#just kinda assumed that was a fashion statement or something

[interstate35south]

it took me such an embarrassingly long time to realize “Golden Ryan” was meant to be a spin on “golden lion”. like deadass i heard his name and just thought yeah his name is ryan and he wears gold. that checks out.

[lemon-natalia]

Gideon the Ninth Reaction - Chapter 19

at the end of the last chapter i fully thought they were gonna go back to the basement murder lab, glad to see they're not being that dumb

'she used to have nightmares about being on the wrong side of the Locked Tomb, especially after what Harrow had done' see i'm pretty sure i've been spoiled about everything re: all of the dead Ninth kids and all that, but this feels like its maybe referring to something different? also, is the Locked Tomb like an actual physical locked place then, because i was kinda assuming it was just a really creepy metaphor for death

if i'm right in my assumption Gideon and Harrow get together, i find the contrast between how Gideon describes Harrow's appearance and 'pointed face' versus Everything about her descriptions of Corona hilarious

i cannot believe it took me until this chapter to realise that Gideon needed the sunglasses because of the difference in the amount of light present on the First vs Ninth. i honestly just thought she wanted to look cool and make a fashion statement 😭

neither of them brought lights omfg, they're such delightful dumbasses in their own way

oh wonderful another creepy lab, this time complete with an mysterious group photo with the faces crossed out. this really is a video-game setting

more fuel to my crack theory that this is Earth however-many-thousand years in the future: Gideon considers guns to be an ancient artifact. also now i want Gideon to have a gun, i think she could wreak havoc

i really wasn't expecting Harrow to be this explicit about the need to trust each other and be allies this soon. at least she recognises the need to trust eachother now

'walked in at just the wrong moment' again, another ominous reference to Harrow and Gideon's childhood. maybe this and the mention before are referring to Harrow's whole necromancy-ing her parents? but its so vague it could be something else

ok weird ancient note with the words 'give Gideon my congratulations'. given how long that rooms been sealed up, unless there's some strange immortality shenanigans going on, its not referring to our Gideon. but the phrasing still does to me make it sound like its referring to a person ... Gideon's mother had said only that name when they arrived and the Ninth simply assumed it was the name of her child, but perhaps instead she knew some secret about Canaan House, and was repeating that instead?

[irisintheafterglow]

More Than It Seams (Chapter 4)

summary: you're a hero costume tech working for one of the biggest fashion companies in quirk society, and the days until the most important fashion event of the year are dwindling fast. if you weren't stressed enough, a certain half-and-half hero keeps appearing with rips in his suit. (pro!todoroki x reader)

word count: 2.8k

cw/tags: swearing, mentions of needles, probably inaccurate fashion design vocabulary, strangers to lovers, no specified pronouns for reader, mentions of food/eating, mention of character death/disappearance, descriptions of wounds and blood, grief with happy ending

note: second to last chapter let's gooooo !!! in theory this could be considered the "last chapter," but don't you wanna know how the ball goes??? and maybe shoto and reader have their first kiss ;). thank you for all the support you've given this series!!

likes/reblogs/feedback are appreciated :)

New Voicemail Message [11:32 A.M]

“Hey! Just checking in; I just finished the whole flame side and I’m about to start the shading for the ice side. If you’re able, I’d love for you to come see it and maybe I can buy you lunch this time. No pressure, just let me know. Alright, bye!” 

New Voicemail Message [5:36 P.M] 

“Hi, hi, hi. I picked up Soba takeout for dinner if you’re free. I have both of our usuals, and I can drop them at your agency too if you’re busy. Oh, also, the lady behind the counter was so confused that it was me by myself; you should’ve seen her face. Anyway, just wanna make sure you’re doing okay. Bye!” 

New Voicemail Message [8:24 P.M] 

“Hey Shoto, it’s me, again. I’m sorry for spamming you with voicemails and shit. I just, honestly? I’m kinda worried, haha. I know it’s dumb. Like, I know you can handle yourself and everything, but part of me still wants to make sure you’re good, you know? Just, uh, let me know. If–when you’re home. I miss your stupid voice. Okay, bye.” 

New Voicemail Message [11:56 P.M] 

“Hey. I’m aware that I keep bothering you. If I did something to make you upset, I’m really sorry…I’m about to go to bed, but I’ll see you tomorrow? Obviously, you can’t see it, but uh, I’m sticking my thumb up, haha. Call me when you can, please.”

[2] Missed Calls: Big D(esigner)🧵👑💖 

New Messages: Big D(esigner)🧵👑💖 

12:00 A.M hey  12:00 A.M idk if you’re awake 12:00 A.M but if you are 12:01 A.M please check the news 

The incessant buzzing phone in your hand woke you from your position on the couch. You don’t remember falling asleep, but you assume you passed out after eating a late dinner, waiting for Shoto to call. His food was in the fridge, untouched, while yours was only half-eaten, plastic bowls and utensils messily scattered across your coffee table. The notifications at the top of your phone made your heart drop into your stomach, and you prayed that the thought hiding in the back of your mind wasn’t true. 

You stood as the TV clicked on, only for your legs to give out beneath you as the reporter detailed where he was last seen, what he was wearing, possible suspects, and the statement from his manager. There was no substance in the public statement, only reassurances that efforts are being made to find him. You shut down the TV after they got into the part of the statement that sounded like a fucking eulogy, talking about how he was a loyal friend, devoted hero, and embodiment of a good person. You didn’t need to be told that. You’d seen it firsthand for the past two weeks. Anger, confusion, worry, and grief came in waves, crashing against each other as you curled into yourself. Your eyes welled to alleviate the burn after staring at the screen, your forehead throbbing from the flashing reds and whites of the “BREAKING NEWS” title screen. Your lungs and throat felt empty, consciousness detached from the body. 

No sobs rang out in the darkness of your apartment that night, and it terrified you how silent you were. There was no crying, no convulsing, no thrown objects across the room to create dents in the walls. It was just…silence. You couldn’t tell if you’d slept or not, hours passing as you stared wide-eyed at the ceiling after dragging yourself back onto the couch. It was an effort to breathe, to force yourself to inhale and exhale like it was opening and closing your fists. 

As sunlight permeated through the lightly swinging shades, your phone alarm went off. You stared at it, the musical sound seeming to be coming from underwater. The notifications at the top of your phone once you finally turned it off were like reading in a dream, with letters blurring and rearranging until you didn’t know what the original message was. Hey, thinking about you, they said. We understand if you can’t make it in today, they promised. Hello, you were one of the people last seen with Todoroki Shoto. Our news outlet would like to interview you. Fingers gripping the phone so hard you wanted to snap it, you slammed it onto the coffee table. Flashes of white-hot rage took over your body, directed at no one in particular. You pulled a pillow into your chest, fighting back the impulse to scream, scream, scream until either your voice or your lungs give out. 

“Hey.” It was your roommate, and she held her cat in her arms like a newborn baby. Your empty eyes stared back at them. “I won’t ask if you’re doing okay because that’s a bullshit question. I just wanted to tell you that I’m here for you if you need anything. Just call me, yeah?” You barely nod your assent, and her gentle fingers brush away the tears that had broken through your resolve. “I know it’s hard, and I know you’re grieving,” she said as she rose from the crouch she took to be eye-level with you. She takes your hand, giving it a squeeze. “But I also know that you’re one of the strongest people I know. We both know it’s Friday, and we both know those assholes in the commission aren’t going to postpone the one event that brings them money.” She doesn’t say it, but you know what she means. You need to get up and finish your pieces. “Do your best, okay?” 

Just do your best. 

It’s what you repeated to yourself as you struggled from the couch to your bedroom, then to the bathroom, then finally out the door and through the gate in your office. Your other designer, the one who had told you to check the news, runs over from his station. Shaking your head decisively before he could speak, you brush past him with an understanding hand on his shoulder. Your aching throat didn’t have the voice to give one last round of encouragement to your staff, but they looked to you anyway as you took your spot at the front of the room. 

“Just do your best,” you said before turning to the embroidery thread shelves and picking out the most vibrant shades of blue and light purple you could find. The rest of the office worked with a fervor you’d never seen before, and you gave them a sad smile whenever they’d glance up to check on you. All the other heroes’ ball looks were finalized, ready to be handed off to their stylists who would do the final dressing and accessorizing. Seven mannequins lined up in front of a window: Cellophane’s intricately beaded suit, Momo’s sweeping velvet ball gown, Deku’s sleek three-piece, Red Riot’s fiery matching set, Pinky’s princess-like mermaid dress, and Bakugo’s sheer-paneled, explosive applique-covered denim jacket. 

Everyone’s looks were finished, except one. His tailored leather pants were complete as well as the simple white button-up, and the silver pocket chain rested around the headless neck of the mannequin. All that was left to do was finish the design covering the back of the coat, which you worked on tirelessly far past when your staff had left the building. It should have been a day of celebration with champagne, balloons, and cake to commemorate another successful Hero Ball; but, 11:30 and 5:00 passed with no trace of him, and you couldn’t find it in your mind to participate in festivities. Whispered goodbyes and “see you tomorrow” floated around you, and it took more energy than it should have to smile and nod. 

Time ran away from you again, and the coat was finished at midnight on the dot, embellished with small buckles, two rows of buttons, shoulder pads, pockets, and the stunning ice and flame embroidery on the back panel. It truly was the greatest piece you had imagined and created, your quirk allowing the thread to almost act like paint as you added subtle nuance to the two opposing cranes. The fire crane rose from the bottom corner of one of the front panels, forming a circle with the ice crane that descended from the shoulder pad of the opposite front panel. Draping the finished piece on the mannequin and attaching the pocket chain for good measure, you stepped back with your hands on your hips to admire your work. He was gonna love it, when he saw it. If he saw it, the pessimistic demon in your mind whispered. With a deep breath that you didn’t know you needed, you turned to pack your stuff and head home. 

And that’s when something large slammed into M’s office window. 

The thud startled you, the dull noise of something hitting the glass bouncing off the empty cavern of the room. Your fingers wrapped around a pair of scissors as you approached the half-open door, cautiously guiding it open and squinting at the distorted figure behind the dark glass. Your eyes widened when you realized the object was huge, the size of at least two very tall people. One hand tightly gripping the scissors, the other slowly slid into your pocket to call the police when you heard a voice call from the other side. 

“Needle! Needle…wait, what? Needle, uh, sprouting from…Needle sprouting from thumb? Jesus, Todoroki, who would ever say such a thing–” You threw the window open, sending it flying upward as you took in the people set precariously on the ledge. You recognized one as Deku, the number one hero who sometimes visited your office to implement support tech into his costume. His gloved hand grabbed the edge of the window, easing him and the person he was carrying into M’s office and collapsing onto the couch. Deku quickly stood, closing the window and scanning the surroundings for threats. Your hand unconsciously rose to brush the matted red hair from the other person’s face, and the oxygen left your lungs as you zeroed in on the scar barely visible around the blood splattered on the person’s left eye.

Shoto. 

His body was in tatters, with scrapes and cuts and punctures covering his body like some zombie Halloween. The white of his hair was covered in so much blood that his entire head was red. His suit had burnt off on his fire side, and his ice side was nearly blue from discoloration. Your body moved on its own when you took in the most significant wound, a large gash cutting diagonally across his abdomen. Mind empty except for the battered man on M’s couch, you shoved your hands into the fabric scraps box and brought them back to Deku, who pressed them against Shoto’s gash to stop the bleeding. Fingers pressed under his chin, you felt a faint heartbeat and could see his chest rising and falling in shallow breaths. He was dying, and you needed to do something to stop the blood loss. 

“I tried to get him to go to a hospital, but he said it wasn’t safe,” Deku said to you, eyes clouded with concern. “He was barely able to tell me your building’s address before he passed out. I trust his judgment, but I really need you to know that, if Todoroki doesn’t get stitches, he will die. Do you have some way of stitching this up?” The fabric in his hands was soaked a dark red and the realization of what Shoto wanted you to do hit you like a train. 

He wanted you to give him stitches. 

You’d never tried your quirk on any actual humans, only textiles. Your parents had suggested becoming a medic because of your quirk, but the idea of manipulating something to enter a human body was an idea that you couldn’t stomach. There were others with more efficient quirks who could do that, but none of them were with you now. An idea dawned on you, and you reminded yourself to applaud your planning skills later. 

“Deku?”

“Yeah?”

“I need the sutures from your toolbelt.” His eyes widened in understanding, and he frantically pushed aside objects in his belt to find the roll of medical-grade nylon you’d placed there as a part of upgrading his first-aid kit. “Sorry, I added…more items,” he muttered apologetically, finally handing you the unused spool and the box containing the sterilized needle. Like clockwork, you threaded the needle just as you had millions of times before. Averting your gaze as Shoto groaned in pain from Deku cleaning the wound with alcohol pads that you’d also put in his belt, your hand soon hovered over Shoto’s wound in preparation to close it. 

You squeezed your eyes shut, ignoring the image of the sewing machine and instead opting for a simple knot at select intervals. Fighting down the bile in your throat as the needle pinched Shoto’s skin together, you shakily guided the thread through the skin layers and tied it into a tight knot. You felt Deku’s eyes watch you in amazement as you worked, delicately patching Shoto back together as you had with his suit the first day he’d walked through your elevator doors. Slowly but steadily, you moved your hand and the thread across the wound, sewing it shut like you’d attached his trenchcoat panels. They were, by no means, medical-grade stitches, but you believed they got the job done as the color slowly returned to Shoto’s face. When you finished stitching the large wound, you helped Deku wrap the lower half of his chest and his arms with gauze. With more scraps of fabric, you gently scrubbed off the blood and dirt, combing through his tangled hair with wet fingers. 

“Thank you, Deku,” you said quietly to him as you threw used fabric scraps into a trash bag. “For bringing Shoto to me. I was really worried.” 

“Of course,” he replied, smiling warmly. “I only wish that I’d met Todoroki’s partner under different circumstances.”

“Partner? I mean, yeah, we’re business partners, but–”

“Oh, no. I’m so sorry, then. I, uh, meant romantically.” Your face began to burn from Deku’s assumption. “He just talked about you a lot, you know. How much he liked being around you, how you seemed to know exactly what he was thinking. He told me about all your soba dates and how he didn’t want them to be considered dates since he wants to take you somewhere much nicer when you’re done with all the ball stuff, but I still think they’re dates.” Holy shit, Deku was rambling. “I teased him about it since I don’t think he’s ever been in love before, but–” 

“Midoriya, I implore you to stop talking.” You both gasped, turning to look at a barely-conscious Shoto, who was trying to sit up from the couch. 

“Todoroki, you’re awake! Wait, no, no–you can’t sit up yet,” Deku stutters out as he rushes over to carefully push Shoto’s shoulders back down, moving the hair from his forehead as his head falls back against the armrest. You feel out of your body again as you kneel next to him, fingers brushing his cheek in relief. “I’ll uh, give you two some space,” Deku declares as he scrambles to pick up the trash bags and exit M’s office, leaving you alone with Shoto. 

His gentle eyes find yours. “Hey, pretty.”

“Hi, handsome,” you whisper, reciprocating the weak smile he gives you as he takes in your exhausted face. “What the hell were you thinking, coming here? You needed a hospital. It wasn’t safe risking your life to come here, Sho,” the shortened version of his name slips from your mouth before you could stop it, but the even softer look he gives you sends any regret or embarrassment running. “What would you have done if I wasn’t in the office?”

“I just knew you would be.” 

“That’s a terrible plan.” 

“But it worked out.”

“That it did.” You press your lips to his forehead and relish in the way his eyes shut in contentment. “I finished your coat.”

“You did?” 

“I did, but you can’t see it right now. If you lift a single finger off that couch, I’m going to reopen your stitches.” He lets out a pained laugh, wincing at the pain shooting across his chest. A thoughtful look crosses his face again, and you adore the way you could see him working things out in his mind. What those things are, you’d never know, but his pure intellect was enough to admire. 

“Do you still plan on attending the ball tomorrow?”

“Not if you’re still hurt.”

“In that case, I am no longer hurt.” He smirks at you, with an immature, boyish, attractive smile. “And I still haven’t…chosen a plus one.” 

You feel your heart cease racing in your chest. “Yeah? And who’s the lucky winner?” Your voice shakes slightly as you attempt to relieve the tension with a joke. 

He looks at you again with that expression that makes you want to kiss him. 

“It’s you. It’s always been you.” 

As you finally drift off to sleep slumped against the couch, your face close enough to his to feel him breathe, you know in your mind that it’d always been him, too.

[1] Missed Call - Midoriya Izuku

New Voicemail Message [2:04 A.M]

"Hi Yaomomo! Hope you're doing well. I need a favor..."

[bunisher]

just some autistic frank things and headcanons:

• one of his special interests is weapons, when he was a teen he developed one involving medieval torture. he’s known all the pressure points of where to hit someone in order to incapacitate them for years.

• he reads and writes more than he speaks. he often felt like an outsider growing up. he needs rules to function and many social situations are too complex. he likes when things are simple.

• goes nonverbal when he’s upset and starts stimming by tapping his fingers, walking around.

• general stims include his index finger tapping against his thumb, chewing the inside of his cheek, licking his lips, and rubbing the back of his head if it’s been shaved. he likes playing with his longer hair too but hardly anyone is around to see it.

• he stims every time he listens to music. he doesn’t listen to music very often. it’s distracting for him.

• he likes his long hair but it’s too noisy for him. he needs it out of his eyes and face to be able to focus.

• autistic rage is how he survives.

• safe foods include black coffee and breakfast foods. he likes trying new foods and recipes because he likes exploring different types of textures and flavors. he cooks for people to show that he cares because he’s not great with words.

• stims by cleaning his guns. he used to play with maria’s hair a lot. now he rubs the scar on the back of his head.

• extremely high pain tolerance from years of dissociating from his body. it was difficult when he was growing up. his mom would often find him injured and not saying anything or acting like there was something wrong. he once broke his finger and didn’t realize it until later when someone pointed it out.

• has to have everything extremely organized. as a child he lined things up and would get upset if people touched his stuff. he wasn’t good at playing with others.

• technology is overwhelming for him, he likes old fashioned things with physical parts.

• needs more information to assess a situation. whether that be for a mark or in personal situations. he would always ask “the wrong questions” and offer solutions instead of just listening. it was one of his main issues with maria. she thought he didn’t care about her feelings for years when he was trying to help.

• he did not realize maria was flirting with him at first. she was his first real relationship because all other people gave up when they assumed he wasn’t interested. he doesn’t know how to flirt.

• he’s obsessive. when it comes to his mission, nothing else matters. when he first got with maria, nothing else mattered. he needed to know everything about her.

• his autistic sense of justice is what drives him. he believes what he is doing is right and is firm in his beliefs. this also goes hand in hand with his black and white thinking.

• even before war, he was awkward in social situations. he’s always been quiet. he doesn’t like big settings of people, it’s too loud with too much going on. he prefers one on one interactions. it’s easier to focus when it’s just one person.

• he’s been told he struggles with empathy and has no emotions, but he feels so deeply despite not expressing it. he doesn’t understand how people don’t see it but it’s not something he can really explain. it’s always been like that.

• he was nonverbal for years as a child, which is why he was so used to the comments that were made at the construction site (nmcu specific) and he couldn’t understand why they gave a shit.

• in school, he was bullied, but he never really told his parents about it. he was always kinda different. always felt like he was faking the whole “being a human” thing, so in some ways what he does now is easier. he doesn’t have to pretend and put energy into things he’s bad at.

• lisa was kinda like him and it made him nervous. she was blunt and accused of being cold when he knew what she meant. maria had to explain why it was an issue, but all he could think about was the factual statements and how it’s good to pick things apart.

• he always has a plan, a backup plan, and a backup backup plan. it’s part of why he hates a lot of heroes that just go in with no plan. why don’t they have a plan? he’s gone on many tangents before. it’s one of the main reasons why he doesn’t do team ups. that, and other people are too unpredictable. he still doesn’t play well with others.

• when he was young, he really believed in god because god and catholicism has rules that you stick to. he never understood why god and the angels were allowed to kill people but he wasn’t. he went into seminary because he had a special interest in god. he can debate a lot but religious people rarely enjoy it. he’s now a lapsed catholic, mostly because of that.

• nowadays to him, heaven is just a fancy prison and free will is what’s important. he doesn’t like the idea of being a pawn. it’s why he told heaven to go fuck itself. if he has to sacrifice his beliefs then what does that say about him?

• part of why he went into the marines was because he dad always told him he needed to respect authority. he was pushed into it, told that maybe it would do him some good since he was constantly picking fights and not understanding why people behaved the way that they did.

• he likes dogs because dogs like routine. they’re always affectionate. he can also talk to them and they don’t judge or expect him to say the right words. they just like it when he talks.

• his punisher shirts are always a blend of cotton and polyester overtop kevlar. he has a stencil he carries in his bag. the skull is like the jacket he had in high school. it makes him feel comfortable and secure.

• he never wears cologne and doesn’t like things with a lot of scent.

• he was never too good at hygiene, even as a child. now he has an excuse, but really it’s just a lot of effort and he’s going to get dirty again so why does it matter?

[inverswayart]

Assorted thoughts on Florianne de Chalons design (and some other stuff)

So in my previous rambings on Orlais fashion I was, among other things, extremely befuddled by how Florianne’s dress stood out from all established trends we saw in Orlais fashion, and in the end left it without much interrogation. But now, once I actually played through WEWH and saw her in action, i think i have some more thoughts about it

So in that post I also complained that dresses somehow went from very high collars with big ass ruffles to plunging necklines without any kind of transitional phase - and now, looking at Florianne big slightly Elizabethan-esque collar, I wonder - is it the trace of that particular fashion? Of course, it’s kinda hard to say since the dress is unique to Florianne - it might as well be her personal fancy or just a costume element (remember, the ball in Halamshiral is supposed to be a masquerade ball, not just any party).

I’m also wondering how exactly it is constructed - the collar itself seems very structured (and it would need to be to stay so upright) but the back of the overdress it’s attached to seems very loose and drapey? And (at least according to concept art) it’s also not supposed to touch her back, so unless there’s some sewing technique I’m not aware off I’ll have to chalk it up to enchantments (tho i guess it would be in-character for such high-ranking Orlesian noble as Florianne)

Another gripe I had with Florianne’s dress were her sleeves - loose and wide with no trace of cuffs we see at almost every kind of Orlesian dresses in-game. It seemed completely out of place, until I noticed that this kind of sleeves does actually appear in-game - just not on dresses, but on mage robes, the kind Grand Enchanter Fiona wears (which is a port of Bethany’s robes from DA2)

So, leaving obvious doylist explanations aside, we are presented with the fact that the Grand Duchess had her very important dress for a very special occasion made so a big part of it would resemble the attire of the current public enemy faction… Which is, no matter how you look at it, is a Statement. Perhaps it’s a subtle way to hint on her alliance with Corypheus? Or, on the contrary, a way to scandalize the court to pull attention away from said alliance? (Either way, I really wish Vivienne had something to say about it…)

And, at last but not least, let’s talk about Florianne’s hair.

Her often modded-away undercut is very prominent feature of her character design, in contrast with both her cousin Celene braids and her brother Gaspard completely shaved head

For some reason, it always stood out to me, even tho it’s just one of the default hairstyles in CC, but I think I kinda figured out why.

So, hear me out.  As per Inquisition in-game presentation, one can observe that Orlais, the higher echelons of power in particular, has a curious aversion to hair - specifically facial and scalp hair, but it wouldn't be a stretch to assume it extends to body hair as well. Throughout the game, we see many nobles and noble-adjusted Orlesians sport big headdresses akin to turbans and chaperons, especially on women’s evening dresses - where headscarfs are neighboring plunging and even risque necklines in a setting where Orlais’ historical counterpart, on contrary, usually allowed and encouraged women to show off their hair in elaborate hairstyles and decorations. 

What’s even more curious, it seems like this fashion is pretty recent - just 10 years ago Leliana was telling us about elaborate hairstyles that could fit an entire birdcage inside, and throughout the DA2 we see that Orlesian nobles and tourists aren’t eager to cover their heads up. So, what could possibly make such a big shift happen in a few years between DA2 and Inquisition? (And yeah, I know that the real reason that both games were developed in terrible crunch and developers didn’t have much time/energy/desire to spend more time on making unique hair for a bunch of npcs who would appear for 1-2 quests max and even with turbans and masks most of vanilla hairs and mustaches would probably clip in one way or another so they left everyone shaved, but, once again, i’m more interested in watsonian explanation rather than doylist one)

What I think happened is that after the DA2 finale (chantry explosion and the whole Kirkwall mess) Chantry had to tighten the screws on its clergy and controlled territory asap as to not allow another blow to its power - and so the Empress’ court had to scramble to show how pious and faithful they are, with one of the more popular ways of doing so being imitating chantry sisters and mothers’ headpieces and general modes of dressing by covering their heads up and abandoning extravagant hairdos of past decade. 

Simultaneously there’s a civil war unfolding, which a) brings military influences into fashion, esp men’s fashion and b) increases Chantry’s standing and influence - if you are unwilling to show loyalty to Celene or Gaspard, you can always turn to Chantry, which makes it’s pressure on especially women’s fashion even stronger. So in the end we have men sporting militaristically smooth shaved scalps and faces and women piously styling their hair flat, with both wearing elaborate scarves and turbans on top of that (because they are still, after all, orlesians)

Ball at Halamshiral is a clear illustration of that - Gaspard, despite once having luscious mustache (as seen in Masked Empire), is completely bare-faced not counting the mask, Celene’s hair are tightly braided but not covered (deliberate move to show how her progressive stance is and close she is to most of the empire in contrast with Gaspard, who’s only backed by a fraction of army)... and then there’s Florianne - with hair cropped short and shaved, but not fully, and also forgoing any head covering - in a sense a middle ground between Celene and Gaspard… And at the same time she literally refuses to conform to either masculine or feminine mode of action (in an in-universe Orlesian sense), showing it off, and, in conjunction with her mage-influenced attire, it creates quite, dare i say, punkish look - at least, for orlesian court standards. If it was intentional, then you might read it as a bit of a foreshadowing on her role in the royal plot, and if not - oh well, I still choose to read it that way since Orlesian fashion is a mess and there’s no one to stop me./hj

(One thing I’m glad didn’t make it to the game from concepts (even tho by itself it’s pretty great) is the train cause there’s literally no other character having it anywhere in all 3 games and i would’ve have no idea how to read it)

[majorproblems77]

Hi all! Bonus links updated! Which means I am back to ramble about it! :D

Hello hello!! :D

Hope you are all having a wonderful day (And if not maybe some rambling can make it better!) Bonus links is back with Homesick part 5.

I LOVE THIS COMIC

Nuff said :D

Im kidding, but im also not kidding. This comic is wonderful and always so well done! I love it sm, also mandatory Loft my beloved, because he is the bestest boy in the worlds.

For the important stuff! All art belongs to @bonus-links and the artist @ezdotjpg. Please go and look at their other stuff too! And I once again thank you for letting me do these.

You can find a link to the comic here!!! Please go and give the original post some love!

Now, Grab a drink, and some popcorn cause I am about to take you on a journey. Mainly a rambling journey, but a journey nonetheless!

Let's do this!

Loft.... Loft are you remembering the same trip I am cause you looked horrified. Im sure he kinda had fun eventually but I remember the shenanigans.

Wake is just happy to be here.

And poor wolf. He Frow up! (This made me cackle so much thank you)

Wake really do be :3 Gives me cat vibes.

I love how expressive he is. He's so proud of himself.

Oh my god, these two deserve the literal world I love them so damn much okay.

(Is this analysis just gonna be me hyping about all of these guys for 30 minutes. Probably, but that's what you signed up for so.... :D )

Okay okay okay

So, Aryll has a joy pendant and this gives me joy, did wake give to her from his adventure? That makes me so happy.

And Tetra! Holy hell she looks so cool! Badass bitch over here and I am here for it.

Also, just to check, Thats Linebecks jacket, right? The one he wore in phantom hourglass. I dont remember seeing him give it to Tetra at any point in time. So, how is it she's come across it?

I assume it's just he gave it to her at one point and she wears it as a sign of respect?

Ohno.... OH NO

Tetra looks like she is about to kill Ganondorf all over again, Also also, the background behind Tetra. Protective mode activated.

This one, I am loving how it looks like water. I was literally screaming, though, you get that feeling you recognise something? It's something Something about the water.

I'll be back...

(Investigates)

OHHHHHHHHHH

ITS FROM THE GANON PICTURE, ITS FROM THE GANON PICTURE. FROM THE UPDATE THEY MET WAKE.

THIS ONE

(From Homesick pt3 - link here!)

Also the shadows? The way the light comes up from below her rather than above her at this point. The final fight had this in the final stages. A nice detail.

This is the face of fear

Help him

Man is about to get killed, tetra is to be feared and I love her.

Also

I THOUGHT THE EYEPATCH WAS A FASHION STATEMENT WHAT HAPPENED. WAKE ARE YOU OKAY?

She has a point. Stabbing Ganondorf in the head is what caused him to turn to stone, so for all she knows Ganondorf could be walking around right now causing havoc.

And how, casual Wake is about it is probably not helping.

I love how protective of Gran Gran Tetra is, (as she should be Gran Gran is wonderful) and she has a point Wake like the hell why are you bringing in shenanigans on your poor Gran Gran's birthday.

HE

LOFT BELOVED

TRULY THE MASTER OF STANDING IN ALL TIMELINES I LOVE HIM A HEALTHY AMOUNT

okay im done

Yeah, Wake go and see your Gran Gran. Can't believe you are late so rude to Gran Gran.

Also him tucking the windwaker in the back of his belt, a nice touch!

Also, I know it's not meant to be a lil face, but I can't unsee the lil face on Tetras cheek. It's so angry and sad and I love it.

Tetra's inner demon is just as mad as she is

Oh my god I love Gran Gran so much

She is actually beloved because she's so sweet! And Wake loves his gran so much I just ahhhhhh

I love them

His little squishy face oh bless him.

Linebeck, Linebeck please, he's lowkey their uncle. Look at how disappointed Wake and Aryll look.

Gran Gran you look wonderful.

Oh they all got towels thats so sweet

Also I am loving the backgrounds, the inside of Gran Gran's House is just wonderful.

So here is some of the stuff I've spotted, which from my understanding come from a mix of Windwaker and Phantom hourglass.

Yahaha! You found him! :D

What I believe is the Town flower? I think that's right.

A Ruto crown I believe!

They went ice skating and thats adorable

Look at this boy

How could you not love him?

Cause I do

Loft my beloved

Me figuring out if this is saying Lie to my gran or Dont lie to my gran because of that hand.

Pretty sure it's Lie to my Gran. But I think it's funnier if it's, Dont lie to my gran.

Take it as you will

Loft using Groose, he looks so nervous I love him,

Wolf picking Rusl makes me so happy. Man is a hometown kid.

Slate, the sweet darling boy. I love all of them very much. Also, with that smug face, he 100% knew what he was doing.

This is the look of a man who likes you because his grandmother approves of you.

Also, I think I would literally die for Gran Gran i love her to pieces and if anything happens to her I will go on a rampage, (Affectionally, with a tub of ice cream)

This update was wholesome I loved it. AND THOSE BACKGROUNDS YES.

Background appreciation time

Look at the detail on the boat!

Even out of focus the fact that you can see the blades of long grass or the hatching on the window.

(ALso look at how sweet my blorbo is Loft beloved)

I just love how much detail is in the house or on the tree to the right hand side here.

And the little flowers just outside I see you. so cute!

Now inside the House is just so incredible looking.

The small details on the blanket on the bed, or the pictures on the wall. The fact that you can make out what they are at this distance is just so cool okay.

Again, the details on the items on the shelf, or in the flowers in the top right-hand corner.

It's just incredible how detailed stuff is and I love it.

Love it so much!

Okay thats my rambles done for another update. Thanks for following along!

I hope you have a great day! :D

[us-the-voices-and-more-voices-2]

my horrible horrible Batman/bruce Wayne headcannons

He’s half Sicilian and half Jewish. I will take this to my actual grave/srs

the real reason he can walk away and fight people with broken bones and while bleeding out is because he has an undiagnosed pain disorder. Like the one where you can’t feel pain at all. And has never realized it ever, and the batfam are completely oblivious too. Thomas Wayne (his dad) had it and never noticed either.

he sings songs to his kids, but really really bad covers. On purpose. He also has a secret YouTube music channel called “bats in the belfry” where he uploads his good guitar/vocal covers. He accidentally goes viral, and juggles a triple life as a semi-famous songwriter and singer. No one knows it’s him though, not even the league.

Thomas gave bruce all his old medical texts, and used to teach him first aid when he was little. little bruce loved it so much.

bruce actually has his doctorate in chemistry, engineering, medicine, biology, botany, and he took some random courses about the bats of Gotham and then studied veterinary medicine.

he proudly displays his many doctorates he earned in the same 3 years, in the library where no one see them.

his best friend forever is Harvey dent, even though Harvey and Harv are twoface. he does not care and randomly rocks up to his house with some good brandy, and invites them to his house always and forever.

bruce is actually a good dad, he's just also oblivious and accidentally hurts his kids feelings.

he actually hates being called bruce, and considers it his deadname. he actually one time when he was poisoned got out the name change forms filled them out with the name Bat Bruce Wayne and got his name changed and then he started feeling better after being poisoned he realised that he changed his legal name to Bat Wayne and he could not change it back. he tries to lie about it but he still has to sign forms with his legal name, no one has figured it out yet. everyone just assumes Bat Wayne is like his 9th kid or something.

bruce despite being rich as balls actually hates being rich with a passion, and literally throws his money at anything he can. when he was younger he tried desperately to get rid of all his money via charities, investing in local Gotham shops and chains, and literally paying for any health or medical care thing he could. sadly that only made the entire city of Gotham love him, and sadly he just got 30x the money he put in. and he still doesn't know how. it basically turned into a one upping where bruce tried everything he could to get rid of his money but all that happened was people started to love and adore Wayne tech and Wayne industries, and bruce Wayne's constant stream of donations to literally every single charity he could shove money in their hands. it backfired horribly and now he has a LEGION of international Bruce Wayne fans who literally give him money. he hates every single moment.

he has a weird thing going on with joker, they made out a couple times and they both refuse to ever bring it up. (bruce would have killed him if he didn't kinda have the hots for him and thought he couldn't be redeemed.)

he singlehandedly is keeping all of Gothams diverse bat species alive and well, he also has like 1,000s of pet bats in the batcave.

his favourite colour is actually yellow, but he just likes that black is stealthy.

he actually has tons and tons of scars, and no one really knows because bruce always wears fingerless gloves and long sleeves. they just think it's a fashion statement, bruce just likes covering up his scars.

he started a conspiracy that batman was actually not real and just a cryptid, he leans even more into it as Bruce Wayne.

he picks up all his kids and spins them around at random, because he loves keeping them on their feet.

he's low-key on and off dating both Catwoman and Harvey, while having work husband Clark Kent be his teammate.

the media completely forgets bruce literally has multiple doctorates some times. and when he publishes any work he does everyone is like "oh look it's Bruce Wayne, not THE Bruce Wayne of Wayne tech. science Bruce Wayne of the same name. because the playboy billionaire doesn't publish in scientific journals" and then one time he was invited to give a lecture on poison ivy's plants and the critically endangered Gotham wild rose of which there is only one left and of which he is currently keeping safe in his plant house. anyway everyone was fucking shocked and bruce put on his serious scholarly tone and started talking. while in a yellow Gotham U jumper with coffee stains on it while looking like he was in a car crashes aftermath only moments earlier. (he just forgot to set his bones again.)

bruce has autism and OCD. his special interest is gray ghost, and he fucking hates bright lights. (sun glasses indoors kinda guy)

bruce keeps like 50 photos of his kids in his wallet, 1: because it's funny 2: because he does not bring a phone with him anywhere.

and lastly, when he was doing his tour around the world to learn all types of fighting and escapism. he also learned he was horrible at cooking, just downright destructive.

[imminent-danger-came]

2x03 and 4x03

Mei: “If I know the Monkie King, which I don’t, his lesson isn’t going to be as simple as just hearing, it’s some sort of twist. Maaaayybbee, it’s about listening good! You know?”

MK: “Isn’t that the same thing?”

(2x03 Pig Pong Panic)

-

Azure Lion: “If your bonds of friendship are as strong as you say, then you will always find your way back to one another.”

MK: “Alright! Find our friends, beat the curse, and get back to the good old fashioned story of the week!”

MK: “But where to start...”

Mei: “You’re a big brained boy when it comes to the legend stuff, got any idea of what chapter the JourNeY to the WeeSt we’re in?”

MK: “Uhhh I kinda just skip to the parts with Monkie King in them, but it’s fine, everything will be fine!”

Guard: “Did ya hear?”

(4x03 The Great Tang Man)

-

Not gonna lie gamers. I don’t exactly know what this one is trying to say. Like, it has to do with MK’s lovely ‘smartie kid’ arc (which tbh starts all the way in 1x10, I need to write a meta for it some time), BUT LISTENING?? HEARING??? AN “IF” STATEMENT??? MK’s “hand out” position and “finger on chin” position are swapped chronologically, not to mention they’re mirrored, and we all know how I feel about that.

I’ll put the scene (and lowkey a mini-meta) under a readmore, but during Pigsy and MK’s climatic ping pong fight this happens:

Mei: “You have to truly learn to listen”

Tang: “His hunger for the win! It’s insatiable.”

Pigsy: “I won’t stop.

“I can’t stop.”

“I’ll NEVER STOP!”

MK: *Gasp!*

“That’s what Monkie King meant!

MK: “Not just super hearing, but actually listening to what people are saying! I have to listen!”

LIKE. WHY SHOW THOSE SCENES.

Originally, I had assumed that this scene was for the shonen anime joke—this ping pong game is already so over the top, and having the hero make a climatic realization during it works super well. I think it’s hilarious every time I watch 2x03.

However, referencing 2x03 in 4x03 has made me totally reconsider the validity of this scene for like, character progression.

MK is of course terrible at listening. He assumes double meanings and doesn’t truly “listen” to what people say, just what he chooses to hear. I think 3x03 “Smartie Kid” has a great example of this:

MK: “Meeiiii, Monkie King needs to recharge after his fight with Ne Zha! He’s in no state to waste his time on mere mortals—especially now that I don’t have my powers.”

Pigsy: “Woah. He told you that?”

Obviously, Sun Wukong didn’t actually tell MK that. MK has seriously low self-esteem, and that seeps into how he interacts with others.

So, when MK hears “If your bonds of friendship are as strong as you say, then you will always find your way back to one another”, he assumes that means getting back to his “monster of the week” adventures, but it doesn’t. He’s permanently changed (4x07 hahahahahaha), and as we all know, part of the Hero’s Journey is the hero never returning home (*cough cough* 4x01 “But maybe this is the point in our hero’s journey where things get a little bit, darker. *cough cough*).

It’s definitely all tied together, but I’m not sure I grasp it entirely yet.

And then there’s the scenes from 1x09 and 1x10, which sure do imply...something. Currently I’m thinking the line “Ah, ya did it bud, you remembered what I told you” has everything to do with it, and everyone’s little speech about being MK’s team. They’re both scenes where MK truly listened to the people around him, which is a rarity around these parts.

And, you know what was another instance where MK truly listened?

[davekat-sucks]

Fun fact about troll sexuality and alternian society just thought I'd drop because I saw your post while browsing the tags: depending on how you look at it, in earlier troll pages (roughly before 2500) it seems to suggest that trolls do in fact have some concepts of sexuality, but by the time of Karkat preference for hag over fag (2547), they're effectively cut out of the narrative.

Kanaya doesn't introduce herself as a lesbian but does have symbolic associations: rainbowdrinking, forbidden romance, things that scream 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍🌈, especially when explicitly established after her initial interactions with Rose (narratively, not chronologically, because time in homestuck is a fuck). We can say that's just for the audience's sake, for who a character being attracted to women would've been notable and thus symbolically important. Where it gets interesting is with Eridan's first pesterlog with Feferi where Feferi acts kinda like a not-homophobic parent™ by loudly appending her statement to include the potential for same sex attraction. By doing this, it suggests an element of what we in wokeville call heteronormativity. Otherwise you'd just say "any lucky troll," right? But no, Eridan's attraction to ladies is taken as a given, but his attraction to fellows is an afterthought, in caps, with "380" emoticon to make it even more exclamatory. Funnily enough it retroactively paints Eridan's casual acceptance and encouragement of Kanaya's crush on Vriska in a very funny light. Eridan may be, well everything that Eridan is, but he doesn't think twice about people being gay.

The alternative explanation, that would make it so that alternia as a society truly has no systematic heteronormativity, is that Feferi is straight (has a fetish for men, as you would put it) and just because she metaphorically lives in a bubble, assumes everyone else is too. Eridan killing the only strictly homosexual and heterosexual trolls is the act of a bisexual supremacist presumably. Look at the bisexual flag. Remind you of anybody's fashion choices??? And who in the room does he spare? The person with the theme of twos (bi), and the one with ♋ as their symbol, the most bisexual of the positions.

Idk a lot of the last bit is just joking around. I just think it's neat how not concrete the early pages were about alternian society, but you can tell pretty precisely where in the comic that the worldbuilding has to be locked in.

What do you mean about the HAG/FAG cut out from narrative? Like the whole future self talking to the present not talking to them again? It's true that the only other appearance of FAG is on this page. We never heard anything about future Karkat or anyone else talk to the present/current characters by Act 6. I thought Feferi acting the way to Eridan when they were first seen pesterlogging each other was just her establishing her status as a fuschsiablood troll, the highest in the hemospectrum. True she is the type that wants to change Alternia to something less violent, but it doesn't escape the fact she is still using her privilege like the other highblood trolls, to dictate what is right and wrong. And in her case, her top position says nobody can say she is that wrong less they be culled. Nothing about it was her being like a not-homophobic parent, whatever the fuck that is. Doesn't help that Eridan is mostly seen talking to only Jade and Rose. Trolls that had supposedly talk to of the opposite sex is Nepeta for Dave (according to Alterniabound), Tavros and Rose, Kanaya and John(when he was using Rose's account to prank her), Vriska (for John), Terezi (John before moving onto Dave), Karkat (for Jade), Aradia (to Dave in Dream Bubbles), and Gamzee (to Rose if you count in the Dream Bubbles where she spotted him and didn't do shit to him). Sollux is seen to have interacted with Dave but only to show that he was the one who inputted the earlier commands (calling Dave an insufferable prick for Dave's intro). Equius talked to Dave because he mistook him for a highblood cause he had major training under Bro, not seeing anything abusive about it. Feferi interacted with Jade to only tell her she died and nothing came of it despite that it was Feferi herself who said and believed that the Beta Kids would be the one to help out and suggested it to Karkat. We don't know if Eridan had spoken with Dave or John. We can assume as Dave has Gamzee as his favorite troll and has roleplayed with Nepeta, but it's up for speculation on what their interaction is like and how each character feels for the other. Of course, it's not stopping anyone from shipping EriDave or JohnEri. I also think Alternia and trolls thinking humans having many names of sexuality labels, is suppose to be an ironic joke since these are the same trolls that are in a polygamy relationship and determine it by QUADRANTS. Basically, all the trolls who acknowledge or are into quadrants in some form (like Nepeta, Karkat, and Eridan), ARE HYPOCRITES. If it's not trolls being -phobic this or fetish that, then it's the fact the trolls believed their methods are superior to stupid humans.

[novakspector]

The Bajoran earring is a religious item but also cultural and acts almost like an ID card or dog tag, identifying the person, their family, and their d’jarra (caste). 

The closest Earth parallel I can think of are the tattoos of some Polynesian peoples that tell biographic details about the person that others within the culture can read but outsiders cannot. Which creates some silly situations when outsiders copy those tattoos for sake of fashion, for example a white man copying a Polynesian tattoo on pinterest because he thought it looked cool but ends up telling everyone he’s a grandmother.

To outsiders Bajoran earrings are just pretty baubles, but Bajorans can identify each other’s family and d’jarra by simply looking at the earring. When they briefly bring back the d’jarra system this comes into play, with a Bajoran woman giving up her seat to Major Kira because Major Kira is from a higher caste.

I can’t remember any other adult Bajorans besides the musician Varani and Seska (posing as Bajoran) who don’t wear a Bajoran earring. Seska not having an earring should have been a red flag to the others in the Maquis (especially the Bajorans!) since not having one is so uncommon among Bajorans. It’s actually kinda weird that she didn’t have one as part of her disguise. We also never get for Seska a family name (assuming Seska is a given name). Seska not having one makes her stand out, because she’s a Maquis fighter and you’d think a warrior would want a dog tag.

In "Ensign Ro" TNG episode the female Bajorans wore their earring on the left ear while the males wore it on the right ear. Later on, they change this and made all Bajorans wear their earring on the right ear. The Pah Wraiths cult wear a red earring on their left ear to show allegiance to the Pah Wraiths rather than the Prophets. Ro Laren is not religious, and wears her Bajoran earring for cultural reasons. So someone not wearing one at all is certainly an interesting statement!

When we see Nerys as a 3 year old child she doesn’t have an earring yet. Varis Sul was 15 and also didn’t have one. Rugal, the Cardassian boy adopted by Bajorans and raised to hate his own people, is 12 years old and wears a Bajoran earring.

Major Kira gets her Bajoran earring at age 13, when she participates in her first mission as a member of the Shakaar resistance. Nerys’ friend and fellow resistance member fabricated the earring out of piece of the hull of the Cardassian transport they attacked.

If I had to guess, the Bajoran earring is something attained as a rite of passage when they come of age, when they are recognized as no longer children but growing into young adulthood. Sort of like being bar/bat mitzvah, or maybe like the Amish baptism rites where they are recognized as full members. The Bajorans attain the earring as a sign they are full members of the Bajoran community and their minds are mature enough to make the decision to dedicate themselves to the Prophets. In peace time, this would probably just happen at adolescence. It’s possible that Bajorans come of age at an older age than Cardassians. Cardassians attain adolescence at 12 and Bajorans at 16, which explains why Varis Sul didn’t have an earring while Rugal did. In war time, however, for Nerys it was when she participated in a mission and proved she was capable as a fighter. Like Ro Laren said, she never got to be a child.

There’s probably more about this topic in the non-canon ST novels, but I’m just going by what we see in the canon shows.

[scripteur]

@arrowloosed / ft. kate bishop CONT. FROM ASK

" yeah, let's not call it THAT. what is that, 2000s-speak? " kate shakes her head and takes a sip from her beer. they're looking a little worse for wear ( in typical hawkeye fashion ) after a long day of chasing drug traffickers through queens. but no one in the dive bar seems to give them a second look, so. small blessings.

it's clint's last statement that catches her a little off guard. " oh. i guess with all the girlfriends i just sort of assumed you were . . . into hookups? but, yeah. that's cool. " she's tempted to tack on something painfully honest like, ' sex is hard and complicated for me, too. ' but she'd need a few more drinks for that. so she gives him a smile, a warm one, before speaking again, " you know, the YA are the gayest, most accepting team. they're awesome, i love them. i think they just thought of me of as the STRAIGHT ONE for so long that it's just kinda weird, i dunno. "

[clockworksteel]

Yep, it's me again with more gender posting. I probably should tag all these something. But yeah, I'm finding that if I don't post about things I find myself repeating the same thoughts as if trying to compose the next post instead of thinking of new thoughts, so I guess I need to actually write these posts. This whole "write it or keep thinking it" thing isn't new, but hadn't come up in a while until this personal arc.

First, a hopefully amusing anecdote. A couple weeks ago I was looking at some clothing and remarked to someone the next day, "The things I don't know about women's fashion can be accurately summarized by just saying 'women's fashion'." Specifically, I had to do a search to see whether it was reasonable to wear a skirt and a T-shirt together. This led to the remarks "I'm... not convinced I actually see people in public. Mobile hitboxes and colors, maybe." There's maybe less exaggeration in that statement than one might think.

I've mentioned to a couple people by now that if I did want a feminine name, I think Alice sounds nice, although I'd probably think more if I was gonna actually change names. One person thought it would suit me, which was cool to hear. Wonder what xe meant by that, exactly. While it is a "normal" name, it's also several different references (eg Touhou, Alice in Wonderland, Rozen Maiden), which is neat.

I haven't come up with a gender neutral name for that possibility yet. I feel like it's harder to think of neutral names at all. While someone did mention "Clyceer" kinda is gender neutral because it doesn't have any associations besides me, it also... doesn't exactly sound like a real person name. Plus I've noticed from being in chat on Twitch that the pronunciation I use for it isn't obvious. I've also used "Red" in a couple games as a gender neutral name, like in Undertale where I wasn't sure if the protagonist was supposed to be any particular gender. Since, like, with "Red" am I referencing Pokemon or Transistor? We'll never know. That... also doesn't sound like a real person name though. Maybe a nickname. Besides, if I was any color I'd rather be Green (but is it Green like Pokemon or Green like Gunstar Super Heroes?)

I ended up clicking through https://turn-me-into-a-girl.com/ last Saturday morning. At the end I felt something nice that I can't confidently identify but, well, it probably wasn't a very cis feeling. Unfortunately, revisiting the next day didn't bring about the same feeling, or at least not nearly as noticeably, so further analysis on that may be impossible. There are a lot of useful questions to consider there that I didn't really stop and ponder so still reasons to go back, though. I also didn't really look at the twitter posts in too much detail, and I bet some of them have interesting threads to read if I click through.

I don't know if I've mentioned my gender spectrum estimates to anyone, but 1-3 weeks ago I'd have said "20% masculine with up to 40% error in either direction", while now I'd guess more like "nonbinary with up to 50% error". So I'm less confident in general, but moving away from the masculine side. The confidence interval is a total guess that's just based on feelings, of course, but well, isn't this whole thing based on feelings?

Currently, the strategy I've decided on for experimentation seems to be moving the easier to move identities first. -I'm still mostly presenting masculine in the real world and I'm still identifying as such. I feel like if I were going to transition, I'd have to figure out something for my face or else it would feel too dissonant to me. Maybe makeup is viable? I assumed I wouldn't like it because of experience with paint and oils, but I can't say I've tried, and there are different types. Might be good at some point to at least confirm whether the obstacle is mental or physical. -Anywhere I'm Clyceer or CS has been shifted one level more towards nonbinary by flipping the order of pronouns in the about/description sections to say they/them first and he/him second. My youtube and twitch are important to me and I don't want to make hasty changes. Plus I haven't mentioned anything to my #1 fan who has also been a friend since high school. -Meanwhile in places with lower commitment I'll try being feminine outright. I changed the name on my Splashtag in Splatoon 3 to Alice, and it wouldn't take 2 guesses to figure out which protagonist I'll be in the next Pokemon if I get it.

While I'm sure eventually I'll have to resolve the identities, it does seem useful for the questioning phase to do it like this. Or I guess if I am that genderfluid it could be convenient to leave things like that. But... I don't think things are gonna be that convenient.

Anyway, happy National Coming Out Day... in which I still haven't said anything to my housemate. I did start openly wearing the women's pajamas a few days ago but if they've noticed anything unusual about them they've refrained from mentioning the observation. I mean, it's still essentially a shirt and pants so it's not that odd.

[666writingcafe]

Lesson 1: Welcome to the Devildom

In typical fashion, MC forgets that they had submitted an application to be a human exchange student at RAD, so of course they're surprised when they find themselves in the assembly hall at the academy. As one might expect, MC was the last one to know that they were selected, as their parents, their human school, their coworkers, and just about everyone else they knew had already been told this information in advance. It was unfortunately quite usual that people wouldn't tell MC things because they either assumed that MC already knew, or they just wanted to surprise MC. Still, it wasn't nice that MC wasn't at least given a heads up that they would be in a strange room, being stared at by strange men in strange uniforms.

MC's First Impressions of The Student Council

Diavolo: He seems nice enough. It's a little spooky that he knew my name before I knew his, but he's at least welcoming. Although something tells me I shouldn't get on his bad side...

Lucifer: I know he's obviously trying to give off an air of authority, and I do respect that, but I sense that he's hiding something. It's probably deep, deep down, and most people wouldn't be able to pick up on it, but I get the feeling that he's actually really insecure. I could just be projecting, though. I'd like to get to know him more and see if that's the case. He's also one of the most beautiful people I've ever seen, but that's beside the point.

Mammon: I can't believe I have to allow a stuck-up, airheaded demon to be my Devildom guide. He doesn't even speak properly. I just have to do what I always do: act nice to him whenever I'm around them, and then complain about him when he's not around.

Asmo: First of all, gay. Like, actually gay. Second of all, he's just as arrogant as Mammon. I doubt he's as sweet and charming as he claims to be.

Satan: Clearly the middle child. Also, he looks and acts remarkably similar to Lucifer. Too similar...

Beel: Definitely relatable in this moment in time. The only thing I've had to eat today is a bowl of cereal from this morning.

Levi: I like him already. I know it's toxic to form friendships based on a mutual hatred of somebody, but I do kinda wish I could vote Mammon to die right now.

--------------------------------

Notes

MC's actually quite excited to do tasks and write a paper about their experience in the Devildom. One of the first supplies they get is a notebook to document their thoughts on things as they happen. This proves quite handy in getting to know the demon brothers and exchange students, so much so that MC collects several notebooks full of information.

When MC looks into Asmo's eyes, they immediately get nauseous to the point that they almost throw up all over the fifth born.

As soon as Lucifer mentions that the House of Lamentation was originally a cursed house in the human world, MC makes it a priority to learn as much as they can about its history.

MC does not appreciate Mammon yelling at them. At all. If it weren't for their manners, MC would have told him to shut up. Thankfully for everyone in the room, Lucifer's the one to voice those thoughts.

If any of the men in the room were to glance over at MC when Lucifer asks Mammon in an angry/nice voice if he objected to being MC's guide, they would have caught a flash of arousal in MC's eyes.

When Mammon tells MC that they better know who the boss is, they immediately think, "Lucifer."

First thing that winds up in MC's notebook: "Demons like humans with nice souls. They will use their wisdom and abilities to tempt the humans so they can get their hands on their souls. Either humans will be tempted by demons, or demons will lose against the shiny and noble soul of a human and make a run for it. This is an experiment to find out who will win."

While Lucifer's statement of MC not having any magic in them is true at the time he says it, it naturally develops inside of them the longer they stay in the Devildom.

MC makes a mental note to hit the nearest dance studio and learn some moves, because they want to eventually take part in the dance battles without the assistance of the demon brothers.

MC's thoughts as Mammon talks as they arrive at the House of Lamentation: "What's insulting is that I have to be guided by someone who won't stop talking. What am I, his diary? 'Dear Diary, today Lucifer was weally mean to me. He makes me angy. I wish I wasn't so insecure. You think I'm tough, right, Diary?' Also, who the fuck goes around calling people peons? And then you want to get on my case about stopping to read the flyer just to turn around and tell me that I can look at it myself when I ask you about it? Maybe I wanted to get a part-time job to help support myself, you nitwit!"

When Mammon states that it's been 260 years since Levi gave him money and not 200, it takes everything in MC's power to not reply, "Aren't you supposed to make that number lower than what was initially stated?"

MC overthinks about Journey to the Devildom: The Tale of a Little She-Devil and Her Reluctant Companion. Is MC the She-Devil? Does that make Mammon the reluctant companion? But Mammon's the devil, not MC, so would he be the she-devil? Would Mammon like being referred to as a she-devil, or would he bite someone's head off?

MC really doesn't care about labels or status. They will befriend people based on their personality and their actions. So, it slightly offends MC that Levi makes a big deal about otakus and normies.

MC's fascinated by The Tale of the Seven Lords not because of the size of the books, but because of the fact that there are seven demon brothers that they just met, and it can't be a coincidence that there's a series about seven lords.

The second thing that winds up in MC's notebook: "Each of the seven lords is so unique. They're all so interesting in their own peculiar way. The lords are all brothers. The oldest is called the Lord of Corruption. He doesn't come across as being so bad at first, but he's always plotting and planning in secret. The second oldest is the Lord of Fools, a scumbag who'll do anything for money. The third oldest is called the Lord of Shadow, a brooding recluse. The fourth oldest is known as the Lord of Masks. He masquerades as a high-status, upstanding member of society, but underneath it all, he's an inhumane monster. The fifth oldest, the Lord of Lechery, only ever thinks of sex. The sixth oldest is the Lord of Flies, and he only ever thinks of food. Then there's the seventh oldest, called the Lord of Emptiness. He's weird; you never know what's running through his head."

Underneath Levi's speech (which can also be found on Levi's blog, as MC discovers when they type in "The Tale of the Seven Lords" in Doogle) is a t-chart assigning each demon brother to a lord. This t-chart proves extremely useful to MC.

MC likes Henry the goldfish.

Levi may have been talking a mile a minute, but MC caught the fact that Levi described this Seraphina character as seeming to be cold and prideful at first but really wanting affection without knowing how to admit it. That also makes its way into MC's notebook.

As much as MC sympathizes with Levi's predicament with not being able to get his money back, they really do not want to make a pact with Mammon. However, Levi doesn't allow MC to say this, but instead just launches straight into his plan without any consideration towards MC. So, MC really does not have much choice but to go along with it, because the last thing they want is to experience a demon's wrath before they've even been in the Devildom for a full day.

[kaeyas-beloved]

Reusing time!!!!!!!: Class 1a with classmate who's quirk is like scp 105. The pictures they take through a polaroid camera allow them to manipulate or grab objects through their photos, and the photographs can become a real-time image of a location.(you can look up scp 105 on scp foundation site for a better explanation of the powers)

SCP-105 Quirked Classmate

Class 1-A x GN!Reader || BnHA

Genre: General

Warning(s): Some late season one spoilers (they're kinda vague tho) // this is short-ish

a/n: Here ya go Anon! I hope you enjoy and thank you for requesting :)

-----------------------------

In the beginning there were definitely some questions on how someone like you got into the hero program. Of course, on the surface anyone would wonder how someone wielding nothing more than an old-fashioned camera defeated highly dangerous robots.

Many assumed your quirk was used as support for yourself, that you were actually just physically buff instead.

You were on the receiving end of Bakugou's insults the first week or two. At least until that one attack in season one that I can't remember the name of (oops)

Since then, after proving yourself one way or another, very few questioned your acceptance into UA. Not after witnessing your quirk first-hand

I feel like I mention this a lot but pranks are bound to be planned and executed. It’s just far too easy to mess with someone when a quirk like yours is in the mix. (Hey, given the personalities of some students you can't blame me for bringing this up either!)

…That is… unless you play by the rules… which is okay honestly! But also be careful too? Because... some might mistake you for the LoV if you do decide to pull any pranks...

During stealth training anyone with a brain begs any god willing to listen to make you part of their team. You’re literally able to just take a picture and be on the lookout without needing to go very far. It's highly likely you won't get caught either. A tremendous advantage if used correctly (and if I’m understanding the powers correctly)!

Realistically speaking, your quirk isn’t the strongest combat wise. And without the camera you’re basically quirkless. Therefore, Bakugou, though not as harsh as the beginning of the year (seeing as you did prove yourself), will still call you an extra :/

Unless you’re able to hold your own in hand-to-hand then maybe he won’t :)

Many - fellow classmates and teachers - believe you'll land yourself numerous opportunities with a Pro Hero that specialize in stealth because of your abilities. A few students will make the ‘don’t forget about me when you’re famous!’ jokes

From what I can remember no one really uses a whole other object for their quirk. For enhancing, sure, but none rely on something like you. So, of course, here’s the obligatory ‘Midoriya will ask questions’ statement.

Yaoyorozu actually may as well, but she’d lean towards questions regarding the polaroid camera and film. How it’s built/made and such - what sets these apart from other cameras and their film?

…So actually everyone will ask questions. Apparently the camera works normally for everyone else, just not you. And it has to be this very polaroid camera - no other camera works even though it’s no different from any other.

Therefore, while Class 1-A will 100% treat you just like they would to anyone else - as a classmate and friend - part of you will still remain an enigma to them. One that some may wish to uncover…

Oh well, just one more opportunity for an adventure and/or catastrophe to happen!

-----------------------------

Tag list: @tickotaku // @decora-peaches // @dorkylittleweirdo // @thylocalcrackhead

…

Want to be tagged? You can fill out this form! If you want to be removed, just send me a quick DM or ask!

[realcube]

you flinch during an argument pt2

navi | masterlist | part one

thank you to anon for this request

characters ♡ sugawara, bokuto & akaashi

tw ♡ cursing, angst, mentions of abuse, hurt to comfort, hinted ptss, mentions of ashes/cremation & parent! reader in bokuto’s

KŌSHI SUGAWARA

♡ a grimace; the expression sugawara had been wearing for the last 10 minutes as he bickered with you in the kitchen while cooking his meal prep

♡ “i just don’t understand why you need to study for hours on end. at this point, i think you’re just making excuses to avoid me.” sugawara spoke, his incomprehensible tone making it impossible for you to decipher whether he was being kind or condescending, or whether that last comment was supposed to be a joke

♡ “why would i do that?” you inquired innocently, keeping your gaze fixated on preparing your own meal. honestly, he didn’t deserve even a shred of your attention after elongating the conversation to no end. “exams are less than a week away and if i don’t pass then the last two years will have been for nothing. not that i’d expect you to understand.”

♡ you acknowledged that was a low blow, but your mind told you to just blurt out the first thing that you knew would make him shut up, and it unfortunately worked. 

♡ immediately feeling a wave of wave of regret wash over you, you shuffled over to his place at the kitchen counter, pressing your cheek to his arm to show affection before muttering, “sorry, i didn’t mean that. please don’t take it personally, kōshi.”

♡ usually an act like that would put an end to one of your silly squabbles but today was different

♡ out of the corner of your eye, you noticed something come flying towards you and — contextually — it didn’t take long for you to figure out that it was sugawara’s hand 

♡ that was enough reason your mind need to take the following course of action: your arms shot up to shield your the side of your face while your knees bent, brining you closer to the ground while your eyelids squeezed shut

♡ although after a few without the expected impact, your eyes fluttered open and you dropped your guard, allowing yourself a few moments to collect yourself before looking up at your boyfriend who’s demeanour had changed completely from a few seconds ago 

♡ now, his face was pale and his jaw was tight. as for his eyes, not so long ago they were faux-soft, now it was as if he had witnessed a crime; his pupils were constricted and his eyes were wide. he still stood tall as always but he appeared to be frozen in place, with his arm — that you had deemed a threat — looming above your head 

♡ you glanced up for a moment just to take a look, and upon noticing how his hand was cupped, you realised that his intention was to pat your head. it was a gentle gesture which he did often to show affection so you couldn’t help but wonder why you’d ever assume he was going to inflict harm on you 

♡ “(y/n)!” he finally managed to choke out, hastily retracting his hand back to his side, “are you alright?” 

♡ you were unsure as to why he was asking such a question, considering that he didn’t even lay a finger on you, but you answered none the less, “i’m fine, are you?” 

♡ it was clear that you didn’t think much of your actions, which made sugawara even more concerned. if he were to be completely honest, he wanted nothing more than to pull you into a hug and prattle on about how much he loved you and how he would protect you with his life for hours on end, but he knew that’d be an immature way to deal with such a situation so acting in an adult fashion, he stood at a respectable distance from you and spoke concisely

♡ “why’d you flinch?” he blurted out, feeling like a complete idiot as you replied almost immediately with, “i’m not sure.”

♡ your nonchalant and unaffected attitude made him wonder if he was making a big deal out of your simple action, since you didn’t seem that bothered by it at all. however, his morals spoke louder than logic and told him that he needed to resolve this issue, even you didn’t view it as such.

♡ “i swear i’d never do something like that.” was all he could think to say. so he decided it was best to stay silent right now, allowing you to head up to your room to study without another word spoken. 

♡ the next hour or so was spent trying to think of something to say to you. evidently, he was at a loss for words and all he could do was bury his face into his arms and mentally curse himself for being so confrontational over such a trivial problem

♡ eventually, he came to the conclusion that you’d probably want some space so for now, he’d allow you to study in peace and come out to talk when you are ready 

♡ but he is still sugawara, so expect there to be a place of sliced fruits outside your bedroom accompanied by a little motivational note 

KŌTARŌ BOKUTO 

♡ arguments with bokuto only came once every blue moon since you both seemed to agree almost all the time, and even when you didn’t, bokuto would either apologise within less than a minute or simply oblige because he hates seeing you mad at him, or just mad in general 

♡ but sometimes — no matter how much he apologised — you’d still resent him for whatever he did, and a part of him just felt like that was so unfair. perhaps it was a childish thought, but why can’t you just understand that he made a mistake and move on? after all, he always learns and it’s rare that he makes the same mistake twice, so why are you still angry?

♡ plus, he always forgives you immediately when you do something wrong. he just wanted the same treatment and he realised this at the worst moment possible.

♡ “saying sorry won’t fix it!” you barked, wiping away the tears as they fell from your lashline. your skin felt like it was on fire but you paid no mind, just focussing on remaining stable and not losing yourself to a crying fit, “it’s gone forever now, i hope you are happy.”

♡ bokuto seeing you upset more than anything, and knowing that he was the cause of your tears only made things worse. he felt so worthless. 

♡ the only words combatting the voice in his head telling him that he couldn’t do anything right, were the ones reassuring him that it was simply an accident and that if he had known that there were ashes in that jar, he would’ve been more careful when walking around it. 

♡ “i don’t know why i take this from you.” he muttered under his breath but still loud enough for you to hear. of course, you thought you had misheard him as you knew him better than to say something so audacious, “huh?”

♡ “i don’t know why i take this from you!” he repeated, but this time he lunged forward to yell it right in your face so you’d hear him for sure. “there’s nothing i can do to fix it now, so why can’t you just forgive me?! i’m so sorry and i’d do anything to make it up to you yet you are still so fucking nasty to me! no one wants to be with a stubborn bitch!” 

♡ blinded by rage, it took him a few moments to realise that you weren’t standing as you were before he lunged at you, but rather you had stumbled backwards and were now on the ground with your hands raised in defence

♡ as much as he wanted to continue with his momentum and yell at you while you were down, his subconscious acted fist by outstretching his hand to help you up, “(y/n), why are y--”

♡ he cut himself off as something finally clicked in his mind, helping him realise that he was the reason you were on the ground. you must’ve flinched and fell backwards when he suddenly moved towards you, but why? i mean, it’s not like he was gonna hurt you. so were you just surprised? well, if you were just shocked by his movements you probably wouldn’t be defensive and appear terrified.

♡ upon coming to this conclusion, bokuto dropped down to his knees and shuffled towards you, evidently having calmed down as his cheeks were no longer red with fury and his eyebrows had separated. 

♡ “i’m so sorry.” he mused with wide-eyes, his blank expression and stare kinda scaring you as not even for a moment did he release you from his gaze.

♡ ‘sorry’ appeared to be the word of the day

♡ “i’m sorry too, kō.” you admitted, lowering your head and allowing the hair that hung down in front of your face to shield you from bokuto’s penetrating stare. “i know you didn’t break it on purpose, so of course you are forgiven.” you knew the feeling of frustration all too well, and you were ashamed that you were cause of it for bokuto.

♡ like magic, your statement pulled bokuto out of his trance and back to reality, where he was able to beam and throw his arms open to offer you a hug, “you don’t need to apologise. c’mere!”

♡ you hesitated at first, but there was truly nothing more comforting than the sight of bokuto’s bright smile and glistening cheeks under the golden sunlight which seeped in from passed the blinds; it was almost angelic. hence you found yourself leaning into his arms without a second thought, finding solace in the way his shaky breath tickled the warm skin of your neck

♡ though he didn’t say much in the moment, the image of you cowering in fear away from him will permanently be inked into his mind 

♡ but that’s not to say his words didn’t have an effect on you

♡ your kid grew up knowing endless forgiveness and tolerance from both you and bokuto, as whenever you saw your son’s golden eyes gaze up at you through a stream of tears, all you could see was bokuto, and all you could hear was him calling you a stubborn bitch 

♡ it was almost funny how your brain made that correlation, but rather than laugh, you simply smiled and kneeled down in front of your son, cupping his cheek in your hand, “it’s fine. i forgive you.”

♡ the poor boys glossy gaze flickered between you and the shards of the mug he had chosen for you scattered across the floor

♡ his teeth gritted together, presenting an expression of anguish which was only highlighted by both of his fist curling into balls before he lunged forward to throw his arms over your shoulders and bawl into your chest, “i’m so sorry!”

♡ you pouted, glancing between your son and bokuto who just stood with an awkward smile on his face, watching the scene while knowing full well that it was mostly his fault for entrusting a fragile mug to a four-year-old 

♡ although, it wasn’t as if you could stay mad at either of them; you love them too much

KEIJI AKAASHI

♡ arguments with akaashi were rare. after all, communication is key in a relationship and he ensures that you both tell each other everything. hence you can see the irony in the situation where his order of transparency is exactly the reason you were so pissed off.

♡ “please tell me what’s wrong, dear.” akaashi almost whispered, trailing behind you like lost puppy while you stormed towards your front door in order to lead him out

♡ “i’m tired, i said i‘ll tell you later.” you groaned, feeling guilty for being so impatient with him but you truly didn’t have the energy to argue or explain how you were feeling tonight. really all you wanted was to get some rest and discuss everything in the morning but akaashi clearly felt like there was something deeper that needed to be unpacked first.

♡ “you say that but you’ll probably be too tired tomorrow as well.”

♡ you quirked a brow, taking a pause and leaning against your doorframe just as you were about to lock him out, “and so what if am? goodnight."

♡ “don’t be immature.” each word sharper than the last, they stung your eyes.

♡ “tomorrow, akaashi. love yo—"

♡ the next few moments were a blur. It was as though your body reacted on it’s own to seeing akaashi reach out towards your face, so without a moment of consideration, you found yourself jerking away from his touch; appearing alarmed while your heart rate skyrocketed for reasons beyond your knowledge

♡ once your mind was finally able to comprehend what happened and absorb the context, it didn’t take long for you to figure out that he outstretched his hand so he could tuck a stray strand of hair behind your ears, an act of affection he performs often yet it just happened to slip your mind

♡ akaashi yanked his arm back to his side, staring at his hand — eyes filled with disgust — as if he were presented with a murder weapon. despite that, his self-loathing was short-lived as he immediately inquired, “are you okay? do you need water?” he wasn’t really familiar with the ideal procedure he should take in a situation like this, so he used his judgment which told him that water was the solution to most problems, hence this should be no different.

♡ before you could deny his offer, he was already rummaging through his satchel in search of his water bottle, and once he found it he was quick to hand it to you

♡ after taking a few sips of water, you placed his bottle back in his bag and zipped it up for him, “thank you.” you murmured, not sure as to whether you should apologise or just play it off as if nothing happened. however, guessing by the dazed look in akaashi’s eyes, it would be safe to assume that these events have been permanently inked into his memory

♡ for the first time ever, he was truly at a loss. usually people would look to him when in trouble – or even danger – but now he was the threat, the cause of your stress

♡ perhaps it was because of how long you’ve been together, or maybe it was due to the fact you converse so often with him, but you could read akaashi like an open book. where others see a deadpan, dull setter; you see your boyfriend who is just in desperate need of affirmation from time to time

♡ a few minutes ago, you could’ve sworn you didn’t have enough energy to smile or communicate your feelings but here you were now, wearing the sweetest grin you could muster and humming in a honeyed voice, “i really do love you, keiji. and i’m not afraid of you either.” to emphasise your point, you leaned forward to plant a brief kiss on his cheek and tuck an imaginary loose strand of hair behind his ear, all while he stood speechless. not that you expected a reply anyway.

♡ “i love you too, dear.” akaashi finally uttered after an elongated period of silence.

♡ it was amazing how much you could tell simply from his eyes. his irises no longer vibrated as if they were pending an eruption, and pity behind his gaze seemed to have dissipated slightly. there was still somewhat of a glassy look to them, but he could say the same about yours.

♡ “goodnight. i’ll message you in the morning.” he smiled, mimicking the kindness in yours well as he turned around, promptly heading towards the bus stop with a final wave of his hand

♡ and he didn’t lie either. not only did he text you goodnight again, at exactly 6AM you received a notification from none other than akaashi himself reading:

♡ ‘good morning, sweetheart <3  how’d you sleep? i’m about to head to the shop, do you need anything?’

♡ although you denied his offer, he ended up buying you your favourite drink anyway

[omg-imatotalmess]

Avoidance

Hey guys! So, this is for @thisismysecrethappyplace who tagged me in their writing challenge. I’m sorry this took so long to get out. I hope this helps you through your birthday blues. Hope y’all enjoy!

Pairing: George Weasley x Reader

Requested: Kinda

Warnings: Slight angst (it ends nice and fluffy I promise) 

15. I’m hopeless and awkward and desperate for love!

                                                              ---

Love was a funny thing. It had the power to make people do the stupidest things without even realizing it. It had the power to make people forget themselves. Love could completely turn someone inside out and set them on their head, and they'd be happy about it. You couldn't fathom it. How anyone could be happy about tearing their heart out and handing it to someone for safekeeping was a mystery to you. In fact, you thought it was total bullshit. Then you met George. 

Well, that's not exactly it. It wasn't love at first sight by any means, but sometime in the years you'd known him, it crept up on you. You hadn't even realized it at first. It had come on so slowly over the years that it felt natural. Then, all of a sudden, sitting in a sunny corner of the library, it hit you like a ton of bricks. You were in love with George Weasley. The boy who taught you to play quidditch, who laughed at all your bad jokes, who had been your best friend forever. Of course, you loved him. It was inevitable. And that's why you'd taken to avoiding him. 

You couldn't stand to be the aching, puppy-eyed girl grinning ear to ear as you offered him your heart. Never in your life did you want to feel that stupid. You also didn't like the very real possibility that it would ruin things between you. All you wanted to do was wait it out. Let yourself slowly fall out of love with him, and then things could go back to normal. However, George seemed to have other plans. After a good week of avoiding him, he finally caught up to you while you sat in the astronomy tower. 

"There you are. Been looking for you for ages, you know," he said. You could feel him grinning at your back. 

"Uh, yup, here I am. You found me," you said, cringing at your stilted words. 

"If I didn't know any better, I'd think you didn't want to see me. Silly me, I didn't know we were playing hide and seek," he laughed, dumping his bag on the floor and sitting down beside you. In typical George fashion, he left a tiny gap between your shoulders but knocked your knees together as he sat. It was friendly. You wished it wasn't. Then you hated yourself for wishing that. 

"Yeah, silly you," you said. 

"C'mon, don't tell me you're really avoiding me." His tone was still teasing, but you could hear the tightness beginning to form. 

"Well..." you began. 

"What? Why? Is it because Fred and I let you take the fall for that prank on Snape? Because I feel terrible about that, and I really am sorry," he said. 

"I am still kinda mad about that," you muttered to yourself.

"Does that mean you're avoiding Fred, too?" he asked, looking very much like he hoped the answer was yes. Just for the safety of knowing it wasn't just him. 

Things would have been so much easier if he didn't turn those big brown eyes on you. When he looked like that, you could see how devastatingly handsome he was even with that wounded look on his face. You hated it. The last thing you'd ever wanted to do was hurt him. How the hell were you supposed to explain to your best friend that you fell in love with him and wished you hadn't? You had the feeling that it would come out wrong if you tried anyway. You looked away. 

"You're not." It was a statement. 

"Well, no, not exactly," you mumbled. 

"What's the matter? Did I do something wrong?" he asked. 

"No!" you said, just a little too loud. "No, of course not." 

"You don't exactly go around ignoring your best friend without a good reason. Especially not you. Unless you forgot how to speak English or something. Even then, I bet you'd still come mess with me just because you knew I wouldn't understand you. You'd get a real kick out of that," he babbled. 

"George, take a breath," you reminded him. 

"What did I do?" he said, cutting off his rambling. You shifted uncomfortably, blushing under his gaze. If only he was just a little less endearing. If only he was ugly. If only you weren't dumb enough to fall in love with him. 

"You didn't do anything. I'm just being stupid," you said. 

"That doesn't exactly tell me much, you know," he replied, reaching out to take your hand. It was something he'd done a million times before. Your skin shouldn't have prickled under his touch. 

"No, I guess not. It's really not a big deal, though." The tingling spread up your arm. 

"Tell me about it anyway," he said, giving your hand the most unbearably sweet squeeze. It was like he had a direct line to your heart. That one little squeeze sent it into overdrive. You shivered, pulling your hand away and standing up. 

"I can't. Not right now, okay?" you said quickly. Snagging your bag from its place by the window, you turned to run like the coward you were.

"(Y/N)." Your name sounded heavy and tragic on his tongue. The whole situation felt like something out of a ridiculous romance novel, which made you hate it even more. 

"I'll explain it all to you when I get it straight in my head, okay? I promise," you said. While you never really planned to tell him about being in love with him, you would eventually be able to go back to normal. 

Taking one long step forward, he grabbed the sleeve of your shirt. His grip was so gentle that you could have pulled away if you'd really wanted to, but you didn't. Both of you stood there. Neither of you moved or spoke for a moment. You just kept your back to him, letting him curl his fingers into your sleeve. Eventually, he brought himself closer, leaning his forehead onto your shoulder. 

"Please don't ignore me anymore. It's only been a week, and I miss you," he whispered. You weren't sure you'd ever heard him so quiet. 

"George-"

"Please? I'd really rather you talk this through even if I don't have a clue what you're on about," he said. 

Jesus, having him so close you could damn near hear his voice inside your head was painful. So was the thought of walking away. George was your best friend. He deserved an explanation. It was cruel of you to do this to him when he didn't do anything wrong. You just weren't sure how to start. 

"I'm hopeless and awkward and desperate for love!" you blurted. Well, that was one way to do it. 

"You're in love?" he asked, somehow sounding more upset. 

"That seems to be what came out of my mouth," you said. 

"You're in love," he said again. This time it was more to himself. 

"Yeah," you sighed, turning to him. You rubbed the back of your neck awkwardly, feeling your cheeks flushing with heat. This wasn't a conversation you really wanted to have. He'd reject you in that sweet yet joking way only he could pull off, and you'd have to pretend to be okay with it, and things would be so much worse. If the castle was capable of swallowing you whole, you wished it would. 

"With who?" 

"Excuse me?" 

"Who is it?" 

"Who... am I in love with?" you asked. Oh no. Oh god. George, that sweet, stupid boy. He didn't get it. 

"Do I know them?" he asked. A frown pulled at the corners of his mouth. 

"I should hope so. You know, come to think of it, he actually looks a lot like you," you laughed, suddenly dizzy with mortification. The whole situation was laughable. Completely bizarre. What could you do besides laugh? 

"Oh," he croaked. "Fred then." 

"Fred?" you asked, blinking dazedly. 

"It's alright. You could have just told me. I would have even put in a good word for you. We're close, you know, I have an in with him. Wouldn't have minded setting you up. Can't imagine why you didn't just ask," he said with a half-hearted laugh. He began to back away from you. You watched as he ran a hand through his hair and bit his lip. For a split second, you thought he was going to cry. 

"I'm not talking about Fred," you said. 

"'M not sure who else you'd be talking about," he said. 

"You dense--" you muttered. Shaking your head, you figured you'd better give this another shot. 

"You, George, I'm in love with you," you admitted. It was his turn to blink at you. If the situation hadn't been so painfully awkward, you might have laughed at him. Half bent over with his bag hanging from one hand, lanky limbs paused mid-movement and sticking out at odd angles.

"Me? You really mean that? Me, as in George Weasley?" he asked. 

"You know a lot of other George Weasleys?" 

"Me! You're in love with me!" he hooted. A grin cracked across his face as he dropped his bag and swept you up in his arms. 

"I'll assume it's reciprocated then," you said as he crushed you against his chest. He laughed. It sounded a lot like years worth of built-up worry finally being released—a wonderfully contagious sound. A smile pulled at your mouth, and you buried your face in his chest. 

In lieu of an actual answer, he pulled you up, so your feet dangled off the floor and kissed you. You'd thought about George kissing you a thousand times, but you never imagined it would be like this. He kissed you like it was the only thing he'd ever wanted to do. Despite the enthusiasm that you could feel emanating from every pore, he was gentle. His mouth was warm, stretched around a familiar grin, and tasted faintly of honey. You wondered briefly why you ever thought about denying yourself this before  George overtook all your senses. Reluctantly, the two of you parted to breathe. 

"Guess I should have said something sooner," you panted. 

"Definitely," he said, sounding a little breathless himself. 

"So, I guess it really would be safe to assume you like me too," you teased. 

"I've been in love with you since fourth year. Glad to know you finally caught up," he said. His face was flushed a soft pink, making his freckles stand out more. You loved them. You loved him. 

"Sorry for keeping you waiting," you said. 

"This was definitely worth the wait." Smiling, you leaned in and captured his lips again. Now that you knew you were allowed, you weren't sure you'd ever stop. Maybe love wasn't so funny after all. 

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