#in which both the good and bad things are shown

[rivereverie]

All excellent points. It's extremely impressive how well he's able to maintain a new relationship and care for someone else given all he has going on at the time, and its a testament to his heart, in my opinion.

I often see people push back against the idea that Astarion can be sweet and soft because of his harsher facets. He's allowed to be both. His bloodthirstiness does not erase his gentleness. His anger and bitterness do not negate his playfulness and caring. Nor is the inverse true; he's not a passive little kitten who has never done anything wrong. He's a complex person, but beyond that, he's just a person, period. People are never one thing.

All this is one of the reasons I love him so much; going through the hell he endured does not make someone kind. It's the sort of crushing conditions that can easily make people so bitter and toxic to the people around them. The fact that he maintained the light within himself through all those decades where Cazador tried to systematically crush every last good thing in him... that's a miracle. He's a miracle. Because despite having every reason not to, his life experience stacked against him, he still has so much kindness and softness inside. He still cares. I don't think he's exactly well-adjusted, even by the epilogue. I'm sure it will take him the rest of his life to heal, and he and his partner will have a lot to work through in their relationship. These things take work and effort, and though I'm sure Astarion would struggle with many parts of being in a relationship, he would put in the effort necessary to work on it. He's shown numerous times that he cares and is surprisingly proactive about the relationship. He's willing to self-examine and change, like OP said in regards to his behavioral checking and minding old habits. I'm sure he'd have plenty of bad days where he pushes his partner away and says hurtful things he doesn't mean when he's triggered or overwhelmed, but that doesn't mean he's not loving and willing to work on things. I also think his reaction to his partner becoming illithid is completely valid and realistic. The fact that he's so willing to even try to make it work honestly shows how he open and accepting he is, even in the face of you become one of the things your party has been fighting against and hating for the entire game. The man is going through a lot, and dealing with his love becoming a tentacled beast is just one more item in his list of things to process, and I'm sure it hurts. Let him have time to grieve and process. I've said this before, but Astarion is arguably the least judgmental of all the companions, which seems at odds with his nature. Until you realize it's just proof of how caring and empathetic he has the capacity to be, deep down, despite his best efforts to pretend otherwise. Anyway, it bothers me when people argue against portraying his softness and caring as being non-canon or unrealistic, just because he has a harsh, bloodthirsty, vengeful, self-serving side as well. Both are canon. Both are true. Both are equally important to his identity. He contains multitudes and that's exactly what makes him such a compelling character.

just thinking about astarion is SUCH a sweet partner? like this man was barely an adult elf when he was turned, and spent the next 200 years being abused by cazador, but like

- as the durge character, he'll be accepting and talk about your mental health and reassure you

- he'll insist on staying with your half illithid character, saying you shouldnt make his choices for him if you try to leave to protect him

- also just the dichotomy of him being explicitly vain and also explicitly not shallow is very sweet

- in that one lathanders light scene, he'll tell you he appreciates you trying to fix your mistake after you caused him IMMENSE pain

- he'll empathize with and support you if you swear your body to haarlep, noting how he's been through similar and is sorry you're going through it

- hes not jealous, his issues with sharing seem to largely come from if he thinks the other party would be okay with it (like he thinks lae'zel would spear him lol), and when someone like halsin comes along he'll happily consent

- on that note, he grows enough to be comfortable asking for support and reassurance instead of possessiveness/jealousy (not that these are the only options for that scenario, but astarions seen a lot of possessiveness in his life and its wonderful how much he avoids replicating it)

- he will always attack cazador in the final confrontation if cazador starts verbally abusing you instead of him

- he puts in the work to set boundaries that allow him to engage in an intimate (emotionally, physically, but not sexually) romantic relationship with tav and apologizes for "using" him before, when his behavior was SO understandable. and also he manipulated tav by having... consensual enjoyable sex lol. he might have ulterior motives but he never actually tries to use his sexual relationship with tav to manipulate him into doing anything

- you learn how astarion felt for Sebastian and how tender he was

- you learn about the first boy astarion couldnt bear to bring to cazador, the one he called soft and sweet (or something like that) and then was punished horribly for a straight year for it

- even when you turn to a half illithid, his main concern is you losing your agency

- if you are a full illithid, at the end of the game, some people complain about him not being ride or die, but i think he shows REMARKABLE willingness and support. what he cares about most is that you are still you, and how is he supposed to know for sure? i think asking him to stay with a type of being known for manipulation and mind control after everything he went through with cazador IS A HUGE FUCKING ASK. and he doesnt even write you off immediately? thats a lot of love right there

- if you arent illithid, he will double-check you want to plan a future with him still, and only once you affirm this will he express how badly he wants it. he's actively avoiding trying to manipulate you even

and probably more stuff im just not thinking of off the top of my head. obviously this is about the spawn route vs. ascended, but im just constantly amazed that despite EVERYTHING astarion has gone through, probably centuries without a healthy, loving relationship or even examples of that nearby, he still defaults to being kind, empathetic, and caring as soon as he gets the chance

like sure, he might be minorly evil and self-serving but personally i think thats the least he deserves

more importantly, the boys from astarions past give us a rare window into what he was like before turning into a vampire—he was gentle, empathetic lover. he was kind, he was protective. and as soon as he has the space to start looking for himself again, he goes RIGHT back to that behavior. he even self-checks for his "manipulation" and tries to correct for it

it just shatters my heart and then puts it back together hes such a wonderfully written character. astarion is allowed to be lovely AND furious and vengeful and maybe its just my raised-catholic ass, but its SO cathartic to see that a forgiveness arc is never pushed for his abuser

[pookietv]

lost in translation (part three) | george clarke

hiya!!! i introduce part three :P

I HOPE U ENJOY!!! i'm lowkey liking writing the tension... (even though i've always been a fluff girlie)

the days that followed left you in a limbo. you didn't think that you could be so caught up on this a couple days after the fact, but here you were. the concern george had shown you seemed something so usual, normal between friends, but it had become a lingering anomaly that you couldn't figure out. the exchange had replayed in your head, like a search for any hidden meanings as if george was some encrypted puzzle you just had to figure out.

three nights after the pub incident, chris had texted you asking if you wanted to go round to his house - him and 'the boys' (who you naturally assumed was both arthurs, bach and george) were going to watch a movie. it was a semi-regular occurrence, everyone cramming into their flat to watch whatever film had been on people's mind, a comfortable ritual of showing up and bringing snacks, and ultimately not being left to be bored in your own flat.

you had borrowed a book from chris - he was into his sci-fi and insisted that this was the best book you would ever read, and you had to borrow it. sci-fi wasn't ultimately your thing, but his passion for it made you give it a go nonetheless. you decided you'd show up a little early, mainly to talk about the book (which was pretty good, but not the best thing you'd ever read) and give it back to him - which is what led you to texting chris to say you were outside the door.

a few minutes later, the door swung open and chris grinned at you, "early for movie night?" he joked, and you showed the book you were wielding.

"thought i'd give some time for you to yap my ear off about theories about this book," you joked back, and you watched his eyes crinkle in excitement, closing the door behind you as you followed him into the front room, which was unusually quiet, with no TV on, no familiar chaos of one of the other flatmates there. you just assumed arthur and george were in their rooms.

"so, i mean the ending of the roles being reversed and he was actually the bad guy? i thought it was obvious at first, but i watched a video essay and it was talking about how it could actually have been that he got switched - you know when we assumed he returned as himself?" chris yapped on, before stopping for a second as he walked to the kitchen, "want a cuppa?" he offered.

you smiled and nodded, "yeah, that'd be lovely, thanks," you replied, "i'm actually gonna quickly pop to the toilet."

chris made a noise of acknowledgement, and you turned to walk down the hallway to the bathroom, when you heard voices coming from arthur's room, the door open a crack. you went to walk past, until you heard the familiar tone of george's voice.

god, you wished you weren't such a nosy bastard. but you were, so there you stood in the hallway, trying to gauge the voices.

"it's... it's been bloody awful, mate," you heard him complain, voice thick with frustration that was usually saved for when he made an idiot of himself when filming or lost a game of call of duty, "i know it's not been fair, but i just, didn't know how the fuck else to deal with it,"

you heard a murmur of arthur's voice in response, "deal with what?"

a knot of curiosity and unease tightened in your stomach, and you wished you had the willpower to pull away.

but almost instinctively frozen, you just couldn't.

george's voice cut through the quiet again, and you could feel yourself holding your breath, as if at any moment your lungs may betray you.

"i pulled away, i was so cold and distant, i... you know, i started to get- like, proper feelings, arthur. it completely freaked me out, i just-"

as george continued talking, you felt the voice blur for a moment as the feeling of your heart slamming against your ribs became the focal point. the revelation felt thick in the air, as you heard arthur's murmured response again, and a groan from george.

"we got on, and that was great... and it was so easy, we could just talk all the time and we clicked, and she liked my stupid jokes, and she made stupid jokes back, and all i could think about was... being more than mates, and it made me really nervous - i would just overthink all our interactions, i didn't want her to feel uncomfortable or hate me but that's... exactly what happened, so..."

you couldn't stomach listening to anymore, pacing yourself to the bathroom and quickly closing the door behind you, snippets of any interactions you or george had replaying in your head. was it you, he was talking about?

a painful clarity washed over you, thinking back to the comfort of gravitating to george in social situations and the disappointment you felt when he distanced from you, and it all clicked into place in one sick joke. you'd been so focused on how much you thought he hated you, from you that you'd never really considered how you felt towards him, the distance playing as some all too easily placed shield.

you allowed yourself a glance in the mirror, running your fingers through the cold water of the tap in hopes it would at least repress some of the swirl of emotion. being annoyed at him had come easily, but why? 'cause it was easier than accepting the alternate truth?

how stupidly could you have both read the situation?

looking at yourself in the mirror again, you were met with clumsily pink cheeks, and you willed yourself to be composed, hoping chris wouldn't think you were a total freak, with how long you had been gone.

when you emerged from their bathroom, you walked as quickly through the corridor as you could, being greeted by chris and two mugs - a lord of the rings one, and a wallace and gromit one. the nerdiness of them did make a smile crack on your face.

"you all good? you were gone a bit," he asked politely, as you sat down on the sofa, and he followed suit, placing the mugs on the coffee table.

"yep, all good, just lost track of time staring at myself in the mirror, you know how it is," you responded back sarcastically, hoping to bat away any curiosity that chris may have of what took you so long.

you heard arthur's door creak open, and he walked into the front room, followed by george. arthur flopped himself down on the sofa, "didn't know you were here, y/n," he smiled at you, whilst you and george made awkward eye contact for a moment, before he busied himself with fiddling with the TV to turn it on.

it was like you could feel george's awareness of your presence, and the room felt slightly tense. the usual joking was strained as arthur spoke about something you, in all honesty, hadn't paid attention to. you let yourself join the conversation on autopilot, as you all waited for the other arthur to show up, so you could start the film (you had all settled on back to the future for a throwback.

after fifteen minutes or so of conversation, which became easier when george excused himself to the kitchen for a moment, arthur tv showed up. after greetings and brief conversation, george padded back into the room, picking up the remote and sitting himself on the comfy chair, with the rest of you on the sofa, you started the film.

you found yourself glancing to him more than you'd care to admit, small details that you supposed you had registered subconsciously but never paid enough detail to becoming more obvious. the slightly lighter part of his brow from his biking incident, which became a little more noticeable when his eyebrows raised and less so when they furrowed, or his hand went to touch his hair more than you realised.

the weight of the confession pressed down on you. he liked your stupid jokes,, he liked that you liked his stupid jokes, he thought about being more than mates, he'd pushed you away because he was scared.

all that you could think of as you watched doc and marty's astonishment at the flames beneath their feet was 'what now?'

were you supposed to pretend you didn't hear, keep up the awkward charade of pretending to hate one another?

or were you supposed to somehow acknowledge this elephant in the room that you know both know is there, but one of you thinks the other doesn't know?

once the credits rolled, the music fading into a comfortable silence, leaving you all in the glow of the screen.

a yawn escaped you as everyone else was relaxed into their seats, pulling phones out and small talking, and your eyes flicked over to george, the blueish light flattering him as he looked down at his phone screen.

"i should probably head home," you said softly, smiling at everyone, pushing yourself up from the sofa, despite how comfy you were.

"already?" chris asked, looking up from his phone, "we're probably going to chill in here for a while, stick something else on if you wanna stay?" he offered.

"honestly, i'm knackered," you said gently, which wasn't exactly a lie. you were tired, and confused, and dying for your bed. you needed to untangle the knot of guilt from eavesdropping, and confusion from what you heard.

arthur hill pushed himself off the sofa, "i'll walk you to the door," he said with a smile, and you nodded, saying goodbye to everyone, a small frown on your face as george barely lifts his head, just a small nod to acknowledge you leaving.

as you got to the door, you felt a slight tap on your shoulder, "you okay? been a little quiet tonight," he said, a reassuring smile on his face, voice low and thoughtful, as if he just knew something was wrong.

"uh huh, like i said, just tired," you weakly smiled back, giving him a hug goodbye. you wondered what else george had admitted to arthur, what knowledge on your situation that he had known and for how long. you didn't blame him, it was the most arthur thing to do - to keep secrets for his friends.

once you left the apartment block, the cool london air hitting your face allowing you a slight armistice of the thoughts in your head, until you heard your phone buzz.

the contact name, george ;), which he chose for himself what felt like years ago was a shock to the system.

it read:

"hey, i don't mean to be a bother, but if you're free tomorrow, maybe we should talk?"

[ifellintothestyx]

Angry again over the ATLA fandom's treatment of Ursa, one of the biggest victims in the entire series of the FN Royal Family.

People treat the Royal Family like it's just another abusive household, which results in the overly harsh treatment of Ursa, who was the most powerless person in that entire family by political standards. She was a lowborn, engaged to the younger prince as a test to merge the bloodlines of the Royal Family with that of an Avatar's. She was basically forced into an experimental arranged marriage to a disposable heir, cut off from her family, and thrown into a pit of vipers AKA the Royal Palace.

Imagine being in her shoes. Imagine having virtually no support or standing in an unfamiliar place where even the slightest mistake could result in either humiliation at best or death at worst. She is married to a horrible man who despises the fact that he doesn't even get a noble for a wife, that he is being ridiculed by being married off to a lowborn and basically being told that it was impossible for him to ever be the Fire Lord, since if he had a fair shot wouldn't they have ensured a better marriage prospect? He gains no supporters or additional backing through his wife, which he should have had as a prince, and doesn't that just sting? He's discredited in Azulon's eyes, and in the eyes of the nobility, so what chance does he have to rise above his station now?

Who do you think took the brunt of his shame and anger at his situation? Who would have suffered most at the hands of an angry young man who had no qualms with burning his own thirteen-year-old son for just daring to speak up unasked?

People claim Ursa had let go of Azula because she thought Azula was a monster and that she only helped Zuko because he was kind. Zuko was allowed to be kind because he was deemed weak, and Ozai didn't want to pay attention to him. He is only kind because of his mother's influence, which he wouldn't have had if he was up to Ozai's standards. If he had been, Ozai would have kept Ursa and Zuko separate to better control Zuko and ensure his son's loyalty. He wanted his heir to be a child that he could paint entirely in his own image to cover up the fact that their other parent was a peasant, which would cast further doubts on his rights and position within the palace.

People make it out to be like Ursa CHOSE to save Zuko, laughably assuming that this woman had the ability to CHOOSE anything, much less ANY sort of power within the palace. Even her own children outranked her in the nobles' eyes by virtue of having royal blood. She lived in the place where her husband worked and where all the servants answered to either him or his father, so she was never truly free to move or act. Every move was watched. Every interaction was noted.

Ursa was able to influence and help Zuko by showing him a form of kindness, but notice how she never said a bad word about Ozai or the Royal Family? She couldn't. She never twisted Zuko away or tried to outright call her husband wrong—she even defended some of his actions despite knowing otherwise. She could not act or speak freely. She knew she was being watched. She couldn't even pull Zuko away completely from Ozai—that's how utterly powerless she was. Her children loved a monster, and she could do nothing to stop them.

We are shown in canon that Ursa and Zuko spend time together, but that's just it. Ursa never tries to turn Zuko "good" or convince him Ozai is terrible because she CAN'T. She does her best by being stern and setting examples, and Zuko is desperate enough for love to internalize every moment with her, but the pond scene shows how Ursa was only able to do just that—play the role of a stern, kind mother.

And the thing is—if given the chance, she'd save them both. She loved them both, even if Azula reminded her too much of the monster that she married. If she had ever had the opportunity, she would have left with both. Except she couldn't because once Ozai had his prodigy, she was never going to be able to go near her child ever again. Ursa would try, through Zuko as we see in the flashback, to reach her daughter somehow, but it never worked. If she truly always thought of Azula as a "monster", would she let her "perfect son" go play with her? She could have shut Azula out completely and discourage her from ever coming close, Azula is young enough to still listen to her Mom, but we see both Azula and Zuko at her side reading the letter. Ursa doesn't lean away from her daughter. We see her hesitate but never flinch away when she is near Azula.

Ursa only spent time with Zuko because he was the only one she COULD have paid attention to, not because she CHOSE to. Ozai paid him no interest, so she was ALLOWED to spend her time with Zuko. If she had the chance, the allowance, to spend time with Azula she would have done it in a fucking heartbeat. People paint her as "saving" the one "who could be saved" or "throwing Azula to the wolves to focus on Zuko" as if she had any fucking choice, as if she didn't took what crumbs she could get to be close to her children. She didn't toss Azula aside, Ozai KEPT THEM APART. I REPEAT, HE KEPT THEM APART. He did NOT want his lowborn wife influencing his prized heir with her ways, so he kept them apart, READ THAT AGAIN.

It was never Ursa "choosing" which of her kids to save and protect. It was always her doing her best to use her limited, almost non-existent freedom of movement to reach her children in any way, and Zuko just happened to be free. If anyone was doing the whole "focusing on one kid and tossing aside the other" it. Was. Ozai.

[scribbsrambling]

Anyone wanna tell me why this lemur only ever gives herself 3 seconds to feel sad before shoving it away?

You could easily argue that this is Tangle being mature. Putting aside how she feels, stopping herself from dwelling about the past for too long. Which is a noble trait to have to an extent.

Like, those were both instances where she saw people die (only supposedly in issue 60’s case but still). Yes, good for her that she’s pushing herself to focus on her task at hand, but like, Tangle, no one was gonna penalize you for taking 57 more seconds to cry😭

As I’ve said before, it really depends on how frequently she does this to determine how good or bad this behavior is for her.

Another thing, Tangle is known for being a very expensive, very emotional and emotionally-driven character. It’s interesting that she can also be so eager to gulp it back down when the big sad feels come up. And do it so quickly.

Although, it makes sense too. Someone who is more emotional/empathetic would have probably had to learn to reel it in sometimes after being “too dramatic”

Hopefully after all the crap she went through in Urban Warfare, she took time to talk to someone.

However, while Tangle is often interpreted as a very “wears her heart on her sleeve” type of character, she’s shown to not be incapable of keeping things to herself.

She even seemed to be embarrassed to talk about how she’s feeling with Jewel, her best friend, in front of others,

but she’s comfortable to open up when it’s just the two of them.

people with low-self esteem either crave to be the center of attention to feel validated or hate it because they feel undeserving of it but that’s for another rant

[bnhaobservation]

Overall, do you think Tomura is a well written character? And a well written main Villain?

Honestly the only criticism I have against him is that he doesn’t seem the threat the story portrays him as, but that’s really on Horikoshi and his refusal to let the Heroes face some long lasting consequences.

But, for real, I think Horikoshi’s decision to go with such an unconventional antagonist was his strongest card, both in originality and thematically. (Until he blew it).

I have seen people complain that Nine was a better Hero to the Villains, as he had an established, coherent goal from the start and was stable enough to actually pursue it, but for me Tomura’s madness and instability, his pain and raw anger, are much more compelling.

All of who he is is a manifesto of what happens to people who are discarded by society.

He’s a victim who won’t let what happened to him go, everyone will pay and see the consequences of his suffering. His untreated trauma and its effects, both for him and the environment around him, aren’t softened in any way.

However, he’s also shown to be able of improvement and change through the bonds he formed with the league. He had a sincere desire to make them justice hidden under the lump of hatred and sadness. But, (as much as I hate the whole afo/ofa psychic connection), he wouldn’t have ever seen his own growth and humanity without the hero who tried to save him, Deku. (Can’t believe I’m giving Deku credit.)

Nine, or someone more like him, could have never represented such a middle ground, because Nine was already able to save himself and others. Nine didn’t need society or a hero to help him, therefore society was not in need to be challenged to improve and become more inclusive.

Tomura learned to express real, heartfelt criticism of hero society, but that didn’t dismiss the need for heroes to save him from himself and his abuser.

He established valid thematic points without dismissing the heroes’ role in helping out victims, even the bad ones. He was perfect for the point MHA was making (or pretending to make).

But I don’t know, what do you think?

Sorry for answering you so late but not only I was away form home but, as usual, I planned for a short reply and ended up writing a long post analyzing Tomura.

Sorry about this but I should probably admit I do love Tomura so I’ve tried extra hard to be impartial, listing his good points and the flaws.

LET’S TALK ABOUT CHARACTERIZATION

For me the final idea behind Tomura’s character is great, he’s basically the mirror image of the main character, down to the red shoes. Both he and Midoriya start out Quirkless (Midoriya is born as such, Tenko had his own stolen). Midoriya is bullied outside his house but his mother loves him, Tenko has friends outside his house but his father makes said house unsafe. Then someone gives them a Quirk (that destroys Tenko’s family and Midoriya’s body) and offers to mentor them. Unluckily for Tenko it’s AFO while for Midoriya it’s All Might so Midoriya gets to have his ‘Hero story’ in which his actions inspire All Might to act, where Tenko murders his whole family.

And the two grow and Tenko is taught the downside/dark side of the Hero world, while Midoriya enrolls in U.A. high and learns of the bright side of it and then the two clash and Midoriya learns Hero society isn’t as perfect as he believes but decides to save Tenko, basically wanting to teach him the upside/light side of the Hero world.

This is the basic idea behind the two and it’s VERY GOOD.

Tenko/Tomura is perfect as a foil to Midoriya, he’s even given companions that match/mirror Midoriya’s friends: obviously Touya/Shouto, Himiko/Uraraka but, in a way, also Kurogiri/Bakugou (relationship from childhood) and if you really wants to pull things Atsuhiro/Iida (the families shaping them), Shuuichi/Shouji (the Heteromorph drama) and Jin/Aoyama (the betrayal plot). As you can see each of them has a point of similitude that however goes opposite to the other, same as Tomura and Midoriya.

Tenko/Tomura is given an intriguing backstory, an evolution, flaws, companions, a mentor figure, a starting point, an inner research for a goal that’s more than just ‘I’m evil’, an evolution and an end.

All this is very, very good.

What’s not so good is how the story handles all this.

Tomura’s evolution and inner world don’t get enough screentime.

In the first part he’s a certain kind of person that threatened Kurogiri, didn’t care for the Villains who carried with himself at the USJ and would have murdered Touya and Himiko because they annoyed him. Having a talk with Midoriya is a good idea to start to change him… but sadly despite Midoriya having PLENTY of screentime, the talk doesn’t equally affect Midoriya (why should we care? Because it would be important to have them affect each other instead while Midoriya does ask to All Might if there was someone he couldn’t save, this doesn’t really change his approach to things much).

Still, like Midoriya as a Hero, he’s not really much of a Villain (even though the police and the Heroes make an overly big deal of him) but it fits, because as Midoriya’s foil he can’t be too good.

Then we have the ‘Forest Training Camp’ arc and the ‘Hideout raid’ arc. Tomura somehow decides to put Touya in charge and target Bakugou. The story doesn’t explain how he came to the decision Touya was the one more fitting to lead the team which is a flaw in writing because all of sudden he considers the League his comrades and somehow it will be implied he knows their backstories (except maybe Touya’s) as he’ll claim each of them have suffered.

The story doesn’t even quite goes on why he wants Bakugou, does he see him as a fellow victim or just as an useful pawn to attack Hero society? Is he trying to be a manipulator solely for his own convenience or he’s genuinely trying to offer Bakugou a way out from a society that would chain and muzzle him?

Each one can have their own theory but the point is the story doesn’t really tell us what he felt for Bakugou and when they’ll confront again he’ll claim he lost interest in him… but he’s possessed by AFO so who knows.

All those plot/characterization holes are here because Tomura will move to his… ‘next stage’.

After AFO is jailed Tomura is characterized as someone who cares for the League. They’re now “friends”, “companions”, “allies” or, to use the word he uses ‘nakama’ (仲間), which is a word that implies a stronger bond that casual friends, they’re friends and colleagues/allies, they share with him something. He tolerates their weird behaviors, he wants to avenge Magne, he doesn’t mind if Himiko points her knife at his throat. I love this characterization and we can of course assume this is the natural evolution of him losing AFO and having to spend time with them so he grew close to them (as h e shows no care for Muscular, Moonfish, Mustard), but the story doesn’t portray this, it just jumps from a point to the other.

Kurogiri is whisked away by the plot, so that we can’t see their relation evolve.

Tomura though, is very interesting and promising as he deals with Overhaul, but also totally different from how he was before, he stays calm, he doesn’t get upset with Jin, he tries to protect the League, first telling Atsuhiro to wait, then jumping on the battleground when he doesn’t. Later he’ll negotiate with Overhaul calmly getting info out of him and sets up a way for them to take advantage of him. Ultimately he’ll destroy Overhaul and steals his bullets.

It’s a completely different Tomura if we compare him to the one who would throw a tantrum when things didn’t go his way, be it when All Might got in advantage, when he interacted with Stain or when Touya annoyed him. It’s a great Tomura and yes, as said before he could have changed naturally due to losing his mentor but… the story just change him without exploring the transition.

This is bad and sadly a recurring problem in the story. Characters change and WHY they did so isn’t explored or it is explored only vaguely so that it feels as if their character is retconned.

Now, people can change. They won’t do it overnight as it’s a pretty difficult process.

In theory times went by so yes, Tomura could change and his change would make sense and I can construct an (I hope) good argument on why he went toward this direction… but as the slow shift isn’t represented in any way, it might feel an abrupt shift to a reader.

The new Tomura block starts with ‘My Villain academia’, which more or less continues the new characterization of Tomura as someone who cares about his friends but also as someone who knows how to be a leader, making it even more marked. In fact he puts up with Shuuichi’s criticism, he goes to rescue Giran, he promises the League they can get what they want, he lets Touya free to do as he prefers, he opens up about his past, he handles Garaki and Re-Destro without losing it, gaining a commanding presence, he doesn’t coldly murder Re-Destro and his allies but becomes their ruler, he remembers what the League wanted to eat…

The change is now less abrupt compared to previously, it actually comes as a more smooth evolution of his character, plus the story gives him drama, finally revealing his past and helps us make sense of his motive.

In fact Tomura’s motive is now more ‘his own motive’, he has a target, he has decided to destroy all he hates so as to free himself from the weight in his heart where before, with his claiming he wanted to question society and that was it, he seemed to have less of an aim and just parrot AFO’s teachings.

All this is good and interesting to me, on the other side, Horikoshi never develop Tomura’s relation with Machia or with the Meta Liberation Army so it feels like he’s just using them and this is not so great. Credits when it’s due there wasn’t much time to explore it, as Tomura soon ends up in Garaki’s lab but it still feels a wasted chance considering in the end he’ll claim he wants to be ‘a Hero for the Villains’.

Again, the readers can try and connect things but the story doesn’t bother. Tomura gets a last moment of glory when he wakes up and fight the Heroes. He’s great in his characterization, the way he takes care of the League, of how he spares the High Ends so that they can use them, how he interacts with the Heroes, how he explains them the difference between Heroes and Villains, how when Midoriya complains he won’t forgive him, he calmly answers he won’t forgive them either, how he tries to resist to AFO’s possession, at first in a friendly way only to change tone when he realizes AFO has been using him, that’s a great Tomura.

Then he gets possessed and possessed Tomura is nowhere as interesting as we don’t get him react to anything that’s going on (Twice’s death, Touya’s revelation, Atsuhiro and Machia being arrested and so on…). Credits when it’s due, the story hardly focuses on the League at this point because the new antagonist is AFO and his band of merry escaped convicts/assassins.

Tomura ‘comes back’ for the battle with Midoriya. They don’t really talk much. Tomura has some good moments of characterization but, for being a moment I had long awaited, it mostly managed to disappoint me and it comes with characterization downsides too.

I tend to think at that point Horikoshi really wanted to end the manga and that was a huge part of the problem but I might be wrong. It’s fitting he feels suicidal in the way he attacks, I liked his monologue with Midoriya in the OFA space and, later, that’s nice he cares about Shuuichi but what about everything else? The fact he gets again possessed and psychologically shattered but no, he’s saved by Nana but he doesn’t get a meaningful talk with her or All Might and he’s fine entrusting everything to Midoriya when he first said the Villains needed a Hero… as if he thinks Midoriya can be a Hero for the Villains too… honestly doesn’t work well for me. Again the evolution feels forced, jumpy, Horikoshi wants him to say something and so he complies.

So, on the long run, Tomura’s characterization (as far as I’m involved) has up and downs that other Villains don’t have because they get less screentime so Horikoshi sticks to just a characterization for them.

It’s still an interesting characterization, one that could have been amazing if Horikoshi had just taken care to smoother some transitions and one I love even if I’m the one who has to do the work to connect the dots.

LET’S TALK ABOUT HIS GOAL

At first Tomura’s goal is hard to understand.

When facing All Might he claims he’s angry because both Heroes and Villains thrive on violence but they’re still categorized in good and evil, All Might is called a symbol of peace but he’s just a tool for violence made to keep Villains down, however violence can only breed more violence and he plans to show it by killing All Might. [Chap. 19] All Might shoots his motive down claiming he’s not an idealist but someone who’s enjoying himself, which Tomura confirms. All Might will later call him a man-child.

When he confronts himself with Stain he summarizes his goal is ‘kill All Might and all he doesn’t like’ [Chap. 47] which leads Stain to label him as a temper tantrum kid claiming he has bloodlust without conviction. Pressured by Stain, Tomura insists he has no conviction but he’s still driven by All Might and the society that worship him and that he wants to crush, so that can be his conviction. Stain is impressed and agrees they’ve in common the wish to destroy the status quo and that Tomura actually has a seed of conviction. [Chap. 49]

Tomura is not quite sure, when wandering before meeting Midoriya he insists he and the Hero Killer were just ‘destroying the things they hate’ and, talking with Midoriya he claims he hates everyone and everything. His words also hint he’s upset society isn’t noticing him but they’re focusing on Stain. After his talk with Midoriya though, his mind clears up even though is explanation isn’t so clear. He claims he’s angry at Stain and Midoriya and at society because they’re all thinking about All Might, smiling wide and thinking there’s no one All Might can’t save while, at the same time, remembering how All Might didn’t save him. Moments later he’ll claim he’ll create a world without All Might and cause enough destruction to show everyone how fragile their justice really is. [Chap. 69]

When facing Bakugou he observes how everyone is giving a hard time to Heroes because their job is to protect people but they did too little, too late and  screwed up, but everyone can do it yet people expects them to be perfect. He then claims his war is based on a few simple questions: ‘What is a Hero? What is justice? Is this what society’s really supposed to be like?’ He also points out that all in the League have different stories but they’ve all suffered thanks to other people, to rules and to heroes and felt suffocated. [Chap. 85] Tomura is pointing out society is, in a way, reacting like him. The Heroes failed to save them and they turned against the Heroes, he’s NOT different from them and they’re not different from him. It’s just that they’re so stuck on how Heroes are perfect they don’t think Heroes can fail and create people like him, but have Heroes fail them and they turn against Heroes just the same as him. And this is what Tomura wants, he wants them to feel his own desperation, he wants them to notice he’s desperate and needed help and no one helped him.

When confronting Overhaul, he claims he’s collecting people to annihilate the Hero society and the latter scolds him about Tomura not having a plan, not knowing what to do once he has expanded, how to use the people under him. [Chap. 125] The two of course couldn’t be more different, as Overhaul wants to profit from the destruction of Hero society, while Tomura doesn’t. He’s not in for the money. In the following confrontation with Overhaul he’ll agree to join him as long as they won’t work under him as they’ll do what they want, when and how they want.

When confronting Garaki Tomura defines his goal better. He claims he can’t remember his past but he feels his rage boil when he wears his hands… and we’re starting to get better hints about how Tomura’s ‘rage’ is a cover, a reaction, a copying mechanism to Tomura’s suffering, to his trauma of killing his family, to how he wasn’t helped, no Hero coming to save him, how he was abandoned, people not caring about his misery until AFO found him. AFO called it frustration, rage, but it’s actually trauma and pain. Tomura concluded he’ll never feel good again, even if society comes crashing down, even if I rise to rule the underworld, the weight in his heart is never going to go away so he hates everything and wants to destroy everything, thinking this will lead him to a beautiful horizon. It’s at the same time a desperate attempt at destroying what pains him and a request for help, or, at least, a request to be understood because if everyone is miserable like him, his situation will then be ‘normal’. [Chap. 222] At the same time though, he won’t deny his allies the chance to get what they want.

Re-Destro will also question him, asking him what burdens he bears and what does he seeks to build, as all he can see is a hollow man who creates nothing and indulge in destruction. [Chap. 234] Tomura will agree with him that all he can do is destroy. [Chap. 235] He then will claim he views the future (for himself) as unnecessary but he wants the League to live as they see fit [Chap. 237]

Then we’ve Tomura answering to Endeavor who claims he can gather all the power he likes but without ideals, Tomura’s hollow destruction won’t bring down the Heroes. At this Tomura answers his father told him that Heroes hurt their own families just to help complete strangers. He then points out how he always had ideals and explains how Heroes pretended to be society’s guardians, but also how they pretended not to see those they couldn’t protect, sweeping their pain under the rugs, tainting everything they have built, so their system is rotten from inside. It built up little by little, they’ve the common trash dependent on being protected and the brave guardians who created the trash that needs coddling in a corrupt, vicious circle. Tomura claims everything he has witnessed, the whole system they have bult has always rejected him so he’ll reject it too and that’s why he destroy, why he took power for himself. He doesn’t care if they don’t understand, this is what makes them Heroes and Villains. [Chap. 280/281] There’s a tiny bit that I like to consider part of Tomura’s mindset. Midoriya jumps on him (after Tomura has hit Gran Torino) claiming he won’t forgive him and Tomura answer back he won’t forgive anyone either.

The story also begins to imply Tomura wants to destroy all that comes from his birth house. [Chap. 292]

Later Tomura will remind Midoriya they won’t sit down for a chat as he’s his Villain [Chap. 378] which hints at how he gave up on being understood by Heroes. He’s a Villain to them, that’s all there is. Then he’ll claim his heart isn’t wavering and that everything he witnessed in the world lead to the existence of ‘that house’ (as his family house) so as Shigaraki Tomura and Shimura Tenko he only has one hope, to destroy everything connected to that house and that’s the only thing that’s going to save him. [Chap. 379] As Shigaraki himself is connected to that house, this is also a suicidal declaration.

The last bit we have is inside Tomura’s mindscape. Tomura insists the destruction of his family was his own choice because otherwise why does he has such hands? In case someone forgot about it, people connects Quirks with character, even Re-Destro did claim Tomura was only capable of destroying. To cope with what happened, which, at the beginning, HE CLEARLY DIDN’T DO ON PURPOSE (he was actually freaked out and scared and it was only because his father rejected him that he connected the dots that it was him causing destruction and killed his father) he decided it happened due to his own will and used rage as a copying mechanism to deal with his grief. No one helped him and this made matters worse. Tomura accepted being a Villain because society cut him out from its circle and, at the same time, the fact he was a Villain, gave him another group. He couldn’t be All Might, he couldn’t be a Hero for society, but he can be a Hero for the people like him, Villains who were chased out of society and are miserable and rejected. All Tomura has his his pain covered up by his hatred but even if his hatred were to be taken away from him and he were to end up hollow, the ‘Villains’ (aka the people society crushed), needs him to be a Hero for them so he wouldn’t stop because THEY are ‘his society’ a society that stands opposed to Midoriya’s. [Chap. 418]

So where all this leads us?

Tomura is pretty solid in his motive/goal, even if, at the start, he doesn’t know how to verbalize it well. Hero society destroyed him. It twisted his father, it didn’t save Tenko, made Tenko a Villain unworthy of their help (as in refused to help him when he wandered through the city, which Tenko interpreted as rejection due to what he caused to his family), it let him fall prey of AFO so that ultimately Tenko accepted/embraced being a Villain, being Shigaraki Tomura. Society hurt him, it continues to hurt him by merely existing and not caring about him and, in the same way as Midoriya can’t forgive him for hurting the people he cared about Tomura can’t forgive society for hurting him. Tomura knows destroying society WON’T FIX HIM, it won’t make him happy, but it’ll stop extra pain to be thrown at him… or at the other people who are with him which society labels as ‘Villains’. While he doesn’t believe he can be happy destroying everything, himself included, he thinks they might have a chance.

It’s a good motive and one that’s not so common for an antagonist/Villain.

LET’S TALK ABOUT WHAT IT TAKES TO BE A VILLAIN

In the story all it takes is to use your Quirk unauthorized, generally to commit a crime so I think we should probably dig in him being a danger.

Tomura is a work in progress, same as Midoriya, he grows in his Villain role, even though the police makes a big deal of his right from the start. During the war he has gained power and a army and he’s VERY, VERY dangerous.

He’s also someone who plans to destroy society, in the sense he’ll shatter its beliefs in Heroes, it’s faith, so yes, he is a great Villain by the end.

Some think a Villain has solely to be evil, someone who takes pleasure in hurting you, someone you want to see murdered, but I’m not of that group, for me that sort of Villains were the ones of child tales, like the evil witch of Snowcone, the bad wolf of Red riding hood. Different tastes, I guess.

I do like how Tomura is a person, a person society destroyed because originally Tomura wanted to be like All Might and then things went wrong and he became a Villain because ‘all it takes is a single bad day’ (actually a series of bad days in his case but you get what I mean). I like the idea what happened to Tomura could have happened to everyone had they gone through what he went through.

To me it makes him more scary exactly because he isn’t the guy born evil, he’s the guy who was born just fine like any of us but then life twisted him. He’s the warning we can become like him, that we can create him by causing someone to go through what he went through.

And yet Tomura remains human, because even though what he does is terrible, in the end he’s not a monster, he’s just a human like us.

LET’S TALK ABOUT TOMURA AND NINE

The two are similar yet different.

In the short stories its implied Nine knew pain and viewed his men as comrades same as Tomura. However Nine has a Darwinistic idea of how society has to be, with him at the top and strong Quirk users below him but still high in power. This doesn’t necessarily means Villains, Endeavor and All Might have strong Quirks themselves… though of course they wouldn’t agree with Nine’s plan, which will likely set them up for elimination. Nine’s idea is similar to the one of Re-Destro. This means Villains like Spinner, who aren’t lions, don’t have a place in Nine’s project.

On the other side Tomura wants to include in his project all of those who are mistreated by society, strong Quirk or not but his idea of ‘mistreating’ seems rather broad. However Tomura is more of an anarchic, he plans to destroy society but not to rule it, and, as I said in another post, anarchy tends to have short life. Someone will come and take the reins of what Tomura left behind.

Now that someone might have learnt the lesson and create a better society… or he could just be Re-Destro or one of his affiliates and create a different kind of superpower society that still will mistreat someone else.

In itself there’s no such thing as ‘perfect society’, because there are not perfect people.

So there’s not really between them a ‘better Hero for the Villains’ because they’ll go at it differently. Nine plans to rule society, so he’ll be around maintaining his rule, which however will benefit only a certain kind of Villains.

Tomura believes his actions will benefit all the Villains which mistreated by society but doesn’t plan to be around to ensure things will go well AFTERWARD and, even if he were to survive, he thinks his role is merely to destroy what would oppress them.

There’s also something else to say… Nine seems older than Tomura, and he wasn’t kept immature, isolated from people and manipulated like Tomura was at the start. It makes sense he has a better idea of what he wants (especially because in a movie you can’t give him the time to clear his mind), one Tomura will reach with time.

Everything else is a matter of preference.

Even in the Hero camp there’s who prefer Midoriya and who instead thinks Haimawari (the main character from Vigilantes) should have been the main character of BNHA because he’s a better protagonist. At each his own.

To sum it up, yeah, I do think Tomura is a good character (but he could have been better had Horikoshi paid him more care) and a good Villain who can be a Hero for the Villains but that’s just me. If someone prefers Nine to Tomura, that’s fine.

Thanks for your ask and sorry for the late and long reply!

[theconstitutionisgayculture]

Yeah I'm gonna talk about the Andor rape scene.

First, disclaimer, I don't watch Andor, or any Disney Star Wars show. I did watch Rogue One, and it's probably the best thing Disney Star Wars ever did, which isn't saying much. So if you want to dismiss what I'm saying because I didn't see the scene and don't have the "context" or whatever, go fuck yourself because the only context I need is that there's now a rape scene in Star Wars.

Which is bad. It's stupid and retarded and it changes Star Wars forever for the worse. Star Wars isn't Game of Thrones. It isn't a dark, gritty, realistic portrayal of war and tyranny. It's a space opera, and while some space operas do "go there" with regards to rape and graphic content, it's not required, nor is it the norm. Star Wars was one of the space operas that didn't go there. It never needed to. You understood that the Empire was evil because Darth Vader was torturing people and they blew up an entire planet. The empire were the bad guys and the good guys were defined by standing up to the Empire. And even with that simplistic concept, the movies were still good. No one went to see Star Wars and thought "well, Vietnam just happened so I don't really think I can believe this portrayal of war unless some villages get napalmed and some women get raped". They said "oh wow Luke Skywalker is awesome he blew up the Death Star!" or "laser swords? Awesome!"

The idea that everything needs to reflect reality is such a braindead concept, but I'm not surprised that's the defense the showrunner is going with. Everyone involved with Disney Star Wars at every level has shown that they don't understand Star Wars at all. Not from a storytelling or character standpoint, or a meta, cultural standpoint either. "It's for kids" is never an excuse for bad or lazy writing, but it is a reason why explicit scenes aren't included. For decades, the most explicitly violent thing in Star Wars was Ponda Baba's arm getting cut off in the Mos Eisley cantina. That happened within the first half of the first movie, and the series never felt the need to try and top that because explicit content was never the point of Star Wars. It never needed to resort to cheap emotional ploys to get you to feel for the characters. Which brings me to my next point:

Aside from stories about rape, rape is never necessary in fiction. In fact, I say 95% of the time it's a crutch bad writers use because that's the only way they know to evoke a visceral emotional reaction. It's lazy and uninspired. It lowers the quality of whatever it's in. If you can't get someone to hate your villain without making them a rapist, then you're a bad writer. But this rape scene in particular is actually damaging to the original trilogy (as so much of Disney Star Wars is). Because the explanation is that you can't have a story about war and resistance without rape. Which means that the Empire is now known to have rapists in its ranks. Andor takes place in the same timeframe as the OT, which means that the same Empire that tried to rape that woman is the same empire that had Princess Leia captive on the Death Star for at least a few days. Do you see where I'm going with this? If your assertion is that rape must exist in the Empire to portray war and resistance accurately, then Princess Leia had to have been raped while in captivity, because the same Empire that captured this woman also captured her. But that never happened. We know that never happened because it was never so much as hinted at. She was tortured for information, but she was never raped. No female captive in the entire Star Wars saga, both the real Lucas stories and the fake Disney "canon", was ever raped. So by the directors own reasoning, the only Star Wars property to ever portray a realistic (where "realistic" is seen as good and "unrealistic" is seen as bad) version or war is season 2 of Andor. Which is massively insulting to every other Star Wars movie and show ever made. Even The Acolyte, which is objective trash, doesn't deserve to be implicitly slighted because it didn't depict rape. Star Wars is not about reflecting reality. It's about the fight between good vs evil. It's about family and belonging and standing up for what's right. Universal concepts that anyone can understand even if it's nothing like what you read about in the news everyday. And that's what it should always be.

Goddamn I hate that Star Wars is being ruined like this. I hate it so much.

[yandere-fics]

I had an idea for Selene.

What if Selene's darling turns out to be her rival. Someone she fought a lot in the war and they're usually always at each other's throats at meetings.

How would Selene and the Darling react to that?

♡ Selene's Darling Is Her Rival ♡

You were not well liked by the gods, not to the extent of Selene but after the war they'd had it out for the both of you, you the only human god remaining who had been toying with humans for some time before you had to stop due to treaties and Selene the cause of the war anyways. Of course they wouldn't just shove you together if you weren't compatible, even for their revenge it would be a bit extreme but they found it funny how you were always at each others throats despite how in other circumstances you'd probably like each other so not only did they force Selene to allow you onto her territory since you had no where else to go after the war and made you mates with the addition of neither of you being able to find out for some time. Give you both time perhaps to get over your differences or tear each other apart, they didn't care, they just wanted you both punished.

You weren't happy having to stay anywhere near Selene and neither was she so she basically doled out a small area you could stay in without her touching and then proceeded to forget you were there at least until she was reminded of you at the yearly conferences where the both of you fought nonstop until the boss made you shut up. It only got worse as things progressed with you finding Selene disgusting for sleeping around and her finding you overly judgemental and a pest in her territory.

Unlike Selene though, you'd learned from your punishment and had truly changed, enjoying your life in the small town she'd ditched you in, the other gods finding you even pleasant to be around now despite you still bickering with Selene whenever you were seen together. They almost felt bad they'd done this because it probably was not at all helpful to you understanding each other or growing a positive relationship and so they ended the curse before you could grow to resent each other anymore. They told you first because since you were a human god they didn't want you caught off guard, you were pissed needless to say. Despite you having been a massive asshole before, you felt it was unjustified being stuck with Selene. You even vowed not to speak to the other gods again though you doubted you'd make good on that promise once you calmed down. Selene took it even worse, she'd shown her mate literally only the worst parts of her, she would have killed them if that wouldn't have ended with her immediate death.

They decided to force you both to be separated again to adjust, only allowing Selene to have a weekly date with you which pissed her off cause she needed her mate and pissed you off cause you'd rather they just kill Selene cause she sucked. Turns out though, the both of you had a lot of sexual tension because of your years of fighting and so after a night of sleeping together neither of you could even come up with words to say, both of your minds completely blown. The other gods were shocked when at the meeting next year, both of you were completely silent for once.

[holmsister]

Why I think Kabru was the first child Milsiril took in:

1) it coincided with the Utaya catastrophe and her leaving the Canaries. If she was already in the habit of taking kids in, Idk if she would have been able to still be in the Canaries.

2) it also makes more sense to me in terms of character motivation if leaving the Canaries and taking Kabru in is all one decision. Like. Young Milsiril doesn't seen particularly motherly. Think of how she treats Mithrun - she gives him motivation to live, yes, but she does so by inciting him towards revenge. (This happens BEFORE she takes Kabru in btw im pretty sure its explicitly stated somewhere. I say this because i saw some confusion on the matter). An older, less angry, more disillusioned Milsiril saw what the elves did in Utaya and decided to both stop being an accomplice and try to repair things how she could by helping a victim.

3) ...which also explains why she was so unprepared. Like there's no way around it - it's clear that she is incredibly unprepared to deal with a tallman child, let alone one who is as incredibly traumatised as Kabru was. She also seems to not have a clear idea about tallman growth and maturity rates etc. (She tries to spoonfeed an elementary age kid and thinks Kabru is going thru puberty at 22!) If she had previous experience with short-lived races she would have a clearer idea of such things, if nothing else, thru mere experience. Her lack of knowledge makes a lot more sense if taking Kabru in was an impulsive decision maturated in the context of Utaya, and only after she spent some years with him she was like. Oh actually I like taking care of children. I might want to keep doing it.

4) I know there's the Rin comic in which the other elves seem to imply Milsiril is the go-to for dealing with short-lived races children and also she says she doesn't have space to take anyone else in, but it's possible she started taking in more kids in after she felt like she got her footing with kabru (iirc kabru had already been living with her for a couple years at that point) or, what I'm tending towards, she meant that she couldn't take anyone else *besides Kabru*. Considering the other elves treat Rin as some sort of little wild animal l don't think it would take much for them to consider someone an expert in handling children.

5) there's never any mention of other kids besides Rin in Kabru's memory. It seems weird to me if he spent so much time in the house with those other kids he does not talk/remember them, especially considering how curious and sociable baby kabru was. It might be a facet of elven childcare we don't know, but we see elven families being reasonable sociable in canon at times, i don't see why Kabru wouldnt be allowed to befriend the other kids if they were there.

6) milsiril seemingly dedicates a lot of time to him and only him. This can be explained simply by noting that this is Kabru's memory tho. But still. She keeps track of him in adulthood, has him fully adopted into his family, dedicates personal time to his education and training, and even teaches him some coping mechanisms for his panic and anxiety attacks, like the whole "recite capitals of the world" thing.

I think that Kabru was the first kid she took in, he lived alone with her for a very long time, and only after he was with one foot out of the door (14-16) she started taking in other children, which would be at that point too young to be interesting as friends to a teenager Kabru looking forward to either becoming a Canary or moving out.

[stealingpotatoes]

heres a crappy venn (??) diagram explaining the dynamics in the tl4j time travel au bc it's easier than trying to write a full plot

[critter-wizard]

ep 43 had me tearing up in a fucking shopping centre ‼️‼️

b+w alt version that I truly couldn't decide if I liked it more . Also I included a lot of thoughts in the tags but they're somewhat incoherent<3

[floorpancakes]

funny thought that just came to me do you think watanuki would start crying getting spooned for the first time because he's emotionally overwhelmed

[is-this-fascism]

Please help me survive and escape homelessness.

GFM

KF

CA

I want to be safe by the winter of 2025.

I'm having a difficult time fundraising for my van. Repeated car troubles and various other unexpected issues have eaten into my savings multiple times, and while in a slump I wasn't making as many posts about my situation and I got significantly less donations over the last ~6 weeks on both my gofundme and my kofi/cashapp. While I've 'regained' a lot of what I lost, I've been spending about as much as is coming in. Aside from one instance, my emergency expenses were eaten by my fundraiser savings, which was then gained back about as quickly as I was spending it on my daily expenses. I still haven't reached the goal for the recent $1000 I had to spend on my car.

So far I've lost $2,200 of the $3,100 that's shown on the GFM. I'll be updating the fundraiser to reflect the loss.

I'm autistic and struggle just to meet my basic needs, and despite that I've been denied disability income multiple times. Failing to hold a job (and developing PTSD symptoms from my time being employed), and let down and abandoned by anyone who could support me, I'm left with few resources and few options. I try to make posts when I'm in a good mood, or keep people updated when I'm in a bad mood. I make videos on YouTube, hoping eventually I can show people what their money has gotten for me.

On a good month, I only spend about $600, leaving me some space to save the donations I was previously getting. With winter and the holidays coming, I'm not sure I'll be getting as much money as the warmer months, and I'll be spending more on keeping myself warm and fed over the winter. It will be more like $800/mo now. The only real solution is getting more money than I'm spending, as I'm already spending as little as I safely can.

I'll only take financial advice from someone who has lowered their expenses below mine, with the same disabilities and circumstances as me. What I need is more money, and I don't always have the energy to pay back with art and things like that. I don't even always have the energy to post my pleas for help. I don't have a sponsor to help me make these posts.

I'm in a low energy mode because what can I do with no money? In a state where I have to spend as little as possible, see such slow results, see most of it taken by things outside my control, and somehow keep up hope that this will work?

When I feel safe and have adequate shelter in a van, I'll be able to REST. And then start working harder and making more money one way or another. Whether you think I should suck it up and get a job or you want to see me become a content creator, I need money for any kind of opportunity and I'm just not getting enough.

So, thank you to everyone who's suppported me so far. Thank you to the repeat supports. I'm sorry I had to spend your money on other things. Thank you to the person who covered most of a huge expense I was stressing about a couple months ago. Thank you to the person who sent me $200 to get a hotel and told me to take care of my mental health before saving anything. Thank you to the blogs that have featured my fundraiser in your posts. Thank you to everyone who keeps boosting and cheering me on even though you can't support financially.

I don't know what else I can do to get more people like that to see me. There are so many options on the internet, but it's still a daunting task and as much as I can't really afford to rest, I have to sometimes. Often, in fact.

Please keep boosting this post until my goal is really met. Until I can spend more than $600 a month and actually earn your money rather than beg for it.

[she-who-fights-and-writes]

“Show, Don’t Tell”…But This Time Someone Explains It

If you’ve ever been on the hunt for writing advice, you've definitely seen the phrase “Show, Don’t Tell.”

Writeblr coughs up these three words on the daily; it’s often considered the “Golden Rule” of writing. However, many posts don't provide an in-depth explanation about what this "Golden Rule" means (This is most likely to save time, and under the assumption that viewers are already informed).

More dangerously, some posts fail to explain that “Show, Don’t Tell” occasionally doesn’t apply in certain contexts, toeing a dangerous line by issuing a blanket statement to every writing situation. 

The thing to take away from this is: “Show, Don’t Tell” is an essential tool for more immersive writing, but don't feel like a bad writer if you can’t make it work in every scenario (or if you can’t get the hang of it!)

1. What Does "Show, Don't Tell" Even Mean?

“Show, Don’t Tell” is a writing technique in which the narrative or a character’s feelings are related through sensory details rather than exposition. Instead of telling the reader what is happening, the reader infers what is happening due to the clues they’ve been shown.

EXAMPLE 1:

Telling: The room was very cold. Showing: She shivered as she stepped into the room, her breath steaming in the air.

EXAMPLE 2:

Telling: He was furious. Showing: He grabbed the nearest book and hurled it against the wall, his teeth bared and his eyes blazing.

EXAMPLE 3 ("SHOW, DON'T TELL" DOESN'T HAVE TO MEAN "WRITE A LOT MORE")

Telling: The room hadn't been lived in for a very long time. Showing: She shoved the door open with a spray of dust.

Although the “showing” sentences don’t explicitly state how the characters felt, you as the reader use context clues to form an interpretation; it provides information in an indirect way, rather than a direct one.

Because of this, “Show, Don’t Tell” is an incredibly immersive way to write; readers formulate conclusions alongside the characters, as if they were experiencing the story for themselves instead of spectating. 

As you have probably guessed, “showing” can require a lot more words (as well as patience and effort). It’s a skill that has to be practiced and improved, so don’t feel discouraged if you have trouble getting it on the first try!

2. How Do I Use “Show, Don’t Tell” ?

There are no foolproof parameters about where you “show” and not “tell" or vice versa; it’s more of a writing habit that you develop rather than something that you selectively decide to employ.

In actuality, most stories are a blend of both showing and telling, and more experienced writers instinctively switch between one and another to cater to their narrative needs. You need to find a good balance of both in order to create a narrative that is both immersive and engaging.

i. Help When Your Writing Feels Bare-Bones/Soulless/Boring

Your writing is just not what you’ve pictured in your head, no matter how much you do it over. Conversations are stilted. The characters are flat. The sentences don’t flow as well as they do in the books you've read. What’s missing?

It’s possibly because you’ve been “telling” your audience everything and not “showing”! If a reader's mind is not exercised (i.e. they're being "spoon-fed" all of the details), your writing may feel boring or uninspired!

Instead of saying that a room was old and dingy, maybe describe the peeling wallpaper. The cobwebs in the corners. The smell of dust and old mothballs. Write down what you see in your mind's eye, and allow your audience to formulate their own interpretations from that. (Scroll for a more in-depth explanation on HOW to develop this skill!)

ii. Add More Depth and Emotion to Your Scenes

Because "Show, Don't Tell" is a more immersive way of writing, a reader is going to feel the narrative beats of your story a lot more deeply when this rule is utilized.

Describing how a character has fallen to their knees sobbing and tearing our their hair is going to strike a reader's heart more than saying: "They were devastated."

Describing blood trickling through a character's fingers and staining their clothes will seem more dire than saying: "They were gravely wounded."

iii. Understand that Sometimes Telling Can Fit Your Story Better

Telling can be a great way to show your characters' personalities, especially when it comes to first-person or narrator-driven stories. Below, I've listed a few examples; however, this list isn't exclusive or comprehensive!

Initial Impressions and Character Opinions

If a character describes someone's outfit as "gaudy" or a room as "absolutely disgusting," it can pack more of a punch about their initial impression, rather than describing the way that they react (and can save you some words!). In addition, it can provide some interesting juxtaposition (i.e. when a character describes a dog as "hideous" despite telling their friend it looks cute).

2. Tone and Reader Opinions

Piggybacking off of the first point, you can "tell, not show" when you want to be certain about how a reader is supposed to feel about something. "Showing" revolves around readers drawing their own conclusions, so if you want to make sure that every reader draws the same conclusion, "telling" can be more useful! For example, if you describe a character's outfit as being a turquoise jacket with zebra-patterned pants, some readers may be like "Ok yeah a 2010 Justice-core girlie is slaying!" But if you want the outfit to come across as badly arranged, using a "telling" word like "ridiculous" or "gaudy" can help set the stage.

3. Pacing

"Show, don't tell" can often take more words; after all, describing a character's reaction is more complicated than stating how they're feeling. If your story calls for readers to be focused more on the action than the details, such as a fight or chase scene, sometimes "telling" can serve you better than "showing." A lot of writers have dedicated themselves to the rule "tell action, show emotion," but don't feel like you have to restrict yourself to one or the other.

iv. ABOVE ALL ELSE: Getting Words on the Page is More Important!

If you’re stuck on a section of your story and just can’t find it in yourself to write poetic, flowing prose, getting words on the paper is more important than writing something that’s “good.” If you want to be able to come back and fix it later, put your writing in brackets that you can Ctrl + F later.

Keeping your momentum is the hardest part of writing. Don't sacrifice your inspiration in favor of following rules!

3. How Can I Get Better at “Show, Don’t Tell”?

i. Use the Five Senses, and Immerse Yourself!

Imagine you’re the protagonist, standing in the scene that you have just created. Think of the setting. What are things about the space that you’d notice, if you were the one in your character’s shoes?

Smell? Hear? See? Touch? Taste?

Sight and sound are the senses that writers most often use, but don’t discount the importance of smell and taste! Smell is the most evocative sense, triggering memories and emotions the moment someone walks into the room and has registered what is going on inside—don’t take it for granted. And even if your character isn’t eating, there are some things that can be “tasted” in the air.

EXAMPLE:

TELLING: She walked into the room and felt disgusted. It smelled, and it was dirty and slightly creepy. She wished she could leave. SHOWING: She shuffled into the room, wrinkling her nose as she stepped over a suspicious stain on the carpet. The blankets on the bed were moth-bitten and yellowed, and the flowery wallpaper had peeled in places to reveal a layer of blood-red paint beneath…like torn cuticles. The stench of cigarettes and mildew permeated the air. “How long are we staying here again?” she asked, flinching as the door squealed shut. 

The “showing” excerpt gives more of an idea about how the room looks, and how the protagonist perceives it. However, something briefer may be more suited for writers who are not looking to break the momentum in their story. (I.e. if the character was CHASED into this room and doesn’t have time to take in the details.)

ii. Study Movies and TV Shows: Think like a Storyteller, Not Just a Writer

Movies and TV shows quite literally HAVE TO "show, and not tell." This is because there is often no inner monologue or narrator telling the viewers what's happening. As a filmmaker, you need to use your limited time wisely, and make sure that the audience is engaged.

Think about how boring it would be if a movie consisted solely of a character monologuing about what they think and feel, rather than having the actor ACT what they feel.

(Tangent, but there’s also been controversy that this exposition/“telling” mindset in current screenwriting marks a downfall of media literacy. Examples include the new Percy Jackson and Avatar: The Last Airbender remakes that have been criticized for info-dumping dialogue instead of “showing.”)

If you find it easy to envision things in your head, imagine how your scene would look in a movie. What is the lighting like? What are the subtle expressions flitting across the actors' faces, letting you know just how they're feeling? Is there any droning background noise that sets the tone-- like traffic outside, rain, or an air conditioner?

How do the actors convey things that can't be experienced through a screen, like smell and taste?

Write exactly what you see in your mind's eye, instead of explaining it with a degree of separation to your readers.

iii. Listen to Music

I find that because music evokes emotion, it helps you write with more passion—feelings instead of facts! It’s also slightly distracting, so if you’re writing while caught up in the music, it might free you from the rigid boundaries you’ve put in place for yourself.

Here’s a link to my master list of instrumental writing playlists!

iv. Practice, Practice, Practice! And Take Inspiration from Others!

“Show Don’t Tell” is the core of an immersive scene, and requires tons of writing skills cultivated through repeated exposure. Like I said before, more experienced writers instinctively switch between showing and telling as they write— but it’s a muscle that needs to be constantly exercised!

If I haven’t written in a while and need to get back into the flow of things, I take a look at a writing prompt, and try cultivating a scene that is as immersive as possible! Working on your “Show, Don’t Tell” skills by practicing writing short, fun one-shots can be much less restrictive than a lengthier work.

In addition, get some inspiration and study from reading the works of others, whether it be a fanfiction or published novel!

If you need some extra help, feel free to check out my Master List of Writing Tips and Advice, which features links to all of my best posts, each of them categorized !

Hope this helped, and happy writing!

[bigmomma25]

Character Analysis of Pete Dinunzio (Comic Vs. Pilot)

Disclaimer: This is by no means a very good or professional analysis or anything, this is just me whipping out my Honors English high school powers for fun, to put these guys in a jar and shake them. Getting as much content out of this comic as possible even if it means yapping. Pete goes first because he's easy, lol

The Comics Highlight His Flaws

The first difference I noted when watching the pilot first and then delving into the comics is; Pete is aggressive. Much more aggressive. He's the most argumentative member in the first few panels, with most of his comments being rather pessimistic or sexual in nature. He always has some sort of retort or comeback to defend himself and his views, and his passions come out mostly in anger.

There's also a silent shame that comes with his behaviors, much more likely to complain about what he doesn't like than happily explain what he's passionate about. When he does have passionate moments, it's because these things that make him very vulnerable are being criticized, and he gets defensive. Like his love for Christopher Lee.

Without any prior knowledge of these characters, it can be assumed that Pete comes from an abusive household. His behaviors are major signs. He's most likely so combative because he's used to constantly being under fire, especially with (I think) 8 other siblings who are implied to be mostly older men. If he didn't have a slick comment or keep up this "tough" persona, he'd be their personal punching bag - figuratively and literally.

All Pete really knows is aggression, being canonically the poorest member (he states that he couldn't even afford to be in the Boba Fett conversation in the comics). It's been shown that the club lives in a shitty area in Staten Island. Plus, they're heavily bullied. It's shaped the way he communicates and interacts with the world around him. Even his obsessions - he likes seeing people get ripped apart to the point it becomes a kink.

Even the way he speaks sets him apart. Not necessarily his accent, but his word choices are usually much simpler and his points are very blunt. He's not portrayed as booksmart, and his swagger comes off more as a performance (both of masculinity and of nonchalance) than a natural way of being.

It's also worth noting his position in the very first panel of the comics. Bill is head of the table, of course, it's his house and he's the leader. (I'll get to that symbolism in Bill's analysis). But Pete is sat right next to him, lower than Bill and somewhat distant from him, but still seeming closer and getting more focus than Jerry and Josh.

His position is meant to draw your eye from an artistic perspective, he is unconsciously trying to secure himself a good spot for control and stability. If you're on Bill's bad side, you end up like Josh (I'll get into the lolcow-ification of Josh later on too), but Pete gets the least shit from Bill. Pete is not a pushover, and he feeds into Bill more. Their bickering seems almost comedic.

Totally different dynamic than he has in the pilot, so them getting along so well may be retconned. He has much more of a moral compass in the pilot, and while both versions show Pete *attempting* to be a mediator and a voice of reason, the pilot shows it more. Almost like Pete didn't want to be there, much preferring Jerry's company since they were both reasonable.

Bill and Pete's dynamic also goes to solidify Pete's relationship with his father and the toxic masculinity he displays constantly. Pete has the urge to stray and separate himself from the obviously immoral tendencies of his father, but still seeks approval from an authority figure in which he admires. Someone he sees as "cool" and capable, teeter-tottering between loving him and fighting him. His father is very authoritative, Pete was never allowed to question anything. He associates anything "girly" with pain - like how Bill associates women with sexist stereotypes, expecting to be hurt by them because of their shared experiences with bullying and Bill's mommy issues. Except Pete had it literally beat into him.

Him connecting masculinity to being capable and independent leads directly to his tendency to make choices on the fly. In a house that's always arguing, someone has to make a decision. And Pete wants to be seen as the macho man who knows what he's doing, but also doesn't care that much. So he mainly makes decisions with common sense, emotion, and whatever he's compelled to. A very "pull yourself up by the bootstraps" mentality from living in a conservative household.

Though I do feel that most of his decisions come from a place of shame. If you're secure, you usually don't have to make it a point, or brag about it, or defend it so vehemently. You just... are secure. This directly ties into his canonical bisexuality along with his horror passions. His whole life he's been told everything about him was fundamentally wrong, and he's trying to run from it. Which is why he tries to separate his personal love for horror makeup and SFX from traditional gay and drag art forms. Those things are looked down on. He hates being looked down on. Which is why he uses gays, along with Josh, as scapegoats.

The Pilot Highlights His Positives

From the first 25 seconds of the pilot, Pete is already a more positive version of his comic alternative. He's more successful in diffusing the bickering between Josh and Bill, and is more level-headed and goal-oriented. He's calmer, seeing things go wrong and actually wanting to find solutions instead of dwelling on the small details and who-did-what. He almost feels like a disgruntled mother with more humor. His independence also shines, but so does his tendency to run into danger without thinking.

Pete also sits much farther in the pilot at their meeting table. He's at opposite ends of the table, like the other head, or leader, willing to criticize Bill and never really seeing eye-to-eye with him. He tries to lead before Bill does, starting with the "Sexy Sirens" tape, and has a little bit of a power struggle. He's leaning back, to distance himself, and his nonchalance is more natural, it's just who he is. Josh and Jerry seem closer to Bill than Pete is, which is a total 180 from the comics.

A big point of Pete's character in the pilot that isn't touched upon at all in the comics is his sense of justice. He wants things to be fair - from the trivia-off in Joe's shop, to the DnD game. He tries to break up fights but will hit back if he's being hit, or someone else is being hit unjustifiably. Much like a shephard dog instead of a guard dog, like his comic alternative. But only to the club, he's still a menace to his general environment.

His trauma is shown more subtly but it is still made a point - while Pilot Josh is unconcerned when Bill's mother is yelling at the club, Pete seems the most worried and distraught, the first to start sweating and holding his head. His body language screams abuse. His introduction panel also shows he's relatively used to beat downs, seeming silently resigned and defeated rather than horrified like the other characters.

His sexuality also seems more on-par with a teen boy and less hypersexual, and there's less sexist comments. He's definitely still a little freak, shown with his creepy little faces, clawing at the glass, and his comments about "Battle Broads" the series, but he's not trying to repress nearly as much.

Combining the Two

Since the point of the comics was to be an exaggerated version of real life incels, I'd say the pilot is a more realistic representation of who Pete is as a person. But with such a short run, it didn't get to show the entirety of his character, which would have to be fleshed out across multiple episodes. The comics is a satirical piece mocking and displaying the worst of the worst, and t pilot is a commentary on the societal failures that lead to children with this kind of behavior.

There are some parts where they undeniably intersect though. Like Pete's tendency towards violence to solve his problems, and one specific comic panel (which I can't exactly find right now) where Pete comments that sewing's for sissies, and Jerry insists that he's not. Pete's reply is "Of course not you, Jerry, you're a wizard. Keep it up." This can be seen as him just wanting his clothes repaired, but it can also be interpreted as Pete putting his own insecurities and internalized feelings aside because he loves and respects his friends too much. It shows that he doesn't actually believe what he's saying to the degree he insists. Pete is the second most likely to have the capacity to change his ways, if he ever so chose.

Honestly, it's up to interpretation how these traits are combined. Some fans like the comics more, some fans like the pilot. Though Evan seems to be leaning more into the pilot interpretations of the characters now than the comics, showing a possible reboot or retcon of their old traits, just like the retcon of Epilogue Pete.

Summary (MBTI, Enneagram, etc.)

I'm gonna use my general knowledge of personality quizzes to get my point across, lol.

I honestly believe his MBTI is ESTP, as someone who studied it for a very long time and spent way too long on PDB. But he is a very unhealthy ESTP that never found an outlet for his more creative attributes, and lives in unhealthy environments that disrupt his peace.

On the good side, he can adapt easily, read his environment and the people in it well, and he is extremely passionate. He's pushed by his love of horror and film, seeking out people with the same interests and motivation to get things done. He's very experience-based, seeking out adventure, and has a lot of energy. He's very down to earth, lives in the moment almost too much, can easily improvise and comes up with decisions very quickly. He's a quick thinker, but thinks after he acts, not before, and is very life-smart. He's a good communicator, he's practical, hedonistic, and fair.

Deep down, he seeks validation from his peers, wanting to be seen as competent, talented, valuable. At his best, this helps him connect with others in a meaningful way like he craves. But he never really gets there, which leads to him forming a persona he believes will get him that respect. He's actually a very sensitive person in that way, not necessarily emotional but very touchy when it comes to what he loves. He's prone to pessimism, doesn't think about the consequences of his actions, and doesn't see himself in a world in which he's truly successful.

He's selfish, rude, doesn't trust others, has an intense aversion to rules, and doesn't look at any information that goes against what he believes. He can be bossy at times, or judgemental of others who don't meet his standards, and doesn't keep other people' feelings in mind. This leads to an internal struggle with seeing everyone as fake or not as dedicated, but also wanting, needing connection with other people. This can lead to him being rather conspiratorial, which leads to the whole "Jock vs. Nerd" conversation.

I also think he's a sp/so (self-preservation social) 8w9. His biggest fear is being hurt and betrayed by the people he loves, so he seeks out control and stability so that can't happen. He tries his best to be self-reliant so he has no need to open up to others and make himself vulnerable, and he's hard to warm up to. But once he likes you, he's loyal for life. He isn't very loud about these traits, trying to maintain an air of calmness while also being no-nonsense. He doesn't want to lose control of his anger, but also has a tendency to do so, leading to small outbursts of strong aggression. While he craves connection, if he has too many failed relationships, he may start to see them as a waste of his time and become very introverted, like how he became in the epilogue.

__

Yep, that's it, enough yapping for me. Those are all the things I noticed, hopefully it's entertaining to somebody lol.

[begginmonty]

working with mike

(this doesn't follow the plot directly and mike works like more than just 3 shifts, also this is legit 2k words long i got so so so carried away im just so in love with mike, apologies!! its also not been proofread sorry <3)

before mike is hired alongside you, steve raglan had given you the job a week or so ago after you had lost your last job over a silly customer dispute (the customer is never right) and steve was your last hope at job, and bingo he had one. here you are 2 weeks later, waiting by your car outside the rundown pizzeria, waiting to train the new guy whose supposed to help you

a car pulls up and out comes a very pretty, but very tired/drained, looking guy, you introduce yourself with a small smile and he doesn’t return it, and is like “im mike”, you give him the benefit of the doubt that he hasn't smiled at you, new jobs are stressful.

the first shift goes fine, you tell him the basics and show him the training video tape, which alongside your commentary of making fun of some of it and nit-picking little things finally gets an amused smile from him. you can see him ease up a little. he doesn’t talk as much as you do but he seems to enjoy your ramblings. 

you show him the showtime performance after he looks confused about ‘animatronics’ . watching his reaction of the animatronics rendition of talking in your sleep by the romantics is a little amusing to you but you were the same way when vanessa had shown you originally.

“its something isn’t it?” he doesn't reply, he just stood looking in disbelief. 

when morning rolls around, you show him how to lock up and then give him his own key that steve had given you. 

“wasn’t so bad was it?” 

“it was..different” 

the second shift alongside mike is different but a good different. he’s running a little late and walks in on your blasting an 80s hot pop hits tape over the old speakers, vacuuming the main dining area. a smile, that melts his heart a little, lights up your face as you see him walk in.

“im sorry i’m late the babysi-”

“hey, dont stress it. you still made it!” 

he is not used to someone being so nice and friendly to him??  its foreign but he finally cracks you a small smile, watching you as you turn on the vacuum and continue listening to the music. (i need to hug him i stg)

he hasn't met anyone as nice as you in a long long time, it’s refreshing for him

and not in a creepy way !!!!!!!!!!! but he watches the cameras and watches as you just listen to the music as if the world isn’t there and continue to clean the area. 

“need a hand?” 

mike speaks up as you take a break leaning against a table, facing the main stage, the curtains open (as your next task is going to clean around the animatronics, it’s getting too dusty), music turned down quietly. he comes and leans against the table with you. you start small talk, saying something about the animatronics and you guys talk a little.

“so, you said something about a babysitter, do you have, like, a kid or something? sorry if im being too nosy, please tell me to shut up or something” mike cannot get over how nice you are

and then mike explains his living situation, and then the two of you get into a discussion about how families can suck and be shitty ect

and mike really likes how you don't pry or ask him lots of questions like others have done in the past, this man is really liking you and he’s only know you for two days

“this guy…must’ve been on something to make this place” and mike laughs a little !!! for the first time you got him to laugh !!

“yeah it’s something isn’t it..” both of you are sat against a table just staring at the animatronics in front of you

the two of you make small talk as you wipe down the dust covered tables but you can see how tired he is, he’s yawning a little bit.

“hey, you know, you can like sleep on the job by the way?” he looks up at you from the table, “sometimes i take a good couple hours nap in the office, no ones breaking into this place anytime soon”

he tries to protest and mentions towards the cleaning products and you brush him off, “go, you need it”

mike feels a strange warmth in his heart the hasn't felt, maybe ever? and he naps for a few hours whilst you continue to clean around. cleaning isn't in your job description but honestly you’re worried about the level of dust entering your lungs y'know

a loud thud and chair scraping noise comes from the office and you run to it and see mike on the floor, he looks confused and you help him to sit up. you ask if he’s okay but he seems out of it, “mike, whats wrong?”

sitting on the floor together, mike explains everything to you and opens up to you about a little brother he had, and tells you about his dream issues and sleep issues and you can see he’s upset and shaken by this dream. He shows you the sleeping pills and he explains the dream theory he’s been reading about.

“this is the part where somebody usually calls me crazy” 

“you aren’t crazy, mike” mike notices how kind you eyes are and how warm your voice is, “i’ve seen crazy. you are far from it” you joke a little and he has the faintest smile tug at his lips. 

finally home time woo !! as you lock up the gate, you watch as mike goes to his car, “mike wait!”

he turns around almost instantly at your voice as you run up to him, you pull something out from your hoodie a fazbear security badge and hand it to him, “you’re officially security now” he takes it from you and thanks you with that small smile. 

3rd shift passes (you could’ve sworn foxy was standing in a different spot and bonnie’s hand placement looked completely different) and vanessa comes for her weekly visit and meets mike. when you aren’t with them, vanessa brings up the fact that you’re one of the kindest and nicest people she’s ever met and mike agrees. 

next shift goes by and another and you guys have a long conversation about everything and you tell him more about yourself. hes never really been romantically involved with anyone but somebodysss got a crush (its him and well, you do too). and then you let him sleep and decide to tackle the old kitchen. (you could’ve sworn you heard someone walk down the hallway but you double check and no ones there)

mike dreams again and you swear you hear a groan and you walk to the office to see him, out of breath, breathing, clutching his arm and theres blood coming from it and he looks up at you trembling. “oh my god mike, what happened?”

you sit opposite him, patch him up and make him a hot drink, and he's explaining everything to you and you can tell he’s really getting bothered by these dreams. (you also think hes hurt himself from falling off the chair somehow..unbeknownst to you)

he’s tearing up a little and you just hold his hand in yours, and he's looking at your kind eyes and he doesn’t know how to react to being touched, he stops talking (mike is incredibly touch starved oh my god) and, carefully, you lean forward and hug him very gently.

he’s stiff at first but you can feel him relax into the hug and he wraps his non-injured arm around you and grips onto your back, “its okay mike. you’re okay” you can tell he really needs this hug and you can tell no one has really hugged him in a long time.

when the shift ends and you say goodbye for the day, your car just refuses to start. you cannot start it at all. you get out the car and look at it in a huff, but lucky for you mike hasnt driven a way yet

he gets out his car and you explain to him about your car, and he offers if you want a lift home or at least back to his house (his house is much closer than yours) and you can call someone about the car and you agree.

the drive is nice, you notice he has a great taste in music

meeting abby!! mike excuses himself for a shower whilst you're ringing the mechanics for your car, and he accidentally falls asleep on his bed after. when he wakes up (a good hour or so later, which you really don't mind) he walks into the living room to see you and abby sat on the floor colouring together with a cartoon on the tv, and you guys are really getting along and she’s wearing your security guard vest and badge. (her friends told her to trust you)

“uh abby, why dont you get ready for school?” mike speaks up, causing you both to look in his direction. 

you can't fight the fact that he looks hot with joggers and shirt on, looking sleepy as hell aHHH

“okay” abby smiles and gives you back your stuff and runs off to her room to get ready for school. 

he walks over to you and sits down on the couch, “im sorry for falling asleep-”

you sit next to him and place your hand on his arm and smile, “its fine, mike, really. your sister is lovely”

mike looks up from your hand and looks at your face. he looks sleepy and gorgeous and you look gorgeous to him and your eyes are so kind and theres a moment. some sort of magnetic force kinda pulls your faces closer together.

“im gonna be late!” says abby running into the room.

mike drops abby to school and you stay in his house, waiting for the mechanic to eventually call you back like he says he will. you feel a little awkward sitting on his couch watching tv but you have nothing better to do.

he comes back he offers you a shower and some of his clothes as he feels bad for you having to sit in work clothes. 

the way his heart feels when he see’s you walk out to the bathroom and back to the couch next to him wearing one of his sweatshirts and a pair of his joggers as well hMMMMMMMMMMmmmmmmmm (too early for love?)

he smells good

you must both drop off to sleep, as a few hours later mike opens his eyes for a minute to the TV showing some drama show, and then he notices a heavy feeling on his chest. there you are, passed out, in his clothes, head on his chest peacefully asleep. 

this is something he’s never felt before !1!!1 

he blushes (thank god you’re asleep) and brushes a hair out of your face, staring down at your sleeping face (uh oh someones in love) before grabbing the worn blanket from behind him and throwing it over your exposed legs.

you stirr a little, your arm wrapping around his lower half and he's so flustered and sleepy and aHHHH

he wraps his arm around your shoulders gently and passes out again (PART 2??)

[laterreurofficial]

does…. does Gabriel hold some sort of sway over the Dolls Magazine? Or like, own it? Originally, I thought some of the more grim stuff on the covers were just normal satire of early 2000's dieting and misogyny culture but with Estelle's cover having things like 'don't hide from Akuma attacks', Lila getting an exclusive, and Alya as 'the Lady blogger' being shown in not her best light I'm starting to think that Gabriel is purposely running some kind of psyop on the youth of Paris to deliberately make them more vulnerable both mentally and physically to akuma's. you're less likely to have the higher functions to think about resisting an akuma if your brain doesn't have the calories, I suppose. and like, Adrien's on every cover, which I first shrugged off as just him being famous but with how it's in the same spot each time I'm now starting to suspect that's intentional.

Also! I absolutely love everything about this AU! y'all have created something really amazing, everything from the writing to the art to the character studies are just perfect!

Lastly, I adore how the magazine is called Dolls. Idk if that's a real magazine brand you're satirizing or not, but it feels very apt considering the Senti-kids are essentially treated as just dolls for their creators/parents.

You got it! He's a shareholder and creative consultant for DOLLS, courtesy of his """good friend""" Mr. Caquet. Gabriel has amassed a looot of "good friends" who owe him one in some way or another.

The name DOLLS is based on the Australian teen mag DOLLY. Take a look at some of the older covers the tone is so flippant I love it.

It's really convenient for Hawkmoth when news outlets act ambivalent about holders or state conflicting guidelines on what to do during akuma "events" (you have to say "event" and not "attack"), because then it sows mistrust, and when people are confused they get scared and start to make bad decisions!

Then they get hurt more often, one thing leads to another and next thing you know it's been almost a year in the exclusion zone and the country is in shambles.

Sure, Ladybug and Co. always beat the akuma, but at the end of the day they're still stuck within arm's reach in a city Hawkmoth has full control over. Eventually they'll get tired or lose their homes or just... die.

He's patient. He'll wait.