#it helped and I also was able to put him in fake scenarios with me. it was well the start of me creating him.

[mochinomnoms]

I can't stop having Jade thoughts so I'm gonna throw them at you.

I know people have talked about PTM yuu playing into Jade's dirty thoughts to get a rise out of him, but I really just... I can stop thinking of Yuu just giving Jade sudden and subtle compliments. Like they hear his thoughts and there's an insecurity he doesn't talk about and Yuu makes a comment to try to make him feel better. Or Yuu doesn't even have to be subtle in compliments. Maybe Jade did something different with his outfit or maybe is trying a new perfume to hopefully get Yuu's attention and Yuu didn't notice it but they overheard Jade's thoughts so they comment on it and Jade gets so happy.

Or Jade has thoughts of how he's trying to act cool or handsome but Yuu calls him cute or pretty instead. Like he wasn't expecting to hear that and now he's a blushy and having to hide away to get his act back together.

Also a kinds related but also not really thought. If Yuu ever comments how they can tell Jade's fake smiles vs his real ones how would Jade react? Luke his fake smile doesn't show teeth but his real one does or something. And if Yuu said they likes his real smile more or comments that his real smile is cute then what? Would he die?

Aaaaaa you can always send me Jade thoughts I love my darling Jade!!!

Would you all be surprised to hear that it's actually the sweeter things that make him fall further in love with Yuu and not just the more risque scenarios (tho he does love those too).

Jade as a character is always performing a certain way, not necessarily to please others but to get what he wants out of them. We can see it in other's perceptions in the game, his classmates know that Jade is just as unhinged as his brother and manipulative as Azul, but others don't. Trey thinks Jade is like him, trying to just placate situations and being a pushover to his housewarden and brother, when Riddle points out that it's very much not the case. Vil gets unsettled when Jade is able to perfectly perform every single task he's given, no matter how impossible. Even when his perfect image as a soft-spoken, polite man is shattered once others find out just how mean and condescending he is, there is still a general notion that he's capable, intimidating, and almost a miracle maker. In fact, he revels in how unsettled he makes others, finding it funny.

But he doesn't want Yuu to see him like that, he doesn't want them to be put off by him. But the reality is that they've already have been looking at that way, and it's been a whole year for them to develop their own notions of Jade as a person.

It's a deep insecurity he has regarding them, a fear that Yuu will never see past that image. Maybe it's why he has such vivid daydreams, ones skipping right over that roadblock and immediately turning into one where he's already won their heart, rather than fighting for it. He's a bit of a coward, he hates to admit it, the fear of not being capable for once stumping his development.

Of course, Yuu knows this, and as much as they don't want to admit it, they've grown fond of Jade the longer they hear his thoughts. He is so firm in performing a certain way, it's nice to hear how open he really wants to be with them. (It's also the fact that it's only with them he wants to be open with that makes them a bit pleased, even if they don't want to admit it.)

But it's a bit hard to do outwardly experience that when Jade is so firm on being be person he thinks they want, and the Seven know hat they won't make the first move, so they try what they can to pull him out.

"It's so rare to see you smile like that, I kinda wish you'd do it more."

"I like your hair when it's pushed back, makes you give off a different vibe...huh? What kind? Aaah, nothing important..."

"Come on, I see the gears turning in your head, you have a joke? Tell it, I don't mind!"

"I remember this! Epel's grandma really went all out with your clothes. Haha, you look kinda cute with that hat..."

It helps, Jade becomes less concerned about being a certain way around Yuu, but does become more preoccupied with trying to get them to say more things about him.

He's hoping, with how sweet their words are, that a slip of the tongue might bring out a confession. Yuu is hoping for the same. I suppose it's a matter of who will utter those three little words first.

[clawsdevour]

for your event; could I ask for tonkatsu ramen, and after take pics in a photobooth? Thank you!

priceless photo

wc: 0.5k content warning: fluff, kuroo x reader, not proofread

-> tonkatsu ramen : kuroo tetsurou :3 -> take photos in a nearby photobooth : scenario where reader and character are fake dating and reader's screensaver is chara (fake dating trope!) .ㅤֺㅤওㅤ۪ㅤ a/n: this is too freaking cute also it's kinda based on that one scene in tatbilb bc i love the movies and books so much lara jean n peter r SO cute

⢀⠀⠀.   ⋆ ･˳ . ⋆

It wasn’t long where you started fake dating one of the most popular guys at Nekoma for a personal matter only you two knew. Despite fake dating, you both were pretty serious and loyal to keep your little secret.

Going to great lengths to never get caught, maybe even almost end up kissing once or twice. You still both believed that you’re not gonna catch feelings for one another. Well obviously wrong, because Kuroo fell first and he fell hard.

Over at his house to plot what to color to match with for prom and how you’re gonna come in as the famous couple of Nekoma High, exhausted as you two just came out of school. An afternoon nap wouldn’t hurt perhaps, you thought to yourself as you sprawled upon his couch while he was fixing up some beverages to sip on.

“Hey! I thought you were here so we can choose our fits together,” Kuroo chuckled from the kitchen as he watched you settle in a comfortable position to drift off in.

“Just give me like 15 minutes, I’m tiredd..” stretching your legs, staring at the blank ceiling before shutting your eyes.

Hearing his soft footsteps in closer to the ground and placing the drinks on the table was enough to put you to sleep. 

While you were dead on his couch for a solid three minutes before he officially declared that you’re snoozing, it gave him some time to grab you a thin blanket to cover you up with. Letting you rest, Kuroo sits himself on the couch right at bottoms of your feet. Taking out his phone to scroll on before his ears were met with a quick little buzz that vibrated on his coffee table. 

‘Oh, it must be her phone’ he thought to himself, paying no attention. One quick glance turned into two when he saw your phone’s wallpaper. 

Curiosity spiked through the roof when he quickly looked at your peaceful self napping at his side and back to your phone. Picking it up and tapping on the screen, he can’t help but feel this giddy happiness kick in.

A subtle infectious smile curled on the corners of his mouth. Quickly he covered his mouth with his hands when the realization kicked in. ‘Am I really smiling?’ was when he noticed that not only he was fake dating you, but he actually wants to date you. Not to just show everyone that you both like each other but really, he’s genuinely in love with you.

It was a picture of Kuroo, he doesn’t know when it was taken but it was when you both were out on a little adventure when you first started fake dating. It’s all coming back to him, the moment he fell for you and you were able to catch it through your own perspective.

The photo was just priceless. It’s like you two both knew.

masterlist here | 1k event here

[inchidentally]

Inch what is your opinion on this clip? https://www.tumblr.com/eightyonefour/762429464940527616/what-kind-of-guyteammate-is-oscar

It makes me sad that Lando isn’t able to find a lot of words to describe Osco ;-;

ohhh anon I know for most ppl this is all so boring and not interesting but the way excitable!nervous!shy!butextroverted!fidgety!sassy!emotional!squirmy!insecuresometimes!pleaseloveme!whydoyouhateme?!seeIknewyou'dloveme!creative!sexualconfidence!HORNY!travelstheworldintechnicolor!babyfever!workaholic!Lando exists against calm, placid, self-assured, does his job well,what's the point in doing less than his best, work life balance, lowkey, rational, good with kids but talks to them like adults Oscar makes me so emotional for god knows what reason ??? ;_;

but to Get Into It, I know this is the choppiest messiest compilation I've ever done but hopefully it'll be both self-explanatory and also go along well w my usual dissertation on something that has no real life importance for me but that makes me Feel Things

x x x

so the main thing with how Lando's stops for long periods to think and mull it over is for two reasons: one is that he hasn't done the usual PR aspect of his rs with Oscar the way he has with other drivers/teammates - and the other is that if he found Oscar dull or uninteresting then he wouldn't have had to sit and think aslfgsaljfgsajl. Lando's rly good with the media and honestly this answer would've been rly easy and quick if he could just say "yeah he's very fast and a good guy! hard worker and solid teammate!" bc it's not like anyone is expecting any more about a guy like Oscar anyway!

and with everyone else, Lando's got lots of anecdotes and jokes and shared activities as well as lots of experience interacting on camera in ways that give fans something to enjoy. it's not being disingenuous, it's just that they can easily tailor the friendship to be useful for publicity.

but !!! it's also the case of all of Lando's friends on the grid being extroverts as well as being great on camera. and Lando maybe could be seen as an extrovert but he's also naturally (self-confessed as well as confirmed by those closest to him) painfully shy and he relies on extroverts around him to help him out a lot. I got this ask that we don't even need proof of bc it's exactly how Lando is when he's alone among strangers or around huge crowds. same with when he has to do publicity stuff all alone the thinking silences stretch and he gets that upward inflection where he's trying very hard to see if the other person knows what he means??

and Osc is very much not an extrovert and while he likes the odd shared activity, he has said he prefers quiet conversation in small groups away from public places. so literally ! the ways he and Lando are compatible are simply in enjoying spending time together and being extremely low pressure friends who don't like the publicity aspect encroaching on that.

so how do you describe someone to a stranger if they're just quietly a good, reliable person who you like and work well with ?? Oscar himself needs a fair amount of prodding and encouragement to describe himself, let alone Lando being asked to do it !!

which I think is why landoscar has actually had this strong resonance for a lot of us who have those kinds of friendships or love those kinds of people - you can only see it and get to know it by observing it and knowing it in a way yourself. the way Oscar stares at Lando and does his little self-assigned duties to Lando and the way Lando watches Oscar in that wide-eyed trusting way and lets his brattiness out bc Oscar will always find it endearing. none of that makes for snappy PR content but if you get the vibes then it's so so sooooooo sweet ;__;

it's also why their dynamic lends itself so much to fic authors bc you've got a strong foundation of their authentic dynamic since they can't/don't fake it or play it up, from which you can put them in any scenario or any roles and they just… write themselves! not in a sense that the author isn't putting the work in as a writer skfgalsfg but the strongest thread among landoscar fic is that dynamic always coming through so consistently (even in the more challenging dark fic or out there AUs) the classics I can think of first off are playdate by debrief, that one from work can come over on monday night by higgsbosonblues and q&a by corsi

the common development of how Oscar is so blatantly changed by Lando in ways that seem either superficial or purely practical so that Lando ends up initially missing out on the depth of what that means - and misinterpreting Oscar not changing emotionally for him as disinterest. only to find that when someone who is solid and reliable and knows who they are decides they love you, they show it by changing their life for you and not changing themselves for you.

and that irl considering that Oscar always says how important it is for his relationship with Lily that he spend time with her that isn't connected to his career/life's passion, it's clear that he considers that to be proof of how much he cares. so all of the little ways Oscar bends and adapts and fulfills Lando's practical needs are ways for him to say "I value you" "I make you a priority in my life" "I want to fit you into my life" "I am willing to give up something/change something for you"

like idk how much Lando realizes the significance of those things and that's how I interpret him spending a very long time mulling and thinking rather than just getting past the answer in a neat, succinct way. bc Max F is a very emotionally intelligent guy and very capable of expressing his feelings, all of the guys on the grid are varying levels of emotional awareness/intelligence but they all have the same regular expectation of using their words to express how they feel about friends, and ofc the people surrounding Lando for the past ten years are highly attenuated to his needs. Oscar stands out as this very very different person to what he's used to!

and lastly, there's the whole gentleness and communicating through their kitten smiles and their ways of getting lost on a random subject - they're just such a quiet, gentle introverted dynamic. there's this moment after Japan last year waiting for a train, as well as this moment from Vegas where the crowd is singing happy birthday to Lando that I think are like, poetic levels of how their shyness/introversion fully matches up. bc neither of them feels easy or comfortable actually interacting with the crowd, so they keep looking to each other and smiling for comfort and reassurance. if another driver from the grid were around they could probably rely on him to brazen out the situation, but these two kittens just find solidarity in each other to get through!

so a lot of what makes landoscar a flop for bromance-only ppl is what a lot of us love about it <3<3<3 like I love a good bromance and self-aware PR ships too but landoscar made me want to get an f1blr and write insane pointless dissertations about them so shrug emoji !!

[brucewaynehater101]

heyy so back on L. P. AU-

the list of symptoms /consequences made me think that maybe Tim doesn't lose memories, but feelings are only a memory to him. he knows he loved them yet it's hard to look at them and feel anything but disgust as family/respect as heroes /etc. he starts to doubt the whole concept of positive emotions, if he ever had those.

while Tim is venting and rethinking his love choices, for others it looks like his usual tiredness. any teen vigilante with red eyes and black circles is not necessary a sign of meltdown (or not the usual amount).

and then there are two ways: batfam is actually fucked up and ignorant or they slowly getting better (thERAPY- plz)

1) Tim is back on greydarkside.

YJ is either confused or mad at their mentors or feeling fancy - they support bby robin. maybe go on vacation and start an empire lol.

2) the greatest detective family notices something's off and find a way to communicate with this new Tim. can't really imagine that one.

Hi!!!! 👋

Here's the link to the OG post:

Alright! Let's jump into it, shall we?

The part I like about this is how his logical brain is warring against his emotional one in a nuanced way. He's trying to logically argue that he does, and always has, loved his family. His emotions, on the other hand, feel visceral disgust, anger, or indifference. He doesn't feel love for them, but logic/memories state that he does.

This flips the usual logic vs emotions on its head, and I dig it.

I'm curious.... Would Tim's interactions with the family be more tiring? Would he be faking positive emotions with them the entire time post-L.P.? Would he be more calloused? Does he feel this way about everyone (including YJ, JL, civilians, rogues, friends, etc.)?

I like the idea of YJ figuring it out (maybe when Tim is mid-breakdown because he can't feel anything positive) and thus try to help him. It'd also be chill to add in YJ's problems as well. They've got their own shit going on, so maybe it's a vacation for all of them (for scenario 1).

For scenario 2, maybe Tim keeps dropping his mask too early or too visible to a camera. Maybe he's more snappish and distant. I imagine some of the symptoms are like heavy depression (where no matter what has happened, even "happiness" is tinged with sorrow or anger or apathy). So, they work with him using similar treatments for that type of mindset. It's not easy, but eventually Tim is able to feel content

[milkamel]

What if dream at some point during the battle got so OVERWHELMED by his own emotions and negativity, i imagine the constant need to be positive and bring joy to others to be so negativity overwhelming, even though canonically dream can’t feel negative emotions i like to think of it as “toxic positivity” like he’s positively negative with himself, how do you think the others handle that? Burst of emotions and the reactions like dream just starts having a whole breakdown mid fights (i feel like blue would have seen the signs and try to ask what was wrong and dream constantly saying “im fine”)

I cannot imagine being the guardian of positivity and basically told “hey you need to have this sense of heroism and help others” but also neglect their own needs must be awful just makes me think of the part of the song in “turn it down” with the lyrics of “I'm at my final straw, My power's hardly a blessing at all, Heeding to everybody's call, Is there a line that I can draw?” made for dolores from encanto, if you never heard of it i suggest listening to it, its a great song, i think these two characters have similarities with the overwhelming of their powers.

Omg I absolutely LOVE this scenario with Dream, it’s so good!! (So much angst and hurt/comfort potential, I adore it)

Dream is indeed more than a heroic guardian of positivity, he’s a person as well, he has feeling and insecurities, and having a bunch of expectations from others, not being allowed to show weakness so he won’t worry others is a giant pressure (Imagine people seeing a guardian of POSITIVITY being SAD? Dream can’t afford that and ruin the image that brings everyone hope). It’ll definitely pile up and it would be harder and harder to handle with each day. He helped the villagers and couldn’t say no when he was a kid and he helps the whole multiverse now and he just can’t catch a break or else something terrible happens.

He definitely blames himself for every failure, he feels like he fails as a guardian like he has failed his brother who’s just a cruel reminder of his mistakes now (He can’t accept that maybe he was actually manipulated as well, he thinks it’s his fault he couldn’t be good enough for his brother). Only Blue probably knows about his struggles, and unlike Dream he’s actually the one who’s genuinely positive and not forcing it. He has his brother, he helps people like he wanted, his AU is okay, he has popularity, everything he strived for. He will be able to tell if Dream feels bad and fakes it. But Dream doesn't want to burden his friend with his problems and ruin his good mood.

Maybe Dream would try to take out his negativity in battles, maybe his attacks would be less focused and messy but maybe this would make him feel slightly better afterwards? And obviously Dream doesn’t put himself first and just physically can’t refuse if you beg him enough, he doesn’t want to disappoint. But if he does breakdown I imagine the shock and surprise on everyone's faces. Dream has always seemed perfect and now he's crumbling in front of them :(

And yeah, I know this song, I listened to it a long while ago but I can see what you mean by that! I can see the similarities!! Being a guardian definitely doesn't feel as a blessing anymore but a curse and a burden that he must fulfill for everyone's and his own sake (If we're mentioning Encanto songs I think Surface Pressure might fit to the theme as well lol)

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA for telling my mom I would blow up her entire household and myself in a gas explosion if my parents built me a house to live in?

TW for descriptions of child abuse and suicide mention

I (22NB) cut off my abusive father (mid40M) and left home when I turned 18. I'm going to call him Harry (fake name) from now on because I'm going to have to talk about him a lot. When covid lockdowns started I had to leave home because I phsyically could not be in the same room as Harry without fully disassociating and would constantly have homicidal thoughts, suicidal thoughts and panic attacks just hearing him walk around the house or talk from locked away in my bedroom. Growing up Harry would phsyically and verbally abuse me, he's thrown me out of a window and locked me outside of the house, pinned me to the ground and stabbed me in the back of the neck with a pair chopsticks, slapped me, kicked me while I was curled up on the ground and so on. My mom (mid40F) would watch all these things and never did anything to stop the abuse, his abuse started ramping down when my little brother was born (12M) so most of these things happened to me from 6 years old to being 10. Harry has never been phsyically and verbally abusive towards my mom or my siblings I was his only victim at home.

I developed a slew of mental illness traits the main of which being diagnosed cPTSD from this abusive upbringing. I also ended up developing a phsyical disability that limits my mobility when I was turning 20, I live alone and the house I live in is extremely unaccessible and even dangerous for me to live in. Because of this I am still in regular contact with my mom getting her help with things I can't manage to do on my own due to my disability. Her and Harry are planning to move out to the countryside and have a house built there so I am aware I won't be able to rely on her for too many years longer. One day she mentions to me that apparently they had been planning to build me a small house tucked away at the back of their property for me to live in so she could keep taking care of me. I'd never heard of this plan before and never asked for anything like this.

First of all I found it incredibly demeaning to build a little doghouse out of sight to keep your traumatized disabled child like an unwanted pet only kept around out of pity and some sense of responsibility, my mom comes from a culture where its the norm to treat disabled people like this and make sure they are unseen but I did not appreciate it. Second of all this would literally be the most nightmarish scenario for me to live through possible, I can't drive I don't have a car and there is no public transport or delivery services for food and grocceries at all outside of the capital of my country. My mom doesn't drive either so she would put me in a scenario where literally every single aspect of my life would become completely dependent on my transphobic abuser that I still get full blown PTSD episodes even just thinking about. My house, my food, where I can go and getting to the doctor would all become completely at the mercy of Harry in this situation. This is when I told my mom if put in this situation I would blow up all of us in a gas explosion to escape it because that's how awful living through that would be.

She didn't really react to me saying I would blow all of them up if this happens because I use exaggerated violent language often, she just called me ungrateful. While it was mainly to express just how bad this situation would be for me it was also somewhat meant as a threat, due to my disability I've had other family members try to get me declared legally incompetent so they could get a government caregiver from me. My parents could absolutely use the law to force me into this housing situation even as an adult, it was partially a threat because I wanted it in their heads that it a bad idea for them to do this to me, realistically I would just commit suicide to escape it instead. My cPTSD makes me incapable of having grounded thoughts and reactions to the things that trigger it, I know my mental problems make me an asshole a lot of the time but I just want to live my shitty life as painlessly as possible for however long I've got left.

What are these acronyms?

[duchess-kyuupid]

Can you do one where the twst boys are walking with Fem!reader to class or something and reader trips but instead of getting up they just lie there contemplating life and acting like everything is falling apart but they as just being dramatic for the hell of it-

Crack and fluff basically lol

It doesn't matter who just whoever you like writing the most! Thank you ❤️

Of course! I'm going to do three characters who I thought would fit the scenario the best <3 Thank you for being my first request dearie!

Ik it says fem!reader, but I didn't use any pronouns or anything so it can be read as gender neutral :)

~ Twst Men with an overdramatic Reader Falling Down~

[Ft. Rook, Idia, and Sebek]

Rook

- In a moment of weakness on your part, you had asked Rook to help tutor you in the basics of etiquette in this world. Namely, you were just curious about the differences between your world and theirs- for example you mentioned once in a passing comment that it was common curtesy to open doors for people, even strangers, if they were going to be coming in after you. You've even done so when you were walking into class with some people behind you, but all that resulted in was weird looks from your classmates. And not even a thank you! And I mean, it's not like you were expecting to get a thank you, but at the very least, those people could try acting a little more polite! You recounted this story to Rook and he laughed, saying that such a courtesy is not only seen as a lowly servant's job, but it's also the fact that everyone at NRC are mages, so most people will just open the door with magic. - Anyway, so that's how you ended up here, receiving a lecture from Rook about etiquette and the importance of being elegant and beautiful- even more than you already are, at least. - You've been here for hours now, and your initial curiosity has basically evaporated into boredom with a strong longing to just go back to Ramshackle and relax. But you knew there was no way you were going to be able to escape, not with a hunter like Rook keeping his eyes on you like a hawk. - "Ah, mon coeur, it appears as though you've stopped listening! Non, non, mon beauté, this simply mustn't do! Why don't we practice something a little bit more engaging? Some dance lessons shall do just fine, allez!" - And then suddenly you were dragged out of your comfy chair as Rook leads you to the middle of the room to start his lesson with you. He's clearly been enjoying this, with the big smile that hasn't left his face since you've walked in. - So, despite how tired you feel, you accept his proposal to dance. I mean, how could you say no to his face which smiles so brightly that it puts even the sun to shame? - But of course, you also didn't really have the heart to tell Rook that you've never danced before- at least not like this. This formal type of dancing, with Rook's hand settled on your waist and gently holding your other as you two sway to the non-existent music- you don't have very much experience with it, not at all. - So it was only natural that you got stuck staring at Rook's face, again not paying attention to the words that he was speaking about how to waltz elegantly. Your body followed his movements and words on instinct, like you were stuck in a trace just so that you could focus on the one thing that was most important right now: him. - Alas, all good things must come to an end. While you were busy shamelessly staring at Rook as he led your dance, you tripped over your feet and landed face first on the floor. ....Why are we here, just to suffer? - You made no movements to get up, if only to hide the embarrassment ridden on your face. - "Rook, I think this is the end for me...Tell my wife I love her," you made a fake coughing noise, "And delete my search history." - God, how did you even get here? Falling to the floor is literally the last thing you want your crush to see you doing, and yet here you were- your only salvation is to joke about it and hope that Rook doesn't think of you any less for your terrible dancing skills. - But as you were wallowing, Rook simply smiles and picks you up off of the floor with a chuckle. You stare at him in surprise at his strength, as he literally just treated you as if you were as light as a stick. -"Oh là, là, mon beauté! Your dancing skills are truly magnifique! Especially for a first time, I must say you glided through the floor like you were the epitome of dance!" He says as he inspects you for any injuries, making sure to dust off and straighten your clothes in the process. "Vraiment élégante! S'il te plaît, mon coeur, dance with me again!" - Honestly, if your face could get any redder, it would. This man is going to kill you one day if you don't get your pounding heart under control.

Idia

- It was one of those rare days in which Idia was forced to go to class in person, and the two of you were literally watching the clock and counting down the time for the lunch bell to ring. - As it so happens, there was a new, special event that was only going to go live for 24 hours, but the gacha pool only had a limited amount of units that were going to be released per server. - If you two didn't hurry, then everyone else was going to snag this thing and you two would be left with nothing! Nothing but crushed hopes and dreams after months of saving specifically for this day. - Of course, Idia lost his chance to get it in class when Professor took his phone and chewed him out for using it during his lecture, and you didn't have the game downloaded on your phone yet (you really only played it when you were hanging out with Idia in his dorm room, after all). But you were both determined to get it. - When the clock strikes 12, the two of you were going to bolt out of there and make a break for his dorm room to hopefully make it in time. Idia would have to get his phone back later, right now the surest bet would be at his dorm, where he keeps several different computers so that you can try to get the thing too. - 11:58.....11:59.... 12:00!!! - The bell rings and the race to his room begins! - Alas, neither of you could really straight up run there, because if you got stopped by a hall monitor or a teacher, then that would be the end. So you two decided that the best way to go about it was to speed-walk there. - Oh, but you had almost forgotten about how enormously tall Idia is. His version of a "speed-walk" is basically your sprinting pace. You'd never notice because most of the time he's slouching, but this man stands at (183 cm/6'), and his legs are just so ridiculously long that you couldn't help but to fall behind simply because you weren't running. - And Idia notices this too, so in an attempt to help you, he decides to pinch at a loose piece of your clothing (this was already going out of his comfort zone, so don't expect him to just outright initiate physical contact without asking) and drag you forward to meet his pace. - Unfortunately, he failed to think his plan entirely through, as his grip on your clothes were not very tight and you were not expecting to be dragged like that. To make matters worse, the halls were also getting crowded as people were making their way to the cafeteria. - Long story short, Idia lost his grip, and you tripped over, getting lost within the crowd of people at the same time. Idia stops to look behind him in surprise to see you getting swallowed into the mob with a terror-stricken face. - "Go, Idia! This is your chance!" you cry out with fake tears escaping your eyes, "You're gonna have to leave me behind, but don't worry, I'll catch up with you. I won't die here...." You give him a tearful thumbs up as the surrounding students calmly walk around you. - He salutes you with tears in his own eyes, "Your sacrifice will not be forgotten." And he turns around to start full-on sprinting towards his destination. - And you stay there on the floor for another second before chuckling when you come to a certain realization: - "I have now both literally and figuratively fallen for him now, haven't I?"

Sebek

- Sebek, being the gentleman that he is, has decided to walk you back to Ramshackle after learning about Malleus' fondness towards the human who calls him 'Hornton.' - Of course, this has become a regular occurrence for the two of you now. Sebek still walks with you under the guise of making sure that you're not a threat to Malleus, but that's only because he doesn't know how to admit that he's become fond of you too. - The two of you were joking around, generally enjoying each other's company on your walk back home, when all of a sudden you find yourself falling to the ground. - You honestly have no idea what had happened to get you here, but what you do know is that following the few seconds after, Sebek is already yelling at the top of his lungs and interrogating the surrounding students who were unlucky enough to have seen you fall over. - "YOU! DID YOU TRIP THEM ON PURPOSE?" - So you just stayed on the floor, pitying the poor people he began to yell at for basically no reason as you began debating with yourself on the purpose of life. - For the most part though, you were just waiting to see how long it would take Sebek to stop for a moment to realize that you were still on the floor. - Ironically enough, it was when he started interrogating some other people when the ones who he just chewed out came over to you to ask if you were alright and if you needed help standing back up. - "WHAT ARE YOU DOING SO CLOSE TO THEM?? BACK AWAY THIS INSTANT, HUMAN!" Sebek yells (when is he not yelling?), this time actually scaring off the people he was just accusing of tripping you. - "ARE YOU ALRIGHT?" - "No, I think I must've broken my back falling for you." - "I'LL TAKE YOU TO THE INFIRMARY THIS INSTANT, AND THE ONES WHO DID THIS WILL NOT GET OFF LIGHTLY!" and just like that, your pick-up line is ignored as Sebek picks you up and begins to run over to the infirmary. Literally the only thing that you could think of now is the fact that, even if you weren't joking and you had actually broken your back, Sebek would probably have made it worse because this is definitely not the correct way to carry someone who's broken their back. In fact, you think, I don't think you're even supposed to pick them up in the first place. - Well, you wanted to tell Sebek that you were fine, that you were just messing with him when you said that. But at the same time, you kinda liked the feeling of having Sebek carrying you like this. It was rather comfy. - "Sebek, I have a first aid kit at Ramshackle that has some things that could help. It's closer than the infirmary, so let's just go there," you say, adjusting yourself so that you were more comfortable leaning against him. - He looks down at you and notices your peaceful-looking face- a face that does not say "help me I've just broken my back and I am in immense pain," and he finally takes a moment to think back on what you said earlier when he asked if you were alright. - With a dramatic gasp, his face flushes pink as he realizes what you had actually meant to say, and in his surprise, he accidentally lets you go too. - "Hey! Was that really necessary?" you pout as you fall to the ground, again, for the second time today. You look up from the ground to see his flustered face and you catch on that he finally figured out what you told him earlier. - "Sorry! You just caught me by surprise," Sebek states, his voice sounding quite meek in comparison to how it was earlier. - "You're going to have to make it up to me for dropping me like that, you know," you say, standing up and dusting yourself off lightly, "And my price is that you carry me back the rest of the way. That's the only way to make things even." - With a flushed face, Sebek nods and picks you up again, this time he became much more aware of how close he was holding you, but he noticed that, strangely enough, he didn't have any problems with it.

Just thinking about how many seagulls it would take to drown out the sound of Sebek's voice lol I'm thinking around 78, honestly

~~~~~~~~~

Sorry for being a little late with your ask! I was hoping to post this for Valentine's day but then work and college decided to drag me through the mud for a bit </3 Anyway, I hope you enjoyed, and thank you for reading!

[piracytheorist]

Episode 34 notes!

I was a little surprised we had a "previously on" part on this one. Were they trying to fill up time? XD

I do love, though, that they thought it very important for us to see this face (and getup) of Loid's again.

Best Spy of Westalis, everyone.

Anyway, onto the action! Damn McMahon scared me he was going to die, with how he lay there slumped like that.

Yor really got a second wind after her realization. Seconds ago she was barely able to lift her head up, and now she's up and fighting with multiple open wounds, and still getting the katana guy all bruised up and tired.

And I'm thinking, she believes Loid would forgive the blood on her hands and the fact that she may have to leave them, because he'd see how she's done it for the betterment of the world... and he actually would, because he's doing the same. We now need to see that she'll provide the same understanding and forgiveness when his secret comes out.

I find it a little funny that all this deathly action was taking place up above and everyone else, even Twilight, were none the wiser. Like we go from Yor and Katana Guy fighting to the death and then there's Anya jumping from excitement from the fireworks and Loid just being like "I'm glad you had fun".

And again, following what he thinks is her worries, he apologizes for not being able to find Yor. He's determined to comfort her and I find that so sweet. And then

Anya may be realizing she's too young to have the attention span needed for a professional spy. She's prioritizing fun without realizing it, and to the detriment of her plans, Loid is actually enabling that XD I love my weird family XD

Loid finds out about the bombs and though his spy training tells him to stay out of it and leave it to the SSS to handle the crisis, his knack for amassing responsibility rears its head.

He not only considers the worst possible scenario, he also takes it upon himself to avoid it, like he does with the cold war situation. Nothing of this is on him to blame, but he still thinks that "I can help avoid that" and he just runs straight into danger to do just that.

I wonder if he considers that a consequence of his enhanced abilities. If he believes that he's not above anyone else because he's smarter, faster, stronger, etc than the average human, but because he has all those innate skills and talents, he owes it to the world to use them for good. I don't know, maybe I'm taking it too far with this XD

Anyway. He will certainly be questioning how the very ship he happened to travel on just happened to have a ton of bombs on it to make it sink. That's another thing that will make total sense post-identity reveals when Yor tells him why she was really on that ship XD

Loid doesn't even get to start coming up with ideas for where to leave Anya, and Anya already very conveniently offers the probably best solution: a kids play room XD

Like, again, this show is comedy at its core, so even when there's action and tension going on, things will conveniently happen without making the most sense because it's how comedy works XD Endo knew what he was doing when he started it XD

But also, another thing that will make more sense to Loid after identity reveals. Because he wanted to focus on the bomb, Anya said she wanted to play and he was like "Please for the love of god not now" and she somehow went like "Imma go play on my own and have supervision so you go do your thing" and he should know this isn't common at all. He does say it's lucky but he has no idea XD

The anime added a bit more in this small section, as in the manga the daycare worker doesn't even get to speak to Anya, because she escapes immediately. In the anime Anya plays with a ball for a bit, then asks to draw, and as the woman starts picking up drawing supplies, Anya takes her chance and she's off!

"Hello, I am most definitely not voiced by Takuya Eguchi"

I just love how he just dropped his voice a few pitches instead of putting on a fake voice. And just as I wrote a meta about how Twilight uses a different timbre of his voice when he speaks as Loid, huh XD

Again, we get a mention of "Western extremists". Loid mentioned at the start of the cruise that Princess Lorelei is "the pride and joy of Ostania", so it would make sense to take it down as a fuck-you to Ostania from a rival country. However, without relevant intel, Twilight also considers the possibility that it was simply rigged to spark the fire of war between the two countries, without swearing on it. That's some pretty good deduction without passionately taking sides.

I just think it's very interesting that despite being from Westalis, he never takes the side of its government. He's only on the side of peace and he'll protect both or either West and East interests if it means peace can remain.

It's amazing how Anya's involvement helped things! And how it was even set up!

I was just thinking, a little before I watched the episode, that indeed Yor was missing her weapons. The first dagger was left in the crow's nest where the sniper was, the second was broken by the guy with the mace, and the third slipped from her hand when katana guy first fought her. Which means all this time she's managed to bruise and tire out Katana Guy with her bare hands, while he had his katana on O_O

Ok listen.

First of all, consider the muscle strength a five-year-old would need to throw that dagger that far. And it's not a simple, light dagger, it's strong and massive enough to break through a wooden door and a human skull at once, it's gotta carry some weight. And Anya was able to throw it up an entire story above her and then some more.

But then, it's also the placement of where the dagger ended up - in front of the pipes so that the other guys wouldn't see it immediately upon turning the corner.

Like, they would see the pipes, and prepare to jump over them as they turned the corner, but it would be easy to not spot it and slip on it - and again, because of its position, the guy who slipped on it had the pipes on the right height to first hit his head on them before his back could land on the ground. If it was a little closer he would hit his legs or hips on the pipes, and his body would bend over backwards, and if it was further he would first land on his back and probably not hit his head and lose control of his weapon.

But as it was, he did hit his head, he did lose control of his weapon, and he did shoot the other assassin.

Okay, it was a little ridiculous that the dagger had so much velocity from being slipped on to jump around and land with its pointy end right on the ass-assin (sorry), but it's funny so I don't mind at all.

Just according to keikaku.

Watch out, she's armed!

I love how Katana Guy had been fighting her bare arms and was still exhausted and bruised, and yet when she picked up the weapon she's proficient in he went like "Hmph! I will finish this" like my dude where do you find the confidence, she's been mauling you bare-handed and you think you'll handle her armed??

McMahon coming to at the very right moment to kick Sniff Jobs' ass and I breathe a sigh of relief. (Thanks to tare-anime for sharing the fandom's chosen nickname for that guy! It's funnier than calling him "Turtleneck Guy" XD)

Gotta love how she goes from "demonic assassin" to "sweet cinnamon roll too good for this world" in a single blink.

Katana Guy is down and I breathe another sigh of relief! That was intense!

Anya was so happy she helped her Mama! I still don't know if she grasps the actual gravity of the situation, she should normally be having nightmares about it XD

Twilight is more stressed of being surrounded by SSS agents than having to diffuse a bomb and I think that says a lot about him XD

And then Yor used too much power fighting all those assassins that she couldn't even wonder properly how her weapon ended up in the butt of a guy she wasn't even fighting. The family braincell was being thoroughly used by Twilight in that moment, it couldn't multi-task XD

I saw the blood on the ground from Sniff Jobs and immediately went like "O_O Where did that guy go!"

And then, even in the midst of a very important and dangerous situation, the SSS agent is being a dick and bossy. In the manga Twilight wonders it the SSS are trying to save face and that actually would make a ton of sense.

I like how in the manga, when Anya walks next to Sniff Jobs, his thoughts are shown in bubbles with a black background.

Dark thoughts, dark background. It's happened before.

Then he puts his nose at work and actually becomes the reason the ship is saved. He smells the explosives in the clock, Anya hears his thoughts, then casually transfers the info to someone who can take care of it.

I love how the security guy was so worried about how to find the bombs that he yelped when Anya said a simple "Excuse me" XD

The guy dismissed Anya's request at first, which got her to cry, and I wonder how real that crying was. She was, after all, facing the threat of a bombing attack. But it got the guy to check the clock in the end! And also because Anya is such a small kid that he wouldn't suspect something's up with her.

Sniff Jobs was right - the assassin profession is one built on trust, yet he didn't follow his own advice. The informant didn't trust the assassins and put bugs on them, they didn't trust him and planned to betray him, and because of that they all died. The informant planted the bombs, and the guy followed him to kill him, and one of those bombs ended up being the death of both of them.

That said, I kinda love how that story ended. I have a weakness for a felled villain trying to reach out in despair and anger, even while they're heavily wounded and in pain, and then just getting their comeuppance for good. There's some sort of humanity shown there, but that they use to such wrong lengths that you can't feel sorry for them. But it is interesting to me, in a way :D

I guess Informant Guy didn't expect an elite spy to be on board who'd want to stop his plans. Twilight wonders what purpose the bomb in the clock had and I'm a bit confused. The bombs in the lower decks were there to create holes to make the ship sink. Wouldn't the bomb in the clock cause commotion in the upper decks, making it harder for people to escape as much as it's possible?

If anything, Informant Guy was counting on the devices being retrievable so that the Ostanian government would blame the bombs on Westalis and start another war. It's creepy, too, how lightly he was taking the whole thing.

Knowing how it goes it's actually pretty funny to see Twilight just rip the clock off and go like "Imma throw this into the sea bye" and then just run for it.

Rip I guess, whatever that was.

THIS WAS SO SWEET AAAAAAHHHH

AND THEN THIS

And what Olka says to her too! It's practically the realization Yor had on her own about her job. That she gets her hands bloody and risks her life to provide a better world for her loved ones, but she doesn't see those hands as worthy of affection. And yet Olka shows her that, and an innocent child does as well!

This is what she coats her hands in blood for, and this is a moment of someone recognizing her for that, giving her physical affection and affirmation as a thanks for her sacrifice.

Yor reached that point on her own, but Olka and Gram giving them their affection reassured her of it. It's worth it. She is worth it.

Just let her work under a less abusive boss please I beg

Olka actually wishes for Yor and her family to find happiness. Yor was there simply to provide protection, but they both gave each other hope for the future. And that ties back to the main theme of the entire story. Hope. Humanity. Connection. We're not meant to fight. We're meant to love.

Excuse me while I ponder over this for the next three to five days and probably my entire life T_T

As others have mentioned, McMahon reminds Yor to not become sentimental, that they're merely foot soldiers on the trenches of the cold war, yet he gives her the last day off to relax with her family. And he actually says that is a reward for her doing her job well. The music even turns hopeful and sweet.

I just realized that it looks like Yor hasn't sleep at all during the trip? The first night she stayed vigilant while the others slept (though Olka was awake for some time, too), then she had a long fight with a bunch of assassins, and now McMahon told her to stay on alert until dawn breaks. So she's pulling two all-nighters with an extended fight in between where she got injured and hit her head. Is my girl okay???

And a bunch of steps back on the acceptance front stands Twilight.

He worries about having left Anya on her own, not because he might look suspicious, but because he's spent most of the trip focusing on her emotions and trying to help her have fun. And in the midst of that, he had to pass her off to a daycare to go be a responsible spy saving the world. The fact that Anya had the time of her life and was excited that he was saving the ship is irrelevant, since he doesn't know she was, and he only sees that as a failure of his as a pretend father.

And then catches himself, but even then! He can't even fully justify it to himself!

Boy is starting to slip majorly and he's starting to lose his footing on his denial. His "for the mission" excuse is starting to not suffice... and he's starting to see that.

That's a big step both Yor and Loid have made in their progress of accepting their place in the family, though Yor has a huge head start and Loid will probably still hang onto his denial as much as he can. I'm really curious to see how their dynamic will develop now that they'll meet on the island, and how it will continue once they return home!

As I said this was sweet af but it's also funny how there's so much inconsistency on Anya's size. Like! She legit looks like a baby here! I know Loid is supposed to be bigger than you'd expect but Anya isn't that small XD

The music that played in this scene was a soft variation of the theme playing when they board the ship, as well as during the fight in the previous episode after Yor secures the trio. It's very subtle cause it's mostly a piano playing the harmonies instead of the melody.

Yor put her earring back on! As in the manga, in the end of the fight with Katana Guy she's still missing the earring that she threw at Sniff Jobs and probably ripped her earlobe with. But when she met up with Olka and helped them off, she had put it back on. So she did an absolutely insane thing and put the earring back on even though her earlobe was wounded. This woman eats hot coals for breakfast.

And off we go! Three episodes left in the season and this anime only is trying to not lose her mind 🤪 it's been a wild ride and I've loved every second of it but I am really trying to not despair over the fact that it's three weeks left and then another year of waiting 🥲

[salty-croissants]

Can you do headcanons for Rayman with a Sally type of s/o from the nightmare before Christmas?,Like a reader that tries to tell him about Eden and all of that but even if he doesn’t listen she still stays by his side and loves him nonetheless pretty please :)

Thank you for the request ! 

As a big Nightmare Before Christmas fan , I found this scenario to be very neat :D 

I tried to integrate a few personality traits of Sally in the reader , I hope it worked !

Details : use of gender neutral reader ;

friends to lovers ; 

no warnings needed , other than a few swear words at the end  

One of the many things you’ve always admired about Rayman is the sheer passion he always put in his dream of hosting his very own show : 

you have been watching his hard work for years , all his sacrifices … and all the difficult times he went through . 

Being so different from everyone else made him an easy target for people’s derision and prejudices , and for the longest time Rayman felt like no one would’ve ever accepted him for who he really was … 

Until he met you .

You were the first person who showed Rayman kindness , and let’s just say he will never be able to forget that : 

you always seemed genuinely interested in what he was doing , never once shunning him for his appearance and even offering him words of advice and encouragement …

< Another failure … I thought this time was going to be different … can’t believe I was so stupid … > 

< Rayman , you’re not stupid . I know it’s tough , but people will understand your talent someday … 

You just have to be patient . > 

He was truly grateful for your friendship , and it’s also thanks to you if he managed to get through it all and get where he is today . 

Even tough he’s now the voice of Eden , Rayman hasn’t forgotten about you and all that you’ve done for him , and whenever he’s not too busy with his shows he loves to spend time with you , happy to have a chance to get his mind off of work : 

your presence is just so soothing … your kindness and eagerness to listen to him always manages to put his mind at ease , and sometimes he can’t help but wonder what would it be like if the two of you became … something more .

< You mean a lot to me y/n , you know ? I think I might be … uh … > 

< Yes , Ray … ? > 

< … heh … oh , it’s nothing , don’t worry about it . I’m just tired … > 

Little does he know that you feel the exact same way , however every time you try to say it out loud the anxiety of getting rejected , or worse , making your long time friend uncomfortable has always stopped you from doing so … 

Much like Rayman . 

… but the day you eventually discovered Eden’s plans and just how much they have been using Rayman for their propaganda , everything changed . 

You felt horrible to know that the people who promised to help him make his dream come true were just doing that to cover the many dark realities they were trying so hard to keep hidden from everyone , and you knew that you had to tell him somehow …

Of course , it didn’t exactly go well .

< Please - I know this sounds crazy , but you have to believe me ! 

The Board of Directors aren’t who you think they are … I would never lie about something so serious to you , Rayman , you know that , right … ? >

< *sigh* … y/n , I … 

I’m sorry , but that just isn’t … possible . Sure , the Directors are pretty strict about a few things , but they wouldn’t do that to me … I’m their star . > 

< But - > 

< Please , let’s not talk about this anymore … I know you mean well , but I think it’s just a bunch of … really well made fake news . 

I gotta go study my next script , just … try to forget about it , okay ? > 

You were admittedly pretty hurt by Rayman’s lack of trust in you … but maybe you just needed to think of a better way to explain everything to him .

You only want him to be alright … it’s for his own good … 

Despite everything , you still remained by his side , comforting him after the disastrous interview with Red and reminding him to come visit you if he ever needed help … Well , one day you were surprised to find an unannounced Rayman outside your door , wearing a coat and with a terrified expression on his face that you’ve never seen before …

It was enough to make you very concerned .

< Woah - come in Ray … are you okay ? 

Did … something else happen ? > 

The moment he heard you lock the door , was the moment he finally broke down :

You watch him take a few steps in your direction , locking you in a tight embrace while sobbing right next to your ear …

< y-y/n … I’m sorry , I’m just … I-I’m so sorry … ! > 

After a second of shock , you hug him back , confused but most importantly worried .

< Ray … what’s wrong ? If you let me know I can try to help you … > 

< You were right … you were right about e-everything … I went talk to the frog , and he showed me … I-I saw … > 

Rayman tries to take a deep breath to calm himself down … to no avail .

< I saw what those bastards did … using my f-face … oh god … i-it’s so bad , and if I just listened to you I would’ve known sooner … I’m such a fucking idiot … will … will you ever be able to forgive me … ? > 

You have to admit , it’s all still very confusing to listen to , but as soon as he stops talking you place your hands on his cheeks , gently wiping away his tears . 

< Of course I forgive you . I understand , it really wasn’t an easy truth to come to terms with … 

I just want you to know that no matter what happens , I’m always going to be on your side , Rayman , because … you mean a lot to me too . I just wasn’t able to say it before … > 

You both stare into each other’s eyes , before you realize that you’ve been doing that for a bit too long and stand up , your cheeks blushing a little …

< A-anyway , um … since you’re here I could get you something to drink , so maybe we can sit and talk about what happened a bit more calmly … if that’s okay with you , of course ! > 

Rayman can’t help but smile in front of how cute you are , and after a few more deep breaths he starts feeling a bit less overwhelmed . 

< Yeah … yeah , that’d be great . > 

[musicalmoritz]

Ok ok so after our recent interaction I gotta ask for the Natsuhiko/Teru essay. I need it in my life.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to yap about Natsuteru. Before I get into this I wanna say that my mutual on TikTok @/teru.kisser has some really good analyses on them. I think they’re also on here as natsuteru.handholding or something but TikTok is where they’re most active. Had to shoutout the CEO of Natsuteru before I opened my mouth abt them

Okay, so why do people ship Natsuteru? It’s a rarepair, so why do people like it so much? First off, let’s look at their similarities

They’re both popular dream boys at Kamome. Unlike characters like Aoi, they both appreciate and encourage this attention. Teru is often compared to a prince, and Natsuhiko’s hair makes a little crown on the top of his head. They both disguise their core personalities; Natsuhiko by acting harmless and dumb while actually being very threatening; and Teru by acting charming and perfect while actually being far more complex. There are a few more layers to Teru’s facade, yes he does it to hide his ruthless side like Natsuhiko but I think it goes even deeper with him, deep down he’s just a teenager forced into a heavy role. I wouldn’t call his sadistic side an act (just like Natsuhiko’s laidback personality isn’t fully an act, it’s still part of him), but at the end of the day I think he’s most himself when he’s teasing Akane and doting on his siblings. It’s not as clear cut as Aoi and Mitsuba where they have very distinct fake personalities, but Teru and Natsuhiko definitely play up elements of themselves in order to hide the things they don’t want others to see. They do this most notably by stepping into the role of the flirty, reliable upperclassmen

They both hold the ability to destroy supernaturals, and their respective groups rely on them to be the ones to get the job done. Teru is the protector, Natsuhiko is the destroyer. Sakura sends Natsuhiko in when she needs somebody killed, Akane enlists Teru’s help when somebody needs to be saved. They both act very parental/brotherly towards their younger counterparts. Obviously Teru acts like a loving but strict older brother to Kou, and Natsuhiko goes out of his way to make Mitsuba feel welcomed. I would say he also cares about Tsukasa to an extent, though he acts a bit annoyed with him at times. That would be another similarity between Teru and Natsuhiko, they both have issues with one of the Yugi twins

Now, what canon interactions do they have? Very few, but they have met off-screen. I couldn’t find the panels but in one of the earliest chapters, Natsuhiko says something to Sakura expressing concern about what “President Minamoto” would do if he knew about their actions. Then when he meets Kou during the sleepover chapter, he notes that he’s a lot more gullible than “his brother.” Both of these scenarios point towards Teru and Natsuhiko having some sort of relation to each other, though the extent to which it goes remains unknown. I will say that it reminds me of how Teru and Akane’s dynamic was introduced before we saw them interact, Akane seemed irritated with Teru’s existence and acted surprised when he realized how different Kou is compared to him. Little mentions of them knowing each other before AidaIro established a proper dynamic for them. The same could very well happen with Natsuteru, I’m confident we’ll see them interact at some point seeing as they’re both important to the plot

They also interact in AUs frequently. In the Minamoto Supernatural Detective Agency au, upon interviewing Natsuhiko, Teru calls him a freak. This is amusing to me, usually Teru is the one unsettling people. He expresses disdain for others often, but only supernaturals. So him being disturbed by Natsuhiko stands out to me. A common belief/headcanon among Natsuteru shippers is that Natsuhiko is able to pull emotions out of Teru in a way others aren’t. Similar to how Teru is able to put Natsuhiko on edge in a way most people don’t. By the way this is absolutely a “toxic yaoi” ship, we gotta get that out of the way. There are other ways to characterize them ofc since we don’t know much about their dynamic but most Natsuteru shippers agree on them being messy as hell

As for other interactions in AUs, in the Hanako-Kun Of The Opera AU, Natsuhiko mentioned that he talked to Teru off-screen. They were also depicted together in official art for the au (in the background). And in art for the Ghost Hotel AU you can kind of see them looking at each other. So yeah, there’s not a whole lot but the crumbs are most certainly there. The thing with Natsuteru is you just have to take what we’re given and run with it

Then there’s this scene, which is the most interesting of all. This is the closest we’ve come to an onscreen Natsuteru interaction. This scene is famous among Natsuteru shippers because it gives us more insight into what might happen if these two were to interact. Because in this scene, Natsuhiko outsmarted Teru. This is something we pretty much never see, even when Akane betrayed him he has to catch him off guard. Teru is always depicted as the strongest and most intelligent person in the room, unmovable. And yet, in this scene, Natsuhiko got the upper hand so easily. He knew that Teru wouldn’t be able to turn away his fans, that his protectiveness of humans outweighs his bloodlust for supernaturals. He used Teru’s caring side against him, and succeeded in saving Mitsuba

This is where the toxicity comes in. A lot of Natsuteru fans see Natsuhiko as being the more manipulative one in the relationship, whereas Teru is toxic in more physically aggressive ways (like he is with Akane). Full disclaimer tho, this is usually depicted as them fighting mutually or Natsuhiko encouraging Teru to kick his ass bcuz he’s a simp. I personally like to headcanon that they meet up to fight once a week and Teru wins every time. While most Teru ships center around him being taken care of, Natsuteru provides more conflict for him. Natsuhiko isn’t the type of person he could leave behind his life of exorcism with, and he’s not the type of boyfriend to hold him while he cries. To me this makes the ship stand out among other Teru pairings. I do think they’d genuinely care about each other, they’re just very messed up in their own ways so they hurt each other instead of healing each other

But that’s just the popular depiction, they could absolutely be written differently. Some people like more fluff in their ships and that’s totally valid. I’m focusing on the toxic element here because that’s why most people seem to like Natsuteru. On the flip side tho, a lot of fans like them because they’re silly. In fact this somehow goes hand-in-hand with the toxicity. They’re often made out to fit the “loser and his pretty wife” trope, with Natsuhiko being the loser ofc. Teru is a bit prettier and stronger and cooler than Natsuhiko so they have lots of girlboss x malewife potential (a trope I usually hate but I don’t mind it as much with them). It’s very tropey, Natsuhiko is characterized as the dumbass simp and Teru is the one who pretends to hate him but is secretly down bad. Lots of meme potential

I hope this helped you understand the ship a bit better, I wouldn’t call them one of my absolute favorites but I do love them a lot. I tend to write them as transfem butch lesbian ex-girlfriends because that makes the toxic side a bit more interesting to me lol. I would promote my 25k fic for them called “Racing on the Thunder” on ao3 but that would be obnoxious (leave kudos and comments and don’t forget to hit that subscribe button)

I really enjoy analyzing ships so again, thanks for giving me the chance to yap!!

[deathsbestgirl]

wanna hear all you have to say about fire / phoebe <3

oh mikaela, i hope you're prepared <3 (some of this is more well thought out than other parts, tbh the longer i watched the harder it got to put my thoughts into words because phoebe is truly maddening — like you said about scully, phoebe is bad enough for me. i didn't need them to go as far as they did with diana. i get it !!!)

phoebe’s first scene hits pretty hard. because just before she enters, mulder & scully were talking about court, scully was teasing him “must be an x file” and his face is just SO CUTE because as much as they tease each other, i just don't think he's used to it yet. and scully always does it so affectionately (no other motive than she likes him & teasing him is fun)

and it's just. he's so sure he locked the car. he doesn't understand how scully was able to open it and then scully sees the tape. before we even meet her, we see how she invaded his space. breaking into his car to play a cruel “joke” to ask for his help (that's just not how you ask for help, these are adults, they're professionals — i'm so mad about it). phoebe opens the door right on time, so she's also nearby watching so she can get the timing right. it's creepy & calculated. like scully was scared, the way she gasps & jumps. cruel.

i really don't know how to put this into words but “aren’t you going to thank me? …[for] saving your life” haunts me. she does this terrible thing she knows would frighten him (and anyone else he's with...) and then tries to make it look like a favor to him. like he's lucky to have learned this lesson, that she's waltzing back into his life — with a puzzle, people for him to help, a case that we’ll learn soon is all about one of his biggest fears.

and then he talks about her driving a stake through him and she sees that as the perfect opportunity to kiss him (i am not a fan of kissing someone to shut them up, no matter the context. let them speak bitch). waits for scully to exit the car, so she can witness phoebe stake her claim on him. a kiss he doesn't return, but doesn't exactly reject either. after, he tries to move forward, introducing the two women. phoebe immediately tries to set scully against them, against her. “she hates me.” it's an attempt to isolate him and make him more vulnerable to her tactics.

what really hurts is the way it kind of works. he lets scully stick around for learning all about the case, talks to her about phoebe a little, and then tries to protect her — when she isn't the one who needs protecting. but he knows phoebe's games. she will try to drive a wedge between them. she's already started with “she hates me” — it's belittling scully. creating a fake scenario of scully vs her. she's dismissive, acts like she forgets scully is there listening to everything she says. (the way scully always observes him, follows his lead — it's special, and it helps her figure out how to navigate the situations they find themselves in. this is no exception.) phoebe tries so hard to make it just her & mulder, and he falls right into that trap.

there's just something so distasteful about bringing up a private joke in the company of others who aren't in on it. again, staking her claim and another way to push mulder & scully apart, to isolate mulder, cut off his relationships & resources so they can go back to where they left off.

scully sees so much. she was obviously put off by their introduction, but had mulder’s response to phoebe been different, more receptive, happy, excited… she may have been able to look past her distaste. the way he becomes practically docile, which is very unlike mulder except in situations with people who have hurt him, taken advantage of him, neglected or abused him… scully understands exactly what's happening. here, she doesn't even say anything yet. she comments on his behavior, but the only thing she actually says about phoebe is he won't be able to get rid of her just by taking the case to their arson guys. they both know he isn't walking away having done nothing for the case, for phoebe. they both know her motives aren't simply the case. (and god, it could have been so easy for phoebe to be genuine. asking mulder for help because she know he can solve the case. respectfully, professionally. it could have been easy enough to swallow that she's a woman in a male dominated field and uses her ‘feminine wiles’ to get what she needs. but it isn't just that at all. phoebe knows the effect she has on mulder and uses it. it's twisted. someone who has grown would not continue to act this way.)

[i talked about “mulder, you just keep unfolding like a flower” (with welsharcher’s tags) here]

the comparison beatty makes of the case & phoebe:

this is so sick actually. and scully is observing all of it, keeping herself on the outside.

something here about scully making sherlock & watson theirs <3

and oh god the rest of this scene!! this is what i mean about mulder “protecting” scully. the way he shares this … is a lot.

scully asks and mulder answers. one of my favorite things about them. they don't tend to just volunteer information, even to each other, without some kind of prompt. scully gives him the space to talk about it, never says too much but she says enough. her phrasing is SO important. she repeats what he just told her in a way that frames it as wrong and then mulder makes the same comparison beatty did, of phoebe to fire. but in the negative way we're meant to understand.

it's a little maddening that he's so aware. she was brilliant, he got in over his head, her mind games (manipulation, cruelty, forcing him to face things instead of letting him do it in his own time) and it’s a perfect contrast to scully. she’s the opposite of scully in every way. where phoebe is fire, scully is ice. where phoebe is cruel, she's so kind & gentle & supportive. where phoebe is manipulative, scully is supportive — literally so supportive, constantly throwing him a lifeline, making sure he knows he doesn't have to do it alone but (mostly) respecting his choice.

she lets him face is demons, but she’s going to continue working the case. because they're partners, and she can tell they're not going to get very far.

also. everyone should read kae's posts about fire/phoebe. they are the best ones:

fire script

scully is not jealous with kae's tags

scully knows phoebe is Awful

and bonus: i did one of my episode posts lol (genuinely don't remember it oops)

[queen--kenobi]

💘 fake relationship / mutual pining / dared to kiss MY BELOVEDS TYLAND AND ELAYNA

send a heart and a ship for a brief snippet!

You're in luck because I actually have a whole scenario for this in @writingbylee and I's Western AU!

Also. I apologize because this got dark. I forgot how dark this AU gets

TW for talks of literal branding of humans. Sorry y'all. It's just something the Lannisters would do

"Can I ask a question?" Johanna begins. She stands just inside the doorway to the kitchen. Elayna looks up from lighting the gas range. Tyland insisted on the house being update to date, which Elayna didn't mind. Gas ranges and ceiling fans made her life more comfortable.

"Of course." Elayna grins triumphantly when the flame takes. She grabs the metal coffee pot and places it on the burner.

"You and Tyland." Johanna leans against the doorframe. She seems hesitant to step further into the kitchen, despite no ash being on the floor. "Are you living in sin?"

Elayna splutters. Johanna raises an eyebrow.

"That is highly inappro-"

"The two of you are only engaged to each other yet you live in the same house. It's not an unreasonable question."

"No, we are not!" Elayna looks at Johanna. She glares at the other woman. If it weren't childish, she would pout. "We keep separate bedrooms. Mine is at the back of the ranch, and his is upfront."

"Doesn't mean the two of you haven't been intimate."

"Johanna!" Elayna throws her hands in exasperation. "You know your brother-in-law would never pressure me. Certainly it wouldn't happen outside of marriage."

"Hmm." Johanna clearly isn't satisfied with Elayna's answer. "Men can only wait so long."

"You speak of Tyland as if he's an animal."

"No. I speak of him as a man. Or have you not been paying attention in Church?"

"Yes, well. Tyland isn't like that." The kettle begins to whistle. Elayna gathers up the coffee grounds. The wives of the cattle hands do most of the cooking and cleaning, but Elayna makes the coffee. Tyland told her once he prefers it when she makes it. She has never let anyone else make it since.

Johanna finally takes a step forward. She makes her way across the kitchen to stand beside Elayna. Elayna wraps a towel around the lid of the kettle. Steam billows out when she takes the lid off, and it dissipates when she uncerimonously dumps the coffee grounds into it. The lid clangs when she puts it back on.

"When you take the brand, he won't be able to help himself." Elayna nearly jumps. She hadn't noticed Johanna getting that close. Johanna brings one hand up and gently presses her fingers to the space between Elayna’s shoulder blades, pressing right where the Lannister brand goes in an oddly intimate yet sinister gesture. "You'll be marked as his. Jason only took me from behind for a month after I did. He was obsessed. Tyland will be too."

"Tyland is not Jason."

"No, but they are twins."

"I..." Elayna frowns. She looks at Johanna. A lump forms in her throat. Johanna flattens out her hand, placing her palm on Elayna in a more comforting gesture.

"It's frightening, but I have faith in you. You can do it." Johanna murmurs. "I didn't cry when I did it. I know you won't either." She takes Elayna’s hand. "I will be there with you."

Elayna forces a smile. Johanna clearly means it to be a comfort, but it makes Elayna's stomach churn. She can't force herself to say thank you. No human being can be grateful for such a thing. Instead, she squeezes Johanna’s hand in a display she hopes satisfies her.

"Would you mind getting down the cups and saucers? Coffee is almost ready."

The two busy themselves with finishing up the coffee. Thankfully, only Johanna and Jason were visiting; Tymon clearly wants nothing to do with his uncle because of his "betrayal," and Cerelle no doubt minds her sisters. The four china cups and saucers are quickly paired and coffee poured. Elayna makes sure to drop four sugar cubes into Tyland’s, a gift for dealing with his brother. Tyland loves Jason, but he clearly wears on Tyland’s nerves.

Elayna and Johanna carry the coffee out in two batches; one for the men and one for them. Johanna places the first cup in front of Jason, and Elayna places Tyland’s in front of him. Jason doesn't even bother to acknowledge them, but to Elayna’s surprise, Tyland reaches for her hand once she sets his cup down.

Elayna's heart thunders in her chest as Tyland interlaces their fingers. She knows it's for show, yet... the tenderness with which he brushes his fingers against hers makes her tremble. Tyland brings her hand to his lips and presses an absent minded kiss to the back of her hand. Elayna inhales. The gesture sends lightening up her spine and her blood racing through her veins.

Tyland looks at her from underneath his eyelashes. Elayna actually feels her core clench with anticipation. The smile on his lips shows mere fondness, but the look in his eyes conveys an entirely different emotion. He gazes at her as if he wants to devour her alive.

Elayna would let him. All he needs to do is ask.

"Thank you." Tyland barely pulls her hand away to speak. He holds onto it still. Elayna smiles softly.

"Only the best for my future husband."

Tyland’s look somehow becomes even more carnal. She visibly see him laying her down on the floor and taking off her clothes in his mind's eyes. She wonders. Elayna wants him to see she's thinking the same thing too.

"Remind us not to visit for at least a month once these two get married." Jason nudges Johanna. Both Elayna and Tyland turn to give Jason a look. Johanna purses her lips. "What? You two are obviously going to be fuc- fornicating all damn day and night once you're cleared to do so."

"Not at the table, Jason." Johanna hisses. Jason holds his hands up.

"I'm going to get Johanna and I's coffees before they get cold." Elayna excuses herself.

"Have you shown her the horses I bought you?"

Elayna shakes her head.

"No. I think Alberto is still breaking mine in. But I can show her the other two."

"He bought you horses?" Johanna arches an elegant eyebrow.

"Only one of them is for me to ride. The other two are racing horses."

"Only one is an active racer." Tyland hums. He squeezes Elayna's hand before letting go. She misses his touch instantly. Tyland turns his attention towards their guests. "The other is going to be a stud."

As Elayna heads back into the kitchen to grab her and Johanna’s coffee, she barely registers both Jason and Johanna ask questions about their plans for the horses. They sound far away.

The only thing that exists in Elayna’s mind is Tyland holding her hand.

[yumeka-sxf]

A chronological analysis on Twilight and Yor - Part 11

*This is part of an ongoing post series. If you missed the Introduction/Part 1, click here*

----------

When the "doggy crisis" is finally resolved and the Forgers are reunited, Twilight rightfully chews Anya out for running off by herself. But he then softens and asks if she's hurt, and when she tells him that Bond protected her, he makes sure to give the dog a sincere thank you for saving his daughter. As I said before, anyone who shows respect to animals gets character points to me, especially someone like Twilight whose line of work makes him distrustful of everyone and everything. It's not like he had any reason to gain Bond's favor at that moment – he genuinely felt gratitude for the dog and wanted to express it.

And of course, in classic Spy x Family fashion, Twilight's fib about being stuck in the bathroom the whole time causes the overly self-conscious Yor to assume it's from the awful breakfast she made (something that will have repercussions later).

When they go on their first outing with Bond at the park, Twilight muses to himself about life post-Operation Strix, something he hadn't done since he first adopted Anya. Compared to back then when he flatly stated that he'll send Anya back to the orphanage when it's all over, this time he says that the agency will do what they can for Anya and Yor even though he won't see them again.

It's obvious that Yor is attached to Anya, so he knows she would have no reason to abandon her even if he left the family. The terrorist crisis that had just occurred made him remember that his ultimate goal of ending the cold war is top priority. He reinforces his utilitarian view that this is what's most important for everyone's future even if it means sacrificing some happiness along the way…like Anya's, Yor's, and, though he won't admit it, his own.

Twilight does seem to feel regret about this as he recalls that he just told Anya that she has a responsibility to care for the newly adopted Bond for the rest of his life, yet he won't be doing the same for the child he adopted.

As for why he says he would never be able to see Anya and Yor again, in his mind, maintaining a relationship that's unnecessary for his work would just be a hindrance. I also think that he wouldn't want to put them in danger by having any association with him – they had just gotten dragged into the terrorist mission he was trying to take care of after all. I imagine he plans to do something like fake the death/disappearance of Loid Forger, or maybe say/do things to Anya and Yor that would make them hate him so he could easily break ties with them (hopefully that's not the case as that would be too heartbreaking! Of course, he wouldn't be able to fool Anya…but I digress). Either scenario would result in him not being able to see them again, at least not as the Loid Forger they've come to know.

Twilight reminds himself of this again soon after when he tries to help Franky woo the girl he has a crush on (which ends in failure). When they're drinking together at the bar, he tells Franky that people like them can't afford to have feelings for others as it would only end badly.

At this point in the series, we know that Twilight has at least some feelings for Yor and Anya (which will be pointed out by Nightfall soon) so perhaps he's saying this also as a reprimand to himself as well as a reminder to Franky? But Franky tends to be a "pot calling the kettle black," since he's the one who told Twilight back when they were pretending to be SSS agents to keep his emotions out of his daily life, yet Franky tries to pursue relationships with women left and right, without any emotional restraint (and will continue to do so even after he and Twilight have this conversation). And then there's Nightfall who, despite her constant poker face, does nothing but imagine lovey-dovey scenarios with herself and Twilight. Seems that, as much as spy people preach about keeping emotions out of the picture, emotions seep through even harder than normal. But while Franky and Nightfall don't lie to themselves about these feelings, Twilight does…will that make it all the more torturous for him when he can lie no longer?

Continue to Part 12 ->

<- Return to Part 10

[intertexts]

OKAY. HI HI HI HI HI. THOUGHTS ON NHW MAL POWERS

i am going 2 leave the actual classification up to you because i dont have the innate sense of them yet like i do for classpects and such and i know im banned from the wiki rn so ill just talk about. base level What I Think He Can Do.

FIRST OF ALL. THE BIG THING. GHOUL. so. technically if i remember correctly. mal isnt a planeswalker like william is so ghoul is technically a separate being? ghoul is his guide, which is what allows him to go between the real world and the spirit world. HOWEVER. ghoul is nothing to me so in nhw world i think he should just be like. a separate form. mal turns into ghoul and its the same consciousness u know? hes the same guy hes just a freak now. worm comparison i am thinking is like. what rachel does to her dogs except hes doing it to himself. with the gross muscles and bones and big mouth and shit.

OTHER THAN THAT i thinkkkkkk. ok. hear me out. i am going 2 base this on a tweet bizly made forever ago (that im SO MAD i cant find a picture of rn) but the basics was like. u remember that nightmare dakota had back in season 1 where he saw william and vyncent kill summer . that was a nightmare that mal gave him in order to split the three of them up. SO WHAT IF. nhw mal has some sort of dream/mind manipulation abilities or something. hes had so many moments where he just like. appears out of the shadows in order to get them to do what he wants im just imagining the horror of that from an outside perspective just seeing one of the heroes mid battle just Fall Asleep for a while. but to them its like nothing happens and they dont realize it until he leaves and theyre waking up. do you see my vision here.

either that or i think his powers should be like. kind of countered to wibby? i know in pd his powers are similar to williams bc hes a ghost and everything but. im thinking we dont do that in nhw. INSTEAD. maybe in ghoul form or whatever he has heightened senses/abilities that allow him to see through things like invisibility and touch things that are intangible. (thinking abt this strategy-wise, it would be their goal to take him down as mal BEFORE he transforms bc then he becomes almost impossible for william to fight) . maybe this seems too targeted against william specifically but im jsut thinking like. ghoul in general just makes him more powerful and those are just a couple specific advantages he gets? uh oh im running out of words in my brain help

MAYBE THIS IS. TOO MUCH IN TOO MANY DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS. so he doesnt have to have all of these at once. i am really just throwing spaghetti noodles at your inbox and seeing what sticks to the wall or whatever the phrase is. hi it took me like an hour to type all of this bc i kept getting distracted and forgetting words!!!!!!!!!!!

YEAHHHH YAYUAYAY THIS IS ALL GOOD SPAGHETTI!!!!!!! too much in too many directions is so fun dude i fucking love being the rubber ducky for shit like this!!

i REALLY ENJOY fucked up body horror changer shit... ough. (thats what him physically changing like rachels dogs would b, as opposed 2 breakers who-- oh god it's too late for this. umm. physical change different than energy form etc.)... he should get 2 be a weird terrifying freak thing. with bone & blood n stuff. & there's precedent for changing in a way that alters ur senses & powers etc..... maybe he choose what and how he transforms to respond in a certain way or target a certain scenario. i dont wanna go fishing rn but remind me tmrw n i'll rb this with some screenshots from ward of the guy im thinking of who this reminds me of!!

that being said the idea of him having big mind manipulation stuff is also SO compelling. god. being able to like... create illusions & scenarios that are completely fake. delude people or put them to sleep or mess with their cognition in ways they dont even notice... alter perception of reality.... especially if he has a wide range of effect?? that goes hard!!! how long would it last... how would u snap out of it... could he make u feel stuff that's not real??? ok ok ok getting off track. anyway. i love the idea of a fight with him being timed because he's transforming.... maybe a form that's just. very good at Seeing Things? mal/ghouls original job was like, as a cleaner for clarence, right? making sure everything in the afterlife's in order? so many choices...

[t0ta11y-n0t-cup1d]

Totally Platonic [CRUMBS]

꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡ little scenario to come out of Totally Platonic! bc someone reblogged abt don n leo and it gave me an idea LMAOOOO anyway might do stuff like this for any future fics :}}

Donnie sat tucked away in his lab, slouched over some new project that he had been determined to finish in a night. He had his headphones on with music playing, the lights turned low to help his eyes, and completely undisturbed in his work. It was so nice to be able to work with this peace and quiet.

“Donatello.”

God fucking damn it.

With a loud, dramatic sigh, Donnie set down the tool in his hand and slipped his headphones off, swiveling in his chair to give Leo a look.

"What. What could be so important that you must tear me from my brilliant, genius inventions?" Before Leo could even get a word in, Donnie stuck a hand up in a 'halt' motion. “You have ten seconds.”

He pulled up his phone, setting a timer. “Go.”

Leonardo scoffed and rolled his eyes. “Youtoldthem,Ican’tbelieveyou,youfuckingsnitch-!”

The timer rang and Donnie turned back to his lab table, putting his headphones on and slipping his protective goggles over his eyes. “Aw, too bad, I couldn’t understand you and your time is up. Boohoo, so sad, leave me alone.” He waves his hand dismissively. “Any moment now, dear brother.”

Leo groans, leaning over Donnie’s lab table, glaring and tapping his fingers on the desk until he’s given attention again.

“Okay, what then? What could you possibly want of me?”

“You’re a snitch!”

Dontello furrowed his (fake) eyebrows, clicking his tongue in thought as Leo’s tail swished in agitation, hitting Donnie’s desk and causing dull thunking sounds. (To not embarrass his brother further, the softshell pretended not to notice Leo balling up his fists in order to not flutter his claws at him.)

He snapped his fingers. “Ohhh, you mean how I informed Y/n of your romantic interest in them?”

“Yes, of course I’m talking about that!” Leonardo shouted back, cheeks burnt red. “That was embarrassing! Man, I thought we were brothers!” He huffed.

“Oh, please. You can’t tell me you aren’t secretly grateful. We all know that you weren’t ever going to actually admit it to them.” Donnie pointed out.

The red-eared slider went silent.

“My point still stands.” Leo smacked the back of Donnie’s head. “Asshat.”

A/N ;; hihi back!!! this was meant to be a scene in the og fic but i couldn't find anywhere to squeeze it in </3 SOOO for future fics, i might do lil add-ons where i call em crumbs (like this one) and write scenes that didn't make the cut ^^ ALSO THANK YOU FOR ALL OF THE POSITIVE RECEPTION ON MY FIRST FIC AKDKJDNFBNS IM SO GLAD SO MANY PEOPLE LIKED IT :DDD more reqs/fics in the work that will be done in due time!!

LUV FROM ;; CUPEZ

[pasquey]

Aziraphale's Choice, or: Activist Infighting

As we were going through the last minutes of season 2 of Good Omens, I looked at my partner and said, "Activist infighting." It was the best encapsulation I had for what seemed at the base of the Aziraphale-Crowley conflict, or at least a large portion of it.

There's been a lot of great analysis on what Heaven means emotionally to Crowley and Aziraphale, how it shows a toxic family dynamic. But the activist angle has been much less explored. It goes like this: for the entire series so far, we've seen how the policies of Heaven sometimes actively harm people and frequently actively prevent them from being helped. Aziraphale has seen this for thousands of years. Suddenly he's given the option of being given enough power within the system to make major changes - heck, we've never heard of any demons being allowed back into Heaven before, and he's immediately given the option of doing so! This isn't fake power, this isn't a figurehead, a joke; this is something that begins with a major concession and that could lead to even more positive changes if Aziraphale plays his cards right.

Or maybe it is a joke. Maybe it's a trap. Maybe they don't intend on giving Aziraphale real power. But they would still, even in that scenario, be giving him information. The only reason the original Armageddon failed to happen is because Crowley had the right connections in Hell to be the one who brought Adam to the hospital. Adam's baby swap was an accident, but one that he was in a position to do intentionally. The process of raising Warlock to hopefully not end the world also depended on Crowley and Aziraphale being in positions where they knew who Warlock was and where to find him. When used correctly, information is its own form of power.

Living a quiet life in a bookshop is nice until the world explodes around you; even if Aziraphale didn't expect the Second Coming to be so soon, he's immortal and knew he would be alive to see it whenever it happened. And unlike Crowley, Aziraphale isn't willing to go off and live on Alpha Centauri with only a single companion. He wants to save the world.

And Heaven offers him a way to. A chance to change how Heaven operates. Even if Aziraphale couldn't tear down the whole system there, he could make progress. Yes, by working with a bunch of assholes with a bad history. Yes, by making compromises. But for the people he could help, it would be worth it.

Aziraphale didn't choose Heaven over Earth. Aziraphale made the choice to go where he could help Earth the most, even if it involved sacrificing the life he'd built there. It was a choice made out of love.

(While Crowley chose the other kind of activism. Crowley says "why vote? both sides are the same anyways. why run for office? you'll never get elected. anyone who tries to make incremental progress is a corporate shill." He's great at helping the person directly in front of him, but when it comes to wider society, he's given up. He has his reasons, of course. But it doesn't escape me that he's still ready to cut and run away from Earth at any moment. He thinks it's romantic for Gabriel and Beelzebub to run off to Alpha Centauri together. Rather than putting down roots, his plants live in his car.)

And yes, Aziraphale has many emotional reasons to hope Heaven can improve. But it's also practical. We've seen how much time he spent trying to hide his good deeds from Gabriel; at least Muriel will be able to be more blatant with hers when he's boss. He can always go back to Earth if it fails, but this offer to change Heaven won't come twice.

And of course he wanted to take Crowley with. Finally, a chance to work together without it being a secret! Think of everything they could accomplish! Heaven admitted they were right all along, and now instead of high wire rules-lawyering, they get to make the rules!

Crowley doesn't trust that. Crowley's not touching that. Work with corrupt people and you'll become corrupted; better to stay as far from it all as possible. The system won't ever change. It's the bandstand fight all over again: try to change a corrupt system or get out.

But that's activist infighting for you.