#it’s definitely some sort of social skill issue but like. why does this keep happening with EVERYONE I meet irl?

[moonjade]

When you think you’re over something and then you see a reminder of it and you start hurting again like the thing had just happened 🙃

[mimi-saurio]

The fact that there's two versions of the theme song. "Kids In America" and "Leave it Up to Me" were certified bops. (Also, "I Have the Ring".)

Love how it's understandable when Sheen or Cindy be crazy, but the minute Jimmy shows any signs of that, everyone is unsettled. (His little dance before the Egyptian Beach Party.)

These two would be the type to run two separate rival companies whose seemingly at odds with each other on the surface, but secretly work together. The "fighting" is just a marketing strategy. The private negotiation meetings? Those are just flirting sessions. :P

Yeah, I heard it was a copyright thing at the time that lead to the name change. James [Issac Neutron] in particular was something Judy's VA came up with, just like Hugh's VA came up with the nicknames. (Heh, whenever Jimmy goes through some emotional crisis, expect Cindy to be the one to pick him back up.)

I kinda understand where the other kids are coming from to an extent; when you get stuck in the class with the one kid that's so naturally gifted, there's an unintended pressure that comes with that. More from the school than the kid themselves. "Why try your best if you'll get outshined no matter what", so to speak. Jimmy is not really trying to get people on his level, just want to share his interest just like anyone else with theirs. He's prone to act out when he's not acknowledged because his skills often isolates him and use as a recuring source to antagonize him. It's very clear that his intelligence has led to some insecurity issues with him and have him do things he'd usually talk himself out of. (While not 100% innocent, if Carl and Sheen weren't a constant support for him social-wise, I don't doubt the possibility of Jimmy just eventually snapping and lashing out his anger on everyone in the school. If the N-Men episode was anything to go by; granted that was influenced by radiation.)

Even though it was the bad future, it was kinda wholesome that it was implied the three lived together as adults.

According to the creator, we actually came VERY close to something at one point a few years ago before it got dropped unfortunately. Ironically enough, it was around the time they started acknowledging the series more upfront again and it's been increasing ever since. (Just last week they used stock footage of Jimmy in that NFL Slimetime thing and I believe he's getting some new Funkos this year. Even the FOP: A New Wish crew said they're not against doing a Power Hour 4 if they get a season 2.) It's definitely not proof of anything and I'm not holding my breath, but if there ever were a time to drop some unexpected JN news, better do it while everyone's on high alert for crumbs.

I understand why they wouldn't use the movie's music in the show, but Kids in America was legendary and deserves to be in an epic scene in the show, too! Libby's songs are also legendary, uhhh, and the Valentine's song!! AND HUGH'S SONG OMG Jimmy Neutron was so good!!

Whenever Jimmy dances they panic XD !! it happened also in the Rubie's episode.

Jimmy and Cindy would deny their marriage just to keep the rivalry of their companies on fire!! or exploit their relationship to compete so the media would pay attention to the irony of them being husband and wife and CEO rivals. Is one or another I can't see an in-between. ALSO I think Jimmy would also have some sort of job as a spy right? I mean it's pretty clear he will keep in contact with Jet and the government in the future, would be nice to imagine how that would work.

I didn't know about the names being additions from the VAs that's awesome!! THEY LOVED THEIR FICTIONAL SON OMG ;UUUU;

Yes, being smart will inevitably get him into that position, and it's sad because Jimmy never does it to mock their classmates. Actually, in the first episode when he wants to downgrade his brain, he really feels self-conscious while showing his project. He even said to Libby that her project was interesting to make her feel better because as you said, they are exhausted to try and do something to show in class when they know Jimmy would do something 10 times better. Agreed with the insecurities I think that is also why he is so polite, to empathize the fact that he is no enemy he can't help but be brilliant, but that doesn't mean he wants to shame others. OMG the N-Man episode !! I kind of feel that Jimmy's anger comes from a shallow area, like his shortness, he is self-aware of this since the movie and would totally become worse if there were no Carl and Sheen.

THE THREE AMIGOPS, there is something in the way they all have a horrid future and still find comfort in their group. THEY KEPT CARL SAFE WHILE BEING PERSECUTED FOR YEARS AHHH <3!!

I recall there was a podcast and a new render of Jimmy as a High Schooler around the internet years ago (I don't remember if it was just a fan-art 3D modeling but it was mentioned by Jimmy's VA I think) but yes I'm aware they played with the idea too, I'm still hoping but sadly I don't see why would Nickelodeon do another season unless they sell the rights to other company which is not exactly something they can do easily. Didn't know about the FOP: ANW Crossover THAT WOULD BE LEGENDARY, the new show has been awesome too!! and I'm begging for a second season also, they deserve it!!

Thanks for the message!!

[merakiui]

Diluc, Kaeya, Xiao, and Childe Finding out That You’re Being Abused HCs

cw: mentions/descriptions of (physical and emotional) abuse, injuries, depressive mood/thoughts, implied violence **please proceed with caution and do not read if this is triggering! note - submissions are confusing for me, so I wrote it in this format. I hope that was okay! 

@tuestika said: Hi! Sorry that I send my request through submission, tumblr has sometimes eaten my asks either wholly or have omnomned whole ask xD Usually my requests sent through submissions arrive intact so…. I saw that you had done Scaramouche reacting finding out their s/o is being abused headcanons, may I request headcanons for Kaeya, Diluc, Xiao and Childe finding out their their s/o is being abused? Keep up good job! <3

🔥 Diluc 🔥

Diluc might not be the most vocal person in the world, but he’s definitely observant. He’s gotten rather skilled at picking apart your social cues because he’s spent a lot of time with you. 

So when you barge into his tavern one evening, looking absolutely disheveled and asking for one of the Knights, he’s feeling two emotions: confusion and irritation. 

For one, you shouldn’t even entrust your issue to those inadequate Knights. Nevertheless, you are his friend and he isn’t going to kick you out just because you mentioned them. 

He waves you over to the bar and is thoroughly shocked when you beg him to let you hide behind it. Then he notices your split lip and the fresh injuries on your face and forearms, and he wastes no time in getting to the point.

“Why were you out so late fighting hilichurls? I hope you haven’t led any here. We don’t need that sort of trouble right now.”

“Sorry. No, that’s not it. I just—you’re the only one...” You’re struggling to piece a coherent statement together, too busy looking over your shoulder to keep track of your thoughts. “I didn’t know where I could go. I mean, I thought of you and—“

“Please slow down. Start at the beginning.”

More concerned over your safety than professionalism, Diluc allows you to slip behind the bar counter, where you cower on the ground to avoid being seen. 

You gesture for him to come down to your height and he sighs, silently complying when he finds there aren’t any new customers to serve. Bending down to your level, he holds onto the countertop to keep his balance and then he locks eyes with you. 

“What exactly happened?”

You inhale a shuddering breath, wrapping your sore arms around yourself for comfort. Tears are gathering in your eyes as you recall the event. Your abuser had found you after you’d left to get some fresh air, they’d cornered you in a secluded alley, and—you can’t finish the rest of the story.

Diluc doesn’t expect you to continue. He nods as he lets the information sink in, already harboring a deep resentment for this despicable individual. 

“Wait here. I’ll close the tavern early. In the meantime, we should see to your injuries and then we’ll look for that person.”

“I really think we should tell the Knights...” you mumble, knowing he’ll disapprove. “They’re more suited to these types of cases.”

“The Knights are incompetent. The investigation will take days, if not weeks. What happens if your abuser knows they’ll be coming for them? They’ll try to escape and then there’ll be no telling where they’ve gone.”

“I know, but it wouldn’t hurt to—“

“I’ll take care of it.”

You try to object because it’s dangerous and you don’t want him to get injured on your behalf. But he’s insistent in his decision, claiming that if the Knights can’t help you no one can. And you really wouldn’t feel safe if your abuser was still roaming free, so you have no other choice but to allow him to carry out the investigation himself.

And Diluc can be quite clever at times. It won’t be hard to traverse the interior of Mondstadt at night, where his identity melts away into that of the sneaky Darknight Hero. 

He’s going to protect you no matter what. Your abuser won’t receive an ounce of sympathy from Diluc. All he feels is cold hatred when he catches them. Someone as precious as you does not deserve to be put through such torment, and he’ll see to it that your abuser pays a hefty price to make up for all of the damage they’ve caused.

🧊 Kaeya 🧊

Kaeya can’t understand why you’ve started isolating yourself from everyone. In the past, you were always such great friends with the Knights, always catching up to talk to one of them.

He’d spent a lot of time with you and has since gotten to know you through lighthearted conversations and gossip from the people of Mondstadt. 

For someone so appreciated and well-known, he can’t wrap his head around why you might want to suddenly disappear, hiding yourself away as if you didn’t exist. 

And then he happens to catch you in town one day while you’re out running some errands. It’s so like him to pop in with a few flirty lines, but the words stick in his throat when he notices the bandages stuck to your arms and legs. 

“That can’t be good,” he says as he approaches you, leaning ever so gracefully against a wooden support beam. “Why don’t we find Barbara? I’m sure she’ll have you patched up in no time, my dear friend.”

You don’t think you’re worth it so you shake your head, nervously hoping he’ll take the hint and go away. 

“I hope you’re not accepting those dangerous commissions again,” he adds, half teasing and half serious. You can’t tell whether he’s trying to sound chiding or not. 

“Please just...leave me be. I’m a little busy right now.” You try to leave the stall you’re at, walking stiffly to avoid limping in front of him. “I’m not feeling well, so if you’ll excuse me—“

Kaeya pushes off from the beam, standing in front of you with a posture that appears immovable. “By order of the Calvary Captain,” he’s saying, a playful glint in his eyes, “you aren’t allowed to move from that spot until you tell me what’s bothering you and why you’re covered head to toe in bandages.”

You can easily object to such an order, but you figure it’s better to answer instead of arguing over your physical condition. So you explain a modified version of the story, telling him that you simply got into a disagreement and it ended in bruises on both sides. 

Kaeya hears the tremble in your voice when you say it; you’re lying. His expression softens at once and he steps away, indicating that you’re free to leave. But you don’t; you’re looking at him with such a helpless, pleading look. It breaks his heart.

You break before him, lips quivering as you beg for his help. You’re so scared and alone, and you’re not sure how long you can suffer through this before it seriously hurts you. 

“This is the first time I’ve gotten out in weeks.” So that explains your sudden isolation. “Please... I don’t want to go back home anymore. I’ll do anything. Just don’t let them hurt me again.”

Kaeya’s absolutely stunned to hear the silent revelation in your words. You’re awkwardly reaching to undo one of the bandage wrappings to prove your point, but he stops you short. That’s all the proof he needs.

You’ll be brought back to the Knights of Favonius’ Headquarters to be tended to while he gathers a team to search for your abuser. Since you gave him a solid description, it shouldn’t be too hard to find them. 

And once they’re apprehended, Kaeya will subject them to a grueling interrogation. There will be no gentle punishment; it’s going to be as unforgiving as the abuse you had to suffer through. 

☁️ Xiao ☁️

You’ve never really been keen on physical touch and Xiao understands that completely. He usually avoids any sort of interaction to begin with, unless it’s absolutely necessary, so it’s not a surprise whenever you shy away from large crowds.

He has grown rather fond of you, which has lead to the two of you meeting at Wangshu Inn for some Almond Tofu and relaxed chit-chat.

During one of your many conversations, you bring up a few alarming statements. They’re just personal points you’d like to change, such as your weak fighting spirit or the way your joints brokenly click when you stretch. 

Xiao wonders why you’d want to change yourself. You’re not usually this doubtful of yourself. In the past, you would always play the role of his smiling friend, putting on a positive face even when he was in a disagreeable mood. 

Xiao is examining your movements as you awkwardly explain yourself and when your arms move he catches the sight of a rope burn etched into your wrist. 

“What happened?” He gestures to your sleeve, to which you react in a nervous manner, shyly pulling your sleeve down to hide it. Xiao frowns a bit. “Did you get into an accident?”

“No, of course not! I’m fine. It’s just a result of my clumsiness.”

It really doesn’t look like that to Xiao and when he truly looks at you again he finds that you appear abnormally tired and exhausted. He isn’t going to sugarcoat anything and he could be making a giant assumption, but he still asks.

“Is someone hurting you?”

Your eyes widen for a split second and Xiao catches that movement like a cat drawn to a laser pointer. He won’t force you to explain unless you feel comfortable doing so. The last thing he wants is upsetting you or pressuring you into something you don’t want to talk about.

Eventually, though, the story will come to light and he’ll hear all about the horrors you’ve gone through. That rope burn was just one of many punishments you’ve had to endure, and Xiao’s just about ready to snap. How dare someone lay their filthy hands upon you in such a violent way?

Xiao will calmly tell you to stay at Wangshu Inn or anywhere else in Liyue where you’ll be safe. He’ll watch over you while you take time to recuperate and heal. He’s going to make sure you’ll never have to go through something like that ever again.

Having Xiao by your side makes the healing process all the more comforting.

And when you fall asleep in a soft, warm bed, Xiao slips out into the night to search for your abuser. It won’t be a pretty sight once he gets his hands on the human trash who dared to hurt you.

💧 Childe 💧

He’s very perceptive when it comes to your health and overall well-being. After all, he’s got brothers and sisters to care for; perception is absolutely necessary in order to keep them happy and healthy.

So it doesn’t take long for him to realize your behavior is uncharacteristic. You’re jumpier than usual, always apologizing for the littlest of things, and you’ll look over your shoulder whenever you sense something.

It’s almost as if you expect someone to suddenly come at you, which isn’t all that odd. Childe has been known to keep you on your toes when he’s looking for a fight.

But on one particular day he manages to give you a spook when he comes up beside you, grinning and showing up in your peripheral so suddenly that it nearly gives you a heart attack. 

You’re so frightened as you back away, practically folding in on yourself in an effort to protect yourself from an imaginary blow. Childe pauses, that silly grin fading when he realizes you’re shaking.

“Hey, it wasn’t that scary. Come on, comrade!” He’s approaching you warily, not entirely sure why you’re acting the way you are. He’s always been spontaneous; you should be used to this by now.

But you refuse to let him come any closer, having to distance yourself so that you can ease your racing heart and hyperventilating lungs. Once you’ve calmed down, embarrassment floods through you at the fact that Childe just witnessed all of that. 

Childe will ask if you’re okay with him stepping closer and if you nod he’ll be on you like a hawk, pulling up your sleeves before you can stop him. 

For once, you catch an expression you normally don’t find on Childe: surprise. He’s genuinely shocked at what he sees: dark bruises and shallow lacerations from something sharp. 

Either you got these in your many sparring matches or there’s another factor at play here, and Childe is almost certain it’s the latter.  

His voice is gentle as he asks you to explain what’s going on and once you do he’s already set on finding the one who did this. He seems to forget all about his Fatui work, wanting to capture your abuser and give them a piece of his mind—and subject them to more than a few pieces of his strength, too. 

He’ll have you protected in no time, offering to take you to the best healer. You’ll be treated wonderfully and he’ll even lay off on your sparring matches for a while. 

In the meantime, once he gets his hands on your abuser, everything becomes fair game. After all, someone has to handle the brunt of his anger and pent-up bloodlust from the lack of a fight. And your abuser is the perfect match to pummel into the ground. Childe shows absolutely no mercy for them. 

[juliabohemian]

oh dear

I have noticed a number of posts circulating which imply that ANY character being mean to Loki EVER and for ANY reason = abuse.

I will admit that I initially felt mostly irritation at what appeared, on the surface, to constitute such a complete and utter lack of critical thinking. What I’ve realized, though, is that people who make such posts definitely believe what they are saying. And like everything people do and say, there’s a deeper reason for it. The fact is, traumatized characters attract traumatized fans. And not all of those fans are in a good place, emotionally. And those people are perfectly valid, even if the conclusions they draw are not.

When it comes to fiction, good characters are complex. That means they are conflicted and flawed. They make mistakes. They lash out when they are afraid or hurting. They sometimes hurt other characters. Loki fits that bill very well. It’s one of the reasons he is so popular. Not just with traumatized people, but with people in general. He’s relatable.

The problem comes when fans relate to fictional characters, but really aren’t conscious of why, because they aren’t all that conscious of themselves. They haven’t done a whole lot of self-reflection. Maybe because they aren’t ready, because their trauma is too fresh. Or maybe they are still living in crisis and don’t have the freedom to self-reflect. Those possibilities are all valid.

But very often, when a person goes through trauma and doesn’t have the luxury (and yes, it is a luxury) of working through it, their reasoning skills can become flawed as a result. Trauma, especially childhood trauma, tends to have a negative effect on our ability to socialize and form intimate relationships, because it damages our ability to interpret the intentions of others. We call this hostile attribution bias.

The problem with hostile attribution bias, is that it makes it difficult to tell when people genuinely mean you harm. If a person’s words, actions, or facial expressions are ambiguous in any way, they will be interpreted as being hostile in nature. This keeps one on the offensive, constantly, always anticipating the next blow. Very often, no such blow is coming. But it doesn’t matter. Fear is real, and the experience of it is real.

It stands to reason that someone who struggles to interpret the intentions of real-life people would also experience the same difficulty with fictional characters. For instance, fans who identify with Loki because they perceive him as being a victim will have a hard time seeing him as anything else. Thus, anyone who harms Loki in any way is just further proof that the universe is against him and always will be.

This is referred to as an external locus of control. It means that a person sees life as something that is happening TO them, and that they are powerless to affect the outcome. It’s also important to note that people with this mentality struggle deeply to heal from their trauma. They are stuck in a sort of Groundhog Day scenario, living the same thing out over and over again. Because of their flawed perception, everything that happens to them feels like an extension of that initial trauma.

So, it would make perfect sense that a person with a history of trauma, who suffers from attribution bias, and who has an external locus of control, would be extremely uncomfortable watching anything bad happen to Loki. In fact, it would probably be traumatic for them.

And while their feelings and their experience of those feelings are 100% real, their perception of reality is not entirely accurate. In other words, what they think is happening is not necessarily what is happening.

Loki’s initial trauma, believe it or not, was just being abandoned as an infant. Even though he can’t remember it, that experience alone can result in lifelong emotional struggles. In real life, we refer to this as an attachment disorder. A person with an attachment disorder usually develops major issues with abandonment. They also suffer from (wait for it) attribution bias. And that bias absolutely affects their perception.

Loki’s next trauma was being raised in a dysfunctional family. Not only were they dysfunctional, but they weren’t a very good fit for Loki. Loki was a quiet, contemplative person. He was a thinker, an intellectual. He would rather read or do magic. So, not a good fit for Asgardian society. The combination of Loki’s initial trauma, with his inherent temperament, and his dysfunctional family is what led to the inevitable breakdown that is regarded as Loki’s “villain” arc. I’d like to point out that, in reality, such a person would have probably suffered a breakdown much sooner than that. Typically, prior to reaching adulthood.

Loki’s next trauma was encountering Thanos. Now, we have no idea exactly what happened between Loki and Thanos. We know only that it wasn’t good and that it resulted in Loki being absolutely terrified of him. Other than that, details are fuzzy. I think it’s fair to assume that whatever mistreatment Loki endured probably qualified as torture. Whether it was physical or psychological, we cannot know for sure.

While Loki’s Thanos-related trauma was NOT an extension of his family-related trauma, his decision to entangle himself with Thanos was a product of that trauma. By which I mean that his willingness to align himself with someone like Thanos came from a place of desperation, and a desire to prove himself to someone who he perceived as being qualified to validate him.

So, fast forward to the LOKI show. Our version of Loki never returned to Asgard in chains, was never told that it was his birthright to die, nor endured any gaslighting from Ragnarok-Thor. He never got his neck broken by Thanos. He never went through any of that. He arrived at the TVA, fresh off his failed attempt to take over planet Earth. He was all fired up and defensive, as anyone in his situation would probably be.

Now, here’s where we need to put our critical thinking caps on. Because, I hate to tell you this, folks...but unlike most of the Loki content we’ve gotten prior, this content is actually well written. It’s VERY well written. And while it might be tempting to respond to it with pure emotion, it is imperative that we don’t abandon all logic and reason. This show is not an extension of the gauntlet of trauma we’ve watched Loki endure since he first appeared on screen. The creative minds involved in this venture ALL care deeply about Loki’s character and want to see him succeed (whatever that means for him).

Enter Mobius. He’s a cog in a very big machine. He likes to think of himself as being more than that. He establishes a rapport with his boss in the hopes of distinguishing himself from his peers. His interest in his work is personal. He likes what he does.

From Mobius’ point of view, Loki is an asset. He has information that could help solve the bigger puzzle. But Mobius exists in a world that affords him access to multiple realities. He has probably met dozens of Lokis. And he has probably seen hundreds of people casually pruned or executed or reset. It’s just part of the world he happens to be in. And he doesn’t question it, because he has been brainwashed.

So, does Mobius attempt to manipulate Loki? Absolutely. Just another day at the office. And it works, because he knows Loki better than Loki knows himself, has studied him and other Lokis. And it’s hard not to be mad at Mobius for causing Loki pain. Especially when that is followed up by Loki eagerly taking Mobius up on his offer to help track down the other Loki variant.

I think some people might find Loki’s enthusiasm disconcerting. And there are certainly aspects of it that can be considered such. Loki, at his core, just wants to be told that he is doing a good job, that his contributions matter. That part of him is definitely a product of trauma. But is Loki motivated entirely by his trauma? Not really. Despite his manipulations, Mobius offers Loki the closest thing to warmth and compassion that he has seen for a while. Some of that is genuine and some of that is not. And faced with the reality that everything he knows is gone, Loki does what most people in his situation would do, he tries to be productive. He gets busy. He distracts himself. Because at the moment, little else is under his control.

Despite all of that, you simply cannot have compassion for Loki and none for Mobius. Because Mobius is a victim too. He was abducted from his own reality. He is living a lie. He is part of something that, upon deeper reflection, he realizes he doesn’t agree with. He is so very much like the Loki we first met in 2011. He is such a well-written and multi-faceted character, I thoroughly enjoy his on screen time with Loki.

But I understand that there are people who are not in a place, emotionally, where they can overlook such plot devices. And I sincerely hope that those eventually people find healing. In the meantime, let’s try to remember that this is a work of fiction. And unlike real-life trauma, when it becomes upsetting, we can turn it off and walk away.

[obeiii-mee]

How will the bros react to MC self-doubting themselves? Like saying bad things about them or can't be serious someone give them compliment.

Supportive demon bois coming right up! Sorry I took so long to write this anon! Thank you so much for the ask! (Also, thank you all for the love on my previous posts!)

————————————

The Brothers with an MC who self doubts themselves:

Lucifer:

-As the embodiment of pride itself, Lucifer has an overwhelming amount of confidence, almost all the damn time

-So, he was flabbergasted to learn that you weren’t the same

-He always insisted that you aren’t anything but perfect, yet you always seemed to brush the compliments off with a shrug and an awkward smile

-Well, shit, we can’t have that

-Lucifer just got 10x more serious about the matter

-He pulls a really stupid concerned face whenever you insult yourself and he looks more and more like a 48 year old man/dad each time it happens

-He, as of late, increased the number of pet names he has for you and the amount of compliments he gives you each day

-He refuses to let you talk badly about yourself anywhere, at any point in time and encourages every little step you take towards bettering yourself like crazy

- Lucifer wants to prove to you that you are an absolute ray of sunshine and he will go to any lengths to do just that (do not ask)

-He’s even more affectionate than usual which confuses just about everyone in the House of Lamentation, yourself included

-His brothers are feeling a disturbance in the force and they don’t know how to feel about it

-You are possibly the best thing that’s happened to him since he fell as angel and Lucifer is ready to do whatever he can to help you realise that

Mammon:

-“You’re an idiot!”

-“*Sigh*, I know.”

-“Wha-Wait! Y-you can’t say thAT!”

-The Great Mammon is seriously worried about his human

-Being the dense motherfucker he is (i still love him tho) it took him weeks to realise you’re not all that confident in yourself

-At some point in your relationship, he jokingly called you annoying and you just went “Yeah I’ve been told. Sorry.”

-His jaw literally dropped and he almost cried

-He would have choked if he was drinking something

-Tsundere Mammon has gone bye bye and here comes the cuddling teddy bear that is your boyfriend

-He also doesn’t have as much self love for himself as he sometimes pretends to have so he’s kinda in the same boat

-Which means your boat is leaking and you’re perfectly fine with it while he’s panicking and trying to throw water overboard with his hands

-His brothers call him an idiot a lot but he’s a very sociable guy with people skills that he uses all the time in order to coax you out of your self pitiying shell

-Will whine every time you call yourself ‘useless’ or disagree with his compliments because what the hell, you’re literally the most gorgeous being ever let me love youuuu

-When it comes to you and your happiness, he ain’t fucking around. He will snarl at anyone that even looks at you in the wrong way

-Did that to Lucifer once, guess a what happened

-You’ve definitely helped him come to terms with the fact that he is loveable and not a good for nothing scum

-So now it’s your turn!

-Let him kiss your insecurities away please

-Your presence makes him feel wanted so he wants the same for you!

Levi:

-Well then

-It takes two to tango ya know?

-He is the KING of self loathing and no confidence whatsoever in anything he does so every time you put yourself down, he counters it with a self deprecating insult as well

-“I suck.”

-“Nah, you’re pretty awesome normie. I’m the shut in, disgusting otaku who can barely set foot outside his bedroom without having an anxiety attack.”

-It’s like you’re trying to outdo the other on who is worse

-Truth is, he really admires you, especially knowing you chose to date him; an anime nerd with no social life and no communication skills whatsoever

-It hurts a bit, every time he builds up the courage to actually compliment you and you not taking it seriously

-That’s because he recognises that he’s the same and just as harsh on himself as you are

-Levi knows self hatred is something that takes time to demolish

-But you are his Henry after all (also his partner but whatevs)

-He’s not gonna leave you hanging when you need him the most

-He also gradually stops calling you a normie as your relationship progresses, though it still slips through every now and again

-Basically, the first time he realised that you think negatively of yourself, his immediate reaction was: Haha lmao relatable

-But now, every time it happens, he gets all serious

-Puts his controller down and everything, it’s like witnessing a very rare phenomenon and it’s creepy as shit

-He’s also made an effort to be more physically affection though he is kinda shy about it because damn it he just wants to hug you every time you speak badly of yourself

-Probably writes a list at some point stating all the reasons why you are better than him and Ruri chan combined, it’s rlly sweet

Satan:

-He’s a bit curious as to where that mentality has come from

-What triggered you to be so self doubtful?

-He’s basically your psychotherapist and asks you a lot of questions trying to find different causes and solutions for your issues

-Honestly, he puts so much effort into trying to understand, reading books about it from the human realm and whatever he can find in order to help you

-He scrunches up his nose every time you call yourself an idiot or anything of the sort

-Satan knows that insisting you’re wonderful won’t exactly help you overcome this problem of yours

-But that doesn’t stop him from doing it

-It’s not like you can ignore his comments because he will keep complimenting you until you accept them

-He also repeats a lot of pick up lines but that’s just part of being his partner

-What do you mean you’re worthless?!! He would literally give away all of his books and his hatred for Lucifer in exchange for your well being!

-Satan is possibly the smartest out of all of his brothers, so he uses a tactical approach on this one

-Direct affectionate gestures don’t work on you so he’s gonna be more subtle

-Would slightly hint that you are amazing every time you do something for him, like fetching him a book or something

-“Ah thank you. I don’t know what I would do without you love.”

-He’s a lot smoother than he gives himself credit for

-He just appreciates your existence and that there’s someone out there that he doesn’t need to be act hostile or fake toward

-Satan is ready to sit down and listen to you talk about your insecurities for hours on end

-You would quietly say something bad about yourself and he would run through the House of Lamentation before bursting into the room you are in, shouting ‘No! That’s wrong!’ (going Danganronpa on your asses)

-“Welp, I fucked up again. I can’t do anything right.”

-And then, in the distance you hear boss music starting

Asmo:

-*Shocked Gasp*

-How could you say such things about yourself???? Is that even leGAl?

-Of course, the literally prince of Lust, with all of his narcissism, has never experienced things like ‘self doubt’ of ‘bad self esteem’

-Pfft, the fuck is that?

-He only uses the most positive of words when he describes himself

-So obviously he almost falls off the bed when he hears you insulting yourself for the first time

-But ya know, that would leave bruises on his beautiful skin

-“Oh darling, you’re not annoying or a moron! You’re not anything like Mammon!”

-That was a below belt fatal hit, press f in the chat for the second eldest

-At some point, he just genuinely believes you’ve been spending too much time with Levi and that his negativity started rubbing off on you

-But then you tell him you’ve always been like this and he almost has a crisIS

-He’s like ‘Haha, no, we’re going to get a spa day out tomorrow and a few shopping sprees so I can prove to you that you are magnificent in every way imaginable.’

-Asmo loves pampering you in general but on the days he sees you feeling extra sorry for yourself, he goes above and beyond

-Gets very hurt when you brush off his compliments because he just wants you to accept the fact that you’re beautiful

-He’s like a supportive mom lmao, whenever you’re feeling self doubtful, he goes “You’re doing great sweetie, keep it up I’m really proud of you.”

-It’s up to you to decide whether that helps or not

-He’s such a sweetheart in reality, it’s hard to remember that he’s supposed to be horny all the time

-Well he is but that’s not the point, you’re way more important

-Asmo is so much fun to write cuz I can make him so dramatic it’s hilarious

Beel:

-Oh no :(

-He gets very sad everytime you self deprecate yourself

-You can’t do it with him in the room because he’s going to start crying and give you this kicked puppy stare, it will break your heart

-Beel kinda comes over and goes “If I give you some of my food will you please stop saying bad things about yourself? Because it’s not true.”

-Well you can’t say no to that face

-He feels like it’s his fault you’re this self doubtful even though you’ve tried to explain to him you’ve always been like this

-He goes crying to his twin half the time because he doesn’t know what to do

-“I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to drop it! Fucking hell, I’m such a fucking klutz.”

-“Sniffle no you’re not.”

-He’s like, giving you large portions of his food now

-Because food makes him happy so he wants you to be happy too

-🙂

-His brothers go in shock every time because the only other person Beel has ever shared his food with before was Belphie

-Physical affection goes through the roof with this guy

-Bone crushing hugs btw

-Your self worth is so immeasurable with him, you can’t even measure it

-W h o a

-I’m being serious, don’t talk badly about yourself in front of him unless you want to be hugged into next week

-You are a literal angel in his eyes, of course he thinks highly of you

-He’s just hoping his presence isn’t making your self esteem worse, that’s the thing that keeps him up at night

-Idk why but he does think that he is a bad influence on your mental well being since he’s a demon

-Beel gives you compliments all the time and it confuses him when you laugh them off uncertainly because he wasn’t joking or lying??

-He’s always supportive of your choices and encourages you to be more confident

-The same way you show your support everytime you come to his games to cheer him on

-Overall, he just wants you to feel special and appreciated

-Because you deserve it

-IneedmyselfaBeel

Belphie:

-He feels like absolute shit

-Becuase he’s well aware he‘s called you a few...not so nice words in the past

-Back then, he only thought he meant everything he said but now that he’s hearing you accept his insults and actually repeating them yourself?

-It hurts his brain and he wants to smash his head against all four walls of the room for being such a cretin

-You do tell him it’s not exactly his fault you think so badly of yourself

-But he still believes he fueled it

-So now he needs to fix it

-He’s tried everything and I mean everything

-It’s kinda working, slow progress is made which he’s really happy about but you know, it’s gonna take a while

-He finally settles on physical affection as the best way to communicate his gratefulness for you being youself

-Oh, he wasn’t hugging you before? He is now, get your ass next to him and let him cuddle you

-Handholding has increased by 69% in the last month, sorry for the loss of your right hand with how much he squeezes it

-Sometimes, he can’t help but a throw an insult at you in a playful manner, because he’s an asshole

-But he always makes sure you understand that he was just joking

-He’s such a little shit, you would be having a chat with him and you would subtly drop a insult at yourself hoping he wouldn’t notice

-But then he stops dead in his tracks, kisses you, says “Shut up, you’re stunning” and then he goes right back to the previous conversation like nothing happened

-Accept his compliments damn it otherwise he will continue to bug you about it for the rest of the day

-He’s an eboy and he’s a dickhead a times, but he just goes soft for you tbh

-If you’re feeling really bad about yourself, he won’t even say anything

-He will just big spoon you for the next 24 hours, good luck going to the bathroom or any meals during that time

-Because once you’re in his grip, you’re not getting out that easily

-He gets so pissy if anyone says something even slightly negative about you to your face

-One time, a random demon called you stupid in one of the classes at RAD and he was like ‘bïtch excuse me what?’

-Snapped his head around at him and everything

-He would have done something worse but he was lazy and feeling really petty

-So Belphie kicked him in the privates from under his desk like a damn spoiled brat

-And then he turned his head back to you, all smiles and rainbows and puppies

-I’m simping so hard for a fictional character wtf

-I had to write more protective Belphie cuz I can’t find anything of the sort anymore and I need flUFF

(Haha, I don’t know what this post is, my writing has officially taken a shit lmao. Sorry this took so long to finish, I kept going back to edit all of them)

Al~

[yaimlight]

Rating: M

Pairings: Bakugou Katsuki x fem!reader / Todoroki Shoto x fem!reader

A/N: part of the Twos Company, Threes a Crowd series but can be read on own. Masterlist can be found here.

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“I can’t believe we got to see the Shredder and Dark Star fight” Midoriya said happily, chattering away about the video Aizawa had made them watch and analyse in today’s class but Shoto wasn’t listening. Instead his attention was focused on the girl just to the side of them, sat at her desk and staring longingly out the window.

He had been stealing glimpses at her all class, twisting in his seat as discreetly as possible but he was sure Momo had caught him a few times if the way she kept smiling at him was anything to go by. Thankfully she hadn’t said anything and Shoto trusted her enough to keep his secrets. He didn’t want the hassle that would come if the rest of the class found out about his and Y/Ns midnight meetings, even if they were all by accident. Well on his part anyway.

He had been surprised to find Y/N concentrating on her school work every time he looked round but then she had been acting a little odd the last few days. She hadn’t even tried to touch him last night when he walked in on her in the kitchen at 2am, making herself a cup of tea. Instead she had smiled tiredly at him over her shoulder, mumbling a quite hello before going back to her task.

He had been so shocked by the subdued meeting that he had been unable to move until she had brushed past him, hot cup in one hand and a bowl of what looked like the stir fry Bakugou had made for dinner that night in the other. She offered him another gentle smile as she said goodnight and disappeared back up the stairs to her room without Shoto having uttered a word in return. Five minutes later when he had finally remember why he had come down stairs in the first place Shoto discovered a cup of steaming green tea waiting for him on the side. It was strange to think she knew him so well already after such a short amount of time.

He knew it shouldn’t but the thought made his stomach flutter and his pulse race. He was the only one she had bothered to get to know, to talk to and spend actual time with. He didn’t know why she had picked him, what it was about him that had drawn her in but he was glad for it and would try his hardest to stick to the strange rules of that she had set, unless she withdraw from even him. He wanted this odd friendship to last because that’s all it was, friendship.

She sighed, folding her arms on top of the desk and lead her head down on top of them. She looked breath-taking, with the midday sun shining down on her and making it look like the sun was a bright halo above her head. Shoto had thought she looked many things since meeting her, beautiful, dangerous, melancholy but never angelic, not until this moment. No that wasn’t quite right. Y/N was many things but he wouldn’t say she was angelic, more like a fallen angel who had embraced all the mortal sins of man and looked good doing it.

“You okay Todoroki-kun?” Midoriya asked worriedly, placing a gentle hand on his arm. Reluctantly Shoto tore his eyes away from the glum looking girl and looked down at his friend, finding the smaller boy smiling softly up at him. Was he okay? He didn’t quite know. Physically yes he was fine but he defiantly felt confused maybe a little sad but they were nothing new, he often felt like that every day. Yet something felt a little off today and he couldn’t quite place his finger on it.

“Sorry” he said simply and Midoriya’s smile widened. “Oh don’t worry. Shall we go get some lunch?” Shoto hummed his agreement but honestly he wasn’t really that hungry but they had sparring practice afterwards and he would need the energy, especially if he ended up pared with Bakugou again. The angry blonde seemed to take it as an insult every time they were placed against one another and often come at Shoto with a ferocious tenacity that Shoto would always meet head on.

As they turned to make their way from the class movement out of the corner of his eyes caught his attention and Shoto turned back to look at Y/N as she quickly got up from her desk and shoved all her books into her bag. Maybe he could ask her to join them? It would be the friendly thing to do and she might say yes if he asked. She swung her bag over her shoulder, kicking her chair back in and turned towards him, heading for the door. Shoto sucked in a deep breath, readying himself but before he could even open his mouth to call out her name she was gone, breezing past him without even a glance.

Frowning Shoto followed after Midoriya as they headed towards the cafeteria, the other boy lost in his mumbling that he hadn’t seen Shoto’s complete and utter failure. Shoto was hurt and slightly confused by her sudden avoidance of him. Normally when he looked up at her during class he would at least catch her staring back at him a few times, a smug little smirk on her lips and eyes sparkling but today there had been nothing. No teasing smiles or little winks, not even a sideways glance. Well not for him anyway.

He had caught them twice, Bakugou twisting in his seat to scowl at her and every time Y/N smirked back, lifting her head up from her work and focusing all her attention on the angry blonde until he turned back with a huff. Shoto had never seen them interact before but then no one had ever seen him with Y/N before so there was nothing to say that they hadn’t been. Shoto didn’t know why but the thought of them two sneaking around upset him, made him angry even.

Most of their meeting happened at night and though sometimes it would be in hallways or training rooms the majority where in the kitchen. She was always so tactile, invading his personal space and pushing against him as she spoke, arms looping around him to hold him in place or hands pressing against his chest or sometimes his stomach. She would always greet him with ‘hello handsome’ or some variation and then proceeded to tease and taunt him, getting Shoto to say more in a few stolen moments than he did to his friends throughout the rest of the day.

That was until last night when something had changed. Shoto had thought maybe he had done something wrong or maybe she had grown bored of his cold demeanour and limited social skills but now he suspected maybe something else, or someone else was the reason for the sudden shift in her.

“Hey have you and Bakugou had another fight?” Shoto’s head snapped up from where he had been poking at his soba, surprised at Uraraka’s concerned question. He couldn’t even remember getting to the cafeteria let alone ordering his food and sitting down with friends. It seemed like that had been happening a lot though this last few weeks, Y/N occupying most of his thoughts.

Tipping his head to the side slight Shoto frowned. “No, why?” Uraraka nervously glanced over at Midoriya before her eyes snapped back to Shoto. “Well, Kacchan keeps staring at you” Midoriya looked up at Shoto through his eyelashes as he spoke, looking just as nervous as Uraraka had. Shoto’s frown deepened as he turned in his seat, looking behind him for the aforementioned boy. Sure enough Bakugou was glaring angrily at him, stabbing at his food with his chopsticks.

“Isn’t that just how he normally looks?” Shoto asked as he turned back around and started to eat in earnest. Bakugou glared at him a lot, at everyone actually so to find him doing it was nothing unusual but now he was aware of it Shoto could feel the other boy’s eyes on the back of his neck, the skin prickling under the intensity of it. Now that was unusual, the blonde wasn’t prone to staring for long periods of time and this had definitely been going on for longer than it should have.

“I don’t know, he does look pretty angry” Uraraka frowned as she spoke, looking over Shoto’s shoulder. Shoto didn’t know what the blonde’s problem was, he could only assume that him breathing the same air as the other teen had caused him some sort of offence. Though maybe he had found himself in the same situation as Shoto, thinking he was the only one then suddenly discovering you are not. It would explain the sudden hostility though with Bakugou it could very well be that he had just heard someone say that Shoto was good at something and his bizarre drive to be the best at everything had left him seething.

“Well whatever his issue I suggest staying clear of him. He will only get riled up and attempt to start a fight” Iida pushed up his glasses, looking seriously at them as he spoke. The three of them murmured their agreement, turning back to their food. The other three chatted happily around him, Shoto adding in odd words to show them he was paying attention but only just. He could still feel Bakugou’s eyes on him, his skin prickling with the heat of it. Shoto’s mind wandered trying to understand what had the other boy staring so intently at him but try as he might to come up with any other explanation his thoughts kept circling back to Y/N.

Now that he was really thinking about it there had been signs over the last few weeks that something was going on between Y/N and the other boy, the most noticeable being that Bakugou kept making extra food for her. She always moaned at the first bite regardless of what the other boy had made, her eyes fluttering closed and body relaxing. She always looked so content when she was eating and Shoto often found himself wondering what he would have to do to make her react the same way.

There had been the looks as well. Shoto knew that his observation skills were a little lacking outside of hero work but how he had managed to miss them up until today was beyond him. Maybe it had just been sheer luck on their part that he had never looked up at the exact time they had been gazing at one another. Well maybe not gazing, more like Katsuki scowling and Y/N teasingly smirking.

Really he should have known something was going on two weeks ago when Bakugou had slammed into him as he stalked out of the training rooms, cheeks flushed, pupils blown wide and growling. Shoto had thought nothing of it, not even when he stepped into the just vacated room and found Y/N sprawled across the floor, a wide smile on her lips as she stared up at the ceiling. He had thought they had been sparing but now he wasn’t so sure. He had been jealous at the time, that she would give that experience to the angry blonde instead of him but maybe that wasn’t the only experience she had given him.

Shoto could feel himself getting angrier at the thought of the two of them together, so lost in it that he didn’t even notice as they left the cafeteria and headed towards the changing rooms. Didn’t even say goodbye as Uraraka went into the girl’s looker room. He operated on autopilot, following after his friends as he went to his own locker and began to strip out of uniform.

Realistically he had no right to be angry, he had no claim to Y/N, no monopoly on her time but still he couldn’t shake the red hot ball that sat heavy in his stomach. How long had he been stupidly believing he was somehow special, unique in his ability to get the girls attention when in reality he was just one out of what? Two? Five? Ten? Hell maybe she had been secretly meeting up with the whole of the class, stringing them along and making them believe they were the special one. Shoto couldn’t quite believe that though, didn’t seem to fit the girl he knew. He always got the feeling that there time spent together, no matter how brief, was a rarity even for her.

So what made him and Bakugou so different from the others? Why would she seek them out instead of more social and friendly people like Kirishima or Midoriya? What exactly did she want from them? Shoto could probably guess what she wanted from Bakugou and what he would want in return.

Despite what some people would like to think Shoto wasn’t completely unobservant. He knew that Bakugou was attractive in a purely objective sense. He had heard the girls talking about it before, about his muscles, sharp jaw and large rough hands and how if it wasn’t for his rotten personality some of them might have tried to peruse him in the romantic sense. Then there was Y/N who was just stunning in Shoto’s eyes. The majority of the male students, and some of the girls from what he had heard, in the class could agree to that. Even Iida had said that her physical attributes were pleasing and coming from the prim and proper teen that was something, though he had blushed and stuttered through the whole statement.

Shoto knew that the two of them would look good together, could already imagine it. The two of them pushed together, cheeks flushed and lips kissed red. Their personality’s would complement the others perfectly, her teasing and playful nature only serving to driving Bakugou’s dominate and aggressive nature higher as he took from her whatever Y/N was willing to give him.

Shoto was the complete opposite of the blonde, quiet and subdued where he was loud and vigorous. The same went for their looks. Though he did have muscles they were nowhere near as prominent as the other teens, Shoto instead more lean and graceful. Momo had said he looked deceptively delicate, that it added to his beauty and that was why the girls always gushed over his looks. Shoto knew she was just being nice. He knew he wasn’t beautiful, the large scar on his face making that impossible. He had come to terms with it long ago but he knew how others looked at it.

The point being Shoto was nothing special when it came to looks, easily blending into the background where Bakugou always seemed to command the attention of the entire room every time he walked into it so he couldn’t really blame Y/N from wanting that kind of thing from him. Didn’t change the fact that Shoto didn’t really like the idea of it though.

The hot and heavy ball in his stomach seemed to tighten at the thought of them together, his anger bubbling up once again along with something else, something darker perhaps. Envy and sadness swirling together and mixing with his already burning anger. Sure Shoto was reserved, a little too blunt at times but out of the two of them he was the nicer person so why did Bakugou get to have Y/N in such an intimate way? Shoto may not have any experience in such things but he was a quick study and was confident he would be able to satisfy her better than the angry little mutt would be able to.

“Todoroki’s spoke to her”. Shoto froze at the mention of his name, hands hovering over the zipper of his jump suit. He had no clue what Mineta was talking about, hadn’t been listening to any of his class mates, so absorbed in his own thoughts that he had practically forgotten they were even there. “What! When?” Kaminari shouted and Shoto winced. He could feel himself starting to panic as he tried to recall what the others had been speaking about. From what Mineta had said and knowing how things tended to get when it was just the guys Shoto could only assume they were talking about the girls, well one specific girl but witch one. Shoto had spoken to the majority of the girls in their class over the last week, even some from other classes so they could be on about any one. Franticly he tried to think of who they could possibly be singling out but he was coming up empty, his mind suddenly going blank under the others attention.

“It’s true. I saw them the other night in the hallway and they looked pretty cosy if you know what I mean” Mineta said smugly and suddenly realisation dawned on him. Shoto knew what he was talking about, knew what it would have looked like to anyone else. They had passed in the corridor as Shoto made his way to Uraraka’s room for a study session with her, Midoriya and Iida. He had barley glanced her way before he had found himself pushed up against the wall, Y/N pressed up against him and pinning his hands to the wall at his side. She had pushed up onto her toes, lips brushing against his ear as she whispered. She had asked him if he knew what time the library closed, something so trivial but said in such a way that Shoto had had to close his eyes, trying to prevent the shiver that had run down his spine. It was the first time she had done something in such an open place, at a time where anyone could walk past and see them.

He had worried at being found in such a way but as soon as he had stuttered out the answer she had been gone, disappearing quickly down the hall and leaving him feeling cold without her warm body pressed so tightly against his. The encounter had lasted no more than a minute or two at best and he had thought he had gotten away with it, continuing onto Uraraka’s room and trying to will his blush away and calm his racing heart. Evidently Mineta had seen them though and now everyone knew his secret. He would never hear the end of it now and they would all renew their efforts to get Y/Ns attention. He didn’t want that though, didn’t want to share her limited attention with the rest of them. It was bad enough now he realised he had been losing out to Bakugou, he didn’t need the extra hassle of competing with the rest of the class. Didn’t think he would be the one who would come out on top.

“Dude you’ve been holding out on us. Come on spill”. Shoto took a deep breath, trying to gain some sort of control of his racing thoughts. Sighing he zipped up his jumpsuit, turning back to his locker to pull out his boots. “I would hardly call it a conversation, we barley exchanged words”. He was amazed that he managed to keep his voice steady and it hadn’t been a lie either. He had said maybe two or three words to her and that had been it. Definitely not a conversation.

“Do you normally let people push their chest against yours and whisper in your ear to exchange a few words?” Shoto was actually contemplating freezing the little pervert solid at this point. He knew he was blushing, could feel his face heating up and it didn’t help that he could feel Bakugou’s intense glare on the back of his neck again. Maybe he could just grab his belt and make a run for it. “Dude are you banging the new chick?” Shoto almost choked at the other boy’s loud question.

He didn’t know what to do, had never been the centre of this kind of conversation before. Shoto knew he should deny it. He hardly spent a few minutes with Y/N when he saw her and that really wasn’t long enough for a kiss let alone the two of them to bang, as Kaminari put it. Not that he had ever kissed her to know it wasn’t long enough. Though he imagined if he ever did get the chance he would want to take his time, just enjoying the feel of her lips against his. His tongue poking and prodding at her until she would open up and let his tongue slip into her mouth. No this wasn’t the time for those sort of thoughts, he needed to say something and quickly. The longer he stayed silent the harder it would be to deny the fact. Oh god he felt sick.

“I don’t think that’s really any of our business” Deku stuttered out, coming to his rescue. He was always such a hero, coming to the aid of those who needed it and Shoto couldn’t be happier than to call him a friend right now. Sighing he turned round to face the rest of the room, finally ready to deny their accusations but before he could say anything Bakugou shot up from the bench he had been sat on, grabbing his gauntlets and slamming his locker shut. All eyes turned to him as he spoke, growling out his words and clearly angry. “Who gives a shit if he’s getting his dick wet. Just hurry the fuck up and get your arses out there so I can beat them”.

Shoto stood, stunned at the other teens words. Was he trying to help Shoto out or was he just angry that he was having to listen to their classmates talk about Shoto with the girl he was clearly with? Shoto grunted as Katsuki slammed into him on his way towards the exit, not even bothering to yell at him to get out his way as he stormed past. So definitely angry then.

“How rude” Iida stated, frowning after the blonde. “Are you okay Todoroki-kun?” Midoriya asked, lifting a scared hand and gently placing it on Shoto’s arm. Rubbing at his shoulder Shoto mumbled “I’m fine” before moving away from his friend to quickly pull on the rest of his hero costume. The changing room fell into an odd sort of silence, the rest of the class breaking of and mumbling to one another as they finished getting ready. He could feel Midoriya keep glancing at him and knew that his friend was worried about him but in all honesty he was just glad Bakugou had gotten most of the attention off of him. His classmates would be sure to bring up his and Y/Ns clandestine meeting but for now it was over and done with and hopefully he would have time to come up with a reasonably excuse.

Almost as one they filed out onto the field, the sun beating down on them but Shoto’s mind was still stuck on the blonde and Y/N. Katsuki had no right to be angry with Shoto, it wasn’t like he had known. Y/N and Shoto weren’t anything to each other anyway, friends at a push but more like acquaintances actually. Shoto frowned at the thought. Was that all they were? Nothing had really happened between them, no declaration of what it was that was building between them but he knew that he wanted more from her but he wasn’t quite sure what.

Friendship would be nice. From the brief conversations they had had he knew that he would be able to talk to her about almost anything. He felt mostly comfortable around her, though still a little awkward sometimes but that was just him. It would take a lot to get to the level of comfort and ease he felt around his friends but he knew that given time they could form a strong friendship but was that enough? Shoto couldn’t deny that he found her attractive, his dreams and wondering thoughts making that much clear and he wouldn’t be opposed if that was the way things went but if she was already doing that with Bakugou then all he could ever really hope for was friendship. He had never been jealous of the blonde before but when it came to Y/N it seemed he wasn’t below resenting the other teen for his luck.

“You’re finally all here”. Shoto looked up from where he had been frowning down at his feet as Aizawa spoke. Instantly the teacher lost his attention as Shoto’s eyes landed on the girl who haunted his every thought. Y/N was stood next to Aizawa, staring intently up at him and taking in every words he was say, unlike Shoto who was unable to pick out anything but odd words, too focused on Y/N to really register what was happening.

She looked beautiful in the early afternoon sunlight, head tilted back slightly and skin almost seeming to glow. She had on a generic U.A training outfit and trainers so he could guess that finally she was here to train with them. A thrill of excitement ran through him at the prospect. No one knew what her quirk was, Y/N keeping it a secret and Aizawa refusing to tell them but finally he would get to see it first-hand. Shoto had little to no doubt that it would be something spectacular, probably a little flashy after all how could it not be when it was hers.

Aizawa was still talking but Y/N seemed done listening, wordlessly spinning on her heals and heading towards the middle of the pitch. Shoto’s eyes tracked every movement as she twisted and turned, stretching her body as she got ready. Her eyes fluttered closed, back bowing as she stretched her arms above her head and bent backwards, forcing her chest out and mouth open slightly as she let out a small groan. Shoto’s mind stuck on that image, imagining what it would be like to have her under him and doing the same thing, offering up her neck to him as she tipped her head back.

He felt tugging on his arm and wordlessly stumbled after Midoriya as he tugged him towards an awaiting bench. The rest of the class followed only leaving Mineta to nervously waddle to the middle of the pitch. Though he hadn’t really been listening to his teacher Shoto was able to piece together what would be happening from the conversations going on around him and he was concerned at what was to come.

All twenty of them vs Y/N. Sure it would be one at a time but it still seemed rather unfair. She would grow tired and weak as the battles went on and surly by the end she wouldn’t be able to defend herself adequately against her opponents. It wasn’t like Aizawa to put a student in such an unfair situation so it only stood to reason that he knew she would be able to take the beating. It must have something to do with her quirk, maybe something to do with endurance. Whatever it was Shoto hoped that it would protect her from the onslaught of pain heading her way.

He had been surprised as she began to strip, smiling down at the smaller boy the whole time. It was a rather intimate act and Shoto could easily imagine her doing this for him in the privacy of his room, slowly exposing inch after inch of perfect, unblemished skin just for him. The choked of squeak that Iida made was a harsh reminder that this wasn’t just for him and that the whole class got to watch as she stripped down to her black sports bra and matching shorts. There was so much skin on display that Shoto didn’t know where to look first, his eyes dragging across her from head to toe as he tried to commit it all to memory, in case he never got to see it again.

Mineta screamed as she grabbed his collar and swung him round, throwing him from the pitch. He crash back to the floor face first, crying out as he skidded across the dirt. No one went to help him, all of them staring dumbfounded at his crumbled body. “Wow” Midoriya whispered and Shoto had to agree. She hadn’t seemed to use a quirk, just brute strength and the smaller boy’s momentum against him. “Hagakure you’re next” Aizawa called and Shoto turned his attention to the gloves and shoes that made their way across the pitch.

Hagakure was a good fighter, not the best by a long shot but still good. With her invisibility quirk stealth was her main attribute, if she could successfully sneak up on Y/N she stood a good chance of managing to get the other girl across the boundary lines but that all depended on what Y/Ns quirk was. They had yet to see any evidence of what Y/N was truly capable of. She must have skill to get into U.A, especially transferring in for just the last year but to what level they didn’t know. Shoto got the feeling that they were going to find out today exactly what Y/N was capable off and he truly hoped she didn’t hold back, at least when it got to his turn. He didn’t care if she restrained herself with the rest of the class just as long as she came at him with everything she had and he would do her the same for her.

The two girls exchange pleasantries, Y/N checking if Hagakure was ready and the other girl confirming she was after stripping her few remaining bits of clothing off and disappearing completely. Shoto sighed as Y/N closed her eyes and stood perfectly still in the middle of the pitch. Was she just giving up? He had hopped for more, some sort of display of power and skill but it seemed like he wasn’t going to get it. Suddenly her hand snapped out, Hagakure’s surprised cry sounding loud in the open space and Y/N smirked.

It didn’t take long for Y/N to win, dragging the girl across the boundary line by her hair in a brutal display of strength and skill. She had been nice enough afterwards, her gentle actions and soothing words a complete contrast to the harsh beating she had just given the other girl but Hagakure excepted it and Shoto got the feeling that by the time she sat back down by Ojiro that Y/N had made a friend. Shoto didn’t quite know what to make of that, confused at the mix of jealousy and happiness he felt.

What came after could only be called the complete and utter annihilation of the class. Y/N was precise and officiant in her take downs, matching her movements to suit each individual opponent. Some took only a few minutes to dispatch some, were others warranted a little more effort on her part but they all ended the same. Each and every one of his class mates ended up outside the boundary lines whilst Y/N stood triumphant still inside the pitch. Not one of them had managed to get her even remotely close to the line let alone over it and still no one had managed to guess her quirk. Each failed attempt only seem to spur her on, making her push harder against those who faced her and quite frankly Shoto found it both equal parts beautiful and worrying. She was just one girl yet she was almost effortlessly tearing through the class like they were dolls.

He had realised early on that she had been studying their fighting skills just from the way she had defended herself against Asui. Y/N had known before the girl had even launched her first attack what was going to happen, stepping to the side and darting a hand out to grab her tongue. She had quickly wrapped it around her arm a few times, smirking as she yanked the panicked girl forward and swung her round, Asui stumbling and falling across the boundary line. Asui didn’t often lead with that attack but she had a tell, smacking her lips together and tongue poking out briefly before she did it. It would be impossible for Y/N to know this unless she had been watching their practices. She had yet another advantage over them, staking the odds even more so in her favour.

Her fight with Uraraka had lasted longer, Y/N effortlessly avoiding the other girls touch whilst keeping her from being able to touch the floor. Uraraka had managed to make herself float a few times but Y/N had been there, yanking her back down to earth and slamming her against the ground every time. At some point she had managed to get Uraraka’s helmet off and a look of triumph had fluttered across Y/Ns face, like that had been the goal of the fight instead of getting her across the boundary lines. It hadn’t taken long after that for Y/N to get the upper hand, her fist connecting with the side of Uraraka’s face and knocking her off balance and sent her stumbling backwards and across the boundary line.

Y/N was always gentle and friendly after each fight, offering every opponent a soft smile and constructive criticism whilst also complimenting their quirk and skill. She hadn’t been any different with Uraraka but there was something about the way she gently turned the other girls head, delicate fingers brushing softly at the bruise that was already forming on her cheek that sat uneasy with Shoto. He didn’t know what is was about the action that he didn’t like but it made him scowl at the girl.

She wasn’t one for touching. Shoto had learned quickly that she had to be the one to initiate it but now she was touching everyone. She wasn’t shying away from their touches or getting angry like she had when Midoriya had tried to shake her hand on her first day. No, instead she was welcoming it, laughing and smiling. She had even allowed Ashido to wrap her in a tight hug and Kirishima to sling an arm over her shoulder as he called their fight manly and begged Y/N to tell him what her quirk was.

Shoto had bristled at the other boy being so casual with her, even more so as she had placed a hand over his abs, fingers splayed wide across his naked skin and far too close to the top of the teens trousers. Kirishima hadn’t seemed to notice or care, just asking her to spare with him latter in the week because he wanted her to teach him how to flip someone over his shoulder like she had done to him. Shoto liked the idea of that even less than the touching.

As time passed Shoto became more agitated as he was made to wait. He watched every fight with sharp and calculating eyes, occasionally exchanging words with Midoriya as they discussed how Y/N had won yet again and what possible quirk she could be using to aid her in the task. When Iida had been called forward Shoto had been convinced that this would be the one where she was finally pushed across the boundary line, quite literally in this case. He had seen his friend do it before, running full speed and forcing his opponent in the direction he wanted them to go. Shoto expected this time wouldn’t be any different and he felt a little disappointed that he wouldn’t be the first to defeat her.

In reality Shoto couldn’t have been more wrong if he had actually tried to be. Iida had run rings around her, trying to confuse the girl so she wouldn’t know what direction he would be coming from but it hadn’t been enough. As soon as he had started to charge her Y/N had spun to face him, moving out the way and sticking her leg out at the last moment. Iida hadn’t had time to change direction, tripping over her outstretched leg and falling to the floor with a loud thud. Y/N had wasted no time, sweeping in and yanking the boy’s helmet off him and throwing it to the side. She had grabbed a fistful of his hair, yanking his head back and grabbing his chin with her other hand as she leant over him. She had whispered in his ear, too low for Shoto to hear but he could guess what kind of thing she had said from the way Iida blushed a deep red, clearly embassies and flustered.

She had allowed him to get to his feet, even griping his hand and helping him steady himself. That had been a mistake on Iida’s part, Y/N grinning like a manic as she tightened her grip on his hand and yanked the larger boy forward and head butted him. Iida had stumbled back, shocked at the sudden aggression but he didn’t have time to recover, Y/N kneeing him in the stomach. From then on it was just blow after blow as she forced the other boy back, not giving him time to think let alone use his quirk and all too quickly he was forced across the boundary line, falling to the ground as she slammed her foot into the side of his head.

She had helped him up, slinging his arm over her shoulder and wrapping one of her arms around his waist, the whole time apologising about the beating. Aizawa had sent Ojiro and Sato out to take him from her and between the two of them they had carried him off towards Recovery Girls office. Apart from Hagakure, Iida was the only other person who had been sent off to get looked at, his injury’s worse than the rest of the classes combined. It had been a sombre moment as they all watched their class rep get lead of, groaning and stumbling, a small trickle of blood running down the side of his face. Aizawa had snapped them all out of it, calling for the next person and they had all looked back to the girl stood in the middle of the pitch, frowning as she watched Iida be lead off.

She was a bit more restrained afterwards, reigning in her attacks and refraining from being too aggressive in her pursuit to get the others across the line. Shoto could tell that she was upset with herself, could see her second guessing every blow she dealt. Any normal person would have lost it by now, falling victim to their own hesitance but still she kept winning, kept forcing her class mates back until she was the only one left standing on the pitch.

After what seemed like hours there were only three left. “Alright” Aizawa called and Deku, Bakugou and he all leaned forward, waiting to find out which one of them was up next. Despite Aizawa saying the order they would be going in was picked at random, Shoto found it a rather odd coincidence that the top three in the class had been left till last. “Todoroki you’re up”. Shoto let out a breath he hadn’t even realised he had been holding as he was called forward.

“Good luck” Midoriya mumbled, patting him on the back as he got up and slowly made his way to the middle of the pitch. He had been looking forward to his chance to finally fight Y/N but he wanted her to give it her all, not hold herself back like she had been with the others. He could understand why she was doing it, clearly having over done it with Iida but Shoto wanted to face her on even footing, well as even as he could get without knowing her quirk. He would just have to go all out and force her to meet him at his level.

“Well hello handsome” Y/N practically purred as he came to a stop in front of her. She was all wide smiles and sparkling eyes, a look of excitement about her. Shoto could hear Mineta shouting ‘I told you so’ and he groaned, glaring at her. He didn’t understand the sudden shift, how she could go from being so closed off and secretive one day, then open and friendly the next. Something must have happened yesterday for her behaviour to suddenly shift like that but the question was what?

Wordlessly he took up his fighting stance, scowling at Y/N. Her smirk grew wider as she took her now familiar stance, both hands coming up in front of her and curled into fists. “Show me what you’ve got hot stuff”. Her voice was pitched a little lower, a seductive purr to it as she winked at him. Shoto sneered, his anger getting the best of him. Now the whole class would think they were something they’re not and he would have the likes of Mineta and Kaminari on at him for days, harassing him about it and trying to find out things that Shoto himself wouldn’t know. Bakugou should think himself lucky they didn’t know about his relationship with the girl or he too would find himself on the receiving end of their annoying persistence.

He would probably know the answers to their prying questions though. Know what she looked like, sounded like. Would know if she preferred being on top or having him looming over her. He would know where to touch and kiss, how to tease and excite her. Would know every intimate detail about her for them to prise out of him.

Full of anger and jealousy, Shoto lunged forward throwing an arm up and sending a sheet of ice barrelling towards her. He had hoped to catch her off guard with the fast moving sheet of ice but she had been too quick, dodging to the side as it barrelled past her. “You’re going to have to do better than that” she teased, grinning widely as she turned to look at him, tapping her finger against the ice.

Growling Shoto set off after her yet again. Ice and fire flew across the pitch as he tried to drive her back but she kept dancing out of the way. She was incredibly light on her feet and fast to, effortlessly avoiding all of his attacks with a bright smile on her lips. It looked like she was having fun, laughing as she used the sheet of ice he had just sent across the ground to slide closer to him and despite his earlier anger Shoto could feel a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips, her enthusiasm infectious.

There were so many walls and shards of ice scattered across the field that it was difficult to see the rest of the class but Shoto was fine with that. He could almost pretend that they were the only two there, almost like they were playing a game instead of doing school work. He was having fun, the first time in a while that he had really enjoyed sparing with someone. He wasn’t thinking, wasn’t planning out moves or trying to strategies. He was just reacting letting his adrenaline and excitement dictate what he was doing and it was exhilarating. Even if her constant evasion of his attacks was starting to get a little annoying.

Darting forward Shoto spun, sending a wall of fire towards her. He was expecting her to dodge the attack, sending another wave of ice to the side in hopes of cutting her off. What he hadn’t been expecting was for Y/N to leap directly through the wall of flames, her fist contenting with his jaw and sending him stumbling backwards with a grunt of pain. He felt like he had been hit with a brick, his head snapping to the side and throbbing in pain.

Steadying himself Shoto glared up at her, rubbing at the sore spot. She smirked down at him, quirking an eyebrow at him and Shoto felt the challenge she was throwing at his feet. She looked shockingly beautiful with the ends of her hair singed and her clothes smoking, the last fading flickers of his flames behind her. She patted at a few spots of her clothes that had caught as she jumped through the flames, clearly not caring that she could have easily been severely burned.

“You good?” She asked, not even bothering to look up at him. Scowling he straightened and dived for her, his left side consumed with flames. He didn’t need her pity, her false act of caring. He had been through worse before and probably would again. He could take whatever she could throw at him and give it back tenfold.

With a snort of laughter she easily dodged his fists, jumping back as she swung her own arm up to block him. Jaw clenched Shoto perused her, moving quickly as he sent a spiral of fire chasing after her, his foot slamming down onto the ground at the same time and sending sharp spikes of ice right for her. It should have slammed straight into her, sending her backwards and over the boundary lines. Should being the important part but she had run straight for him instead, effortlessly weaving around both attacks and lunging at him.

She had moved quickly, a lot quicker than she had been and almost seeming to float through the air. Shoto had reacted as quickly as he could, throwing up his right arm to send out another wall of ice but she was already to close. She knocked his arm away, fingers wrapping around his wrist as her body slammed into his and sent them crashing to the ground. He cried out as his back hit the floor hard, arching up at the sudden sting of pain shooting down his spine.

Y/N grunted as she forced him back down, legs spread on either side of his hips, her weight holding him down. Both her hands were curled around his arms just under his wrist guards, pinning his arms to the dirt by his head. Blinking a few times to clear the slight haziness that had crept into the edges of his vision Shoto glared up at her, trying to yank his arms down but she just tightened her grip on him, pushing down harder to keep him in place.

“Hey handsome” she said softly, smiling down at him in what Shoto could only describe as gentle amusement. “Get off me” he grumbled, trying to tug his arms free once again to no avail. He could easily use his quirk to get her off him but by doing so he could seriously hurt her and though she had proven to be a little reckless, jumping through his flames and allowing his ice to graze across her exposed skin he didn’t think she wanted to be in hospital with third degree burns or a shard of ice through her chest.

“No, don’t think I will” she said teasingly, shifting slightly on top of him. As her weight settled, Shoto’s eyes widened as he finally registered the position they were in. She was sat on his groin, legs spread wide around his hips and leant forward slightly. If he flickered his eyes down Shoto had a clear view of the swell of her breasts. He had been pinned before but never had it felt like this. Never had he enjoyed the weight of his opponent baring down on him or the slide of their body against his.

Eyes wide in shock he glanced over towards his class, embarrass to be in such a position with all them watching. What he found though was a solid wall of ice that stretched across the entire side of the pitch and then some, completely blocking them from view. Shoto’s embarrassment quickly faded away only to be replaced by confusion. He was sure he hadn’t put enough power behind his attack to create something so big. He had been aiming to knock her off her feet, not squish her.

It worried him that he had lost control like that. The fact that he hadn’t been able to control his ice let alone remember putting so much force behind it sitting heavy in his gut. He could have hurt her if she hadn’t have moved his arm from its original trajectory. That couldn’t happen, he wouldn’t let it. He couldn’t allow himself to get distracted like that, he had to focus and not allow Y/N to invade his thought.

“Just me and you. Just how I like it”. Shoto slowly turned his attention back to the girl above him. Her smile was soft, the gentle amusement still sparkling in her eyes. Shoto felt trapped in her gaze, more so than he did in her grasp. He could spend hours looking into her eyes, tracking all the flecks of colour. “Would you not prefer Bakugou” Shoto snapped, the words escaping before he had even know they were forming.

He slammed his mouth shut, eyes wide as he began to panic. Why had he said that? He hadn’t meant to, had wanted to tell her to quit messing around and get on with the fight but they had just come tumbling out. It wasn’t the first time he had spoken without thinking with her and last time he had gotten the distinct impression he had done something wrong.

Y/N stared down at him, a whole string of emotions passing across her face. Surprise, confusion, doubt and the whole time Shoto could feel his face getting reader, unable to look away as he waited for her to say something. She blinked and then she was smiling again, her eyes alight with amusement. “Are you...jealous?” She asked joyfully, her smile only getting wider as he failed to answer her.

She laughed at his obvious discomfort and embarrassment, her whole body shaking with it and Shoto was once again reminded of the position they were in. He clenched his jaw, tipping his head back and trying to hold in a gasp as her arse moved across his groin. She didn’t seem to notice his predicament or even care and that was fine but Shoto needed her to stop moving or things were going to get even more embarrassing for the both of them.

With one last huff of laughter Y/N stilled and Shoto chanced a look up. She looked genuinely happy, with the sun shining behind her, a faint blush to her cheeks and a thin sheen of sweat across her skin. Somehow Shoto had done that, made her look so relaxed and at ease, he might even go as far as to say carefree. It was a beautiful sight and though he liked the teasing smirks and playful winks he much preferred these genuine, unguarded and soft smiles. He hoped that he would be able to see them more often, instead of the sad and lonely looks of longing she often wore in class.

“Don’t worry hot stuff, you’re not missing out. Mine and his meetings are quite similar to ours, except he yells at me a lot more. Swears to”. She let go of one of his wrists as she spoke, using her now free hand to tap him gently on the nose. Shoto huffed, scrunching up his face slightly at the rather odd action. She was laughing again as she reached back up, her cool fingers wrapping around his arm once more. He hadn’t even attempted to move when she let go, just left his arm where she had placed it like an obedient little puppy.

He felt a wave of relief wash over him at her words, Shoto not having realised how displeased he had truly been with the idea of them together. He had been rash, too hasty with his assumptions. The truth was Shoto liked Y/N, was interested in her and it had felt like a blow to the stomach to think he had somehow missed his chance to develop some sort of a relationship with her because there would have been no way that Bakugou would have allowed Shoto to get close to Y/N unless it was to taunt him with what he couldn’t have.

Above him Y/N sighed, shifting back slightly and looking at the wall of ice that separated them from the class, her eyes seeming to land roughly where Shoto remembered Bakugou to have been seated. Her smile had fallen, a small frown tugging at her lips. Shoto thought she looked lost almost, maybe even a little scared. He missed her smile already, the way it lit up her face and made her eyes sparkle. He wanted it back, he just didn’t know what to do to make that happen. “I didn’t intend to make friends here but there is something about the two of you that intrigues me. I can’t help but want to be around you”. Her voice was soft as she spoke with a tinge of sadness running through it. It was almost like the fact that she had made friends was something to be ashamed off, to worry about.

Shoto didn’t understand but then he rarely understood others emotions. He had gotten better over the years, his friendships with Midoriya, Iida and Uraraka having gone a long way to fix some of the damage done in his childhood but still he struggled sometimes, unsure if he was readying other people correctly or if he had missed the mark completely. Shoto didn’t feel like that was what was happening here though. He had spent so much time over the last three weeks watching Y/N that he was sure he would be able to tell the moment her emotions shifted though maybe not how to deal with them. He was still rather awkward but maybe she would accept a hug. He knew she didn’t like it when others were the ones to initiate contact but maybe they were close enough now that she wouldn’t punch him if he tried.

Shoto bent his legs, getting ready to push himself up and pull his hands free from her lose grip but before he could do anything Y/Ns head snapped back round, a wide and mischievous smile on her lips. “Now, I have had something on my mind to and it’s been keeping me up at night trying to figure it out”. As she spoke she moved Shoto’s arms up until his hands were above his head and she could hold them in place with one hand.

Y/N was practically lead on top of him now, her body stretched across his. Shoto could feel his heart racing, a blush spreading across his face and down his neck at the rather intimate position they were in. Shoto didn’t know what Y/N was talking about but suddenly he was very grateful for it.

He sucked in a breath as her cold hand came to rest on his chest, Y/N playing with the zipper of his jumpsuit. “Your quirk splits your right down the middle, yeah?” Shoto gulped at the question, eyes wide and stuck on her as he nodded instead of answering her. Her smirk grew as she shifted to the side slightly, lifting her body off of his so she was now hovering over him. Her face was above his now, impossible close and Shoto knew that if he were to lean up he would be able to kiss her but his mind was short circuiting, hyper aware of her delicate fingers stroking his chest.

Shoto wasn’t afraid to admit he was a virgin. Unlike most of his class he just hadn’t found the appeal of sex and after a few people’s failed attempts to get him in bed people had just stopped perusing him. Sure he had notice that some of his class mates were pleasing to look at but he had never wanted to be intimate with any of them, his hands always being good enough for when he actually felt the need for relief. Then three weeks ago he hand found himself with a lap full Y/N, her arms wrapped around his neck as she whispered in his ear, asking if he could give her directions to the teachers’ lounge.

She had felt good pushed against him and in his shocked state Shoto had only just about managed to stutter out a reply. She had winked at him as she thanked him and then she was gone, as suddenly as she had arrived. He had just sat there dumbfounded, staring out at nothingness until Midoriya had found him an hour later. From then on something gave and Shoto found himself constantly thinking about Y/N, every chance encounter making it worse than the day before. He knew it wasn’t very gentlemanly to think of her in such ways but it seemed like he was making up for lost time and now wasn’t any different, his mind racing with the possibilities this situation could lead to.

Y/N slowly began to drag her fingers down his chest, following the line of his zipper and Shoto barley managed to keep in a moan. He slammed his eyes closed, head tipped back and mouth slightly open. His hands were flexing above his head, fingers trying to grasp at something but there wasn’t anything there. “So, if I was to put my mouth here would half of it be hot and the other half cold?” Shoto’s eyes shot up, a gasp escaping his parted lips as she dragged her finger tips across his already half hard dick. He knew the answer to that but the words stuck in his throat, unable to make it past the pathetic whine as she pushed a little harder against him.

She had a wicked smile on her lips, her pupils’ blown so wide that Shoto couldn’t barely see the ring of colour around them. “Or can you control it, decide whether it’s a shaft of ice or a red hot poker?” Her hand moved away from his groin, sliding back up to his chest, pushing against every muscle as she went. Y/N was the first person other than himself to touch him in such an intimate place and Shoto found himself missing the pressure already.

She leaned down closer, the tip of her nose brushing against his. Shoto watched her eyes darting over towards the wall of ice, her smirk getting wider at the muffled sound of yelling. It sounded like Bakugou, the blonde probably getting annoyed that he couldn’t see what was going on. He was probably worried about the lack of noise as well, was most likely getting suspicious of what the two of them could be doing whilst out of his sight.

Shoto probably shouldn’t find it as appealing as he did, the prospect of doing something like this whilst the rest of his class were just a dozen or so feet away. He should feel ashamed, definitely not exhilarated. Embarrassment, adrenaline and arousal swirled together with a smug sense of satisfaction of getting something Bakugou hadn’t.

“What do you say handsome? If you win will you let me satisfy my curiosity?” Y/N nipped at his ear and this time he really did moan, tipping his head to the side to give her better access but she pulled away quickly, letting go of his wrists so she could push herself up and onto her feet. She moved to the side, staring down at him with an amused smile, waiting for his reply. Shoto blinked up at her, her words only just sinking in. She couldn’t be implying what he thought she was because people didn’t go around just offering that sort of thing out. Shoto could already see it though, all those stupid lollipops he kept finding her with giving him enough of an idea of what she would look like. What he couldn’t do was imagine how it would feel but he wanted to find out.

With a renewed sense of determination Shoto pushed himself up into a sitting position, readying himself to get back up and continue we’re they left off. They had been silent for too long now and Shoto was surprised Aizawa hadn’t come looking to see what was going on, or even Bakugou for that matter. He could still hear the blonde shouting at someone, probably getting ready to blast the sheet of ice apart. Y/N held out her hand towards him, wiggling her fingers when he failed to take it and just stared up at her sceptically. He wasn’t stupid, he had seen what she had done to Iida after helping him up and he wasn’t about to fall for the same nasty trick.

Huffing she rolled her eyes at him, holding out bother her hands to him now. “Don’t worry I’m not going to hit you, promise”. Giving her one more suspicious once over Shoto reaches up and grabbed her hands, letting her pull him up as she pushed. They were close when he was finally stood, chests almost pressed against one another’s. Now they were stood Shoto had to tip his head forward slightly to look at her, Y/N about half a head shorter than him. Shoto liked the idea of that, he would be able to rest his head on top of hers when he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her in for a hug.

She let go of his hands, her own slowly sliding up his arms until one was curled around his bicep and the other pressed flat against his rapidly beating heat. “You lot really are too trusting”. She sounded a little disappointed as she spoke, her fingers flexing on his chest. Shoto frowned, confused at her words but he didn’t have time to ask what she meant. Her hold tightened on him, nails digging in slightly through the fabric of his suit and then suddenly he was spinning, Y/N using her grip to pull him round and throw him against the wall of ice.

Shoto grunted, as his body connected hard with the ice, the sound of a loud cracking ringing in his ears. She was on him quickly, chest pressed against him and one leg shoved between his. Her hands were on his shoulders, keeping him pinned in place, her nails digging in and just on the edge of painful. She had ripped at his jumpsuit, the fabric giving way under her tight grasp as she flung him round.

Shoto growled at her, trying to push forward but she just pressed herself tighter against him. “You lied” he grunted, annoyed at his own stupidity. Y/N was right, they really were too trusting. “Did I hit you?” She quirked an eyebrow at him in question, looking at him expectantly as she waited for him to answer her. Grunting Shoto turned his head to the side, eyes dropping to look at the ground. So technically she hadn’t lied, still didn’t change the fact that he had been far too trusting of her. That sort of blind trust could get him killed out in the field.

Sighing Y/N frowned at him, the disappointment clear in her voice when she spoke. “After everything I have seen I expected more from you, seems I was mistaken”. Narrowing his eyes Shoto rolled his body towards her, letting both aspects of his quirk go at once. She had no choice but to let him go, taking a step back and bringing her hands up to protect her face from the raging flames and sharp spikes of ice.

He didn’t give her a chance to recover, darting forward and gripping her shoulder tightly. He pulled her towards him, stepping out the way and slamming her against the spot he had just been pinned against. The ice creaked loudly under the impact, the cracks getting bigger and fanning out along the large sheet. He grabbed her wrists, twisting them behind her back and grabbing them tightly with one hand. He could feel the heat radiating off of her, it prickling uncomfortably against his cold side. Shoto could have sworn she had been ice cold just moments ago. Y/N grunted as he kicked her legs wide, pressing himself along her back, her hands splayed out across his stomach and her fingers tips just curling around the edge of his belt.

Disappointed, that’s what she had said with that disapproving look on her face, just like his old man used to when Shoto failed to meet his expectations. Well, was she disappointed now? He was the first to pin her. The first to get the upper hand. The first to even get this close to winning. It would serve her right, to get beaten by him. Clearly she was confident in her ability to beat him, which was probably why she had made that offer. Y/N believed that she would win so there was no risk for her and it had the added bonus of getting him riled up, thinking with his dick instead of his brain. Well there wouldn’t be any more of that, at least not whilst they were still fighting anyway. He would win and then he would make her pay up.

Her laughter pulled Shoto from his thoughts and he frowned at her, confused as to why her current situation was so funny to her. Y/Ns head was turned to the side, cheek pressed against the ice and a wide smile splitting her face in half. “That’s more like it” she said excitedly and Shoto got the distinct impression he had been played. Snarling he tightened his grip on her wrists and yanked her hands back even more, her bracelets clinking against his belt as her hands moved lower. He expected her to grab at him, to rub her hands against him in an attempt to distract him but she never did, instead keeping her hands splayed wide and pressed against her arse, actively trying not to touch him.

“Don’t hold back, I can take it. You don’t have to worry about hurting me, I’ve been through worse”. Shoto jerked back slightly at her words. What exactly was she giving him permission to do? He hadn’t thought he had been holding back all that much, not enough for her to notice anyway but somehow she had and had been disappointed by it. If that was what she wanted from him Shoto could give her that but he didn’t want to hurt her. Though the prospect of that didn’t really seem to bother her. She had recklessly charged into his attacks, literally jumping through fire to get to him with a confidence that Shoto had only ever seen on people who knew they couldn’t get hurt.

“That’s it, isn’t it? You can heal” Shoto stared at her as he spoke, confident in his guess. He didn’t notice his grip loosening on her wrists or that the cracked sheet of ice was starting to melt, droplets of water running down it and pooling on the ground. Y/Ns smile softened, turning her head more so she could actually look at him. “That’s not my quirk” she said smugly, the emphasis she put on ‘my’ confusing him.

Shoto didn’t get time to process her words before Y/N was jerking her head back, slamming the back of her head into his temple. With a surprised grunt Shoto staggered back, her hands slipping free of his grasp as she spun round. Shoto ducked, only just missing the kick she had aimed at his head. Y/N didn’t let up, stepping in close and slamming her hard elbow into his stomach. Shoto didn’t even think as pain shot out from where she had hit him, he just acted. He aimed a punch at her face, letting his ice cover his hand and arm. She didn’t see it coming, Shoto using his fire to block her view and he landed the hit on her jaw.

Y/Ns head snapped to the side from the impact, stumbling back into the wall of ice. There was a loud crash, the ice breaking and crumbling to the floor. As it gave way behind her Y/N stumbled, falling to the dirt and rolling to a stop just before the boundary lines. Shoto hardly noticed the rest of his class, his eyes flickering from the girl on the ground to the stunned looking blonde stood just the other side of the boundary lines. If he wasn’t breathing so heavily Shoto might have smiled at the obvious annoyance on Bakugou’s face but he couldn’t afford to get distracted now. She was so close to the edge, it wouldn’t take much to push her over.

He was about to step forward, ready to send a fast moving spike of ice towards her when she moved, Y/N pushing herself to her knees. He watched in horror as she dragged the back of her hand across her lip, smearing the blood oozing from the cut across her hand and lip. The bright red stood out against her skin, glaring prof that he had hurt her. She let out a small huff of laughter, turning to face him with a wide smile.

She looked so happy about the hit and all Shoto could do was stand there and stare as she pushed herself up onto her feet, glancing behind her to Bakugou. Y/N dragged her eyes over him, taking in every inch of the blonde. She looked at him through hooded eyes and smirked, her tongue poking out to run across her split lip. Shoto felt the anger and jealousy that had been lying dormant start to bubble up again. This was their fight, she should be paying attention to him. She winked at the clearly flustered blonde before turning back to him and started running towards him. Shoto was ready though, running to meet her and sending a wall of fire towards her.

Everything was fast paced from then on, each of them landing a few hits but Shoto was starting to grow tired, the excessive use of his quirk starting to take its toll. The worst thing was he was losing control of it, his fire seeming to curl around him instead of barrelling towards Y/N and his ice shooting off in directions he hadn’t been aiming for. He didn’t feel like he was losing control though, he felt like he always did when using his quirk but something was definitely wrong. It was almost like his quirk had developed a mind of its own and decided to turn on him.

Shoto rolled to the side as another wave of flames twisted, having no choice but to throw up a small wall of ice to protect himself. Y/N didn’t give him time to recover, already there when he got to his feet and slamming her body into his, forcing him back towards the chunk of ice behind him. He shoved her off him, his shoulder slamming into hers as he tried to knee her in the stomach but her hands were there to stop him, shoving him back. Shoto grunted at the sharp sting of an electric shock shot through his knee and down his leg but he couldn’t afford to let it stop him.

Shoto ran toward her, throwing a wall of ice towards her but suddenly his feet slid out from under him and he went tumbling backwards, sliding along the smooth path of ice until he rolled off the end and tumbled into the dirt. Groaning at his own inability to control his quirk Shoto quickly stood up, ready to launch another attack but Y/N held up a hand and Shoto instantly stopped. She laughed nervously, eyes darting down to his feet and Shoto followed, tipping his head forward to see what she was looking at. There just in front of his boots was the boundary line and he was on the wrong side of it.

His fists clenched tight at his side, nails digging into his palms. He had lost and all because he couldn’t control his own dammed quirk. Y/N looked at him apologetically, a sad smile on her lips and Shoto was reminded of her earlier words. A disappointment, that’s what she had called him. He had aimed to change that but here he was, a failure. She had wanted more from him, wanted him to beat her and he had been unable to do so.

Y/N lifted her arms above her head, lacing her fingers together and stretched. She moaned loudly, eyes fluttering shut and lips parting slightly. Shoto wanted to look, wanted to see the roll of her body but he didn’t deserve such a reward for his incompetence. Instead he set about melting all the ice he had left dotted around the field, making quick work of getting rid of it for the next person. He could feel Y/Ns eyes on him, watching him move around the field. It felt like a weight on his shoulders and for once he just wanted her to stop looking.

“Hey”. Shoto stilled at her gentle voice, her delicate hand landing gently on his shoulder. He didn’t turn to look at her, couldn’t stand to see the disappointment there. “Thank you”. Shoto’s head snapped to the side, eyes wide and failing to comprehend what she was saying. “What?” She smiled sweetly at his confused word, moving to stand between him and the half melted sheet of ice. “I said thank you. No offence to the others but that was the first fight I really had to work hard to win. I had fun and that’s because of you, so thank you for giving me that”. She sounded so sincere, a slight blush forming on her cheeks but she never looked away from him, her eyes determinedly staying on him.

Shoto wasn’t quite sure what he should do with that information. She had had fun because of him and that was good, had him tingling with satisfaction that he had been the first to make her feel that way. But the small cut on her lip and the dried smear of blood across her chin reminded him that he had hurt her and that left him feeling torn between guilt and elation. He wanted to reach out and touch it. Cup his hand over her cheek and swipe his thumb across the abused flesh but he was unsure if the action would be welcomed. He was unsure of so much now and he didn’t know how to correct that. Didn’t know where he stood with Y/N and how her interest in Bakugou would fit into whatever was happening between them. He didn’t even know if he could trust his quirk any more. He would have to talk to Aizawa when class was over, maybe even go back to some basic training to fix whatever had gone wrong.

“And I’m sorry for how it ended. I know that it wasn’t what you had hopped for but maybe next time yeah?” Y/Ns smile feel into a frown and when she spoke she sounded genuinely sad, if not a little guilty and Shoto couldn’t understand why. It had been his fault, she didn’t need to apologise for his lack of control. “Yeah” he managed to mumble, still confused as to what was going on.

She gave his shoulder one last squeeze before she let go, heading back to the middle of the pitch and leaving him to finish melting the last bit of ice. Shoto didn’t stop watching her as he let the flames consume the ice, melting it in a matter of seconds. She looked so at ease back out there, rolling her shoulders and stretching as she prepared herself for whoever was coming next. Shoto would guess that it would be Bakugou, Midoriya being left to last as he was the most powerful out of the class and would probably be the hardest one for Y/N to win against. “Bakugou, its’ your turn” Aizawa yelled.

With one last glance at the girl Shoto headed back to his seat, sinking down between Midoriya and Uraraka. At some point during his fight Iida had returned, looking tired but otherwise intact. “That was amazing Todoroki” Midoriya gushed, smiling brightly up at him and practically vibrating in his seat. “Thanks” Shoto murmured, unable to muster up any sort of enthusiasm. Frowning he looked down at his hands. He let his quirk burst to life, ice covering one hand whilst flames danced in his other palm. It all felt normal and as he willed them to move they did exactly what he wanted. There was no resistance, no acting out on their own. So what had gone on out on the field?

“Are you okay?” Midoriya asked tentatively for what felt like the hundredth time today. Sighing Shoto turned to look at his friend, offering the worried teen a small smile. “It’s’ nothing. Just having some issues with my quirk. Nothing some extra training won’t solve”. Midoriya frowned at him, gripping his chin and tilting his head to the side slightly. “What do you mean?” Shoto looked back down at his hands, flexing his fingers as he tried to find the correct words. “It was like they had a life of their own and I couldn’t control it. They kept doing things that I didn’t want to and I don’t know why”. Next to him Midoriya hummed before dissolving into mumbling. Shoto couldn’t keep up with it, only picking out odd words but he was used to his friend’s odd habits by now.

“Bakugou, let’s go” Aizawa yelled. Frowning Shoto leaned forward to look at the still seated blonde. The blonde frowned as he looked out to Y/N in confusion and she rolled her eyes at him, making a come here motion with both her hands. “Well? You coming or what blondie?” she demanded, looking at him expectantly. That seemed to get the blonde moving, snarling as he stomped his way across the field to her. Shoto wondered what had had the other teen so out of it that he hadn’t noticed his name being called. Normally he would be up and darting across the pitch before his name had even finished being called.

“Finally decided to join me then. Thought you were going to chicken out” she teased the blonde, smiling brightly even as he scowled at her. It was brave of her to antagonise him before their fight, the teen likely to be even more aggressive if he was annoyed but Shoto suspected that was what Y/N was trying to do. She wanted their best and she was prepared to do whatever it took to get it off them.

Bakugou took a threatening step forward, his fists clenched at his side as he yelled at the girl. “Ha! Like hell I would. Your perky arse is mine”. Y/Ns eyes widened at his words, along with Shoto’s and probably half the classes. “What did he just say?” Uraraka whispered next to him, sounding just as surprised as Shoto felt. Well that answered that then, Bakugou was clearly interested in Y/Ns assets.

The blonde blushed as he realized what he had said, clearly embarrassed about what he had let slip. It was a good look on him, the dark red on his cheeks almost matching his intense eyes. Y/N seemed to think so to if the wide smirk and look of amusement was anything to go by. “If you want it that bad all you have to do was ask” she winked at Bakugou, dragging her tongue over her lips then sucking the edge in between her teeth and biting down on it. Shoto felt the jealously rearing its ugly head again as she practically offered herself up to the blonde.

She continued to tease him, riling Bakugou up as she taunted him with the fact she had been stealing his food and not that he had been making it for her like Shoto had thought. Finally the blonde seemed to snap, demanding that she get on with it and fight him. Y/N looked bored with the prospect, having been enjoying the teasing and angry banter they had been having. “Fine, have it your way blondie. Just try not to disappoint me”. Her voice was cold as she spoke and Shoto wondered if faced with her disappointment Bakugou felt the same he had, like he failed her.

She lunged at him, moving so suddenly that Bakugou hardly had the time to dodge. Their fight was brutal, fast paced and explosive. It was hard to keep track of what was going on with the large explosions sending chunks of ground flying and dust clouds billowing through the air. She was being just as reckless as she had been with Shoto, jumping through explosions like they were nothing and he once again thought about the healing quirk but she had said no. It wasn’t her quirk but what did that even mean? If it wasn’t hers than how could she possibly be using it?

At some point Bakugou must of made the same assumption as he had, his attacks getting bigger and more dangerous, aiming directly at her and not seeming to care about the possibility of her getting hurt. Then suddenly the pitch went quite, the dust settling to reveal Y/N sat atop Bakugou, the teens chest pressed against the dirt and arms twisted behind him.

Midoriya gasped, hand darting out to clutch at Shoto’s arm as he leaned forward, a worried look on his boyish face. It always amazed Shoto that he still cared so much about the angry teen, even after everything he had been put through by him. Frowning Shoto turned his attention back to the two on the pitch, his eyes connecting with angry red ones. It only lasted a few seconds before Bakugou was screwing his eyes shut and clenching his jaw but Shoto had seen the panicked look in his eyes, the disbelief that this had happened to him. Bakugou was always so confident and to find himself being beaten was probably a large blow to his ego.

Y/N shifted, pressing her body tight against the other boys until she was practically laying on top of him. She lent in close, her face hovering next to his and then proceeded to lick across his sweat covered cheek. Bakugou’s eyes shot open and Shoto expected him to explode, quite literally at the action but instead he seemed to welcome it, gasping at the sudden contact. He had to wonder how often something like this had happened for the blonde to not care that she had licked him. If anyone else had tried to do something like that they would have got a rather large explosion to the face but not Y/N. No Bakugou liked it, that was clear enough but so did Y/N, moaning at the taste. Bakugou always smelt sweet, like burnt sugar so maybe he tasted like that to.

Shoto frowned as he watched them, Y/N grabbing his chin and turning it so he could look at her as they spoke. Shoto couldn’t hear what they were saying but he could see the smirk on Y/Ns lips and the blush on Bakugou’s cheeks. “Hey Jiro?” he asked, turning to look at the girl sat on the other side of Midoriya. Her eyes widened slightly as he called out to her but before he could ask for her to use her quirk she started to shake her head, a dark blush forming on her neck and cheeks. “No” she said flatly, refusing before Shoto had even had the chance to explain what he wanted.

Frowning he eyed her suspiciously. Her onyx eyes refused to meet his, instead darting towards Y/N and the ground, her ear cords seeming to twitch. Shoto’s eyes widened as he realised what was wrong, his own blush spreading across his cheeks. She had been asked to do that same thing when he and Y/N had been hidden behind the ice and she most likely had complied to the others request. That meant she had heard what Y/N had said to him, knew what he had been offered if he had won.

Panicking he darted his eyes down to Midoriya who had started muttering again, staring intently at whatever was happening on the pitch. Had she told them? Did the whole class now know what kind of things he wanted to happen between himself and Y/N. He looked back at Jiro, the panic probably clear on his face because her eyes widened before she started to shake her head. Shoto felt the relief crash into him, his shoulders sagging. He inclined his head towards her, mouthing a quick ‘thank you’. He would have to thank her properly latter, make sure she understood how grateful he was that she hadn’t gone blabbing to the rest of the class. It had probably been what Bakugou had been yelling about, getting annoyed with the girl if she had refused to tell him anything. Shoto was sure the other boy would have been able to guess what had been said between the two of them, just like Shoto could probably guess what Y/N was saying to him to get the normally unflappable blonde blushing and flustered.

A loud bang and a surprised cry had Shoto’s head snapping back round, just in time to see Bakugou scrambling to his feet and charging towards Y/N with an angry cry. He seemed angrier, his attacks getting bigger as he grew more reckless but Y/N didn’t seem to care, laughing as they danced around one another. Punches were thrown, kicks executed with precision and an almost constant cacophony of explosions raining down on them. Shoto could see they were yelling at one another as they fought, could see their lips moving but the sound of Bakugou’s quirk drowned out any words. Whatever it was Y/N was saying seemed to be making him angrier.

Her body glistened with sweat, just like Bakugou’s as they crashed together again. Bakugou threw her away from him, Y/N going with it and rolling across the ground only to dart back onto her feet and charge at the blonde. Shoto sucked in a breath as Bakugou lifted his arm, palm flat and his other hand curling around the pin on his gauntlet. Y/N was to close, unable to change direction but she didn’t seem to care, her smile just as wide as it had been for most the fight.

The explosion was loud as it ripped through the stadium, the force of it sending a large gust of wind slamming into the watching class. As Shoto turned his head, eyes half closed to protect them from the sting he could have sworn he could see a dark shadow move past the blond in a blur before another explosion came from behind him. Midoriya sucked in a breath, eyes widening as he lent forward and Shoto knew that Midoriya had figured it out. He knew what her quirk was.

As the smoke and dust cleared Y/N came into view first. She was stood motionless in the middle of the pitch, head held high and not a single scratch on her, even the split lip had gone. Bakugou growled, ready to launch another attack but Aizawa’s booming voice had him coming to a stop. Y/N relaxed, smiling widely a she pointed to her feet. Shoto’s eyes darted down, already knowing what he was going to find, what he didn’t expect was for Bakugou to drop to his knees, staring at the boundary line with a mix of disbelief and defeat.

He looked broken, knelt on the floor and just staring down at the smudged white line before him. Shoto couldn’t remember the last time Bakugou had lost a fight, his determination to be the best at everything driving him to stay at the top of the class. It would probably do him some good to learn a little humility but Shoto worried that it might break his fragile grip on his emotions first. “To bad, so sad, better luck next time” Y/N sing songed, shrugging her shoulders as if it was no big deal that she had just beaten the best in the class. It seemed a little cruel to rub his face in it like that but the blonde didn’t seem to hear her, staring at her in a daze.

Kirishima was the first to move, slowly making his way over to his friend’s side. “Come on man” Kirishima mumbled, slipping his arm around Katsuki and hauling him to his feet. Shoto watched as the blonde allowed the redhead to practically drag him back to his seat, the blonde dropping down into it with a huff. Instantly his friends were on him, chattering away and not seeming to care when he didn’t answer them.

“Midoriya” Aizawa said solemnly. Next to him Midoriya squared his shoulders, a look of determination about him as he pushed himself up of the bench. “Good luck Deku” Uraraka gave him a thumbs up and smiling brightly up at the green haired boy. Shoto expected him to return the smile but instead he nodded his head once and turned to stalk towards the waiting girl who was watching him in interest. “I hope he’ll be okay” Uraraka mumbled, frowning after their friend. “Midoriya has faced much harder foes before, this will be nothing for him” Iida said confidently and Shoto had to wonder who he was trying to convince, the girl next to him or himself. “Yeah your right. If anyone can beat her it will be Deku”.

Shoto wanted to agree with Uraraka, he really did but he had the distinct impression that Y/N had been holding back on them and Midoriya was about to call her out. It was likely the class was about to find out how lucky they had actually been.

“Well if it isn’t the leader of the welcome committee, ready to get your arse handed to you?” Y/N said teasingly as Midoriya came to a stop in front of her, his head held high and a determined glint in his eyes. “I know what your quirk is” he yelled and everyone seemed to suck in a breath, waiting for the green haired boy to answer. Shoto knew he had worked it out. If any of them were going to it would be Midoriya with his keen and astounding analytical mind.

Y/N laughed gently, running a hand through her hair, the light glinting off her bracelets. He leaned forward slightly, listening intently. Shoto had been wrong with his guess, as had everyone else and he desperately wanted to know. She had kept it hidden so well but finally the suspense was over, the secret out and hopefully he would have a better understanding of her once this was over.

Y/N shrugged, smiling at the green haired boy in amusement. “I knew you would, that’s why I saved you till last”.

[sugarcubetikki]

#PleaseLeaveMarinetteAlone

Marinette has made some mistakes in the past. But I'm so sick and tired of people constantly hating on her. People say she never faces the consequences of her actions, but literally, look at where she is now...

As of NY, Marinette is still in a very difficult position:

She's facing heartbreak over Adrien. She's so confused about her feelings. She CAN'T pursue them. She CAN'T just be friends right now either, because her feelings keep coming back. She CAN'T avoid him. She's in a crazy position.

She's a guardian. And she didn't even ask for this. I mean, she can't escape from it either. Because giving up the box means losing your memories forever. It's now her responsibility. And she's not very well-trained either. She lost her mentor?

Since all of the superhero identities have been revealed, where to go on next, is literally all in Marinette's hands now, as the guardian, she has to decide. Another responsibility.

I'm pretty sure she's still babysitting, doing commissions for Jagged and Kitty Section. On top of her schoolwork and Ladybug and guardian duties, that's also a lot in her normal life.

Is she getting a good night sleep? I doubt it.

Has she been able to organize her schedule? I doubt that too because her favours, commissions and responsibilities aren't exactly things that can be scheduled. They just pop out of nowhere.

Still probably suffering from all the implications and issues the Cat Blanc scenario brought. How do we know that it still doesn't bother her?

Not to mention, she nearly lost her partner in NY.

Also, how is any of her behaviour in NY Special any normal? She's internally suffering with the conflict between her feelings? I mean, she was dying on the inside that special, because she's soo confused with her feelings. Like, that sad look at the end when she says "I don't know" is just pure confusion. Everything that special was a huge façade of Marinette going "justfriendsjustfriends". The only times she was genuine was when she chased after the car and the "I don't know". She's clearly very confused. She wasn't acting normal in the NY special, she was internally crumbling with her feelings. Unfortunately, the most genuine faces in that special were when she was sad, proves she's going through too much... 

One more thing. STOP BLAMING MARINETTE FOR BEING HYPOCRITICAL IN NY. People say that it was hypocritical of her to leave all the responsibility on CN's shoulders, when she shouldn't have gone to NY in the first place, and then continues to blame him. First of all, Marinette didn't leave all the responsibility on Cat's shoulders, she was counting on him to defend Paris and alert her because since she was in a different place, there are chances that she could be late due to a number of reasons: time difference, her phone could die so she wouldn't be able to access the akuma news app, etc. So, the emergency kitten is useful in situations like that. Second of all, she has to go back anyways since she's the only who can capture the akuma, she probably does have the magic macarons on her somewhere for her to transform into her space suit or she might've secretly brought the horse miraculous too. Third of all, she wasn't mad at CN for being in NY, she was mad because he was there without telling her. If he told her, she could've made her way around it, and made some last-minute adjustments, I doubt she would've been mad. He basically left Paris without alerting her. Which I can see why she'd be mad, it's reasonable. Fourth of all, it's not hypocritical, it's not like Ladybug said "It's ALL your fault that this entire thing happened." She didn't rub it in his face that Paris was in ruins because he LEFT. I mean, she could've seeing how mad she was previously but she didn't because she knew he was feeling guilty because of what happened with Uncanny Valley already, and I doubt the thought even crossed her mind, she seemed more upset about the situation, rather than being mad at Cat himself.

Moreover, when you're in difficult positions, you tend to act...not like yourself. And that was Marinette in S3. Her crazy behaviour was merely the outcome of the situation she was in.

Dealing with Lila: this girl basically threatened to take all her friends away and declared war. Not to mention, she lies with every breath and all her friends (except a few) believe her. 

Overwhelming responsibilities: Gamer 2.0 makes that clear enough.

Feelings for Adrien: This is so overlooked. But one thing to point out...In Frozer, Adrien basically confessed he's attracted to Kagami. And we know that Adrien is not ready, but Marinette doesn't. Marinette knows Adrien likes Kagami. She had that mindset for the entire season: and due to misunderstandings between her and Kagami in Frozer. Marinette didn't know how to view Kagami, I mean, until Ikari Gozen, she had to deal with her jealousy. Marinette's jealousy is very specific: it's only there when she's suspicious over the girl, or thinks she's mean, a liar, or just unpleasant somehow. Since Kagami is just as bad as Adrien with social cues and skills, maybe even worse, she might've come off quite rude and prissy in Frozer to Marinette. There's not only that. Marinette does know that Adrien could be attracted to more people in the future and then she could be too late soon, she's never going to be able to confess. Which is why, Marinette probably has that frantic way of trying to confess her feelings. She was panicking. She felt like she couldn't go by her own pace anymore...and since she's rushing and still very bad at expressing her feelings. She keeps failing. Not to mention, Alya is probably sick of Marinette being a lovesick puppy for this long and keeps pushing her to do it: Reflekdoll, Puppeteer 2. Besides, there's always Luka, who's calming presence also confuses her feelings. Since her feelings are such a bundle of confusion, she's definitely getting sick of them staying within her, and since she's in no stage of healthy communication, she's resorted to exaggerating her unhealthy methods even more. Mainly because she's too overwhelmed with everything. She needs to breathe.

That's it. For now.

#MarinetteNeedsABreak #LeaveMarinetteAlone

She's in no position to be receiving this hate, she's a mess, she's overwhelmed. She needs to sort her life out. That doesn't make her a bad character. It shows that people can be in difficult positions at times and can resort to doing crazy things...but they'll always have a chance to get back up again.

I’m not asking you to like her. It’s fine if you don’t like her that much. Just stop the insane hate. 

*EDIT: Keep in mind that Marinette has to try her best to look and feel optimistic enough because of this crazy supervillain. She can't afford being sad. Even if she's internally suffering, she needs to keep a strong face...*

[arthurtristankingsmen]

More and longer theory chatter with @flash-the-geist with guest stars who popped in. This one is longer since it’s theorizing but turned into something Flash affectionately named the ‘Esprestissimo AU’ which I am keeping because I love it so much.

Most of this mainly features Duet thoughts and then shenanigans ! The most I did was add a missing thing in my own comments for clarification or that my brain skipped over when typing it before, or where I adjust the order of the messages for cohesiveness

please enjoy jdjd

flaaaash — Today at 4:35 AM

hmmm what if the note-taker is Duet, taking notes about "Solo"? that implies they're two different people

Arthur — Today at 4:36 AM

that's what i was thinking-- that the ‘He’ in the note is reverb, and this note is in reference to reverb, but also a comment on Solo, and the Duet 'wrote' this character profile as like-- a case file if they're in charge of the organization

so duet is like 'solo' claims she still needs to study him for research in a note on the file he's taking on reverb or something like that

flaaaash — Today at 4:37 AM

this might be my deep, unfortunate familiarity with bureaucracy talking, but- if the person in charge is also the one taking notes, it's a very small organization

Arthur — Today at 4:37 AM

oh yeah

i imagined it was tiny personally

tempo seems on the smaller side so if it's all based there, i was imagining it was relatively small

flaaaash — Today at 4:38 AM

not international then, perhaps

adkjfakjf oooh now I want to make a little card for Flash

Arthur — Today at 4:39 AM

yeah no-- at least since the name tempo of the town following the motif like seemingly implies it's based in/related to the town since if follows the reference style

or that's my thinking anyways?

flaaaash — Today at 4:39 AM

very true

imagine if Tempo is just Like That and the rest of the world is totally normal

Arthur — Today at 4:40 AM

i personally think vivi didn't grow up in tempo now more tho-- because i think if she did and there is an organization, they woulda gotten wind of her and she probably would've been recruited since she's smart and clearly into that kind of thing

and if she was in the org and knew what she was doing, i don't know if she would've gone to the cave if she was at all in the Know 

flaaaash — Today at 4:40 AM

or they would have tried to study Mystery?

Arthur — Today at 4:41 AM

that too!!

even if they brought her in just because of mystery i imagine they would've brought her in

flaaaash — Today at 4:41 AM

maybe that's what the "her research into "REDACTED" is referring to. Research into mystery?

it all does seem to come back to him

Arthur — Today at 4:42 AM

or maybe she's relatively new to tempo still, and duet gave her a job because they intended to bring her in at some point but hadn't yet

like there were steps to take and like-- the cave happened before things could get fully underway

i mean at my job i applied in like-- march, and i didn't get an interview until may, and then i didn't get any training until november, and then i didn't get brought in to learn the job until december. so it'd be easy to imagine that if there was a reason, bringing her in could be a slow process 

flaaaash — Today at 4:43 AM

that might also explain why there were all these "go back" signs in the cave

clearly someone with English language skills put the signage there

Arthur — Today at 4:43 AM

that too! it definitely felt like it was to warn off people and keep them from tresspassing

but the gang were kids and also ghost don't haunt the places that aren't super scary and dangerous! so of course they gotta go in!

flaaaash — Today at 4:45 AM

maybe they weren't expecting someone like Vivi at all

she was a wild card that popped up and threw a spanner in the works accidentally

Arthur — Today at 4:45 AM

yeah!

i can imagine her just coming in and completely bamboozling everyone

duet is like 'okay we'll get her in on this but we'll take some time to sort everything and judge where she's at skill wise since we have time and it's not like she can get into any danger with all our protective me--oh no'

flaaaash — Today at 4:48 AM

that calls Duet's motivation into question a lil bc - there's at least a significant amount of time between Lewis dying and them finding him again

since their search is reasonably extensive and Arthur's had time to heal up. So why didn't Duet do anything during this time?

Arthur — Today at 4:50 AM

hmmmm--- well we know it's been less than a year since the cave happened at least, and i think the way Ben talked about it  sounded like it was a relatively short time table of only a few months, so maybe they wanted to give them recovery time or they weren't sure how to broach it-- i'm not sure. maybe the comic will give some kind of insight hopefully if the case is that vivi came in like that

i feel like it'd be interesting and make more sense given what she has available magic wise and mystery-wise if she wasn't in town until much later in life to explain why she wouldn’t already be working with the organization. but i'm still like hmm

because you do have a point that there would be a fair bit of inaction, unless for some reason vivi's memory issues or something was a problem or something happens in the prequel to explain or hint

tho now that brings into question if duet knows Lewis is dead, how are things not being managed better

i mean i've had arthur say in the past and i've said once or twice that like-- i think arthur was already working with prosthetics. so he could've had an arm mostly built and just had to make a more functioning one so that could've been fast. so hopefully maybe the prequel comic is set a bit before and might explain duet helping or something in a way that could make sense of it?

especially given he did make galaham's wheels already and such. he might've already built one but needed to make a new one set up for him

flaaaash — Today at 4:54 AM

I'm fairly sure people would at least know he's missing

I guess it's possible that the 'memory magic' thing that makes Vivi forget - it could affect everyone except Arthur and Mystery?

Arthur — Today at 4:56 AM

that's possible--

we have only seen mystery and arthur in the world seeming to know what's going on, so we don't know who knows what. just that vivi doesn't know lewis

but maybe nobody else does either to some degree

flaaaash — Today at 4:56 AM

Arthur being possessed at the time, and Mystery being a magical being himself. We don't have any evidence that anyone else remembers Lewis, although he seems to still be in pictures

Arthur — Today at 4:57 AM

people did seem confused arthur was freaking out in the store in the comic and like

idk. if i knew he lost his best friend i'd be more sympathetic/not look at him like he was crazy. I’d assume something set him off but probably feel bad for him if i knew what happened in the last year?

because i would imagine mental health is in the toilet after going on a trip and losing a friend even if he was only 'missing'

and the way arthur mentioned lewis and when vivi forgets he's just like 'nevermind'. if no one really remembers Lewis, then maybe giving up trying to explain is because he’s used to no one knowing who he means

flaaaash — Today at 4:58 AM

yea h

Arthur — Today at 4:58 AM

what if arthur only remembers lewis? (and mystery does)

Don't forget to take your meds ❤ — Today at 4:58 AM

In fairness most people would be confused if they saw someone having a panic attack in public, no matter how much was known about the person

flaaaash — Today at 4:58 AM

also if Lewis looked like himself for a moment just before dropping Arthur - does that mean Lance saw him?

or did he only see skele-version and thus didn't recognize him as Lewis

Arthur — Today at 4:58 AM

hmmmmm--- i lean to skele vision. he turned back pretty quick iirc

flaaaash — Today at 4:59 AM

I'm torn between analysing between a storyteller perspective and an in-world perspective

Arthur — Today at 5:01 AM

por que no los dos?

also

hmmm-- i think given people were like 'what's up with that guy', it seemed either not knowing what was going on with him or what it could stem from, but if lewis disappeared in a small town i feel like a lot of the details would've spread. so they might assume it had to do with that instead-- so it feels like maybe most people don't know

which seems strange in a smaller community because stuff gets around

flaaaash — Today at 5:01 AM

especially since the Peppers own a restaurant

Arthur — Today at 5:01 AM

yeah-- in a small town place a restuarant is usually a social hub of sorts

so if lewis disppeared i'm sure people would talk given he was a waiter and thus kind of a face for the restaurant

flaaaash — Today at 5:02 AM

also if they think he's missing and not dead, his family would be looking for him too. which means missing persons pics and all that

Arthur — Today at 5:02 AM

yeah and we didn’t see any. and some people not knowing or visitors i could get, but everyone seemed surprised by arthur freaking out, and if they knew lewis was missing and lewis and arthur were friends, it feels odd to like-- none of them to even look sympathetic

i would imagine if they knew lewis was gone they'd assume arthur would be more emotionally reactive than usual-- unless they have no idea that something is going on with arthur because you know-- lewis is erased jdjd

i mean the reason we know vivi doesn't remember is because her eyes glowed as lewis got phased out of the photo

but who knows maybe him being phased out was in general and that just meant she was affected too. everyone gets amnesia

flaaaash — Today at 5:03 AM

also slightly cracky theory but - if they ended up accidentally in the research facility during Ghost, that would explain why Vivi found a fully-stocked fridge alkja;gl

Arthur — Today at 5:04 AM

DSJDDLJSDLFJDSJL

that would be hilarious

lewis is his own scp in his tantrum mansion

they just keep an eye on the lot

flaaaash — Today at 5:05 AM

well what else are they gonna do with him??? xD

Arthur — Today at 5:05 AM

dslsdjdsfljdsfd

''welp no one knows who this guy is soooooo manor in the middle of nowhere time'

flaaaash — Today at 5:06 AM

"so the waiter turned into a vengeful spirit?" "oh uhhhh ok put him in a box i guess until we figure something out?"

ok theory- Duet knows Lewis is dead, but is trying to figure out a way to help/break the memory magic on Vivi, and that's why he's in the mansion/cave for a while before Ghost?

Arthur — Today at 5:06 AM

i like it! i think them knowing and approaching arthur in the comic and using 'rancid vibes' as an excuse would make sense

flaaaash — Today at 5:07 AM

"so that Vivi person wandered in again somehow and now the vengeful waiter ghost is loose?" "for fuck's sake you had ONE JOB-"

Arthur — Today at 5:07 AM

they know what's actually going on but they kinda act like everyone else while also getting arthur something that might help him in that book that i think will be important in the plot of the prequel

DL;G;HDGSAL;HKGSDHL;DGS

flash you have the biggest brain

 flaaaash — Today at 5:08 AM

,kadjgalgkj

"also there was this killer tree-" "I do not care about the tree, one problem at a time"

Poor Duet is having A Week

but the mental image of them trying to avoid Arthur and Vivi investigating, while trying to find ??? and re-capture him while shoving Lewis in a box is hilarious, and then they run into Shiromori and just throw their hands in the air like "can u not????". And then Murder Mystery shows up and they just quit

Arthur — Today at 5:10 AM

dlaajldkljjdl;dldjlfkfd

duet is just like

on their tenth cup of coffee

Don't forget to take your meds ❤ — Today at 5:10 AM

Arthur: Those are rookie numbers

Arthur — Today at 5:11 AM

they see murder mystery and go back inside the shop like 'can you add like 5 espresso shots to this'

flaaaash — Today at 5:11 AM

explains why they're like "Arthur pls your vibes. Do you KNOW what I've been dealing with"

Arthur — Today at 5:11 AM

asdl;;dfslhsdahg;as;dghkghsdllhsgd

flaaaash — Today at 5:11 AM

"five extra shots and a red bull chaser please-"

Arthur — Today at 5:12 AM

(also just still crosses my fingers for medium/spiritually-sensitive!arthur to be canon but if not it will live on in my fannon)

dsldjllssfdf

they just start shoving coffee grounds directly into their mouth

flaaaash — Today at 5:12 AM

this series has a lot of antagonists

akjdalgj just crunching beans down whole

Arthur — Today at 5:13 AM

i need-- to draw duet

looking tired with a coffee

flaaaash — Today at 5:14 AM

Duet with a giant cup of coffee, staring at Murder Mystery with a deadpan stare and going "Absolutely not, I forbid it, there is not enough coffee in the WORLD."

Arthur — Today at 5:14 AM

flash and will if i share this chatter on tumblr would you be okay with it ? or would u rather i block out names if i do

i feel like some of this is hilarious and people need to experience it

flaaaash — Today at 5:14 AM

akdflaf no go for it

I will out myself as a sham of a storyboarder

Arthur — Today at 5:15 AM

duet is that gif of the ghost busters lady going 'mmm nope not today, room full of nightmares'

and turning and walking away

duet is doing their best and needs a nap

tired as Arthur

flaaaash — Today at 5:15 AM

Duet walking around the corner to see the gang facing down Murder Mystery: swivels on one foot and goes right back the way they came

Arthur — Today at 5:15 AM

ldjldljd EXACTLY

Don't forget to take your meds ❤ — Today at 5:16 AM

Heheheheh

Arthur — Today at 5:16 AM

like look at this person

look at their eyebags

they are Tired

they have deal with this bullshittery

they have sass to provide

but they also are Tired and done with this shit

flaaaash — Today at 5:16 AM

I want Duet and Arthur playing a game of caffeine chicken

Marshy — Today at 5:16 AM

Huge massive sigh as they see the whole bullshit situation go down and turns around to go back to the bookshop

flaaaash — Today at 5:16 AM

just lined up at the cafe bar, espresso shots in rows down the counter as they lock eyes-

who shall win- the CAFFEINE-OFF?

Arthur — Today at 5:17 AM

flash

pls if you right that i will pay you money

or maybe art

Marshy — Today at 5:17 AM

It's me I'll win

flaaaash — Today at 5:17 AM

SLFKJLKGS

Arthur — Today at 5:17 AM

dlasd;sdgkd;djslj;dags

i'm rooting for you take those nerds OUT

flaaaash — Today at 5:18 AM

"Duet gives him a look of Supreme Weariness and Nopery. Arthur counters with a double eye-roll of Resignation and Angst. In the true synchronicity of the Absolutely Done, they each take an espresso shot and slam it down."

Arthur — Today at 5:20 AM

djdasd;ds;lsda;ldj;lkdsl;jkdsj;lkasljkdjlkdg

they clink the little cups together first before taking their respective shots

flaaaash — Today at 5:21 AM

they do the thing where they turn it upside down to prove it's empty

by the fifth they're trying to outcompete each other with anecdotes

by the tenth they've moved onto toasting each other

Arthur — Today at 5:21 AM

Bonding!

Don't forget to take your meds ❤ — Today at 5:22 AM

The anecdotes get concerningly similar to each others

flaaaash — Today at 5:22 AM

by the twelfth, Arthur begins weeping. Duet pats him in solidarity and knocks the next shot clean off the counter due to caffeine-induced twitching

Arthur — Today at 5:22 AM

DSGLAHGLDGHDGHAAHDSGDG

EXCELLENT

i

want them to be friends now

flaaaash — Today at 5:23 AM

by the thirteenth, the barista stages an intervention and starts giving them decaf

by this point, they don't notice 

Arthur — Today at 5:23 AM

asdlaadjsdsajd

thank you they owe you their life

they could taste the difference if they weren't vibrating into the 28the dimension atm

flaaaash — Today at 5:24 AM

after the fifteenth shot, the counter is clear and they're both full of sympathetic outrage for the other's plight. They sprint from the cafe, steamroll right over Shiromori, and punt the colours right out of Murder Mystery in a fit of industrial-strength caffeinated indignance.

Don't forget to take your meds ❤ — Today at 5:24 AM

Hahahaha

Arthur — Today at 5:25 AM

h;lsadlf;dsldj;fsljl;dfsajdfsa

flaaaash — Today at 5:25 AM

The newly Monochromatic Mystery has to then help Vivi contain the pair before they wipe all paranormal activity off the face of Tempo.

Arthur — Today at 5:25 AM

that's how the fifth video ends

flaaaash — Today at 5:25 AM

Lewis narrowly escapes by hiding in a box. THE END

Arthur — Today at 5:25 AM

dsal;gsdhldgsa;dgsdgs;hldgs;lhdsa

beautiful thank u flash

i owe you my life

flaaaash — Today at 5:25 AM

you're welcome it's my magnum opus

Arthur — Today at 5:26 AM

A+ story telling

i'm including it in the post

flaaaash — Today at 5:26 AM

ALKJGAGK

it's okay I don't have a reputation to ruin xD

Arthur — Today at 5:26 AM

dlasdl;dhsgldgdgs

this is a callout for flash being the funniest person alive--

or undead

flaaaash — Today at 5:27 AM

dead-

sfkjga

l

Arthur — Today at 5:27 AM

djdjdjdj

i thought about it and corrected myself xDD

flaaaash — Today at 5:30 AM

ok I have no idea if anyone will get this pun, but I dub this the Esprestissimo AU

Arthur — Today at 5:36 AM

djalsd;ldsjdsjldf

i LOVE THAT

music puns but espressos EXTRA ESPRESSOLY

flaaaash — Today at 5:49 AM

xD

[marshthat]

My Jedi master Eeth Koth headcanons!

Eeth Koth has been my comfort charcter for quite a long time, and still is now (and I hope still will be in the future also, bc I cant imagine me existing without my love for Eeth anymore).

So, I've decided to share my most prominent master Koth headcanons that I've accumulated at this point

As promised, I'm posting only general ones, without any specific implied pairings or other relationships!

note: (due not so much info about Eeth in Canon and Legends (unforgivably little actually), maaaaybe I'm projecting some of my own mental stuff on him, but eh, this is unevitable I guess :)

Have fun reading these!

1. Change of the profile

In his youth, Eeth was a Jedi Guardian, a.k.a "Jedi-on-the-front-line", and carried a blue lightsaber. But after the death of his master, followed by him joining the High Council, Eeth calmed down his inner rambo and changed his profile to a Jedi Consular. And so he chose a path of a diplomat, built a green lightsaber (with a hilt very similar to his dead master's one, as a remembrance) and eventually became famous in the Jedi Order exactly for his ability to resolve conflicts peacefully. (that's why no big missions on his part before the Clone Wars era apart from his participation in the Yinchorri incident)

2. The acceptance issue

Eeth pays a lot of attention to his appearance: carefully brushes his hair, makes sure his clothing is perfect, and so on.

Some consider this a simple whim, but in fact this will to have an ideal appearance is a consequence of some issues Koth now has because of his difficult childhood. Due to the fact that Eeth spent his first four years as a ragged orphan in the filthy slums of Nar Shaddaa, he sometimes feels as if he doesn't deserve to be in such a clean and nice place as the Coruscant Jedi Temple. (And the fact that his membership in the Order at first caused a lot of controversy among the Council masters only worsened this fear)

That is why Eeth tries his best to always look as perfect as possible - to be suitable for the beauty of the Temple and to not feel himself a stranger in its walls.

3. Long meditation hours and self-reflecting

He does meditate on his issues quite often, in order to get rid of every irrational fear he has, like the one described in the previous headcanon. Usually he does that in the evening, after all the tasks are completed - he gives himself time to reflect on what happened during the day, what he did and said and how the others reacted. This does help, but still some thorns can be very hard to get out of his hearts. His favourite meditation place is his own quarters in the Temple, where he can have a nice view on the evening/night Coruscant, which is somehow more relaxing to him than the gardens in the Room of Thousand Fountains.

4. A little peek into the apartment

Eeth’s master-quarters in the Temple are decorated with effort and thought. The most significant part are the long heavy thick and soft curtains, that, if closed, take all the light in the room away, leaving the nice pleasant semidarkness atmoshphere. Also Eeth has a lot of various cushions around the whole apartment, along with an enormous supply of aroma candles! 

5. The tragedy of the Padawan

Eeth's first and only Padawan learner was Sharad Hett.

Sharad's will to quit the Order deeply hurt Eeth, even if he didn't say that out loud, as he put a lot of effort and dedication in his promise to be the best master possible for Sharad. Also he lowkey agreed with the accusations of other masters telling him he was responsible for Sharad's departure because Koth failed as a teacher - so he does feel himself guilty of failing both Sharad and the Order.

After the Hett's incident, he actually vowed to himself not to take any more Padawan learners, so as not to let anyone's expectations down again. (And, like master Saesee Tiin, chose to put his efforts into other fields rather then teaching)

(these panels still hurt me somehow qwq 

Sharad made Eeth cry, for kriffs sake!)

6. But he's still very friendly to kids

Despite the unpleasant exprienece with his own Padawan, he did let go of his initial frustration and now he is quite happy to give younglings and young padawans some general lessons! Also sometimes he takes other masters' students to group trainings or supervises them during the Trials of Knighthood. And young Jedi do love master Koth a lot - because he's soft and very patient, and does allow them some liberties :)

7. The social butterfly

Eeth is a "social butterfly" or a "caretaker" (ESFJ mbti-type)

He is used to being among a large number of people, but even though it seems that he gathers these people around him, in fact this is not true - his natural charm and outgoing personality allow him to easily make new acquaintances, interact with friends and encourage conversations, but he more follows his more assertive companions, adapts his behavior and words to them in order to create the most comfortable atmosphere possible, than directs them himself.

In other words, he offers the fun, but enjoys more the others' reactions to it, than the fun itself!

8. Sweet tooth!

Eeth LOVES sweet things! He generally likes all sorts of sweets, starting with various desserts and finishing with sugary tropic fruits. (Gaining weight? Naaah, the zabraks physiology allows him to consume a lot of food because of the higher metabolism due to the zabraks having two hearts. And also he does a lot of physical exercise in the training halls. So it's not a problem at all!)

9. And he is sweet himself too

This love for sugary things is not only for sweet treats actually, but also for the scents of cosmetics too! (And he does use a lot of that stuff). That is why Eeth usually smells of something nice, either caramel, or vanilla, or fruity etc.

This is often favorited by his colleagues on the Council, who definitely enjoy the pleasant aroma Eeth always brings with him to the Council meetings.

10. Energy drinks!

He got badly used to them during the Clone Wars era, because he really needed an additional energy resource when staying up all night brushing through various diplomatic documents and strategy plans. Caf wasn't much of a help because it just turned out to be not strong enough for the zabrak, so he eventually replaced it with cheap but more effective sweet energy drinks. It doesn't really matter to him which drinks to buy exactly, but the meiloorun-flavoured ones are among his favourites.

11. Form of lightsaber combat

Form III - Soresu!

I actually did a separate essay analyzing why Eeth’s form of combat is definitely Soresu, but if keeping brief: he uses Soresu mixed with some Ataru moves. Ataru was his initial style, advised by his master due to Eeth’s small complexion and natural agility & flexibility, but after changing his Jedi profile to a Consular he also adopted the main Consulars’ style - Soresu (usually called “the diplomat style”, “the most peaceful among the seven'' etc.). Koth’s Soresu moves can clearly be seen in the “Grievous Intrigue” episode in particular. Also Koth’s stance in the "Intrigue" is different from the famous Kenobi's "point-fingers" thingy simply because Eeth's pose is not an opening Soresu stance, but the brace-ready stance, which in Soresu is described as “having much in common with the "Ataru guard," with the hilt held at waist height on the dominant side in a two-handed grip for greater control, extended vertically upwards”

12. The double-bladed saber

Eeth wields a double-bladed saber almost as well as a regular one.

And in fact, it was Darth Maul who has inspired Eeth to try this kind of a weapon - after the High Council sent him to lead the investigation on the question of a zabrak sith on Naboo in 32 bby, he got genuinely interested in the possible perks of two blades in his Soresu and eventually mastered the double-bladed saber on quite a level. But he still sees this only as an interesting training option, but nothing more. So the double-bladed saber stays in the Temple and is used only in the Training Halls, but never on the battlefield.

13. An earring (yes, in the singular form)

Eeth has one of his ears pierced (right one), and he actually has several different earrings, mostly simple, like basic metal rings, which he usually picks every morning according to his mood. But to be honest, this earring thing is purely only for himself - because you can’t really see his ears under his usual three-ponytails hairstyle.

Though, he did abandon wearing earrings during the Clone Wars era - because since the war began and the potentially dangerous missions became more frequent, it wasn’t really a right place and time for such things, especially knowing that the Separatists can use some specific traps (like the ones they used to magnetize Jedi lightsabers on Lola-Sayu). The prospect of losing the whole ear due to such a trap is not the most pleasant one indeed.

14. HUGS (and other tactile activities)

Eeth very very VERY much loves hugs!

And for him, tactile contacts are more than just a way to feel comfortable - for him it's a vital part of the whole communication process. This issue dates back to his master, Kosul Ayada, who was a herglic (a race that is actually not very good at speaking Galactic Basic), and therefore helped himself with gestures and body language. And spending a lot of time around master Ayada, Eeth also got used to supporting his verbal dialogue by body language and tactile contact.

That is why while speaking Eeth actively gestures, grabs the other's hands, squeezes shoulders etc. And the hugs are his way to express sympathy and also to feel safe and appreciated!

15. Driving skills

Master Koth can drive, and actually quite well. And by driving I mean not spaceships, but smaller things that stay on land, like speeders.

And because he is a diplomat who often attends various meetings with senators and ambassadors, he also has a personal speeder, allocated to him by the Order for the ease of attending senator events and other diplomatic ocasions.

(But he does use it for other personal purposes too, because why not to, if there is an opportunity)))

(A panel of Eeth casually driving a speeder like a damn pro is one of my fav Eeth comics crumbs,,,,,,)

16. Singing

Eeth enjoys singing! But he usually keeps this thing to himself, making the quiet manthra-like singing a part of his meditative prep - it helps him to settle down his tangly thoughts a bit and tune his mind and body for the actual meditation.

(the hc was inspired by Hassani Shapi’s singing in one of his films, because Shapi’s voice is really beautiful and I’m sad they didn’t give him even a single line in the Phantom Menace when filming Koth’s Council scene)

17. Space soap operas...? (not so serious, sometimes treated as crack, but sometimes not)

Koth (secretly) likes soap operas on the late-night HoloNet, and often stays up to watch a new episode of something before going to bed. His favourite series is called “Lekkus of love” (my imaginary in-universe show I usually use in my sw writings) and it's about a twi’lek girl’s life, filmed in the style of our “Magnificent Century”, with lots of romantic intrigues and twists.

18. LOTS of feelings

Referencing the previous one - Eeth is very emotional, actually! Yes, he’s a Jedi and he knows how to keep his mind clear, but he’s still sensitive enough to actually cry over sad episodes of "Lekkus…" because “Poor Ai’sha, she worked so hard to get her man’s attention, but he still chose that togruta girl? This is outrageous, this is unfair! :ccc”

Also this can be in fact explained biologically. He's a zabrak, and zabraks are supposed to have a hot, blazing, higly-emotional nature (to match their home planet, Iridonia, wich is also boiling with acid seas and all that - otherwise they won't survive)

19. Podracing as a favourite sport

Eeth enjoys podracing. He first got into it back on Nar Shaddaa, when he heard a lot about racing and stuff from smugglers and bounty hunters (and at that time he even dreamed of becoming a cool podracer - but that was of course before he was taken to the Temple).

Now he doesn't dream of podracing that much, but still can and actually does enjoy watching annual championships via HoloNet. He also tries to keep in touch with the latest news in the podracing world (that interest he shares with the young Anakin Skywalker, and they do sometimes occasionally discuss podracing when they both have free time)

20. Horns

Eeth doesn’t really trust droids with trimming his horns, so he usually does that by himself, in the freshener, and that always takes a while. Also unlike a lot of male iridonian zabraks, who prefer to keep the tips of their horns comparatively sharp as a sign of their brutality and masculinity, Eeth chooses to make the tips humbly rounded and smoothed.

21. A pet? (Also not so serious - but sometimes it IS the most serious hc!)

Eeth has a pet loth-cat! The loth-cat is a she-cat, and she's big, fluffy and always on her own mind. Agen Kolar sometimes points out that the loth-cat is very similar to her owner in a lot of little things, like the way the cat purrs when being hugged and how she is obsessed with being clean and ideal too.

The loth-cat is also a bit jealous of her owner’s attention, so she will every time make herself comfortable on his knees when Eeth is meditating or working with documents to show that this is HER man. (especially when smb comes over to Eeth’s apartment - that's the case when she just NEEDS to state who’s the real boss here).

22. Participation in the first battle of Geonosis

I headcanon that Eeth was not directly on the Petranaki Arena actually during the first battle of Geonosis in the AOTC. Since he's not on-screen in that symbolic circle of survivors but is still stated as a participant, I assume that instead of being a part of the main group, Eeth joined Yoda on his trip to Kamino. Maybe not directly on the planet but still somewhere there, helping to gather clone legions to guide them to Geonosis.

(p.s. I know that Eeth's on-screen absence is because of Shapi being replaced with another actor and the new character turning out not at all alike to TPM Koth, but this little hc actually kinda fixes the hole without ruining anything…?))

[catboymingi]

‘does song min gi is dating?’

navi/masterlist

pairing: mingi x reader

genre: angst, fluff; requested!

word count: 2.5k

warnings: probably inaccuracies regarding how being an idol works

a/n: i hope this is roughly what you wanted! baby’s very first idol au...

uhm do you write idol AUs? if you do, can i request a mingi angst/fluff in a secret relationship with the reader?

you knew things would be hard from the start. that was a given when you were dating an idol, and the fact that mingi even considered dating you at all was already a miracle. you didn’t know much, and he refused to tell you the specifics of just what the consequences could be (because he knew you’d worry and might leave him, and he didn’t want that), but from what you knew it could quite literally cost him his job. and you had been about to leave him, several times, because you didn’t want him to risk his future for you. but you loved him, incredibly so, and you couldn’t stand to hurt him. the argument that had convinced you to stay was to imagine how out of it he’d be if you left, and how much that would affect his career. and things had gone okay, surprisingly. you’d scored some weird job at kq, simply so you’d have an excuse to be around him that wouldn’t immediately reveal your relationship, even though you weren’t actually doing anything. translator’s assistant or something like that, which had also given you the opportunity to go on tour with them once, and though you obviously couldn’t sleep in the same room you were able to hang out some, to go on actual dates (though he wore the silliest sunglasses you’d ever seen to hide his face), and that was actually what had made you realise how much you craved to be able to do that with him all the time. you loved him and you’d never ask him to make the two of you official - in all honesty, you were somewhat scared of that, scared of the repercussions, scared of the potential hate both he and you might have to deal with and that you, in your function as a translator’s assistant and with the actual language skills you had, might be able to understand much better than he would -, but sometimes you did wish he’d do it himself. it was a silly, secret wish, one you’d never admit to having, but it was there. and it hurt a little that you knew it was just a wish.

especially now that you were back in korea, and your mother was constantly asking if you’d already found a nice young man (or woman, she’d at some point started adding) to keep you company for the rest of your days, and you had to lie to her even though you had found the one you wanted to spend your life with. you knew you wouldn’t be able to introduce him to anyone before his contract ended, and if he scored another one then even longer, and it hurt. yes, he was worth it, but part of you just wanted a normal relationship.

what made it worse was that you knew he wanted the same. he wanted to be able to show you off, he wanted to be able to go out with you, he wanted to do cute silly couple things in public. or even just hold your hand, hug you, things like that. he wanted to be able to stop keeping everything a secret. and while you were willing to wait, no matter how much it hurt, he wasn’t. not that he’d tell you this; he knew you wouldn’t want him to put everything on the line for you.

“y/n?” it was one of your secret kq dates, sitting in one of the studios with cheap takeout and cuddling and wishing you could do this in a more comfortable setting.

“hm?” your head was on his shoulder, though you lifted it slightly to look at him when he suddenly said your name.

“i love you.”

and it by far wasn’t the first time he’d said it - you’d managed to stay hidden for almost a year now, and he kept telling you how he was only able to stand it because he loved you so much -, but it sounded… different, in a way. it worried you a little. it sounded final, like he’d made a decision.

“i love you too, mingi, you know that.”

of course he knew. he knew that you loved him with all your heart, and that you’d changed your entire future plans to get to be with him, and that was why he’d talked to whoever was in charge at kq for both outside appearance things, press and similar, and those responsible for making sure that ateez stayed successful. he’d made a decision, he wanted to be with you 24/7, he didn’t want to have to be so careful anymore. and they were discussing it, the best way to go about it, because lots of subtle threatening of disbanding the band had managed to convince the company that maybe, a girlfriend would be less of an issue than ateez arguing about whether or not they wanted to keep going without mingi.

“i love you so much.” and because there were no cameras in the studio, nor was there the threat of being caught by a fan or anything of the sorts, he leaned in to kiss you, something you could spend hours doing if you had the chance. but right now you wouldn’t take the chance, because you could tell something was off from how his voice sounded, and it worried you even more than just a little now.

“what’s the matter, mingi?”

“i just don’t want to have to hide anymore”, he admitted, not realising how much that sounded like a breakup. but you were awfully aware of that, and you turned away because you didn’t want to see his face when he would inevitably break up with you.

“i’m sorry.” then, because you knew it would only hurt more if he was the one to say it, “let’s just end this here. i’ll ask to get some sick leave so you won’t have to see me anymore.”

and before he could explain how he’d actually meant it you’d gotten up and left, entirely numb, with him frozen in shock.

//

you did get the requested leave, though they had to make an excuse for mingi, too, saying his ligament issues had been a little worse again and that he needed some rest. you knew that wasn’t it, so you weren’t too worried - he’d get over you, you were sure. and you’d have to get over him, too. first step was deleting any and all ateez-related social media from your phone, which was harder than you thought because you missed his face, his voice, him.

second step was ending the contract with kq that you’d only set up so there would most definitely not be any issues, and so you’d be able to finance yourself even when they demanded your attention, but that was more difficult. they called you in because apparently it had to be terminated in person, something you hadn’t been aware of before, but whatever. you didn’t expect to see mingi, anyway, not when it was something like this, a bureaucracy matter. he’d never been a fan of those.

you were wrong in your assumption, however, because there he was, waiting in front of the office, looking at you with those soft brown eyes that you still loved so much, of course you did.

“hey”, he said silently, and “hey” you said back.

“i’m sorry”, he then went on, and you couldn’t stand looking into his eyes anymore, instead focusing on that one tooth that was just a little off but that had always been among your favourite things about him. maybe it was weird, but when kissing you liked to run your tongue against it, feel the little imperfection that just made him all the more perfect to you. now, however, that little tooth hurt your heart.

“don’t be.” even though you were heartbroken you didn’t want him to apologise, because it really wasn’t his fault. he’d done all he could. sometimes it just wasn’t enough.

“i still love you, you know? and i still miss you.”

now your heart hurt even more. you wanted nothing more than to be with him, you really did, but you knew you wouldn’t be able to. not in the way both of you so desperately wanted to be with each other.

“i love you too, but… you don’t want to hide, and i totally understand, really, i don’t want to hide, either. i wish you didn’t have to choose.”

without knowing, you’d directed the conversation to why you’d actually been called to kq. the contract didn’t need to be terminated in person - it was an excuse they’d made up to get you to come and talk to mingi, who had told them it was either an okay right now or him leaving the band, and the obvious answer had been the okay.

“what if i don’t?” your eyes were wide from your lack of understanding, because you knew he had to. you knew he couldn’t have both. or so you thought.

“i talked to the members, and to kq, and… if you want to, we don’t have to hide. if you’re okay with whatever happens then. i know i am.”

oh. you did want to, really, but… what if he was rushing this? you wouldn’t let him put his career at risk because he was rushing a decision just to get you back.

“you aren’t rushing this, mingi.”

he loved you so incredibly much. it was obvious that you wanted to be with him, so much, yet you put your own wants back so he wouldn’t potentially regret anything.

“i wanted to tell you that i talked to kq back when you… when we broke up.”

extra oh. so it had been you who’d been rushing a decision without even giving him the chance to explain.

“you’re really sure?” he nodded, tentatively taking your hand, unsure if it was okay to do, if he was still allowed to.

“but… how? how would we tell anyone, i mean.”

god, how you loved that smile. it was the most beautiful smile you’d ever seen. the little tooth looked happy, and you wanted nothing more than to kiss him, but he was talking, so you’d have to wait. just a little, because it seemed like now you’d finally get the chance to do it whenever.

“hongjoong, yunho and wooyoung are live right now, actually. we kind of planned this, sorry about that.” but you couldn’t be mad at this adorable tall goofball and his sheepish smile, you couldn’t feel anything but pure adoration and love.

“so we can go in, and we can just… sit there? and wait. and you can kiss me, if you want to.”

he seemed embarrassed about saying that, like a schoolboy, and you thought it was so cute, but you got it. you were nervous, too, about the prospect of suddenly being so out in the open with your love and with your… you, in a way. openly dating him would make you a public figure by proxy, but it was okay. he was worth it.

“let’s just see what happens, okay?” and there it was, the smile he’d missed so much. the smile he’d fallen in love with. the smile that always made him want to kiss you - which he did, now.

“can we pretend we never broke up?”, he whispered against you, and you knew it wasn’t a matter of publicity - he’d made it obvious that he was willing to risk bad press for you. he just didn’t want to have a dent like that in your relationship, and neither did you. you didn’t want your almost one year-track record of dating to be broken because of a misunderstanding like that.

“of course. i don’t think i ever actually said break up, so technically…”

mingi laughed, and you felt your heart pick up its speed from all the love inside of you - mission achieved. he was happy again. and he was loud, as made obvious by hongjoong’s head poking out the door and telling the room: “it’s mingi!”

then, he looked at the two of you questioningly, and mingi looked at you questioningly, and you nodded. time to do it. time to make your most unrealistic wish come true.

“i brought a surprise”, the smaller male informed the other two members as he re-entered the room, mingi and you in tow. and finally, finally you got to sit on your boyfriend’s lap even when there were strangers around - only behind the little vlive screen, but still. though it did make you nervous, and you fiddled with mingi’s fingers in your lap, avoiding to look up for a moment, until you heard wooyoung tell whatever story he wanted to tell. in all honesty, you weren’t paying all too much attention to him. you had more important things to focus on, sitting right behind you, enveloping you in their warmth.

“y/n, please help with the comments” was how hongjoong got your attention back to the room rather than your feet, “they’re not exactly… korean.”

the tall cuddly teddy bear behind you handed you his phone so you could check and left his chin on your shoulder to be able to read some himself, though the leader had been right - it seemed like korean wasn’t exactly a popular comment language right now.

“they ask who i am”, you told them, then continued reading. “‘ateez ninth member’ is another one. i’m also either ugly or cute, they can’t seem to agree on that one.” and it was about what you’d expected - more harmless than you’d expected, actually -, but mingi still wasn’t having it.

“she cute”, he informed whoever cared to listen, in english, and then, grabbed by a sudden wave of confidence and seemingly the desire to embarrass you, “my girlfriend”, reinforced by a kiss to your cheek.

“i guess that clears up the question, then”, in english as well, and then a quick paraphrase for the guys. they weren’t bad at english, not at all, but you wanted to be sure everyone knew that you weren’t saying something you shouldn’t say.

“the secret is out”, yunho joked, in english as well, and it took all your self restraint to not quote a meme on your first public appearance as song min gi’s girlfriend. or at least not until you saw someone quote it in the comments.

“‘the secret is out: does song min gi is dating?’ he is.” whether it was the meme that was making you grin or the fact that you could finally say it out loud, publicly, you weren’t able to tell, but the happiness you felt in this moment was unparalleled.

mingi and you left the vlive roughly ten minutes after, and both of you were beaming at each other. it seemed to have gone okay so far, and you didn’t have to hide. but there was still one thing you had to warn him about.

“just so you know, telling your fans is nothing compared to when you’re meeting my mum.”

[81scorp]

21 tips for writing humor

 This was not written by me. It was written and uploaded to deviantart  Jan 13, 2017 by DesdemonaDeBlake.

All credit goes to her. I just copied and pasted it here.

There are many theories as to the nature, science, and reason for humor. It's an element of human behavior that seems objective in the skill that is required to execute it successfully, and yet just as subjective for how unpredictably it can hit every individual audience member. Today, I'm going to talk about the various forms that humor takes, and give you some tips for making your humorous story a success. To start with, lets look at what I will call the “five scales of comedy”. (Please note that the following is not intended as definitive list of the only sources and scales of humor in the world, only the ones that I have been able to identify within my own life, time, limited understanding, and culture. Also note that I will use the word “Humor” instead of the word “Comedy,” simply because I do not want this discussion on genres to be confused for the type of story that is opposite of Tragedy.)

The Five Scales of Comedy

A story or other source of humor can usually be found along the lines of five different scales. These are: High Humor vs Low Humor, Sweet Humor vs Acidic Humor, Distanced Humor vs Close Humor, Predatory Humor vs Reflective Humor, and Clever vs Ridiculous Humor. These scales stand apart from the sub-genres of humor (dark, slapstick, dry, etc...), and have to do with how the humor affects the audience. Note that there is no “best” type of humor; there is only humor that works in different ways and which impacts different sorts of people. So wherever you find your story in the scales, know that there is no need to change it unless you want to. Also, the names of the scales are just that—names. Just because your story falls into the category of “low” humor, doesn't mean that it is any less valuable than “high” humor.

Range 1: High Humor

Within the range of High vs Low humor, what we are discussing is the how large an audience we are trying to reach. High humor involves jokes and comical situations that are only understood by a very select group of people. An example might be a comedy series that focuses its humor on the experience of working in a corporate office (like … The Office), or perhaps political commentary. These are only funny to those people who have shared the experience or the political knowledge of the person generating the humor. Basically, the higher the humor, the more the entire set-up begins to resemble an inside joke. This type of humor is excellent for gaining the interest of select demographics who you may want to address. For example, if you only want to talk to nerds (I say non-insultingly because I am one and am proud of it), you might have lots of references to science fiction and fantasy.

Range 1: Low Humor

On the opposite side of the range, you have Low Humor. Low Humor deals with topics, jokes, and situations that are more universal to the human experience. An easy example of this is a fart joke. Everyone in the world farts, and most people are in touch enough with their inner child to think that it is funny if the joke is skillfully set up. Again, there is nothing wrong with low humor; and in certain situations it is even preferable. The lower your humor, the larger your potential audience can be. Other examples of low humor might be family life, slapstick, and situational comedy based on everyday experience. Shows like Spongebob Squarepants, for example, involve such a low degree of comedy that people of all ages, demographics, and locations across the world are able to find delight in it.  

 Range 2: Sweet Humor

The next range of humor, Sweet vs Acidic, deals with the intensity of the humor itself. Sweet Humor involves jokes, situations, and characters that require less pain and cynicism to appreciate. For example, a story that involves simple characters bumbling around, making mistakes, overcoming, and becoming better people for it would generally fall into the range of Sweet. We don't laugh at their misfortune (or if we do, its lighthearted and with limited consequences, like slipping on a banana peel), we laugh because their situations are joyfully amusing.  

An example of this are the sort of jokes and humor found in Youtube “Lets Plays,” like those of Markiplier and Jacksepticeye. We don't laugh because of anything bad happening to these people (or the characters that they play); we laugh because they are eccentric, silly, and joyful in a way that also makes us feel joyful. This form of humor can be tremendously encouraging and uplifting to the types of readers who enjoy it.

Range 2: Acidic Humor

On the other hand, we have Acidic humor. Much like with food, most people have strong preferences and limits to how acidic (spicy, sour, or bitter) they like their humor. Acidic humor deals with laughing at topics that are increasingly serious or even tragic, such as death, illness, social injustice, etc... A popular example of acidic humor is South Park. Those of us who enjoy acidic humor will find ourselves laughing at topics that would otherwise likely bring us to tears. The power of acidic humor is that it helps its appreciators to cope with the difficult truths of life, and also to acknowledge problems that we are otherwise tempted to ignore because they are too hard to think about.  

An example of an issue addressed in South Park is the elderly, their treatment, and our fear that we will face the same. Sure, when we watch an episode we laugh when the younger characters mistreat and abuse the elderly in the community. However, a conscientious viewer will then begin the chew on the issue, once the episode is over. We'll look at our own actions, and begin to wonder if our treatment of the elderly is just as bad. Because of the acidic humor, these difficult truths come to the forefront of our minds, we gain the courage to actually think about them, and we can even bring them up in discussion with others. This discussion can then lead to people changing the world for the better.

Range 3: Distanced Humor  

This range has to deal with the necessary emotional distance we need in order to be able to appreciate a certain level of humor. Even with lighthearted humor like slapstick, which has very low acidity, the audience needs to be distanced in order to laugh. For example, if I watch Bugs Bunny wallop Elmer Fudd on the head with a mallet, it's generally pretty damn funny. I know that these characters are both flat cartoons with limited depth to their character, and that as non-beings they don't really feel pain. Therefore, I don't have empathy to Elmer's pain (because it is really non-existent), and I can laugh. However, if the show were to show me Elmer's life, how he's been a vegan but famine has caused him to need to find meat to feed his family, and how he struggles to even shoot at a rabbit because it makes him feel like he's betraying himself; then I'm not going to laugh if Bugs hit him with a hammer. I'm too close, and need emotional distance in order for my empathy to not get in the way of my humor.

Range 3: Close Humor

We do not need distance in order to find something funny. With close humor, the jokes and situations actually rely on how well we know the characters and how much we empathize with them. An example of Close Humor is Scrubs. In the show actually find ourselves within the mind of the protagonist, JD, and seeing the entire world through his eyes. He tells us about his insecurities, his genuine pain, his fears, and we actually really care about him as a character. Yet, we find humor in his minor misfortunes and even in his silly victories. The closeness of our perspective amplifies the events that happen in his life in a way that distanced humor cannot achieve. For example, when he stutters and says something embarrassing in front of someone he idolizes, we find ourselves giggling. If Elmer Fudd were to stutter in front of someone he idolized, we wouldn't laugh nearly so hard because we can't possibly understand the stakes of the moment or why meeting this person is so important to him. We need to be close to a character for Close Humor to work.

Range 4: Predatory Humor

With the range of Predatory Humor vs Reflective humor, we are discussing who will be the “butt” or target of the joke. (Note that a joke does not necessarily need a butt, as we will discuss later.) While often used in a negative way, in order to bully and shame others, predatory humor is not a bad thing in and of itself. Predatory humor can be used to tackle and harm negative constructs and ideas in our society. For example, Fairly Odd Parents used to frequently attack neglectful and abusive parenting. Note that the while Timmy's (the protagonist of the show) Parents were frequently the butt of jokes, they were also not the real target (just like parents in general were not the target). The targets were their selfish and non-reflective actions that had damaging effects on their son. We can use predatory humor to attack ideas, and point out the evils that are so often overlooked in society. The trick is to always keep vigilance of your own mind, actions, and motives to makes sure that you do not become a bully who targets the people themselves. Because even if someone acts in an evil way, bullying them will never cause that to change.

Range 4: Reflective Humor

On the other side of this range we have Reflective Humor, which serves to make fun of itself. Again using South Park as an example, the creators would often make their own beliefs and ideals the target of their ridicule. For example, it's fairly clear that the show speaks in favor of LGBT rights and for their being accepted as equals in society. However, they also go as far as to mock people who are so over-enthusiastic and pro-LGBT (to the point of hypocrisy). Another example is when the show begins to teach a moral lesson, the writers will often make fun of themselves through the character of Kyle for being so preachy. The effect of the show making fun of itself is two-fold. First, those of us whose beliefs South Park mocks feel like the show is being fair. Thus, we continue to listen to and respect the views of the creators, even if we don't always agree. Second, we trust the messages of a story more when it has the integrity to point out its own failings. Note that unlike with other scales, Reflective and Predatory Humor can actually be interwoven so that a joke or story makes fun of itself just as much as its target.

Range 5: Clever Humor

The last range of humor that we'll discuss is that of Clever vs Ridiculous. This range is fairly self-explanatory, but the core of its nature is what sort of punchline is delivered at the end of a humorous situation. Clever humor takes the audience expectation and amplifies or twists it to an unexpected place. You can see this in the work of comedians such as Louis CK and Demetri Martin. Martin, for example, has a humorous bit about doorways that say “Exit Only.” The joke then involves his compulsive desire to tell store workers that they underestimate the potential of those doors by about 50%. The delivery of the punchline is true and logical, but it such a way that it humorously exceeds audience expectation.

Range 5: Ridiculous Humor

Opposite of Clever Humor, we have ridiculous humor. This is when the punchline of a humorous situation is so absurd that we can't help but laugh. And example of this is the Spongebob Squarepants episode where he and Squidward get lost while delivering a pizza. They become lost in the wilderness and spend the episode becoming more and more so. Then, right at the end, Spongebob exclaims that they are saved because he's found a big beautiful boulder, the likes of which the pioneers used to ride for miles. And, to make matters even more ridiculous, the boulder works—driving just like a car. We find humor because the punchline is simply so grandiosely absurd that we can't help but enjoy it. Note that both Clever and Ridiculous humor require a great amount of skill and thought to pull off successfully, it's just a matter of your preference and your target audience.  

The Five Sources of Humor

Once we identify what type of humor we are employing by using the scales, the next thing to consider is what makes our stories funny. This is something of a challenge, because we don't generally put much thought into why humor makes us feel the way it does. The humor either hits or misses, and we laugh or we don't. Making matters even more complicated is that there are so many theories as to why and how humor works—with everyone from Aristotle to Freud interjecting an opinion. But if we look at the particular sorts of things that make people laugh, we can improve how we use humor in our stories.

Source 1: Misfortune  

Whether a cartoon character is slipping on a banana peel, or a character in a romantic comedy finds themselves in an embarrassing situation, the misfortune of others seems to be the most popular form of humor. This is why slapstick and funny home videos have been so prevalent in modern humor. Plato and Aristotle seemed to believe that this was because such humor made the audience feel superior to the characters being ridiculed (Superiority Theory). This seems especially true when we see unlikable characters (like the villain in a children's cartoon) experience misfortune in a comical way.  

Though Superiority Theory has its place, I would assert that there is an alternative way that people enjoy misfortune. Perhaps the experience of slipping on a banana peel or being in an embarrassing situation is funny because of our own memories of experiencing the same thing or something similar. Freud and others theorized that humor was a release of energy (Relief Theory). Maybe our camaraderie with the character, mixed with emotional distance from the scene we are watching, creates a safe space to release our own stored feelings of pain or embarrassment. Thus laughter really does become a healing force.

Source 2: Absurdity

In his essay “The Myth of Sisyphus”, Albert Camus defines and explains the absurd.

“It's absurd” means “It's impossible” but also “It's contradictory.” If I see a man armed with only a sword attack a group of machine guns, I shall consider his act to be absurd. But it is so solely by virtue of the disproportion between his interaction and the reality he will encounter. […] Likewise we shall deem a verdict absurd when we contrast it with the verdict the facts apparently dictated. (29)

Though Camus is not talking about humor (rather the existentialist question), I think that the absurd is a source of humor. Audiences are often entertained by the absurdity of a situation. And by looking at Camus' explanation, we can hypothesize that this form of humor comes from the disproportionate contrast of action and situation. An example of this might be one of the last battle-scenes in Braveheart. In this scene, victory looks unlikely, the dramatic tension is high, and it seems to be the most serious moment imaginable. Then, upon being signaled, the protagonist's soldiers pull up their kilts and reveal their bare asses to the enemy. It's so unexpected and so absurd, that many people cannot help but to keel over laughing.

This scene is completely disproportionate to what we would expect to see in this dramatic a moment. The action does not suit the situation, but in a strange way it also kind of does—with the action juxtaposing itself against the situation. Perhaps, just like with misfortune, absurd humor creates a needed release of energy, connected to our own sense of existentialist absurdism. The absurd could then serve to release our feelings of despair in a positive light. The show, Rick and Morty, seems to be built on this connection between absurd humor blended with existentialism and nihilism. Of course, this is just a theory. What you'll want to focus on when writing absurd humor is the relationship of your characters' actions to the situations that they find themselves in. Are they lost in the desert? Have them climb a boulder and ride it home. The stronger the contrast between action and situation, the higher you'll make the potential for absurdity.

Source 3: Wit

Wit is the essence of Clever Humor; its the pithy intelligence that makes us laugh because of all the thought put into a situation. When we hear a witty joke or are part of a witty situation, we find ourselves moving in a forward humorous momentum, instead of the backwards and diagonal momentum of the absurd. But we don't stop at the expected location. For example my mother called me a few months ago, asking me if I was going to wish my brother a happy birthday. The expected response for this sort of set-up/situation is to answer “Yes” or “No”. But I went forward and beyond “No” by asking why she wanted me to congratulate my brother for being one year closer to death (I have an acidic sense of humor sometimes). This reply was much more thoughtful than what my mother expected, and pointlessly taken beyond the realm of reason. Therefore, she found it funny.

Perhaps there is an element of the absurd in any given amount of witty humor. It's as if we are taking extra steps to be as intelligent and rational as possible—ending with us standing somewhere close to the absurd. Using Camus' illustration of absurdity, the soldier with a sword wouldn't necessarily attack the machine guns, but instead go home, refusing to sacrifice his life to be a metaphor. You can see this sort of humor in Youtube series such as How it Should Have Ended. In this series, animators take a closer look at popular movies and then make efforts to enforce logic in worlds and characters that didn't have them. This includes having Severus Snape use his time-travel gizmo to go back in time and kill Voldemort before he became a problem—an action that is so logical that it erases the need for any of the Harry Potter stories to even happen. So when you create witty humor, look to take things beyond the realm of expectation—aiming for the absurdly reasonable.

Source 4: Anti-humor  

Anti-humor is when something is so unfunny that it becomes funny, sort of like puns. As we find delight in the absurd and the unexpected, humor and jokes can begin to feel predictable. We begin to look for the solution in jokes, and we're usually smart enough to begin to be able to predict it. In this case, the expected becomes surprising. An example is the classic: “Why did the chicken cross the road? To get to the other side.” If you haven't heard it before, this anti-humor joke is actually kind of funny. A great example of this are the great collection anti-jokes found online.  

You can take anti-jokes to the next level using extremely acidic humor. This is where you take serious, grievous, or tragic topics and use them as the punchline for your joke. For example, a joke about a fatal illness is not funny because the person making the joke finds that topic amusing (otherwise that person needs some counseling). A joke about fatal illness can be funny to some people for the exact opposite reason—because of how dark and unfunny it is. Again, I believe this ties into a release of negative energy while in a safe space, and the processing of difficult emotions. If you plan to use the extreme form of anti-humor, please note that many people have very legitimate reasons for not enjoying it. So be careful, and give your audience some sort of forewarning so that you do not spring something so emotionally charged on them without their consent.

Source 5: Familiarity and Value

When I was taking university writing classes, I had an extremely eccentric professor who had all sorts of mannerisms that were unique to him. In the moments when he was particularly eccentric and acting out of his true nature (which he was quite comfortable with), I would find myself laughing, even if the situation wasn't funny. I think others can relate to this, as we all love to talk about fun people that we used to know, and find ourselves laughing even when what we are remembering isn't particularly funny. We laugh because those people acting happily out of their own nature gave us joy, and so anything they do creates a laughter that feels akin to humor.  

This mirth through familiarity can be accomplished in stories as well. In Bob's Burgers, for example, we really don't even begin to understand the humor until we develop an attachment and feelings for each individual character. Sure the situations are mildly amusing, but true laughter and humor doesn't begin until we know the characters, their likes, their dislikes, and who they are deep down inside. Once we know that, we laugh as each character acts out of their nature. When we see Louise (one of the protagonists) act with mischievous intent, we laugh even before we know what she's doing because we are happy that she is about to act out of who she really is. Note that this is a rather difficult sort of humor to pull off because you have to create a relationship between the characters and the audience before the humor will be possible.

General Tips for Humor

Tip 1: Create a patterned and uniform blend of humor for your story.

When you choose what sort of humor you plan to use in your story, the best way of maintaining audience enjoyment is to keep it constant. Just like when we watch a stand-up comedian, we begin to develop a taste and sense of expectation for whatever we are watching or reading. Over time, your audience will begin to really appreciate the flavor of your humor, and that appreciation will make your jokes increasingly funny (so long as they are creative and continue to be intelligently crafted). The pattern will also make all of your jokes seem, feel, and become purposeful. Your audience will enjoy this much more than if you seem like you are desperately trying to milk the humor from anything you can get your hands on (you perv).  

I recommend you begin by analyzing the origins of humor in your story's world. Is the world simply absurd, with unseen gods of chaos just dropping coconuts on people's heads for pure amusement? Does the humor come from a specific character? A group of funny people living in a serious world that they must learn to cope with through humor? A funny narrator with a unique perspective on life? Once you figure out the origins, determine where your humor will fit on the scales (it doesn't have to be on any extreme, you can stay in the middle of the scales and still be hilarious); and then figure out the source.

Tip 2: Create a genuine story with genuine characters, in order for humor to gain the most power.

If we value stories in terms of how much people enjoy and remember them, the best humor stories are those with good plots and characters. This may seem counter-intuitive when your intent is to make your audience laugh, but think of it this way. If an audience wants just concentrated jokes, they will read a joke-book. Your audience is choosing to dredge through the murky waters of story in order to find the humor with more difficulty because they want a blend of story and humor.  

An example of this is the movie,“Austin Powers.” Many people, myself included, watched these movies before we ever watched the James Bond movies that they were making fun of. And we enjoyed them greatly, and laughed the entire way through. Why? Because the characters and story, ridiculous as they were, were good enough that we actually invested our interest and emotions into them. As an added bonus, the story has become timeless and respected in its own right. Even if we face a future where nobody knows who James Bond is, the Austin Powers movies will be able to stand on their own merit because they are more than just jokes.  

Tip 3: Be careful about dating yourself.

Speaking of parody and humor losing its ability to be funny, let's talk about references that date our stories. Humor at the expense of popular culture (movies, politicians, celebrities) is a fun ploy of high-humor. It's especially useful for nighttime comedy shows that will be lost to time anyways, within a couple years. When you are writing a novel, however, you are trying to create something that will last a bit longer than that. Additionally, novels take a lot longer to write than an episode of a late night comedy show. This means that by the time you publish and people begin to discover your book, they may not know who the vapid pop star you're making fun of is. Your humor will be lost to time, and your book quite possibly forgotten. Of course, I'm not telling you that you can't use this sort of humor, just that you should be aware of the risks it holds.

Tip 4: Mark every line that is supposed to be funny, and make sure that it is.

Nothing detracts from a story or from a spirit of jovial humor so much as an obvious joke that falls flat. It's like watching an acrobatics show. If the acrobat falls on their face too many times you'll either be embarrassed for them or you'll empathize and start worrying for their safety. Either way, you won't find the situation amusing. In your own personal copy of the manuscript, mark every joke for analysis of whether it actually succeeds and whether it serves to empower the story. Then, ask your editors, test-readers, and writing partner to circle every point that they genuinely found funny. Be sure to pick test-readers who fall into the niche you are writing for, as well as those who do not. If nobody but you marked a specific joke, then you need to either get feedback for how to make it funnier, or else cut it.

Tip 5: Write within your own expertise and authority.

This does not mean that you can't laugh at things, and poke fun at things that are outside your realm of expertise, so long as you have done your research. But consider the power of an insider making a joke about something that you are a part of vs an outsider doing the same. It would be like the difference between me calling most writers narcissists (as I am one, and know that it is pretty true in most instances) and a politician making a joke and calling writers narcissists. I mean, what right does that asshole have to judge us, even if it is true? The point is that your jokes gain power when you can tell them with the confidence of an insider. Not only that, but your audience who is a part of the group at the butt of the joke, will be much more gracious and feel far less attacked when the joke comes from one of their own.  

Tip 6: Humor is personal  

Humor is something that is highly individual to specific groups and people. For example, I do not understand, nor am I really able to appreciate most British or Spanish comedies. This is not because they aren't funny; they are just as valid and hilarious as every form of comedy that I do enjoy. The reason is simply that because of either how I was raised, my life experiences or because of who I am by nature, I can't enjoy them any more than I can enjoy olives on my pizza (seriously, I hate them). It doesn't matter how artfully these types of humor are composed, there is simply no effect akin to joy, amusement, or laughter when I come across them. In other words, the problem is me and not them.  

All this is to make three points. First, it may be more difficult to find test-readers and worthwhile criticism for humorous work. Even if I'm really good at critiquing stories, I will not be able to give you any helpful feedback if your humor doesn't match with mine. And that isn't your fault any more than it's my fault. It's just a difference in taste. Second, humor is as personal and close to the heart as any other story or craft. When you create a joke, you are channeling whatever emotions and mixes of experiences have led you to the type of humor you have. So recognize the emotional bond between yourself and your humor.  

The third piece of advice is for those on the other end of the spectrum, those experiencing the humor of others and perhaps trying to give advice. Please recognize that others' sense of humor is just as valid as yours. Whether their sense of humor is simple, complex, dry, witty, dark, acidic, sweet, or anything in between, it is their sense of humor and not yours. Be careful in how you voice any attempts at criticism, as there are few ways to break your friends' trust and confidence as completely as when you tell them, “That's not funny.” You might as well be telling them that their heart sucks, and they are a sucky person.  

Instead, acknowledge the differences in people's humor, value it even if that humor makes you uncomfortable, and voice your criticisms accordingly. Try: “This joke wasn't successful with me, and might be perceived as racist/bullying/insensitive to some readers; so seek other feedback to see if it's just me.” You will voicing just as honest an opinion, without formulating a direct attack against the person who has trusted you with something so delicate to them.  

Weekly Recommended Watching: Doraleous and Associates by Hank and Jed. (A free animated fantasy Youtube series that manages to successfully mesh several humor types with an over-arching plot. Examine how even there are plot elements that are serious and even sad, the series maintains its humor through well-balanced distance and wit. And if this form of humor does not amuse you, that is perfectly valid and your own unique sense of humor is still a valuable thing.)

[casualotptrash]

Why the Persona 3 FES vs Portable Debate Makes Me Want to Fly Into the Sun Pt. 3

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Da da da daaa!

Part 3 of this lovely emotional rant is here, for anyone who wants to spend their time reading these. With the last two posts, I have mostly tried to be informative or just complain a bit about why this debate makes me want to fly into the sun, but for this post it’s going to go a little different. Perhaps a bit more subjective than the others.

In this post, I’m going to go over everyone's favorite clusterfuck...a definitive version of Persona 3.

Now, as we established in the previous post, we know that the argument of FES vs Portable is essentially pointless because everyone’s opinion on either game is subjective. However, I have neglected to bring up this topic that puts a huge ass nail into this dusty old coffin: the fact that there is objectively no definitive version of Persona 3.

Everyone can argue all day and night about which version of P3 is better, but no one can deny that either version are “definitive.” By definitive, I mean that the game has the most content that is offered, like Persona 4 Golden or Persona 5 Royal. The reason none of the P3 games are definitive is because base P3 lacks stuff from FES and Portable, FES lacks stuff fro Portable, and Portable lacks things from FES. It’s a gamble of whether you want to experience cutscenes, an overworld, and The Answer, or a whole new route with the FeMC and the brand new option of dating male party members and saving...you know who.

One might be able to say FES is definitive because it has The Answer, which I believe is considered canon according to the Arena games. Another could say Portable is the definitive version because it came out after FES, added the FeMC (who is technically canon as per the second Persona Q game), and removes The Answer (which a lot of people said The Answer messed with the core theme of P3). However, the definition of definitive in this case, and with all of the other games, is that the game offers the most content. Arguably, FES and Portable provide the same amount of content, just in different ways. This is why this whole conversation of which one is better, or which to play first, spawned in the first place.

The reason I am bringing this up in this post, about why this whole discussion physically pains me, is because having a real, definitive version of the game could finally put this discussion to rest. At least, it somewhat would. People would probably still argue that FES is the best for some reason.

Now, the argument becomes...well, what does a definitive version of Persona 3 look like?

I have seen quite a bit about this topic, and people seem to really miss some common sense points. For example, they get caught up in whether it would be considered a remake or a remaster. I know some use those terms interchangeably, but the “official” definition for each is that a remake is a game that is made from scratch, while a remaster is made by updating the existing assets and engine. For example, the upcoming Nocturne HD release is a remaster. Personally I find it difficult to neatly fit the typical persona definitive editions, like Golden and Royal, into either of these categories. It may just be me not fully grasping the differences between the two, but I believe they would fit into more of the “remaster” category. It is true that there are new assets and content being added to the game, but it’s so minor that I’m not sure it could be considered a remake. On the other hand, because new content is added it couldn’t just be defined as a remaster because typically the effects and such aren’t even changed that much. It’s just gameplay and story content that is tweaked.

When people get so caught up in what it would be considered, logic seems to...go out the window? For example, in a debate between a P3 remaster or remake, a person made a comment that if a remake was to happen then people would demand that all of the social links be available to anyone. Now, that just isn’t possible for a variety of reasons. There’s no way we could ever mix and match social links to get a preferred grouping. Another issue with this is that if just a remaster was made, then one of the two games would be left out.

This is why I don’t really think about whether a definitive edition is a remaster or remake, because using such strict labels make it harder to judge what could, or should, be in one. This is why I’m just referring to this process as making a definitive edition. That being said, I would consider a definitive P3 game to be more of a remake (not that it really matters) because my ideas would essentially combine FES and Portable, in a way?

So here we go, into my idea of what a definitive version of Persona 3 would look like. (Warning: This will contain spoilers for all of the P3 story and *gasp* may be a bit biased toward Portable because I like it more)

1. Presentation

In simple terms, I would want the game to essentially be Portable...but with updated graphics, cutscenes from FES, and an overworld. It’s easier to use Portable as a base because it’s already closer to the format of P4 and P5, so then adding in the good parts of FES with the cutscenes and overworld are par for the course. As far as graphics go, I would like the models and environment to look more like P3D (aka whatever engine they used for Persona 5?) because damn did the characters get a glow up.

2. Gameplay

Along with the format of Portable, I would also want the gameplay of Portable to be in this definitive version. That means no jealousy system, no fatigue until after you leave tartarus, the vision quest, and the other changes I mentioned in the first post. Sorry FES fans, but yes...I would still want the option of controllable party members. However, a new change that should be added is backup members earning exp. I don’t think baton passes or anything should be added, we don’t want a clone of P5, and the combo attacks in P3P kind of fill this role anyway. The idea of having social links give certain perks with ranks, like how confidants work in P5, is interesting but I don’t think it would be necessary. I would also say that the soundtrack should be exclusive for each side, like how it is in Portable, and that there should be an option to choose which skills are inherited.

3. Social Links

The stance I would take with social links would essentially be how Portable did it, but with a slight tweak. No matter how much it would be cool to date Rio or Saori as the Male MC, or vice versa with Kaz or Keisuke and FeMC, I don’t think any mixing of the two sides would really be feasible. However, I would love to see cameos of those characters in the opposing routes. For example, you see Yuko and Kaz in the female route, but in the male route you could see Saori and Rio at school. That being said, and this is probably one of the biggest issues, I would want the male protag to be able to have social links with the entire party, men included. This brings up the issue of what social links you would cut out because you can’t have two social links be the exact same arcana. Unless they want to add more arcanas to the game, which would probably not go over well either, the best option is probably to prioritize the male party members and then have who would usually be in their place just show up sometimes. For example, Kenji would show up in the social link with Junpei instead of the magician social link just being about one or the other.

I know this seems weird, but it does kind of avoid shafting one or the other. If it was too hard to fit the two together (such as Chihiro and Ken both being Justice), perhaps a few more school scenes could be added where the MC interacts with the school friends that are not seen as much (Kenji, Chihiro, etc.) However, and this might piss off 1% of people but whatever, but the moon arcana with Nozomi (Gourmet king dude) could just be completely taken over by Shinji. Nozomi is a meme, but he is not needed in any way. Also, I would prioritize Yuko in the male route over Koromaru since, although he is a very good boy, he is still a dog. Also, please get rid of the option that you’re forced to romance every girl in the male route, and personally I would say keep in the fact that you cannot date Junpei. In a headcanon sort of way, I totally dig the idea of the MC being able to help Junpei through his rough time after Chidori dies (if she dies?) and feelings grow from there, but from a story perspective I think it’s integral to his character that he friendzones the player if they try.

So TLDR; who the social link is about would mainly stay true to the original route (male route with Kaz, etc. and female route with Rio, etc.), however in the male route the party members would take priority (so Akihiko would take the star arcana place and Mamoru (track guy) would just be featured in the link sometimes), and in both routes Shinji would take Nozomi’s place as the moon. Important note that besides including the other character, the main substance of the social link shouldn’t be changed; aka they should not change the format of the social links to operate more like P5 social links where the MC is just solving all of their problems.

(Sidenote: This is imply my idea on how to include party members into the social links for the male route, however if they just decided to keep the social links the exact same as Portable with no male party member social links with the male route then I’d be fine with that too. It wouldn’t really take away from the game as a whole for me, personally.)

4. Romance Options

Riding off of the social link talk...and I know this is like the least likely option of happening, but please make some gay options Atlus? If we can romance every single girl in the male route, why not just add the romance option for the men too? Yes yes there’s the whole argument about the issue of “making everyone bi” (thanks for erasing sexuality that care more about connections rather than gender?), but I say look no further than how Dragon Age 2 did it. Every romanceable option in that game can be romanced be either the male or female main character (barring a DLC character who is only romanceable by females), and it works just fine. Turns out, no one really gives a shit if it’s “realistic” enough (aka only having one or no bi/gay people apparently?) because it’s a video game and people want to romance whoever they want...because it’s a video game. Even if you really, really don’t like this approach there is also the option of going the Dragon Age Inquisition route, where characters are able to be romanced by certain genders and not by others (race also plays a role in this in the game, since there are elves and other fantasy races and such, but this is not applicable to Persona obviously). This is simply a hypothetical example, but how this would work is that like Fuuka can only be romanced by the Male MC, Akihiko and Yukari could be romanced by either MC, and Mitsuru could only be romanced by the FeMC. Obviously social links specific to a run would be a romanceable option to the MC in their route (as in Yuko would only be romanceable by Male MC because she’s only in her run, and social links like Saori could be a romance for FeMC because she’s specific to her route). I have a gut feeling this would cause an even bigger uproar with the fandom, so having any romance option (barring route specific social links for the route they’re not in) be available for either male or female MC is the best option in my opinion.

Take out Ken’s romance option altogether though. I know some of the language is different, so it doesn’t say you “spend a long night together” or whatever, but that doesn’t really make it any better. I do think it’s fine if Ken has a crush on the MC, and maybe has a whole Kenji thing of thinking they are together cause he’s 10 and kids can be like that, but the MC wouldn’t actually act on this and the player could be given the choice to actively dissuade Ken. The only good thing that came out of Ken’s romance option was the fact that him and Akihiko can argue in Tartarus if you romance them both, and I don’t want to lose that hilarious dialogue.

5. Tartarus

Tartarus...uh...to be honest I’m not really sure what to do with this beast. It’s boring and tedious in the first place, probably by design for symbolism in the game, but I’m not sure how to make it interesting without copying the dungeon/palace format. Perhaps the blocks could be restructured to act more like a big puzzle that needs to be solved, like certain sections of palaces in P5, but also have bosses and shadows thrown in. For example, perhaps one block could be more reminiscent of hide-and-seek stealth tactics while another is formatted like a series of arena-esque gladiator fights. Also probably lower the number of floors you need to climb? It gets a bit ridiculous when you realize there are 264 floors of Tartarus and 99% of them are the same but just with more funky music and slightly different decorations. This job is suited for someone with actual video game making experience though, and not me.

6. Awakenings and Pacing

Let’s talk about some quick fixes to awakenings and pacing of the game. Now, since this is a definitive version and not a true remake, I wouldn’t want them to rewrite the entire story or something. Most of the party member’s original awakenings happen off screen, which can be kind of lackluster. The MC’s and Fuuka’s are the only two we really see, and those moments were really cool in my opinion. Obviously we wouldn’t see Mitsuru’s, Akihiko’s, or Shinji’s original awakenings, but that is fine. Yukari and Junpei also fall into this boat because Yukari awakens before the MC gets to the dorm, and it would be hard to show Junpei’s awakening while also having his whole “reveal” moment when he comes to the dorm to live there. I don’t know if it’s ever mentioned when Ken awakens to his persona, but making a scene to show both his and Koromaru’s would be helpful instead of just saying Ken has the potential and he’s joining, and hearing about Koromaru awakening but not actually seeing it. As for the pacing, I’m mainly talking about the summer time where you can’t hang out with a good number of social links. I would just change this so that you can hang out with school social links during this time more readily, like if they’re just hanging out somewhere in town if they’re not at school. Like I said, this isn’t a remake (and I’m not a video game designer) so I didn’t want to get into how to fix the overall pacing of the story, which can be pretty slow until October or so. My one suggestion is maybe adding in a few extra scenes with Strega before October so it’s not like we run into them a couple times and suddenly they’re a major villain.

7. Shinjiro

(Spoilers for after October) I know certain people will definitely not like this point, but I think the option to save Shinji should remain in the game (and Chidori too). I’ll go into this in another post, but my main reason for keeping this in is because some people really do like this option, so it would be kind of unfair just to get rid of it because other people don’t like it. However, I would suggest a change to his social link so that there is the option to save him or not while also being able to complete the social link. Perhaps after rank 10 would be when you could give him the pocket watch, so that people could get the rank 10 and not be forced to save him. 

8. Extra Content

(Spoilers for the ending of Persona 3 and The Answer) Each definitive version has extra content in the “third semester” (because Persona 4 and 5 both essentially end after December), but in Persona 3 the natural game ends in January. I am not sure if they would try to add another whole months or so on, but because The Answer already exists, but I assume they wouldn’t add extra content in February or something for the MC. For The Answer, I would keep this in the game as sort of the “extra content” but add a FeMC version of this. Obviously it would be largely the same, except with the FeMC and perhaps the male party members could get more of a focus since the female party members get a larger focus in the male route (ie. Yukari breaking down with the keys. Maybe Junpei or Akihiko could take on this role as the people who don’t want to let go). Also, as a possible new addition to The Answer, Shinji could be a part of it if he is saved during the main game. In the NG+ run of Portable FeMC route, if you romance Shinji he comes to the rooftop for that final scene, so in a way it could be possible for him to recover by the time The Answer happens in March.

Now, if Atlus decided to add a more typical “extra content” thing, I hope they wouldn’t try to cram The Answer in on top of that unless they were able to do it cohesively. It might be a lot to have the whole ending of the game in January, come up with a reason to have extra content in February (presumably with the MC still alive, but also combat would need to be a part so then the issue arises of Tartarus coming back or something?), and then have the answer take place right after near the end of March.

Well that’s the end of that I think. This will also be the last post in this little “series” because I pretty much went over everything about this debate that makes me want to fly into the sun. I know the things I talked about in these posts will probably never stop, but I really hope that if a definitive version comes out at least the discussion will change to saying what is good or bad about each game rather than FES supremacy or whatever. That being said, above all I really hope this debate doesn’t discourage new fans from Persona 3 or the series in general, because that would probably be the worst outcome from all of this. It’s a great game, and it’s a shame that the game itself is kind of held back by being split into two (I’m not counting base Persona 3) different forms.

[szivtalan]

character ask: kagami, momoi, alex and himuro 👀👀👀

!!! omg thank u Ceru! u might be one of my favorite mutuals <33 (putting this under a read more just so I can speak at lengths about each individual character)

Why I like Kagami: this is where I sarcastically ask “why DON’T i like him” but that’s literally the next question so; he’s everything i want to be and more. He has the determination and the willpower to make his own dreams come true, he’s gay as shit, he’s tall and buff and well-adjusted, mature enough to live on his own at an annoyingly young age, he’s funny and dumb and a total himbo as well as an excellent advisor bc of how grounded he is.

Why I don’t: I’m... not really good with explosive people. Violent men with loud voices especially scare me, and I’d think I’d flinch around him a lot and that would make me rlly anxious.

Favorite episode: it’s a toss-up between the Seirin fam visiting his place for the first time (is it where Kuroko confesses his love to him and then passes out in his arms? idk), and the onsen episode. I also loved all his plays against Kise and Aomine. AND the training camp w him running a lot in the sand.

Favorite season/movie: season 2 probably because he’s not a jerk anymore, but he’s still on his way to shed off any asshole behavior stuck to him. And I actually liked Last Game?

Favorite line: “There’s no such thing as useless effort.” and “This is our drama and we write the plot.” because he’s so ridiculous.

Favorite outfit: all of his casual fits... comfy but manly is my Jam

OTP: AoKaga....they’re truly soulmates, star-crossed lovers, canonically brought together by fate.

Brotp/otp no. 2: KagaKuro, I love them

Head Canon: I have several collections because I think too much about this boy, but here’s something I think about his family: he doesn’t know what happened to his mom. He never asked, because it wasn’t relevant, and he didn’t want to inconvenience his dad by questioning him. Occasionally, as a kid he felt like he was missing out on something (seeing other kids with their moms, feeling like they’re being treated with much more gentle care because they have moms), but as he grew older he realized that nurturing behavior shouldn’t have been limited to only a mother, and that he was just straight up neglected without any regards to missing a parent in his life.

Unpopular opinion: I never realized this was an unpopular opinion but I’m glad he went back to America at the end of Last Game. Obviously, it’s sad that he had to separate from the others, but I felt like Japanese basketball has always been just a stepping point to him, and now that he’d beat the best of them, it was time to move on. And it also warms my heart that him getting scouted in the US gave Aomine hope to aim big, too. I felt like both of them would’ve felt trapped in Japan with their skill sets.

A wish: I want him to be happy and gay and to confront Himuro and tell him how hurt he was by how he treated him and probably do the same to his dad too

An oh-god-please-dont-ever-happen: ....whatever I’d say Shinsun has probably written it/will write it, but I don’t want him to forget about the GoM just because he becomes a world-famous athlete.

5 words to best describe them: sweet child with anger issues

My nickname for them: not mine (it’s Sypha’s) but “Kags”, Kagami, Tigerboy, Kagababe, Baby

Why I like Momoi: she is SO nurturing and sweet and she cares so much about her boys!! I’m sorry it always turns into “how they remind me of myself” but actually I get feeling like a background character and being the moral/emotional/physical support of those who are more talented or in any way better than you. I feel a strange kind of kinship with her and also,,, feminine girls make my heart stop, and it doesn’t get more feminine than Momoi. Added: Aomine aside, the Touou team wouldn’t worth shit without her skills tbh, and she’s not in any way less than the GoM. Also, I appreciate her being the one person to try to keep their friend group together.

Why I don’t: Analytical People Scare me like!! how do u know stuff people are Unknowable!! I usually am also irked by her pointing out Riko’s breast size but I can just pretend that’s in a gay way (maybe Momoi likes girls with small boobs and she’s just bad at flirting) (also I don’t exactly liked her calling Aomine a “ganguro” but I have too little knowledge on the use of this word to say exactly why)

Favorite episode (scene if movie): uh the one where Aomine made her cry? It really came through how much love she actually has for her friends at that one.

Favorite season/movie: she was great in all of them!!

Favorite line: I can’t remember the exact quote and Google isn’t really helpful either but the one where she made Kuroko promise they’ll always play together or something? Or that they’re gonna beat Aomine?? idk?

Favorite outfit: I like all of them but mostly I just appreciate her wearing so many hoodies, she looks so cute in them

OTP / Brotp: it’s both AoMomo. I feel like the have the most special and strongest bond in the entire series.

Head Canon: She’s never been shown to do, but I feel like she wears Aomine’s clothes a Lot. Also, they definitely have sleepovers To This Day.

Unpopular opinion: Momoi is good at basketball and she loves playing!!! But try being successful in it when ur opponents are Giants and Way More Buff than you are

A wish: I wish people appreciated her more!! Both in fandom and in canon. She’s an amazing person and she has her own skills and strengths that are rarely explored or even mentioned anywhere.

An oh-god-please-dont-ever-happen: her falling out with her boys ;-; I do not want that

5 words to best describe them: strawberry sweetheart to steal ur heart

My nickname for them: Satsuki :> I feel like it’s a little too much to call characters on their first names sometimes but hers is so cute I can’t

Why I like Alex: yet again another woman with an extensive skill set. I love her persistence and again I appreciate getting disillusioned and finding your way back to the thing you love. Also it’s just sweet that she did that by teaching (again, something I can relate to)

Why I don’t: the whole “kissing children” thing rubbed me the wrong way but again, just like Momoi’s obsession with comparing breast sizes, it’s just bad/sexist writing from Fujimaki probably

Favorite episode (scene if movie): adshg any and all where she expressed that Himuro and Kagami are equally important to her <33 that shit makes my heart burst

Favorite season/movie: she only appears towards the end of s2 and in s3 so... I guess s3?

Favorite line: its so Bad that u literally can’t find the iconic quotes of these iconic ladies anywhere but... her story on finding her passion again through teaching kids, and anytime she mentions her fondness of Kagami and Himuro.

Favorite outfit: her iconic olive green coat with the short red shorts... wtf was that I loved it.

OTP: she doesn’t really interact with people her age but I’ve heard she’s shipped with Masako Araki and I’ve seen some seriously good fanarts and like... Yes Good I’d Love To See It

Brotp: I feel like her and Himuro would be that sassy pair that Kagami tries and fails to contain and they get into all sorts of weird, absurd situations asdjs what I’m trying to say is Kagami has to bail them out of jail from time to time

Head Canon: fck me if I’m wrong but she’s the lesbian single mom of the two gay kids she reluctantly adopted from the streets

Unpopular opinion: it’s more like another headcanon, but she can dunk and she taught Kagami how to do it.

A wish: I’d love her to coach the Seirin fam more!! Pls let her be part of her children’s lives (she could also judge streetball games between the goms it would be fun)

An oh-god-please-dont-ever-happen: anything about her being romantically involved with her pupils makes me.................no

5 words to best describe them: Beautiful Beach Blonde Basketball....goddess

My nickname for them: Alex!! sometimes An Icon

Why I like Himuro: em dash Asdgsdj I’m joking, I’m becoming more and more fond of the boy. Once I realized that he shouldn’t have been the “bigger person” in that situation and one year doesn’t really mean much when you’re that young and that hurt, I realized he’s actually a good and hard-working kid and I’m sorry for giving him so much shade. Also I really like his snark and sass, but that might not even be canon at this point tbh

Why I don’t: I’m still sort of irked by him beating down on Kagami because he was envious/mad, but I realized the aspect of that situation that Really got to me was how devoted Kagami still was to him after all that. That devotion was what felt toxic, nothing that Himuro actually did to him.

Favorite episode (scene if movie): the time they met up w Kagami just to exchange a dramatic socially distancing bro fist and a few encouraging words.... gays be Like That

Favorite season/movie: I really didn’t mind s3 Himuro

Favorite line: apparently he’s said some iconic stuff that I don’t remember (and my sources don’t seem really legit) but I’m gonna say “let’s see you become number 1, bro” because again, that’s just so ridiculous and endearing. On one hand he really went from loathing Kagami to rooting for him and wanting him to reach his full potential and on the other, honey ur  like 17 stop speaking like That

Favorite outfit: his knitted V-neck sweaters and the black coat with the white fur.... boy’s got all the fashion sense that’s missing from Kagami

OTP: can I say.....AoHimu asdfh I ship 3/4 of these characters with Aomine what does that say about me

Brotp: KagaHimu. They can be sweet, but I’ve only ever seen Jake write them really well

Head Canon: I’ve been entertaining the idea of....trans Himuro.....

Unpopular opinion: everyone thinks that Kagami is the violent kid and Himuro is the chill, sweet child who’s somehow wound up with this mess of a fiery tiger, but it’s actually Himuro who taught Kagami how to fight and Kagami learned quite a lot of aggression from him

A wish: I feel like Himuro should’ve gotten a separate episode to explore his thoughts, feelings and past. He had so much potential as a character Is2g

An oh-god-please-dont-ever-happen: him quitting basketball would fucking destroy me. I’d be devastated for others too, but it would really pull on my heartstrings if he just dropped the only thing he’s been so passionate about.

5 words to best describe them: gender-non-conforming emo child

My nickname for them: Himu, Tatsuya, Tatsu

[pilferingapples]

Brick Club, 1.4 entire (retro)

Cosette's story often has such a fairy-tale feel, and it starts with this  section (what should I be calling these chunks of text? the X.X sections as a whole, not the X.X.X ones? Volumes?) .

And yet I'm not at all sure why I get that feeling quite so strongly, in terms of narrative technique.  The initial namelessness of the cast, with Two Mothers echoing the way people in fairy tales are Mothers and Millers and Eldest Daughters?  But if Fantine is presented as if she was s stranger to us again, it's not different than what happens with JVJ, and his story never feels this way.  The  Three Sisters made by Cosette, Eponine , and Azelma maybe? That's a very fairy-tale motif indeed.   Something about the way the inn itself is described..?

Augh, I absolutely cannot put my finger on it.   Still,  something about this passage feels as ominous and certain and doomed  as if the inn was a gingerbread cottage and Fantine was vowing to keep silent for seven years while making shirts out of nettles.

Notes on Various Things under the cut:

-  love that the inn sign is really badly made. I've seen several attempts at it in various adaptations and they're always a disaster and it's excellent, I want a collection.

-  the cart is covered with "the same ugly yellow mud sometimes used to decorate cathedrals".  The cart that is A Metaphor for outdated social institutions.  I see you, Hugo. 

- I will FIGHT Hugo about peasant/working class women's clothing in this era, this outfit would be super charming!  But it's definitely more about utility and practical wear than Fantine's old outfits.   There are roughly a billion dissertations to be written about the way that things working class people do and use are , through history, treated as inherently ugly/undesirable, regardless of how much art and beauty might actually have gone into it; I feel like the classism kinda speaks for itself on that.  And then,since Hugo's already drawn a huge Romantic Aesthetic defining line between the Useful and the Beautiful  in this book, I think  I can fairly just quote Gautier's explanation of the issue -- "Nothing is really beautiful but that which cannot be made use of; everything that is useful is ugly, for it is the expression of some need, and the needs of man are vile and disgusting, like his poor, weak nature" -- and leave this for now.  I suspect it will come up again. 

- Fantine has been "marked by irony" --that is, scarred by her time with Tholomyes.  I do like the way  this new line on her face sounds almost like a dueling scar. Fantine's a fighter in her own way!

- ...Tholomyes is gonna make it to at least 1828, meaning he'll outlive everyone we love in this story except Cosette and Marius.    And he'll do it while being  "always a man of pleasure"--I feel like there's an implicit suggestion that Cosette has a lot of half-siblings in the world, all of them with a story as important as hers, if only people would take them seriously. 

- ...as a Somewhat Taller Than Average woman myself, I am rather delighted by Hugo's obvious terror of women who are Not Tiny.   ( And I realize I'm probably Reaching to think that Mme T might have been much happier and more well-adjusted if she weren't trying to cram her giant self into a tiny box of Ideal Femininity?  Maybe she'd have been much more ok if she'd  been able to go into showbiz and get famous as  a weightlifter or something. )

But I do think there's a real sort of sadness to her introductory chapters.  She had an ideal dream for her own life , and it wasn't even a particularly ambitious one--just a love story, really-- and it's fallen through as much as anyone else's hoped-for Ideal in the novel. She's still trying to hang onto it at this point, but we're already given a glimpse of the future  when she'll not only have given up on that ideal, but come to despise herself for it.  This is no way absolves her of her cruelty towards others, but I think she's a more complex villain (and she is  a villain) than she's sometimes treated as. 

- Fantine does try to lie about having been married, here! ...but she also comes right out and tells people she's making a financial Deal with exactly how much money she has, and how much she's able to give over, before it's all settled.  It's  painful how ill-prepared she is to deal with this kind of economic manipulation (and I think "prepared" is really relevant; she's had no one more naturally skilled or experienced to teach her how to handle these things, and business negotiations, which this is, are incredibly complicated) . 

Seeing how much money Mme T gets for Cosette's fine clothes makes me strongly suspect that Fantine was severely underpaid for pawning her own fancy things--unless, and I guess this is possible, her "putting all her finery" on Cosette  is meant to be literal, and Cosette's current clothes are directly made of Fantine's old fancy outfits. 

- Fantine tries to lie about having been married , and the neighbors *see* her crying as she leaves Cosette, and Cosette must have been well dressed and all for that first months or so...but still, everyone believes the Thenardiers when they start telling the town that Cosette is an abandoned, illegitimate child.  They believe it because Cosette looks the part, and Cosette looks the part because the Thenardiers force her into it.  In so many ways, Fantine is never in control of  the narrative about her child, and What People Say about them does indeed matter more than anything she does--no amount of effort, no show of love, can save her and Cosette when everyone else  has decided they're socially damned. 

...but on the less thematic and more practical side,how on earth are the Thenardiers learning about her marital status? Seriously, was this freely avaialable info?  This  issue is something that comes up several times in the novel and I really have no idea what access to people's family records was like? 

- we get our first negative association with a cat , hm 

- ...workers have "generous impulses", huh?  (also I am not at all sure if the corresponding Bourgeois Respectability is meant to be entirely a good thing, but I'm not sure it's NOT , like I would be with Some Writers? Agh) 

- The Thenardiers' animal souls are : 

French: écrevisses 

Hapgood: crab-like FMA: crabs Rose: crayfish  Donougher: lobsters

Google Translate agrees with Rose, but I wonder if this isn't one of those words that was colloquially used to mean a general category of creatures in its day --Things Like a Crayfish/lobster/crab-- and has come to mean something very specific now?

-  ..y'know, what really kills me about Cosette in this every time is how everyone , *everyone*  in this town really either believes she deserves her abuse, or thinks it's BETTER than she deserves.  This is not happening in secret, behind closed doors, in a private house; it's at the public inn and very blatant. Everyone knows she's out in the cold , first up every morning, starving and beaten, in a home where the other kids somehow have more than enough (because their parents steal it from Cosette, directly).  And not one person in this discount Omelas even thinks it's bad , much less intervenes. It's a point in the Thenardiers'  favor, socially.   This isn't just the gamins of Paris being brushed aside,this is a whole town actively citing horrible child abuse as the Moral and Good Option that elevates the people doing it.  

And in this, I suppose, Cosette shares a history with Valjean-- they're  both put through absolutely horrific abuse , which is not just societally ignored, or accepted with jaded apathy ,  but openly lauded as morally correct.   I hate Montfermeil so much-- but Montfermeil is not really different from Arras, or Digne, or any other place where people think that abuse of the "deserving" is a Good Thing. 

[itsmoonphobic]

Elemental Souls (SBI+Tommy 4 elements au)

(🌿) ♡ (🔥) ♡ (🌊) ♡ (🌬)

Techno Blade -Fire:

"Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction products."

You can either see Techno as rude,cocky and egoistic or you can see him as loyal,determined and smart.

Becouse of his cold facade,Techno can scare poeple off easily.The fact that he gets aggressive easily doesn't make it any better.He tends to be very sarcastic and loves to tease/ignore people badly which is another reason poeple tend to stay away from him.

Techno can be described as terrifying.Becouse he is very intelligent and silent poeple around him can only wonder what he is thinking and if he is planning on killing someone soon.Of course Techno never killed anyone and he would never do so but his scary aura makes people believe he did and would do it again.

He doesn't take things very seriously and will only get invested if he is deeply committed and interested in them or if he gets something out of it.Techno may say that he isn't a competitive person but god is this man lying to himself.

Challenging Techno to something is probably the most dumbest move you could make.Not only will he destroy you and win but he will make a whole ass war out of it.This guy won't sleep,eat or talk to another human being until he's won.And you can bet your ass he will totally humiliate you and rub it in till it burns-

That's what Techno can be seen as from the outside. But on the inside he is anything but confident,cocky and unbeatable.He is very shy and socially awkward. He only picks out certain people who he will let take part in his life.On some days his insecurities will get the best of him and he won't come out of his room for weeks-

Hours and hours spent on crying only then become evident once he leaves his room and reveals this mess of red and puffy eyes,dark valleys and pale skin.The vibes he gives off basically scream "back of and leave me the fuck alone or I will burn you to death"

Others may think that a fiery person like him has to have exciting and risky hobbies-When in reality Techno loves peaceful and quiet activities like reading or studying.May I add that in his free time Techno absolutely loves to be outside and farm potatoes on a daily-

Sure Techno does fighting and skill upgrading from time to time but when he is left alone with his head full of thoughts he will scurry to the local library and spend the rest of his day there.Nobody questions why he goes there or makes fun of him that such a tough guy reads books-Becouse they very well know he will personally beat them up and burn down their houses.

Techno's best friend Phil is the only person who he truly trusts with everything and anything.The two of them grew up together and developed a really strong emotional and family like bond.Techno only allows Phil to see his vulnerable and fragile side,he will cry infront of him and even let Phil hug him while he reassures him that everything will work out and be fine.

Techno isn'a touchy guy,for him pda is disgusting and unnecessary-like,why the fuck would you put your hands on another person?What kind of person enjoys sharing physical contact?Not Techno that's for sure.

Over time Techno became more open and extroverted so he agreed to meeting two of Phil's friends,both of them having different elements.Phil commented something about how he thinks that opposite friendships are way more exciting and fun!Techno didn't think much of it,he simply rolled his eyes and went along with it.

That was the day Techno met Wilbur and Tommy.He could immediately tell that Tommy would be annoying as fuck and really hard to deal with-I mean the kid was only twelve when they first got introduced.Wilbur on the other hand sparked some sort of feeling inside of Techno that made him feel welcomed in his presence.

So yeah over the course of the next four years the four element benders became really close.Yes even grumpy Techno had to live with the fact that he would die for all of them-even Tommy.And speaking of Tommy,he and Techno do everything together-

If you would to make fun of Tommy or tease/annoy him in any be it negative or positive way-Techno would hunt you down and burn you-If it isn't intense he will stick to only a threat-but if you actually physically or mentally hurt Tommy??Oh boy-I may have said that Techno never did and never would kill somebody,but in this case there is a high chance of an angry Techno being after you.

Techno sees his friend group as family members.Phil represents a huge father figure,Wilbur his younger brother and Tommy his youngest brother.He is very overprotective of them all,especially over Tommy if you couldn't already tell.With how much shit he gets himself into and the fact that he is only sixteen years young and his braincells are still producing he can't but worry for him and take care of him,even if he does bully the fuck out of him :)

Wilbur and Techno have the best moments.The two of them both enjoy reading so you can occasionally discover them in the local town library where they are just enjoying the peace shared between eachother. Although Wilbur does have a chaotic and wild side to him which he lets out when he's around Tommy,he becomes quite and relaxed when around the fire bender.Techno knew from the moment he met Wilbur that the two of them would get along great.

Techno isn't really good with showing his feelings or dealing with his emotions-Like I said apart from pride and anger he doesn't reveal much to the world.Phil used to be the only person Techno trusted but now with the whole gang on his side he earned himself more poeple to rely on.Of course it took time for him to open up and really let himself go infront of Tommy and Wilbur but the waiting definitely paid off.

When Techno practices,for example his weapon usage and fire bending it is best to leave him alone and stay a safe distance away from him.There is a chance for him to attack you,though he will most likely just snap at you and tell you to piss off if you don't wanna burn alive and if you wanna keep all your fingers in place.

Also not to mention,Techno is on the way of becoming a vegetarian.At the start he only hated eating anything related to pigs,like bacon or pork chops.But after developing his love for farming he noticed just how unnecessary eating meat is.Sure he still consumes meat from time to time but in most of the cases he will turn it down and eat a baked potato instead :D

Squid and Dream(A water bender and a earth bender) are both in a rivalry with him.Techno is probably the one who started randomly picking on Squid at one point and from there on out they kind of grew close?Not too close but most definitely a form of friendship.

Dream on the other hand is hundred percent the one who constantly competes with Techno.Be it in element bending or grades in school.If Dream manages to get even half a point more on an exam he would literally celebrate.The most annoying part is the fact that Techno doesn't even acknowledge Dream. Just to see Dream's face when Techno only shrugs and lets out a small "ehh" while saying that it doesn't matter and he sees no point in anyone trying to be as good as him or better,makes it more entertaining ;D

To sum it all up: Techno is a natural born leader.His dedication and determination along with his loyalty are a healthy base for a powerful soul.The reason behind his aggressive,confident and somewhat rude side is due to the fact that he is a fire bender and his element is naturally fierce.He fights for what he thinks is important and right and never lets anything happen to the poeple he deeply loves and cares about.He is not the best when it comes to showing sympathy and affection and he doesn't seek it from anyone else.He has to deal with major mental health issues but he's more than thankful for his friends that are by his side and help him out on his journey.Once Techno opens up to you more you know he likes you,like I said to earn Techno's respect and trust you have to meet his expectations and show him that you actually care for him and his well being.He needs some love guys <3

Like fire itself, fire benders tend to be passionate, dynamic, and temperamental. Fire can keep you warm, or it can do great destruction. While fire burns out quickly without fuel to keep it going, it can also regenerate its power from the ashes. A single spark can set off a forest fire. As a result, fire benders need to be nurtured and managed carefully.

Phil Watson - Air:

"Air refers to the Earth's atmosphere. Air is a mixture of many gases and dust particles. It is the clear gas in which living things live and breathe. It has an indefinite shape and volume. It has mass and weight, because it is matter."

The most hardworking,kind and caring guy you will ever encounter.Phil is the definition of wholesome :)

Phil is a very understanding and empathetic person. He patiently listens and respects people's boundaries and insecurities.He is a great comfort to many poeple with phobias and mental health issues.A part of his element is care and gentleness.Phil is very careful and elegant with his words and actions.He tends to not be hasty and obnoxious around people he first meets or knows who don't like that type of behavior.

He and Techno are very close.Phil trusts Techno with his eyes closed and the same goes for Techno.The way the two of them interact with eachother suprises people all the time.How could such a gentle soul deal with a feisty one like Techno's??Outsiders and even familiars wonder if the two share some sort of telepathic connection.All in all they share an unbreakable and strong family like bond.

Not only did Phil introduce his other really good friends to Techno and managed to get him to open up more and trust other people apart from him,but he also helped Techno realize that there are other poeple out there who care about him and want to give him nothing but undeniable love <3

Techno may be close with Wilbur and Tommy but the only person who knows about Techno's struggles and his biggest fears is Phil.He knows exactly in which way he needs to talk to him and how to act around him.Phil knows Techno doesn't like affection like hugs and holding hands but as a sign of appreciation and gratefulness Techno allows Phil to hug him while he calms him down and takes care of him.

The way he acts with such precision and grace makes anyone feel welcomed and comfortable around Phil. Phil is very helpful.He doesn't wait for poeple to come up to him and ask him for something,he goes up to them and asks if he can help them out with anything.

He stands up for justice and always does the right things.Phil has a big heart,if he sees anyone who is hurt or feeling down his parent like instincts will activate and he will immediately comfort them.

All three of his best friends(Techno,Wilbur,Tommy) look up to him as a father figure,which warms Phil's heart and he honestly he thinks it's super cute <3 So naturally Phil can't but see them as his three polar opposite,chaotic sons.He would do anything for the three of them,even risking his own life.

Tommy and Phil's relationship is probably the most cutest one.When Phil tells Tommy to quit it or to stop fighting with Wilbur or Techno(mostly Wilbur),Tommy instantly goes quiet and apologises for it.Phil's air bending is something that Tommy loves about him.He will always ask the elder if he can twirl him around in the air and make him fly.Phil gladly does so and he will tickle him with the wind he creates until Tommy is a giggling mess :D

Wilbur and Phil on the other hand are a completely different dynamic than Techno & Phil or Tommy & Phil. Most think that Phil would be scared of Techno like any other person is but it's actually Wilbur who genuinely scares Phil from time to time.Sure anyone who sees him doesn't think that something like "I just wanna fucking murder everyone around me and drag them to the bottom of the ocean-" would come out of his mouth.It's not only what he says it's how and when he says horrifying things like that.They could be out on a walk and Wilbur would just have the most blank expression while he says sentences like that.Phil is pretty sure that he even caught Tommy holding onto Techno's hand once while Techno shivered slightly with wide eyes.

Phil is known for being very respectful and polite.He doesn't like to be mean and angry towards anyone!He is a big pacifist(unlike other poeple 👀)who likes to sort things out with a nice and peaceful conversation instead of turning to immediate violence.He will argument with someone,but only when he has a good reason to do so.If he sees people arguing or fighting he will confront them about it and make sure they settle down and put their differences aside.

He's affectionate and really interested in the problems of others,as if they were his own.He will always be there if you are stuck with something and need help solving or overcoming said problem.He'll make sure that both of you find a way to get rid of it! <3

Air benders are also the most forgiving element benders,so Phil can tell the difference between acting out and just plain old meanness,and he understands that in moments of strong emotion, people can say and do things to can hurt others. Not that he'd ever do the same!His cool, collected vibe helps him navigate the drama and analyze it throughly.

Phil is a master of both small talk and deep convos, and he knows how to use his wit to get him out of awkward moments.That's another way Phil instantly gets the hang of strangers he just met!!He knows what subjects to bring up and what topics to talk about that they are interested in!

Also I quickly wanna say that Phil's laugh is super contagious!He could be out with Techno,Wil and Tommy while the three of them rant on and on about their days and just talk about random,shit.Phil will silently listen to every detail in the background while he uncontrollably laughs.He will let out a small "What?" or "No way dude" but apart from those small phrases he just prefers listening and cackling.He loves to see other people laugh and smile and is even more happy when he is the reason they do so :3

Phil is generous and selfless.He puts the health and safety of others before his own.He doesn't require many things to be satisfied in his life.As long as he has his family and friends he couldn't be more grateful <3

He definitely has a love for birds such as pigeons and doves.One time about two years ago Tommy brought Phil a beautiful silver feathered bird for his birthday. Even with his element being air,Phil sometimes wishes and dreams of flying himself,being able to feel that freedom for himself you know?He sees birds as lucky to have a gift such as flying.

Air benders are all about action, ideas, and motion—they are the “winds of change.” When a strong gust hits you, you can’t help but move. While some within their ranks may be true-life “airheads,” others are as powerful as a gravity-defying G-force. Air benders bring everyone a breath of fresh air when things start to get stale. Like the breeze, you can’t quite catch them, and you never know where they’ll drop you once they sweep you up. It will almost always been an adventure, though

Wilbur Soot - Water:

"Water is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms. It is vital for all known forms of life, even though it provides no calories or organic nutrients."

Charming,suave and flirty in a way that can only be from fiction.Do men like that even exist?Apparently they do and they go by the name of Wilbur Soot.

Ever stand under a waterfall? That’s what it’s like when a Wilbur is feeling an intense emotion.

Intuitive, emotional and ultra-sensitive,Wilbur can be as mysterious as the ocean itself. Like water,he can be refreshing,or he can drown you in his depths.Security is important to him,after all, water needs a container, or it dries up and disappears.

He tends to hold on to people and items long past their expiration dates,and his emotions are always flowing like the waves of the oceans.Wilbur has intense dreams,visions,and an intuition so strong that it’s basically a psychic power.He can see situations happening from a mile away before they occur.

He might intentionally seek out sad music or movies, and he probably has childhood photos framed in his room.Emotional and creative,he relays on his heart and gut to make a decision.Logic and reason are second to his feelings which is how he navigates the material world.Wilbur also longs for security at all times,which makes sense as he's protective of his loved ones and himself.He'll do everything he can to help the ones he cares about,even if it’s at his own expense.

However, like most things beautiful, below the surface many complexities often arise and the same is true when talking about water benders.

Wilbur is notoriously perceptive and he possesses instincts when it comes to sussing out people and situations.He's guided by his gut feelings and more often than not his first instinct about a person are dead on.He can get a feel for whether someones intentions are honorable or not just by observing their body language and general demeanor.

Like a river filling in every crevice of its path,Wilbur covers every detail and often picks up on things that others miss.No riverbed is left to dry as the water flows through each and every intricacy.

The water signs are no stranger to emotion, in fact, they often feel things rather intensely.

On one hand,his emotional side can provide him with a lot of insight and wisdom into the human experience which he can even then pass on to others.On top of this,it allows him to be incredibly empathetic which helps him form strong bonds with others.

But sometimes he can get so overcome by his emotions that it feels like a giant tidal wave just hitting him all at once. When he feels overwhelmed like this he can find it tough to think straight and make rational decisions.

Because he is so prone to analyzing absolutely everything he can sometimes overthink things a little too much and make life more complicated for himself then it needs to be.He has a bad habit of coming up with problems and obstacles in his mind that don’t actually exist or aren’t nearly as bad as he's talked himself into them being.

Sometimes you might catch Wilbur acting withdrawn or shy but the truth is he's probably just deep in thought and mentally a million miles away.He often finds his thoughts are racing at a million miles an hour and that he's powerless to do anything about it.

Just like a bustling river,Wilbur can be a bit wishy washy and kinda all over the place… especially when it comes to making important decisions.Too many options can sometimes leave him overwhelmed and struggling to make any decision at all.

He's also known for being easily distracted and can go from paying close attention in one moment to being totally away with the fairies the next.He doesn't do it out of rudeness he just can’t help himself sometimes!

Wilbur has a very private and mysterious side,he doesn’t like to reveal all of his cards at once.He's known for putting up walls and can be particularly guarded when he's around people he doesn't trust.

From time to time he needs space to himself to think and unwind. As much as he loves his friends and family there’s just some times where he's gotta have some alone time to spend by himself.

Wilbur sure has a unique way of looking at the world. His perspective combined with his vivid imagination makes him naturally gifted in music or anything involving a creative flare.He is a dreamer at heart whose ideas aren't limited by pesky rules or conventions.

He has a big musical talent,his voice is a perfect balance between rough and velvety.It's not too high and not too low,not too loud and not too quiet.The moment he strums his guitar strings he can wrap anybody around his finger.

Wilbur is emotionally manipulative.He can make you feel bad for something you didn't even do.He can make you regret things or certaint actions that aren't supposed to make you feel regretful.He will only use this "talent" of his in a worst case scenario.If you ever hurt his friends or loved ones he will make your life a living hell,wouldn't even wonder if you never decided to show your face to the public ever again.

Techno's and his relationship is wonderful.Wilbur has helped Techno so much to open up more and come out of his shell.They both enjoy the peaceful and quiet times in their life.Reading,going on walks or strolling along the beach while watching a sunset is just some of the many things they love doing together.He isn't as close to Techno like Phil is but he is close second. He sees him as his older and stronger brother who will always be there for him when he needs him.Honestly the two of them have such a beneficial dynamic <3

Now Tommy's and Wilbur's interactions are something absolutely opposite.When the two of them spent time together,they become these chaotic and annoying siblings that go around town and fuck with people. There was this one time where they flooded a barn which belonged to Phil's neighbors and the two reckless idiots ran away laughing.Sure Tommy steals Phil's stuff all the time or uses it without permission but Wilbur,just like Techno,is very overprotective of Tommy.If he finds out that somebody hurt Tommy in any way or made fun of him he will beat them up. Literally he will call in Techno for help to go and pay the little fuckers who messed with Tommy a visit.The only ones who are allowed to tease and bully Tommy are Techno and Wilbur,no one else.

Phil and Wilbur have some of the best moments when spending time with eachother.Not only is Phil a great source of reassurance and comfort but he knows that Phil will seal his mouth shut if Wilbur speaks to him about his insecurities and problems.He loves that Phil listens to him and never judges him about anything. Like the other two Wilbur sees Phil as a father figure. A great and inspiring role model he can look up to.

He likes to collect sea shells and old treasures he finds scattered over the sand at the beach.He doesn't like swimming or diving,which is really unrealistic to not only other water benders but benders in general.It's not that Wilbur is scared,he simply likes to admire it from the shore.He will do it from time to time must mostly he will just sit down and let his legs and feet rest in the cold liquid.

I can imagine that when he was a kid he used to pretend to be a pirate.He still has his old eye patch and hook that were part of his costume.Now,even after thirteen years he still likes to go up to the harbor when the fishermen arrive with a freshly caught catch and watch the ships glide across the indigo waves.

Tommy Simons - Earth:

"Earth materials are vital resources that provide the basic components for life, agriculture and industry. Earth materials can also include metals and precious rocks."

Tommy is outgoing,energetic and he isn't afraid to speak up and share his thoughts with others.A very openminded and positive guy.He always looks on the bright side of every situation he finds himself in.

He is down to earth.He doesn't believe in having dreams,he only believes and accepts things the way they are and how they are portrayed in his eyes.

People don't realize it but they are seriously underestimating Tommy.When you first see him you don't expect him to have good strategies and the ability of leadership like Techno clearly has.But that's the thing.One of the many things Tommy picks up while being in a friendship with the fire bender is experience.Techno will lazily teach the young earth bender how to protect himself and lead a team. Without Techno's guidance Tommy would have been in trouble countless times.So you could say that Techno is Tommy's mentor :)

He's a great mood booster!If there is awkward tension in a room or between others he will make it up by just being there and doing what Tommy does the best, brighten up the atmosphere!He will start random conversations and just try to get everyone else to do something fun like play a game or watch a movie.

Techno may help Tommy with things like self defense and how to establish dominance but the earth bender helps him with his potato farming!He will hurry up the process of their growth and make sure they are perfect before they are harvested.He keeps track of the amount of soil and vitamins the earth their roots grow in receives.

Speaking of Techno's and his relationship: The two of them are so close it's insane.They do everything with eachother!They train,upgrade their skills in bending and fighting,they go out to eat or have a drink,they go around town and fuck things up-the two of them are huge pranksters.Tommy always tries to prove himself infront of Techno and impress him in any way.Tommy loves spending time with Techno,the blond earth bender admires him in so many different ways- They don't have to be doing much together,it can be mindless talking or simply being in the same room.

Wilbur and Tommy are ehhh- special?On one side they are funny and entertaining together but on the other side they can be insulting eachother with such vulgarity that you could think they are about to commit murder any moment.Tommy talks so much shit about Wilbur.If you're dumb enough and actually choose to listen to him,he will ramble on about how Wilbur thinks he's so smart and good with the ladies- Yoo would think that after trash talking him that Tommy hates Wilbur's guts but it's the opposite!!If he catches you talking bad about Wilbur behind his back he will call Techno and they will hunt you down.

Tommy like everyone else sees Phil as his very caring and cool dad!Phil somehow always finds out about all the shit Tommy does and he gets scolded for it.Like most people,if Tommy ever has a problem he's dealing with or he's in a uncomfortable situation,Phil is the first person who crosses his mind and therefore the one he turns to.

The way Tommy goes around their town and picks fights with others is so stupid.At the end he comes home with bruises and wounds all over his skin.One time his best friend Toby brought him to Phil with a bloody nose and Phil's reaction was screeching-

He is extremely curious and stubborn.He doesn't really think before he acts and dives into unknown things he's not familiar with head first.Techno is the one who laughs at him and teases him about how clumsy he is.

Earth benders keep it real. They are the “grounded” people on the planet, the ones who bring us down to earth and remind us to start with a solid foundation. Slow and steady, these “builders” are loyal and stable, and stick by their people through hard times. On good days, they’re practical; at worst, they can be materialistic or too focused on the surface of things to dig into the depths.

Hope you enjoyed this au!!I am currently writing MULTIPLE stories and au's so bare with me guys!I don't like working fast becouse my work afterwards doesn't feel completed:( I hope all of you have a wonderful day/night <3 Love ya!!!

[painted-crow]

Hello, fellow double Bird here! Do you have good tips on how to avoid Bird primary related exhaustion? I'm very confident that I'm a bird primary and I love putting in the research to make good choices and constantly trying to learn more and update my systems. But sometimes I suddenly just get so TIRED. Especially with politics lately and trying to stay well-informed. I've caught myself once or twice looking at some of my oblivious GOP-supporting relatives who are content to just always vote their party and never look any farther and actually feeling envious of that in a way. I wish I could just shut my brain off like that and never feel guilt for not putting in the research work. Is that a sign of burning or is just general exhaustion because of *gestures to the world* everything?

There is A Lot happening. My advice is this: you cannot be a completionist about your system. There's too much going on for one person, and there's too much fake information flying around for any individual to sort through everything.

Pick out the things you have most influence or control over--things you can actually affect--and focus on just a few of those. It doesn't help anyone if you're burned out, or if you're Burned.

Try to keep a variety of people around you so you aren't in a bubble/echo chamber. Don't completely shut yourself away from the opinions of people you disagree with (if you can spare the energy; and remember that some people are so toxic they aren't worth listening to ever). Even if you continue to disagree with them, which chances are you will, it's important to have a general idea of what they're thinking and why--and by not closing off those relationships, you make it so they're around your influence as well.

This is important because empathy is important. Just dividing into teams and yelling at each other is a nightmare (...we all know what I'm talking about).

(Obviously, you should also be around a lot of people you do agree with, and you should have some reliable sources you trust for good information, but most people don't have a problem with this part.)

Setting specific political references aside, no matter what (social, cultural, political, etc) group you belong to, eventually they're going to be wrong about something, because every group of humans is made up of humans. You can and should still support them if you believe in their cause, but it's important to know when you actually don't agree.

As long as you don't live in a bubble, you can assume pretty safely that if something important happens, you will eventually get to hear about it by cultural osmosis, and you'll hear a few different sides of it. You can then pick and choose when something is relevant enough to research, and only then if you have the energy to look into it.

This definitely isn't perfect, and for those few things you really care about, you shouldn't rely on it. But if you're that attached to perfect, you're going to have a hard time.

"Awareness campaigns" put out this cultural idea that people paying attention to a thing automatically helps it. To be honest, this is about as baffling to me as sports fans thinking that sitting at home and watching the game somehow helps their team win. Awareness campaigns can grab the attention of people who might not know they're affected by the issue, or who might really care if they knew about it, and this can help because those people will do something as a result. But the majority of people will be like "huh. I guess that's a thing." and move on, and that doesn't actually help. Which is fine!

But as a culture, we've picked up this idea that it does, and that therefore we need to be aware of EVERYTHING. We don't. You don't owe random, irrelevant causes your mental energy. It's up to you to decide when and where your impact might be worth the cost to you in time and emotional investment.

So, do the obvious things: make sure you vote, for example. If you're driven to contribute to a cause by donations or volunteer work and you can afford to, absolutely do that. Use whatever skills and resources you've gathered to make practical contributions that matter to you. But the wider world doesn't actually depend on your system being complete and perfect.

And thank heavens for that. That would be so much pressure.