each other. 
“Do you also have that experience where” Logan stopped to take a bite of ice cream “You categorize your life into what you were hyperfixated on at the time? For example I remember that when I met Patty I was into Doctor Who and right before then I was enjoying Sherlock Holmes”
Janus shrugged. He didn’t want to say that he had a hard time even remembering most of his life clearly “I can see the Doctor influence” He nodded towards his tardis sweater.
Logan’s eyes lit up “Oh have you seen it??? The ninth and fifth doctors are my favorite! Though as a bi man I can not ignore David Tennants’ everything”
“I have seen exactly 0″ 
“Well that is not a problem that can not be fixed! When I met Patty she hadn’t either- maybe because we were 12- but I show-”
Janus choked on his ice cream “12? Oh wow. For some reason I had assumed you were older”
“Oh no. She moved towns and started in my class. It was almost love at first sight. I stole flowers from my neighbor and invited her to see the movie everyone in town was talking about....Kung fu panda”
He broke out into a laugh.
“Don’t laugh at me Janny! It was an incredibly tactical decision. You see I knew she liked animals and the kung fu panda is a panda”
Janus doubled over the table while continuing to laugh “Me throwing popcorn at myself during my first hangout almost seems cool in conparison”
“Popcorn is usually hot. Not cooled down” Logan corrected. “Though to be honest the start of our relationship was sort of what you can call a ‘mess’ since as you already know both of us were foolish enough to think Patty was a guy. So suddenly I had to come to terms with liking guys. Until she told me she was a girl. So then I was straight. Until I met Thomas but that is a whole different story. It was like some people say a rollercoaster”
“Am I rude for finding that funny?”
“Yes incredibly and frankly you should be dragged to the guillotines right now”
Janus leaned closer to him with a sly smile on his face “Aw ~darling~ I didn’t know you could be sassy”
Logan did his best to hide how the nearly choked on his own spit “Yes I can indeed be if I want to. Just like how I have been able to have adequate facial expressions and voice tones and also eye contact during our whole hangout. Normally I only have a lot of expressions and tones if I am talking about hyperfixations or my wife”
“You don’t have to do that around me”
“Really? It does take a lot of energy to try and appear ‘normal’ but I was afraid of coming across as rude”
“Darling I find you lovely either way” Janus was going to pour up the biggest glass of fucking wine when he got home. He was a flirting machine!
“Oh okay” Logan relaxed his shoulders and started looking at a point right next to his shoulder instead of at his eyes. “Want to hear about Star trek the next generation? It’s the one with Data in it”
Janus squeezed his hand “I definitely have a very good idea about who that person is. Yes please tell me”
Logan went on a very very long infodump which Janus happily listened to (and did his best to reply to even though he didn’t know much). He was sure he would never get tired of hearing him talk. The ice cream nearly melted because they were both too busy with what he had to say.
“-And that is why the poetry actually have significance” Logan concluded after nearly half an hour.
“Well that sure sounds like an interesting series”
“I can show you it? Soon? I have it all on dvd”
“It’s a date- I uh I mean like planned thing not like romantic I mean-” Janus babbled out.
“I am aware of what you meant” He checked his watch “It is probably a good time for me to depart. It’s my turn on laundry today. I will get to categorize socks!”
“Wow. Sounds like a party”
Logan excitedly nodded. He stood up. Janus did as well. They looked down at their still connected hands. Jan was about to let go and simply leave but to his surprise Logan pulled him into a hug.
He leaned down and moved his arms around Janus’ waist. In return Jan quickly stood up on his toes and buried his head into his love’s shoulder. He breathed in his scent. Coffee and strawberry jam. He closed his eyes, taking in the moment.
“Janus, You are so special to me” Logan murmured while holding onto him as hard as he could.
“I- I love- I love being around you” He whispered back. Too afraid to say the truth.
Logan tried to memorise the way it felt to have him this close before letting go and taking a step back “Well I will see you tomorrow then”
“Can’t wait!”
12 notes · View notes
yodawgiherd · 4 years
Text
Cabin at Daytime
>>>Read on AO3<<<
You thought that you could escape EM cottagecore in a modern AU? Fools!
Eren was poked into consciousness by gentle yet unyielding fingers. Sitting up, he saw Mikasa watching him, eyes shining with tears.
“Another nightmare?”
She nodded.
“I know the continuation of the story, wanna hear it?”
Looking over her, Eren saw some major differences from the last time. Mikasa had tears in her eyes, but she wasn’t crying, her face had a sort of acceptance written into it. Her dream must have been bittersweet because she had a strong feeling of melancholy about her. Sad, but not terribly wrecked by it. Something happened, but it was bound to happen, and it was the best outcome of the events she was stuck at.
Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, Eren gave her a warm smile, hoping to make her feel better.
“Of course. Told you that I’m on the edge of my seat.”
“Okay..”, she drawled, “But I have a condition.”
From the way her teeth shone in the darkness, Eren had a faint idea what Mikasa might want at three in the morning.
“Is it pancakes?”, he tried.
It was pancakes.
Fifteen minutes later, he was standing in the kitchen and preparing her sweet treat while Mikasa sat at the counter, bare legs swinging freely. Her hands were wrapped around a fresh cup of coffee that she was sipping in order to wake up.
“So?”, he asked, sprinkling the chocolate chips in, “Going to tell me while I cook?”
“Sure.”, Mikasa took a deep breath and looked Eren straight in the eyes, her voice serious, “I killed you.”
Not that surprising, considering that he was the big bad evil guy in her dreams.
“Again? Didn’t you dream about that already?”
“I did, but It was different this time.”
“And didn’t Armin off me too?”
Mikasa shook her head, the moonlight reflecting against her midnight bangs.
“You got up from that.”
“Guess I could have seen it coming, I’m nothing if not stubborn.”
She giggled at that, small simpers escaping through the tears that were present on her face.
“I cut off your head.“
“How?“
“With a sword.”, she reached over, dragging a single black fingernail over Eren’s throat, “Riiiight here.”
“Ouch.”
“And then we kissed.”
“Uhm...”
Mikasa fell silent, pondering what she just said.
“Well,”, Eren began, “Did I see you before you killed me?”
“Yea…”
“All good then.”
She looked up, a question on her face.
“What do you mean?”
“If I got to die while looking at you, then there is nothing more I could wish for.”
A sniffle.
“There was no other way.”
“Of course. I told you – that mess must have been my fault, I do not blame you in the slightest. Although there is one thing I’d like to say.”
“Yes?”
“I think that I prefer kissing you while my head is attached to my body.”
Finally, she laughed out loud, scooting over on the kitchen counter to be closer. Taking a gentle hold of his head, Mikasa angled it properly, bowing down and pressing her lips against his. So warm and gentle, as only Eren could be, it made her eyes flutter close from the pure sweetness of it. His were closed too, she noticed, but he was very much alive against her mouth. Mikasa tasted like the coffee she drank and combined with the natural sweetness of her lips, it was downright delicious. Nip here and there, Mikasa was sighing into the kiss before she realized it.
“As much as I adore kissing you, I should finish the food.”, Eren murmured against her addicting lips, “Might burn it.”
Mikasa loved Eren’s chocolate chip pancakes and burning them was heresy. Releasing him, she sat back, leaning on her arms and watching him work.
“You know, maybe it’s not so bad that you cut my head off.”
“Eren, what in seven hells are you on about?”
“Well, even as a head I could be of service to you,”, like a damn snake, he wiggled his tongue at her, “You do adore my oral skill, don’t you?”
She did, but Mikasa also strongly preferred having all of Eren to enjoy, not just a damn head. That joke went overboard for her because she remembered the kiss from her dream which was so tragic and so far from what Eren was suggesting. Filled with a wave of slight nausea, Mikasa let her disgust show on her face.
“Fine, I’m not talking to you anymore. Even better, I’m breaking off our engagement and I’ll be moving out in the morning. Good day, sir.”
With that, she turned away from him, closing her eyes and overall just being done with Eren Yeager. Seeing it, he realized that he might have overstepped his boundaries, and the last thing he wanted was to have his angel mad at him. Turning the heat down for a moment, he leaned closer, gently nudging the collar of her too-large sleeping shirt down her shoulder with his nose. Once her porcelain skin was bare to him, Eren kissed it gently, moving his lips over the pale expanse. At the same time his hands got adventurous, one starting from Mikasa’s knee and moving upwards, kneading those wonderful thighs of hers. The other circled her unresponsive form, a finger tracing the curve of her spine. She didn’t pull away but didn’t react to him either, marking his efforts as inefficient for now.
“I’m sorry, it was inappropriate.”
Nope, nothing. Very well then.
Eren moved up, focusing his kisses on her neck now, gently biting into the skin. His hand also slid up to Mikasa’s inner thigh, caressing. Finally that coaxed something out of her, a tiny moan that escaped her lips.
“I’m very sorry, Miki.”, he repeated between the kisses, “Please forgive me.”
Even while apologizing, he couldn’t help himself when his nose was pressed right against her skin. Her scent invaded his mind, gliding around the familiar place, reminding him of everything good that was in his life.
“God, you smell so good.”, he murmured.
She snickered, and the combination of joy and pleasure produced by Eren was enough for Mikasa to forgive. She turned towards him, grey eyes sliding over his face.
“Eren, I love you, but please don’t say things like that again. That kiss was so far from anything even remotely sexual that…”
“I know, and I won’t. I’m sorry, again.”
“Good.”, leaning close, she pecked him on the lips, “Now get back to cooking, I’m supposed to get my pancakes.”
With a grin, Eren let go of her and returned to the task at hand. Turning the heat up, he watched the pancake simmer into existence, all under Mikasa’s hungry gaze. She loved chocolate, and Eren made sure to put an extra portion of the brown chips into the next pancake he began creating.
“There was something else.”, she said, “Like a dream within a dream.”
That piqued his interest.
“Do go on.”
“The other Mikasa…”
“Dreamkasa?”, Eren offered, making her frown.
“Shush.”
“Yes ma’am.”
Dreamkasa. Almost as bad as that incredible nickname she had, Gothkasa. Pfff…
“She had a vision or something, of her living together with the other Eren, in a cabin.”
“Sounds peaceful.”
“It was. But at the same time…”, Mikasa rubbed a hand over her temple, trying to remember, “It was sad because they gave up something very important to have that life together. Still, he was so sweet to her, it was a wonderful experience.”, a memory coming back made her smile, “He caught fish for her.”
“Damn, I better step up my game then. But isn’t dream Eren a bad guy?”
“I don’t rightly know, the details escape me. I do remember how she felt about him though.”, Mikasa’s fingernails scratched the kitchen counter when she shifted her position, “She loved him, loved him so much. It reminded me of how much I love you.”
“Well, I can’t speak for the Dream Ere-,”, a grin, “Dreamren, but I love you to death. Not sure about catching, but if you want, I’ll buy you the biggest fish I can find.”
She smiled at that, softly.
“I’ll keep that in mind. I think that Eren loved her too, in his own way. It was the world that didn’t allow them to be together.”
“That’s a tragedy if I ever heard one.”, Eren flipped the pancake, “If the world was keeping me away from you, I’d be pretty darn pissed.”
“I don’t think that I would let anything keep us apart.”, Mikasa interjected, unconsciously flexing her impressive musculature.
“And to think that we almost broke up in the past over such stupid stuff.”
“Did we really?”
“Uhm…”, Eren looked up from his work, “You don’t remember?”
“I do, but I’m not sure that it was a breakup. We both felt terrible during it, didn’t we?”
“It was the worst time of my life.”, Eren immediately confessed.
“Same here. My point is, I doubt that we could ever stay apart, we craved each other so much.”
“Makes sense. Somewhat.”
“Yet all these problems and issues we have seem so trivial compared to what she went through. War, apocalypse, fighting for her life every damn day.”, Mikasa shivered, “She was a real hero.”
“Well, I for one am glad that no man-eating giants are chasing us around.”, he put the pancake on the growing pile, making another one right after, “I strongly prefer having you for myself and kissing you while not being dead.”
Stealing the fruit of his labor, Mikasa popped it into her mouth. Chewing, she had to agree with Eren on this one. Living like this was much better than the daily nightmares she had to go through in her past life-or-dreams. Here, Eren wasn’t threatening to destroy the whole world and she wasn’t forced to kill him to save it. Here, she could kiss him as much as she wanted to, their first kiss was very far from being the last. Here, they could get lost in each other’s bodies and consummate their love physically, without a worry in the world. Here, she could fall asleep in his arms every night and wake up to his yawning every morning. Here…. Here was everything she could ever ask for.
With the pancakes gone they settled on the couch, Mikasa lying down with Eren on top of her, tangled together. His head was in her hands and she ran her hands through his hair, once again getting too long. She should cut it. The thought of a haircut brought back yet another slight headache and a new memory popped up, again of the cabin. Mikasa looked at it, inspected the picture in her mind. There was something about that place, the simple wooden building was drawing her in. Maybe she should see it for herself, experience that dream within a dream. Giving in to her temptation, Mikasa spoke up.
“Eren?”
“Yes love?”
“Could we also go to a cabin for a few days?”
“Well aren’t you easily influenced.”, despite the tone of his words, Eren was smiling when he said them, “But I don’t mind, I should take a break from work. We’ll look for something in the morning, it will be nice to leave the city behind for a spell.”
Yet while running away from everything was cool in the concept, they both had several obligations to fulfill. Realizing that, Mikasa’s nose scrunched in irritation.
“Kiyomi won’t be pleased.”
“Neither will Erwin or Levi.”, Eren shrugged, “They’ll survive without us.”
This careless Eren was charming, and Mikasa found herself liking it.
“Okay. Let’s have a romantic getaway then.”
“Following the footsteps of a war hero and man who committed genocide.”
“They were quite the pair.”, Mikasa agreed, “But that only made their love that much special.”
“Let’s see, maybe we will get a whiff of it at the cabin.”
Plans made, dreams explained, pancakes eaten, they were tangled together in that comfortable silence achieved once a pair knows each other inside and out. The sun was slowly rising behind the windows, the night retreating. It was the incredible comfort and warmth Mikasa had in this love, it echoed through her entire being. Realizing it made her smile like an idiot because she and Eren were so lucky that they had each other forever. Although, if those dreams were truly her past life and she had to go through that much shit to get here, this love they had was well deserved.
Hundred times over.
In the end, it was surprisingly easy to arrange their little getaway. Erwin was happy to give Eren time off, Kiyomi would do anything for her star girl, and while Levi complained, he was secretly glad that Mikasa is taking a break. Sure, training was important with the Colosseum closer every day, but mental health was important too, and his sister more than deserved to have time for herself. And that fiancé of hers, Levi supposed. A tiny obstacle arose when Eren tried to pick the location because Mikasa was hard to satisfy.
“Not that one.”, she shook her head, “too modern.”
“Not this one either, I want to be close to the ocean.”
“Nah, not this, It has to be somewhere in the mountains.”
In the end, Eren gave up and let her search by herself while he packed. It didn’t take him long, as they needed just a few necessary things, the rest could always be bought. As he was zipping the bag closed, a sound of joy came from the table.
“Eren! I got it!”
He walked over to her, frowning at the cabin she picked. It looked archaic, old, and wooden, located away from any civilization.
“Looks savage.”
“This is the one. I’m sure of it.”, Mikasa was decided, and Eren wouldn’t argue.
This whole operation was her idea, after all. Mikasa’s cabin had an interesting rental system - once Eren paid the required amount the key would be waiting for them under a doormat. Guess it made sense, considering that there was literally no one around the cabin, and animals could hardly pick up the key and unlock the door. Unless they tried hard, that is. With the money transferred, all that was left was to get dressed and pick up the bags Eren packed, putting it all in the car. It was go time.
She was watching him from the passenger seat, he realized, her grey eyes studying from the dark shadows her makeup created. With a ruffle of her short, red pleated skirt, Mikasa put one foot up, the bottom of her white sneaker sinking a bit into the seat. The sunlight streaming in through the windows shimmered at her jewelry, the earrings and piercings, the studs in her choker, all the necklaces and most prominently on the silver cross that was snug between her breasts. Couldn’t forget her rings too, Eren reminded himself, watching as she smoothed a few bangs back behind her ear. Right, he should be focusing on the road, not on the way Mikasa dressed. Sure, the long black top was nice and all, hell, her whole outfit was amazing, but that was Mikasa for him. Beautifully pulling off the style that made Kiyomi’s teeth grit, because goth was dead but her top model didn’t care in the least.
Wondering if she will say what’s on her mind, Eren focused on the road, only sometimes stealing sidelong glances at her. He watched as Mikasa put one hand up to support her head, the sleeve of her shirt riding down and revealing the netted fingerless glove underneath. It was easy to know why she dressed up like this, even when they were going to a cottage in the middle of nowhere. Goth was her comfort clothing, she knew it inside out and put it on to prevent herself from being nervous. The makeup and jewelry were a routine that calmed her, her armor, it put her mind at ease. Eren knew why the cabin getaway put Mikasa in such a state, it must have been the dream. They worried her, even as they were approaching the romantic alone time, most likely because going there was triggered by them. To get her mind away from it, or offer encouragement, Eren spoke up.
“Penny for your thoughts?”
She stared at him for a moment, one black fingernail tapping at the corner of the dark red painted lips.
“I feel strange.”
“Strange good or strange bad? If it’s bad I’m turning the car around.”
“Neither, just strange.”
Talk about lack of information.
“Do you want to go back?”
Mikasa considered it for a moment but shook her head after, the inverted crosses in her ears swinging.
“No.”
The word had a finality to it, and Eren didn’t question it. Mikasa was an adult, she could decide on where she wanted to spend her time. Focusing back on the driving and away from the alluring goth visage on the passenger’s seat, Eren gripped the steering wheel a bit tighter and the car ate away at the distance.
The cabin was everything Mikasa wanted it to. It was wooden, old and looked as if it would fold by a stronger gust of wind. It was perfect. She almost ran to the door, the grass sliding beneath her sneakers, found the key under the doormat and unlocked. Yes, she thought to herself with eyes wandering, this was so close to her dream it was unreal. Almost as if the cabin was torn from her thoughts and put into reality. Eren came up behind her with the bags in his hands, breathing slightly faster than usual. He insisted on carrying everything like the gentleman he was, knowing that Mikasa could carry both him and the bags and not even get winded.
“You like it?”, he asked, putting the burden down and looking over the interior himself.
“It’s amazing, exactly as I wanted it to be.”
Sure, it was rundown, dirty, and probably very far from the health standards Eren would want, but Mikasa was happy. And that’s what mattered.
“Spectacular.
With a smile, Mikasa went out, soaking in the sunrays. Noticing a bench under the window, she crossed the distance to it, running a hand over the aged wood. But just as her skin made contact with the coarse surface, something happened. Splitting headache brought Mikasa down to her knees, eyes watering from the pain. She could see it now, clear as day, a scene unfolding in front of her. Eren was sitting at the bench, strange markings on his face, almost like scars. She, or the other version of her, was standing in front of him, her hair longer than what Mikasa’s current style was. She leaned forward, gently taking Eren’s head in her hands. He looked at her, and the tiredness in his face, that hurt to see. The scene was so painful that it tugged at Mikasa’s heart, the ache only intensifying when the other girl spoke, so softly. She spoke to that tired man and his face lit up as if her words could take away the pain and suffering he was experiencing. As if her voice was that of an angel, sent to finally free him from his torment.
“See you later, Eren.”, the other Mikasa said before planting a kiss on his lips.
Her vision blurring, she clutched her head against nausea, the scene evaporating into nothingness.
“Hey, Miki? Miki are you okay?”, a shuffle of boots on the ground and suddenly there was a presence next to her.
That was Eren, her Eren, the one with a manbun and no scars on his face. She leaned onto his body for support, closing her eyes and breathing evenly, the headache slowly fading.
“Is something wrong? Are you sick?”, the doctor in him was out now, hands gently gliding over her face to check. She opened her eyes, letting him see her pupils.
“I’m fine.”, she said, “Just a headache.”
He wasn’t satisfied with that.
“And I saw a vision.”, she added, making his eyes widen.
“Vision? Like your dreams?”
“Yes... But I’m not asleep, am I?”
Gently as he could, Eren walked her over to the bench, the same on the other Eren was sitting at. There, she told him everything she saw, down to every tiny detail.
“I guess being here is too similar to what the dream was about.”, she concluded, “It must have triggered my “memories” somehow.”
“Do you want to leave?”
“No.”, the answer was immediate, “I might get more visions, but I feel so peaceful here, it’s beautiful.”
Eren chewed his bottom lip, obviously worried about her wellbeing, but Mikasa was determined. Leaning closer, she kissed him, trying to put his fears to rest.
“I promise that I’ll tell you when I feel unwell. Okay?”
Maybe moved by the kiss, or just because he was very bad at saying “No” to her in general, Eren agreed.
“Let’s stay here a while.”, he said, most likely to make sure that Mikasa was all right, but she didn’t complain.
Leaning on his shoulder, Mikasa felt his arm wrap around her as he pulled her close, and they sat together on the bench, staring over the never-ending ocean. She was right, it was beautiful.
29 notes · View notes
sdottkrames · 3 years
Text
Welcome Home My Boy (Welcome Home My Son)
✍🏼By: me, @sdottkrames
🎁For: @skeeter-110 for the @friendly-neighborhood-exchange
⭐️Rating: general audiences
💜Relationships: Tony Stark & Peter Parker, Tony Stark/Pepper Potts
Characters: Tony Stark, Peter Parker, Pepper Potts, May Parker (au where she’s not Peter’s aunt)
Summary: Tony Stark’s life is missing something. Peter Parker is an orphan who wants a family. And Pepper Potts comes up with an idea that brings them together
Read on AO3: Here
“Do you have a family?”
“Yes. And I will see them when I leave here. You Stark?”
Tony’s mind flashed first to Pepper. Then Obadiah, Rhodey, Happy. But the memories exploded with the car crash that had killed his parents and faded along with the life in the eyes of Edwin Jarvis. He had no family. He’d kept it that way, distancing himself with booze and sunglasses and a falsely confident persona, all to protect himself from being hurt even more when he inevitably lost them, too.
“No.”
 Ho Yinsen had changed Tony’s life in more ways than one, but perhaps the greatest change had been through that admittance he’d been forced to give. 
Ever since that whispered “no,” there had been something stirring in Tony’s chest. He’d squashed it down vehemently when a black Tetris puzzle crawled across his chest and neck like some evil game. When he’d been freed of that, he’d found a little family in his best friend and his (now) girlfriend who hadn’t let themselves be pushed too far away by his fears and insecurities. 
Then his family had unexpectedly and, at first, unwelcomingly, grown. But soon the five other superheroes had forced their way into his heart and home. He rearranged the tower to house the new avengers, and found himself participating in weekly team training exercises and helping Steve Rogers of all people cook for team dinners. Game nights and movie nights and pool parties became part of the norm and Tony found himself slowly working through the anxiety and fear that carrying a nuke through a wormhole and falling almost to his death left in its wake.
 His life had never been more full of family. But something was still missing.
Then he’d had the dream.
***
Pepper was pregnant. 
She came to him with tears in her eyes, excitement and joy warring with worry and fear on her face, and showed him the positive test. 
“Tony,” she whispered, and he found himself speechless. The joy he felt spread all the way through his chest and stilled his tongue so he answered the only way he knew how: he swept his beautiful wife into his arms, shoulders shaking a little with a joyful sob that broke through.
“You are?” He finally choked out, and saw the fear and worry leave the battlefield of her eyes and she nodded.
“We- we gotta get a room together! A crib and, and paint. What color? Grey? You like grey? That’s neutral right? Then it doesn’t matter what they are- boy or girl or even if they decide to say eff off to gender norms.”
Pepper cut him off with an ecstatic kiss, and Tony felt that stirring for something different, something more, settle and dissipate. 
He’d finally found what was missing.
*** 
Tony woke up in tears, mourning something he wanted with every fiber of his heart, but that he feared he would never be good enough for.
He mentioned it to Pepper, and she was the one that came up with the idea.
“Tony, I want you to listen to me, and get this into your head. We’ve both talked about how we aren’t ready for kids, but I need you to know that it isn’t because I don’t think you’ll be a wonderful dad. When we decide to have kids, you will be the best dad those kids could ask for. I believe that with all my heart.”
He nodded, taking a deep breath and letting himself hear her words and believe them.
“What if you volunteered at an orphanage or something?” she said. “Get around kids, fulfil that desire until we both feel ready for a family of our own?”
“That’s not a half bad idea.”
Pepper had left him to his thoughts then. Once he got that look on his face, she knew that he wouldn’t let it go.
Sure enough, Tony found an orphanage in severe disrepair and desperate need of some support. After a few meetings with his teammates to make sure they were okay with little kids coming to the tower for a bit (Natasha and Bruce had thought it sweet, Steve had smiled and got a look in his eye like he was already imagining hanging out with the little ones, and Clint and Rhodey had all agreed enthusiastically) and filing all the paperwork with the best lawyers he could find, he’d gone to the orphanage to offer his help.
May, the sweet but slightly frazzled orphanage caretaker, had burst into tears right there.
“I- I don’t know what to say. I’m speechless,” she said, chuckling through grateful sobs.
“No thanks needed. I’ll take the kiddos off your hands for a couple months while my guys fix this place up. You just tell them exactly how you want it and what you need. We’ll take care of everything.”
Three weeks, several panic attacks, and more trips to Toys “R” Us and Ikea than he wanted to admit to, Tony had one of the lower floors of the tower completely arranged to house seven small children and was preparing to welcome them into his home.
“Everything’s gonna be fine, Tony,” Pepper whispered, hearing his breath hitch as the car he’d sent to pick up the kids pulled in.
“Yeah,” he said, taking a deep breath. “Just fine. Let’s go meet our new roommates.”
***
Peter Parker could not believe his luck. 
When his parents had died in a horrible car crash a year ago and he’d ended up in the orphanage, he’d been labeled as having bad luck. Every little trip they went on, something happened. He’d accidentally let the class snake out at school (May had told him about Harry Potter, and how he'd let a snake out, too, which made Peter feel better). And there was the time that he’d gotten left behind during an outing at Central park, and the time a bird had pooped on his ice cream while he was eating it outside with his best friend Ned, and the time that-
Well, you get the picture.
Joselyn called it “Parker Luck,” but she wasn’t trying to be mean. She just talked even more than Peter did, and tended to say exactly what she thought. She was one of Peter’s best friends at the orphanage, and besides, she wasn’t wrong. Peter did tend to have some not so great things happen to him.
But not today.
Today was the greatest day of his life, because today was the day that all the kids were moving into the Stark Tower. 
Three weeks ago, Tony Stark himself had come to the orphanage. Peter remembered May crying and he hadn’t known why. He’d drawn her a picture to make her happy, but she explained that they were good tears, and had told him and all the kids that they would be leaving for a few months to live at Stark Towers. 
Peter had nearly peed his pants in excitement, and he was quivering with it again as the car pulled up and he could see both Tony Stark and Pepper Potts through the glass door. 
One by one, each kid got out of the car while a small swarm of workers gathered their things to take up for them.
“Hello, everyone,” Pepper greeted them with a smile, and Peter felt his cheeks heat up. Tony was his hero, but he also knew how smart and wonderful Pepper Potts was. 
“Welcome,” Tony said, grinning.
As soon as the man spoke, Peter couldn’t help the way his eyes went wide and his mouth popped open with a gasp. He was everything the boy had imagined, standing confidently in a sharp black suit with those signature sunglasses on his face.
The two adults began to explain the rules of the tower as they took the children on a small tour. They introduced the security guards, explained who to ask for help if they got lost or hurt, where they were allowed to go and what areas were off limits, and how they would be getting to school. Peter didn’t pay too much attention though. He was too excited, taking in the sight of the tower, his hero, and thinking about how cool it was that this would be his home for a little while. He was certain nobody was luckier.
“Mr. Stark?” one of the other boy’s- Mikey- asked when they passed one of the labs they were being shown on their little tour.
“Yes?”
“Where’s your Iron Man suit?”
Tony chuckled. “It’s in my private lab, away from anybody’s hands that aren’t mine. Don’t want anything breaking them.”
“Not the Mark 50,” Peter asked softly before he could stop himself.
“Huh?” Tony’s piercing gaze was turned to him. 
Squirming under the sudden attention, he tugged on his shirt. “W-well, the nanite suit, sir. Unless a person broke the actual nanite robot, the suit could just be reformed.”
“You know about nanites?”
Chocolate curls flying, the boy nodded enthusiastically. He couldn’t help himself once someone got him talking about the things he loved. “Yeah! I did a report on them a month ago. I read all your papers on them, and I even started trying to make my own so that I could-” Blushing furiously under his hero’s appraisal, Peter cut himself off and ducked his head. “Sorry.”
But Tony Stark didn’t look angry. “I’m gonna give you a piece of advice, kid: never apologize for being the smartest in the room.” He winked. “You really read my work on nanotechnology?”
“Yes, sir.”
“I’m impressed.”
And Peter was grateful that his legs didn’t give out right then. He could hardly believe the compliment. He was dazed for the rest of the tour, soaking the praise in with a huge grin.
Eventually, they arrived at their floor. It was a large one, and after the Battle of New York, it had stood mostly empty. There was a spacious living area and a small kitchen, and then a hallway with three bedrooms and en-suite bathrooms.
“Now, you’re going to have to share,” Tony explained. “We don’t have seven rooms on this floor, but each room has a bed and desk for you.”
“You three girls will share a room while the boys will split up in twos,” Pepper added. She gestured to one of the rooms. “This one’s yours, girls. It’s a little bigger and we’ve put three beds in it. Boys, you can decide which of the other rooms you want and who you want to share it with.”
Joselyn, along with the other two girls Kaylie and Hazel, dragged their suitcases and chatted excitedly as they entered their room.  If it had been possible, Peter would have roomed with Joselyn...or Ned. But those two not being an option, he looked to the boys.
He was the oldest out of all of them. There was the four year old Greyson and the six year old twins Mikey and David. It was fairly obvious that the twins would stick together, so Peter took Grey’s hand.
“Can I be your roommate, buddy?” The little boy nodded enthusiastically. “It looks like the twins took the middle room, so we get this one!”
The boy genius led his new roommate through the door and for the second time that day felt his jaw drop. 
The room was huge, and the beds looked like they were clouds, piled high with pillows Peter was almost certain were the most comfortable things on the planet. Grey seemed equally as overwhelmed, walking over to inspect the bed.
“Can you help me put my clothes away?” he asked, turning to the older boy.
“Sure.”
And slowly they got settled into this new chapter of their lives.
*** 
Tony was about ready to throw something at the wall, which meant that he needed to get out and move around, distract himself from the problem before he actually did break something. It wouldn’t be the first time, but he didn’t want a repeat of the great Potts meltdown of ‘09. 
Sighing, he stood up and stretched, letting a loud yawn out as he did before wandering out of the lab. 
It had been nearly a week with the little kiddos staying at the tower, and Tony had enjoyed having them so far. He even invited them up for dinner and a movie the other day. Most of them had been totally starstruck and it had made him smile. He figured they might provide a decent distraction, so he wandered down to the “baby floor,” as he called it. 
He was delighted when the first face he saw was Peter Parker’s.
The boy was shy, but also unfailingly kind. Tony had seen him take the hand of the smallest boy when the two twin boys ran into their room, making the little one feel welcome and loved; had watched as the kid listened to his friend Joselyn, who tended to ramble, with a patient and kind smile, never seeming annoyed by how verbose she was; and had smiled as the kid let one of the other girls hold his hand during a part in Snow White that scared her.
He was exactly the sort of distraction that Tony needed.
“Hey, Pete. How’re you doing?” he greeted, smiling a little as the boy’s cheeks turned pink and his lips lifted in a small, excited grin when he was called by name.
“G-good, Mr. Stark. How are you?”
“I’m doing good. A little frustrated with a project I’m working on, so I figured I’d take a break and come see you kiddos. How was school? Learn anything good?”
Peter’s eyes lit up as they had the first day the older genius had met the kid and they bonded over nanotechnology. Tony smiled as the chatter about 2nd grade science (they were learning about cells) and math (how was an 8 year old already doing functions?!) swept his frustration right out the door with its soothing familiarity. He didn’t have to figure anything out or meet any deadline. All the kid wanted was someone to listen.
So Tony did, oohing and mmhmming in all the right places, until the kid asked: “So what project were you working on before? Maybe I can help so you’re not so frustrated? can I?”
He’d known how sweet Peter was, but Tony was still taken aback by the kindness. “Well, if you want to-“
“Sure!” The little eager beaver said quickly. “What’s the project?”
Hesitating only for a second, Tony explained how Clint’s explosive arrows weren’t working properly, detonating too soon because of an unstable chemical inside them.
With a few graphs and a little breaking down of some more technical terms, Peter understood the problem.
“Let me think a little bit, okay?”
“Sure, buddy,” Tony chuckled. “However long you need.”
And he let the kid think while he checked some emails and wandered into the kitchen to grab him and his mini genius a granola bar.
He stopped for a moment before joining Peter at the table, his steps halted by the adorable crease in the boy’s brow and the way his tongue poked through his teeth as he drew some diagram.
When Tony finally pulled himself together to sit down against and offer Peter the snack, the kid announced: “I got it!”
Surprised, Tony raised an eyebrow and motioned for Peter to continue.
“What if you use your nanites? You could engineer them in a way that they wouldn’t jostle or affect the catalyst. Clint could control when they fell away, which would cause the explosion to happen.”
He pushed the little picture he’d drawn to illustrate, compete with a stick figure Clint Barton in purple (Hawkeye’s theme color), and Tony let his jaw go slack.
“Kid, honestly, I’m impressed. That’s genius. How in the world did you think of that?”
Peter flushed under the praise, and explained the process to Tony, the latter encouraging him whenever he seemed self conscious about his rambling. 
“You, my friend, are one of the smartest kids I know. Would you like to help me build these arrows?”
Peter’s eyes widened to the size of a dinner plate. “What?”
Tony chucked. “They’re your idea, kiddo. It’s only right that you should help me make them. I’ll handle all the explosive parts, but I think you should help engineer the nanites.”
“I would love to!” The boy choked out.
“Great. After school tomorrow, come to my lab. Jarvis will know where to take you.”
“Okay!”
Tony stayed a little while longer, enjoying talking science with Peter, before being called to other projects. He was grateful for the distraction though, because he couldn’t wait to see the look on the kid’s face when he saw the lab.
And, boy, Peter did not disappoint.
When Jarvis opened the door, Peter’s jaw dropped and he practically flew to one of the Ironman suits. Talking a mile a minute, he inspected every inch of the lab. 
“Oh my gosh, what’s this?! Wait, no way, is that- it is! Mr. Stark this is amazing! And woah look at that!”
Tony just chuckled at the kid’s enthusiasm, and pulled his attention to the reason for their working together after a few more minutes’ exploration. 
The two spent hours in the lab together. Tony hadn't ever thought he would enjoy sharing his lab with anybody, let alone an 8-year-old child, but Peter was different. He found himself wanting Peter to come help him more often.
This is only temporary. A cynical voice inside him said.
Maybe it doesn’t have to be. Maybe I can give him a real internship and a real job? Said the more hopeful part of his brain.
A seven year old with a job. Yeah, that’s a great idea.
Tony shook his head to clear off the thoughts. He would enjoy the lab time he did get with this kid that had somehow wormed into his iron heart. He’d just have to baby proof the lab first.
***
Peter fought back the tears, trying hard not to let Flash’s taunting get to him. He kept walking, ignoring his classmate’s teasing behind his back as he nearly ran out the front door.
“Hi, Mr. Happy,” he greeted, trying to keep the sniffling out of his voice. The man Mr. Stark had assigned to drive him to and from school didn’t like little kids. (At least, Peter thought he didn’t. He wasn’t mean, but he seemed to grunt and growl more than use really words.)
“Hey,” Happy grunted, as was his usual greeting, and Peter didn’t notice the concern in the man’s eyes when he didn’t answer right away as he blinked back tears. 
The drive to the tower was quiet except for the occasional snuffle from Peter, who was trying to his sadness. He hated when Flash was mean, especially about his parents. He missed his parents and his Aunt and Uncle. It was right of Flash to bring them up, but there wasn’t much Peter could do about it.
When he came into the tower, he was surprised to see Mr. Stark there, waiting for him in the living room. Usually the man had him come straight to the lab, but they hadn’t been scheduled to work together that day.
“Hey, kid,” Tony greeted.
“H-hi. Are we having a Lab day today?” Peter tried to keep the hope out of his voice. Tinkering around the lab with his hero was exactly what he needed to cheer him up. 
“I was thinking we might spend some time in the lab, yeah. If you’re up for it?”
“Yeah, i'd love a lab day, sir!” Peter said, smiling his first genuine smile since Flash had said the word “orphan” at lunch.
“Yeah? Let’s go, young padawan.” 
Peter gave a small smile at the Star Wars reference. Mr. Stark wouldn’t have known that reference if Peter hadn’t rambled about the franchise one of their last Lab days, which then led to the man insisting they watch the movies together so Peter could “make sure he understood what was happening.” He was pleased Tony seemed to have enjoyed the endeavor! The pleasant feeling followed him as they went to the lab and began working on the housing unit for the nanites in Clint’s arrows.
Tony, however, kept a watchful eye on his little friend.
Happy had texted saying that something was off with the kid, and while Tony had no experience with children prior to the last few weeks, he did have experience with being a genius and an orphan. He figured tinkering would be a good distraction, and he’d wager he was correct after seeing the look of relief and excitement on Peter’s face when he was invited to the lab.
It wasn’t until they had the housing unit almost complete that Tony decided to actually broach the subject.
Though working with his hands seemed to have stemmed the tears Happy reported seeing in the car, the boy was definitely off. He sniffled more than once, and didn’t seem as talkative or enthusiastic as he normally did. There wasn’t a single excited ramble about his friends Ned or Jocelyn, or whatever the last thing they learned in science was.
“So, Peter. How was your day. You haven’t said much.”
Tony didn’t miss the tears that misted the boys eyes slightly 
“It was fine,” he said, turning back to his project with a barely concealed sniffle.
Tony felt slightly awkward and unsure. He’d never had a conversation like this with a little kid before. Heck, he was barely getting to the point of speaking openly to his girlfriend and best friend about some things. But if he wanted to someday have kids, he figured he’d need to start getting used to stuff like this. With a deep breath, he took the plunge.
“Buddy, if you don’t wanna talk about it, that’s okay. But, uh, if you do want to talk about whatever is bothering you, you can. I mean, I’m all ears or whatever. I can blast or make fun of or drown in ice cream nearly any problem you have.”
Peter hesitantly turned towards him. “I-it’s really nothing. I’m f-fine.”
“I’m real sure, kid,” Tony said, raising an eyebrow. “Seriously, is everything okay?” The hesitation in the boy’s eyes warred with the desire to tell what had happened. “C’mon. Out with it! The sooner I know who or what I need to blast, make fun of, or drown in ice cream, the better we’ll both feel.”
“W-well It’s this kid n-named Flash.” Peter began twisting his shirt into knots as he finally gave in. “He was just making fun of me for not having parents and he just b-bothered me more today, I guess.”
Tony’s heart squeezed in sympathy. He had plenty experience of his own being an orphan and dealing with bullies.
“Since I can’t blast a kid with my repulsars, although he maybe deserves it for being such a jerk,” he finally answered, “and I don’t feel right making fun of him, either, I’m going to settle with drowning it in ice cream. I know a great place just up the street, whaddya say?”
There was a small smile, which Tony saw as an absolute win, and then a shy nod, and Tony whisked the boy away for ice cream.
“Ya know, kid, none of what this Flash kid says is true,” he said as he licked his mint chip cone. “You’re not unlovable, or unworthy of parents. You didn’t do anything wrong the day they died. You couldn’t have been a better son. Trust me. All those things are utter nonsense.”
Peter stared at him dumbfounded. “H-how did you know?” He whispered.
“I’m an orphan too, ya know. I lost my parents many years ago, but I definitely know a little of what you’re feeling and dealing with.”
“Really?”
“I promise.”
“Thanks, Mr. Stark.”
“Anytime, kid. Anytime,” Tony said. “Now, are you drowning enough in ice cream? Do you need more chocolate sauce? You look like you need more chocolate sauce.”
Peter giggled, and Tony couldn’t help the slow smile that stole across his face as he went to go get more chocolate sauce, determined to keep that little boy smiling as long as possible.
***
“Um, can you find it in an aquarium?”
The science genius duo was enjoying their usual time in the lab and Tony had begun a session of “I’m thinking of an animal.” His animal was a hippo, which he’d felt fairly confident about until this last question.
“I don’t know, kiddo, I’ve never been to an aquarium!”
Dropping his jaw and his screwdriver, Peter spluttered out an incredulous, “what?”
“I’ve never been to an aquarium.” Tony shrugged.
“Oh, man. You don’t know what your missing, Mr. Stark! There’s fish and turtles and sometimes even hippos and alligators. My favorite are the turtles.” Peter's Big brown eyes widened and Tony grinned in anticipation of the child-like excitement that was sure to follow in whatever story the kid was going to tell next. “One time, there was this huge sea turtle and it came and swam next to the glass right where I was sitting for literally five minutes. My mom took tons of pictures. It was so cool!”
Tony chuckled. “That sounds really cool, bud.”
“It was! Did you know that some turtles only lay eggs every four years?”
They continued working and sharing weird animal facts and Tony was again startled by the desire to make this little kid smile. 
“Jarvis, buddy, can you look up the nearest aquarium?” He asked when Peter had left to go to bed.
“That would be the New York Aquarium.”
“Does it have turtles?”
“It does.”
“Hippos?”
“No, sir. But the Philadelphia Aquarium does.”
“Get two tickets to the New York one for this Saturday. And clear my schedule for that day.”
“With pleasure, sir.”
A few days later, Tony was nearly bouncing with excitement as he waited for Jarvis to bring Peter up to the penthouse for them to go to the aquarium.
“Mr. Stark, is everything okay?” The boy asked as he exited the elevator.
“Yeah, kiddo. Everything’s just fine. We’re going on a little field trip, though.”
“We are?” Peter’s eyes lit up. “Where to?”
“That’s a surprise!” Peter’s grin widened to match Tony’s. “My schedule’s all clear. You good to go?”
With a floppy-haired nod, they were off. 
The little boy had no clue where they were going, and Tony indulged 20 questions, but by the time they arrived, Peter was no closer to figuring it out.
“Wait...an aquarium?” He gasped when he got out and took in the building.
“They don’t have hippos or alligators, but they just got a couple turtles. I figured after hearing about how wonderful aquariums are, I should try and go to one, and I thought you could show me around.”
Peter didn’t hesitate one moment, unabashedly grabbing Tony’s hand and pulling him into the aquarium. They presented their tickets and the younger genius continued to drag the older genius around from exhibit to exhibit with huge smiles on both their faces. Like Peter, Tony’s favorite part were the turtles. The way they gravefully swam through the water and their kind faces made him feel peaceful and warm and fuzzy. And Peter’s little hand in his while he spouted off lots of facts about turtles made him feel even more so.
But the kids were leaving within the next couple weeks, and those pesky thoughts were back, marring the joy a little. Tony dutifully beat them back, aided by the peaceful feeling of being with Peter and the kid’s head modded off onto his shoulder on the way back to the tower.
***
Peter had nightmares more than he wanted to admit. 
They woke him up shaking with his heart beating so fast and hard he could hear it in his ears. The worst part about them, though, was how they would linger, seared into his eyelids. Scary images of his parents and aunt and uncle as their plane went down in flames replayed themselves over and over. 
Sniffling back tears, Peter decided to quietly sneak out of the room. He didn’t want to wake his little roommate.
“Hello, Peter,” Jarvis greeted, making him jump even though he knew the AI well. (Tony had even started helping Peter code his own when the boy showed interest.)
“H-Hey, Jarvis.”
“It is quite late for you to be up. Or early, depending how you look at it. Are you well?”
“Just can’t sleep. I’m heading for a snack, that’s all.”
“I think I have something that might help, if you’ll follow me, sir.”
The AI lit up a pathway and Peter shrugged before following it. He thought Jarvis would lead him to the kitchen, but instead he found himself staring at a door that definitely wasn’t for a kitchen. He’d never been to this part of the tower.
“Uh, where am I?”
“You’re outside Mr. Stark’s bedroom.”
His stomach flipped like a monkey after a banana, and Peter stumbled backwards. 
“Jarvis,” he hissed. “I can’t wake Iron Man up! Why’d you take me here. I thought you were bringing me to the kitchen for a snack!”
“I did not say that I was, only that I had something I thought would help.”
“No, I’m not going in there. I’ll find the kitchen myself,” he said, backing away as quickly as he could. 
But it was too late. 
A light flicked on and before Peter could turn around, the door opened to reveal a sweatpants-clad Tony Stark.
“Peter? What’s going on?”
“I’m so sorry Mr. Stark.” Peter’s voice was shaking and tear were burning his eyes. He’d gotten closer to the man the last month and a half they’d been together, but this was beyond embarrassing. He couldn’t ask Iron man to help him with his nightmares. “I couldn’t sleep and thought Jarvis was leading me to a kitchen for a snack.”
“No worries kid. C’mon. I’ll make you something to eat.”
“Y-You really don’t have to do that, Mr. Stark. I’m okay, I swear.”
Tony rolled his eyes, ruffling Peter’s curls and throwing an arm around the kid’s shoulders to lead him down the hallway. “It’s not a problem, buddy. I don’t mind cooking.”
So Peter was lead to the kitchen, and he was surprised how much better he was feeling not being alone. This was the second time Mr. Stark had saved him from being alone like this, and it felt really nice. He would miss it when he went back to living at the orphanage in a few weeks when the renovations were done. Sometimes, he would imagine what it would be like if Mr. Stark was his real dad, or adopted him, but he knew that would never happen. He usually tried to stop those daydreams fast.
“Thank you, Mr. Stark. That looks really good,” Peter said, breaking out of his thoughts to take the toast with butter and jelly that he was offered.
It was quiet as Peter ate, Tony sitting next to him in companionable silence. Once the plate was empty, the bolder genius spoke up. “Again, kiddo, you do not need to explain, but if you want to talk about what’s got you up at nearly 2 in the morning, I’m all ears.”
Peter felt tears well up in his eyes. He had done so well not crying in front of his hero and he didn’t want to start now. He closed his eyes and clenched his fists to keep the tears from falling, but he was grateful to talk to someone.
“Um, I keep having dreams about- about my parents. The, uh, the day they went on the plane that crashed? And they just make me sad.” He shrugged. “S-Sometimes it’s hard to go back to sleep after I have one.”
“I have dreams like that, too,” Tony whispered.
Just like when the man had practically read his mind, saying exactly what Peter had needed to hear when Flash made fun of him the last week, a shock went up Peter’s spine. “Really?”
Tony sighed. “Yeah, I do. I lost my parents, too. Car accident. I also have dreams about being stuck in Afghanistan, in that cave, or in the wormhole. They’regetting better, though.”
“That must be really scary, Mr. Stark,” Peter said, patting the man’s arms.
“Heh. I’m supposed to be the one comforting you, kiddo.”
“Well, we all need comfort sometimes.”
“Thank you, buddy. How are you feeling?”
Peter looked up shyly. “Better. Thanks for the food.”
“No problem. Wanna watch something? That usually helps me fall back asleep.”
“Okay!”
They chose Iron Giant, and Peter felt so comfortable as Tony threw a blanket over him and pulled him under his arm. Slowly, his eyes drifted closed.
Tony watched as the little boy fell asleep, his heart melting and wrapping around his finger even more. After a few minutes to make sure the tyke would stay asleep if moved, he slipped his arms around the little body and carried him up to bed.
As he closed the door and saw Peter’s chocolate curls poking over the blanket, his tears prickled with tears at the realization he would lose this in a couple days.
Shut up he vehemently told that pesky little voice, and went back to bed, but didn’t get much sleep.
*** 
There were tears in everyone’s eyes, but Tony was going to blame it on May, who greeted him with tears of gratitude. All the kids gave her hugs before running off to explore the new building, chatting excitedly as they ran to the new beds and play area.
“Mr. Stark-“
“Tony, please, May.”
She smiled. “Tony. Seriously, though, I cannot thank you enough. You have no idea how much this means to us. How much this means to me.”
See, this is why he was blaming May for the misty eyes. “Not a problem. The pleasure was all mine. It’s a special group of kiddos you got there.”
“They really are. And thanks to your help, the orphanage got some media attention, and now I’ve got people interested in the twins and a couple of the girls! I hope they all find good homes.”
“That’s amazing, May!” Tony said, and he meant it. Every single one of the kids had found a way into his heart, but none more than Peter. And the thought of that little boy going to another home caused another round of tears to come, though he quickly blinked them away.
“Mr. Stark!” As if called by Tony’s thoughts, Peter came bounding up, throwing a hug around the man’s waist. “This is amazing. Not as amazing as the tower, obviously, but this is a close second. Thank you so much!”
Tony hugged the boy back and assured him that he was happy to help, all the while trying to pretend his heart wasn’t breaking.
***
“Tony, this is ridiculous,” Pepper said, marching into his lab after the fourth day in a row of him being there. 
“What is, dear?” He asked, deflecting as usual.
Pepper raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms over her crisp blue suit. Even under her scrutinous glare, Tony had to admit she was gorgeous.
“You know what, dear. Peter’s gone and you’re back to moping in the lab.”
Acid curled his stomach, and he had to look away. “Well, what do you want me to do. Yeah, I miss the kid, and I’m trying to work through it. Just...just give me few more days.”
“You won’t survive another few days, Tony. You’re not invincible, you know.” She came over and ran a comforting hand through his hair, and his eyes closed of their own accord, trying to hide the tears. “Tony, what if...what if we adopt Peter?”
His eyes shot open. “What?”
“What if we adopt Peter?” She repeated. “You clearly love him, and I’ve watched him with you. He loves you, too. And I...I don’t know him as well as you do, but he’s so sweet and it’s impossible not to love him.”
“You’re serious?”
Pepper smiled. “100%. Tony, you’re ready. We’re ready. Let’s start a family.”
And just like in his dream, Tony couldn’t say or anything except pick his girlfriend up and spin her around.
“Thank you,” he said, tears in his eyes again. “I love you.”
***
Peter loved the new orphanage. He really did. The beds were as comfortable as the tower’s, and there were lots of cool toys and a new playground.
But Mr. Stark wasn’t there.
Peter tried to deny how much he missed him. How much he missed his own dad and how Mr. Stark helped fill that void a little with lab days and movie nights. He’d even helped Peter when Flash was mean and he’d had a nightmare.
And he missed him.
It also didn’t help that Jocelyn and Greyson got adopted, and the twins might be as well. People had been buzzing at the orphanage ever since the renovations. The media had run a few stories on how the genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist had taken in the group of orphans and funded the renovations of the building. People had been coming ever since, but none of them really connected with Peter.
He hated to admit it, but he compared all of them to Mr. Stark, and none of the fit. Besides, they all wanted the younger kids.
“Peter!” May called, interrupting his moping. “Come here, sweetie.”
“Coming, May!” 
He jumped off the swing set, running towards the orphanage, but screeched to a halt as he saw a familiar face. Two familiar faces.
“M-Mr. S-Stark? Mrs. Potts?” He stammered out. “W-what’re you doing here?”
“Hey, kiddo,” Tony greeted. He looked nervous- a hand running over his carefully defined goatee, feet shifting back and forth, fingers clasped with Pepper’s.
“Everything okay?”
“Yeah, buddy, everything’s fine. We, uh, we were wondering if,” he hesitated and Pepper squeezed his hand. “We would like to adopt you, Peter. If that’s something you’d be interested in?”
Shocked, Peter couldn’t say anything, which was a rare thing for him. Or so his parents used to say.
“Really?” He finally choked out.
“Yeah, sweetie,” pepper said, smiling kindly. Peter was surprised. He’d gotten close with Tony, but not as much with her.
“I don’t know what to say.”
Tony grinned at him. “Well, say yes, buddy! We got a room all ready for you and a team of the best lawyers to make it official if you want.”
“Yes!” Peter said, throwing himself into their arms. “Yes, I want to!”
Again, everybody was crying (happy tears) and once all the paperwork was filled out, Tony took Peter’s hand.
“Let’s go home,” he said, his heart at peace finally, the nagging sensation of something missing finally filled by the little boy who was now his little boy.
“Home,” Peter repeated, smiling. His new favorite word.
18 notes · View notes
princeanxious · 4 years
Note
I love your dragon au, may I have some headcanons?
Uh sure! You weren’t ship specific so i’ll try and be a lil broad and touch on a few for all of em! (Theyre all interconnected in a way but often spend much of their time together apart from the others bc thats how dragons be, even if these dragons are much more social than the average dragon)
Demus- Dragon Remus x Prince(ess) Janus
- Janus is ftm trans! His parents were never supportive and actively tried to hide that from that kingdom at every turn, so, he may have secretly gotten a certain mage’s help “cursing” him with snake/dragon scales & additional certain masculine attributes so that he’d be sent away and get time to live his life without royal duties breathing down his neck. Even if he’d have to live the rest of his life as a prince locked away in a tower.
-Remus is a Dragon that’s known to be very curious, driven to hoard things that intruige him. He lives in a castle he and his brother Roman overtook years ago, and they guard it and their hoards within it well. However, one day a nearby kingdom reached out to them with an offer: if they guard and protect Prince Janus while the kingdom scrambles to figure out what to do, the dragons will recieve offerings to add to their hoards along with provided meals and the means to provide for Janus. All the kingdom requests is to keep Janus safe and happy.
-and of course, they agree to. And Remus falls head over tail inlove in a matter of days. Janus follows soon after he finds that Remus is completely unbothered and supportive of Janus’s transition.
-Janus and Roman also get along super well, tho not in a romantic sense, especially after Roman learns of Janus’s love for plays and acting skills. Roman also gifts a few intricate outfits to Janus from his Hoard of beauty and passion bc they fit the short prince quite well, and because Janus wasn’t given anything to wear from his kingdom aside from tailored princess dresses(which he doesn’t usually mind the skirts portions now w/ his new body but somedays the disphoria would spike back out if he looked in the mirror while wearing one). Roman also helped cut Janus’s hair, and both dragons would growl threateningly at any kingdom official who dared look at Janus’s attire change questioningly. If anyone asked, it was because it made Janus happy and feel safe, and that was their job, was it not?
-Janus loves his new Dragon Boyfriend and his new Dragon brother-in-law(technically?) and this result just solidifies his confidence in the decision he made to get here. Roman and Remus know about the secret behind the curse and what Janus did to get here, they think he’s super fcking clever bc of it. And, Ro and Re swear on their hoards that they’ll never spill the secret if Dee doesn’t want them to, one because the Kingdom would then have a lead on trying to Reverse the Curse, and two, because it would put the life of the mage who was asked to do it in danger, and three, because their dragons and dragons are very very good at protecting what they love.
Logince- Dragon Roman x Knight Logan
-Logan is a prince to a neighboring kingdom, and he was betrothed to Janus in an arranged marraige sort of settup. Niether of them loved the other like that, but they were best friends and Logan respected(and defended) Janus being trans. So when he finds out something happened to Janus, he’s alarmed and upset that he wasn’t informed sooner. Then he finds out Janus is being guarded by dragons, of all things! And well, he needs to make sure Janus us safe, and find out whats wrong, what happened? And no one stops him from traveling out to the castle that houses the dragons to find out. The least he can do is make sure Janus is okay and respected by the dragons, but like hell is he going to wait for Janus’s scrabling kingdom to catch up.
The first thing he’s greeted by is a tall red scaled dragon, and he’s immediately on guard. The dragon grins and drops into a defense position. They don’t ask the other questions, which Janus will give both of them shit for later, but both parties are fueled by challenge and protective goals. And they launch into battle without a word.
-Roman is immediately intruiged and excited to find how Logan matches him in a fight, actually standing a pretty solid chance despite his weight and height. Logan is a skilled swords man, the best in his kingdom, its a shame his only downfall is that Roman has twice the height on him and more than twice the muscles, figuratively and literally. But even then Logan isn’t deterred and is capable of flipping the dragon onto his back which is p hot roman cant lie, so its a p even scuffle bc Romans highly entertained w/ this mysterious attacker.
-they kinda get caught up in the scuffle for a good while till Remus comes out to investigate and Logan disengages and dashes into the forest bc he’s smart enough to know he can’t really win the fight w/ one dragon, two is a death sentence.
-roman spends the whole night heated and excited as he rambles about the gorgeous short knight who nearly kicked his ass. Logan spends the whole night rethinking his strategy and trying not to get distracted by the memory of the infuriatingly hot smirk the dragon kept aiming at him.
-they scuffle twice more, filled with witty remarks and snarky quips that progressively get more flirty before they think to speak about /why/ Logan wants into the castle b4 the truth comes out.
-both are a little sheepish when Janus finds out just who Roman’s been waxing poetic about kicking his butt in an even match and spend a good 20 minutes scolding their gay af selves. Then Logan gets updated on the whole situation, including his not so subtle transition and his new dragon bf. Logan gets the dragon’s permission to visit so long as he keeps things a secret, and he scoffs that they’d think he’d even dare to try to ruin his best friends happiness.
-niether of them really knows when their little rivalry picked back up, but Roman and Logan spend their time together bickering and taunting eachother while playing a semi-unbalanced game of cat and mouse. Logan’s not allowed into the castle w/o playing their game first, and he honestly doesn’t mind. Their interactions get way more flirty and theyre just gay disasters that take way to long to admit their developing feelings till it all kinda rushes out the moment Roman pins Logan to a wall and Logan reaponds by locking his legs around the other, daring to keep him there.
-yeah they express their feelings to eachother in many ways that day. And Logan ends up secretly(to his kingdom at least) dating Roman, and Roman gets a prince bf of his own. They still taunt and play their game of cat and mouse tho, now its just accompanied by a ton more kissing.
Moxiety- Dragon Patton x Mage Virgil
-Virgil is the mage that helped Janus transition in secret, they’d been friends for a long while and meeting in secret to plan it. Virgil’s a pretty powerful mage and talented at what he does, and Janus’s trasition was a spell he cast himself, and its irreversable(on purpose, by Janus’s request/demand)
-Virgil travels alot now adays, never staying in one public place too long in fear of Janus’s knights suspecting him and capturing him. He knew the risk and was willing to pay the price to make Janus happy. He knows he must lay low for a while, and hes not very open about being a mage in fear of that being found out.
-well, one day he finds himself in a town not so open to the idea of magic in general. Its one slip up hes not sure he regrets to heal an injured child, but he finds him self tied to a wooden stake that same day, surrounded by a village chanting about how all magic is evil.
-and then a dragon swoops over and snags him from the fire as it ignites, just barely sinking his clothing before hes up in the sky. He promply blacks out from shock.
-and when he wakes up, he finds himself tucked carefully into a hammock with a soft blanket. The room he’s in is filled with an interesting assortment of things, haphazardly placed enough to register as a hoard than any other kind of room in this tower. That and the dragon that rescued him is resting nearby, his blue scaled wing outstretched and draped over Virgil protectively is kind of a dead giveaway too.
-Virgil would learn later that Patton had been following him, lead by how his hoarding instincts weirdly worked. He’d be thankful then, that they saved his life, despite the fact that he now technically counted to Patton’s instincts as part of his hoard. Patton was adamant that he’d been trying to rid himself of the attachment before, but once Virgil was in danger his insticts had been set aside to save the poor human. He couldn’t help that touching Virgil just solidified his instincts’s claim.
-Patton lets Virgil know he’s welcomed to leave any time he wants to, that they were safely away from the dangerous village now. Virgil finds he doesn’t want to leave just yet, and they settle on becoming friends.
-Patton is friends with Roman and Remus, and often visits them when he’s feeling too lonely. He’s plenty friendly with Janus and Logan at this point, being a much softer natured dragon than the twin dragons.
-the group finds it very, very coincidental and very ironic the first time Patton brings Virgil with him to hang out.
-their love story is a bit slower, but lets just say one day months down the line, Virgil pulls Patton into a really shy kiss and Patton all but startles Virgil with the happy purr that bursts from the back of his throat. Its not to much longer after that that theyre relationship is fully established.
407 notes · View notes
Text
So. That’s The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. Thoughts. I have them. This is going to be a long one, folks, so buckle in.
I guess my overall report would be... better than expected. That might sound like faint praise, but I had serious reservations coming into this book. I think a lot of people were concerned when it was first announced. And I certainly think those reactions were warranted and valid and I don’t regret them -- this book could have been a mess. 
It wasn’t. It didn’t try to rehabilitate Snow, didn’t try to make him relatable or sympathetic or misunderstood or a victim. It didn’t do any of that. Snow was a privileged, bigoted, ignorant, self-centered asshole with a superiority complex the size of a planet. Collins got that much right at least. We can see some of the forces that conspired to make him that way, but they don’t make him any less of a terrible person who did terrible things for terrible reasons.
But. That kind of character... is not the most fun to read, honestly. I don’t love spending this much time reading a book that just makes me angry. I don’t love spending this much time with a person I hate. I think I’m glad I read it, to know more what it was and to gain some interesting context about the world, but I don’t think I’d read it again. And I don’t know that I’d recommend it. If I did, it would come with some heavy caveats on there. 
So that’s my overall impression: better than expected, worth reading once and no more. On to some more specific hot takes.
So first off, Lucy Gray. I love her in a lot of ways, but she also confused me and I was a little disappointed by other aspects. She’s fun and talented and sweet, but girl what the fuck do you see in Snow he’s a shithead I mean less of a shithead to you, at least compared to the rest of the Capitol, and he did sort of save her life so like Florence Nightingale Syndrome or whatever, but ugh. Gross. I really really really wanted her to be playing him. And I’m not entirely sure she’s not.
As she says when talking about Billy Taupe being a possessive jealous asshole, flirting with people is part of the job description when you’re a performer and entertainer. It’s what she does. It’s what she’s always done. It’s what’s kept her alive for years, being charming and sweet and desirable and making people love her. And now in the Games, she’s relying on Snow to keep her alive. So the more he wants to keep her alive, the better. And if he’s in love with her, and thinks that she’s in love with him, then he’ll be very invested in keeping her alive. As Snow notes at the end, she killed quite a few people, in ways that could have been self-preservation or happenstance or mercy, but could also have been calculated as fuck. It’s hard to say.
I can’t tell you how much I hoped that she’d be cool towards him after the Games, that it would have been all for show and Snow would run back to the barracks with his tail between his legs. She didn’t, which is a big part of why I don’t think she was playing him. Her joy, her kisses, her invitations to spend time together, her song, it doesn’t seem like a lie. But on the other hand, maybe thumbing her nose at a Peacekeeper and Capitol high muckity-muck wouldn’t have been a smart move. Maybe having a Peacekeeper on your side, and someone with Capitol connections, would have been very handy. After all, he kept bringing them ice and baked goods and such. If they could keep him close, he might stand up for them if the Peacekeepers wanted to ban them (which they eventually did a few months later, so the Covey probably knew it was a possibility). He might or warn them if something bad was coming. 
The thing that swung me back to “maybe” is how fast she went from “let’s run away to the woods together and be free” to “I’m gonna sic a snake on this motherfucker.” Like, yes he deserved that, but he always deserved it. That’s a hell of a swing for a few hours. Was it just realizing he might have sold out Sejanus that swung her opinion? Was there something else instead or as well? Did that push her to make new connections, or finally tip over the pile of reservations she’d been ignoring? Maybe. But it just seems... like it might have been more than that. Like maybe she was planning to ditch him anyways, though I can’t imagine why. Idk, the theory doesn’t hold together terribly well, but neither does Lucy Gray’s infatuation with another shitty possessive abusive man. Or maybe that’s just patterns. 
The question of what happened to Lucy Gray honestly doesn’t interest me that much. I’m sure there’s plenty of speculation and opinions and headcanons about whether she returned to District 12 or escaped to the wilds or died there in the woods, but frankly I don’t care. Oh, I hope she lived, but it’s not relevant. There isn’t an answer, so I’m not terribly interested in figuring it out. 
What I do find interesting is Dean Highbottom. He’s a very ironic character, in my opinion. He tells us at the end that he thought up the Hunger Games in a class assignment “to create a punishment for one’s enemies so extreme that they would never be allowed to forget how they had wronged you.” He didn’t actually want the Hunger Games to be real or think they ever could be, and he felt terrible about even submitting the assignment (against his will). He turned to drugs when the proposal was brought forward and became real, because he was so horrified. He didn’t believe in that kind of vengeance, didn’t want to keep that hatred alive. He didn’t think that was what humanity was or should be. 
And yet. His response to Papa Snow’s betrayal in submitting an assignment about punishing innocent children for a crime they didn’t commit was to punish Snow for a crime he didn’t commit. So maybe he’s wrong about humans, or at least about himself. 
I don’t think Dr. Gaul is right about human nature being inherently evil and violent and selfish, though. Put us in the right circumstances and maybe, sure, but we don’t have to be in those circumstances. She’s so caught up in the eternal war, and obviously you can’t stop a war if you believe it’s still going. And maybe eventually if you’re not hardass there’ll be another one, but maybe there won’t! And goodness knows being hardass didn’t stop the next war! It’s impossible to say for sure that if the Capitol/all of Panem had been more fair and just and kind, the next war wouldn’t have been sooner, but it’s also impossible to say that it wouldn’t have been later, or never. That seems worth fighting for. Dr. Gaul terrifies me, obviously, but she also kind of just makes me sad. What a depressing worldview. She doesn’t see it that way, I’m sure, just sees it as a challenge and a game, but it is sad. 
The rest of my thoughts are less expansive, so let’s just bullet point them:
Propaganda works terrifyingly well. Be careful of your internalized biases and the messaging being fed to you.
The effects of pride and honour and position are wild. Snow was simultaneously crushed and elevated by them, as was Sejanus. 
Speaking of Sejanus, he deserved better. I love my son. 
The fuck was up with Clemensia? They never really resolved that. Is she actually okay? Did her skin grow back? How the hell did that happen? Could she have turned into a snake? Why was she so cutting and mean and unlike herself? Was Gaul controlling her somehow? Why did they refuse to tell her parents anything? But also how could she manage to escape from her room to sneak in on Snow? What the fuck? 
I love the full circle of a Mockingjay bringing Snow up, as Lucy Gray’s voice and fame helped him to rise and bloom, to gain Dr. Gaul’s favor and the Plinths’ money, pulling him out of his , and then a Mockingjay tearing him down, when he crossed Katniss and put her family in danger and she decided he had to die. 
This was a fucking essay, which I feel a little bad about, but I had a lot of thoughts and feelings okay? XD For anyone who actually read this whole thing, you are a saint, you deserve several cookies, I don’t have a way to give you any so here is instead a picture of my kitten using TBOSAS as a pillow.
Tumblr media
Have a good day! See you soon for Mockingjay Part 2.
24 notes · View notes
dog-day-morning · 3 years
Text
Tumblr media Tumblr media
YOU OWE THEM NOTHING
People can be self-righteous when it comes to what they think God is supposed to do if, and when they call on Him. God is not a genie in a bottle that you rub, and a jinn pops out granting you 3 or 300 wishes. The saying faith without works is dead can be applied here. Have you ever heard of or read the book Daniel Webster and the devil? This tall tale or folklore legend was about a man who made a deal with old Slew Foot, and when it was time to pay up he had 2nd thoughts. Satan never plays fair. He's forever putting us in positions where we find ourselves desperate for a quick solution to a temporary problem that only leads to a difficult end. The Latin term for buyer beware is caveat emptor, and Satan knows how to spell. The power of a wicken comes from their basic weapon of spelling or casting spells by word of mouth. Even the Bible tells us that “Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.” Tell that to a Nicolaitan. Those who make deals with the most unclean should expect to suffer in the end. Never trust the father of lies who deals in treachery, and deceit. I look back at my mother's life and wonder if God had ever intervened for her, and fought her battles that surely He and only He would be able to deliver her from, and He has. Life is hard, for many it’s a nightmare that’s ongoing. Satan comes to you when you're at your weakest or most vulnerable in the hopes of snaring your soul into eternal suffering. Jesus comes to deliver us from death, sin, and temptations that confuse us in our trek towards His truth. If you have any aspirations of entertaining people with your gifted voice or your talent for playing lead guitar, don’t sign a contract that promises you the world only to find out you owe them your sweet ass which a man of honor wouldn't consider let alone make you cosign your body for their horn dog appeasement.
Revelation 2:9
9 I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan.
You're abundantly rich in spirit Yacob. Now’s the time to claim your position. These bastards have taken everything from you leaving your ancestors nothing but dust. If they could remove us off the face of the Earth they would. They're plotting to do so as you and I breathe, that's why the Father never sleeps. They are demon spawns who say they worship, and believe in God, but whose god, and what righteous god tells you to destroy a people with his blessing knowing what the children of Japheth have done to them historically? The spawns of Satan want your penuche, mouth, titties, and a-hole for their pleasure along with your talent that Justin Timberlake does not have. The new faces of R&B do not look like the people I grew up listening to or the race of people whose songs left an everlasting impression on my bleeding heart that helped me through my ill-fated, miserable existence. Robin Thicke, Christina Aguilera, K-Pop, the BackStreet Boys, and New Kids on the Block. Some of these groups are defunct, but they’re cranking out as many as they possibly can like Justin Bieber, and Demi Lovato. I just saw on YouTube where people were considering if Elvis Presley was Black, WTF?!! He was the biggest culture thief that Dr. Frankenstein, AKA Colonel Parker ever created. Man is cruel; Satan is a whole other type of bastard you shouldn’t entertain. I'm retarded. Some call me an idiot savant. YO MOMMA!!! People are blessed by the Father who has blessed many of us with gifts. There are many of you whom God has endowed with multiple talents that people would sell their soul in order to possess just one. If you're anointed by God to sing like Aretha Franklin may He lead you to sign with a label like Brother Carl Crawford's who won't make the same mistake he did with a very popular artist at this moment. More than likely you'll sign a contract entrusting your talent, blessing, and soul to the most unclean ones. Ain’t a reason in hell you should bow down or bend over for a leach like Mr. Friedman so he can butt bone your a-hole while enriching himself off your God given talents. God blesses those who seek him out, and those that don’t. I don’t know if Eddie Murphy went to Church, and sowed an offering every Sunday to God praying that the Father would make him the highest paid comedic actor in his prime. Richard Pryor was anointed in the womb to be the most blessed comedic talent, and influential comedian to ever walk this Earth bar none yet he and Mr. Murphy pursued their dreams in different ways with both of them becoming world renown. I'm inclined to ask, was it worth it?
Mark 8:36
For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?
The synagogue of Satan isn’t a trending pop culture manifestation that’s to be esteemed, cherished, or envied. These cults are trying to maintain a stranglehold on a world that’s not meant for them or their sort. People who play with Ouija boards or childhood games like Bloody Mary, and light as a feather are ushering dark spirits into their homes leaving their loved ones exposed to something sinister. Get the hell away from me and mine unless you're my sister, AKA Ms. Skunk Funk, who needs to get the crust burnt off her musty, dusty drawers. The whore of Don Juan has a death wish. Explain to me how running with the devil beats walking with God?
Isaiah 59:7
7 Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their paths.
This Nation was built on our ancestor’s blood, sweat, and relentless faith. Believe me when I say there's strength in every tear. I pray to God that I don’t shed anymore of them. Their wealth is not. It's a stolen Promise that the Father shall reward His children with. Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it. The most glaring, and frustrating example that is also bitter and disheartening I can give you is our Promised Inheritance called Yisrael that the gentiles are squatting on. When a person or in this case a tribe or race of people believe in their own lies they've become reprobate; they're lost.
Revelation 3:9
9 Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee.
This is what all of Esau's children fear. It's why the bland, colored people of the world are flipping over the Earth's axis, and killing us without any probable cause. They are a lawless people who've displayed their lack of empathy, and humanity for anyone save their own breed, they behave like blood hounds. I've become content with this planet being void of water (Holy Spirit.) Black people suffer from a social disorder called the crab bucket mentality. We hate to see anyone rise up, and we’ll do whatever it takes to keep them down or discourage them. That person may possess something that can benefit the collective, who cares. He who possesses that blessing needs to haul tail ASAP before the winter comes knowing the Father will bless him, and a downtrodden people beyond their wildest dreams. This is why Yeshua, and His Father call us children. It's why I pray, and bemoan to the Father daily that He slays me, putting the fear of the Lord in the heathen and His Son Christ Jesus uses us for His purpose. God doesn't need us, we need Him. He's given us so much power, and authority. When you acquire it, use it for something other than satisfying your sinful, carnal, flesh minded desires. Men, don't behave like horn dogs, and women do not behave as Aholah, and Aholibah, 2 whores.
Numbers 32:24
24 Build you cities for your little ones, and folds for your sheep; and do that which hath proceeded out of your mouth.
Out of thine own mouth you have power to tread over snakes and scorpions. You can exorcise demons and devils out of your present life braking generational curses which is what I' want for a family that's disowned me. To God be the glory. God is telling us to declare a thing, and claim it. What a mighty, just God we serve. Your tongue will become a weapon to use against the lawless ones who use theirs recklessly in their attempts to get us arrested or murdered by local, and federal authorities. You can call it giving them a taste of their own medicine, it isn't. You're reclaiming what they've taken, stolen, including those of us they've murdered.
Isaiah 54:17
17 No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord.
The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. Speak positive prayers out loud if you can. If you live with your family or have a roommate pray in the closet. You'll have favor with God that many people won't. They rebuked the Lord, and their anger did tear perpetually, and they kept their wrath forever. When they use their privilege, which is what we call it more often than they, comprehending they’re fully aware knowing they use it with a Demonic, driven hatred. They persecute Black men, women, and children for reasons that are not godly, and the Father does not condone. They, and all the Earth will have to answer for our individual sins against the Father in the end.
Luke 10:19
19 Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.
We don’t worship the same god as they do. They're praying to a god to erase us off the face of the Earth. Why hasn't he?.
Exodus 1:12
12 But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and grew. And they were grieved because of the children of Israel.
Their birth rate is dropping steadily. For the first time in the history of the census they decreased in population globally while indigenous, and other races of people stayed steady or in our case increased. This is the reasoning behind these draconian abortion laws. They're trying to preserve themselves while God is eliminating the Earth of their bloody dominion. God is sending the wicked a message before the storm comes, but no one's listening. Their violence towards us is documented, and more often it's unprovoked. They continue with the guilty until proven worthy of their mercy dogmatic mantra which is racist BS. The Earth will be lulled back to sleep. When they're confident that their world isn't in danger of being challenged by anyone, especially us. That's when God will do things that will scare them right back to the caucasus mountains bringing destruction to those who've touched, bruised, and abused the Apple of His eye. Speak life into your angel spirit, don’t entertain the demon seed that's trying to kill you, and the rest of Earth's indigenous people. You have much authority, use it. Elohim. 9/23/2021
6 notes · View notes