#i'm just annoyed when people talk down to me

[ippipo]

self aware caleb? yummy

part 1

you were in deep concentration when you heard a grunt coming from your phone while studying with caleb. he was staring at you from the phone, which you assumed was a glitch in the game.

"caleb, honey, if you make sounds like that just as i finally concentrate i swear to god i'll throw you across the room," you threaten him playfully, totally unaware that he understood every word that you said.

you return to focusing on your textbook, trying to regain the ability to pay complete attention to it. his eyebrows pinch together. who was this girl, and why was he seeing her? he was unaware if you were danger or not, you did just threaten him.

he waited until he heard a ding, watching you sigh. "finally, i finished studying. let's get me some food," you speak to him, confusing him even more. "who are you?" he asks, his tone was cautious.

"what the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck?" you panic. you stare in all directions, blissfully ignorant to the device in your hand. you finally looked at your phone and caleb is closer to the screen now. "nah, i must be dreaming," you snicker and go to the kitchen.

he was annoyed now. "no, you are not," he confirms your suspicion. "caleb? what the fuck?"

"yeah, that's my name. who are you and why am I able to see you?" he asks you with more aggression this time. you read stories about these things but never really imagined them to happen. and you did what you thought you would do while reading them instead of freaking out. explain to him your world, of course. but you were so close to pissing your pants, partly from excitement. but this was a dream come true, were you really gonna waste it on some stupid sense of fear?

"this is gonna take a while, buddy. you might wanna sit down for this," you say with a sigh, motioning him to sit down.

you told him about your world, and how magic and superpowers don't exist and how he was in a game. it took you about an hour. he was attentive, listening to every word you were saying, not taking his eyes off of you.

"so....to summarise it up, i'm an otome game character and that girl from my childhood is not real either. just not aware?" he asks, you nod. "the creators are so cruel, man. why would they make a cool guy like me go through that?" he remarks, a grin etched onto his face despite the sadness behind that statement.

"i don't feel anything towards her now, though," he states while scratching his nape, feeling lost. "i guess you aren't my love interest anymore, aw." he remained quiet at that statement, wondering what happens now. sure, he was attracted to the person he was talking with right now. but wouldn't it end tragically if he were to fall for you?

pushing those thoughts aside, he was curious about the real world, "how are the people there?" he asks you. "they're......cruel. but the people around me now are pretty alright, i don't go out much because i prefer staying at home," you reply.

"cruel? how so?" he questions, unconvinced with your answer. he was expecting the world to be better, without deception and unfortunate circumstances. "for starters, women here are still struggling, being treated disgustingly, racism is more prevalent than ever, the nazis are somewhat back, some orange white capitalist dude is ruining an already ruined country, and everyone's suffering," you finally take a breath.

you watch caleb's conflicted expression, regretting info-dumping on him so much. "so it's the same like here," he trails off. "it's still as shitty as here," he completes.

"don't think so, your world seems slightly better. i think i would be scared of walking alone at night because of wanderers instead of men," you state. he felt bad for you, and a familiar protective feeling resurfaces, the one he was conditioned to feel for the girl in the game now felt for you.

it was weird how he no longer recognized whoever that was. "i feel like i know you more than the character in here," he confesses. "well, she's basically me. although the personality is different, her name and stuff is basically mine."

caleb sighs in relief. it brought him some comfort knowing you were controlling it, not him involuntarily falling for someone he didn't know consciously.

"this sucks, i would rather be there with you," he reveals. he probably didn't know that made your heart flutter just a teeny tiny bit. just a little bit. "don't say stuff like that," you warn him. "hm? why?"

"i've read stories like this and they always end painfully. you'll start wanting to be with me because of my amazing gorgeous personality and eventually we'll do the boom boom pow online. suddenly you'll wanna do it with me, then you'll visit me and you'll have to choose between that world or this world. then you'll realize this world sucks and you'll have to give up our love. you'll go along with the mc and i'll end up missing that ding-a-ling," a shit-eating grin made its way onto your face. you felt proud of yourself.

he suddenly starts laughing at the way you worded the whole thing. "you're really something," he says making you snort. "i won't fall in love with you, i'm not that dumb," he states. you ignore the soft clench in your heart.

"are you sure you can resist all this, baby?" you flip your hair and wink at him. he rubs his ears to hide the redness, which was an unusual movement because his character never did that.

"positive, baby," he flirts back. it was your time to blush now. you clear your throat in embarrassment, "wanna see me cook?" you look at him hopefully, wanting to show off your skills. "i'll cook along too," he says.

he moves to his kitchen, the view to you was like as if you were on a video call. the screen showing you things in the game you wouldn't normally be able to see.

you hear a knock on your front door. "hey, lemme just check that and come back," you tell him before going to the door. your neighbour wanted some salad dressing. he was a fairly tall, good looking guy. he was married though, and he carried his ring around everywhere.

caleb watches the stranger waltz into your kitchen. his brows furrow in discontent. he didn't like the idea of you letting in another man into your house. he pinches himself and finally snaps out of it. 'you just met her properly for the first time, loser. control.'

the neighbour thankfully doesn't notice the animated but realistic man on your phone glaring at him. "thanks," the man smiles at you and leaves your house. "who was that?" caleb finally asks the question he was itching to ask. "my neighbour, he's making salad for his husband," you casually mention, unaware of the relief he felt. he was married, perfect.

you turn your back towards the camera and bend down to pick up a spoon that fell earlier. your ass on full display to him, well, not exactly, you had some shorts on. you didn't realize it, despite being an incredibly self-aware person. but caleb got the biggest loser boner ever.

he shifts in his place uncomfortably. "caleb, are you okay?" you ask with concern. "yes, great actually," he skillfully covers it up with a cough. "just getting used to not following a script."

this was gonna take a while.

[queervegancryptid]

Joker and I agree on one thing, I guess.

Following you and a couple other people on here has made it clear that I really need to read more comics. As a kid, I was raised in a rural area by conservative parents. Not outright abusive, mostly, but definitely not people I could be myself around, and basically anytime I was enthusiastic about something, people gave me shit for it. So if childhood was an exercise in learning to hide in plain sight in order to survive, adulthood for me has been a journey of letting myself be myself and explore stuff I wasn't allowed to explore as a kid.

It's also been a journey of realizing how much the adults in my life fully failed me as a kid. I only really understood how much their shit affected me when I first really felt loved and accepted by someone, without having to hide, and that didn't happen until I was past 30. Now that I'm able to start making moves to sort my shit out, the Orange Menace is being sworn in, so there are about to be more forces than ever invested in keeping me miserable and beaten down.

So in a very real sense, I'm scared about what's happening politically. I'm angry, too, for obvious reasons, many of which are not personal to me. I don't have to be an undocumented immigrant to think they should be treated with basic human decency, for example. I don't have to be Jewish to be horrified by people chanting shit about them. I don't have to be a target at all to give a fuck, but I'm trans, so I have the distinction of being labeled a problem and the knowledge that I'm in one of the last groups that will be defended when shit hits the fan.

But I am angry and frankly annoyed for personal reasons. And one of those reasons is that I spent my life hiding and trying to be acceptable, and when it didn't work, I thought it was my fault. I'm not perfect, but I feel like the deck was stacked against me from the start, and making it my fault was just one big scam to keep me complacent. I'm annoyed that it fucking worked so well and for so long.

The annoyance also comes from the fact that these people are living rent-free in my head and controlling so much of my life. But that's part of how they make you feel helpless, you know? You focus on all the weight they're throwing around, and you get overwhelmed by the brutality and cruelty of it all, and you feel so exhausted that you start to wonder what the hell the point even is of talking about it.

But that's what they want. I've survived out of spite before, and I'll do it again. The last thing they want is for people like you and me to enjoy anything in life and find reasons to keep going, which is exactly why you have to keep finding reasons wherever you can, in whatever form they take. So I'm going to enjoy what I enjoy and explore what I want to explore, because finding some kind of joy and good in the world when and where I can is the only way I'm going to survive all the things that are coming.

Thank you for existing, by the way. Sorry I wrote a book on here. I'm going through some stuff, as you might have guessed lol

🚨WATCH: Donald Trump and JD Vance mockingly laugh at the National Prayer Service when the National Cathedral Bishop proclaims "let us pray for the most vulnerable."

These monsters are the antethesis of what Jesus preached.

[eclipseberrycake]

Virulent (MBC x Reader)

AN: Hey Guyysss-

It's me :) Have I annoyed you all yet? /lh Anyway, I was on tiktok as I always am these days when people annoy me (Ginger mains- when I catch you ginger mains-) I noticed a lot of redesigns of the mains twisted forms to turn them lethal and yk what? Hell yeah. So I've been brain rotting and decided to share with you!

This is kind of far off from what I normally post but I still wanted to share with you, plus it's still MBC! And Distractor! Reader. Think of it as an AU! Of that universe.

Warnings: Depictions of horror themes, talk of mutated twisteds, threats of death (No one dies dw, I'm too soft for that), if you don't vibe with zombie apocalypse vibes, then this one may not be for you, and that's okay! Also kinda shorter than normal because I'm tried and had an assignment due that I forgot about :(.

☁ With all the mains back, runs had surprisingly gotten easier, if you did say so yourself. It was much easier to distract when you knew where the twisteds were and who they were the second you stepped out of the elevator. And having Shelly running around giving boosts made the time spent distracting cut shorter and shorter. Plus having Pebble right there as well was always a bonus.

☁ And of course, your sweet moonshine and berry boy. It was always a pleasure to be with them on runs and have them shadow you as you went; It was like a safety net in a way, moreso when Cosmo came along. It was very rare there was a run going on where one of you was going, and the others did not follow.

☁ That being said, there were times you missed the simpler runs with just you, Poppy and Boxten and maybe a few other commons. The mains all had their inside jokes and experiences together that, regardless of how hard Sprout and Astro tried not to, sometimes left you and Cosmo feeling like the odd ones looking in.

☁ Which is where you were currently, joking and laughing with the other commons as you all tried to go for a long run. It had started early this morning, and while you were unsure how long you were down there, you were sure it was well past lunch. The others knew you'd be gone a while though and planned their days accordingly.

☁ You hadn't even realized the true extent of how far you'd gone until Dandy was popping up, eyes frantic despite you all buying regularly. He eyeballed you as you approached, making you hesitate when reaching for the band on a pillow. "...Is there something wrong?"

☁ "Floor 50. I'm not even down here very long." He spoke and your blood chilled at the tone, Cosmo quickly threading his fingers with your own. Dandy noted this before refocusing back on you, eyes sharp and calculating. "Do you know what you're stepping into?"

☁ "I assume it's no different than any other floor." You sneer back, quickly exchanging your tapes for a bandage, watching carefully as Cosmo did the same.

☁ Dandy took them almost robotically, lips twitching just a bit. "...You've never been this far, have you?" You haven't, you didn't even think there were this many floors, but you weren't going to tell him that. Whether he saw it on your face or not, he grinned. "I'll leave the elevator open. As a one time grace for you all to return at any time." He yanked on the lever suddenly, giving a bright wave. "Good luck! You're gonna need it!"

☁ The warning, from Dandy nonetheless, does little to ease your nerves, but you still step out of the elevator with a kiss for Cosmo before taking off. It was a replica of the Christmas Toon's floor, so the twisted's should've been easy to find. Only...you didn't find anything.

☁ You immediately called out to be aware of objects on the ground, because as much as you loved Blu and Oakley, you didn't want a repeat.

☁ Still, the air felt...different then it did in that time. Like something sinister was watching, waiting, hunting. Taking off once more, you quickly rush to find Cosmo, finding him working on a machine. Seeing him find brings a sense of relief to you, but it's not enough to erase the feeling.

☁ "I don't like it." You frown, looking over your shoulder as you heard the rapid swish of air moving. There was nothing there.

☁ "I get what you mean. Leaving the elevator open?" Cosmo raises a brow ridge, pausing the extracting he was doing. "It's just not-" He turns to face you, only to pause, mouth gaping open as he grows impressively pale incredibly quick. He's staring behind you, watching as something moves. You go to look, but he's quick to stop you.

☁ "Something's wrong." He whispers, much quieter, struggling to draw his eyes away from whatever he was seeing. "I don't want you near...that."

☁ "Near what?" You try to turn around again and he grabs your chin this time. "Y/N, please." He pleads. "We just need to back away and-"

☁ There's a shrill shriek and this time he can't stop you as you whirl around to see Tisha with the same expression Cosmo had on his face. Behind you is a tall twisted, taller than any you've seen, other than Dandy. It's one red eye is glowing at you, locked on as it hands from the ceiling. Two of it's arms hang by it's head, lifeless and stained with ichor, though the large claws don't look any less deadly. A drop of ichor hangs out of its mouth before splatting on the ground, making your stare it, horrified. It moves like a bug, slowly as it's multiple limbs each click against the ceiling.

☁ None of you can move, you can only watch as it grows closer. There's a swish of fabric as it reorientates itself to stand upright, the two limbs that were previously lifeless lifting, as if to caress you. You don't let it, stepping back in time as Cosmo pulls you back into him.

☁ It's close enough you could see it's face though. Half of it's face is stretched unnaturally, tinged a soft blue, but darkens as it twists up in recognition of your act of denial. There's a large white star on the other half, which begins to whirr wildly, spinning and spinning and spinning.

☁ For a fleeting second, your traitorous brain turns to Astro and his twisted and the similarities between that and this...thing.

☁ The star on it's face suddenly shoots out and you tackle Cosmo to the ground as Tisha takes off to warn the others to get to elevator. There's a crash as the machine Cosmo was working on is shattered, ichor spilling out over both of you as glass rains all over the floor. Whatever is in front of you screeches and two arms reach for you.

☁ You're quick to grab Cosmo, hauling him up and taking him with you as you both take off towards the elevator. There's two sets of footsteps behind you, but with a quick glance, you see it's only the one twisted, but with four running limbs being used rather than the regular two. It's catching up fast, too fast, and for a second you swear it's going to grab you, but a hand around your waist makes you're entire system shudder before you and Cosmo are both being yanked into the elevator, which shuts much faster than usual.

☁ Everyone in the elevator is silent before Tisha is letting out a blood curdling scream, grabbing at the edges of her box. "What was THAT?!"

☁ "I don't know!" Goob cries out, big eyes already welling with tears as he pulls at his fur. Scraps is trying to help him best she can, but even she's pale and struggling to control her shaking.

☁ You couldn't outrun it. You couldn't outrun it. YOU COULD NOT OUTRUN IT. As a distractor, that's one of your only roles, and you couldn't do it. Scrambling, you shakily get to your knees, crawling to where Cosmo is slowly sitting up. His eyes are darting everywhere before landing on you, meeting you halfway and cradling you to his chest.

☁ You clutch onto his sweater with white knuckles, shaking so badly you fear tearing the fabric. The way he holds onto you is much the same however, so you don't think he minds too much.

☁ "Maybe...Maybe next time we..." You struggle to find words, throat closing as you fight more tears. Your tail gives a whip behind you before curling around Cosmo, lacing itself between the center of his curl for a better hold.

☁ "We don't." Glisten shudders, smoothing out his bow before rubbing the space between his brows. "We can't- I don't even think the mains would know how to handle that."

☁ "It kinda looked like Astro." Rodger mentions, fingers tracing a crack in his glass before retracting. "Do you think it's possible the Ichor is mutating?"

☁ "Mutating?" You shake your head. "That- That can't be. That's-" You pause before growing suddenly angry. "That's not fair!" You're suddenly seething at the aspect of it all. A new terrain to learn, new twisteds, new methods of containing them; a whole new set of injuries...Of scars. "I can't. I can't do it! I can't!" You cry out, turning to hide your tears in Cosmo's sweater as he numbly rubs your back.

☁ The elevator gives a cheerful ding, a direct contrast to everyone else's mood in the elevator. It opens to the vibrant and cheerful colors of the lobby and you hear the footsteps of the others rapidly approaching, but to you, you're just reminded of-

☁ "Cosmo! Y/N!" Your attention is quickly redirected to where Sprout and Astro are eagerly approaching, the former wrapping you both in a tight hug that the remaining partner is quick to join.

☁ It's a comforting presence and it makes your heart steady itself before fingers are picking at your fur. "Did something happen? You're both covered in ichor." Astro frets, immediately making that ill feeling return to your guts. You debate not telling them before immediately erasing the thought. They needed to know they had too. If anyone could at least begin to get a handle on how to survive...whatever that was.

☁ "There's something about floor 50."

[spencewalterreid]

The Red Means I Love You

Summary: Spencer came into the restaurant you work at when you were in a bad mood, but nonetheless he has to see you again.

Pairing: Spencer Reid x Female First-person POV

Category: Fade to Black Smut (TV-14)

Warnings: dirty talk, switch!Reid!!! switch!Reader, first person pronouns no use of y/n, date nights,hair pulling, neeeerd spencer, reader works at a truck stop, fade to black smut, smooches, second base. I think that should be it?

Word count: 4.3k

Author's Note: Hello again ladies!! I'm not sure how I haven't yet come across a riff fic off of Spencer and Cat's scenes, but here it is!! Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying they were a good pair, but the way their characters played off of one another was positively scrumptious. Here's an indulgence into that.

The first time it happened, I was working a 14-hour shift at a truck stop diner. I’d started my shift right out of school, and I was working until the next morning. Just an hour before he’d come in, we were slammed – every table in the store was full, and I’d only just gotten all the tables bussed. I was exhausted, my manager was hounding me, and I was on the verge of a full-blown breakdown. When refilling a Dr. Pepper for the jackass at table 32 who I had to argue with over the burger that he specifically requested onions on, I glanced up at the door as the bells rang. Oh.

He is... stunning.

My attention was abruptly yanked out of my daydream about the gorgeous boy that had just walked in with a handful of other people, and I looked down at my right hand wrapped around the plastic cup, which is now cold and drenched in the sticky beverage. Goddamn it.

“Boys, are you dining in?” I asked cheerfully as I grabbed a new straw, a smile plastered across my face. Stay professional. Stay professional. Stay professional.

“Yeah, we’ve got–” he paused to turn around and count heads– “six,” said one of the three men. Not the pretty one, though he was by no means ugly. He was tall, but not the tallest of the group (that title belonged to the one that caught my eye), with broad muscles laced under dark skin. He had a great smile. 

I glance back at table 32, who was rolling his eyes at the few-second delay. “Wherever you like,” I reply, swiftly returning to this grumpy-ass trucker. “Your refill, sir! Anything else I can get for you?”

He blatantly ignores me.

“If you change your mind, just holler,” I added, and as I turned to walk away:

“You can get me a new fuckin’ burger, this one got cold while I was waiting for you to finish flirting.” He slammed the second burger I’d brought to him back down onto the tray. Fuck you, dude. I’m already getting chewed out by the kitchen, but cool! Yeah! Okay!

“Yes, sir. I apologize, I’ll be right back out.” As I walked away with his tray, shifting it between fingers so as not to scald my fucking hand, I let a subtle sigh escape from my lungs.

10 seconds at the door. 30 seconds at the table. 15 minutes for food. 1 minute to bus.

I remind myself for the umpteenth time today of what’s supposed to be the restaurant policy. That had been out the door since 4:30 that afternoon and it is now… I glanced at the clock above the window as I slid the tray back onto it… 12:57 in the morning. Sick. Can’t wait to see the reviews.

“What was wrong with it this time?” The chef snapped, yanking the tray back.

“I’m just as annoyed as you are, I promise. He said it got cold. Just…”

She cuts me off. “Leave it there for a few minutes and come back. I’m not making a whole new burger.”

I did not roll my eyes, thank you very much.

Wheeling around on the balls of my feet and carefully controlling my breath, I picked up 6 menus and a matching number of silverware on the way to the round booth the group had settled into. I flip[ed on a positive tone to greet them. “Howdy, howdy! How are you folks-”

“Just say the word, and I’ll see him out,” the dark man interjected. The rest stared at him in partly shock, partly reprimand. I think the silver-haired one was his superior, he was carrying the ‘don’t interrupt her, asshole’ look.

“Uhm, sorry?” I glanced around the mostly-empty store, divvying up the hardware on the table in the meantime.

“The old fuck over there. If you want him to leave, I’ll make it happen.” He crossed his arms over his chest, looking me dead in the eyes. I chuckled uncomfortably.

“No, that’s okay.” I have a feeling he was not kidding. I swept my eyes along the table to make eye contact with each person as I introduced myself, but I risked a few seconds longer for the boy on the far left. “I’m gonna be your server tonight. You folks know what you’d like to drink?”

They rattled off their drink orders one by one (The dark-haired woman asked for scotch and I’m only a little sure she wasn’t being serious, and the one with the colourful clothing almost squeaked in joy when she saw strawberry lemonade on the menu), but the sweet-looking boy on the end took the longest.

“Sir?” I nudged, tilting my head down to catch his gaze under his hair.

“Yes, uh, what kind of coffee do you serve?” he inquired, pushing his menu in front of him on the table, trying to straighten the edge flush against the side of the table.

I stammered. “It’s just black coffee…” I replied uncertainly, glancing at the other members of the group.

“They don’t serve frappuccinos, Reid. Do you want the coffee or not?” the second blonde woman sighed, and I think she was probably just as far down her rope as I was. That slips from my mind, though, at the mention of his name. Reid. Cute.

“No, I just meant the roast,” he clarified, but at the uncomfortable look on my face, he conceded. “Yeah. Black coffee, please.”

If he slumped any further down, I think the booth would swallow him.

—-—-

The second time it happened, he caught me on a better day. Our breakfast rush wasn’t too bad, and I actually had a second server helping me that day. It was almost noon, and I was feeling far lighter than I was the last time. When I glanced up at the chime by the door, a smile far more genuine than last time crossed my face.

“Hello again!” I chirped, wiped my hands on my apron, and pretended not to notice his flinch. “Just you today?”

He returned my smile, albeit feeble. “Yes. It’s just me.” 

“It’s Reid, right?” Grabbing a menu and silverware, I followed him over to the same booth he’d occupied with the other five people last time.

“No, I- Well, yes. Derek uses my surname. It’s Spencer,” he replied, sinking into the fake leather and glancing around the store. “It’s busier than last time.”

Setting the menu in front of him, I followed his gaze. “Well, yeah, it was the middle of the night.”

“The coffee was Colombian roast with hazelnut,” he said. Huh? “You seemed confused when I asked what kind it was.” He nodded, like he was trying to remind himself. “That’s what it was.”

“Oh.” Did his lips look that soft last time? His sleeves are folded up his arms this time. “Your hair looks pretty,” I said before I could stop myself. Shut up, shut up, shut- “It matches your eyes.” My smile softens the compliment, but I don’t think that made him any less confused.

“T-thank you,” he replied softly, pushing it back on instinct. Change the topic.

“Do you, uhm.” I clear my throat and shift my weight. “Would you like a coffee, then?”

He shook his head with a grimace. “Absolutely not. It was awful.”

He’s funny. I guess I didn’t throw him too far off-course.

“Why did you order it, then?” I asked, not unkindly. He turned pink. Pretty.

“I didn’t want to make you more stressed than you already were.” Reid– No. Spencer adjusted the strap of his cross-body bag. 

“Did I seem stressed?” I asked, quickly chancing a look behind me to check for my manager. We’re in the clear.

“Ye- No, not like that. I’m, uh. I’m trained to read people well. You were walking at an abnormally quick pace, and you kept looking around when you were at other tables, even though there were very few, as though any second you’d be pulled away." He straightened slightly, setting his shoulders, as if he were in his element, but he still doesn't look at me, his eyes cast down. "When you were filling our drinks, you poured some out and refilled it more than once, which I assume was to achieve a perfect ratio, or at least one you perceive as such. And–” he looked up from his menu that I’m positive he wasn’t reading to look me in the eyes. “And the man at table 32 was being very curt with you. That would cause stress. Your manager behind the window wasn’t making it any better, I bet.”

I scoffed incredulously. “Good memory,” I said with a smile. “That was impressive. Yeah, I wasn’t in the best mood that night.” My voice lowered to a conspirational whisper, but I didn’t let my facial expression change. “But you helped. You have no idea how far a little bit of kindness goes. And hey, I never got the chance to tell you I was sorry for messing up your order.”

Spencer shook his head, stretching and relaxing his fingers above the table for something to do. “It was just a salad. I just took the tomatoes off, it was no problem.”

I smiled softly. He’s so sweet. “Do you know what you’d like to drink, Spencer Reid?”

He let himself genuinely laugh. “Good memory,” he repeats, an air of light-hearted sarcasm to his tone. “I’d like a sweet tea with lemon and– actually. I know I shouldn’t ask, and you absolutely do not have to answer, but uhm… when do you have a lunch break? Maybe we could-”

“Right now. I’ll be right back,” I replied, taking off my apron and walking to the back to alert my manager (thankfully, a different one than the overnight one.) They could manage without me for an hour. I was not passing him up a second time.

——

The third time it happened, we were on our third date. Spencer wanted to go to a museum, I wanted to do something a bit more interactive. We agreed on an aquarium.

“Actually, Parrotfish are one of my least favourite of the wrasse family, and definitely least favourite of the Labridae,” he countered when I insisted their colours were pretty.

“I didn’t say they were my favourite, Reid, I said they were pretty."

“No, I know, but I’m just saying.” He was practically vibrating, balling a fist and unballing it, and I could tell he needed to tell me number 1,001 of his facts in the last hour.

I sighed, an affectionate smile on my face as I turned around and leaned on the rocky wall. “Why are they one of your least favourites?”

Reid offered me a toothy grin. “The parrotfish has a tendency to coat itself in a bubble of its own mucus and saliva in order to protect itself from parasites and predators. It’s intended to mask their scent. Many refer to it as an underwater sleeping bag,” he explained with a grimace. Oh, that’s why. “I’m positive it only spreads bacteria, and if fish could get sick in the same way as homosapiens, they would all be sick all of the time.”

“You know, not for nothing, but I wouldn’t mind your saliva all over me.”

“Ugh! Gross!” Spencer staggered backward, glaring at me. “Don’t say things like that.”

I pout. “You’re not even a little curious what I taste like, Dr. Reid?” I stalked up to him, mocking a femme fatale in one of those cheesy black-and-white spy movies.

“Stop it.” He swallowed thickly and when I went to lay my hands on the sides of his neck, his instinctively found my hips. He glanced at my lips. I stared at his.

“Make me,” I whispered, deciding eye contact was a better choice. Good god, his face was red.

His mouth parted slightly and he squeezed my hips, then adjusted his bag. “Enough,” he asserts, and I’d be lying if that didn’t turn me on. In all honesty, I was totally doing a bit and I was just about to back off anyway, but yeesh. For the sake of my own sanity, I giggled and pushed off of him. He sighed in relief.

“Fish can get sick,” I said, changing the topic back to what he'd said about the parrotfish to ease his nerves. When he took more than a half a second to reply, I started to doubt myself. “Can’t they?”

“Well, yes, but not… not ill. They can’t have a sickness like we can. They just feel sick. Like, if they swim upside down, or have issues breathing, or if the water quality is poor.”

I pushed myself off the wall and linked a finger around the strap of his bag, dragging him along behind me. “Alright, last section. Lock and load, you’ve got…” I glanced at my phone. “13 minutes to give me as many facts as you can. Go.”

–

Spencer insisted (according to Date Etiquette 101 from Professor Derek Morgan) that on the third date, he had to take me to a romantic dinner. He still wants to stop by his apartment to get changed, so we’re on the way there now, and have 1 hour, 42 minutes and counting to get to our reservation. I brought a bag with makeup and a change of clothes so I could get done up too and not have to go all the way across town to my place.

Y'know, you wouldn't think it, but he's really a reckless driver. It isn't that he doesn't understand the rules of the road or how to follow them. It's more that he knows them well enough that he feels confident in breaking them. It's kinda sexy. He drives with his left hand only barely touching the wheel and his right hand in mine. It took him a long time of being around me to be okay with physical contact, but now that he's to that point, he's incredibly clingy. He turns a 25-minute drive into 18, and I guarantee that's only because there was a fair amount of traffic.

–

“Are you almost ready?” I hear a rustling sound on the other side of the door, then a muffled, soft scraping noise that suggests he just sat on the floor (which by the way, is clean enough you could eat off of it) against the door. I’m in his room also sitting on the floor, utilizing a full-body mirror against his wall, carefully tweaking my eyeliner. Reid didn’t want to see me before the date, said it was bad luck. It’s strange what he chooses to be superstitious about.

“Almost. 1 minute.” I lean back, raking my fingers through my hair and checking my appearance. Not to toot my own horn, but toot fucking toot, I look downright strapping. “Okay!”

Just as the word leaves my mouth, the bedroom door is flying open and he’s barrelling in, but he stops dead in his tracks as he sees me. “Wow.”

I spin in a little circle, my black, mid-thigh corset dress making a dome around me. “You like?”

Spencer approaches slowly, his eyes scanning me head to toe, right to left, and everything in between. “You… are magnificent.” His fingers twitch when he’s about a foot away from me as though he wants to touch me but chickens out. I gently take his hands and place them on my hips, emboldening him to slide his touch upward, over my waist and around to my back. I pretend not to notice his repeated glances at my breasts, as does he.

“Et toi, mon amour,” I reply, a fresh grin painted across my lips. “You look hot.”

He makes a sour face. “You ruined it.”

My jaw drops and I take a step back, feigning offence. His grip falls from my sides. “Fuck did I do? I can’t call you hot now? I’ve said that a thousand times, calm down.”

“I was being a gentleman,” he pouts. “You’re just being crude.”

“That’s not crude, Dr. Reid. If you want crude-”

“No! No, don’t do that. Save it.” He chuckles, stepping forward again and putting his hands right back where they were. I don’t stop him. “Just hush.”

I let him look at me for a few seconds, and I, him. Just a few until I started getting squeamish under the scrutiny. “Okay. Enough, we need to go,” I interject, pressing against his chest gently with my fingers splayed out. With a glance at the clock behind me, he nods.

“Après toi, ma chérie.”

–

Fancy, fancy FBI boyfriend-not-boyfriend rented out a whole room for us. Candle in the middle of a two-seater table, a window into the main room so we can see what’s going on, and a record player in the corner. The decor is upscale, but not obnoxiously proud. Lots of wood, mostly dark, but light walls. He even goes so far as to pull out my chair for me. 

We’re almost to the end of our meal and I’m taking pin-sized bites to try and draw it out. Reid has already called me out for it twice, but I have blatantly ignored him.

“Spencer,” I begin, cutting off a conversation about the history behind the Hays code and its relevance in a specific episode of Supernatural.

“Hm?” He straightens up, clearing his throat.

“I have a stupid question. You don’t have to answer it.”

“Go ahead.”

“What was your first impression of me?” My voice is low, unsure. I have time to cross my legs, then uncross them, then look at him, then back at my lap before he begins to reply.

“I thought you were pretty. You seemed agitated,” he says, slow, haltingly, like he isn’t sure if that’s the answer I wanted. It wasn’t.

“No, after that. When we started going out. What kind of person do you think I am?”

Spencer hums, folding his hands and leaning back. The seconds tick by like minutes, and god he looks delectable.

“You’re self-assured and conduct yourself as though you think you’re the greatest person in the world. You hand out compliments like candy and you flirt like you’re dying tomorrow because you want people to find you exciting. You think you have to have major sex appeal to attract a partner, which isn’t true, it’s actually quite off-putting.”

“You think having major sex appeal is off-putting?” I interrupt.

“No, I think overdoing it to the point of-”

“I’m not overdoing it! It’s just the way I am.”

“I’m not saying-”

“It’s just that-”

“If you’d stop interrupting me, I’d answer your question.”

I shut my mouth. That was hotter than it needed to be.

“Thank you. As I was saying, it’s clear to others, or at least to me, that you do not feel that way about yourself in the slightest. For the sake of honesty and because I always answer your questions to the fullest of my abilities, I’d say you find yourself almost repulsive."

My stomach twists. Does he find me repulsive? Why would he think I feel that way? Better question: How does he know I feel that way?

"When you first began getting into relationships, you were probably up-front about that because you didn’t know any better, but quickly learned people internalize what you tell them. So, to combat that reaction, you started acting like all you wanted from people was sex so it didn’t matter whether they liked you or not, which led to a lot of meaningless flings that left you feeling worse than you did when you were single.”

If my jaw were any lower, it’d be on the floor. I swallow my arguments.

“Tell me more about my sex life, then, Dr. Reid. Since you know so much.” I’m hoping he knows me well enough to know I didn’t mean that to be as bitter as it sounded. He does.

“You project dominance because you fear loss of control, not to mention your hatred of your own body. You wouldn't ever want to be the receiver in a sexual situation, or at least you wouldn't ask for it for worry of your partner finding you less-than-satifactory."

I fight the urge to ask if he'd feel that way, even as I know his answer.

"You only lightly dabble in more aggressive sexual habits, but your enthusiasm whether or not it comes across as joking suggests there’s more truth in it than you’d like for there to be.” He pauses, and I’m not sure whether it’s because he’s trying to remember his next line or it’s because I distracted him when I leaned forward to lean my chin against my palm. I forgot how much of my cleavage this dress shows. He licks his lips and moves on more elegantly than I thought he would. I take advantage of his silence.

“What about you, Dr. Reid?”

He blinks. “What?”

“What about your sexual habits?”

“I, uhm-”

I stand up and walk over to him, placing my hand on his shoulder before I settle on his knee. His hand goes to my thigh nearest to him and he catches my eyes, careful not to look away.

“Well?”

His composure repairs itself like magic.

“It depends on my partner,” he says, his voice lower than it was before, and I swear his eyes are darker than they were a few minutes ago. “I tend to let my partner set the pace. I can embrace aggression if the circumstance proves it necessary.”

Holy shit.

This, my dear reader, was the third time I thought: I’d really like to see just how red I could make you.

“What about me?” I ask, my throat dry. I think I’m more nervous than he is, but I’m taking it like a champ. I look down at Spencer’s hand (his very pretty hand, his very big hand, across my entire thigh. Has it moved up?), but he’s not having it. His free hand goes up to hold my chin firmly, and with utter and total reverence, he lifts my face to look him in the eyes again.

“What about you, beautiful?" He watches me carefully, brown eyes full of intent. My self-control right now is dazzling.

And if I said a little thank-you prayer to God for not giving me a dick with which I would be cursed with a boner right now, then maybe that’s nobody’s business.

“What kind of aggression would you use with me?” I bite my lip and swallow, staring at his lips. Perfect, perfect boy.

He studies me for a moment, and I think he’s trying to make me squirm on purpose. His hand hasn’t left my chin, the bastard.

“Keep talking," he prompts. Yes, sir.

I could not tell you, gun to my head, where the fuck I got my bravery from, but hallelujah holy shit.

“Would you grab me by the throat and hold me against a wall?" Woah, where did that come from? Go me. "Would you hold onto me so hard it bruised? Would you leave marks that wouldn’t go away for weeks? Would you ever hurt me, Dr. Reid?” If he notices my face getting so hot it would rival the sun, then it was sweet of him not to address it.

“Is that what you want?”

“I guess I just want to know if you could,” I reply, my left hand coming up to his face, my fingertips tracing his bottom lip, my eyes glued to the point of contact.

“You have no idea what I could do, given enough provocation,” he whispers, finally allowing his eyes to fall to my mouth, parted slightly in awe.

“Are you gonna kiss me or not, Spencer?”

Rather than responding to me, his grip on my chin loosens for favour of travelling down my jaw, then to the back of my neck, curling into my hair, pulling just hard enough for me to feel the tension. “Fix your attitude,” he asserts, and then his lips are on mine and it’s all passion and fury and the taste of chocolate. I moan into his mouth on instinct, and his grip on my hip tightens.

If there’s one thing about Spencer Reid, it’s that he exists as a multitude. And if there’s two things, it’s that he kisses like a man fucking starved. Like he’s been suffocating slowly in a room with no oxygen, and once he gets a mask, he’s not letting it go. He’s teeth in lips, he’s hands roaming, he’s furrowed brows and mouths parting.

His right hand roves over my thigh furthest from him, dipping under my skirt just barely. He stays under the fabric and moves his hand to the top of my thigh, then braving the inside. He’s squeezing once or twice everywhere he touches, like the cliche of saying pinch me. I spread my legs instinctively.

As quick as it started, it stops.

I whine, my eyes opening slow like molasses.

“This is an incredibly uncomfortable position,” he pants. I only just realized the poor thing is not exactly on a sofa made for two. I may be snug as a bug in his lap, but the arms of the chair are digging into the sides of his legs. The recollection of our being in a fucking restaurant right now hits me in the face like a fresh bucket of ice water. 

“Fuck. Sorry,” I breathe, my hands tangled in his hair, and I’m not sure when they got there, or when they managed to unbutton the top half of his shirt, or how the straps of my dress are halfway down my arms.

“Bathroom?” I propose, glancing at the adjoining one that I am thanking my lucky stars for as we speak.

“Bathroom,” he agrees.

[cutesyaddy]

from foes to forever

(part two)

Min Ho Moon x Reader

a/n:uhm kinda short sorry, i’ll try make the next one a little longer, hope you enjoy anyway

—————————————

After arriving to kiss and settling in my dorm with my roommate (and maybe new friend), Madison, I was so ready for this welcome party.

I wore a cute light yellow dress with intricate folds that cascaded down my legs. To pair with that, I wore some strappy heels and minimal gold jewellery, along with some cute yellow eyeshadow to bring it all together.

When I made it to the party, I couldn't help but feel nervous, yet excited. all at the same time.

I shrugged the nerves off and walked into the venue.

I heard a small ping from my phone, and I pulled it out quickly; it was my sister back home. I smiled at my phone while trying to text and walk at the same time.

The room was packed with students, the music was loud, and I was trying to weave through the crowd while simultaneously on my phone. bad idea.

My focus was completely elsewhere, and when I finally looked up, I collided with someone—hard.

(Sorry this part may be confusing because I kept switching povs.)

Min Ho was holding a drink and joking around with Q when bang, someone bumped into him, and the collision sent liquid from his drink all over his designer shirt.

He stares down at himself, then at the person that bumped into him. He gave me a disbelieving look. “God, watch where you’re going!”

“Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry! I wasn’t paying attention,” I blurted out, handing him some napkins from the table.

He snatches them from me, annoyed. “Yeah, clearly. Do you make a habit of running people over, or is it just me?” His tone is sharp, and there’s a flicker of recognition in his eyes—he remembers her from the airport.

I freeze, narrowing my eyes as I realise who he is. “Oh, it’s you,” I say, my tone immediately shifting. “The guy who doesn’t believe in apologizing.”

A few people turned to watch our encounter. “Are you always this clumsy? Should I be worried for my future shirts?” he sneered.

“It was an accident; I already apologized, jeez.” I folded my arms in front of my chest. “Maybe if you weren’t standing in the middle of the walkway, this wouldn’t have happened.”

“This wouldn’t have happened if you were watching where you were going.” He stepped towards you, fuming.

“You’re one to talk, am I recalling incorrectly? Was it not you who bumped into that poor girl at the airport and didn’t even apologize for it?” A sudden realisation occurred in your head.

“Hey, you told her you couldn’t speak English; what, are you a liar as well?”

After a heated back-and-fourth with him, I muttered, “You know what? forget it” and walked away embarrassed and frustrated.

I left him standing there annoyed by our interaction, but what I didn't know was that he was amused by my ability to dish it back.

——————

the next day i was walking around campus, trying to get used to the new environment.

Sometimes people would look at me funny; they probably recognised me from my “performance” last night.

I groan inwardly at the thought. I caused a big scene in front of like half the school on the first day. ‘how embarrassing’

Madison wouldn't shut up about it this morning.

flashback**

“So… I heard you made quite the impression last night. You and Min Ho are the KISS gossip right now.” She pokes at me.

“ugh. Please don’t remind me.” I hid my face in my hands. “Hey—I'm just saying, I've heard things about him, and it takes guts to talk back to the Min Ho. Most people wouldn’t dare.

“seriously? “the” Min Ho? He’s not even scary, just super infuriating.”

flashback over**

‘I just hope I don't run into him again for a while.’

I decided to stop at the café to grab a coffee, and of course, the one person I didn't want to see was ahead of me in line.

‘Okay (y/n), play it cool; maybe he won’t notice.’ but unsurprisingly, with my luck, he noticed me behind him.

When he saw me, he smirked and stepped aside. “Ladies first. Or are you worried you’ll trip over me since you’re such a clutz?”

“You know, I would’ve thought you’d already used up your quota of annoying comments for the day.”

The tone with this “argument” was different than the night prior. This seemed like pointless bickering; there was no malicious intent behind his voice.

“I'm full of surprises,” he spoke smugly. I couldn't help rolling my eyes. “Maybe I don't need a coffee.”

finished with this conversation, I started walking away. “Careful; I wouldn’t want another accident!” He yelled loud enough for others to hear.

I shot him a glare, but I couldn't stop myself from feeling amused.

SORRY ITS SHORT!! PART THREE HERE

ALSO IM VERY OPEN TO CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM SO PLEASE LEAVE ANY TIPS IN THE COMMENTS 🙏

[iseos]

IN THE MOUNTAINS 003 : jump!

library. nishimura riki x f!r wc. 2738 © iseos

synopsis. niki would rather spend his summer break anywhere other than in the middle of the woods. but who knew a prank war would change his opinion not only the camp—but also the most annoying person there

previous. masterlist. next.

y/n, yunah, and moka wandered along the dirt path to the cafeteria, their steps crunching softly against the loose gravel. overhead, the sun shone bright, making the air warm but not unbearably so, as the scent of pine and earth mixed in the breeze.

"i swear," y/n began dramatically, "if they try to serve us something like 'mystery casserole' again, i'm gonna run into the woods and never come out."

yunah snorted, "remember when they had those purple mashed potatoes? nobody touched them except that one kid who claimed he liked 'unique flavors.'"

moka laughed, skipping ahead and twirling to face them, "you're both being dramatic. the food’s not that bad. remember last summer?" she directed her question towardsyunah, "the pizza was decent."

"decent?" she shot back, "it was soggy in the middle and tasted like cardboard!"

moka gasped in exaggerated offense, "you take that back! it was gourmet compared to the spaghetti night disaster."

the group burst into laughter at the memory as they reached the cafeteria doors. inside, the lunch hall was a symphony of chatter, laughter, and the clatter of trays. campers lined up to receive their meals, and the trio made their way through the line, picking at options that looked the least questionable. y/n ended up with a tray holding a sandwich, some carrots, and a suspiciously shiny apple.

they found a table near the center, and just as they started eating, the sound of a counselor's whistle cut through the noise. a tall woman, clipboard in hand, climbed onto a small platform at the front of the room.

the room quieted down as she scanned the crowd with practiced authority. "we're announcing the group leaders for today's activities. when i call your name, come see me after lunch to get your assignments. remember you're in charge of keeping your group organized, motivated, and having fun! counselors will be around to help if needed, but for the most part, you will be in charge today."

a ripple of murmurs ran through the room as campers exchanged curious glances. yunah leaned over to y/n, "bet it's going to be all the super energetic people. like moka."

moka whipped around to face the other two girls when she heard her name, "do not wish something like that on me," she hissed.

the counselor started listing names, her tone upbeat, and amongst the many names: "...y/n,..."

y/n froze mid-bite, her sandwich halfway to her mouth. startled, she blinked and pointed to herself while yunah began quietly ooo-ing at her.

the counselors continued calling other names, assigning moka and yunah to separate groups. both groaned at being split up but promised to meet up again later.

after lunch, y/n joined the other newly named group leaders in a small clearing by the edge of the field. a few counselors handed out clipboards, schedules, and basic instructions for the activities they'd each be overseeing. y/n shuffled through the papers, feeling a mix of nerves and excitement as the counselors gave a brief rundown of the instructions.

"hey, y/n," a voice called out. y/n turned to see jungwon walking up to her with a warm smile, "looks like we're co-leaders."

"looks like it," y/n replied, relieved to see a familiar face. jungwon had always been easy to talk to, with a calm demeanor that balanced out her occasional impulsiveness.

as they worked to set up the activity, a scavenger hunt through the woods, y/n noticed niki amongst the campers approaching their group, his hands once again shoved deep into the pocket of his hoodie.

her stomach tightened slightly. she wasn't sure if he'd participate willingly or if he'd stay on the sidelines, uninterested as usual.

leaning towards jungwon, she whispered, "hey, can you do me a favor?"

jungwon paused, tilting his head curiously, "what's up?"

"see that guy over there?" she nodded subtly toward niki.

jungwon followed her gaze. "the one who looks like he'd rather be anywhere else?"

"yeah, him," y/n said with a small laugh, "can you try talking to him? see if he opens up to you at all? he...uh, hasn't been the most social."

jungwon raised an eyebrow, a teasing smile on his face. "what? giving up already?"

"no!" y/n protested quickly. "i just think he might be more receptive to someone new. you're good at talking to people."

he considered her words, then gave a nod. "alright. i’ll give it a shot after we get started."

the scavenger hunt began with a chaotic start. the campers the two were responsible for darted off in every direction, clutching their list of clues and excited shouting at one another. y/n and jungwon trailed behind them, watching the chaos unfold with a mix of amusement and apprehension.

"so," jungwon began, smirking as he glanced at y/n, "you're going to take responsibility if one of them gets lost, right? y'know, with you being the team leader and all..."

y/n covered her face with her hands as the mental image crossed her mind. "i don't even want to think about having to explain that to the counselors. but if someone gets stuck in a tree looking for clues, that's your responsibility, 'cause you're also a team leader," she shot back, pointing at him accusingly.

jungwon raised his hands in mock surrender. "fair enough, but i'm warning you now, if anyone climbs a tree, i'm just gonna yell 'jump!’ and hope for the best."

y/n couldn’t hold back her laugh at his comment, "very reassuring."

as they talked, jungwon's eyes shifted toward niki, who was lingering at the edge of the group, clearly trying to blend in while keeping as much distance as possible from everyone else. he nudged y/n with his elbow, "guess i'll go check in with him. be back in a sec."

"good luck," y/n said, watching as jungwon sauntered over to niki. she busied herself with checking the progress of the other campers and making sure they were staying on track, but she couldn't help sneaking glances at the two boys. jungwon had an easygoing way of talking to people that made other people easily comfortable with him, and to her surprise—and mild irritation—it seemed to be working on niki.

she saw niki actually responding to whatever jungwon was saying, nodding slightly and even muttering a few words back. her eyebrows shot up in surprise. for someone who had barely spared her a glance earlier, niki seemed more willing to interact with jungwon.

when jungwon returned, he was grinning, "well, that wasn't so hard. you made it seem like he was going to bite my head off or something."

y/n narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously, "what did you say to him?"

"nothing special," he shrugged, "just asked if he found anything yet and made a joke about how all the clues probably got eaten by squirrels. he cracked a smile at that, by the way."

y/n's jaw dropped. "he smiled? you're joking."

"nope. full-on smirk. it was glorious," jungwon said with exaggerated pride.

she folded her arms, feeling a twinge of jealousy. "why does he talk to you and not me?"

"oh i don't know," jungwon said, pretending to think as he tapped his chin. then, with a mischievous glint in his eye, he added, "maybe it's because you have a crush on him."

y/n's eyes widened, and she recoiled as if the words physically struck her. "what?!"

jungwon laughed, clearly enjoying her reaction, "you heard me. you've seem so determined to get him to talk to you; maybe he can sense it."

"i do not have a crush on him," she shot back, her voice dripping with exaggerated offense.

jungwon threw his hands up again in defense, laughing more at her over-the-top reaction, "okay, relax! i'm just messing with you."

"you're ridiculous," y/n said, crossing her arms. she avoided his gaze, her cheeks still slightly warm. from the accusation.

jungwon was clearly enjoying her flustered state. "but you have to admit, you're really invested in getting him to like his camp.”

“how you do know about that?”

“i overheard you and yunah talking,” he shrugs, “but my point still stands, if it's not a crush, then why do you care so much?"

"i'm just trying to be nice," y/n insisted, crossing her arms tightly over her chest. "he's new, he's clearly not happy to be here, and...his sour attitude is ruining the energy of the camp."

"uh-huh," jungwon gave her a knowing look, watching as the other campers happily participated in the activities, unaware of one certain camper's disinterest, but he didn't push any further.

the girl sighed, looking at the trees around them, "besides," she muttered, more to herself more to herself than to the boy, "it's not like he's easy to talk to. you're lucky you got anything out of him."

jungwon patted her shoulder lightly, his teasing tone replaced by something softer, "don't overthink it. sometimes people just need time."

she gave him a small smile in return, appreciating his words even if she still felt a flicker of irritation at his earlier joke.

they spent the rest of the activity wrangling the other campers, keeping an eye out for anyone wandering too far or getting too ambitious looking for clues. jungwon's easy humor kept y/n from overthinking her interactions with niki, or jungwon's teasing, but she couldn't help glancing toward niki every now and then.

after dinner, y/n found herself in yunah and moka’s cabin, enjoying the quiet hum of the evening. the air inside smelled faintly of bug spray and sunscreen, a mix that somehow felt comforting after the day’s exhausting activities. her own cabin was a bit calmer than this one, but she liked the lively energy moka and yunah brought. plus, their bunks were cozier, even if they did creak with every movement.

“so,” yunah flopped onto her bunk with a dramatic sigh, staring up at the ceiling, “today was…interesting. i swear, my group spent more time arguing about who got to shoot the arrows than actually shooting them. we have, like, zero teamwork.”

“tell me about it,” moka chimed in, perched cross-legged at the end of her bed, “we barely did anything because two kids kept trying to drown each other in the lake.’

y/n chuckled, fiddling with the hem of her hoodie. “well, at least you guys had some excitement. my group was pretty chill.”

“chill, huh? or was it because you got to spend all that time with jungwon?” moka asked while playfully narrowing her eyes.

rolling her eyes, y/n spoke with a smile, “he’s just…easy to work with. he knows what he’s doing.”

propping herself on her elbows, yunah looked down at y/n from her top bunk, “speaking of people who don’t know what they’re doing…i saw niki walking to your group. is he still acting like this camp is the worst thing to ever happen to him?”

y/n sighed, resting her chin on her knees, “pretty much. i just don’t get him. it’s like…he’s going out of his way to hate everything here. and what bothers me the most? he actually talked to jungwon today. like, full sentences and everything apparently.”

moka gasped dramatically, “no way. so he can talk.”

“and let me guess, he still won’t say more than a word to you?” yunah smirked.

with a groan, y/n flopped back against moka's pillows with a loud creak from the bunk’s metal frame. "exactly! i don't know what his problem is. i've been nice, tried to include him, and nothing. but apparently jungwon gets to be his new best friend immediately?"

moka leaned forward, "hmm...are you sure you're not just a little jealous?"

y/n shot her a glare. “i’m not jealous.”

“you sure about that?” yunah teased, a sly smile creeping onto her face, “you’ve been talking about this guy nonstop. maybe you have a little crush on him.”

y/n sat up so fast that she nearly knocked into moka. “oh my god, not you too! why does everyone keep saying that?”

from above, yunah raised an eyebrow, “wait—who else said it?”

realizing she had said too much, y/n quickly shook her head. “no one. forget it.”

moka, however, wasn’t letting go that easily. “wait a second. does someone else also think you have a crush on him?”

“no! that’s not what i meant. its just—you guys keep bringing it up, and its annoying,” y/n’s face flushed.

“y/n, it's not a crime to think someone’s cute, y’know,” yunah smirked knowingly.

y/n groaned loudly, burying her face in her hands. “guys, i do not like him. he’s rude, standoffish, and—ugh! i’m just trying to be nice to someone who’s clearly miserable. that’s it. end of story.”

moka held her hands up in mock surrender, “okay, okay. no crush. but…you do talk about him a lot.”

“because i’m frustrated!” y/n shot back, exasperated, “i’m trying to understand him, and it’s just impossible.”

the bed frame creaked as yunah climbed down to the lower bunk while moka pursed her lips thoughtfully. “well, if you really want to get through to him, maybe you’re going about it the wrong way,” the older girl said.

“yeah,” moka added, though her mischievous tone was creeping in. “but if you really want to help loosen him up, we could…y’know…give him a little nudge.”

y/n frowned. “what kind of nudge?”

moka’s grin widened, “a little friendly prank might help.”

“a prank? are you serious?” y/n’s eyebrows shot up in disbelief.

“why not?” yunah chimed in, her eyes glimmering with interest. “it’s harmless, and maybe it’ll finally get him to stop sulking and actually interact with people.”

"i don't know..." y/n hesitated, glancing over at yunah who was now sat next to her, the girl’s interest clearly piqued.

“i mean, moka’s got a point,” yunah said with a shrug, “it's not like it has to be anything mean. just something to get a reaction out of him, maybe make him laugh.”

“or make him hate me even more,” y/n countered, though the gears in her head were already turning.

“come on, y/n. you’ve been trying to get through to him for days, and nothing else is working.”

moka leaned forward again, grabbing y/n by her shoulders, “it’s not like he talks to you anyway. what do you have to lose?”

y/n sighed, torn between her better judgment and the tiny part of her that was tempted by the idea. she didn’t like the thought of annoying niki, but his constant brooding was starting to wear on her patience. maybe the two girls had a point; he needed a push.

“fine,” she said reluctantly, “but it has to be harmless. nothing that’s going to embarrass him or make him feel singled out.” she held up her finger to make her point.

moka and yunah grinned, clearly excited to have won her over. “of course!” moka chirped, clearly already scheming, “we’ll keep it fun. promise.”

before y/n could respond, the door creaked open, and one of the other girls staying in the cabin stepped inside. she paused when she saw the three of them huddled together, her curious gaze flitting between them.

“uh, hey,” the girl said, raising an eyebrow, “what’s going on?”

“nothing!” moka chirped, her tone a bit too cheerful. she quickly leaned back against the wall the bunk was pressed against, feigning innocence.

“just talking,” yunah added, though the way she avoided eye contact didn’t exactly sell the story. the girl gave them a skeptical look but didn’t press further.

as she turned toward her bunk, y/n stood up, stretching as she glanced at the clock on the wall. “i should probably head back to my cabin anyway,” she said, grabbing her water bottle from the floor.

“think about it!” moka whispered as y/n moved toward the door.

she rolled her eyes but couldn’t suppress the small smile that tugged at her lips. “goodnight, troublemakers.”

stepping out into the cool night air, her mind buzzed with thoughts of niki—and moka’s ridiculous but oddly tempting idea.

previous. masterlist. next.

[ruleroftheimps]

Okay, actually adding onto this because I swear I have reasons for believing this at the time. Now, I'm not so sure after seeing some other ideas people have, but, eh, whatever, fanfiction exists for this reason, and I like this idea for an au lol.

Oh, yeah, and a read more here because this is way too long for such a stupid idea.

How this idea originated (It's important, I swear)

Iirc, there are two points where it hints at Alastor's deal. I'm ignoring the black eye thing because I think that was just a coincidence. I could be wrong, but I'm just not counting it as proof one way or another since it's not explicitly canon. One, Husk's comment about Alastor 'being on a leash'. I do think that this could be in regards to Mimzy and not Husk actually knowing something, but Alastor's reaction is, uh, pretty telling. And, two, his part in the Finale where he talks about 'unclipping his wings'.

The leash statement does hint at a potential soul deal since we see that they literally can be put on a leash (Husk and Angel) by their deal, but, like I said, I don't think Husk would even know about Alastor's deal. Mainly because there's no sign he does know. Husk is perceptive, sure, so there's a chance he does, but you would think that somebody who clearly wants off his own leash, is as clever as Husk is shown to be, and also has dirt on the person he lost his soul to would be using it somehow. Yeah, Alastor's scary and threatened him, but souls are a pretty big deal in Hell, as evident by Alastor's reaction, Alastor presumably has a LOT of enemies, and Husk used to be an Overlord. He probably has the ability to use such information to his advantage, although there is a chance he just finds it too risky.

Also, that comment doesn't really... make sense? They were talking about Mimzy, why would Husk just randomly bring that up? Yeah, he looked annoyed that his concerns were being dismissed, but Husk's character seems smarter than just bringing up something he knows will piss Alastor off just to be petty. This is all just speculation, and for what I consider at this point to be a crack theory on my end, but I'm cooking. Ish. Not really, but if you made it this far, you'll probably keep reading lol.

So, the point of the last two paragraphs was that I don't think Husk was talking about a deal Alastor made, but more so how he acts like Mimzy's guard dog. Alastor panicked and overreacted, hence the light show and whatnot, and thus revealing he has a deal to us, the viewers, and probably Husk.

The second comment is from Alastor directly and we can take it as truth, since he's never directly lied to anybody in the show, and also was clearly not happy about it. Also, Alastor strikes me as the type (This is just my interpretation) as the type who's constantly playing himself up as stronger than he actually is (I actually want to do a comparison on how Vox sort of makes himself seem friendly/approachable vs Alastor, who revels in being feared). His exact words are 'Once I find out how to unclip my wings', and he's very obviously blaming his deal for his loss in the fight against Adam. This implies that something or someone is hindering his powers. Coupled with the fact that we know he has a deal of some sorts, it's not too big of a leap to assume it's the deal's fault.

Hence why I believed the deal's purpose was, at least on the deal maker's part, to, as Alastor put it, 'clip his wings' and keep him weaker. Now the question is just why.

The Reason

The immediate idea was it had something to do with Alastor, you know, terrorizing everybody in Hell when he arrived, and taking down various Overlords. And it's emphasized that they were important/powerful ones.

While we don't know what Overlords do exactly, beside owns chunks of territory and have vicious song battles because they're petty as FU- *cough, cough*, Carmilla does say 'Together, you own millions of souls. Souls at risk with the new Extermination schedule. We need to discuss what can be done to minimize the impact to our interest.' This implies that at least part of their job is to protect the souls under their control, mostly for their own sake. Although, this particular wording DOES imply care, and I think we know some Sinners sold their souls for protection? I'm not sure about that though, but either way it's irrelevant because we know at least some Overlords (Carmilla) want to protect the souls under their control, whether for their own gain or for the sake of actually... being nice?

We also- okay, don't know, since the Pilot is soft-canon, but we know there's a fairly big CHANCE certain Overlords are close to the King and/or Queen, specifically Carmilla, Zeezi, and Zestial. And Lucifer is also confirmed to never really have been that involved with the affairs of Hell, which makes me think it was Lilith who was close to them.

So. I present to you, the Lilith's Overlords Theory. (I just wanted to name something lol)

Le Theory

Lilith, as the Queen of Hell and the first human to end up in Hell, wants to make sure her subjects are cared for, or, at least as much as they can be. She inspires them and encourages them, and certain Sinners end up rising to the top and are given the title of Overlord. These Overlords become her main method of finding order in the chaos, and basically act as governors over certain parts of Pentagram City, making sure that their districts are maintained and the souls who live there know what to expect, especially when the yearly Exterminations start. In exchange, they get great power. This makes the position much more desirable, meaning more people want ot get it, and the less... desirable Sinners start to take control over hundreds of souls. It starts falling apart sometime in the 1850s, and by then, Lilith has less faith in the Overlords. Sure, some are good, but a lot are just absolute scum that aren't doing what they're supposed too and just abusing the power they got.

And then comes this random soul that's somehow super powerful and has a 'twisted' moral code that he uses to find and kill his victims, and an obsession with power and control. Alastor kills a bunch of the less desirable Overlords, which Lilith is pleased with since it makes things fall back into order. Buuut, he starts killing a little too many and she has to step in to make sure some are left (Hence why there aren't that many Overlords now). She ends up making a deal with him for something on his end (Or just using her position to force him to accept it) and, in exchange, he can't kill/torture any more Overlords. Anybody else is fine though.

And Alastor's FINE with this. For a bit. But, after his falling out with Vox, this is suddenly a hell of a lot more dangerous, because, while he can't kill Vox, Vox is 100% capable of killing him. Hence the fight he 'almost won'. He did almost win, he almost killed Vox, but his deal prevented him from going through with it, and Vox was able to get the upper hand. Alastor dips for seven years to try to find out a way around this, and returns to Charlie's hotel with the intent of manipulating her into getting rid of Vox for him. (Since we know the Vees are the main antagonist for S2).

That's it, that's the theory. A FILM TH- *gets shot*

Some more 'evidence'/holes in the theory

This is furthered by what Mimzy says right after her story. 'Don't worry, he hasn't done that in a while.' Why would Alastor stop killing Overlords/torturing souls? He clearly takes pleasure in it... Well, the killing Overlords part is the whole theory, and the torturing souls part would just be he got bored when he had to stick to weaker souls that died waaaay too quickly. C'mon, where's the fun in torturing a dead sinner?!

This theory doesn't fully explain why he lost against Adam, to which I say; Alastor just sucks. He's nowhere near as powerful as he believes he is. Sure, he's insanely powerful compared to other Sinners, but Adam is the, as he emphasized a LOT, the First Man. He understandably is pretty damn powerful. But, why would Alastor blame the deal? Well, he's unable to torture other Overlords into giving him their souls, and, by extension, more power, meaning he is somewhat limited. Still, the main reason is just he's prideful and bit off more than he can chew, lol.

Also, how did Alastor get Husk if he was unable to torture/kill other Overlords? Well, he can't torture or kill them, but Alastor can still make deals and bets. Husk didn't make a deal with Alastor out of fear or anything, he just made a bet that he lost.

In addition, Zestial. This is my big thing. Alastor freaking antagonized the literal Devil, but was scared of Zestial. (He was nervous/on edge their entire interaction, istg). Sure, it could just be because Charlie was there and would 100% keep Lucifer from killing him (See: Adam), but stiiiilll, it doesn't line up to me. Also, Alastor wasn't afraid to go toe-to-toe with the literal First Man, so I think something else was up with Zestial, and this theory lines up with that, since Alastor realized he will automatically lose any fight with another Overlod because he's handicapped and they aren't.

Now, this massive post being made and put aside... I don't think any of this is canon 🤣 It doesn't feel like it's big enough or dramatic enough, but I stinking love it, so I decided to share it and all the reasons why it sort of makes sense. Feel free to send me any asks about holes in the theory/questions about it though, I think it's still a cool theory.

[bestworstcase]

@cindersfall

actually that does make me think of a real point abt this, that a lot of the fandom does this thing i like to call walking backwards on the same wrong path, where you validate incorrect premises by trying to refute them. see: hatedom says jaune arc is a self insert and gets too much screentime, and fndm reaction is to be like "no way! jaune isnt even a main character! he doesnt matter!" like hm i am not sure thats true either mate

lol yeah. & then the venn diagram collapses into a "jaune is getting too much screen time" circle because the deuteragonist is not in fact a "side character." although i do think the strident insistence that jaune is a trivial side character is less a direct response to the self-insert bullshit than it is motivated by how extremely fucking weird a lot of jaune fans are about him re: making him vessel for their self-insert misogynistic power fantasies.

which i also think is probably a contributing factor in the "jaune is an authorial self-insert" claim having the staying power that it does—the section of the hatedom that rages about jaune getting too much screen time finds the incessant power fantasy harem jaune bilge just as obnoxious as the mainstream fandom, but where the fandom tendency is to be honest about it (i.e. "i don't like jaune much because jaune stans are so gross and annoying about him that i just can't enjoy him as a character") hatedoms—don't operate in good faith, and even outside hatedom there's a pernicious tendency in fandom (generally, not specific to rwby) to fault creators for unpleasant fan behavior. in that mode the background radiation of power fantasy harem jaune self-insertion by jaune fans very easily fuels an unspoken sense that this sort of textually baseless projection is in fact the intended response to the character, and that's exacerbated by the high proportion of hate-fans who don't really watch the show and strictly engage with fanon and hate-fanon.

(<- like i'm always saying when i talk about hatedom, the latter phenomenon—fans who don't actually engage with the text at all—is not restricted to hatedom and any fandom that is moderately visible Online is likely to have a contingent of fans who solely engage with fanworks. that contingent is usually not disruptive or noticeable in large fandoms but can be a bane in small fandoms if they start writing fanfic. 🫵 longtimer tts mutuals know of my seething disdain for certain popular cassunzel fic writers who Did Not Watch The Show. lmao)

but yeah. people are fucking weird about jaune in particular and like so much of it boils down to somehow not grasping that he is… the deuteragonist… for nine volumes and counting.

and to be fair i (obviously lmao) do think there's analytical value in starting with a take you don't agree with and building out an argument against--imo it's often easier to pin down your specific reasons for not agreeing with some interpretation than to articulate your own response to a text from nothing, which is why a lot of my posts are Like That. but for that to be valuable requires you to be intellectually honest and fair about what you're arguing against, and that means giving it actual serious evaluation and being skeptical of your intuitive disagreement versus kneejerking in the opposite direction, lol.

rwby fandom has a Particular very funny set of incentives where its like

a) rwby itself is a story written with and interested in nuance + moral complexity and it's most rewarding to engage with the narrative in that way;

b) rwby has a dedicated hatedom, which entails the development of a hate-fanon predicated on deliberate misinterpretation and bad faith reading of the text;

c) the fandom-wide persecution complex re: the preceding point makes platforming the hatedom [via mockery, rebuttal, or whining] broadly socially acceptable within rwby fandom spaces;

d) which serves to embed "[you/these people] don't understand nuance" into the fandom vernacular as an automatic response to perceived Bad Takes;

f) fans making hatedom watch a core part of their engagement with rwby fandom tend to gradually degrade their ability to differentiate hatedom bullshit from good faith discussion on parts of the narrative the hatedom fixated on (e.g., "ironwood right!" vs "ironwood's decisions all make sense from his point of view and it's reductive to read him as a one-note villainous caricature");

g) in a similar vein, because rwby hatedom constructs the hate-fanon primarily around (misogynistic) moral-reversal whereby male antagonists in prominent conflict with the main heroines are lionized while the heroines are reinterpreted as the 'real' villains (and female villains are variously either ignored, treated as accessories for male characters, or demonized), textual interpretations that engage with the moral complexity + nuance in the text (good characters can do bad things and be wrong in non-trivial ways, bad characters can be right and are always unapologetically humanized) become suspect in certain circles of the fandom;

h) ^ that is in addition to the general tendency, not at all specific to rwby fandom, among people who can't handle moral complexity or nuance to project their own black-and-white thinking onto everyone else.

…& the outcome of all this is to create a social environment in which the accusation of "lacking nuance" gets leveled at specifically readings predicated on the understanding that rwby is a story that wants and invites the viewer to think critically about its characters.

[fluentisonus]

working in a factory has you thinking so much about the insane chain of labor & transport that goes into making literally anything

[project-sekai-facts]

How are we feeling about ensekai’s emu3 translation!!! (I’m mad)

(if you remember the 3 whole posts i made when asahi got de-gayed on EN you'll know i am mad too and that this is probably going to get long)

i don't like to be too cynical but it was so obvious that they were going to change that line, i had a feeling since the event first released on JP and after the incident with Asahi where I went through and tracked down multiple other examples of EN removing queer subtext it became clear to me that in no way shape or form was "emu-chan really loves nene-chan" making it to EN without getting changed. what i didn't expect was them changing Nene's line after Luka's comment, which actually makes this whole situation far worse than many of their other instances of toning down queer subtext.

for anyone who isn't aware of what happened, in chapter 5 of the current Emu event, there's a scene where Nene, Rui and the Virtual Singers are talking about what would cheer Emu up. The vsingers all talk about how much Emu loves spending time with Nene, leading to the following exchange

If you look for them, any fan TL of this scene will be something similar to this:

Luka: ...Fufu. Emu-chan really loves Nene-chan, doesn't she? Nene: Th-that's nothing special...

EN's official translation is this:

So what's the issue? I'll start with Luka's part. In the original text, she uses the word daisuki, which can mean to "like a lot" or "love". It's a word you will see frequently in the idol/idol-adjacent genre of games, due to its ambiguity in that it can be read as either platonic or romantic when used towards a person, and often will be used in ambiguous situations so that it's harder to confirm the writers' intentions either way. so here, fans of the emu/nene ship could view the fact that emu loves spending her time with nene as more on the romantic side, but people who don't like the ship could view it as platonic and move on.

while they didn't translate daisuki directly, Luka's line still works, and still contains the ambiguity that works as ship tease in the original text. it's a perfectly fine localisation that still conveys the original intent. despite that, there is something to be said about EN's consistent refusal to translate daisuki as love in most instances when it's not used on An/Kohane (but then again, EN has literally teased An/Kohane on their twitter account so is it all that surprising?).

Here's some examples:

Aibou no koto ga daisuki de / he loves his partner -> he cares about his partner very much (The Power of Unity chapter 7 when Kaito is comparing Arata to Akito and Toya)

HARUKA-CHAN, DAISUKI DAYOOOO!!! / HARUKA-CHAN, I LOOOOOVEEE YOU!!! -> You're the best!!! (Dear Me, As I Was Back Then chapter 4 when minori is at an ASRUN concert. this one isn't actually that great of a localisation)

Honachan no koto daisuki dakara. Kore de iinda yo. / I love Honachan, so this is fine. -> I want what's best for her. And this is it. (Leo/need main story chapter 14 after Saki tells Honami she won't bother her anymore)

Minna daisuki de - taisetsuna tomodachi na no / I love them all - they're my dearest friends -> They're all amazing, and very dear to me. (Leo/need main story chapter 17. this isn't good either)

What's particularly amusing about that last one is that there's a second official translation for it that I assume was done by JP staff (since EN never promoted doing the Journey to Bloom subs like they did back when they provided subs for Petit SEKAI) that actually keeps the word daisuki as love.

Yeah. I love all my friends - and they mean the world to me.

It's a better localisation than the official EN team one.

Questionable localisation choices aside, Luka's line is fine and is actually in line with the original. The issue with this localisation very much lies with Nene's part, because that is an entirely new line.

In the original text, Nene's "that's just normal" or "that's nothing special" or however you choose to TL it, is meant to be her questioning Luka's statement, since all the things that the other vsingers said that Emu liked were pretty normal things like going shopping and playing video games with nene. To Nene, these things are normal activities for them to do together, so she gets embarrassed by the fact that Luka concludes from that information that Emu loves Nene. When I dissect it like that I think you can really tell what the writers were going for here lol.

"That's just us being friends" does still convey the idea that Nene thinks these activities aren't anything out of the ordinary and she isn't sure why the vsingers are picking these out as some of Emu's favorite things to do, but it's very different from the original line. "But those are just normal things we do together" is something I just came up with on the spot, but it's a lot closer to the original text and still conveys the same meaning. The fact they changed the line to "that's just us being friends" is, honestly, not even subtle that they're covering up queer subtext. The original scene was very clearly written in as ship tease, and EN mentioning "friends" for no reason, especially since the word nor anything close to it was not used in the original, is instantly a red flag because it's like the go-to for queerbaiting and censorship. This was intentional. There was no need for them to specify that the relationship is platonic, Luka's part is ambiguous for a reason so that fans can view it how they like.

Just to top all this off, here's Rin's original line just before that Luka+Nene interaction:

Oh, and! And! She said that playing games with Nene-chan is also super fun!

And here's Rin's line from the official EN translation:

That's not the same thing, but even more weirdly, the incorrect part (super fun->really loves) is a correct translation for the part changed in Luka's line. So, they can do it, they are willing to say "really loves", just not in the right places. Maybe because Rin's part is less personal than Luka's part? It's strange actually, this isn't the first time they've done this either. Off the top of my head I can think of an example from Shiho's Varied Kindness 2* story where they translated the word "suki" as really loves, despite that being much stronger than the original word used (and the fact that daisuki is used a lot in the Leo/need stories and it's incredibly rare if not entirely unknown for them to translate it correctly).

It's not subtle that they're trying to remove implications of the characters possibly being queer, they did it in curtain call and they did it in walk on and on, and multiple times before then too. And considering some of the content in this year's events and the amount of times they say daisuki alone, it's gonna keep happening. honestly i hate the fact that i keep trying to justify the translations in these posts. these translations are intentional. what happened in the curtain call translation back in october says enough. when a character who uses explicitly romantic language towards another guy passes as a straight character in the translation you know they're doing it on purpose.

oh and once again, it's only the EN server that has this issue. The scene in question was translated almost word-for-word on the TW and KR servers.

read fan translations. they're better than what EN gives us and people put a lot of effort into them.

[taamlok]

people will be like i hate taash because they're sooo immature, unlike my babygirl pookie bear emmrich 😍 who told on them to his boss 🫡 because they called him a skull fucker death mage 😤 which is not nice 😡 and hurt his feelings 😢 he is 55 🥵

[crowdusk]

CHAPTER 1136 THOUGHTS

[note: i read the official version when it comes out so i keep away from scan spoilers]

interesting that Who's-Who is (maybe) back considering he was the first to name and talk about Nika

Luffy so cute

I still don't like that we're getting a feast first thing in the arc...does not bode well but oh well let's go

more reinforcement of Elbaph being isolated/insular (which is weird considering Harald seemingly did so much to try and open it up...what was this dude doing)

speaking of which, I'm more and more suspicious about this dead king...I know I said he probably was just naive but hmmmmm. the fact that Jarul put him on the same level as Loki (a character that so far most giants have described as evil), the theme of misinformation and reputations being misleading, that the sword in Jarul's helmet looks like Harald's, that Jarul is definitely hiding something about Harald's death and Loki (look at his eyes in the panel where the giant is saying Jarul was there and tried to stop Loki). Harald smells fishier and fishier to me by the chapter, and it wouldn't surprise me if he was working with the Holy Knights/Elders in some way, maybe offering giants as military assets in exchange for (diplomatic) power. we also hear that he would leave Elbaph for periods of time which isn't all that suspicious by itself, but to me speaks to a disconnect between what he was doing and what his people were aware of.

so much lore!!!

interesting that a) Rodo says all giants growing up want to be the sun god and rule the world and b) there are different versions of Nika, which makes complete sense. Luffy literally does embody almost all the aspects mentioned - laughter, destruction, liberation - but it's interesting that the one thing Luffy has absolutely no interest in is ruling. he is a leader because people want to follow him, not because he wants to lead - how much is that true for Nika as a god, too?

I personally wasn't that surprised at the revelation that the world has been destroyed twice - I always thought the Void Century wasn't the earliest 'catastrophe' since the arrival of the people from the Moon was much earlier than that, and probably itself was a big cataclysm/reshaped the planet. plus, Nika probably comes from the Moon people (like the Shandorans) and so must be much older than the Void Century.

I am interested in the Harley, though (I SAID THERE WAS GOING TO BE IMPORTANT MYTHOLOGY PASSED DOWN IN ELBAPH). wondering if Robin could glean some information from it (pleaseeeeee) - but of course she's not there because Oda's smart and tricksy and annoying like that

the idea of change being both destructive and generative gets reinforced, and that it's to do with the toppling of power structures

of course, we need Luffy to reject the 'chosen one' fate, which he always does - he wouldn't be free otherwise

we kind of get told of Loki's deeds, finally. importantly, they're described as pranks and we actually see Loki laughing in the exact Nika pose Luffy takes on in gear 5. again, this idea of Loki really embodying the destructive but also comical and mischievous aspect of Nika makes me think he isn't a real antagonist to the Strawhats. plus, as we know with One Piece, the more someone is portrayed as one-dimensional by reputation (take Zoro for example), the more Oda likes to subvert those expectations. to me, Loki's pranks sound like a child acting out and messing around.

confirmation that Shanks caught Loki and that's probably what made him an Emperor, but seems like there's more to the story if Loki's calling him a coward. from later parts of the chapter it's clear Loki embraces the Elbaph warrior principles, so it doesn't seem like he'd call Shanks a coward if Shanks had beat him in a straightforward fight (but we'll see). this also makes me think, along with the last parts of the chapter, that Loki might actually take deals seriously and therefore may not have lied to Luffy (maybe he knows where Shanks is because he knows where the last road poneglyph is).

we get Zoro being pretty perceptive, and some explanation to why he was on edge. I maintain he's stressed and not quite himself post-Egghead, probably because he doesn't feel like he's as strong as he needs to be (and the crew isn't as strong as they need to be) - so he's being extra serious and careful. interestingly, Zoro is going off of Loki's reputation and as we know reputations are often false (as in his own case)

as we knew, Luffy's solution to Loki maybe tricking him is just 'well i'll beat him up if he causes any problems' - very much like his approach to Law and other pirates

i'm interested to see what Luffy Nami and Zoro will find in the castle, if they go there (any hints as to what happened with Harald?)

I thought the Knights were either going to try and kill or recruit Loki, but to be honest was leaning more towards the killing possibility so, I was wrong (although let's see what happens). I imagine it's to do with his devil fruit and general strength making him a useful asset. i'm actually leaning more towards his devil fruit being something related to prophecy/predicting the future/fate, since there was a mention of Harald prophesying his own death, and he keeps talking about fate and the future. plus, eyes are often a strong symbol of prophetic ability, visions etc and his eyes are covered. a strong giant with some kind of future-related ability? invaluable to the upper echelons of the World Government.

i did enjoy Loki calling them trash a lot, and it made me think that the Holy Knights may well recruit people from different countries across the world so that they have a network (notably since Gunko doesn't have a 'Saint' title and therefore may not have been born as/may not be a Celestial Dragon)

also very funny that the agents they sent got taken out by Rodo's weird scheme

obviously Oda giving us absolutely nothing wrt Shanks twin's face but atp we know it's not Shanks

it feels to me like the Shanks guy is her superior, since he kind of chastises her for getting ahead of herself

we see that Loki seems to follow the old warrior principles and beliefs, like Dorry and Brogy. he also isn't heartless, since he actually talks about his feelings quite openly (and not just rage but sadness too, which he also mentioned during his conversation with Shaggy). it feels like there's a strong emotional drive to his desire to 'destroy the world', not just cruelty and the enjoyment of senseless violence. i look forward to finding out where that comes from.

One Piece Chapters 1134 + 1135

SUMMARY (I simply cannot be concise so I thought I'd add summary points for anyone who doesn't want to read a whole long piece. Clown music though because even the summary is long. I can't help it.)

Also you can find previous Elbaph thoughts/predictions here.

I believe Elbaph’s current culture of peace and absolute non-violence came from Harald (who was probably an idealist) and Mother Carmel, who was – and is still – seen as a holy woman and saint by the giants. Her rhetoric was all about ‘everyone living together in peace’ in a superficial, unrealistic and one-dimensional way that hid and enabled a lot of violence. Including, of course, her literal job providing military assets to the World Government in the form of orphaned children to be made into spies and soldiers. 

Mother Carmel’s infiltration may have led to Harald developing a relationship with the World Government (which he probably wanted Elbaph to become a part of), while we know that the Five Elders are wary of giants and have always sought to co-opt their strength. This might explain how the two Holy Knights looking for Loki were able to teleport into the castle (I believe there must be physical rules/limitations to the magic circle transport, e.g. some kind of physical anchor to the place you’re going).

This arc is going to look at and explore questions around peace and violence. Peace by and for whom? For example, ‘peace’ can look like the people at the center of society living without disturbance or discomfort while those on the margins suffer and are silenced (neoliberalism). Peace as defined by the absence of overt conflict doesn’t mean there is no harm or violence – it can be repression, manufactured consent, etc. True peace cannot be imposed from the top, it must be collectively built. And so forth. Conversely, violence and conflict are sometimes necessary to protect what you care about (your treasures), as we see with the Strawhats. Creating a peaceful and knowledge-centric society doesn’t have to be at odds with warrior culture, since being willing to put your life on the line is important in some instances. What will happen if external factors threaten Elbaph’s treasures? 

Last review, I talked about how I think one of this arc’s central themes will be the juxtaposition of reality and fiction, truth and lies, stories and lived experiences. Illusions will shatter and false gods/idols will fall – I think the giants’ idolisation of Mother Carmel and Harald will end, one way or another. For the latter, I don’t necessarily think he was evil. More so that he was just one person who made mistakes and had flaws, rather than a perfect king who only ever brought wonderful changes to Elbaph. On the other hand, Loki may not be a god but he could have the powers of one, and I think the first impressions we got of him will be changed and shown to be misinformation to recast him in a more positive light. I think he had a good reason to kill his father, and that the events of Harald’s death are another false story that must be clarified. Oda loves a good character twist. (Honestly if Harald turns out evil, I’m here for it). 

I also said in my last piece that I thought there would be internal divisions, and I still think this is going to be the case. For example, we don’t know why Hajrudin initially left Elbaph – could part of it have been feeling stifled by the loss of warrior traditions? This would make sense, since he wanted to follow in Dorry and Brogy’s footsteps. However, I think we might just see more of a spectrum of positions, rather than, say, two clear factions. Nevertheless, I still think the Strawhats will have to bring a lot of people together to fight a bigger antagonist, maybe even including Loki (as the potential king??) – but they’re pretty good at that. 

Last time I wrote about 1132, I was still a little unsure about Loki’s vibe, but I didn’t think he would be the big villain. This is now pretty much confirmed for me and I think will become even clearer once we get the truth of his backstory. The more we see of him, the more we see a silly side – one that hides genuine care for people under a violent and fearsome facade. I think he’ll probably end up as an ally (even if he’s still morally ambiguous). Classic case of Luffy’s gut being right once again. I am particularly interested, though, in what this means about Loki’s proclamation that he’s the sun god who will destroy the world. Is it metaphor? Does he want to declare war on the WG? Is he still going to do some fucked up things? Unclear. But I still think divinity, myth and belief are key to Loki’s character and his juxtaposition with Luffy, and I’m interested to see exactly how.

I wrote about strength after chapter 1132, and I still think it’s going to be an important theme. What I’d like to add is that I think it will be specifically about strength in relation to pride, and warrior culture in general. Essentially, it will be about why people fight. Why people want to be strong, and why they take pride in it. The Strawhats fight for what they care about, especially people. This also includes things that carry the wills of people who have died, like the books of Ohara, or even the concept of people’s dreams. This arc will look at warrior culture, and the difference between a warrior society and an oppressive/hegemonic society which uses violence (fear and the threat of death) for extraction and control. Fundamentally, all these themes are about power in relation to collective freedom, and what it means to live a good life. There is rightful pride in being able to fight from a place of knowledge and connection, to fight for what you love and believe in (including people’s freedom) as opposed to the soulless genocide and extraction from those considered less deserving of life. 

I think the declaration of the warriors at the feast might also be a foreshadowing of exactly what the Strawhats will do in Elbaph. Understanding and protecting their ancestral pride as warriors, and helping them reconnect to it as a country. Freeing them from ignorance (revealing the truth of what really happened with Carmel, Harald, and Loki). And saving them from being destroyed (this one’s pretty self-explanatory, but I believe it will be to do with Yggdrasil).

Ok if you’re here for the full whammy, yay! SO MUCH HAPPENED IN TWO CHAPTERS. GAH. Let’s just get straight into it. 

So, in chapter 1134, we open with the strawhats meeting Saul outside the library. I don’t have much to say about this part thematically (same with the previous chapter) because I think it’s pretty straightforward. I’ll summarise: I loved it, Luffy poorly copying Jinbe was extremely funny, the reunion did actually make me cry, and I am forever crying over Robin just – being happy now. Being relaxed, content, smiling more, bonding with Bonney. My heart, my heart. 

We also see Lilith introduce herself to Saul as Vegapunk, and explain to him (and us, for the first time!) that she has brought a “perfect re-creation” clone of Vegapunk with her. She plans to settle down in Elbaph and build a new lab. Ok, cool. Honestly, I’m a little eh about a Stella comeback (because I think it’s more interesting for him to be embodied by just his satellites) but just because that’s the plan doesn’t mean it’ll go smoothly, or happen for sure. On the other hand, I’m genuinely pleased that there’s a potential to bring Kuma back, not that he was ever never actually dead. We’ve had so many hints that there’s hope for him. Plus, he’s one of the characters that truly just went through the worst of the worst over and over for the sake of liberation and his loved ones, holding onto faith throughout. I think he deserves to be a father and be happy, I don’t care if that’s cheesy. But again, no guarantee that will actually happen. 

Love and Light Only 

We then see the Walrus School where the children are educated and hear that it was founded 20 years ago by Saul, at the behest of the former king, Harald. Once again, huge huge kudos to the assistants because wow. I want to live there. What follows is Luffy’s encounter with some of said children, who turn out to be, well, absolute wimps. They don’t use ‘bad’ or potentially insulting words, and they’re not going to be setting out to sea to fight ruffians when they’re older. They’re learning in school, rather than being trained to be warriors. In fact, as their teacher Ripley tells us, being a warrior nowadays isn’t fashionable, because “insults, violence, pillaging, war” are just “not the world we live in anymore”. [Side note: the number of beautiful giant women Oda is giving us??? It's tough out here for a gay]. Absolutely nothing even close to violence or antagonism are allowed, not even petty insults, specifically by the children, which tells us this is very much the way they’re being raised and taught. It’s giving weird, cloying, toxic positivity. I was even going to say there is no war in Ba Sing Se, but I don’t think we’re dealing with brainwashing here – just insularity and idealism. 

We see this reinforced by the repeated mentions that Elbaph has very little connection to the outside world – they don’t pay attention to it, they don’t get news coos, they just mind their own business. Interestingly, we also know that any “intruders” immediately get captured (presumably to be vetted and potentially kept out if they risk disturbing the peace). I honestly can’t remember if the news coo thing has come up before in the context of non-WG countries, but I don’t think so? Anyways, that’s pretty bad. Like, if a country isn’t in the World Government (which, remember, requires paying literal tribute to the Celestial Dragons) they just don’t get information about what’s happening in the world? Wild stuff. In some ways maybe that’s protective, but in other ways, extremely dangerous. 

On the topic of language, we also immediately see ways in which these cultural rules are being broken. The way Ripley speaks is rougher, as she herself calls the kids brats and says she teaches by “negative example” (do as I say not as I do). So we’re seeing a clear generational rift in culture between what Ripley later says is the “last generation of warriors” (presumably she’s around the same age as Hajrudin, Loki, Rodo, Gerd etc) and the current children. When we meet Collun, we also immediately see that the way the other children treat him isn’t exactly kind. Despite strictly following rules around things like name-calling, they outright say they hate him. He replies in kind, but it’s not hypocritical of Collun in the way it is for the other children. He’s clearly the rough “wild child” who’s following the older warrior culture, whereas the ways in which the educational system is teaching ‘non-violence’ clearly doesn’t preclude them from excluding or being rude to a kid who’s different from them. In fact, they’re just following the rules and it’s ok to be mean to him because he’s always causing trouble and not following the rules, so he deserves it. They even basically imply why are you here. I think this kind of petty behaviour isn’t abnormal or horrendous for kids, but it does highlight to me that the kind of ‘peaceful’ culture Elbaph is aspiring to feels extremely one-dimensional, oversimplified, and somewhat superficial. Even the way Ripley talks about it feels so smoothed out and idealistic, which is strange coming from the mouth of someone who still looks and behaves like a warrior. What happened from one generation to the next?

Ripley goes on to say Harald’s policy was “don’t fight other countries – trade with them!” Sound familiar? Yeah. Those were exactly Mother Carmel’s ideas for the giants a hundred years ago, when she lived on Elbaph. This was following the dissolution of the Giant Warrior Pirates because Dorry and Brogy had started their century-long duel on Little Garden, when she appeared as a “wandering holy woman” and ‘saved’ some of their crew from execution by beseeching the marines for forgiveness and an end to violence. The giants understandably see her as a saviour and saint who performed a miracle. We only learn later that this was a stunt pulled in collaboration with the marines and the World Government, which allowed her to gain the trust of the giants and infiltrate Elbaph as a child trafficker.

Now, I’m not saying Harald was aware of Carmel’s true nature, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he was inspired by/agreed with what she was saying, thus starting Elbaph’s current era of ‘peace’ with the Giant Warrior Pirates out of the way. Carmel was a perfect human link to the WG who could help Harald carry out his ideas, while her saviour position in the eyes of other giants helped him convince his people. This is important, because that means this peace was potentially built with a foundation of deceit tied to military strategy. Carmel wasn’t operating alone – she was specifically selling orphaned children to the WG to be marines, spies and agents. We see her talking to and dealing with CP0, who work directly under the Celestial Dragons and the Five Elders. Mother Carmel was a morally putrid money-hungry old hag, yes, but she was also an instrument of the WG. We also know that the WG has long been interested in harnessing and controlling the power of giants (from Carmel talking about getting giant children into the navy, like John Giant, to MADS’ and later Caesar’s gigantification experiments). In a world based on power inequality, oppression and authoritarian domination, the giants are military assets – if only they can be assimilated into the system. And who is easier to indoctrinate and control than children? 

To be clear, I think peace with a focus on education and knowledge is great! I would love for the world to be that way. And I definitely don’t think the “goal” of this arc should be to renounce those ideals or simply go back to being a completely war-based culture. Knowledge is extremely important in One Piece – that’s quite literally a central theme of the whole series. And of course, we are shown time and time again how horrific and devastating war is. However, history – why and how things come to be is crucial. Is something coming from people’s informed collective desires, or is it coming from the decision of one person/a few people? Is it something that benefits everyone? Is it growth from a place of understanding, or historical amnesia and bypassing material reality? The truth is that right now, the One Piece world isn’t past “violence, insults, pillaging, war”. It’s very much full of those things, specifically because it is rife with inequality. Elbaph so far has been sheltered from these problems, but what happens if the problems come to them? 

This is one of the central questions I believe Elbaph is going to grapple with. What is peace, and what is violence? How can true peace be created? Can violence truly be eradicated from the world? What different kinds of violence are there? 

I think the books from Ohara, the Owl Library and Yggdrasil are going to be of crucial importance to these questions. We know that Yggdrasil is extremely important to Elbaph, and we also know that accumulated collective knowledge and education – as represented by the books – are beyond precious. So, the giants have something to protect that isn’t just their own lives: they have a collective treasure. I wouldn’t be surprised if threats to these treasures are the catalyst for the giants’ reconnection to their warrior natures. Pillaging and engaging in violence just for the sake of it or for sadistic pleasure is unnecessary and cruel, but being a fighter and a warrior in order to protect what one cares about – one’s treasure – is important. All the warrior cultures we’ve seen so far in One Piece have shared this reason for their strength, from the Shandorans protecting their sacred ancestral lands and history, to Wano with Pluton, and the Minks with their poneglyph and Zunesha. 

Elbaph can be a peaceful nation that focuses on education and knowledge, and still be able to protect that knowledge if necessary through maintaining relationship to the core aspects of their warrior culture: honour, courage, strength, skill, freedom, etc. I think that’s also where pride can sit, in the space of being strong enough to do what’s needed to protect life, dreams, love, and what we care about. This is, after all, what we see time and time again in pirates like Luffy and the Strawhats – that fighting and strength are absolutely not everything, and look different for everyone, but are ultimately important to protecting what’s important to us. There is pride in embracing one’s dreams, taking action, resisting oppression and injustice, and having a strong relationship to life and death as warriors do. As an aside, I do think Usopp will be a key person who inspires this shift and re-invigorates the giants’ pride (big speech time!). 

Ideals and Idols

Two things jumped out at me in this section of the chapter. The first is that multiple people have referred to Harald as a “great king”, or something along the lines of ‘beloved by everyone’. Now, that’s not so strange. He could’ve just been a really caring or charismatic leader. But the emphasis makes me a little suspicious about what was going on behind the scenes, especially since we know what Mother Carmel was really doing, but the giants still don’t know the truth. They still see her as a holy figure and miracle worker who saved them and even cared about Linlin, a “god of disaster”. I think it’s no coincidence that the figures of Harald and Carmel have been set up as key figures of this hundred-year period who are idolised by the giants, and the illusion is going to crumble at some point. I believe the truth about Carmel being the epitome of ‘peace and love’ hypocrisy will come out, and so will whatever truth about Harald. Again, to be clear, I’m not saying I think Harald was evil or had bad intentions – it’s more likely that he was tricked and manipulated by Carmel and the WG because of his idealism. I think he probably wanted to make Elbaph part of the WG (in order to pursue his goals of peace and trade), he wanted Elbaph to open up to the world, and he wanted ‘peace’ in the sense of blanket non-violence. 

That last part we already saw expressed with terrifying clarity in a child Linlin, when she locked a bear and a wolf in a cage to stop them fighting because “fighting is bad”. I won’t get into analysing that metaphor right here (I think I’ll make a separate post) but it is so on the nose – forced peace and non-violence is itself violent and creates more violence, especially because it requires imposing your will on other beings and taking away their freedom. Peace for whom? And by whom? I believe the truth of Harald’s engagement with the WG, and either his collaboration with them or his mistakes in dealing with them will come to light, and I’m sure Loki’s reasons for killing him are related.

In this way, Harald opened Elbaph up to infiltration and engagement from the WG, who I’m sure were only waiting for an opportunity to gather intelligence and start undermining the giants’ power or bend it to their use. Like I said previously, I strongly believe that the Warland giants had ties to the Ancient Kingdom and the events of the Void Century. It would absolutely be in the WG’s interest to bring them over to their side and disconnect them from any remaining traces of that history. In fact, Mother Carmel’s House of Lambs also centered around the idea of ‘reforming’ children and helping them leave their ‘problematic’ past behind. This same idea of reform has been used to describe Elbaph itself. This treats history as something to bury and leave behind – something shameful, rather than something to acknowledge properly, learn and grow from. And of course if we know anything about One Piece at all, we know that forgetting or erasing history is literally one of the most central problems/mistakes/evils of the series. We see this further shown in the fact that Ripley is the one to bring up Nika to Luffy, and that she specifies she’s from the last generation of warriors tells us that the children might not even know about him. Why would they, if he’s a warrior god and they’re actively being taught to be anything but warriors? It gave me chills, no joke.

So the ‘peace’ in Elbaph feels especially uneasy right now, despite Ripley’s words. There are antagonists working for Garling/Imu on the island. There is what seems like a red herring of an antagonist (Loki). There is misdirection and mystery galore. So many illusions and false stories to be shattered. False idols to be toppled. Funnily enough, the one story we know is real right now is a literal living myth (Luffy’s Nika form), who is also just a guy. Ideals and idols need to be brought down to earth for real living people to connect with materially, instead of being held aloft and out of reach. What did the arc open with? Rodo pretending to be a god. We’ve also had another character claim to be a god in Loki, meanwhile we know Celestial Dragons (including the Holy Knights) pretty much believe themselves to be gods. Yeah, I’m reiterating my point that ideas of faith and divinity are going to be crucial in Elbaph. In fact, I will put it out here right now that we’re going to get more information about the Lunarians, who were also called gods (I have a whole theory about that). 

Updated Loki thoughts 

The last thing I wanted to talk about is some updated thoughts on Loki. Basically, he’s a tsundere?? Love to see it. It seems that at least part of the unhinged and violent temperament we’ve seen from him so far is a facade, since his long-term friend ‘Shaggy’ says “I’ve realized recently that those fearsome words of yours hide your kindness”. We see that Loki has a friend he’s never met or seen, but known for a long time through den den mushi conversations. He empathises with said friend’s recent traumatic experience, saying it hurts him to hear it, while overreacting when they call him kind. Typical bluster, which seems to compensate for what is a sense of compassion and understanding. Not a heartless villain, then. This of course consolidates the idea that he isn’t how he appears on the surface and how he was first introduced, and that Luffy’s instincts were right. This does make me feel much better about their ‘promise’, even if it will still probably end up causing chaos. On top of that, it reinforces my feeling that he reminds me of Law, and will probably end up as an ally to the Strawhats in some way. Maybe by the end of the arc he will even be restored as the king of Elbaph, potentially alongside Hajrudin. Speaking of which, I went back to the previous chapter where the Giant Warrior Pirates were talking about Loki and Hajrudin, and the description of Loki as “another official child” of Harald makes me think Hajrudin is probably his illegitimate half-brother. But we’ll see. 

All of this has me thinking about the other giants calling him the “shame of Elbaph”. Initially I thought this might be because his actions are considered dishonourable, and I still think that’s probably the case. But having had the developments about Elbaph’s cultural shift, I wonder if part of the dishonour is just doing any kind of violent acts in Elbaph at this point. Thinking about how the other children treated Collun, and talked about insults, is there a sense that anything ‘barbaric’ on the island is shameful? Have they maybe even been taught to be ashamed of their violent past as Warland? I wouldn’t be surprised. And if so, that makes me even more worried about how that happened and the consequences of such revisionism and reform. As I said earlier, it’s one thing to want to change and improve, to move forward collectively for everyone’s good. It’s another to completely reject the past and bury it. Shame can be an important part of reflection and acknowledgment, when deserved, but it can also prevent real growth. I worry that Harald and Carmel’s approach was just to give Elbaph a PR-style culture change that has left them with a flimsy and fragmented social structure. One that is particularly vulnerable to hegemonic influence and external danger. 

Speaking of which, my thoughts on the two strangers (I’m going to call them Holy Knights because I’m pretty sure they are) looking for Loki are that they are either here to kill him, or to influence/recruit him somehow. I’m sure they’ve had intel on the situation in Elbaph, including the fact that there is no king since Loki didn’t ascend to the throne. Given that it seems Harald wasn’t a threat to the WG, I assume they know that Loki is different somehow. We also know that the Holy Knights are essentially the military special forces unit of the Five Elders/Imu, so I don’t think they’re there for a tea party. Even if their mission involves diplomacy, I think violence and threats are probably part of the plan. Hence, persuading him of something (with force if necessary) or assassinating him. We saw Loki has a “special” bounty, probably because he killed his father and/or has a legendary devil fruit, so it makes more sense to me that the knights are there to take him out. Plus, from a narrative point of view, if Loki is a rebel compared to his father, and is likely to ally with the Strawhats, he’s probably a character that is going to be set in opposition to the World Government. 

I don’t have much to add to what everyone’s already saying about the Shanks lookalike Danks, other than I agree it’s not Shanks and is either a relative or a clone, especially with the way clones keep being brought up. They’re clearly very powerful if the bandage person is anything to go by (bandage-bandage fruit?? the way they used it to break the guy’s bones was something), and I’m hyped for more. I’ve been waiting to see the Holy Knights since we got the God Valley flashback. I’m so ready for new villains. I'm also pretty scared, since we're getting a feast at the beginning of an arc. That doesn't bode well for the ending to me...but let's enjoy the good vibes while they last.

Honestly it feels like these last two chapters just left us with more questions than answers, and knowing Oda, we might not get those answers for a while! But let’s see. The opening parts of an arc are always the most fun to me because of that.

Bonus favourite bits:

Saul asking why Vegapunk's a woman and Lilith being like "who gaf"

Robin being happy always

Chopper and Robin library time I cry

Ripley being excited to see Nika Luffy, and Luffy's response

BIG ANCIENT OWL!!!!!!!! I LOVE

Bonney, Chopper and Robin on giant books

Luffy's interaction with Collun - truly big brother

the way Stephen Paul translated the kids' speech (vylence, vishus)

the new outfits, very cute (especially love Jinbe's)

the Jarul gag????? unserious

[swinging-stars-from-satellites]

with a few minutes' reflection and a second conversation with my parents I have realized that I may have overblown things and overreacted a bit and also in some ways they're correct even if I think they're also harsh about it

[bumblingbabooshka]

One of the best Voyager scenes to indicate Tuvok & Neelix's dynamic and how I think Tuvok is just as if not more 'annoying'(positive) than Neelix is when Neelix pours Tuvok a fresh squeezed glass of a fruit juice blend and Tuvok's like (paraphrased) "I don't want to drink this." and Neelix is like "Can you please try it?" and Tuvok's like "I don't want to, you're really bad at this sort of thing. It's going to taste bad." and Neelix says that Ensign XYZ said she LOVED it, she even had a second glass! And Tuvok says Ensign XYZ could drink poison without a second thought and Neelix is like "Tuvok could you please just TRY it? Just try a little SIP of it PLEASE??" and Tuvok sighs and rolls his eyes and sniffs it before taking a sip and it turns out he loves it. Turns out it tasted good actually. And then after all that Neelix tries to talk to him over eggs (which he's again cooking fresh for him) and Tuvok tells him he doesn't wanna hear "the life history of his breakfast." Absolutely insufferable this man I would have burned his eggs on PURPOSE!!!!

[honeybard]

adhd advice will be like people with adhd struggle to get their thoughts organised. also to get diagnosed you need to get your thoughts on why you have adhd organised in advance in order to convince the doctor you have it

[redgearsmovin]

man .