#i mean�� we did the best we had with NO source material!!!

[meganwhalenturner]

So, last November I got to try my hand at Alchemy

Maddalena Rumor, in the Classics Department of Case Western Reserve University came to have dinner with us and mentioned she'd just successfully turned silver gold.

She had an alchemical recipe from a 7th century BCE cuneiform tablet from the library of Ashurbanipol. She'd been working with Rekha Srinivasan, from the Chemistry Department to see if they could translate the cuneiform, identify the substances mentioned, and then try the recipe to see if it worked.

They traveled to the British Museum to examine the tablet up close. By studying the partial strokes along the edges, Maddalena could make some educated guesses about missing words. Rekha, in turn, could use the descriptions of the substances to make some guesses about what they might be. Then they could start testing their best guesses with experiments.

This is complicated by the tendency of alchemical texts to use code words or inside jokes to describe materials or techniques. Something like me making a recipe that calls for 2 Legs and 1 Arm of Policeman and my friends all knowing it means 2.5 ingots of Copper.

I know the word alchemy comes from the Arabic al-kimia and that it eventually developed into chemistry, but I've always associated it with the worst of the Dark Ages in Europe--charlatans or wannabe magicians in smoke-filled, poorly lit cellars full of of mummified animals and just generally gross stuff that is not my jam.

I'm wondering now if that's because medieval alchemists were reading a lot of things literally that weren't meant to be taken that way. There's a reference in one of Maddalena's article's to a rare case where "human excrement" called for in a recipe is revealed to actually mean "garlic." I can see a lot of ancient alchemists laughing up their sleeves.

I had just learned during a trip to Naples the previous summer that the alchemy of Renaissance philosophers like Pico Della Mirandola was very different from the stuff in the basements of Prague. Instead of dreckapotheke, they were translating texts from the Ancients Greeks, texts that were perhaps based on the very tablets from the 7th Century BCE that Maddalena was studying. I promptly begged to observe her next experiment.

She very graciously said yes, so I went down to a lab at Case and I wish I had taken better notes, but I did not, so what I've got is a bunch of pictures, and I'll have to go back and badger Maddalena for details.

These are the ingredients for the next round of testing.

They will be mixed into a solution in the flask on the right and then heated on a burner.

Then silver tablets will be dipped into the solution:

And turn gold!

Not *into* gold. That was not the plan. Hope you aren't disappointed.

If you thought the object of alchemy in those dark basements in Prague was turn to lead into gold, yeah me, too. And maybe it was, but the alchemy of the ancient Near East seems to have been more clear that transmutation wasn't on offer. After reading some of Maddalena's articles, I now know there were four main practices of alchemy back in the day: coloring silver gold, making a silver alloy that still looked like silver, coloring glass to look like precious stones, and dying wool purple without using those expensive snail shells from Tyre.

I talked about alchemy a lot (really, a lot, everyone was very patient) at a recent writing retreat. Erin Bow called it the Science of Knock Offs.

There are multiple ancient sources that say that this "holy and divine art" (hē hiera kai theia technē) was taught to mankind by fallen angels who were sharing the secrets of heaven. I know it seems ridiculous that an all knowing divine being is going to focus on the Secret Science of Knock Offs, but the more I I think about it, the more I can see it.

ARMUMAHEL: We will share with you the great mysteries of heaven!

MANKIND: . . .

ARMUMAHEL: I can save you some money on purple dye.

MANKIND: YAY!

SAMYAZA: So how did the secret sharing go today, Armumahel? Did they ask about the language of birds? The control over monsters of the deep?

ARMUMAHEL: I told'em how to make glass marbles look like sapphires.

SAMYAZA: You do know Enoch is writing all this down. His book is going to be stuck in the apocrypha and we're going to be laughing stocks.

ARMUMAHEL: I promised to tell them tomorrow how to turn silver gold.

SAMYAZA: Ah! Transmutation of matter! That's a good one!

ARMUMAHEL: No, not transmutation. They just want the silver bowls on the alter to be yellow and shiny.

SAMYAZA: . . .

My shiny yellow tablet. : )

[percki]

i think that a lot of people don’t understand or weren’t conscious of the steddie apocalypse that occurred immediately after st4 aired. it was insane

[gaytommykinard]

since the show is coming back tomorrow (!!!) and people seem to be a little bit confused about Tommy Kinard's canon character traits, as extrapolated from the source material, let's review, shall we?

Tommy put everything on the line, risked his job, not to mention entire life, by agreeing to fly Hen and Chimney and two more guys he's never even met before through a hurricane to maybe find (the wreckage of) a cruise ship that his old captain was on. He did it because Chimney called him and asked for a favour (also seen in 2x14, Broken) and because he trusts Hen's instincts (evidenced in 2x09, Hen Begins)

Tommy lied through his teeth to his co-worker when he stepped in to save Hen's unsuccessful bullshitting and made fake mouth static at the fire chief pretending the connection is bad before disconnecting the call. If there was nothing wrong with the cruise ship, he would have been fired, or at the very least suspended.

okay, what do we know so far? Tommy is loyal to his friends even if they haven't talked in years, he is dependable and will come through in a crisis.

we also know Tommy is a very skilled and competent pilot (given he's able to operate both the plane in 2x14 and helicopter in 7x03) and he flew said helicopter through a hurricane, landed it on the belly of a capsized ship, rescued the survivors, and flew everyone back to safety. and given the extremely dangerous conditions of the rogue rescue mission, I'd say he's also brave and/or a little bit reckless; when the situation calls for it, at least.

he's also super cool, an opinion shared by multiple characters (Buck, Christopher, and Chimney).

that being said, let's move on to 7x04

Tommy agreed to give Buck a tour of Harbor station, meaning he had to go to work on his day off, and then offered him flying lessons. So he's either super nice or he's interested in the cute guy (i think it's a little bit of both)

Tommy invited Eddie, a guy he barely knows, to a sold out big reunification bout, with ringside tickets that he got from the organiser, who he's apparently friends with, and flew them in a chopper! He's just a super nice dude.

Tommy offered to drive Eddie to the hospital, and talked about The Incident with him, because when he gets to Buck's loft, he says "he [Eddie] feels bad, in fact we both do" and honestly, he had no obligation to do any of that. He could have let Buck drive Eddie since he offered and wiped his hands clean of that mess. But he's a caring and considerate person, further evidenced by the fact that...

Tommy went to Buck's loft before he had to go to work, to talk to him in person and clear the air, saying he didn't want to do it on the phone or in a text. Tommy starts by apologising and stating very clearly that he never meant to come between Buck and Eddie and that neither of them meant to exclude Buck. He also easily reciprocated Buck's vulnerability. I think the loft scene alone does a great job at showing us that Tommy doesn't shy away from confrontation or a difficult conversation, is emotionally mature, values open and honest conversation, and owns up to his flaws and insecurities. (Yeah, I'm trying to be concise. There's meta upon meta about the goddamn loft scene)

He's also a little bit insane because why does hearing that the cute guy maimed his best friend make you want to kiss him. Tommy Kinard will see a red flag and pretend to be colourblind. (-> for tumblr purposes this is a joke)

anyway, moving on, Saturday rolls around...

Tommy noticed that Buck was a little tense, reassured him that no one's looking at them, and sympathised with him. He doesn't judge Buck, like, at all. I don't need to list all the ways Buck made an absolute fool of himself on their very first date. He also paid for the dinner.

Tommy cut the date short (abruptly, because this is a drama show) but before he left, he told Buck he's adorable, but not ready - and this is right after Buck forcefully shoved him back in the closet in front of their mutual friend, and especially after Tommy told him about his own difficult journey coming out of the closet.

Tommy showed up at the café, told Buck he has nothing to apologise for, and explained that he cut the date short because didn't want to pressure Buck.

Tommy asks Buck if he's absolutely sure, about Tommy being his date at his sister's wedding. Then says okay.

more character traits for Tommy Kinard: generous, non-judgmental, sympathetic, patient, and once again, a little bit insane.

night of Chimney's bachelor party/day of Maddie and Chimney's wedding:

Tommy shows up to the bachelor party even though he's on call for work, you know, as a firefighter pilot, and he could have spent this time sleeping or resting in case he gets called... and he does, to a wildfire! Before he goes he promises Buck that he'll try his damndest to make it to the wedding.

Tommy shows up as promised, after spending at least half a day fighting a wildfire? In his turnouts, covered in soot, but he shows up as promised.

I think this shows he is selfless first and foremost because he made time to show up to the (failed) bachelor party and he is honest and keeps his promises. Even if that means bringing a biohazard (himself) to a place full of vulnerable sick people (the hospital). Because, as previously established, he's a little bit insane.

these are the core Tommy episodes of season 7.

as for 7x09 and 7x10:

Tommy tenses up when confronted with his old captain Gerrard - who then subtly throws a slur at his face

Tommy is quick with the sass and will not indulge in his nosey friends' inquisitive questions

Tommy notices Buck's mood and checks in with him - he's caring and attentive

Tommy once again does not hesitate to admit to feeling jealous

Tommy doesn't really talk to his dad

Tommy likens his dad to captain Gerrard

Tommy admits that having Gerrard as his captain did not make him a better person (and okay, sidenote to talk about something that annoys me about this, because Tommy had different captains, including Bobby, while at the 118, and I think s7 canon seriously overestimated how long he worked under Gerrard, but let's say Gerrard was his first captain as a probie and influenced him to a certain extent)

some odd tidbits ~

Tommy has a sarcastic, deadpan sense of humour

Tommy is a goddamn flirt and unbelievably smooth

Tommy came out after he transferred from the 118 to the 217/Harbor Station

Tommy used to be a pilot in the army

Tommy flies for fun on his days off

Tommy plays basketball every other Thursday with Eddie and other first responders

Tommy knows muay thai

Tommy has a car lift and knows his way around an engine

Tommy likes watching half-naked pummel each other

Tommy likes karaoke trivia

Tommy likes craft beer, monster trucks, and the movie 'Love, Actually' (provided canon doesn't forget about this and/or retcons it for some reason)

[simpforsolas]

i wrote up this whole rant yesterday about how I didn't find the Solas arc satisfying in this game, and seeing the ama and interviews today, I think I understand why that is lol.

yes, Solas carried this game. Yes i loved every time he was on the screen. yes his arc made me cry. NO it was not satisfying. and i'm just gonna go ahead and copy paste my rant explaining my feelings the best i can.

(i wrote this yesterday before all the revelations)

Solas's writing wasn't successful to me not because I think he was written out of character, necessarily. I think that every individual instance of his character being written on-screen was fine, but to me, his character was missing the wider context that put the isolated actions we saw of him in the game into perspective

The entire point is that the Dread Wolf/Fen'Harel persona that we see is a mask he wears. And that's fine, I like it! But what makes a mask interesting is to see what it's masking, and Rook doesn't really get to see that unless you choose the reedem ending. I guess what I'm getting at is that I craved to see more Inquisition-style Solas, in particular Trespasser Solas who was so remorseful but stuck in his ways, who stuck to his path but said stuff like "I would treasure the chance to be wrong once again, my friend." All these different sides are real sides of Solas, but because the game didn't really show us all these sides then we're left with a lopsided picture and now I have to deal with all these fools misinterpreting him all over the internet

I can still interpret it my way well enough, but the thing is that's my interpretation and it's a valid interpretation of the source material itself, but other people's interpretations are also valid because the game didn't really get more into his motivations other than "it's all mythal." But if you go back to inquisition, you can see how passionate Solas is about his ideals! His banter with other party members and his approval and dialogue you get with him really suggests that he actually CARES about his goal at an idealistic level, it's not just about regret. I like the regret! I like the history with Mythal!! I just wish it was more of something in his backstory that shaped him to who he is today and is something he needed to work through in order to finally see things clearly, instead of being the one magical thing that had to happen for him to get his "redemption"

I'm also rather frustrated that the right answer was just going straight back to the status quo, when we KNOW the veil is falling apart and shattered and an unnatural wound inflicted on the world that turns spirits into demons, prevents the world from achieving the magical/technological wonders it once had, keeps elves from immortality, and creates this fear and class difference between mages/non-mages and people who understand the fade and those who don't. Like when I replayed Origins i was struck by how many plot points are basically "the veil is weak here which means that there are demons here and they killed hundreds of people!!!!!!" Things like that are still going to be a problem hello why was none of this addressed 😭😭😭 I wish we could've validated the problems Solas's plan resolved to fix instead of saying "you just need to move on man this is just you taking your issues out on the world" because it WASN'T THAT

'm also really frustrated that we don't see a SINGLE big plan of Solas's go right because I know my man, I BELIEVE in my man, I know that he was smart and clever and had wins!!! I don't mind him fucking up but when all we ever see of him are major fuck ups it annoys me because COME ON. He's the DREAD WOLF. He knows how to make plans and carry them out. He saved thousands of slaves during his time, he fought and won countless battles, he locked away the Evanuris! Sure things fell apart in the actual veil part but he was able to trick all of them and did succeed in locking them away. The only thing we actually see him accomplish in this game is escaping regret prison, which is instantly seen as less cool because Rook gets out after like five minutes, and taking down the archdemon which was pretty hot but that wasn't about trickery, that was him engaging in straight up physical fighting in his wolf form. Anyway it frustrates me because now people in the fandom can rightly laugh about him being stupid and having bad plans. Yet I can't help but go back to inquisition and listen to his advice, dialogue, etc, and he's always so thoughtful and wise! So i just find it hard to believe that this man is incapable of taking a win. even if he kept all the Ls in this game but they had included a few more wins i wouldn't even be mad but it was literally just a collection of Solas's Ls and it frustrates me because I think he's better than that

i'm just worked up about this because i've been seeing takes about solas from people who used to like him but this game made them hate him, and the fact that the source material from datv as an isolated game actually supports their perspective is driving me insane. cuz if you ask me a lot of solas's character and motivations between dai and datv are actually at odds with each other. even if the surface characterization is absolutely on point, there was just so much context and scope that we're missing in this game. i can't handle it

[runningfrom2am]

cold nights // part six

summary: all the stars aligned, and it was you.

pairing: coriolanus snow x fem!reader

wc: 2.7k

masterlists / nav / requests

tags/warnings: tribute!reader and mentor!coriolanus, r is very sweet (too kind for this world. literally.), sunshine x grumpy trope kinda, he falls first, violence typical for the source material, r is very smart (as she should), district twelve!reader.

a/n: i just finished writing s1, and we're halfway through! so in case anyone was wondering, s1 will have 12 parts :) i haven't started s2 yet but i am so excited to!!

series masterlist // playlist

Days passed, no sign of Coryo. The only reason you know he isn't dead is because Sejanus came and told you he would be alright. That didn't do much to quell your worries.

Selfishly, you were scared you wouldn't get to see him again. You knew you wouldn't, actually. Now you were truly alone. Just you and his blanket, the book he gave you, and the dress your mother made. And Sejanus Plinth, you supposed. None of the surviving tributes would even talk to you- not that you really felt like talking. Just reading. You've read and re-read Romeo and Juliet no less than three times since Coriolanus passed the book through the bars to you the night before you went into the arena.

"I know you asked for this, and it's a little early, but happy birthday." Coryo whispers, smiling as the dark of night encases the two of you into your own little world.

He hands you a small box, wrapped in parcel paper and complete with a ribbon made of some kind of knitting thread. You grin, taking it from his hand and carefully untying the bow, delicately pulling the paper apart where it's taped together so as not to rip it. A copy of Romeo and Juliet. Old, tattered, falling apart; well-loved.

"Oh, Coryo, you didn't have to give me anything. That's too sweet." You grin, immediately flipping through the pages despite the dark preventing you from seeing a single word. "Thank you."

"Of course." He says, watching only you as your eyes flick over the pages. What little light falls from the moon is reflected in your eyes, and he wouldn't dare look away.

"My bounty is as boundless as the sea, my love as deep; the more I give to thee, the more I have, for both are infinite." You say softly, and at first, he thinks you're talking to yourself until you look up at him. A small, almost shy smile fit perfectly onto your lips.

"You like it?" He asks, the answer obvious even to him.

"I love it."

You were his tribute. Not a friend, certainly not more, but as he reaches through the bars to let his fingers brush over your cheek all rational thought means nothing. He doesn't realize he's staring at your lips until you comment on it.

"Is this why you asked if I have a boyfriend?" You whisper, your natural smile returns, and he's quickly looking anywhere else. Your eyes, your hair, the spot where his fingertips meet your cheekbone just below your hairline. Anywhere else. "Because I know it wasn't on that list of questions."

He's quickly backtracking, dropping his hand. This was wrong and he knew it. "I, uh, Tigris made you some cake. It's not good, but it's the best we could do." He says, redirecting his attention to his bag as he pulls out the small paper bag.

You sit back, blushing furiously. "I'm sure it's delicious." You smile, and it comes across more nervously than you intended.

"Here." He hands it to you, and you gently place the book next to you on the ground so you don't get any crumbs on it. "I have to go. I'll see you tomorrow."

And just like that, he's gone.

You're grateful when you see Sejanus coming back with his bag of food and water. It had become some form of a routine, at this point. The citizens of the Capitol weren't allowed to bring you food anymore, he was the only one who did for you now that Coryo was gone, and now that his tribute had escaped as well.

"Sejanus." You smile, standing up as he gets closer.

"Y/N. Holding up okay?" He asks, a sad look behind his tired eyes. He looked almost as tired as you, you were sure, but you hadn't seen a mirror since you left your house before the reaping.

You sigh. "I'm holding up." You answer simply. Sejanus is the only person you feel comfortable being totally honest with, but at the same time, you don't want to because you know he already feels bad for what you're going through. He's the only one outside this cage who kind of understands. "How about you?"

"I'm alright." He shrugs, reaching into his bag and pulling out a sandwich for you. You could never get sick of these. "I also have salt, if it needs more of that." He hands you a small bag of table salt alongside it.

"Thank you." You grin, tucking the bag into your pocket incase you needed it. "Any news about Coryo?" You ask hopefully, taking a bite. You already feel your starvation-induced nausea fading away.

"Not really. He's recovering, though." Sejanus answers. "Are you ready for the interview tonight?"

"As ready as I'll ever be." You grin. "I was right, I didn't need the book. I already had the whole thing memorized, but it's been so lovely to get to read it again."

"It must be." He nods. "Gives you something to do."

You hum in agreement, looking around at the other tributes. No one is even moving much anymore. "Can I ask you something?"

"Anything."

You look down at your sandwich while you think about how you want to word this. "Is Coryo..." No, that's not it. "I got the feeling that he actually cared for me. Is that true?"

"Coryo has never been one to tell anyone what he's thinking." Sejanus says, entirely unhelpfully. That's not his fault, though. "But if I had to guess, I would say yes."

"I'm just wondering because it's nice to have friends now. Here. At the end." You smile sadly before taking another bite. "And I was worried I had upset him."

"You? No." Sejanus shakes his head. "I don't think you could if you tried."

"Why's that?"

"Well... It's hard to explain. He's always been super focused on school, on the prize, but now, when it matters most, I feel like he's more focused on you and making sure you actually win." He tells you. "But, like I said, he wouldn't talk about it even if I asked him outright."

You nod. "Thank you, Sejanus. For always being honest with me."

"Of course. It's the very least I can do, all things considered."

"Can I ask you for one more favour?" You ask hopefully. "If not I understand, you must be quite busy."

"I have the rest of my life to be busy." He shakes his head. "What do you need?"

"Will you tell Coryo thank you, for me?"

"Yes. Of course." He agrees without hesitation.

"And do you have a pencil and paper?"

Sejanus headed home for a while and then back to the hospital after his visit with you, armed with your note in his pocket to pass on to Coryo. He was hoping he would be awake right now, he had been so on and off the last few days. More grumpy than normal, and Sejanus could tell it was driving him up the wall that he couldn't go see you. But the interviews had already started, so he would get to see you soon- even if it's just through the screen.

"Tigris." He whispers, pulling back the curtain as he sees the familiar girl sitting at his friend's side. She hadn't left her cousin most of the time he'd been bedridden, she was there every time Sejanus checked in.

"Oh, hello." She whispers, smiling at him. "He's still resting, but he's feeling a bit better today I think."

"That's good. I'm glad to hear it." Sejanus agrees, taking the seat next to her. "I went to see Y/N. She's eaten. She doesn't look good, though."

Tigris nods, returning her gaze to her sleeping cousin and pushing his hair away from his eyes. It's not like he needs to see, but she would do it anyway. Just to make sure he wouldn't be annoyed when he woke up. "He's been worrying about her. I can tell."

"She asked me if she did something to upset him. Has he said anything to you?"

"No, nothing." She shakes her head, lip jutting out at the confusing statement. Nothing at all would indicate to her that he was upset with you, but it's entirely possible that stuck in that cage day in and day out you could quickly become paranoid about who you could trust.

"Okay, good. That's what I told her anyway." He tries to be quiet as he speaks, but the whispering wakes his friend anyway.

Coryo's eyes fly open and he gasps, eyes landing on the two of them sitting in front of him.

"Coryo," Tigris says softly, a small, worried smile on her face.

"Y/N?" He asks, his voice husky from sleep. "Is she-"

"She's alive," Tigris promises, gently rubbing his arm, landing her hand on his and squeezing it gently.

"Is she hurt?"

"Not badly." Sejanus shakes his head. "A few decent cuts and bruises, but she'll be okay. I brought her some antibiotics the other day so nothing will get infected." You won't be okay, they both know that, but you certainly wouldn't be dying from the minor injuries you sustained in the rebel bombing.

He nods, slightly, trying to sit up. "How long was I sleeping? What did I miss?"

"Another tribute died from injuries," Sejanus replies. "Everyone is still scared. No one will go see them anymore, I haven't seen any of the other mentors there either. But I've been feeding her. She's okay."

Coryo nods, wincing at the pain in his back as he moves. The burn was bad, but apparently, it was healing well.

"Marcus is still missing. I haven't heard anything about him. They're hunting him but I still think he has a better chance out there than he would tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" Coryo asks, rubbing his head with his free hand, Tigris still holding his other one. "They're still going ahead with the games?"

Sejanus just slightly shakes his head, looking away. Coryo knows that that is a yes.

"Oh no... Y/N.... She could've run," He mumbles. "But she saved me."

"I tried to convince her to. I did." Sejanus reminds him. "She wouldn't budge."

All heads turn as Lucky's voice on the TV catches their attention. "And now, our final tribute. I first met this young lady in the zoo not too long ago. From District Twelve, Y/N Y/L/N. Come on out here!"

Lucretius motions for you to step out onto the stage and you do, gently placing the book and the blanket you had brought with you on the floor in a neat pile before joining him.

"Lucretius." You smile. "It's good to see you." You're nervous in front of so many people, the audience in front of you is much larger than the small one you spoke in front of at the reaping, and being in front of a camera without Coryo by your side made you antsy.

"You as well, Darling. Now, I was told you had something you wanted to do for us so I'll just leave you to that. Charm us! Remember, the world is watching." He smiles, gently patting your shoulder before walking just out of view of the cameras. His statement was far from reassuring.

"Uhm..." You stare out at the audience, and suddenly you're scared you've forgotten the entire thing. You had to do well. For Coryo and his prize. He needed this. "I've become aware that not many people know this play." You chuckle, trying to hide your nervousness behind it. "But Romeo and Juliet has always held a special place in my heart and I want to share that with the world, before I go."

You take a deep breath, closing your eyes. You wonder if Coryo is watching. He's not here, you're sure of that, but you do hope he gets to see. And he does.

He stands up as soon as your face first appears on the screen, declining help from both Tigris and Sejanus as he limps over to the TV, cranking up the volume. Your fate depends on this, he knows it, but he can't look past the blue tint under your eyes and the bruises that litter almost every part of your exposed skin. The cuts are what get him the most. Your knuckles are cleaned up, mostly, but red and irritated as you twist your hands together nervously in front of you. Same with the crude black stitches on your upper arm. Irritated, neglected by professionals, but at least it wasn't serious.

"Come on... You can do it." He mumbles mostly to himself, and Tigris reaches up to place a reassuring hand on his shoulder as the three of them watch.

"O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?" Immediately, he is confused. He expected to be, of course, but he could also tell as soon as you started reciting it, after the first line, your confidence was coming back to you. This play was your safe space.

"Deny thy father and refuse thy name. Or if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love; and I'll no longer be a Capulet." You look out at the silent audience as you speak, a smile forming on your lips. They're listening. "'Tis but thy name that is my enemy: Thou art thyself, though not a Montague."

Coryo is wishing you had explained more to him about what this play is about. "What's Montague? It is nor hand nor foot, nor arm nor face nor any other part belonging to a man. Oh, be some other name." He should have asked. Why didn't he ask? You told him yourself that you could talk about it for hours. Why didn't he take advantage of that when he had the chance?

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet; so Romeo would, were he not Romeo call'd, retain that dear perfection which he owes without that title." A rose. Of course a rose, was this for him? He longed to understand it better as he watched the donations tracker tick up and up toward the thousands.

"Romeo, doff thy name, And for that name, which is no part of thee," You take a deep breath for the first time since you started speaking. "Take all myself."

It was a beat or two before the audience clued in that you were done, and then the cheers started. A standing ovation, people wiping their eyes and clapping for you like you had changed their lives.

"Wow! Now wasn't that something, everyone!" Lucky laughs, coming back into the frame of Coryo's view from the camera. Tigris was in tears. The continual uptick of the donations counter was reassuring to him. As you smiled, cheeks flushing red. "The donations are just flooding in with a record high! That must feel good."

"Thank you, it does." You nod at Lucky, trying to place all your focus on him so you don't get too embarrassed in front of the crowd. At least you knew Coryo would be pleased. If you understood his prize situation as well as you thought you did, this was very good for him. "I just want to make my family and my mentor proud."

"You have a real talent. It's such a shame." The host says to you and you laugh awkwardly.

"Well, everyone loves something. I just loved books."

You continually referring to yourself in the past tense makes Coryo want to puke, looking away from the screen only briefly to take in the other nurses and patients watching too.

"We have just a few moments left, but I need to know, what is that about?"

"Oh! Well, Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy." You explain, back to yourself again. "It's about two star-crossed lovers from feuding families. So, what Juliet was talking about, to put it very simply because I could go on and on about this, was that she loved Romeo for who he was- not just his name or his family. It didn't matter to her that they came from different places. She loves him anyway, and if he couldn't let go of his family, she would give up her own life for him."

Coryo's eyes widen. So it was about him. He can't help the tug on his lips that threatens to form a smile.

"Alrighty then, that's very sweet." Lucky replies. "Now, you said it's a tragedy. What is so tragic about a love story?"

"Well," You chuckle nervously. "They both die at the end."

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[technoturian]

I have been thinking about this a lot. I drafted this and considered not posting it, but I read this post and I kinda wanted to add onto it and at the same time I didn't want to derail it with my own issue. Discussion of Neil Gaiman, fandom, and fatphobia below...

I was not a fan of Neil Gaiman. Not in a way where I disliked him, I just simply didn't engage with his work whatsoever. He was a non-entity to me. But when his big "Sandman" show came out I became aware of a certain incident in his show, namely the fatphobic depiction of the concept of "Despair". In an article about his work I remember Gaiman's characters in the source material had been described as fitting the aesthetic, "heroin chic". This character, Despair, the personification of human misery, was the only fat woman in the main cast.

I saw other fat folks call this out. I saw a direct response from him that, in my opinion, was smug and patronizing. But much more importantly, I saw flocks of people defending not his choice, but him personally. About what a feminist he is. About how thoughtful he is. We just didn't understand his genius. It was a misunderstanding. A misinterpretation. Because that would be bad, and he's not bad, he's good.

Some even went so far as to defend the choice as "better in the source material". You see, in the source material the fat woman personifying human misery was naked! It was better when she wasn't so sad, she simply scurried about like some hateful gremlin, shocking her victims with the grotesquity of her uncovered fatness. Isn't that better?

I researched the character and read a claim that her body was inspired by the Venus of Willendorf. The Venus of Willendorf is a historical artifact of a voluptuous woman. It signifies desire and fertility. Dare I even say, joy. And then someone allegedly saw this artifact and went, "I will name it Despair."

I was offended by reading that, but after doing so I found that I was so much more offended by the response. I mean, it's obvious that this was fatphobia, wasn't it? It was so clearly cut and dry. There was no kinder interpretation. And yet I watched as people bent over backwards, because he was so good! And he made them feel seen and so he couldn't have any prejudices that make that less true. And so when I posted about this whole situation I mainly posted about that response. Because that's what irked me most.

And after that, I decided I wasn't going to be a Neil Gaiman fan on purpose, rather than on accident. When it came to the man himself, I just rolled my eyes and put him into the box of "Not For Me". He could have turned out to be a holy saint in all other ways, for all I knew or cared.

But he wasn't a saint. He turned out to be a rapist.

I'm sorry if this comes across as a gotcha because that's the opposite of my intention. I'm not saying it to derail focus. I'm not trying to make it all about me or my pet cause.

What I'm trying to say is, people will now see things like Despair and take it as a "sign". It's going to be okay now to pick apart his work because now he's a rapist. But I didn't need to know he wasn't a good person to know this person's work wasn't safe for me. And I also knew it wasn't safe to say so, because everyone who tried to talk about how hurt they felt was told how wrong they were to feel that way.

At the same time, it's safe for me to finally vent about how this made me feel now, now that it doesn't matter because he's not good, he's bad actually.

I guess I'm just hoping instead of the usual pattern, where everyone bemoans the fall from grace and debates whether we "should have known" or "couldn't have known", people reading this can try to make space for a middle ground of criticism of the things you love now. Find that gray area somewhere between the top of the pedestal where everything the saint did was with the best intentions, and down in the muck where we should've known he was a rapist all along. Not because saints are secret rapists, but because there are no saints, and most people are there in the middle.

[kallie-den]

Faithful to the Source Material

Laura and Carmen turn the tables on their homophobic bully by hypnotizing her to act like the lesbian vampire she’s dressed up as for Halloween… but will things get out of hand?

If you like my writing, please consider supporting me on Patreon!  For less than the price of a cup of coffee each month, you can get immediate, early access to everything I write - 4 pieces of hypno-smut a  month, including the latest chapters of all the multi-chapter stories I write. Your support helps me keep writing and is greatly appreciated <3

---

Vicky had gone all-out with her Halloween costume. From the bottom of her heart, Laura detested the bully, but she had to hand it to her for that.

Vicky wasn’t one to half-commit. She had even dyed her hair jet black to match her gothic, lacy, corseted dress—complete with high collar, chest cut-out, and long, flowing sleeves—and the black gemstones in her earrings and on her necklace. Her makeup was just as on-point; deathly pale powder, not just on her face but all the way down her neck and across her chest, plus viciously dark, shadowy eyes, carefully accentuated cheekbone shadows, and rich, crimson lipstick. She was even wearing deep red color contacts. But the cherry on top of the cake was, of course, her fangs. Laura knew they had to be fake, but they certainly looked real enough when the way Vicky’s malevolent smirk pulled back her lips made them visible.

She really did make for a perfect vampire.

It was the best Halloween costume Laura and her girlfriend, Carmen, had seen all night. It was striking and gorgeous, and high-quality enough to almost seem real without sacrificing that fun hint of Halloween tackiness. And as much as it pained Laura to admit it, the vampire getup made Vicky look unbelievably, irresistibly hot.

It was just such a shame that Vicky was a mean, bullying, irredeemable, homophobic piece of shit.

And that she had decided to spend her Halloween ruining Laura and Carmen’s night.

“Wow,” Vicky drawled, as she stood in the doorway and regarded Laura and Carmen with a sadistic, disgusted glare. “I didn’t realize they let dykes into this party.”

Laura flinched. She loved that word, and hated the way Vicky made it sound like something shameful.

“Christ, Vicky,” Carmen groaned, a furious scowl on her face. “You know it’s not nineteen-fifty anymore, right? Just leave us alone.”

“I’d love to,” Vicky retorted. “But if someone doesn’t keep you freaks in your place, the whole sorority house is gonna end up smelling like rug-muncher. Ew.”

Laura surreptitiously tugged at Carmen’s sleeve. “Maybe we should just go?” she whispered.

Of the two of them, Carmen had always been the most inclined to actually stand up to Vicky and her bigotry. Laura wished she found it as easy to be so brave—but tonight, in particular, she’d been hoping for nothing more than a fun, relaxed, festive night with her girlfriend. Now that it had already been ruined, she couldn’t find it in herself to want to stay.

It was especially discouraging that this was exactly what Laura had worried would happen when the two of them had made up their minds to go to that year’s big sorority Halloween party. It was sure to be a blast—but Vicky was sure to be there. She was in the sorority, after all. In the end, Carmen had persuaded Lauren that the sorority house would be huge and packed, and that Vicky would have better things to do. Besides, what other time of year did you get to enjoy dressing up as creeps and ghouls?

Apparently, they wouldn’t get to enjoy it at this time of year either.

When she had accidentally locked eyes with Vicky across the room, Laura had immediately dragged Carmen upstairs to one of the private bedrooms reserved for hook-ups, hoping that Vicky would soon lose track of them and forget about them. No such luck. She’d tracked them upstairs like a bloodhound—and here they were.

“What are you two lesbos supposed to be dressed as, anyway?” Vicky snorted, stepping into the bedroom. “A nerd, and… a cartoon mom?”

“A… huh?” Carmen blinked, incredulous. “I’m a mad scientist. I figured it was pretty obvious.”

It was. Laura’s girlfriend was wearing a distinctly singed white lab coat, with big eye-protection goggles up on her forehead, her hair wild, and an assortment of measuring instruments and test tubes placed carefully throughout the costume. Personally, Laura was having a great time seeing her psychology student girlfriend really lean into the vibe.

“And I’m the bride of Frankenstein,” Laura put in. She thought she’d done pretty well with her costume—not just the dress and face paint, but the hair too.

“OK.” Vicky stared at her like she’d just told her that the sky was orange. “So… why the stupid hair?”

Laura blinked. “Like… the movie?”

Vicky just went on staring, nonplussed.

“Look,” Carmen said, standing up from the bed the two lesbians had been perched on. “Can’t you just leave us alone, Vicky? Just for one night? This is ridiculous.”

Their college was in a pretty conservative state; finding people who were bothered by Laura and Carmen’s sexualities and their relationship wasn’t all that hard. But mostly, those small-minded idiots restrained themselves to some mean looks and the silent treatment. Only Vicky had made it her business to follow the two of them wherever they went and make their lives miserable. It was as if nothing made her happier. At least this time she didn’t have her usual gaggle of followers along for the ride.

“Oh, trust me, I have plenty better things to do.” Vicky folded her arms and smirked. “But I just had to see how the two of you decided to fuck up Halloween. I guess it really is true what they say: dykes have no style.”

For some reason, the comments about their costumes were what was causing Laura’s temper to flare. “Oh yeah?” she shot back. “And what about you? A slutty vampire? Jeez, how creative!”

Vicky bristled but didn’t lose her cool. “Vampires are iconic,” she retorted smugly. “They never go out of fashion. Nobody needs to guess what I am. Vampires are peak Halloween. Peak horror. Everybody knows that.”

“Ugh. What do you know?” Laura replied furiously. She and Carmen both loved horror—and she knew perfectly well that Vicky didn’t. She was nothing more than a poser. To her, Halloween was nothing more than an excuse to dress up in a way that had the frat boys drooling over her even more than usual. “About lesbians, about Halloween, about vampires—or about anything else.”

“Vampires drink blood, they can’t go out in the sun, and they’re scared of crosses.” Vicky counted her points off on her fingers as she made them. “It’s not that hard, genius.”

“Actually,” Carmen put in. “There’s a lot more to vampires than just that. A whole lot of folklore that most people don’t know the first thing about.”

Laura threw her a look. Unusually, Carmen didn’t sound mad. She sounded like she was up to something.

“Whatever.” Vicky shrugged. “That sounds boring. This is a party, you know? I guess dykes don’t know how to have fun either.”

“It’s actually a lot more interesting than you might think,” Carmen continued. The hairs on the back of Laura’s head stood up when she recognized the tone of voice her girlfriend was slipping into. “Modern vampires are based on legends, and the roots of those legends still shape our modern perceptions. For example, you know the count from Sesame Street? His obsession with numbers is actually rooted in vampire folklore.”

“Huh.” The look on Vicky’s face was still utterly hostile but it was clear that despite herself, she was interested. It helped, of course, that Carmen’s voice was so easy to listen to.

“You see, according to folklore,” Carmen went on, “vampires feel compelled to count things. A traditional way to ward off a vampire was to scatter grains around the entrance of a house. The vampire would need to count them all before entering, and would end up burning up when the sun rose.”

“That’s stupid,” Vicky said guardedly.

“Maybe,” Carmen admitted, smiling. “But I wonder if it would work on you. After all, you’re clearly so in character.”

Vicky scoffed. “Of course it wouldn’t. That’s really stupid.”

“You’d be surprised,” Carmen told her with provocative confidence. “Take it from me, as a psych student: the urge to count is already natural and sometimes, the way we dress can deeply influence our thoughts and behaviors. I bet you wouldn’t be able to resist.”

“You bet, huh?” Vicky suddenly grinned. “Fine. OK. Sure. Let’s bet. Try out your stupid anti-vampire trick on me. If it works, I’ll give you a pass for the night. If it doesn’t, the two of you lesbos have to leave us normal people to party in peace.”

“You’re on,” Carmen was grinning too. “Should be easy for you. All you have to do is keep your head.”

“Bring it!” Vicky said savagely.

Laura wasn’t surprised she was taking the challenge. Vicky was just that arrogant. She was surprised, however, by what Carmen was trying to pull.

“Babe,” she said quietly. “You sure about this?”

Carmen just winked at her. Laura couldn’t help but find that hot.

“OK, let’s do it like this,” Carmen said to Vicky. “Both of us are going to count—you under your breath, me out loud. I’ll count the Fibonacci sequence. You count back from a hundred in threes.”

“The what sequence?” Vicky demanded impatiently.

Carmen sighed. “You know, each number the sum of the previous two? Like… zero, one, one, two, three, five?”

“More nerd shit?” Vicky sneered. “Fine. Back from a hundred in threes sounds easy. I’m a business major, you know. We do a lot with numbers. How do I win?”

“Easy,” Carmen told her. “All you have to do is make it to zero without being distracted by my count.”

Vicky’s grin widened, showing her fake fangs. “Sounds like you’re practically handing me the win! Well, I won’t complain about the chance to kick a couple of loser dykes out of my sorority house. Fine.”

“Laura,” Carmen said. “Why don’t you count us in?”

Laura was already shivering with anticipation. She knew what was happening. And she knew Carmen was going to win.

“Three,” she counted. “Two. One. Go.”

Immediately, Vicky’s lips started mouthing as she counted out: ‘a hundred, ninety-seven, ninety-four.’ She was moving fast but not rushing; pacing herself, so she didn’t make a mistake. After a moment, Carmen started counting too.

“Zero,” she said, her voice suddenly and unexpectedly soft and song-like. “One. One. Two. Three. Five. You know, the sequence always catches me out a little at first. It’s tricky to remember how it starts. Zero, then one—but one plus zero is one, so there’s another one. And then two, of course. One plus one.”

Vicky’s brow furrowed. Already, her counting was slowing down as her numbers became mixed up with the flow of Carmen’s words.

“Sorry, I’m just rambling,” Carmen assured her. “Silly of me. I’m just giving you extra time, aren’t I?”

Laura couldn’t keep the smile off her face. Vicky clearly suspected Carmen was trying to throw her off. Laura knew her girlfriend was intent on something far more fun.

Hypnotizing her.

It was one of Carmen’s passions, born out of her enduring interest in human psychology. Hypnosis had begun as her research subject and progressed to something she and Laura were exploring privately. Just thinking about some of the creative bedroom uses they’d found for hypnosis made Laura’s cheeks burn. And she knew neither of them had been able to help fantasizing about using hypnosis to give bigots like Vicky their comeuppance.

Now, Carmen was finally giving it a shot.

“Eight,” Carmen counted. Her voice was all but irresistible. Laura knew that from experience. She was struggling not to dip into a trance herself. “Thirteen. Twenty-one. Isn’t it funny, how quickly it starts ramping up? Suddenly, the simple addition is getting a little trickier. Isn’t it hard not to wonder about what comes next, Vicky?”

Vicky was slowly blinking as she fought to concentrate. It was clear that she was torn between wanting to tell Carmen to shut up and wanting to try to ignore her completely. Caught on the horns of that dilemma, Vicky was unable to stop herself from following along with Carmen’s count. From doing the very same math Carmen was distracting her with.

“Thirty-four,” Carmen went on. Her voice was perfectly, irresistibly hypnotic. “Fifty-five. Eighty-nine. A hundred and forty-four. Isn’t it crazy how it jumps up into three digits? It almost doubles in just one go. Of course, really, it’s not crazy at all. It’s just the sequence following its own simple rule. Completely predictable. Completely natural.”

Vicky was starting to lose her place. Laura could see it. She was in the seventies, but her lip movements as she counted were growing less and less certain. She couldn’t help listening to Carmen.

“Of course, your sequence isn’t like that at all,” Carmen added. “It’s nice and regular—and it goes down, instead of up. That’s important, isn’t it? Down, down, down. Not adding. Subtracting. Getting close and closer to zero, with every number you count.”

“I…” Vicky breathed, before she could stop herself. Then, she simply froze.

“Lost your place?” Carmen suggested. “That’s OK. You can find it again, right? Or maybe you can even start over from scratch. All you need to do is keep going down. Two-hundred and thirty-three. Three-hundred and seventy-seven. Isn’t that a fun pattern? What comes next, Vicky?”

Strangely, Vicky no longer seemed to be struggling to concentrate. It was like the fight had gone out of her. Her lips were still moving, but they formed nothing but weak, addled gasps that went nowhere.

“You don’t know, do you?” Carmen offered. “The numbers are getting higher and lower and longer and shorter, and you’ve lost track. Why don’t you count along with me instead? Six-hundred and ten. Nine-hundred and eighty-seven. Aren’t these numbers getting large?”

Laura couldn’t help but shiver at the way Vicky’s lips started moving purposefully again—only this time, she was following Carmen’s sequence instead of her own, long-forgotten count.

“Oops,” Carmen smirked. “Look at you. You’re going the wrong way, Vicky. You’re all turned around. All confused. Don’t you remember what you’re supposed to be doing?”

Vicky’s brow furrowed. It was like she was trying to speak, but the words wouldn’t come. She was on the verge of falling.

“Why don’t you just relax, instead?” Carmen whispered seductively. “Give up. Relax. It’s only natural, Vicky. When we get overwhelmed, we just want to relax, instead. To let the numbers fade away. To forget our silly little game and just let yourself… drop.”

She imbued that last word with a singular, forceful intonation, and it seemed to hit Vicky like a physical blow. She swayed for a moment before her shoulders slumped and her head dropped down to her chest.

Hypnotized.

“Oh my god,” Laura said in a hushed, excited voice, after a moment of disbelieving silence. “Did it work?”

“Yeah,” Carmen replied, her excitement barely constrained. “Yeah, it did.”

“She’s in a trance,” Laura stated. “We… we could do anything with her.”

“We sure could,” Carmen agreed.

They exchanged looks.

“It would be wrong,” Laura asserted quickly.

“Would it?” Carmen mused.

“Yes!” Laura told her, trying to make herself believe. “I mean… uh… consent, right? Like between us, or in your experiments, or…” She looked at Vicky again. Their bully wasn’t moving. “I… I can’t believe it was that easy.”

“Guess she’s not such a skeptic after all,” Carmen said.

“Huh?”

“Hypnosis is all about the power of belief,” Carmen explained. “Sure, there’s a bunch of psychological tricks—but at the end of the day, belief is what matters most. It’s surprisingly easy to hypnotize someone who truly believes in it.”

“Right…” Laura swallowed. “We should probably wake her up.”

“We will,” Carmen decided. “Eventually.

“Babe…” Laura warned.

“C’mon,” Carmen wheedled. “We’ll just have a little bit of fun. What’s the harm? It’ll be embarrassing for her, at the worst. Doesn’t she deserve at least that?”

Laura couldn’t find it in herself to deny it. “So… what did you have in mind?”

“I think Vicky needs some help finding her Halloween spirit,” Carmen answered a touch menacingly.

Against her better judgment, Laura giggled. “Yeah?”

Carmen took a step toward Vicky and addressed her in a firm, clear voice. “Vicky, listen to me. In a few moments, I’m going to wake you up, and until I say ‘drop’ again, you’re going to be able to think and move and act just like normal. The only difference is that you’re going to realize that, on Halloween, it’s extremely important that you’re completely in character as a vampire, and that all your behavior is perfectly faithful to the source material. Understand?”

“Yes,” Vicky replied. Laura shivered at the utter lack of emotion in her voice.

“Perfect.” Carmen licked her lips. “Then… one, two, three, wake!”

Vicky lifted her head and her eyes flickered open—and at once, she was transformed.

“Well, well, well,” she purred, with an air of menacing theatricality. “What do we have here? A couple of delicious mortals with which I can sate my thirst!”

As one, both Laura and Carmen burst into laughter.

It was, above all, the contrast. Vicky was the kind of girl who would never, ever have allowed herself to commit to the bit so earnestly. But here she was, throwing herself into the role of a silly, campy, evil vampire with shameless abandon; stalking around the sorority house bedroom and leering at the two of them with an arrogant, ravenous glare.

“You laugh,” Vicky hissed, posing and preening like a dark queen. “But soon you shall know the terror of the vampire’s bite!”

Laura’s laughter redoubled. “Oh my god, babe!” she wheezed. “She really went all the way with it, huh?”

“I didn’t realize she had it in her,” Carmen cackled.

Vicky bared her fangs and let out a much louder hiss. “I loathe to stain my fangs with your degenerate filth!” she declared, lifting her hands with her fingers spread apart like talons. “But it will be my pleasure to rid my unholy domain of your stench.”

Laura quickly stopped laughing. “Wow,” she remarked, a touch impressed. “Even as a vampire, she’s completely homophobic.”

“Why don’t we fix that?” Carmen winked at her.

“How dare you!”

Vicky rounded on Carmen and lunged toward her, mouth open, as if to sink her fake, plastic fangs into her neck. But before she could, Carmen started to speak:

“Vicky! Three, two, one… drop.”

At the word ‘drop,’ Vicky slumped once more. In an instant, all that vampiric theatricality was gone, leaving her nothing more than a blank, hypnotized vessel.

Laura hated finding Vicky attractive, in any context. But seeing her like this really was driving her crazy.

“Dropping nice and deep,” Carmen soothed. “Now, Vicky: remember what I told you about being faithful to the source material? You might not know this, but some of the earliest modern literature surrounding vampires—especially female vampires—is actually about lesbians.”

Vicky seemed to stir for a moment, brow furrowing.

“Oh yes,” Carmen lectured. “The book ‘Carmilla’, for instance. It’s a seminal text, truly. You can’t help but be inspired by it.”

“Can’t…” Vicky echoed, her voice a ghost of itself. “Help…”

“That’s right,” Carmen assured her. “You can’t help it. You need to be a lesbian vampire.”

“L… les… bi��?” Now Vicky was really stirring. Her shoulders tensed, and Laura thought for sure that she was on the cusp of waking. “N-no… that’s… ugh.”

“Just think about it,” Carmen urged softly. “It’s not that you’re a lesbian, Vicky. You’re just pretending. Just dressing up. Isn’t that what Halloween’s all about?”

“I… s’pose,” Vicky murmured—a touch suspiciously, but her stirrings were subsiding.

“Of course,” Carmen agreed. “It just makes sense to pretend on Halloween. To pretend to be whatever you’re dressed up as. And since you’re dressed up as a lesbian vampire, that’s what you’ll pretend to be.”

“Yeah…” Vicky slumped again. “Pretend. Lesbian.”

“Uh-huh.” Carmen was determined to press her advantage. “It’s acting, basically. But here’s the thing about acting, Vicky: the best kind is method acting. I’m sure you’ve heard of it. It’s when you totally embrace the role you’re playing, inside and out. It’s when you truly feel it. Right?”

“Right,” Vicky echoed slowly. Her resistance was gone. She was a prisoner of Carmen’s words.

“So,” Carmen concluded. “When I wake you up again, you’ll be a lesbian vampire inside and out. You’ll feel that way. You’ll act that way. You’ll be perfectly faithful to the ideal. Understand?”

“Yes.” Again, Vicky’s voice was devoid of all feeling.

“Perfect.” Carmen took a beat to exchange eager, excited looks with Laura. “Then: one, two, three, wake!”

This time, when Vicky looked open and opened her eyes, Laura and Carmen found themselves in the presence of a very, very different kind of vampire.

“My, my,” Vicky drawled, glancing between Laura and Carmen. “This ought to be a truly delicious night.”

This time, as she started walking around the room, she moved with a distinctly seductive gait, chest held high and hips swaying with each step. Her eyes roamed ravenously over the two lesbians’ bodies, and her voice was thick with a hunger that was as much lust as thirst.

Laura and Carmen started laughing even harder than before.

“Oh my god,” Laura howled, wiping tears from her eyes. “If she could see herself…”

“Told you this was a good idea,” Carmen cackled. She was laughing so hard, she had to rest a hand on a nearby dresser for support.

Surprisingly, Vicky laughed lightly along with them. “You two make a delectable couple,” she declared. “Such complimentary flavors… I can’t wait to savor the taste.”

She opened her mouth, brandishing her cheap, plastic fangs, and then, as she locked eyes with Laura, extended her tongue and stroked it carefully across both pointed tips.

Laura stopped laughing, and a familiar shiver raced down her spine.

She was finding this way, way too hot.

Vicky was hot. As much as Laura wanted to recoil from the thought, there was no use denying it. She had a killer body, and the flashy, gothic vampire getup she was wearing was devastatingly attuned to Laura’s tastes. Normally, the fact that she was a bigot and a bully was more than enough to put Laura off—but now that she was a lesbian vampire, she wasn’t sure she could resist her.

“Tell me, Laura.” As if sensing her weakness, Vicky advanced on her. “Have you ever yearned to be devoured?”

“I… um…” Suddenly, Laura found herself sweating bullets—and she was the one Carmen was giggling at. “That’s… n-no…”

"It sounds perplexing, no?” Vicky was alarmingly close to her now. “But let me let you in on a little secret, mortal: there’s a thrill to be had in being prey.”

The intense, menacing theatricality she poured into that last word made Laura shudder. Carmen was still giggling behind her hand, but Laura could no longer see the funny side. She was too busy wondering how Vicky had figured out that she was the bottom in the relationship.

“Ah, I can see you already feel it.” Before Laura knew what was happening, Vicky had slipped around behind her and was pressed up against her back, the hypnotized girl’s hand cradling her waist. “I can feel your heart beating, Laura. Pumping your veins full of hot, red crimson. Isn’t it intoxicating?”

“Um!” Laura squeaked. She was melting like putty, and it was deathly embarrassing. The worst part was that Vicky was right. She could feel it too. Her heart was pounding with thrilling arousal. “C-Carmen?”

“Shush now,” Vicky whispered. “Her next. We can make it a girls’ night. But you first. I can’t wait to taste every part of you.”

Hearing those words in Vicky’s voice, of all people’s, was doing a number on Laura. It was more than she could handle—especially when Vicky reached up and tipped her unresisting head to one side, and bent in until Laura could feel her breath on her neck.

“C-C-Carmen!” Laura squeaked. She couldn’t take any more of this—and she could tell Vicky wasn’t going to stop.

“OK, OK,” Carmen swiftly stepped in before Vicky’s fangs could meet Laura’s skin. “Vicky. Three, two, one, drop.”

Laura felt the hand on her waist fall away, and she was finally able to slip free of Vicky’s grasp. When she turned to look at the bully, the light in her eyes was gone. Just like before, she was hypnotized.

“O-oh my god,” Laura panted. “That was… uh… um…”

“Hot?” Carmen supplied mischievously.

“Embarrassing!” Laura corrected, blushing fiercely. “I mean, I… that was… with Vicky? No. Nuh-uh. No way.”

“I dunno.” Carmen was still smirking. “It would have been an experience, that’s for sure. And face it: you were into it.”

Laura averted her eyes. “L-let’s just wake her up, yeah? We’ve had our fun.”

“Aw.” Carmen pouted. She looked great when she did that. “No, c’mon. We’re only just getting started. Look, I admit that one got a little out of hand. How about we turn the temperature down a bit?”

“Carmen…” Laura said reprovingly, although she could already feel herself swaying.

“C’mon, babe,” Carmen pleaded. “This is once in a lifetime.”

Laura couldn’t keep the smile from her face. Saying ‘yes’ to her girlfriend was such a delight.

“Fine!” she threw up her hands. “What did you have in mind?”

“Vicky,” Carmen said, addressing the hypnotized bully. “You’re doing good. You’re doing very well, so just keep dropping for me, OK?”

Not a stir. She was completely gone. Laura was in awe of how totally Vicky had fallen under Carmen’s hypnotic power.

“Now, there’s something else you need to start thinking about,” Carmen told Vicky. “You’re a great lesbian vampire, but if you really want to be faithful to the source material, we need to start thinking about where vampires are from. Where is that, Vicky?”

“Trans… Transylvania?” Vicky supplied after a moment, in that distant, empty, trance-voice of hers.

“That’s exactly right,” Carmen agreed. “And Transylvania is in Romania. Eastern Europe. So this time, when I wake you up, you’re going to make sure you have an appropriate accent. Understand?”

“Yes,” Vicky responded.

“Uh… wait,” Laura bleated, eyes suddenly wide. “H-hold on, Carmen, that’s-“

“Oh, it’s just a bit of fun,” Carmen scoffed, before turning back to Vicky. “One, two, three, wake!”

Before Laura could figure out how to stop her, Vicky was already opening her eyes and slipping back into the haughty, preening vampire pose she’d previously been strutting around in. Only this time, when she opened her mouth, her voice was even more ridiculous than before:

“Vell, vell, vell,” Vicky drawled, in a cheesy but surprisingly close approximation of an Eastern European accent. “Vhat a pleasure it is, to zee that ze blossoms of ze new world are so ripe and so lovely.”

Immediately, Carmen bent double and started laughing so hard she almost choked. Laura couldn’t blame her. That way that Vicky, of all people, was throwing herself into the accent was beyond ridiculous. Anyone would have been laughing.

But not her. Instead, beads of sweat were forming on Laura’s forehead.

“My dears,” Vicky said, once again drawing close to Laura. “Von’t you let try a bite?”

Laura tried her very hardest not to let it show—but when Vicky slipped her hand around her waist again, the combination of her natural beauty, her unbelievable costume, and the honeyed, lilting accent pouring out of her mouth, Laura couldn’t help but let out a shrill, needy gasp.

Carmen seized upon it mercilessly.

“Oh my god, babe,” she laughed. “That does it for you?”

“It’s…” Laura whimpered. Her face was burning up. “I-I just have a thing for accents.”

“Vonderful,” Vicky cooed. Eager to torment her, she put her lips as close as she could to Laura’s ear and spoke to her in a sinister, syrupy whisper. “Then, let me speak to you of ze poetry of ze night, and have you vall into my unholy embrace.”

As cheesy as the line was, it had Laura squeezing her legs together with need. It didn’t help that Carmen was also staring at her, and the wicked, malicious look on her girlfriend’s face was equal to the one hypnotically plastered on Vicky’s.

“P-please,” Laura found herself saying, as the fetishistic allure of her situation momentarily overtook her sense of restraint.

“As you vish,” Vicky intoned mockingly.

And bit down on Laura’s neck.

Laura moaned and saw white. Until she felt Vicky’s tongue on her skin, she hadn’t realized quite how turned-on she’d become. But hypnotism, vampires, accents—she had kinks for all of them, and the intoxicating combination had gotten all the way under her skin. Above all, the fact that it was Vicky was getting to her—their homophobic, sorority girl bully, turned silly, seductive, sapphic vampire. It was too much. Even the pain felt good, when Vicky bit down on Laura as if her plastic fangs could actually pierce skin.

“Three, two, one, drop.”

Laura almost resented it, when Carmen used the hypnotic trigger to drop Vicky back into a trance. Still, as the pleasure receded, she acknowledged that it was probably a good thing Carmen had put a stop to matters before anything got truly out of hand.

Then she learned that Carmen intended exactly the opposite.

"Vicky,” Carmen began. “We’ve already established that I know much, much more about vampires than you. Haven’t we?”

“Yes,” Vicky intoned emptily.

“Carmen?” Laura whispered. Her legs were still jelly. She couldn’t move.

“Then you should listen to me about vampires, no matter how absurd what I tell you might seem, should you?” Carmen told Vicky, ignoring her girlfriend.

“Yes.”

“That’s right. And with that in mind, I have something very important to tell you about lesbian vampires. They don’t drink blood. They eat pussy.”

As Laura gasped in shock, Vicky started to twitch violently. “But… ugh… that… gross,” she whined sleepily.

“That doesn’t matter,” Carmen insisted swiftly. “Performers do all kinds of things they’d normally consider gross if it’s for a performance, don’t they?”

“I… suppose…” Vicky was clearly repulsed by the notion, but Carmen’s soft words and confident demeanor were quickly soothing her.

“This is no different,” Carmen told her. “Eating pussy is no different.”

“No…” Vicky was fighting to shake her head. “But…”

“Repeat after me,” Carmen insisted. “Lesbian vampires eat pussy.”

“Lesbian… vampires…” Vicky’s reluctance was obvious—but she was giving in. “E… eat…”

“Lesbian vampires eat pussy.”

“L… Les…” The fight went out of her. Any hint of disgust or disobedience disappeared from her voice, leaving her blank and willing once more. “Lesbian vampires eat pussy.”

“Great.” Carmen licked her lips. “One, two, three-“

“Wait!” Laura blurted out. She was still flushed and flustered beyond belief, but she had to say something. “C-Carmen, we can’t!”

“You want to,” Carmen pointed out.

“I don-“ Laura looked away. “T-that’s not the point. It’s wrong. It’s evil.”

“It’s Halloween, baby,” Carmen winked. “It’s the time of year that evil wins. How about you just sit back and enjoy it?”

Laura wasn’t sure how to convince her. She wasn’t even sure she wanted to. The grin on Carmen’s face was infectious. And when were they going to get another chance to get even with Vicky?

“One,” Carmen counted, sensing Laura’s capitulation. “Two. Three. Wake.”

When Vicky’s eyes opened once more, she had the same hungry look on her face, the same preening, arrogant bearing, and the same ridiculous accent. The only difference was that she wasn’t staring at Laura’s neck anymore.

She was staring between her legs.

“Mortal!” Vicky declared, lapping at her fangs with her tongue. “I vant to drink your cunt! And it is time for ze unholy feast to begin.”

Even Laura had to giggle at how stupid the line was. But her laughter soon turned to needy moaning when Vicky surged forward and sank to her knees, flashing Laura a saucy look before flipping up the hem of her dress and burying her face between her thighs.

When Laura felt Vicky’s tongue touch her cunt, her legs turned to jelly so completely, she had to lean back against a nearby wall for support.

Given that Vicky was completely straight, it was a little ridiculous that she was so good at this.

Perhaps it was simply her naked enthusiasm. Vicky was eating Laura out like her life depended on it. Like every single drop of wetness that touched her lips was the nectar of the gods. She was voracious. A predator tearing into her fallen quarry. Laura had never experienced anything quite like it. It was totally different from the slow, detached, teasing way Carmen usually ate her out. For a queen bitch like Vicky and for the vampire persona she was acting out, the blatant neediness was surprising.

Carmen clearly agreed.

“Three. Two. One. Drop.”

Laura whined loudly when she felt Vicky’s tongue go still.

“C-Carmen!” she complained. “N-not fair.”

“Sorry, babe,” her girlfriend giggled. “I just know how you like it, and I know you’ll enjoy this even more if you get put in your place properly.”

Laura whined louder still. “B-but,” she protested. “It’s Vicky!”

Carmen winked at her. “Exactly.”

The hot flush of shame and arousal that washed over Laura completely robbed her of her words. In the face of her silence, Carmen turned to address the hypnotized bully.

“Remember, Vicky,” Carmen encouraged. “Vampires aren’t just lesbians. Aren’t just blood- I mean, pussy-licking predators. They’re dominant. Powerful. Godlike, even.”

“Dominant,” Vicky echoed, rocking back on her knees. “Powerful. Godlike.”

“Exactly,” Carmen agreed. “Vampires are so arrogant and prideful. They’re always in charge. Even when they’re taking what they need from someone, they never let anybody forget that they’re far, far more powerful than the mere mortals they feed on.”

“More… powerful,” Vicky said slowly.

“Perfect,” Carmen whispered.

Laura swallowed nervously. They had already seen how completely Vicky took to whatever suggestions she was fed. She couldn’t quite shake the feeling that Carmen was about to create a monster.

Carmen, though, pressed on without a second thought. “One. Two. Three. Wake.”

When Vicky opened her eyes, Laura braced herself for the worst. She wasn’t disappointed. In a single, graceful motion, Vicky rose to her feet—and then disdainfully threw Laura off-balance and sent her sprawling onto the bed. Laura let out a surprised yelp but, like a mouse caught in the jaws of a cat, found herself helpless to move or resist. In an instant, Vicky was upon her, spreading her legs apart and lowering her face toward Laura’s dripping cunt with a merciless look on her face.

“Oh, babe,” Carmen giggled, from behind the hypnotized bully. “You’re in for a treat. I can just tell she’s going to ruin you.”

Laura whimpered in delicious anticipation at the tease. Vicky, though, had a very different reaction. She seemed to freeze up for a moment—and then, curiously, she started backing off. Slowly, Vicky lifted herself off the bed and turned her attention away from Laura.

To Carmen.

Carmen cocked an amused eyebrow as Vicky regarded her with a disdainful glare. That only seemed to light a fire inside her.

“Oh, I zee,” Vicky mused, in that ridiculous accent. “Perhaps you, mortal, vill be my first meal.”

“I will, huh?” Carmen could barely contain her laughter. “God. Who knew I’d have Vicky, of all people, begging to lick my cunt on Halloween?”

“Beg?” Vicky let out a humorless laugh. “No. No, I do not beg. I simply take.”

“Uh-huh,” Carmen scoffed. “And how do you propose to do that?”

From where she was lying sprawled on the bed, Laura could just about see the slow, calculating grin as it spread across Vicky’s face.

“Look,” Vicky said in a very slow, deep voice, after several long moments. “Look into my eyes. Deep into my eyes.”

Laughter erupted from Carmen. “Oh my god. Oh, you cannot be serious.”

“Oh, but I am,” Vicky warned. “You vill look into my eyes. Deep into my eyes. You cannot resist ze eyes of ze vampire.”

As she drew out each word, her accent became more ludicrous than ever. Laura wasn’t laughing, though. She was still too stunned by this turn of events—and besides, when her voice was this slow and soft, there was something oddly compelling about the way Vicky was speaking.

"Fine, fine,” Carmen said, rolling her eyes before meeting Vicky’s gaze. “I’m looking. Deep into your eyes.” She started mimicking Vicky’s accent. “I cannot resist ze eyes of ze vampire.”

“Very good,” Vicky cooed. “That’s right. You cannot resist. The eyes of ze vampire hold power over you. Look into my deep, crimson eyes. Let yourself be ensnared by ze red glow.”

She spoke with absolute confidence. It was as if there was no doubt in her mind that she would be able to hypnotize Carmen. The look of dismissive amusement on Carmen’s face remained, but she kept humoring Vicky.

“You know, those color contacts are actually pretty good,” Carmen remarked, after a moment. She was leaning in, looking carefully. “Almost real. Really rich, deep shade of red.”

Vicky looked faintly baffled by the reference to contacts, but she pressed on without comment. “Rich. Deep. Impossible to resist,” the hypnotized bully drawled. “You feel yourself fascinated by them. Drawn into them. Captivated by them.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Carmen mocked, as she held Vicky’s gaze. “Fascinated. Drawn. Captivated.”

“You cannot look away.”

“I cannot look away.”

“You veel yourself slipping into a trance for my eyes.”

“I…” Carmen twitched uncertainly. It was like she was trying to pull away—but couldn’t. “I feel myself… slipping into a trance?”

Laura’s blood suddenly ran cold.

“Zat’s right,” Vicky said, in a throaty, predatory purr. “I zee that you, mortal, are skilled in ze art of mesmerism. But your foolish mind games are nothing compared to ze vampire’s might. Your knowledge will only be your undoing.”

Laura recalled what Carmen had told her earlier. The more you believed in hypnosis, the more effective it was. And Carmen most certainly believed.

Oh no.

“Falling into my eyes,” Vicky menaced. “Lost forever in my eyes.

“Falling…” Carmen echoed. “Lost…”

The look of bemused disbelief on Carmen’s face had relaxed into a vacant, slack-jawed, captivated grin. Laura had never seen anything like it. Carmen was usually always so focused. So dominant. Seeing her like this was terrifying.

Even if it was also extremely, wildly hot.

“C-Carmen!” Laura called out. She needed to put a stop to this. She needed to make sure Vicky didn’t get any further out of hand. “Wake u-“

“Quiet, girl!” Vicky hissed. Her voice was like the crack of a whip. Still light-headed and weak from her earlier treatment, Laura found herself instinctively lapsing into silence. She couldn’t quite bring herself to disobey Vicky.

“L-Laura…” Carmen blinked slowly. “I was… what was I… were you…?”

“Hush now,” Vicky soothed, slipping back effortlessly into her seductive, hypnotic patter. “Remember. Looking only at me. Only into my eyes. Into ze vampire’s eyes. Letting ze vampire’s eyes consume you.”

“I…” A shiver raced down Laura’s spine as she saw her girlfriend try to look over at her—and fail. “But you’re… not… uh…” Carmen made one last effort to rally herself. “Vicky. Three… two…”

“Shush,” Vicky said swiftly. She reached out and placed one of her fingertips on Carmen’s lips. That was all it took to silence her. “None of that, now. So hard to speak. So easy to look into my eyes instead.”

“So…” Carmen bleated. Her resistance was gone. There was nothing in her eyes. “Hard… easy…”

“Zat’s right,” Vicky purred. “And you should not call me like that, from now on. You shall address me as Victoria.” She licked her lips. “Mistress Victoria.”

“Yes… Mistress Victoria,” Carmen replied mindlessly.

Laura’s entire body throbbed. This was so wrong. This was so hot. It was completely out of control. They had created a monster, and Carmen was no longer capable of putting on the brakes.

“Very good,” Vicky told her. “Now, my thrall. On ze bed. With your beloved. Present yourself to me. I wish to feast.”

“Yes, Mistress Victoria.”

Slowly, robotically, Carmen clambered onto the bed next to Laura and reclined into her back. With Laura still powerless to intervene, Carmen obediently reached down and unbuttoned her slacks, shucking out of her pants and her boxers to expose her pussy to the air. Vicky’s eyes widened, and she licked her lips once more.

“Delicious,” she purred, mounting the bed and lowering her head between Vicky’s thighs. Before she began to eat her out, she turned her head to glance at Laura. “You vill be next,” the hypnotized bully vowed. “And zen ze rest of the pretty young mortals in this sorority house. And then… who knows.”

Laura was left stunned and dizzy as she contemplated that, and then increasingly shocked and aroused as Vicky started licking and lapping at Carmen’s cunt. Carmen had always been the dominant partner in their relationship. A giver, not a receiver. But not anymore. For Vicky, she was nothing more than a weak, prone, mewling submissive.

It was one of the hottest things Laura had ever seen.

She couldn’t help but anticipate her turn with a certain growing eagerness. Laura wasn’t sure when Vicky might come to her senses, if ever, and she wasn’t sure what would happen when Vicky tried to seduce some of the other girls at the Halloween party. It could go badly, although Laura couldn’t shake the feeling that, somehow, Vicky would manage to pull it off. That would be quite something.

And above all, she found herself thinking: no matter how events played out, Vicky was much, much better this way than she had ever been before.

---

I would like to express my gratitude for the generosity of all those who support me on Patreon, and to give a special thanks to the following patrons in particular for their exceptional support:

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[haveihitanerve]

I figured that I would actually provide the source material to the stuff im commenting on, so uh yeah, here ya go, more SFTH nonsense with my thoughts bc you guys actually seem to care and enjoy them strangely enough???

anyway yeah, you know the drill, dont care about my dumb little lizard brain squeals of joy, dont click the keep reading button bc its a lot lol :)

those of you who do(thanks) and continue!!!-

“One of you… is hosting a party…” Luke looking between them like ‘who tf is gonna move’ while AJ is literally already half out of his chair because he knows they’re gonna make him do it-(literally a quote from Tom[not verbatim but close] “we always make AJ guess, because he… has the most trouble with it, and thats a joy”)anyway-

Sam’s eyebrow raise at Tom across the stage

“Balding” whoever said that- i love you. Sam, of course, volunteers, he’ll never pass up an opportunity to rag on one of his besties and we love him for it

His grin, once again across stage, to Tom

“Vampire bugs bunny.” toms face- and Luke immediately pointing it out

“He can do Bugs Bunny, I cannot.” “you can do bugs bunny cant you” help the fact that they just know  all this ahhhhh <333333

“Oh shit, Which means I’m balding…” don't lie tom you cant wait to annoy AJ with this

“What do you want Luke to be?” Tom you evil evil genius

“This is for giving him balding-” don't act like its karma Tom this is all you ever wanted

“Someone who’s convinced he’s tall.” whoever said that, marry me- you're hilarious and clearly have good taste if you're at this show

Luke also laughing at the joke is a joy

Tom pacing as Luke takes control again, literally grinning giddily with excitement ugh they clearly love what they do so much and its so pure

Toms smile at “yay!” idk its just pretty

Aj idk what kind of accent this is but im loving it

But tf were those hand movements- are we wrapping presents? 

Ok even he broke at it, and sam was grinning- luke laughed, very nice

So im not a big bugs bunny person but even i can kinda catch on to what sams trying to do- very clever, im soooo many levels of curious to know if aj can guess it

“Carrot” !!!!!!he said CARROT!!!! YAY close

Tom crossing the stage to enter from the same door as Sam-honestly i cant with their stagecraft anymore help-

Also the doorbell is soooo much higher for tom than it was for sam- sams was at his chest, toms was above his head anyway

“Careful.” AJs glance up into the cosmos to figure out what tf that means and how its a hint

Toms doing great job of being insecure about his hair, loving it, and the audience is eating this up

“This guy sucks and i should know about that” AJ’s frozen face of fear because what is he trying to tell me, quick what does that mean- oh shit im screwed-

“Other front door.” yep! Theres the stagecraft comment- Tom dodged it quite obviously but Luke had to go for the joke

PFFFFFF oh wow Luke is doing a brilliant job of being tall, truly

“I was just looking in the mirror and I couldn't see him behind me.” oh i completely forgot about the vampire bit- thank you tom-

Also sam helping him out with the “ting!’ is great, we love to see them helping each other (for once lol)

“All of the characters of the looney tunes” oh aj so close

“Uh, the bunny one.” “oh please no!” XD NOOOO AJ!!! COME ON!!! I BELIEVE IN YOU!!!!!

Luke breaking as well for it is the best 

Aj having to turn to look at him like “why did you let him choose this character- idk who this is.” 

“..lots of creatures” Luke literally folds, as Sam does the classic disappointed covering his face with one hand and tom has to walk away, classic

The way they join behind AJ like moral support kills me-

“Oh no you're really annoying me you're really---*expectant waiting* [bugging me]” nope aj is lost “fuckin-” now sam has to walk away LMAOOO

TOM LITERALLY ALMOST WALKING OFF STAGE IS INSANE

“Its like surveillance” aj- please, im begging you- we’re all begging you- go. simple. 

“Its called they piss you off.” Luke walking to the front of the stage so that everyone can see his disappointed head hang is crazy

“BUGS!!!” LADIES AND GENTLEMEN HES DONE IT AGAIN!!!! 

Oh no… oh no, aj please- please get it- please

“Bugs bunny.” YEAH!!!! YES YAY WOOHOO!!! HES DONE IT!!!!

Tom finally getting his moment to bring up his excellent addition- “its so crazy, i couldn't see him behind me in the mirror.” also walking to the front of the stage, thats gonna be a pattern

SAM LITERALLY KISSING AJ ON HIS BALD HEAD OMG IM GONNA CRY OF CUTENESS WHATTTTTT

MY HEART

“Hey my bald friend over here,” yess!!! Two in one!!! Nice work!!!

“Thats  your quirk.” man has never been so insulted in his l i f e 

Tom shrugging in answer as AJ smiles in disbelief is amazing

“I've got a pretty good angle.” while looking at the floor is what gives me life luke never change

“Is it like me ten years ago?” luke and tom both breaking at that- also, side note, they've known each other ten years to bring it up casually and have witnessed aj balding- moving on

Tom literally having to hug AJ after he guesses right XD i adore these little fucks so much

“You are so buff right now man.” Aj confused as to if this is real or…??? “Ok-?” laughs. oh these ridiculous goobers

“Fat friend.” wrong- wrong direction dude- up, not sideways🤭 so close

“All through this” still looking down, gestures to the space above his head that does not have body as much as he would like it to be

Luke having a breakdown on stage about an issue that he genuinely gets ragged on so much for- im losing my mind omfg-

“Tiny giant.” luke losing it again- and i gotta say thats a pretty nice way to describe it, i think he gets the point

Tom leaned forward in anticipation, the cutest smile on his face, sam leaned back, trepidatious 

“Im really- Im not *moves to the front of the stage and yells at the audience* tiny okay???” lukes loosing it niow

“Its very funny isn't it?” oh no, hes pacing and breaking the fourth wall- oh no

“Cause hes tall-” Tom perking up, “oh look! Im being included back in the sketch!” “and hes a normal height!” AJ isn't even bothering to think anymore, just enjoying the show

“Hes only 5’10” yes!!! Call him out Luke!!!

“And yet somehow Im a fucking short guy!!!” i just love the other three dudes expression in this scene, just pure delight at Luke finally snapping(albeit jokingly) and being like ‘yeah… tough luck’

Also, love Luke casually including the people no longer in the sketch back into it just to make a point and call out his legitimate grievances, love it

“Im not short!” oh now hes back in it ok-

“I don't know if im talking to a character or luke right now-” Tom and Sam breaking before he even finishes the sentence lol

“I don't know either.” oh poor baby XD

“Luke,” genuinely starts to address him by his actual name, gods i love them- he was about to legitimately comfort him before sam came in- i know it(or insult him further but like wtv, same thing lol)

“Connnn-vict!” Luke trying to speak and then giving up- AJ!!! Vince! Not Vikt!!!

YAYYY!!!! HE DID IT!!!!!! 🥳🥳🥳

Anyway, hope you enjoyed this segment of me losing my mind about SFTH and their incredible bromance and also humor, thanks for tuning in, see you next time(maybe, if you guys still want it lol)!

@dawn-speckled you wanted it last time, hope you want it still??? anyway, thanks for reading, it means a lot, and byebye 👋

[moonlightsapphic]

thoughts on xo, kitty:

i had the time of my life getting straightbaited in s1, loved it and very much believed it was set up beautifully for a kittyuri ending

i once again had the time of my life getting straightbaited by the s2 trailer (which had initially dissapointed me), and then once again squealing at kittyuri moments in the actual season lol

god yuri is so hot

god minho is so hot

this show is bisexual propaganda if there ever was any

i have said it before and i will say it again: this is the queer/sapphic teen asian american romcom we want and need! it’s just like the dumb straight shows! WE DESERVE TO GIGGLE AND CRINGE TOO

i was surprised (but not displeased!) to see a setup for another season rather than an ending with this one. manifesting an easy renewal. (thank u, straight taltbilb fandom, for helping feed the netflix marketing beast for our chaotic bisexual show.) that being said, they could totally have ended it here and idk what the fuck they’re even going to have as a plot for s3.

i have a love/hate relationship with new characters being introduced and the silly plotlines and also the somewhat disjointed dialogues sometimes but it’s also all very endearing lol.

i love the family drama in the show! the execution is lighthearted yes but fellow asian viewers know what i mean. <333

i genuinely don’t know who kitty is going to end up with! but that’s jenny han to you. tsitp would feel the same if the source material didn’t already tell us the ending, too.

i was a kittyuri truther after s1 but now i’m leaning mooncovey just because of how the development/excecution went … and i’m not mad either way lol. all i can tell you is that something viscerally bisexual was happening to me everytime i saw kittyuri on screen in s1 and mooncovey on screen in s2 (with some overlap. screams)

i did feel a little dissapointed to see yuri always chasing what she can’t have this season but really it made a lot of sense and i’m excited to see her development next season.

while yuri has commited many crimes which is what makes her iconic, minho is so babygirl and has never done anything wrong in his life. the shoujo manga/kdrama mooncovey moments were just *chef’s kiss* YES MA’AM GIVE THE VIEWERS WHAT THEY WANT

my girlfriend ships mindae and i think she’s crazy but also i see it, dae is the only one other than kitty that minho could satisfactorily end up with. god i was so mad when i thought they were making an ohio rando his endgame lmaoooo and i was GENUINELY concerned that the kittyuri hate train from mooncovey shippers would descend like bloodthirsty sharks if that happened. praying to god they don’t just push minho or yuri with any ole new character at the end of s3 just to have them not be single. that would be lame. mindae is more than fair game though. 😝 they get into so many fights, it has to mean something … brb getting lost in the gay dae theories …

yuri & dae’s friendship will never grow old to me. i love i love i LOVE

also love it when the characters speak korean amongst themselves, which really drives home how multicultural the show really is. (also it’s hilarious how madison, a literal white girl, speaks better korean than kitty lmao.)

a part of the mooncovey fanbase is very biphobic and lesbophobic and we really need to shame them for it because it’s super annoying. like yeah i know you’re coming from tatbilb which taught you queers exist only in the form of the gay guy best friend for the straight girl protagonist but! jenny han has grown! have you not seen tsitp?! have you also not noticed kitty was never like lara jean?! she wore a mf suit to their dad’s wedding for god’s sake sigh. disrespectfully, if your ship can’t exist without lame excuses on why an alternate ship isn’t as “valid”, then your ship probably isn’t that great in the first place. which is sad, because mooncovey is an awesome ship.

overall a slay. jenny han i know we have a fraught relationship but they could never make me hate you. truly one of the few people in mainstream cishet romcom media that said “actually queer people should be included af because they’re FUN and an underappreciated goldmine!” she also never lets the fandom tell her what to do. you keep doing you, queen!!! i mean it! 💖

[anon-sect]

My best mate works as a cop, so his schedule is always busy meaning I don't get to spend any time with him any more. Do you know a way that means I CAN spend more time with him?

Picture source: internet

Eric had been best friends with Ken ever since high school. The only years they didn't hang out were during their college days. They both had gone to separate colleges. But when they both moved back home, they just picked up where they left off.

It was when Ken got a job as a cop that their time together changed. Eric saw less of his best friend. They hung out about once every two weeks. He wanted to spend more time with his long-term high school best friend.

One day, Eric was chilling at Ken's house. "I really miss hanging out with you." He spoke randomly to him.

"I know. I just have a busy schedule. Sometimes, it is hard to make time for us to hang out." Ken added to the conversation, massaging his tired feet.

"I wish there was a way for us to hang out almost every day, like we used to in high school." Eric paused. "I really miss those times." He spoke more.

An idea popped into Ken's mind. "Well, there might be a way, if you are interested, but will be on a volunteer basis. I won't force you into it." He proposed before revealing what he had in mind. His idea would serve two purposes. Eric gets to spend time with him while working on his feet for long hours and would feel much better.

Eric was intrigued about what he was proposing. "What do you have in mind?" He asked with a curious tone of voice.

"Well, my feet hurt a lot after my long shifts. I could use durable, super comfortable socks to wear while at work." Ken paused. "The only way to make a pair is human material. I could turn you into my special work socks. That way, you and I get to spend time together, and my feet don't hurt as bad. So, what do you say? Remember, it's a volunteer basis." He added, awaiting his best friend's answer.

Eric thought about it before answering him. "How long will I be socks?" He asked.

"Well, I honestly don't know how long I will keep you that way. But at least you will always be with me." Ken spoke honestly.

Eric really missed his best friend. This was definitely a way to be close to him every day. "Okay, it's a deal." He agreed.

"Really, you will willingly be my socks?" Ken asked back. He saw Eric nodding in reply. He pulled out his phone and opened up his TF Ray Pro app. He put in the setting and hit flash. Instantly, Eric was a pair of black socks on the chair. He picked up the socks and found them to be really good material and felt good in his hands. "Thanks, buddy. I really appreciate you willing to sacrifice your humanity to comfort my feet at work." He spoke to his new socks.

The following morning, as he got dressed for work, Ken tried on his new socks and was truly amazed. They felt even better on his feet. He put his boots on that he had for over a year. "I hope you don't mind the smell." He spoke to his socks as he walked around to test out his socks. He finally had the perfect socks to wear at work, and Eric gets to spend time with him at the same time. It was a win-win situation as he thought it.

Eric was amazed at how strong the odor of the boots was. He could definitely tell that Ken was in them for many long hours. He could feel the dried sweat crusted on the insoles and insides of the boots. The odor was extremely intense. It was a good thing he wasn't human or he most certainly would have vomited. Being walked on also took some getting used to. The pressure of supporting his best friend's weight was intensely heavy. It was quite painful with each step. He truly was a pair of socks.

TWO YEARS LATER........

Ken got dressed like he did every morning for work. He was amazed at how well Eric handled his feet. His socks were still in the best condition even after two years. There were times he wanted to change him back to normal, but he would change his mind each time. He really loved his work socks. He wanted to keep them forever. Eric was the best pair of socks he ever owned.

Eric could only focus on his Master's feet. It was still painful as hell, but he didn't mind making his master comfortable at work. The stinky prison he was in smelled horrible each day, but at least he was closer to his best friend for the past two years. He saw Ken as both owner and master and his best friend in the whole world. No matter the stinky prison or pain of being walked on, he would rather stay his socks just to spend every day with Ken.

[demacianpuppet]

Some more thoughts/observation regarding Viktor and whatever he had going on his cult because I'm obsessed.

First of all, what exactly was Salo doing there? He went to the power source of the Hex Gates to get some (raw) Hextech crystals I assume but this leave me with more questions than answers.

For what exactly did Viktor need the crystals?

I would assume stealing from the source, which is locked behind a specific key (which seem to only open with Hextech) makes it easier do than from higher up of the Hex Gates. Considering Viktor's followers are just an extension from Viktor himself, they have the easiest option to sneak into it.

Also, Salo wears no protection gear, something that the people who maintain the Hextech Gate clearly do as seen in Season 1.

One detail I didn't catch while watching the first time is that the discussion between Jayce and Viktor happens in the Wild Rune and also seems to be Viktor who frees Jayce from it.

(Maybe Viktor knew something about Jayce being trapped in the Wild Rune which would explain why only Jayce materialized when Salo appeared and Heimerdinger and Ekko are still missing.)

So more interesting details - first of all Salo wasn't breathing the whole dialogue. You can see how Jayce breath condensed in the Hex Gates while Salo's never did. It also lines up that Jayce saw some empty husk creature whenever he looked at Viktor's followers.

Not consider how creepy the whole scene was because we see Salo is absolutely not acting like Salo, constantly switching to being possessed by Viktor.

Also, when Jayce dispose of the empty husk that once Salo was, the blood is not just red but also prismatic. His body has been also fundamentally changed from the inside.

Also Viktor doesn't seen to really care that Jayce just killed someone? Like sure, he is worried for Jayce and mentioned that someone is in his head but she shows no pity for Salo who just got killed?

I continue that none of the Viktor's followers actually acted like normal human being. Like Huck showed no sign of fear when the Noxian appear with their weapon, nor do any other people reacted with fear when Jayce appears with his weapon in his hand and clearly not best mental state.

As someone else already pointed out, you don't see anyone doing anything but to work. No children playing, no people talking with each other. Again, not human, not normal.

Whenever Viktor touched someone and tries to heal them, you can see how he left his fingerprints on them. (Vander/Warwick has them as well.)

Interesting Viktor could spot Jayce mental state without touching him, makes me wonder how close he needs to be to a person. Maybe Jayce is a special case because they both are touched by the Arcane?

When Singed talked with Viktor, Singed touched Vikor's hand and he instantly glimpsed into Singed mind. It seems to be not even an active thing he does.

(Does it mean back then Jayce hugged him after he just woke up from his metamorphosis did he already had seen the weapons Jayce had crafted during that time in his mind?)

Interesting that Singed mentioned that Viktor grows weaker, you would assume whatever the Hexcore does should be like a virus, so more people would make it stronger and not weaker.

Was this the reason why Viktor wanted the Hextech Crystals? To make a new Hexcore to replace his failing energy source? So many question, no answers.

Also what exactly was Viktor doing when he was levitating while being connected via strings to something? Did the writers just need a reason why Viktor would not try fight back when Jayce appeared? Did he was ready to face the possibility that Jayce could actually do harm to him?

Jayce goes into the room, does the shot and refusing to even look when he was firing it. There is one frame there you can see mirror version of Jayce reading the shot, it makes me wonder how often he went to Viktor and tried to change the outcome.

Jayce also left immediately once the deed was done. While Jayce was clearly tearing up, he ran way instantly.

Viktor just watched Jayce do the shot, fear in his eyes and he couldn't stop staring at him until his last breath was leaving him. The cog (which is not the same one during Hextech breakthrough) rolled away from his hand.

We know that Viktor ends the episode with his monologue how emotions are problem but I wonder if he knew that would happened and a part of him (or the Hexcore) becked Jayce to do the shot so he finally could get rid of his heart and/or influence of the Hexcore for good.

Because in Viktor's mindscape Viktor behaved like he always did while in reality he is very emotionalless despite everything.

Also going back to the hive mind thing - their life energy was clearly connected to the Hexcore which was the reason why they all started dying when the Hexcore was destroyed.

Despite Jayce ruining everything according the fans, I don't think Viktor would have stayed alive much longer anyway with Ambessa and Singed near. I wonder if this was the best-case scenario so that they would not get the Hexcore in their hands or if Jayce basically did a self-fulfilling prophecy with this action.

[hulloitsdani]

*slowly rises from my coffin*

So Alfonse and Kiran right?

I was talking about this game the other day to the poor yet willing ears of friends (a very common occurrence bless them) and I finally managed to articulate what I found compelling about their dynamic. And I want to share these ideas with you all, because if I don’t I will explode. You understand.

As a refresher to previous ramblings about this game, Fire Emblem Heroes’ consistent theme across its characters seems to be loneliness. Everyone is haunted by what a lack or loss of companionship threatens to do them. On top of this, based on the characterization we receive from side materials and the tiny glimpses we get in-game, I believe Kiran has the capacity to be the core of a lot of these themes. An isekai protagonist suffering from being isekaied would be a gold mine for this idea. I deeply enjoy further extrapolating their character and giving my pitch for what this goofy tactician could be like if they were allowed to be an actual character outside of a self insert.

With all that in mind— oh no Alfonse and Kiran’s loneliness latch onto each other like glue.

Alfonse’s loneliness is a culmination of how he was raised, but funnily enough, it’s not immediately clear that this is the case. It’s both a little baffling and borderline amusing to see how much the abandonment of Zacharias affected him in book 1. It reads as a bit romantically coded for a reason. Not hard to assume that Alfonse took it so hard because of some unresolved pinning. Which I’m not going to even remotely deny isn’t the case, but it is intriguingly not the full answer.

In book 3 we meet Alfonse and Sharena’s parents and come to the understanding that oh! Oh no! Their childhood was not good! Having two stable parents did not alleviate them from the themes of loneliness. Their childhood was a very isolating experience and smothered by the extreme expectations that defined that household. An idea which is only reinforced by book 4, where as child, Sharena was lonely enough to want to leave reality entirely and escape to the realm of dreams. And depending on your read of it, she did. Needless to say that these two grew up lonely with a capital L. This means that Zacharias was potentially one of their first and only friends. Period. That recontextualizes how hurt they were when one day he just vanished for no attainable reason. As one of their only sources of connection, that would be traumatizing.

Now Alfonse in particular is someone who, once he is attached, cares so so deeply and is completely ride or die. It’s as if all the love that had nowhere to go for years finally comes out all at once. And, surprisingly, he knows that. He knows because he tries really hard NOT to be. Being that emotionally driven and vulnerable is something he is expected to grow out of if he wants to succeed as a ruler. So he tries to temper it with extreme practicality. Big emphasis on tries. After the loss of Zacharias, he logics out that if he can’t stop these strong feelings for those he cares for and ending up profoundly hurt at the inevitable loss, then he’s going to remove the problem from board. Entirely. No more bonds of friendship. Shoo. Go away. The isolation from before was better than this. He could control that, at least.

Enter Kiran, who sees that and says, “aight bet.”

Despite Alfonse’s best efforts, they end up hitting it off and becoming friends. Just instantly click. Two halves of the same braincell. Commander Anna was initially worried about how standoffish they were, but her worries were clearly misplaced. Now she is left trying to figure out what the hell her tactician and right hand man are even talking about as she struggles to pinpoint when exactly she lost control of this meeting. And this becomes a delightfully common occurrence. Alfonse has fully failed his attempts to keep them at arms length and Kiran has succeeded in kicking his walls down. They are now both deeply attached.

But this means Alfonse has a new problem. He’s gotta navigate two conflicting and volatile emotions— feeling increasingly awful for incidentally forcing Kiran into their given circumstances but DESPERATELY wanting them to stay. And I could theoretically come up with a more eloquent way of putting this, but I described the situation to my friends as having the same energy of the “hey can I try rizzing you up?” bit. But instead it’s “hey can I convince you stay in Askr as the Order’s tactician?”

“PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE—”

I find that this wonderfully communicates how much he genuinely really likes them. It’s honestly very sweet and very clearly mutual.

This then brings me to the fan favorite voice line, in which Alfonse says, “Promise that you’ll never leave us… without warning me first.” The line delivery emphasizes the duality of the previously stated feelings he’s working from. Alfonse wants to be clingy so so bad, but he respects Kiran’s autonomy and is willing to cast his fears to the side for their well being. Just… warn him, please? If that’s going to be the case? (Which he’s desperately hoping it isn’t.)

There is a deep irony to this situation. He’s not too aware of it yet, but lucky for him, Kiran isn’t going anywhere! But unfortunately that isn’t as great as it sounds.

See, Kiran’s loneliness is a different demon. As briefly touched on before, Kiran is facing the natural mental and emotional consequences of being isekaied to a new alien world. Their life just got entirely reset and that’s not the purely fun escapism that you desperately want it to be for them. It turns out culture shock has some serious hands! Hell, it’s almost funny. There’s this twinge of dread whenever they mention the world they left behind. They’re from our modern day, sure, but… maybe it was bad for them? It’s odd to wish for a tragic backstory on a character, but it would mean coming to Askr was better for them. That no one would miss them and they don’t have anyone to miss.

But that is not the case.

Kiran had family. Kiran had a life. Kiran had goals and dreams they wanted to accomplish that are truly no longer possible. They cannot go home and they’ve been dropped into an active war zone. And the only way to survive is to partake.

That’s all pretty bad, right? Absolutely awful? But… somehow it hasn’t been. Sort of. Not fully. Of course some of it is, however, our other protagonists put massive effort to ensure that Kiran is as happy and comfortable as they can possibly manage. And then some! Commander Anna, even upon realizing that this supposed savior was just a scared civilian with no combat experience, gave them shelter, food, and a job. Instantly. Without question. She didn’t even know them! That’s not something they take for granted. Hell, if they think too hard about it, they might start crying. Because that’s genuinely so fucking nice! She took what should have been the worst day of their life and turned it into the start of something new.

And that’s just Anna. All of them did this! Even Alfonse, who despite his clear issues, made an active effort to ensure they were alright. It was not as almost aggressively friendly as Sharena or as surprisingly giving as Anna. No, it was a bit more subtle. He would observe, inadvertently find them struggling with something, and then offer his services. Even if it was for something Kiran might not have been bold enough to ask about. Because Kiran is not going to pull Anna away from her work to help them find a modern map in a library. That feels rude! Or at least intrusive! Instead they’re going to struggle in the corner until they figure out how Askr dates things. Or not apparently, because Alfonse spends a lot of time in the library and has noticed their visible distress. He comes in for the rescue and fails to suppress a smile at Kiran’s dumb “aw my hero!” pun.

You can begin to see why Kiran called bullshit on Alfonse’s no friends deal.

All of this has had a funny little consequence on our silly little summoner. Kiran deeply mourns the loss of their home. They might not show it, but they do. However, thanks to the massive support of their friends, they start making a life for themself here. A new home, with some of the nicest people they’ve ever met, in the most beautiful place they’ve ever been, and in a way that means the world to them.

A home that they are going to defend fiercely, because they know damn well that they don’t have it in them to start from scratch again.

No one embodies this desire more for them than Prince Alfonse. He becomes the emotional center of it. A home in Askr doesn’t exist without him in their life. So no, Kiran is not leaving. Kiran is dying in Askr— dying for HIM more often than not. When we look upon the breidablik Líf carries, we stare in quiet horrified knowing. Alfonse did not active the blood rite. It was not his blood spilled on the altar. It was not his heart beating until no one was left. It was theirs. They couldn’t do it again. Kiran took the only out. And when Líf stares at the summoner with mourning and vitriol, we know why.

Clearly, the way their loneliness comes together can and has been played for emotionally devastating consequences. This intimate relationship is born from this deeply personal and less than perfect part of themselves. Yet, somehow, we get to see the version of this relationship that prevails against all odds. Where they inspire each other to be better and lessen the burden of the loneliness that threatens to undo them. And damnit that gets me.

TLDR; they should explore each other’s bodies sometime and be locked in the world’s slowest slow burn. Thank you and good night!

[lucystark12]

what are you thinking, finn wolfhard?

everything i'm about to say aligns with my finn wolfhard is a genius agenda.

it was just made apparent to me that not only did finn wolfhard film it 2017 before season two, but he filmed his scenes as boris in the goldfinch literally DAYS before filming season three. this is extremely hard for me to conceptualize. but it also makes me think about finn wolfhard himself who obviously knows the truth about mike wheeler's sexuality. if byler is as deep seeded as we want it to be, odds are that finn knew what was up from the beginning. which makes a girl think- did he know the same about richie tozier when he first played him in 2017?

lets look at richie a bit.

richie is obviously gay. i will not be taking arguments on this. i'm reading a reddit thred right now where people are debating it and i'm like- are you kidding me. but he wasn't gay in the source material. stephen king has stated as much in a vanity fair article. though he calls andy muscetti's choice "genius" (which it is, btw), he makes it clear that it wasn't his intention. it's explicitly clear in it chapter 2, and being wired like a byler shipper, i was able to suss it out in the first movie, but was that andy muscetti's intention to begin with?

there are many ways this change can be interpreted. assuming that it wasn't something that was explicitly written into the original character description for richie in the first movie, you could see this as something that was put in as a sign of the times, a statement if you will. it chapter one was written in 2015-2016 while we were still under obama's presidency, one that saw drastic improvements for the quality of life of a gay person in america. it chapter two was written during trump's presidency and could have been trying to brand itself as a statement of sorts. i only say this because as far as i can find (and PLEASE tell me if i'm wrong) there wasn't nearly as much evidence hinting at richie's sexuality in the first movie as there is for mike or will to use a relevant example.

the idea that finn wolfhard could have gone straight from it filming (summer of 2016) to stranger things filming (early november 2016) just having played a character who he knows was in the closet and in love with his best friend in the 80s could open up new interpretation to mke in season two. oddly, the reason i bring this up is because richie tozier to me is the mirror image of a kid i was friends with in middle school. they acted the same, they even weirdly looked and dressed the same. the only time i've ever made the comparison between middle school kid and mike wheeler was during season two, specifically in the scene where max leaves them the note, which leads me to believe that he could have carried other things over from other aspects of the it production.

season two isn't what really concerns me though. i'm looking more at season three. the goldfinch only moved to production in albuquerque in april of 2018, which is obviously where finn wolfhard filmed all of his scenes. however, stranger things 3 started production on april 23rd, 2018, which means there might have even been crossover between finn's shooting dates if not at least a very short gap of time between them. it chapter 2 was filmed that same summer likely with some of it's own crossover with stranger things three dates. finn wolfhard's lack of scenes in the second movie are probably what made this possible, but the scenes that he did have tackled very delicate topics that had to be handled with care. most actors get their scripts for minor roles like this a few weeks out from filming, which means that finn could have had his scripts for it chapter 2 that very explicitly make it clear that he's gay during filming for stranger things 3.

so here he is with one gay character right before season 3 and one right after. he knows how to handle these things, which means that every move he's making, especially in season three, is most likely intentional, especially if he knows this far in advance about mike's sexuality. i think it's totally feasible that he does. i'm fifteen and i understand what was happening between byler during the fight scene, finn was sixteen and, being a part of this show, probably understood what was going on too even if he wasn't outright told. doing justice to a season like this when he was also having to figure out scenes like the boreo taxi scene or the arcade scene with henry bower's cousin or r + e was probably at the forefront of his mind.

in conclusion, i just have one question:

what does this mean, finn wolfhard?

[hiraethwa]

one summer day

11 star-crossed. where you celebrate tanabata with your friends

<< 10 epiphany. | >> 12 shoot for the stars.

pairing: ushijima wakatoshi x reader word count: 1.4k warnings: just fluff <3 tags: @lemurzsquad @daisy-room @integers @brokenscaredakira -- (inbox me if you want to be added to the tag list)

there are several thoughts that run through your mind as your eyes land on ushijima. one, he kept his promise to you, wearing a simpler yet formal kimono. two, it is utterly, and you mean utterly, unfair how devastatingly good he looks in it, it cannot be healthy for your heart. three, how are you going to survive the night at this rate? and four, you are going to be swarmed by his fans and you only have yourself to blame. 

it is tanabata after all, the star festival that celebrates the ancient legend of orihime and hikoboshi, two star-crossed lovers who could only meet one day every year. almost every girl in high school is bound to attend the biggest tanabata festival in the miyagi area. 

“feeling a little warm?” you manage to find your voice to tease the stoic boy. there is definitely a pink tint to his golden skin, one you credit to the summer heat. 

next to him, semi and tendo jump into the fray as well, taking the rare opportunity to poke fun at their captain outside of volleyball practice, referencing inside jokes that you are not privy to. 

“you both cleaned up well,” you chirp, nodding at their yukatas in acknowledgement. 

“yeah, we didn’t want to leave ushijima-kun all dressed up by himself, and since we were part of the problem, we decided that we should shoulder some of the blame too,” tendo grins at you knowingly. 

you give him a half-lidded look that said wow, you are so funny.

“c’mon, we’re late, i want to go check out some stalls before the fireworks go off.” you make a point to link your arm with semi, marching off with your best friend before anyone could get a word in and ignoring the source of the heat you are feeling on your face. definitely the summer heat.

the night air is warm, ever so slightly cooler than the day, but you could feel the sheen of sweat forming on your skin beneath the thin yukata fabric. it is crowded as expected, with streamers hanging from paper balls of every color, low enough that you run your hand through the soft wisps as you pass by. 

the first stop of the evening is the center of the complex, where several man-made bamboo trees have been erected for festival-goers to write their wishes on a piece of paper and tie it to. you steer semi towards the tables with writing instruments and bands of color paper, tugging at his sleeve impatiently with ushijima and tendo following right behind him.

you grab a piece of paper and a pen, sidling off to one side so that your writing is not visible to your friends as you scrawl your wishes for the year on the thin material. once you are done, you sneak up to your friends stealthily, peeking over their shoulders to read what they have written. 

“oi,” semi exclaims as he discovers you looking at his paper. 

you look away innocently, standing to the side while waiting for them to be done. ushijima joins you, to which your heart stutters a beat to. 

despite having patched things up months ago, things have not gone back to normal. gone were the days where your unrequited love is the absolute truth. now, ushijima’s every action, every look leaves you second-guessing yourself, and your heart feeling like you just ran a marathon. 

you tried, you really did, to act as normal as you can around him without your heart on your sleeve. though you wonder whether you are doing a good job of it. there was no particular reason, but if you had to pick a turning point, it was that time when he got really close to you and you ended up kneeing him in the balls. 

nothing was the same since then, at least for you. 

so now, as he compliments you, your mind goes haywire. “you look beautiful in your yukata.” 

you smooth over the folds, thumbing the gold detailing on the blue fabric, mind blanking out at his words. “thank you.” warmness spreads across your cheeks, causing you to look down and concentrate particularly hard at the little thread poking out the seam, picking at it, hoping he does not see the redness on you. 

“wanna tie it together?” you nod at his question, following him to the bamboo tree. you end up picking a branch that you felt was more auspicious than the others, tying your paper strip to it. 

ushijima decides on the same branch, knotting his paper just above yours. his purple touching your green one, as if it is a representation of his wishes. you shake your head at the thought. you did not dare to even explore that possibility, regardless of how different everything feels. but maybe, just maybe, if you are accepted to the university of tokyo, there is hope there.

“you had to pick the same branch, huh?”

he shrugs, holding out an arm for you. you take it naturally, despite the weird feeling in your stomach as you clutch onto his sleeve. “wanna get some food?” 

you end up getting some yakitori skewers and a tornado potato from a roadside stall, easily demolishing the food in minutes before tugging him to a sweets stall. just as wakatoshi pays the vendor for the matcha mochi, two girls approach you both shyly, asking for a photo with him.

their eyes dart to you, probably wondering who you were and what kind of relationship you have with ushijima, making you shift uncomfortably. you take the hint to leave, spotting a stall selling handicrafts just a few stalls down. 

the expressionless falcon soft toy you picked up reminds you of ushijima. 

“we’ll take it,” ushijima appears next to you, handing over some cash for the toy that you are busy squishing. 

“i was just looking at it…” you trail off, tilting your head to look at him. 

he slant his head in confusion, “but you like it, do you not?” 

but you don’t get a chance to respond before semi and tendo comes flying at you both from behind, almost knocking you over in the process. good, you think. you are afraid of where the road leads into unknown territory. unfamiliarity terrifies you, and for that reason, you want to stay precisely where you are, on the even ground that you know like the back of your hand. 

good because if you went down that road and things end unpleasantly… no, you would much rather love him in silence than to risk losing him. 

“what is it?” semi whispers to you conspiratorially as he glances at ushijima.

you frown at the little falcon. “is it just me, or is ushijima not his usual self?”

“what do you mean? he’s always like this around you.”

semi’s words leave you speechless. sure, you’ve heard a few people point it out to you in the past, but you didn’t think much of it at the time as you were too busy trying to put yourself back together. now, you can’t help but hear the words repeat in your mind. 

you find yourself atop a small hill, sandwiched between ushijima and semi for the fireworks that opens the weekend long celebration of tanabata. just for a few seconds, you allow yourself to admire ushijima’s profile, his head turned towards tendo as he says something to the redhead.

boom. the first of the fireworks goes off, lighting up the night sky in showers of golden and blue. a smile finds its way to your face as you bask in the moment next to the people you care about, on a summer night in your final year of high school. 

you tense as fingers lace through yours, too shocked to even look in ushijima’s direction as your eyes lock onto each and every bright firework that shoots upwards and explodes into colorful reactions that illuminate the dark sky. much like what he is to you, walking into your life, a blinding sun unaware of its own light, bringing life to the darkness in your heart, chasing away the darkness.

despite your thundering heart, your body relaxes, fingers tightening around his larger digits. the thoughts firing through your brain are too many, too fast to process, so you let them wash over you, choosing to focus on the present. it is a gift, you realize, on tanabata, from the stars orihime and hikoboshi themselves. 

you can only hope that unlike the story of the star-crossed lovers, there will be a better ending for yours. 

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[lathalea]

Entangled 2/10

The first question I'd like to ask you today is: Do you remember a little fic called The Best Day of My Life I wrote a while back? Don't worry, me neither ;) It simmered in my head and what started off as a standalone ficlet, grew into something bigger. Back then, it was written in the first-person narrative, but as it grew into a longer story in my head, I decided to change the subsequent chapters to the third-person perspective. This story was born from an inspiration I found when researching certain medieval traditions, especially when it comes to arranged marriages in royal families, and the role women played in these arrangements. It inspired me to wonder what it would look like in Dwarven societies of Middle Earth. I hope you enjoy it! Relationships: Thorin Oakenshield x Dwarf OFC (The Hobbit) Rating: G (subject to change) Warnings: ANGST Summary: Arranged marriages are common among the dwarven nobility. After reclaiming the Lonely Mountain, the Kingdom Under the Mountain needs to be rebuilt. Thorin agrees to marry a lady from the Blue Mountains, securing a mutually beneficial alliance with the Broadbeam Dwarves. Lady Mista is said to be a practical and hard-working dwarf-woman, willing to give him an heir who would secure the line of succession. A decent queen material, his advisors say. If only Thorin could let go of his past… You can find this fic on AO3 (search for lathalea). Special thanks for @legolasbadass for all your help and support 💙 ✨ Chapter list: Chapter 1 (Prologue) | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 ... ✨ Entangled Masterlist

Khuzdul: Azsâlul'abad - the Lonely Mountain (both the mountain and the dwarven kingdom known among Elves and Men as Erebor) Uzbad ra zabdûna undu ‘Urd - King and Queen Under the Mountain

TA 2942, one year after the Reclamation of Azsâlul'abad

“Your Majesty, My Lady, brothers and sisters in stone, we have all eagerly waited for this moment,” The High Priest’s sonorous voice rang out in the festively decorated Great Hall of the Lonely Mountain. “May the Pleating Ceremony commence!”

It was happening. 

Mista swallowed. It felt as if the eyes of every single person present in the cavern were on her. As instructed earlier, Mista took off the veil that had covered her hair which was unbraided and adorned only with minuscule diamonds, and stepped stiffly towards the King. Her hands were clammy, and she tried not to stumble. The slippers and the opulent ceremonial gown she wore were incredibly uncomfortable and heavy. What a blunder it would be if she landed on the floor face down at that very moment! The court etiquette did not forbid her to wear her glasses, so at least she could see her surroundings clearly… including the crowds that gathered for the ceremony in the Great Hall. 

Closing her eyes, she focused on her breathing, then something brushed against her temple. Mista flinched like a startled pony.

“No need to be alarmed, My Lady.” A low, rumbling murmur reached her ears. It was the King’s voice; she could have recognized his calm, confident manner everywhere. “Allow me to choose a suitable lock of your hair.” “By all means, Your Majesty,” Mista mumbled, feeling how close he stood to her, his arm brushing against hers, and how his fingers slowly ran through her hair. She did not know that a male touch could be so gentle. The only people allowed to touch her hair before this day were her mother, sister, and personal maid.

“Thank you, My Lady. Would you allow me to compliment you?” the King said and, not waiting for her reply, he  added. “I do not think I have seen such exquisite hair before.”

“I… thank you, Your Majesty,” she whispered, attempting to calm herself. Did the King himself truly think her hair was exquisite? A realisation dawned upon her. Of course not; he must have referred to its uncommon length, that was all. It was the only source of Mista’s pride — perhaps the colour of her hair was plain and common, but she had always kept it long, and currently it reached almost to her knees. And now, the King’s nimble fingers ran through it, once, twice, and then began pleating her hair slowly, each of his movements deliberate. It was a surprisingly pleasant sensation, but even then, she did not dare to open her eyes especially when the tips of his fingers lightly brushed against her cheek, making her tremble at the sensation.

“It may help you to imagine that there is only you and me here.” His quiet voice reached her again. 

“Pardon?” Mista’s breath hitched.

“During straining official functions I tend to imagine that there are only stone statues around me, carved in amusing poses. It helps to tackle the nerves.”

Mista’s eyes fluttered open and met the King’s azure gaze. An encouraging smile danced on his lips moments before he returned to braiding.

“I did not know someone like you could feel… nervous, Your Majesty,” she heard herself say.

“My coronation felt ten times worse than facing the enemy during the Battle of the Five Armies.” His reply made Mista chuckle. His smile widened, making his handsome face even more alluring. For a heartbeat, she forgot how to breathe, simply staring at him. 

Click.

The King clasped his bead around her new braid. Gold encrusted with onyx contrasted with the plainness of her mousy hair, but the pattern made it somehow more refined. She took the braid into her hand and admired its even, elegant weaves.

“It is beautiful, Your Majesty,” she whispered.

The King gave her a thankful nod. Mista felt his intent gaze on her. His Durin’s apple bobbed. Something was not right… Why were his features so tense?

It took her a moment to understand. With her cheeks burning, she took a step towards him. How could she have forgotten that now it was her turn?

“May I…?” Her voice failed her, but no words were necessary. The King lowered his head towards her, his hair flowing freely in front of her eyes. 

With trembling fingers, she picked a thick lock of hair on his left temple and divided it into four parts. His hair was smooth and thick, making her think of a wolf’s fur, but it smelled like sweet oils from faraway lands in the South. Mista wanted to keep on braiding it for as long as she could. She thanked Mahal that she knew her personal pattern by heart — otherwise, she would have surely entangled his hair or ended up with a bunch of knots instead of the braid. Focused on plaiting it, she forgot about everything around her — there was only the King, Thorin, the Dwarf who unknowingly captured her heart a long time ago. Now, with every weave, she was willingly bestowing her whole self upon him.

Her bead was made of bronze and tiny sapphires from the Blue Mountains. For some reason, it refused to close around the King’s braid, making Mista sigh, but then one of his large, warm hands encircled her fingers that held the bead, and pressed it harder together. 

Click.

It was done.

Mista’s heart beat faster and faster as the King Under the Mountain took her hands into his. They were facing each other in a way that allowed everyone gathered in the Great Hall to see them from the side.

“Foreheads,” the High Priest whispered, barely moving his lips, holding something in his hands that glinted in the light of hundreds of lanterns.

The King squeezed her hands gently and lowered himself towards her once more. Mista took a deep breath and stood on her tiptoes so that their foreheads could meet.

His skin was pleasantly warm against hers, his nose brushed against hers, and she could feel the warmth of his breath on her face. Instinctively, she closed her eyes, but the last thing she saw were his lips, slightly parted, and so close, so very close to hers, and there was his beard too, and she wondered how it would feel if…

“What Mahal has joined over the marriage anvil, no power shall break apart until the end of days,” the High Priest exclaimed, his voice loud and clear, like the sound of a gunmetal bell, drowning all of her inappropriate thoughts. 

“Thorin, son of Thrain, Mista, daughter of Milva, you are now husband and wife. Uzbad ra zabdûna undu ‘Urd!”

Loud cheers filled the spacious cavern as the white-bearded priest bound their hands together with a thin but unbreakable mithril chain — a symbol of the eternal bond they forged a moment ago. This was one of the most revered traditions of Mahal’s Children: Dwarves married only once. Mista read a treaty once that explained the origin of this ancient tradition: one of the oldest Dwarven legends said that each of the Seven Fathers of the Dwarves had one spouse, and that each couple was made from one piece of stone, destined to be always together, as one mind, body, and heart. A long time had passed since Mista was an overly romantic lass who believed that each Dwarf had their beloved Other Half somewhere in the world. Now she was over one hundred and thirty years old, and during her lifetime, she saw too many dalliances, clandestine affairs, and broken promises to believe that her people were capable of loving only once and only the right person. Dwarves were a fiery race, with molten lava running in their veins rather than cold pieces of rock. Nevertheless, their marriages were the cornerstones of society, crucially important to every family, and so a wedded couple was supposed to be like a rock: steady and unbreakable. That was Mahal’s will, as the priests said. Therefore, the dissolution of marriage was impossible. If a Dwarf broke their marital vows — which, as dishonourable as it was, happened from time to time — they would still remain married to their spouse. Even death did not end it, as her people believed that they would remain married even in the afterlife, in the Halls of Awaiting. That was why Dwarven courtship would often last many years so that the future spouses had ample time to know each other well before they made this irreversible decision.

Mista’s courtship lasted one month. That was how much time Lord Tair, her father, needed to finalise negotiations with the King Under the Mountain. During that time, she never saw her future husband. That was to be expected — the Blue Mountains were almost half a world away from King Thorin II’s kingdom, Azsâlul'abad. Instead, his envoys arrived with the marriage contract signed in his own hand and a chest filled with customary gifts for his future bride: jewellery, hair combs, and a traditional courtship cloak. There was also a letter addressed to her. It contained all the obligatory niceties along with His Majesty’s apology for his absence due to the fact that his kingdom was being rebuilt and needed all of his attention at the moment. He assured his bride, however, that he was looking forward to meeting her in person and offering her as much hospitality as he had received in Tumunzahar years ago.

He remembered.

Over one hundred years had passed, and he still remembered his visit to her home city. Precisely like Mista. She never forgot how gallant and handsome he was, how his words dried her tears, and how he made her feel as if she, the ugliest girl at the feast, were the only woman in the whole world.

Perhaps that mawkish idea of Dwarves finding their Other Halves was not true, but she was certain of one thing: she still loved the same Dwarf as she did all those years ago. Her heart belonged to Thorin Oakenshield.

And now she was his wife. Her eyes were still set on the glistening links of the mithril chain that joined her hands when she heard the High Priest’s words.

“My King, My Queen.” He bowed with reverence, “It is time for your wedding feast.”

The only thing she could think of at that very moment was how good her hand felt in her lord husband’s reassuring hold.

***

The feast that celebrated their nuptials was an event like no other. Mista had never seen any revelries that were full of equal splendour. Countless guests from all seven dwarven realms were entertained by minstrels, musicians, dancers, and other performers. The food was delicious; wine and other liquors flowed endlessly, like the River Running, and everyone was merry. Mista sat on a grand chair placed on the King’s right hand. Now, both of them wore their crowns and royal insignia, and together, as the newlywed ruling couple of the Kingdom Under the Mountain, they accepted countless toasts and congratulations from the well-wishers throughout the evening. Mista tried her best to act with decorum worthy of the queen she had become hours ago, and she even managed to appear unflustered whenever the customary “May Mahal bless your union with countless heirs!” reached her ears. 

From time to time she managed to steal a glance at the King’s – her new husband’s – majestic profile, struggling to believe that this day was not a dream. But then she remembered the marriage braid hanging at her temple – and a similar braid in his hair. She truly was the great Thorin Oakenshield’s wife.

It was two bells after midnight when the weariness started to creep up on her.

“Is the feast to your liking, lady Mista?” the King turned to her, clearly noticing her attempt at stifling a yawn.

“Indeed it is! Forgive me, the celebrations took a toll on me, I’m afraid,” she explained, feeling the growing heaviness of her crown on her temples.

“It is perfectly understandable,” Princess Dis, the King’s sister, said. “It has been a long day. Perhaps it is time for you to repose.”

“May I…? Does the protocol allow it?” Mista took a hopeful look around the Great Hall where the feast was as lively as it was at its very beginning.

“May I remind you that now you are the Queen?” the King offered. “You may leave whenever you wish to do so.”

“And my brother will accompany you,” Princess Dis interjected, and then addressed the King. “Tonight you are only allowed to leave together.”

Mista caught a strange look they exchanged, and – after a noticeable pause – King Thorin said, “Very well.”

“Shall we, then?” He rose from his chair and held out his hand to Mista.

Leaving the Great Hall was not as easy a task as Mista expected. They had to endure another round of the official farewells, wedding toasts and felicitations from their numerous guests.

“Have a wonderful night!” Princess Dis exclaimed in a sing-song voice as they were stepping over the threshold.

“Aye, and a long one, too!” Dwalin, the King’s Captain, added, and they both laughed.

Their words sounded innocently enough for Mista at first, but they made the King clear his throat in visible embarrassment. 

And then it dawned on Mista. One more thing awaited her.

The wedding night.

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[cremateyourlife]

Endeavor sucks so here's a rant cause i've seen too many people say he isn't that bad lately

(CW / TW for abuse, ptsd mention) going in best order of episode events, but also including manga spoilers (sections are indented so you can skip the manga parts)-

this is pulling from source material but also very opinioned based. I get people saying he's an interesting character (kinda) but i hate seeing people excuse what he did because "aww he feels bad now." like him if you want but hating on other's for not liking him is just stupid.

it will also be long, but I have a lot of thoughts, hope at least some people agree with me lmao

i started typing this around when ch 390 came out so i know this has all been said before but with the new season coming out and like i said more people defending him i wanted to finally post this

"The Boy Born With Everything."

"That kid of mine will beat you some day, I'll make sure of it. That's why I created him."

Endeavor admitting he only had kids to be heroes, ones better than All Might, shows he does not truly care about his children. He only wanted them because he couldn't handle his failures. He sees them as a tool, not as his own kids, not as people. That's obvious in almost everything he says to and about Shoto.

And while I hate him, he isn’t a failure hero wise. He’s literally the # 2 hero out of however many hundreds there are. He’s simply mad he can’t beat AM? What is he a child who thinks he deserves everything he wants because he’s never been told no?

When Shouto finally used his fire Endeavor yelled about him finally realizing his “purpose.” More proof he sees his children, Shouto specifically, as tools. They aren't humans to him, they don't have their own feelings or goals, they are a means to an end. A means to his end. Shouto overcoming his own guilt (guilt caused by Endeavor) doesn’t matter to him. What matters is he now feels Shouto is worth something.

Class 1A vs 1B (i dont remember the exact episode names)

the flashback we get after Tokoyami talks to Shouto we hear Endeavor say, “Touya was close… Come on Shouto you’re the only one who can master this move.” Endeavor was putting the weight of his dead son's “failure” on the shoulder of his 5 (?) yr old kid. Making the kid who just lost his older sibling feel like he has to be better, or he could die too.

“Quit pretending to be weak.” Bro that is your very young kid. He is weak. Train him early, sure, whatever, but this is just abuse. You aren’t training him. Pushing your kid to the point of throwing up isn’t just training. It isn’t him being weak. It’s abuse.

I know this show is very flashback heavy in the first place but I really do interpret all the flashbacks Shouto gets of his dad as PTSD. Often times when fighting and in battle, after getting hit, he has memories of his dad. Sure, this could just be his motivation but I think it’s more than that.

"The Unforgiven."

"I thought if I saved you, that you might never say a word to me ever again." Aka Endeavor saying, "I should save my son, so he maybe likes me again." Natsuo my beloved. I love when he is an ass to his dad. His own son is saying he could never forgive him because why does he "need to be the one to make an active effort to change?" and that even though Endeavor wants to make up what does he think he can do now? Natsuo will always see his dad as the one who killed his older brother, and I don't blame him. Because that is who Endeavor is.

"He literally says in the episode he doesn't want forgiveness." And? He doesn't deserve it. He doesn't need to make Natsuo feel better for hating him when he has every right to after what his dad did to him and his entire family.

Sure, this episode is us seeing a "change" in Endeavor because he wants to be better, however, this is my post so I will say why I have a problem with this lmao. When did we see Endeavor start to change? After he became the number one hero. After he realized people were going to be looking at him even more.

The only good thing he does is realize that in order for his family to be happy he cannot be in the picture.

"Dabi's Dance"

Not including all the scenes I want to bc if I did, I'd just insert the entire ep lmao

"Oh, but he is changing. He regrets his actions." Why didn't he have regrets years ago when, to everyone's knowledge, his 13 yr old son had died? Endeavor didn't start feeling "guilty" until he became the number 1 hero. (as stated before)

And yes, we see and hear how upset Endeavor was over Touya’s death, but did he change? Did he stop being abusive and neglectful? Did he apologize and see his faults? Nope. So how bad did he really feel.

Dabi himself called him out on this during "Dabi’s Dance" when he said, “Is that why you finally decided to try to bond with your children? Keep looking toward the future and you can be a better man?"

On top of it all, Endeavor didn’t even step in to fight. Yes, he was shocked seeing his dead son in front of him again, but do you not think Shouto was shocked seeing his dead brother? He still fought.

Chapter 350

Many people say Dabi was born in the fire. However, that isn't true. Touya didn't die in that fire. He died and Dabi was born 3 years later when he went back home and had seemingly been forgotten about. He woke up in a strange place, covered in burns and sounding completely different. He wanted to go home. He wanted to apologize for all the awful things he said. He was told that he has been severely injured and once again that he was a failure. He was scared and alone. So, he goes home thinking he will be accepted with open arms, that maybe everything would be better, and everyone will celebrate yet he gets there, and his dad is still the same. Abusing his siblings and his mom is gone. Not only that but to Touya's POV, he has been replaced by his younger brother.

Plus does that not show you who Endeavor is as a person? That even after pushing his son to death he didn’t change.

"The Wrong Way to Put Out a Fire"

i won't include any clips or panels from this bc it is very intense and while this post will talk about it i still don't want to include those pictures

Going ahead and getting this out of the way because people love bringing it up for some reason, while what Rei did to Shouto was awful, obviously, it is not even close to being on the same level as the things Endeavor did to the entire Todofam. Rei was scared to look her own kids in the eyes because when she did, she saw Endeavor. She saw Endeavor's rage and feared for her safety, and in a moment of a clear panic attack and mental break defended herself, because look at Rei and tell me that woman doesn't have PTSD.

If the entirety of this ep didn't make you hate Endeavor and see he is incapable of change then idk what to tell you. Him convincing his very young child that his sole purpose is to be the next number 1 hero. He then finds out his kid physically won't be able to do that he tells him that he simply isn't good instead of sitting down and talking to him.

Buying Rei because he wanted to create his perfect child, then forcing her to be some baby machine. (Random fact that always haunts me is that Touya and Fuyumi were born in the same year.) Abusing Rei repeatedly. As well as, hitting her in front of the kids with a very young Shouto between them while the other two hide in a corner. Blaming Rei for Toya continuing to train when it is his own fault. Then on top of that, not going to Sekoto peak. He could have shown up for 2 seconds but no.

We also see another instance of Rei seeing Endeavor in her own kids when she tried to stop Toya from going and training like when Shouto came to check on her when he was little.

When Touya had a breakdown and tried to kill Shouto, instead of seeing the pain Toya was feeling and realizing his own mistakes, Endeavor just isolated Shouto from his siblings. Didn’t let him play with them, by what Natsuo said at dinner he monitored what he ate and when.

Also, I don’t wanna her “Dabi was insane from the start” after trying to kill Shouto. That was an abused child, turned neglected child, asking to be seen. Begging to be looked at. He, like Rei later on, snapped. He realized that if he wanted to be seen then the only one his dad cared about needed to be gone

Chapter 390.

Shouto finally shows up and brings Dabi down. Somehow Dabi is still alive and this is where he states that everyone, including him, should die. Endeavor then apologizes. Sure, he apologized, better late then never, whatever. However, it just really feels like he is speaking over Dabi. Dabi could be dying, could be saying his last words, and Endeavor starts talking. I will say I like how he acknowledges exactly what he did in some way. That he "pushed Rei past her breaking point", "put everything on Fuyumi's shoulders", and "abandoned Natsuo." It just all feels so empty and really doesn't mean anything with his entire family burned and scarred and Dabi lying on the ground, as well as Shouto passing out.

Endeavor’s “I’m sorry” only goes so far when his son is lying almost burned to death yelling for them all to die, Shouto over working himself to stop Dabi when even his dad couldn’t, and his non hero family standing on the battlefield as well.

In conclusion, Endeavor is an abuser. He pushed his 13 yr old son to death, pushed his wife past her breaking point then sent her away, neglected his other two children because they weren't what he wanted, and only felt bad after he achieved his dream. After he got everything he wanted despite it being built on a broken home and the victims he created along the way.

Like I said if you want to like him that's fine, but don't get mad at others when they don't like him. The Todoroki subplot hits home for a lot of people. It is a very serious and real situation. Take away the hero aspect and Endeavor is just another abuser in the world, something many people have been through.

Anyways if anyone read all of this hope you enjoyed. Hope some people agree. If you didn't leave an ask or comment lmao let's debate.