#i mean like. letting ppl die to protect each other …

[samdeancrimespree]

ok so. thinking of that post about how what we see on the show is the censored version of the winchester gospel, the version that makes them look “sympathetic” ….. now i just wanna write some between-episode cases that are so fucked up chuck was like oof ok let’s not talk about that

[melkyt]

Life&Death Lawlu AU

Law with the power of death, the trope of everyone he touches dies. Self-isolating after he lost everyone he cared about from his cursed power, even if it was not directly. He moves through the world as a ghost, with nothing to call his own. He has friends, but he keeps a distance for their safety. Law can't stay in a city for long as anything crumbles to dust over time. He is a doctor, using his ability to heal people. As the killing effect starts slow when people are around him, it targets the little things, like cancers or viruses first.

Luffy with the power of life, everything he touches grows and grows without control, without anything to stop it. He doesn't isolate but more like people leave him, when it gets too much, when he gets too much, when his power goes out of control for the millionth time, and they can't handle it.

Luffy tries not to let it get to him, putting on a bright smile for the world. He moves from area to area without staying long enough for his power to make things grow and break everything in its path. His ability could cause just as much death as Law's. It also does not discriminate with what it makes grow, so a cancer or a virus will twist out of control,

The double-edged sword of their powers.

They meet by chance, in a city that recently went through shit, a natural disaster. With those in charge not doing anything to provide relief. Luffy heard about it and is there to use his growth to make the corruption come to light so he can show them what it means to have 'too much' in a way only he can.

Law is there providing relief, working as a traveling medic at the time; people usually call him out for much bigger disasters, like infectious diseases in places that do not have the infrastructure to handle them. Yet he is there because he hates such corruption and will show those responsible what it means to lose everything.

Them being in the same town, their powers clash and cancel each other out. An excess of growth is kept back by an excess of decay, and vice-versa. Law, who is always laser-focused on the signs that will tell him to move from an area, is confused because no plants are dying, and there is no scent of sickly rot in the air when he passes market stalls.

Luffy is not paying attention; he knows it's about a week before things start getting weird from his power, so he is just running head first to finish fcking ppl up before that deadline.

That is how they meet.

Law taking off his protective gloves (they are made of tough fabric that has to be replaced maybe once a month), examining a piece of fruit that is not turning to dust at his touch, and even more, it's not changing at all.

Luffy running through the same market, jumping over a food stall, not looking as he barrels straight into Law. They fall into a tangle of limbs.

Law stunned as his hand rests on Luffy's chest, and while the skin gets signs of decay but it quickly reverses as if nothing happened. Luffy says 'oops, sorry', jumping up and continuing in his mad dash.

Law looking at his hand then at Luffy like 'No fcking way.' His entire world view shaken. He runs after, calling for him to wait.

Luffy turns around without stopping. Frowning and realizing that he touched the man he bumped into, skin-to-skin contact. "Wait, wait! If you get close, you gonna die!" His power takes slower to activate than Law's as it searches for what to make grow first. "I mean, probably gonna get hurt anyway. Sorry, sorry!"

"I said fucking wait!" Law slams his hand into the ground, it crumbles under his palm.

"Woah," Luffy stops, bouncing from one leg to another. He grins, crouching down, flicking a plant clinging to what little dirt is in the pavement. It explodes, roots moving between the cracks, shooting towards Law, stopping right before reaching him, a flower sprouting, and then dying as it reaches Law's aura of death.

"What are you?" Law approaches cautiously, watching for any sign of sickness in someone who looks to be way too healthy, its like he is glowing

"Monkey D. Luffy! And I make things grow!" He chuckles. "Who are yah, and why you not growing?" Luffy circles him, waiting for little bumps to show up, as they always do when he touches someone. He's been more careful not to do it, but it's been a busy busy day.

Law regards him, and does his bare minimum intro like "Law" followed by "Come with me"

Luffy, distracted from what he was doing and curious, goes "Okaaay"

They go through the city to the set up medic tents. Thats where Luffy hears his full name from people whispering. 'Trafalgar Law, god of death'

And some who travel around recognize Luffy from more war-torn regions. 'God of Destruction', he gives them a grin and a thumbs up.

Law leads him to where he set up base. Telling Luffy to sit, and give him his hand.

Luffy not doing any of that, he instead looks around Law's office, poking everything and things that are prone to grow even when stifled by Law's power, do so.

Law watching as a cactus he had in the corner springs to life, blooming for the first time since he got it, his experiments going through at least a year of growth and decay. He is fascinated, wishing he had time to write the discoveries down.

Luffy is watching how animated Law gets about his research. It has been a long time since he has been near anyone like this without them feeling the explosion of power twisting around when he uses it. He takes Law's hand, watching as their powers spark and cancel each other out.

Law freezing, sure he asked to see Luffy's hand, this is the first direct touch he has felt in his life. The first time he could hold someone's hand without having ten layers of protection between them. The first touch that lasts more than five seconds. It is safe to say that his brain short circuits, and he just stares at Luffy. Can't believe his eyes and that he is still standing there, alive and breathing, as if nothing could hurt him.

Luffy smiles, as it is the same for him. He always had to let go before he could hurt anyone, but Law shows no sign of change.

Luffy refuses to let go of Law after that, clinging to him at every chance; decades of being touch starved to catch up on, and Law may grumble about appearances, is not about to make Luffy let go.

They realize that they balance each other's power out, and they can stay in the town with no side effects. They still punish who they came to punish and have to abscond, but after they decide to travel together.

Law meets his friends in person for the first time since they were children; Luffy is able to hug his crew as long as he is holding onto Law.

They make each other's lives better, and it is not long before they fall into a routine, going after corruption and making the world better. Being able to exist without the constant threat of loss hanging over them.

Luffy still feels like too much sometimes and that he will be left alone again.

Law still sometimes considers that he does not deserve a loving touch, that he will only cause pain, still afraid that he will lose what he cares about and it will be his fault.

Yet them waking up to find each other in the mornings, still there and still alive washes away those doubts.

Luffy, one day, looking for Law in the middle of the night, just to make sure he is there, decides not to wake him and crawls into bed.

Law wakes up later with the same thought to check that Luffy is still there after a nightmare and is immediately calmed by the tight arms wrapped around him. They share a bed every day after that, their relationship grows with little things like that in their shared trauma, and they could never imagine a life without the other.

Life & Death, finding peace in each other, and the world at large is better for it.

[lxmelle]

Just some thoughts about satosugu and how they both interpreted their separation.

It’s highly likely that Geto didn’t realise how important he was to Gojo. I made a blurb on Twitter/X about how I feel that Geto wasn’t a reliable narrator in that sense, but I feel the need to expand on it a bit more.

We now know that they both felt like they’d been left behind. I’ve talked about it before, and it seems evident that they left a wound the shape of each other in one another when they separated.

We know Geto’s intentions with leaving Gojo behind. The kind, polite, gentle Geto who always treated Gojo lovingly - pushed him away to a point where he thought he was unforgivable - thinking they were ex-best friends in his conversation with MimiNana. He shot him down in a way he never did before - “how arrogant,” he said - asking him of his identity, to think about his purpose and cautioning him not to be used. Turning away before Gojo could protest, to convey they were going on separate paths - a “do not follow me”. He gave him his blessing to kill him - showing that he understood there would be meaning in it. The recent JJK exhibition showed that Geto was drafted by Gege in the KFC breakup scene to convey that he thought it would be ok if he was killed by Gojo’s hand. Adding that Gojo should be careful not to kill anyone else but him.

The two presenting interpretations are - 1) just try to kill me alone amongst all these ppl with your overwhelming strength; or, it could also mean, 2) make sure you stay on your path until you decide what you wield your power for (although Geto already decided for Gojo who mustn’t follow him).

For 1) Geto supposedly hated monkeys, so Gojo unleashing his power shouldn’t be a bad thing. But that would be a bad thing because then Gojo would be another curse user like him who killed innocent people. So this demonstrates that Geto had Gojo’s self-interest in mind.

For 2) Geto turned away and gave Gojo a final lesson - to wield his power for the greater good and to not kill like he did. Don’t be a monster like him and he gave Gojo is permission to kill him. It wouldn’t be bad to die by his hand. That Gojo shouldn’t kill anyone unless they were at least as evil as he. Again, this demonstrates Geto having Gojo’s interests at heart.

Thus Geto foreshadowed his fate when he said to Gojo that it would bring meaning to kill him - Gojo was the only one whom he would let stop him. The light novel insinuated that Gojo had to be the one to carry the curse that was Geto Suguru too.

Gojo seemed to understand what Geto meant and decided for himself not to kill him then and there. And not for 10 years. As a reader we know he could’ve. But what did Geto understand and take from it all? Was he a reliable narrator?

Geto was surprised at the end of jjk 0 - that Gojo still had trust for him. The way he phrased it in the original Japanese seemed rather self-deprecating. It goes along the lines of, “to think you still have that (trust) for the likes of me.” And how can we forget the impact of Gojo’s last words... Geto was humbled by it and I HC he was careful all the way not to curse Gojo. So he said, “At least curse me a little at the end.” - as if to say, instead of the love you’re giving me, I know I deserve to be cursed for hurting you. I’m sorry.

So we can kind of see that Geto did not perceive himself as loved as he actually was by Gojo. He looked regretful here as he reflected on their friendship as aforementioned with MiniNana:

Gojo understood that he shouldn’t follow Geto, but we now know he actually felt left behind. In fact they both felt left behind by the other. And they both wanted to catch up. One was early and one was late... curse and blessing, absorb and repel, etc. I think we all are familiar with certain themes by now.

Gojo respected Geto’s need to walk separately and protected his love and desire to keep Gojo on that path. He allowed it. He could have taken the words of make sure you “kill only me” as a reason not to fire into the crowd, or he could’ve applied it to all humans, because this was what Geto also taught him earlier on.

But we know Gojo had the power to just grab and kill Geto on his own, ambush him at any time in the 10 years, and so also just plainly not regard those rules. In fact in jjk 0 Gojo talked about siding with Okkutsu with the higher-ups because he wanted to allow overwhelming power to be understood. His risk to make. So, from Gojo’s point of view that Geto might not be aware of, he took those risks upon his shoulders as the strongest and the executioner of the school, and let people like Yuta and Geto and later, Yuji, live. So just like in Shibuya, we also know that Gojo actually will take calculated risks and make sacrifices. If there is meaning. He determines it himself.

This being me to this point:

Kenjaku had access to Geto’s memories and from there, he devised his plan in further detail to trap Gojo to seal him in the prison realm. But he only knew what Geto knew.

He wasn’t wrong that Gojo fought best alone. We don’t know if he could’ve learnt to fight with someone alongside him, but perhaps after Toji, he didn’t see the need to, and preferred to “risk himself” seeing as he could be invulnerable with limitless, and he would be free to go all out with his destructive power.

Here we see him infer that Gojo would be deterred by the presence of humans - the possibility that there would be casualties. He is also not wrong, but we can see that this was based on Geto’s assumption - that he was in the way. He believed he was in the way. We don’t know why Gege scrapped the draft, but that was Geto’s intentions: to keep Gojo righteous. Not to follow him.

He was willing to damn himself in his friend’s memory so he wouldn’t be dragged into hell too. We can imagine that he felt left behind by Gojo in strength especially since Gojo also pointed it out in their exchange. He thought he wouldn’t be treasured in his friend’s memory, although he treasured Gojo (wearing the Gojo-kesa and also his views on loyalty through calling Yuta a “womaniser”). So I think he felt like he would be easily discarded by Gojo once he left and hypocritically pointed him in the other way, especially when Gojo let Geto decide for them both him just a year ago, and didn’t kill the people clapping at the hideout.

Someone pointed out that Gojo’s love was “I’ll go wherever with you and hold on forever” and Geto’s love was “I’ll let you go, and it’ll hurt but at least you’ll be safe.”

Sigh.

Whatever it was, he believed Gojo spared him because there were people present when he walked into the crowd. Stalling for time allowed him to get away.

Not believing that Gojo was conflicted and wanted Geto to live … or “come back home” like his character song given by Gege. He did the same thing in jjk 0 when he cautioned Gojo not to approach him because his students were “in his range”. So he must’ve believed it was a deterrent for Gojo.

Geto did not know how Gojo took the breakup scene or how he interpreted his words of parting.

To him, and to Kenjaku, the tactic of stalling for time allowed Geto to walk free. Human lives could be used against Gojo. In the 10 years, maybe Geto thought he was useful in getting rid of curses, etc. so he was left to his own devices. Gojo never came to execute him. We don’t fully know, but we got a glimpse of what Geto assumed - their friendship was but a precious memory and there was no trust from Gojo left. And though Geto heard Gojo’s confession at the end of his life, he was never to know that Gojo’s love actually ran that deep - because he was also surprised at the airport scene.

He did not know that Gojo felt left behind. In fact, the readers only found out a recently in chapter 261.

Gojo thought about what Geto positioned him with (who are you, the strongest, for?) and concluded that being strong wasn’t enough. He couldn’t save Geto who did not want to be saved. Did not want to be helped. Did not want his help, despite being the strongest. Gojo was not taken along. Wasn’t allowed to become a monster too. Geto would not use him. He could have all the strength but also not achieve or have what he really wanted. He was left behind. He could not catch up.

And then this from much earlier on has come to make even more sense:

That Gojo was trying to turn his grief into something that could bring him meaning and keep/respect his friend’s wishes alive in his life.

And by trying to retain Gojo’s righteousness, Geto had made himself all alone. Geto felt the need to go all by himself (much like their disagreement in HI “you lonely? Go by yourself.” “I hate righteousness - it’s for the weak.”) and cut everything off, including his parents and sorcerer family.

I don’t think Gojo particularly wanted to be left behind. He just… tended to listen to Geto’s wishes. Even Yaga questioned him, I previously thought he was asking why didn’t he chase to kill him as ordered, but some are debating this, saying it was more “why didn’t you chase after him?” (Why don’t you go with?) And Gojo replies, “Didn’t you hear?” (I’d been left behind). Who knows.

He came to believe that love was the most twisted curse.

Why?

Because love led Geto to do what he did and defect.

Because love made Geto turn away and not to bring him to hell.

Because love led Gojo to honour his friend’s wishes even if it pained him.

Love led them to love each other from afar.

Love was a curse that hurt each other and themselves…

…because they do it all out of love for the other, beyond the love for themselves.

Nevertheless: They were now both alone.

Over the years they tried to change that, being surrounded by others, family and students - but they had an empty seat with each others’ name on it. And they had ended up not being alone - just lonely.

He probably knew Gojo could have chased after him to kill him, but his main interpretation seemed to be what Kenjaku believed - he clung onto the principles of “protecting humans” first and foremost. Gojo ended up doing the 1% of his predictions and opened his domain in a calculated risk.

Interestingly Gojo asking Ichiji about the humans subjected by UV (before the fight to his death with Sukuna) reflects the side he lived protecting,

and Geto asking about his sorcerer family before his death to Gojo reflects the side he lived to protect.

The whole “counterpart” theme runs so deep: early & late, curse & blessing, absorb & repel, yin & yang, black & white... even down to the part where Gojo asked about the humans before his fight with Sukuna and Geto asking about his sorcerer family before his death. It demonstrated who they lived to protect and how one needed the other to survive (without humans = no curses = no need for sorcery).

Geto just was never really aware of how much Gojo loved him, perhaps because Gojo only realised it after he left. That love led them both to keep doing what they did.

That love was indeed a twisted curse. Because they loved the other so much that they’d sacrifice themselves - the very object of the others’ affection, hurting one another as a result of it. To love the other was to curse themselves... which then cursed the other.

In this twisted world...

Gojo was the only one who could save Geto and Geto was the only one who could save Gojo.

There would be meaning to it. Gojo was at Geto’s end.

Will we meet again? - the lyrics of the song goes. Geto met Gojo at the airport at his end.

Geto showed Gojo love and compassion - saving his soul.

Gojo showed Geto pure and unwavering love - saving his soul.

I’ve blabbed enough now... thanks for making it until the end.

[mariyekos]

Oooh yeah. I feel like Credo would have to jump through a bunch of mental hoops to justify letting the Order have Nero, but he'd definitely get there.

Quick addition after I typed the rest of it up, but it just occurred to me that there's a big difference between the Nero and Kyrie thing: Nero is the only one who would work (other than Dante, who's harder to capture) because he has the blood of Sparda. Kyrie's place could be taken by anyone, because all that's required for her part is a human. Credo would sacrifice Nero even though he loves him because he's the only one who could be sacrificed, whereas he wouldn't sacrifice Kyrie because (he loves her more and) her place could be taken by anyone else. Kyrie is taken specifically to hurt Credo and Nero, which goes against his moral code. Necessity in choosing Nero versus cruelty in choosing Kyrie. I see Credo as someone with a very strong moral code but also a strong sense of necessity, who can permit even terrible things if he thinks they're necessary for the greater good.

For why Credo would be okay with Sanctus using Nero, I have 2 trains of thought on justification:

1) Agnus/Sanctus tell Credo that Nero will be used to get closer to the Savior, but they don't tell him they plan for Nero to be absorbed and die. Credo accepts their plan because okay, helping to form the Savior is good, and even if it's an unpleasant process, Nero will be okay in the end. Nero may or may not forgive him, but as long as Nero and Kyrie survive, everything will be okay. The world they're creating will be safe and holy and all will be for the better, no matter the cost.

2) Agnus/Sanctus tell Credo that Nero will become a part of the Savior and thus technically die, but they also advertise it as a Holy joining of eternal bliss, and thus a gift to Nero. As in, they tell Credo they will bring Nero in, lead him to the Savior, and then he will essentially be carted off to whatever the Order's version of Heaven is. (If you're familiar with it, Galahad immediately dying/ascending upon touching the Holy Grail in some variations of the story comes to mind). Immediate, guaranteed Salvation sounds good to Credo. Furthermore, he knows Nero has had a hard life and has always been an outcast, so maybe this is for the best for him. His life has been full of suffering, but in death and sacrifice he will be at peace and part of a greater being and purpose. It would be an honor.

In both versions I could see Agnus placating Credo by telling him that momentary suffering is worth a chance at eternal bliss (either from being joined with the Savior in Scenario 2, or being one who helped usher in the New Age cementing him a blessed place in either current society or Heaven-equivalent in Scenario 1). Sanctus would use this to convince Credo that any pain/wounds Nero may be dealt when capturing him would be worth it. He promises they will do their best not to hurt him too badly, keeping injuries to a minimum and doing absolutely nothing that isn't strictly necessary, but whatever must be done to secure his cooperation will be worth it.

Now I'm imagining a scenario where Nero vs Agnus is drawn out a little more. Say Agnus beats Nero and starts toying with him. Stabs him over and over (even more than he does) to see how he heals. Credo makes it there but is somewhere far off, pretend there's another, distant observation deck, and watches in horror as Agnus monologues and has his way with Nero. At that point I think Credo would realize that no, this is not worth it. The Savior would not sanction this. Sparda would not condone meaningless torture. Even if Nero were to be joined with the Savior- which Credo is now starting to doubt, because if Sanctus and Agnus lied about how they were going to treat Nero prior to using him to power the Savior, why should he think they were telling the truth about what would happen to Nero during and after the fact?- he wouldn't want it. Credo can see that now. Nero fought until his last breath. His actual last breath. I'd have Credo watch Nero "die" when his heart stops after the last of the stabbing. Could have him cry out, distracting Agnus and alerting him to his presence, but still be out of sight so that Nero doesn't notice him as he Awakens, repairs the Yamato, and attacks Agnus.

From there Credo would be a delightful mix of uncertainty. What does he do now? Nero lived. He fixed the Yamato- one of Sparda's swords!- and healed from a mortal wound. How closely is he related to the Savior? Is this what true Holiness looks like? Why does he have a shade, where Credo transforms? Nero was calling out for Kyrie; the boy has a good heart and it really sinks in that Kyrie will never, ever forgive Credo if he lets Nero be killed, and while Credo had previously told himself that would be okay, he knows that's a lie. Seeing Nero die had nearly killed him. He can't live with himself if things go according to plan. He's a fool. The scene in the church was distressing enough, this moreso, and the peace that Sanctus claims will come to them at the end of their plan is not worth the suffering in the interim. And again, how does he know things will go according to plan when he's now seen the evidence of Sanctus and Agnus' lies? How can he place his trust in their promises of peace and salvation? How can he stand by and watch them hurt innocents for a future they promise will be worth it that itself has been built on the execution of a lie?

Again, I have a sort of split in ideas here. Agnus saw Credo, so I think Credo would be conflicted about what he does next. Does he confront Sanctus about what he has seen? Does he go back to Sanctus and pretend he's still loyal to secure more information, when Agnus saw and heard him and might tell Sanctus Credo can no longer be trusted? Does he go find Kyrie to ensure she's safe? Does he locate Gloria, who at this point he realizes is most likely a plant by Dante's people, and beg for her aid? Does he try to find Dante? Does he try to find Nero? Who can he trust? Who would trust him after what he has (and hasn't) done?

(tl;Dr I think in Credo's head, killing Kyrie is absolutely 100% not okay ever. Killing Nero isn't ideal, but it can be acceptable under the right circumstances if done for the good of the people and isn't too brutal. He realizes Kyrie may hate him for it, but all that matters is that she lives. In the end he cracks under the pressure regardless, because he loves Nero too and doesn't want him to die.)

i love credo dmc btw he kind of sucks. definitely the sort of person that would result from having to raise your own sister (and nero) when he was a kid himself, lol.

[pocketgalaxies]

what did you mean about laudna and ashton driving you nuts?

mmmmm. dangerous territory! for me, i mean. to indulge the side of me that don't give a fu about–

it's pretty interesting how this ep turned out to be a direct comparison between laudna and ashton and how they discover and come to terms with the idea that there is an option for them to ostensibly destroy themselves in the name of protecting/helping/saving the rest of the party

a few ppl have already discussed this with far more thought and nuance than i'm willing to put into words right now but something something both of them taking this as an opportunity to Be Useful and Contribute to the cause, blind or perhaps willingly ignorant to the fact that these people love them for who they are and that they don't need to Do Something in order to be loved - in fact, losing them is actually a far less acceptable outcome to the party than whatever reward they perceive to be gained from their self-sacrifice. which is all very sad and tragic and juicy and pulls at the heartstrings which i always love. but this is kind of where the similarities end?

laudna follows this with a conversation in which she tells imogen what she would want to happen in rather explicit terms. and when imogen responds by saying she'll do everything in her power to stop it from getting to that point, laudna says "i can accept that." the next morning, they tell the whole group what happened. on the other hand, ashton pulls fearne aside and has their own grave conversation but in more vague terms, at least in the sense that i don't think fearne picked up what they were putting down or at the very least wasn't given the opportunity to really process and respond to what was asked. and then ashton isolated the two of them from the rest of the group to undergo this transformation without their knowledge. all of which drives me nuts! to see the direct comparison in which one is so much more communicative than the other

and i don't think it's fair to say that this is a consequence of the party being poor communicators overall. it's somewhat reminiscent of vax's initial response to scanlan leaving in c1 - we don't know your mother's name because you never talked about it. aka there's a difference between ashton bringing up this desire or plan to hold both shards and everyone brushing it off/not sufficiently exploring it vs. ashton choosing not to ask for their opinions, ideas, or feelings about it because he thinks they won't let him do it. he unilaterally made the decision for everyone, which is the most frustrating part for me. they presume to know what is best for everyone, and they presume to know that this is the only option, despite being surrounded by not only some of the most powerful people on the planet but also the people who care for them the most. which he said himself: nobody will miss me when i die, given that we all die - implicitly saying that if i am the only one who dies, i know you all will miss me. so to me it feels disrespectful to them, because even having acknowledged that they care, he doesn't trust that they might have ideas for a better solution or that they might recognize what this means to him and try to help him survive it. or that they might not want to be "saved" if it means losing him. or that they might like to say goodbye.

i know many people are saying that this is in line for ashton's character, frustrating or not, which i think is true. but it feels stagnant to me. ashton has come a long way in terms of learning to care for these people but they have learned little about being cared for. and while laudna is trying to believe what others say to her (that they love her, that she's important, that she deserves life) with varying degrees of success, to me ashton feels like they have made minimal progress and/or aren't trying to make progress. they refuse to see bells hells for what they so loudly and clearly are - people who love and care for each other, ashton included. and unfortunately, 77 episodes in and coming up on a vastly important mission (the first in a while), this brand of hypocrisy (taliesin's words not mine!) and lack of awareness for the group's feelings in the name of High Risk High Reward is something i have a rather low tolerance for ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

and for the record i've been thinking about this a loooot because i know most of it is colored by my general apathy toward this character. and i understand that a lot of people who love this character are so so fascinated by and invested in what happened. but my apathy toward ashton is something that i've tried to circumvent or logic my way out of a LOT in the past few years and at this point it's kind of an immovable object. and doing mental gymnastics to try and enjoy someone that i simply don't makes everything so much worse! so i don't mean to rain on anyone's parade but these are my thoughts whether i like it or not

tl;dr the end of this ep didn't make me excited, it just kinda made me feel annoyed and crazy. sorry

[softpine]

i wasn't on tumblr when tlou part 2 dropped but i would love to know your thoughts on the game especially if/how they've changed with time if you're up to writing a paragraph lol

also i've seen a lot of ppl (i've never had a playstation so i have to go off of other ppl's opinions) say that while the story is about how the cycle of revenge is bad that the gameplay still rewards it and how that sort of defeats the purpose of the game for them and wanted to know your thoughts on that

happy tlou season 2 renewal <3

YES YES YES you know i’m always up for writing a paragraph (or ten)

first, let me just clarify one thing: the main message of the game is not “revenge is bad”. i hear people say this constantly and it’s just not true. the real message is all about forgiveness. if i had to boil it down to its essentials, i’d say the message is “love is a stronger force than hate.” but that’s just one interpretation!

i don’t feel that the gameplay rewards the cycle of revenge at all. abby kills joel and in return, she systematically loses everyone she cares about – leah, nick, jordan, nora, manny, yara, mel, and owen... plus she will never be allowed to go home to the WLF again. lev loses his entire family and community too. and they’ve both experienced unspeakable horrors while they were held captive by the rattlers. abby was punished for her decision at literally every turn. but she keeps fighting to survive because she has found a much stronger reason than hate to stay alive: love. protection. family. the first time she ever has a happy dream of her father, after years of nightmares, is when she saves yara and lev. killing joel didn’t give abby closure, but finding something to fight for did. it’s the exact same thing joel found with ellie.

ellie is not rewarded for her actions either. she’s the one picking off the salt lake crew members one by one, but we see her lose a piece of herself each time. she’s not experiencing catharsis, she’s only spiraling deeper into obsession and grief. she can’t appreciate anything good in her life, because she’s still consumed by everything she’s lost. she walks out on her partner, their baby, and their dream home to chase after this elusive “closure”, knowing that she may die trying. i think ellie herself knows that killing abby won’t make her feel better, but the only alternative is forgiving joel and moving on without him, which she doesn’t feel is possible yet. she has to lose everything before she’s able to accept joel for who he is and what he’s done.

it’s a fucking masterpiece the way that the game makes you think joel and ellie’s last conversation was a fight, until they reveal that actually, their last conversation was ellie offering him an olive branch. “i don’t think i can ever forgive you for that. but... i would like to try.” is so impactful because ellie never got the chance to forgive joel while he was alive. even while she was trying to avenge his death, she couldn’t forgive him. it’s only when she has lost herself that she can finally forgive him, and perhaps she can even understand him. that forgiveness has nothing to do with abby or anyone else – it’s all about ellie. it’s about love.

as for my personal opinions about tlou2, they haven’t changed much. i loved it when i played it the first time and i love it even more now!! i greatly appreciate the sheer balls they had, and the fact that they never changed their creative vision to make the game more palatable / marketable. i’ve never seen a game make such an unpopular choice and i respect the fuck out of them for doing it no matter what anyone said. i love joel but i’m glad he died because it gave rise to one of the most impactful stories i’ve ever had the pleasure of experiencing 💖

(special mention to the fact that the main character is a lesbian, which is something i would never even think to wish for because it’s so uncommon in games of this genre. ellie is everything i’ve ever wanted from gay rep, meaning that she’s literally just existing as a gay person and her sexuality has hardly anything to do with the plot. i fucking love how she has a detailed story, a rich personality, and complicated relationships while she just happens to be a lesbian. it’s literally perfect, no notes!)

[b1ackx]

Ok so���. This is my first post and I’m trying to create a concrete story outline for these characters I have and I’ve seen that a lot of y’all are rlly good at angst and well written ideas…. I was kinda hoping someone might help me write out more for these characters backgrounds and storylines….

Ummmm… so so far I have only some for two characters Duco and Nyleen, both are the main characters and imma introduce more characters later on and also post pictures later on (hopefully) to help with the picturing and stuff but uhh.. here’s what I have so far. Oh also btw these are in idea form, not story so pls don’t expect some sort of elaborate story, just ideas to solidify said story.

Duco and Nyleen story

In an everyday regular high school, Duco and Nyleen go to school

Duco is being heavily bullied and no matter how much Nyleen tries to protect him no one else helps and none of the teachers do anything so it’s kinda rlly bad

One day the bullying got rlly bad and in the end as soon as Nyleen got there to help she came in time to have her brother die in her arms

After the “accident” Nyleen has to deal with the fact that the so called popular students killed her brother

She starts to slowly go insane the more time she spent at school knowing the reason she no longer had her little brother was because of those people so she starts to intricately plan their deaths to be the most sadistic, violent, and painful deaths

She plans it for everyone who wronged her brother: their dad, the teachers, the bullies, the police, ppl who did nothing, etc

The only people who will be left alive are those who were actually their friends

Before she could put these plans into effect, she had to pretend to be nice to all of them. She became a “popular” only with the thought of homicide comforting her rage against the people who wronged Duco

After all the planning, Nyleen puts each and every plan to effect and succeeds, creating a huge massacre with only a select few surviving

After all was said and done Nyleen was killed by one of the survivors. She purposely left that one survivor alive knowing they would kill her

She didn’t fight back and just let them take her life

____

After Duco died, he was sent to heaven

As beautiful as heaven was represented on earth it was nothing like the actual thing.

It still had the same principles of how a good person would come to heaven and a bad to hell but it was corrupted and overrun by power hungry people who made it in with the loophole of doing good instead of meaning good

Duco tries to make it a better place, finding other good people and trying to form a strike against the corrupt system only to be cast down to hell and become a “Fallen”

____

After Nyleen had died, she was obviously sent to hell

In hell, as a “newborn” demon she was assumed to be weak and was sent off to an imprisonment camp where all new/weak demons, imps, devils, etc. were sent

Her rage and deeds put her into the demon category which in the hierarchy of hells power was the most powerful but not all demons are powerful and she was assumed to be weak like mentioned earlier

After killing her jailers and escaping the camp, she starts to gains respect and followers (not in the “oh your a good person” way but in the “Daym she killed them all” or “damn she could kill me rlly easily” way)

Sooner or later Nyleen becomes one of the most powerful and respected figures in hell

Years of self defense and fights for survival hardened her into a cold killer with no sense of mercy along with the thoughts of how the world had killed her brother and she no longer could be with him

At least until one day she witnessed a bright light fall from the top of the accursed cavern and land in her territory

Of course she went to check out what it was only to find her dead brother lying on the ground

For the first time since Nyleen had come to hell she cried

____

After falling, Duco landed in a sort of barren waste land

The first thing he saw when he came to was someone in front of him crying

Not knowing who it was he instantly tried to comfort them

That was until he heard that someone utter “Uco” (pronounced “you-co”)

He instantly recognized the name and replied “Nyl”? (Pronounced “Nile”)

He started to cry as well

After a while of them sitting there crying, embracing each other in a desperate hug, they were approached by a group of demons

They proclaimed themselves as the “council” and demanded that Duco would be sent to the camp

Nyleen obviously defended him, threatening them with her power, ready to tear each one limb from limb until they said that if they died or if she didn’t follow, they would call down the angels to finish him (Duco) off

(Angels and demons have no differences in their power levels but Nyleen knew that her power and respect would not last against both the angels and the “Council’s” group)

Nyleen only agreed with the condition that she would go as well

The council instantly agreed with the thought of getting rid of one of the most prominent and powerful figures in hell, giving them more power

Jokes on them, Nyleen got out on her own accord so she’ll do the same, just with her brother this time

__________

Additional details

The names Satan and Angel are titles, not beings or levels of powers

The title is given to the being with the most territory, followers/people, reputation, etc.

Like basically the person with the biggest, strongest mafia

Nyleen being Nyleen gains the attention of Satan who later approaches her, befriends her, and acts as her stand-in father

Meanwhile in heaven, before Duco gets kicked, he manages to gain the attention of Angel who also approaches and befriends him and acts as his stand-in mom

Names will be given later their names are N O T Angel and Satan. Those are just titles

Oh also….mom…. Dad….. hint hint

Oh also btw, both Angel and Satan are men. Not bc of the whole women are weaker sh1t but bc I want s o m e sort of gay in here bc I can（╹◡╹)

Also

The scars on Duco and Nyleen are indications of how they died…. Or at least show the wounds they had as they died

Duco’s scar across his cheek is from being thrown into the ground and heavily scraping his face

He also died from blunt force trauma to the head

Also if we wanna have more angst we can say that the bullies dunno that Duco was dead, so they taunted Nyleen about why he no longer came to school which drove her even closer to insanity

[orbees]

@oftheobsidianheart asked me 1-5 for vino!! imma split these questions up over a few posts cause w/ question 1 it was already getting a bit long + i should probably do my homework at some point =_= so here's the first one

1. Who are they closest to? How did they meet and what do they like to do together?

vino has always struggled to connect w/ others so the ppl who he manages to bond w/ he's very ride or die for.

starting off w/ vespera, she's his older sister. a lot of love and care there on both sides, very fiercely loyal + protective of each other for sure. they grew up only rly having each other and so where one goes the other follows. a typical vespera & vino hang out sessh is them in the same room doing their own thing in comfortable silence. vespera reads a book vinos working on his gadgets etc etc stuff like that

next up are his friends from the bitd game i played w/ him! vino met billy (belongs to @coccolithophore) & skunk (belongs to @threeofswords) thru vespera. they're all criminals and were doing heists together for a time. vespera has tried to stay out of the spotlight ever since she had her son but was w/ billy + skunk doing heists for $$$. mostly to get vino out of jail

once that was done, vino joined the group and began going on heists to pay off his debts (and hopefully vespera one day) vespera stepped back and more played a supportive role by gathering intel for everyone

vino cares for skunk and billy both very very much and considers them his dearest friends tho he'd be very very embarrassed to actually admit that. at first vino just cared about them as far as they were Business Partners basically. for billy i'd say The Point where they became friends is when billy let himself be captured one time to let vino + skunk get away from a Heist Gone Wrong. vino is... very used to being ditched the moment things get a little tough, so for someone to actually Take the fall for him, let alone actually stay by his side at all when the going gets tough??? that kind of loyalty means a lot to him

his relationship w/ skunk developed in a similar way; vino didnt really consider him a Friend until after they went on a solo heist together. it was Technically a successful one, but Just Barely, at great personal cost to vino. things got Pretty dicey that game, with vino nearly dying at several points LOL. vino kept expecting skunk to bail asap but he never did. vino was an emotional Wreck that game too and cried a lot to skunk who was pretty kind about it which. he also wasn't expecting. i dont think i've mentioned it on this blog but vino actually has a massive crush on skunk and this is a lot of where it originates from :P

thanks sm jude!! ill get to the others once i finish my homework 😤

[space-ninja-fashion-show]

HELLO. ask game time. >:) For Alden, I'm curious about 14 (i see your post about making him into everything he was against and i want More) and 2. You gave me five, I'll stick to three - I also wanna know about 7 for Higgins >:)))

!!! Let's go :D

(Gonna go in number order and oh god it got Long)

Alden, 2. What is your character's favourite weapon/way to fight?

His no1 weapon is the Xoris. The same way I canonised Kohlrabi's frame being a Volt Prime waaay before the Sacrifice bc Volt was my starter, Xoris is also chosen for Attachement Reasons. I love that thing to bits, it got me through so much of the game, and even now when I no longer have one single favourite weapon it is still Up There

His fighting style is fast and flashy. He's far from tanky but he's nimble and quick-witted enough to avoid getting hit most of the time, feet barely touching the ground, an eye-catching moving target. He knows that as long as he keeps attention on himself and avoids getting hit too bad, his allies can either get to safety or deliver blows from the shadows to more success, whichever is applicable at the time

Watching him fight is a bit like watching a dance

Alden, 14. How (not) okay are they with being a Warframe?

It's…complicated

Were he conscious during The Old War (he wasn't anything stronger than a flicker, unlike Lanius) he would've hated every second of his twisted existence. He used to tear at Orokin rule from the shadows, fight a war from behind enemy lines, and they made him into something polished and obedient, a gilded attack dog to do their bidding

He would've done everything he could to tear himself away from Tenno control and take a swing at the golden bastards one last time and die trying (he would've loved Kohlrabi even back then. But he didn't need a telepathic leash and he would've had no intention to drag a child down with himself)

I talked about him having a reasonable level of self-preservation before, but were he conscious during the Old War, that would've gone out the window. He would not have seen himself as alive anymore, and so with no life worth protecting. He would've readily died to land just one last blow on the Orokin

But! None of that happened, so! In present day, he…tries not to think too hard about it? He tries to be neutral at least bc there's no way of changing this now aside from dying, and he does not wanna die. He has a family and a purpose. He doesn't like being seen by strangers as an instrument of war, but it's a useful cover sometimes, and the things he can do as a warframe but never could've as a human help him protect ppl

What "being a warframe" is had changed the day the Orokin Empire fell. Alden no longer has a leash around his neck. He was made from something horrible, but now exists as himself. And he decides what that means

If he could, he'd choose to be human, and he doesn't like looking at it like "well at least something good came of it :)" but he also sees himself as a whole, living being, and tries to live his life as such. Some days it's easier than others

Higgins, 7. What is your favourite thing about this character?

Oh fuck, making me choose

On a meta level it's that ppl enjoy him. Like this blog used to get shitall interaction esp in the OC department and now it gets a lil bit more and that started around when I mentioned how inadvisable it is to allow Higgins in a kitchen. Ppl other than me seem to be fond of this shortass lab safety violation and that makes me really happy

On a less meta level…look, i love individual characters dearly but at the core it's relationships between characters that really drive me to write. And Higgins is fun alone but three times as much when it comes to his relationship with North. I'm having Such a good time subjecting them to Situations. They're idiot best friends and they bond via body sharing and they'd die for each other. Higgins gets to be both the comic relief and the angst potential of his own story but that wouldn't work without North being the other half of everything

[writers-ex]

Hey, I think I might need your opinion on this, of course only if you’re free to reply to this 🧐

I think one of my irls has a thing for me, her friends sort of told me and I guess she hinted at it a few times but she’s not the sort that makes the first move, is kinda playfully mean to me, is seen and known for her cold exterior, “heartbreaker status” and straightforwardness. She hints me to ask her out to try things she wants to try? I don’t really know how I feel around her except for the fact that I appreciate that her straightforwardness translates to protectiveness for me irl when she doesn’t like the vibes of people I’m conversing with, and that I’m okay with being vulnerable with her because we share similar childhood trauma. What do I do?

Very sincerely asking for your advice as someone who has only recently gained enough confidence to even consider relationships. I kind of just push my feelings away and never act on them and let them die out whilst searching for academic validation, very effective.

Also, since you’ve found me I could very well do a goldfish reveal soon. 🥳

-🦦

heeeeeeeeeeey im so sorry for the late reply i saw this and wanted to answer the same day but life just gets complicated T-T

ok so…. honestly you never know unless you try? like since you said she seems very straightforward and you seem to vibe with each other why not flat out ask her "hey how does (insert day and time) sound? i want take you out on a date" gauging her reaction you could actually go through with something you both are comfortable with or tell her honestly that you feel she's hinting at wanting to do something more with you and you're not sure if she's just being comfortable with you or if she actually wants more and is shy about saying? an honest conversation goes a long way in determining relationships for friends and future partners, just make sure the two of you are alone in a place that makes you comfy like a cafe or walking in the park together idk, have a good long (or short) talk about this and see what happens

my only caution is the "heartbreaker status" and if you are good friends with her or not, some ppl don't want to ruin their friendship and keep their feelings hidden by expressing it another way such as her being playfully mean to you but…if she keeps being mean or bullies you about asking her out she is not worth your time, idk if that makes sense but don't let ppl belittle you and your feelings >:( i'll fight for you

be aware that as someone who did the same just focusing on school until now i'm very dense and have had bad luck in relationships so i'm just wishing you all the best in this and if you need more specific advice, want to rant, or have a concern plz dm me directly and we can talk, other than that i hope this made some sort of sense….?

plz comment below if you have any advice for our favorite anon <3

[the-firebird69]

Arnold Schwarzenegger funny Andre the giant Story #shorts @RichEisenShow

They eat pretty good And it's all authentic that you can't tell what kind of place this is by looking at it in the pictures. It's very nice, and they're both saying it. It's all pretty much authentic down there. And a lot. of the restaurants are pretty good. You. eat very well. They eat very well. They do in Mexico.. It's wonderful. You can get like this big Sunday style. cup full of seafood. It's all terrific. And they have seafood dishes that are really big and wonderful and chilly. Reno. I like that as well. It's a favorite of mine and his sons and it is just a great place to go And it's good because it always is good. There's a place here. Like it. And a friend's mom and him went to it a lot. And a lot of people go there because it is good I'll tell you what. It's not hard to make this stuff, but they're actually Mexican or they trained in Mexico. and the very simple recipes, but they taste great and we ate a lot. We ate like five plates each and it kept coming and I started in on the meat and he did too. And we ate probably four more plates with me. But he's huge and I worked out and I'll tell you what. he is a great sense of humor except for when it comes to this stuff and he's under too much stress and people are giving him too much stress and he's having anxiety and it's not good and we don't want him on this medicine. You're all making him sick and you need him. And he says to me it's your secret weapon. And I didn't tell Andre. No, I did. And he says good. He knows he was a little nervous But he said that in the future it's gonna become needed. And we heard that it's needed because of a little overage. And I found that out in California this. two men in too many I couldn't do a damn thing for him. For him or near him and he sorta figured it out I'm screaming and yelling at everyone in the doing it and they injured my heart and they're blaming him. and it was Billy Youman and he's a special and he died from it and he should have. He was a huge ****. He was bothering everybody. And it was coming from Trump and people hate Trump for it. eventually it goes back to us Matt proper but really they're over the top pushing people. Now these people are in different cities and they're going to go down and attack us and into the big huge caverns and attack us and we have a real war with everybody. and it is sort of what they wanted to get rid of the idiots. It's going too slow and they're sitting there postponing and everybody else's building stuff But they postponed and slowed everything and these people decided to get rid of them. So they kinda screwed us on their way out and they're going out. But the point of this post. is Andre said or he wants to see it. So we'll let him say it

arnodl schewarz

we do say it here. these trumps re insane.  he will die adn she do it and he says good.  nd to get the bike and slingshot here.  and it is to hit the giant meaning mac proper. and arnold s shows. and they call he wil moblize and hs mech units and destroy them and topside. and the termintor series begins. and yeh forou points gross.  and we laugh get out of the power plant you jackasses and wwe see it they use it to protect their operation. wow gross.and macs.  we see it. wow. and tgood they will and ok your dumb trump hahaah lave mac dady deliver  themlol prob will no this is hell she will kill him.  and her son is her gradnaddy.  and get teh toys to our son and she sees he will sell them. has to. she luaghs mb. and no she thinks not and will ride on them as she has been. he will buy them ndcompete with her and nuts. ok this is nutty stuff. used to happen but not with death no we hti others yeh ok.

andre

and we see it aweful ppl an stay away nope and ok we see that and yeh this is how.  or he iwills it farting. now he comes back mks a big deal but saw jc do itand it is a formula and such and he is a nut.  and wants to sue the revtrike and slingshot todo it and a pair of themeach no.  but ok well he had anotherone and another slingshot and hers.  so i see we do thaat find it use it. and sarah will good. das ve danya and we say it we mean it ll of us. our clan.

 i do see we were freinds are a bit.  nasty stuff he says. too harsh. i agree.  drugged and saw it someone else mb and ok i see it.  his toys sit he is not here. i could send them but he has thetitle and wont let me so he is dead. need wheels out a here need it we h ave to relo now

emily blunt

and to z ok..

Olympus

and he said it. where then and she had a plan and he sits rotting

Hera

and we see he needs to now and you shall sell them.  but how do you get them. ok.  harsh stuff no she says she goes to fl and hs an ucnncle mov it here to storage. for you to use and have and good.

macs

[anonymouslylovesyou]

Season 2 episode 8 Season Finale babyy @whoblewboobear

At least ppl know they are missing

OH SHIT SHES BLEEDING

I know that Kate would hate the princess carry if she was conscious

Anthony buddy head would always look worse than they are she will probably be ok

Penelope sneak out to see Eloise

Theo and Eloise making up!

The Queen is missing Whistedown

COLIN BE NICE TO WILL DAMN IT HES TRYING TO HELP YOU

Noo Jack is leaning in for a kiss gross, kiss averted

Edwinda!! She must feel so bad this happened while they were fighting

SHES AWAKE AND ALMOST IMMEDIATELY ASKED ABOUT ANTHONY CRINGE

I forgive her she's in love I guess

Violet is such a trooper for her dumbass children

Oh my god fully if my mom gave me an apology like this I'd die in my sleep the next night

---

Ok boys break bc I'm eepy and emotional putting this bad boy in drafts hopefully I remember it exists

----

Good news did remember about this draft

Do not be rude to the tailor Eloise I mean it

MEETING PENELOPE OUTSIDE

Oo baby Eloise is heartbroken

OH NO A LARGE DONATION TO THE ACADEMY RIPP

Usually I don't care about that plotline but occasionally it fucking gets me

Straight to the Kate plotline! We're moving so fast

Not "was there something else my lord"

TO ASK HER TO MARRY YOU

TELL HER YOU LOVE HER. SAY THE EORDS I LOVE YOU

Eloise and Theo having another investigation date

RIP MOVED AWAY FROM THE KISS

And he's being mean about the breakup yikes fuck off asshole, I don't know that I mean that I liked Theo but also Eloise is literally doing her best

Edwinda and Kate relearning each other <3

Eloise sitting on that swing again where she was smoking

Oo Eloise knew that Anthony bought that seat

Oo Gregory we never see the younger Bridgertons

Violet eavesdropping <3

Kate's mom is calling her out for running away

Oo and it immediately makes her cry she has some blocked up emotions baby

Kate darling his ass did not ask you out of duty you're so stupid <3 fully your sister couldn't marry him *because* he loved you and not her

Aww Eloises family supporting herr

Eloise: Thank you for protecting me you're a true friend

Penelope: slowly dying of guilt

Oh shit Eloise is starting to put the pieces together

KATE AND HER SISTER DANCING

Oo interesting strat Colin with getting Cressidas necklaces

OH NO COLIN FOUND OUT but he's so sweet being protective of Penelope

AA THEY'RE DANCING

Anthony swooped in so fucking fast

NOT ONE LAST TIME

Also its so funny bitches never have to wait for a song to start one always starts at the perfect time

Damn everyone is staring

"No one else matters" truly the Bridgertons specifically are living inside a romcom

Crazy that's she's still lying to herself about going back to India babe he's crazy about you

ELOISE ARE YOU SERIOUS BUT ALSO OH NO WHAT A TRULY TEERIBLE TIMING FOR HER TO FIND OUT THEIR FRIENDSHIP IS COOKED

NOOOOOO MANN

I know that Penelope marries Colin so her and Eloise have to make up at some point

Go off Portia! She said we Scheme for the entire family or we don't scheme at all.

Oh no she's looking for Eloise AND COLIN SAID HE'D NEVER COURT HER

Bad day for Penelope overall

OH HE SAID I LOVE YOU JUST AS I TOLD HIM TO

And he thought he was bad at poetry

Damn who is going to promise to vex me everyday?

Lady Whistedown voice over is now Penelope!!

COLIN BROUGHT PROSPERITY TO WILLS BAR LETS GO

Oh no not both Eloise and Penelope crying!

Penelope writing a new issue :O

And Lady Whistedown voice over is back

Timeskip they are married

God Kate's hair is soo pretty

Daphne for sure knows from experience that they were busy fucking

Babes stop making out on the battlefield, fully your siblings are here

[zahri-melitor]

#ooh interesting!! i tend to think hmmm how to put this

#i tend to see them as more similar than different both during bftc and before i think?

#imo dick & tim don't intentionally abandon ppl - they both only retreat hardcore when they feel unwanted/unneeded/a drag on allies

#they both wrap their self-worth up in being needed which means they retreat + punish themselves after failure / rejection

#& that retreat sometimes freezes out loved ones - but that's not imo how either of them understand what they're doing

#so e.g. when dick's telling tim to forget they know each other in n 110 or tim's telling dick to let him go in rr 4

#they're not thinking 'i'm walking away to protect myself' they're thinking 'i'm freeing you from my presence'

#& in practice they're ditching the other person! but that's not what they consciously THINK they're doing

#over in bftc i tend to see them both responding to other people's pressures more than making decisions in a vaccuum

#so e.g. dick decides to become batman & take responsibility for damian - but that's not his initial plan at all

#his initial plan is to stay nightwing & he has no interest in doing anything w/damian

#it's tim who's insisting someone has to be batman & alfred insisting batman should be dick + dick should take care of damian

#and dick's initially very resistant and angry about all this pressure that's being put on him plus imo hurt

#similarly tim's initial plan is to be batman & robin with dick in gotham or failing that to be batman himself

#he only leaves town after he's fired - which he's likewise resistant to and angry about plus hurt from perceived rejection

#so it's not like dick & tim are spontaneously making these decision you know?

#they're both responding both to pressures on them from alfred and from each other

#and on both sides i feel like they're not entirely aware of the emotional repercussions of the things they're doing/saying

#so e.g. tim thinks it's legit for either him or dick be batman whereas dick thinks that obv if SOMEONE does it has to be dick

#so when tim's insisting that gotham needs a batman dick experiences that as WAY more intense pressure than tim thinks of it

#meanwhile dick thinks of his emotional relationship w/tim as separate from their professional relationship

#so he doesn't at all anticipate that tim will take being fired as robin as a rejection of their brotherhood

#i feel like in both cases...i mean they're not stupid they know the other person's upset but they don't understand the full implications

#i think dick is conceptualizing 'everyone's pressuring me to be batman & i don't want to but i have no choice'

#'at first i was mad at tim for pressuring me into it but now i'm freaked out bc according to cassie he's losing his mind'

#'i don't know what the hell is going on with tim & i'm worried but also upset with him bc he's supposed to be someone i can rely on'

#'also i don't want to be responsible for damian but nobody's gonna save him if i don't so i guess it's me'

#and meanwhile tim is conceptualizing 'i've failed at everything & failed bruce & now even dick doesn't trust/want me around anymore'

#'bruce is all i have left and probably he's dead but i'm going to try to save him anyway because it's not like i can do anything else'

#'i have to do this bc it's the only way i can be useful now & if i die everyone will be better off without me anyway'

(Tags @silverwhittlingknife )

#like motivations for doing so aren't necessarily 1:1 here

#but it's an interesting subversion of how they normally treat batman

#dick's tendency towards batman is a big boy who can take care of himself vs tim's emotional support robin

#is now dick's batman asking for emotional support vs tim's you will do fine without me because i need to do this (leave)

#and nobody is wholly right or wrong in this scenario it's just conflicting needs

#and the decisions made ended up being fine and right for both of them

(Tags from @scintillyyy)

This plus some additional points from @scintillyyy I want to attach - that during BFTC both Tim and Dick attempt their usual response: Tim prods and begs Dick to become Batman and create a new Batman & Robin situation to hold Gotham together, and only goes out in the suit as he’s trying to wait out Dick making the decision, while Dick drags his feet over Tim’s conviction and insists that nobody NEEDS to be Batman, that Bruce freed him from the obligation to step into the role, until he inevitably decides to step up to take control.

So they ran their usual tactic, and then when it wasn’t enough in the situation, they flipped and ended up in the other’s.

I agree both Dick and Tim both retreat from situations on occasion, and both also try to hold things together to a stupid degree.

Withdrawal is probably a better characterisation than abandonment, but it’s still notable to me that Dick in particular will MOVE during his withdrawal. He goes someplace else. And look, giving himself emotional space is healthy! But that also translates to a very clear line of separation marked between him and his problem.

While Tim’s more likely to just shut down in place. He might stop showing up (his several quitting arcs for YJ, Robin, etc) but he doesn’t go away. He’s still where he was before.

And some of that is life stage (Dick’s nominally an adult at all of his ‘flee’ moments, while Tim is generally still underage and in his guardian’s household), but some of that is a fundamental difference, where moving and travelling is associated with happier moments of childhood for Dick as a circus kid, while it’s at best neutral to disruptive for Tim (multiple houses, multiple schools, parents travelling for work).

It’s just another twist on the ‘you can’t fix Bruce’ argument for me, and the fact that Dick and Tim can’t and won’t see eye to eye on the best tactic there.

Thinking about the decisions made by Tim and by Dick at the end of Battle for the Cowl again, and I just realised this is one of the few moments when Dick and Tim’s instinctual reaction to a situation flips and they take the route the other usually chooses.

Because Dick’s maxim since 1980 or so has been that, when situations get bad, you can walk away and leave. Your problems can be left behind. People will cope without you. When things get personally stressful, Dick generally leaves. (Leaving Bruce to become Nightwing after the you’re fired/I quit conversation, walking away from the Titans after his relationship and wedding fell apart with Kory, going to Bludhaven to establish his own separate identity after reuniting with Bruce, wandering in a daze after Blockbuster dies and then running off to join the mob, the manner in which the Dick/Babs breakup(s) are structured, needing the World Trip Cruise after Bludhaven is bombed, etc)

While Tim’s choice in bad situations has generally been to cling, to stay and hold things (hold people) together, because if he doesn’t take on the role, who will. Tim worries that without someone stepping up, things will fall apart. (‘Batman needs a Robin’, staying during Knightfall and Knightquest, coming to No Man’s Land to pull the city back together, returning to Bruce even after his 16th Birthday, returning to Robin during War Games, even going to Bludhaven after War Games is holding Bludhaven together for Dick while he’s not able to do so, to go on the World Trip Cruise to keep an eye on Bruce and Dick, to try and clone people/resurrect people because he’s clinging to their memories).

But then we hit the start of Batman Reborn. And Dick makes the decision to stay, to hold Gotham together, to hold Damian together, a decision that usually you would see Tim make.

And Tim chooses to leave, to believe that Dick and Gotham can cope without him, while he prioritises something else (the search for Bruce).

As characters, Dick and Tim have been arguing over this point for 34 years now, and it’s fascinating to see that on one of the big occasions when the decision flipped, they both ended up on the opposite side to usual.

[gogolstoelicker]

Can you do Monaca!mc, an unwanted child from wedlock, neglected and abused by their own brother and father, always has a smile on their face but deep down their are hurting, admired junko who saved them from doing suicide and help her plunging the world into despair, inspired to be just like her even if it means using her "friends" as a stepping, the plan failed, now their a NEET in space that don't want anything to do with hope and despair due to someone else obsession (nagito)

Dorm leaders with a Monaca!MC

warning(s): probably ass writing, sorry

notes: i genuinely do not know how do i write for her so uh forgive me JSBAJBSJS but looking at this kind of mc, they would probably fit in ignihyde or octavinelle honestly

Seemingly very amiable and caring, you appear very cheerful and have a childish way of talking, sometimes meowing and almost exclusively referring to yourself in the third person.

However, underneath that facade, you're manipulative and cunning. When things are not going your way, you'll manipulate the situation by any means necessary. You ultimately have very little regard for others' well-being, knowingly using their traumatic pasts against them and not feeling any sympathy nor sorrow for them nor anyone else.

But as time went on, you turned more cynical, lazy and apathetic, not really caring about anything.

Riddle:

he really doesn't like how lazy you are

looking at ur grades and ur knowledge about machines, u can surely do smth bigger if u just tried

so now u have riddle going

HELPPPP IT LOOKS LIKE RIDDLE SINCE ITS RED

ahem

he's giving u a speech

a really really long speech

u probably don't care lmfao

well at least riddle tries‼️he gave u the same speech over and over again

other than that, he loves that you're "cheerful" and "caring"!

yes, he doesn't know

he would probably push ur wheelchair to heartslabyul's garden to show u just how beautiful that place is

if u asked, he would push ur wheelchair around to show u beautiful spots around school too‼️

Leona:

lots of potential, lazy + lots of potential, lazy

probably kins each other

well in a way

i don't think y'all interacted much tbh

like yes, you're both lazy but have lots of potential and then what

he doesn't really care about u honestly

and honestly? he probably saw through your facade

he's not stupid, he has seen people like u back in the afterglow savannah

how ppl are cheerful in front of him and then talked bad behind him after

he is the unwanted prince in his own kingdom after all

bonds over yalls trauma of being unwanted?

now leona is slightly more protective of u once he knows just how similar y'all are

if someone is making fun of ur wheelchair? well they better prepare one for themselves right now

someone is giving u a hard time? leona is right at their throat

he'd rather die than admit it tho LMAO

Azul:

probably saw through ur facade?

amused out of all honesty

OOO BUT WON'T THE BATTLE BETWEEN U TWO BE MORE INTERESTING AWHVDBSBSJS

i mean like

cunning vs cunning

argh AWFR AWRF

there's probably that unspoken rivalry between the two of u even after his whole overblot insident

tho, u are probably too lazy to as much as to lift a finger to fight with him

so it became just that, unspoken rivalry

he probably have to keep u away from floyd multiple times tho

knowing floyd, he'll make ur wheelchair into a car and run around school with it

so azul just gotta make sure he's away from u

Kalim:

would happily push ur wheelchair around school

he might be going a little too fast so u might have to warn him about it

actually nvm. jamil is alr chasing after u two and telling kalim to calm down a little

you're probably a little bit skeptical of his friendliness but let it slide after seeing how genuine he is

he is now the one who always pushes ur wheelchair around school for u

he got distracted easily tho so uh

"lets go to the cafeteria" "ok!"

*ended up in the library or smth*

while u don't care about it that much, u still think it was kind of annoying, occasionally shooting him annoyed glances

(😡i will come for u)

Vil:

oh god we have another lazy potato around

he just wants to roll his eyes at you

he's an actor so he may or may not seen through ur facade

well u dont seem like u care too much to do what u did back in ur world so

he just leaves it alone honestly

if u two were to ever got close tho ,he would surely put small decorations on ur wheelchair

who says u can't be beautiful even if u can't walk? vil will most certainly try to let u shine more

i mean you're skeptical of him but u just let it slide again

since even if he does have ulterior motives, how can he even use u in this magic world amirite

to be clear, vil 100% does not hold any ulterior motives against you!!

Idia:

idk how did yall interact but it must've had smth to do with robots and machines

so now you guys are bonding over it

idia would sometimes invite u to his dorm to discuss about this

like ah! he's making a new project

how about he calls u in to help him?

considering how u have experience making robots and even going as far as to go to space, u must've known a thing or two

so now you're bonding

ortho is making happy noises at the back bcs yes‼️his big brother just got a friend‼️

may or may not be thinking of giving u some robotic legs😁oh dw he's not thinking about it, he was /j dw!

😁...

Malleus:

now I'm kind of stuck with him

like ik he's not stupid and he can most definitely see through ur facade too but

at the same time he probably won't notice it?

but let's go with the first option just to play safe

he's probably too amused to even not hang with u

plus, its not like you're planning to do anything since u don't seem to have any interest in anything so he's not all that worried

other than that, ur way of talking quite amused him

he's not good with machines

and by that i mean hes probably boomer level

and you're good with machines

u probably don't care much but u will tell him abt certain machines if he asked KSNSMSM

[gold-rhine]

ok lets unpack. i saw comments like that and was going to answer them, but its better to use this ask so ppl dont feel attacked:

1.saurians can talk to each other, you can talk to them if you indwell one, so they don't need to learn human speech. - makes no sense. they can't communicate with humans on crucial things, the whole reason we have to indwell to talk to them in several quests is that we can't communicate. ALSO. if you move to foreign country where you don't speak the language, even if you have diaspora speaking your own language, you're going to pick up at least basic words and sentences in a week, i know, it happened to me. saurians live their entire lives with humans in close contact. vishaps, even kid vishaps, start picking up human speech in days, we know from enka experiments.

like sorry this is just useless argument, my point is: vishaps are as smart as humans, and saurians are not. i said in op they are smarter than animals, but even when we talk to them in their own "language", they communicate in very basic words - "hungry", "tired", "let me out". and there is a quest where canopy tribe chief says they are simple creatures who can't understand complex concepts and just trust their humans, so they don't understand when they help humans do crimes that its bad. like i'm not arguing this point anymore, saurians are not as intelligent as vishaps.

now, to the mountain king. yes, he talks and he talks not in "simple speak", he can clearly understand complex moral concepts. ppl say oh its bc he's old, he's like 500. but that can't be it. again, it doesn't take normal vishaps 500 years to learn human language, they start speaking in weeks or days.

but his age is a crucial point by itself. he's such a celebrated icon bc saurians don't live that long normally. but you know who does? dragons. vishaps don't die unless killed. and what is the stated reason why mountain king is different from normal saurians? its that he's infected with the abyss.

now think about it. why would abyss make him live for 500 years longer than normal?? abyss usually makes creatures die much faster! we have natlan storyline about springs woman dying from abyss infection, we know that from many cases like fountain's rene experiments and so on. you know who it doesn't kill? dragons. dvalin and apep were filled with rage when corrupted by the abyss, but they were still immortal.

ok, so here is the thing: if night kingdom is a leyline that holds souls\minds\whatever it is that makes dragons sentient and immortal, and night kingdom is infected by the abyss (canon fact), then its possible that mountain king was not just infected by the abyss, during the turnfire incident when his human friend gave him his own ancient name energy, it gave mountain king connection to the night kingdom's leylines. (bc thats what ancient name is, its an anchor to leylines) this is why he has sentience and was infected by the abyss THROUGH the leylines, bc he doesn't have wyaobb protecting him from abyss like humans do. through connecting to leylines, he became full fledged vishap, but was also infected by the abyss.

and when at the end of kinich quest he returned that ancient name energy and "closed off a shell" protecting from abyss corruption progressing, he gave up his connection to ley lines. which is why he lost sentience! he became again mindless creature, a "body" used to train canopy warriors.

tldr; it looks like whatever makes vishaps not only sentient, but immortal, is stored in leylines. memories, elemental energy, personalities, etc. and it looks like saurians were severed from leylines, losing immortality and sentience. it protects them from abyss corruption, but it means the leyline "spirits" of them are trapped in the night kingdom and infected by the abyss. if saurian is given access to the leylines, they become a normal, sentient dragon, but unless night kingdom is cleared of the abyss, it will lead to corruption. i would guess this is where the archon quest will eventually go to.

another thing, if natlan had leyline tree and it was destroyed (or mostly destroyed), can this be reason saurians are less intelligent than vishaps? like they are smarter than animals, but dont seem fully sentient and they can't talk! we know all vishaps are as smart as humans and can learn human speech, given enough time they turn into sophisticated yappers, but every vishap can learn to talk given exposure to humans, not just powerful and old ones. in enkanomiya they did experiments on vishaps and found out that any vishap can learn human speech at least on a child's level and they will improve with time. we meet a hydro vishap shapeshifted into melusine on Erinnyes who doesn't even have a lot of human exposure and still can talk and cooperate with humans.

so how is that saurians live with humans their entire lives and still can't communicate more productively than "rawr!!" ???? how is that the natlan's dragon quest that no one could pass in 500 years is just simple actions like walk through a room and touch a thing?? it would not be hard for any vishap to do, you didn't need a close friendship bond to do quests together with Erinnyes' vishap, bc like. thats a person, you just communicate what you want from them and they do it, its not hard! what was done to pyro vishaps to turn them into saurians

[kazuwhora]

hello hello, i see your requests are open now and can i request izana, wakasa, chifuyu and kazutora with an akutagawa!s/o? hope you have a great day/noon/night! ✨🤗

hi anon! sure! I will try my best with izana and wakasa since there's not tons to work with personality wise so forgive me if theirs are a little shorter heh. im gonna include a little blurb from the bsd fandom wiki for anyone not familiar with his character! I like these kinds of headcanon requests so if anyone wants to see more please feel free to request!

"Akutagawa has a black and white "survival of the fittest" view of the world, claiming that weak people should die and give way to the stronger ones. He is not afraid of pain and defeat His ruthless, vicious nature makes him one of the Port Mafia's most dangerous members, feared by both ally and foe. As violent as he is, Akutagawa maintains a generally composed and detached approach. Towards subordinates and superiors alike, he acts aloof, distancing himself from social interactions however possible. Nonetheless, his composure is fragile. Akutagawa is quick to lash out, ridiculing him for risking the bounty by acting recklessly. This quick temper often gets in his way, fuelling his actions to the core of his very being."

SUMMARY: izana, wakasa, chifuyu, && kazutora with an akutagawa!so

CW: hints of toxicity and violence, mentions of sex but not really all that nsfw-ish so otherwise not much else!

IZANA

- this is an interesting one because from what we know about izana, he is very similar in personality to akutagawa in terms of ruthlessness that stems from childhood trauma and isolation.

- in the case of a s/o with this personality, I think it would be a troubling relationship. lots of bitter fights fuelled by nothing but an inability to express vulnerability, while leaving both of you torn up inside and begging for someone to nurture the trauma and allow space for emotions.

- that being said, with toxicity and trauma also comes intense passion and desire. this relationship brings a lot of fire both in the bedroom and outside of the bedroom, with simple arguments often spawning into intense desperate (and lengthy might I add) sex. like, intense. it's almost like sex is the only safe outlet of these pent up emotions, providing a sort of comfort and also distraction for both parties.

- however as I said in general, this is definitely a toxic relationship. one where neither can help the other when it comes to growth and improvement on a personal level. it's unhealthy and enabling, but for a short lived fling it is hot as fuck im not even gonna lie. lots of hate sex too.

WAKASA

- so wakasa is another interesting one alongside izana given the lack of information and content we have about his character so please excuse the slight kc fanon version I have in my head of wakasa lol

- wakasa has a "don't fuck with me because I do not fucking care" type of vibe to him. I definitely think he's the type to completely disengage from the type of behaviours an akutagawa-type s/o might display. this leads to sort of a sense of competitiveness in trying to get some kind of reaction from him, and it has the potential (much like izana) to become toxic in nature

- any attempts to get under his skin are failed attempts, and the way he looks at you with that half bored expression is something that only triggers more of a somewhat emotional response from you.

- with that being said, my fanon version of wakasa is someone who while cold and aloof, is also quite a rational person. he's been typed by the fandom as INTJ which is quite a quick thinker, and I think he probably (despite not showing it very well) has a soft spot for you. but your passion and intensity (as well as your easily triggered dynamic) keeps him from completely being able to express this care in any way other than not engaging with your antics

- as much as there are some similarities with the type of toxicity in this relationship with both wakasa and izana, the intense passion isn't quite the same as it is with izana. instead, feelings of passion are more to the point and driven by pure instinct and desire rather than toxic passion. wakasa seeming like a very literal person, is actually quite mysterious deep down and has a lot (I mean a lot) of hidden desires and kinks that begin to emerge with time. it's rarely a conversation, and more often just something that happens that surprises you. you just have to go with the flow here, and let him take the reigns for once. it might actually be a good opportunity to allow for vulnerability to take the spotlight for once, which is something wakasa is surprisingly in tune with and quite to the point about.

CHIFUYU

- this is something much healthier than the last two. chifuyu, being an enfp is someone that's able to handle this level of intensity in a person while still being able to understand what's really going on.

- call him the trauma counsellor king. he values each and every response to a trigger that you might have. he notices patterns, he makes mental notes of things, and he does this all without making it seem like he's analyzing.

- to be honest he actually loves the spunk you bring on a day to day level. even though most of the time it's driven by bitterness or hate (not always towards him just in general) he is still able to see beyond that and appreciate you for what you are.

- with that being said, chifuyu will not stand for any toxic behaviour towards him. no sir he will not. threats and pushes for fights wont be tolerated, and he will either disengage or try to expose your vulnerabilities in an attempt at forced submission. this can be hard to get used to, especially with having a personality characterized by the inability to accept being vulnerable. but with time chifuyu is one to create a safe space for you to allow yourself to feel emotions beyond anger and resentment, and he encourages this.

- because of this very feelings based approach, intimacy with chifuyu is just that: intimate. he's extremely loving and doting, hoping that his sweetness can rub off on you a little bit. however he's also very accepting of your need for power over him (especially during sex) and will absolutely submit to your needs in order to please you.

- he really likes to put you in a place of pleasure though, so however that may come to you chifuyu is the one to deliver it.

KAZUTORA

- oh boy. this one is a doozy. listen. if we're talking about timeskip kazutora (as is the case with all characters i write about but I feel it especially important to remind ppl of here given his history), we're talking about someone who is quite literally walking on eggshells in terms of his trauma and emotional vulnerability.

- he's pretty good at being emotionally aware of his needs and struggles as well as the needs and struggles of those around him, but that doesn't mean that he's entirely healed or capable of managing toxicity or his triggers. he still slips up from time to time especially when things get hard, and sometimes finds himself falling into his old patterns. after all, he's only human. but this is where things could get messy in a relationship.

- for the most part, like I said, he's pretty good. so let's focus on that part first since I want to give him credit where it's due. he is very desperate for love and dedicated to providing something to his partner. in this case, he will seek to tap into his emotional vulnerability to provide some sort of comfort for you. he wants to see you happy, and calm, because he sees so much of his old self in you that it gets to him sometimes. but at the same time, he struggles with your relentlessness and can become emotionally drained when things get tough. he'll beat himself up for not being good enough to help you, and this is when he'll isolate and fall into old patterns.

- however, akutagawa's personality type isn't all bad. with a s/o like akutagawa, comes an immense amount of protection and loyalty for their loved ones no matter how tough things might be. in this case it might be hard to communicate this, but there will be times when it's needed in order for kazutora to restrain from old habits and ways of dealing with hardships. but he wants to share his healing with you, he wants you to be happy, and more than anything he understands the struggle of wanting to be happy and healthy but being afraid of losing the one thing that makes you you: your attitude and relentlessness. nobody understands this better than kazutora, which is why things between you can get frustrating and very personal for him.

- much like chifuyu, sex is driven towards pleasing you and only you. chifuyu leans more into switch territory however, while kazutora is 100% submissive. in this case it works out well, however he has a lot of boundaries and limitations when it comes to the way in which you function. he doesn't like degradation. instead, he thrives from praise and any sign of love and care. this might be tough for you to execute 100% of the time, but when it comes down to it the way his eyes twinkle for you is enough to make the ice around your heart melt just a little more each time.