#im literally quaking

[fluffyartbl0g]

Leaving the confines of his bedroom, Law met Luffy at the door, the other man grinning brighter than the afternoon sunlight that haloed him. Something in Law's chest shifted again, the thundering of his heart pushing it free with such a violent force that he felt himself reeling, stunned, as he looked down at Luffy.

Law liked him.

Law liked Luffy.

_

Callunar’s fic, “Broken Heart Syndrome” is my FAVOURITE ongoing lawlu fic and OMFG IT’S SUCH A GOOD SLOWBURN. THE PACING IS IMMACULATE? It’s 80k rn but their relationship development doesn’t feel snail paced, nor does it feel rushed! It’s JUST RIGHT.

[bird-inacage]

The Heart Killers EP1: Kant & Bison's Desire for Agency

I recently wrote a post around Kant being the vehicle for Bison's freedom, but I'm spotting a bigger theme that these two lovebirds share in common. Both feel stripped of their agency, their ability to dictate their lives freely on their own terms and by their own ideals and desires.

For that reason, they're respectively struggling with where they are versus where they want to be, as factors beyond their control currently inhibit that from being attainable.

"I've cleared my name of car theft. My hands are so damn clean now." Kant is keen to put his past behind him, however Captain Chris has him cornered under the threat of re-opening his previous felonies and possible jail time, dangling custody of his brother as a bargaining chip. "If you get this done for me, not only will your criminal record be swept away, I'll wipe it clean." "If you go to jail, who'd take care of your brother?" Leaving Kant with no choice but to begrudgingly concede.

Bison feels similarly trapped by a life he didn't choose, clearly eager at any opportunity to 'clock off'. "I do what I have to do. Now I want to do what I want to. Can't I just live a little?" "If being hitmen makes it so hard to live, shouldn't we just quit?" "I don't want to kill people for a living my whole life... I just want to live my life." He just wants to enjoy a normal life - to have fun, to be frivolous, to embrace being an ordinary 24 year old.

TOGETHER WE BREAK FREE

Their relationship serves as temporary relief or escape from the situations they both find themselves in. Bison finds Kant's company a break from routine and monotony, a welcome distraction in between killing and working at the burger bar (neither of which he chose for himself). Dating Kant is an insight into the joys of life he fears missing out on. 'When I'm with you, I'm not a killer, I'm just a boy'.

By some poetic irony, Kant's mission to instrument Bison's capture would grant him access to the freedom he is seeking - allowing him and his brother to truly start afresh. There will absolutely be more backstory to come as to why Kant wants this so badly, that he’s willing to throw so much in. Dating Bison may begin as a means to an end, but Kant does find himself falling in love - despite his objective.

Once everything is out in the open, I do think they'll aid one another in acquiring the agency they each so desperately desire. No one can better understand how it feels to be trapped than someone who is also fighting against the bars of their own cage.

OVERCOMING YOUR RESTRAINTS

On their first date, Kant shares the following with Bison: “Would you believe me if I told you that I'm afraid of the ocean? Something happened when I was a kid. I almost drowned. Now I'm still afraid of it." One could argue that we don't know if Kant's admission is true, but I don't see any reason for him to lie about this specifically.

This promptly takes me back to this moment from the trailer, which has prominently stuck in my mind. I still get the impression that they are working together here when Kant jumps in. If Bison was on the offensive, I don't think he'd be as stationary or calm. Maybe he's performing under someone's watchful eye, or his gun is aimed at something out of shot, or they're practicing for a specific stunt.

Whatever the context, this scene now has considerably more weight. The fact that Kant jumps in whilst his hands are bound, when he has a fear of drowning is an indication of putting his complete trust in Bison (who is adept at swimming), to rescue him if needs be. The implication here being that Bison may quite literally, mentally and symbolically free Kant from his restraints, helping him to overcome what he’s most afraid of.

BDSM: THE PLEASURE OF CONTROL

Funnily enough, this duo's exploration of BDSM even aligns with their shared desire for agency. From the few snippets we’ve been shown, Bison likes being the one in control. Your partner consents to be at your mercy, affording you the power to enact pleasure and/or pain. And there’s a heady thrill in being handed such control. (It's also worth noting the inherent power play in taking a life, but whether Bison derives any pleasure from this, I'm not 100% sure. Kant also knows Bison is capable of killing, so letting him dominate actually says a tonne). During their one night stand, Bison even quips, "you're not doing this solo, you know," which teases that he's no passive participant. This seems to be Bison's philosophy on life overall (and the root of his dissatisfaction), that he's not one to sit back and watch his life pass him by.

Kant seems happy to indulge Bison in taking the reins. Having his agency taken away during acts of passion, but on his terms is noticeably different to feeling forcibly pushed - because you've chosen how and who you forfeit that agency to. This is partly why I suspect Kant actually gives Bison permission to tie him up in that boat scene (above), for the greater purposes of a mission or task they have agreed to help each other achieve.

You can keep tabs on bird-inacage’s BL meta directory for my other long-form posts around The Heart Killers, which I’ll be updating in real time as the show airs.

[hyunpic]

[goldenhand9107]

CHAT IS THIS REAL

[kawaiibarty]

james have you heard about the placebo documentary idk how much you keep up with them on social media but i watched it in a cinema the other day it was soooo good you have got to watch it as soon as you’re able to

[crescentfool]

5, 9 and 16 for that artist ask meme!

5. favorite little detail in a drawing you did

this one was kind of hard to answer because i lean so much more to simplification over 1:1 detail... that said, i really loved these ones!

the bag from the top photo is from here, minato nui on left is from some con-related draws, the ballpoint splatling on right is from a vintage draws compilation!

i just really enjoy drawing little objects and props, and as much as i'm allergic to backgrounds, i hope to overcome that next year because my friends know i love getting obsessed over random objects for a few days...

9. any new art mediums youve tried (or overall styles if you havent tried new mediums)

i haven't gotten to do much mediums outside of digital art unfortunately.... but i would say this year was the year of chibification! i turned so many characters into little guys this year (shoutout to the nui tree!). which is really ironic because i also realized this year i find full illustrations more satisfying to work on throughout the process, despite the "simplicity" of chibis.

i did some limited color styles too! (blue, purple, and red + b/w). hopefully i can do more deliberate color palette stuffs though. i think it'd be a great exercise.

stylistically wise i think i could've tried more, but. its ok! thats what 2024 is for. yipee!

16. favorite piece of art from someone else (if you have one)

it feels like a cop out answer to say this but any gift art i got of my splatoon character... LOL... i didn't expect to get so attached to him (i changed my name in game to minatoast a JOKE!!!!). um. drops this gallery link here and scuttles away. im so very grateful. you're telling me people actually took time out of their day to draw my little guy? incredible!

ocs aside, i'd like to take the time to highlight some art from people on twitter (kitaro havers rise up!), since i do consider the things i reblog to be art i'm very fond of...

this art from tin of ryomina with flowers is so. oh my god. i was SO BEWILDERED AND HAPPY!!! i was minding my own business and then saw this rt'd on one of my friend's pages... i forget who lol but i was like "WAIT TIN Kick_TheeCan DREW RYOMINA??? I LOVE THEIR ART OF THE P3 PROTAG WHAT." i feel like i got pushed down a staircase in tartarus (positive)

and this art from chris (str3wberryy), my god, the composition fucks severely. i want to eat it. he also has an alt account on twitter (@/makotoyukilover) if you want to see more of their p3 protag arts :D

i also enjoyed seeing p3 arts from yamad_125, BSZZOWL, and elulit2. im so serious if you like ryominaigis you'll probably like taking a gander at these artist's media tabs! i find my way to see the twitter arts one way or another, nothing can stop me 👁👄👁

[baby5fanclub]

im getting so insane about chapter 1113 that i'm sitting here going "is that why the other part of law's secret real name is WATER because theyre going to be UNDER WATER!!"

[borathae]

Me: i don’t have a praise kink

Also me everytime I make Sanguis!Yoongi praise OC:

[subbykittyboythoughts]

omg i wanted to ask u this earlier but what are ur thoughts on trent reznor and atticus ross' soundtrack to Challengers (also have u seen challengers?)

i have not seen it nor heard the soundtrack! i might go listen tho thanks to you :>

[miakwat]

All throughout watching Dragons Rising I was like “hm something feels off” and then I remembered half the cast wasnt there :,)

I miss them

[pikslasrce]

GUYS. the unimaginable happened. i encountered a wild thursdayhead... outside of tumblr........

[dextervexter]

beginning to realize im apparently the only one who understands the character

[twoheadedoddity]

not enough of us are talking abt the fact that hozier has a new EP coming out next month GUYS

[thinkingnot]

if laughing was a sport i just ran a marathon binging half of gekkan shojo nozaki kun

[taravangians-storming-balls]

putting a cosmere tag on my high posts feels like shouting them in the middle of the supermarket. like you all know me in the stormlight tag I'm safe there but who knows what goes on in that cosmere tag. I don't.

[ritz-writes]

what if i went insane

what if i read the bible cuz of good omens

huh?

what then