#like he was raised to have toxic ideals and to want to be a hero

[chigirisprincess]

“dabi is a psycho stop feeling bad for him” my brother in christ he was kidnapped by afo to be used as a back up in case anything happened to tomura, spent three years in a coma, woke up and was horrified at what happened to him, found out his family thought he died, and that his father was putting all his effort into training shoto to be a hero. WHAT DID YOU EXPECT TO HAPPEN????!!!

[sapphic-agent]

There's one thing I wanna ask Hori about the narrative that I'm surprised isn't talked about more.

Why weren't any of the characters allowed to question their society and heroes function as a whole?

Because when kids start off with hating heroes (Kota and those brats from the second movie), they're treated to be in the wrong and has to see how great heroes can be.

Which given the context that this is a society that turns a blind eye to it's corruption and how the minority suffers, it just comes across as putting rose tinted glasses on them to keep them away from the truly bad stuff.

Like, I get it with Kota, because his hatred of heroes stems from watching his parents die and believing they chose work over him, and that this hatred could grow into a problem later to where he might end up as a villain.

But at the same time, how come this didn't let Izuku to think about the society that shunned and berated him for being born different from everyone? How come no one else stop and think that this society is on the path to collapsing on itself if nothing is done?

In a story like this, characters should be allowed to question things around them and wonder if there's anything they can do make it more bearable for others, to seek out the change they wanna see so others wouldn't have to suffer like they did.

Kota is a great example, but I raise you Stain and the LOV.

Stain made sense. He went about it in entirely the wrong way, but he was right about false heroes and how much of a problem they were. But he's a murderous psychopath so we're supposed to take his words as out of touch rambling because he attacked Ingenium who was one of the good heroes.

(We're also given no proof. He says heroes are corrupt but we aren't shown why he thinks that and we don't see it beyond Endeavor. Even more reason not to take what he's saying seriously)

Hori could have really sold this by making Tensei perhaps not so virtuous. Maybe he had or started with good intentions but ended up contributing to toxic hero society in some way and Iida was blind to it because he was the big brother he admired. That would have made Tenya's character development hit harder in my opinion. Having Tensei confess this to Tenya would have made the Stain arc even better.

Which brings us to the LOV.

I feel like Hori forgot that Dabi and Toga also joined the LOV because of Stain, not just Spinner. They, on some level, absorbed his words and wanted what he did even if they were also fueled by other motives.

That's why a lot of Dabi's later character doesn't make a whole lot of sense. For those who knew he was Touya, it was implied that he was abused similarly to Shoto and was angry at Endeavor's treatment of his children. And then was inspired by Stain to call out his father as a false hero and take down the system that (indirectly) destroyed his family.

But no, he wants to kill Shoto, doesn't give a shit about Rei or Fuyumi, and almost got Natsu (the brother he was close to and presumably cared about) killed. And all to get back at Endeavor and make him suffer. Dabi's motives were a major let down and it reduces him to a one-dimensional villain, one who only wants to hurt people for the sake of hurting them. There's no hint of the influence Stain apparently had on him.

Toga is the same. She, presumably, admired Stain because of the similarities in their quirks. It's implied she joined the LOV to be with people like her (which is why she- as Camie- asks Izuku what kind of hero he wants to be, she's trying to see if he's one of those people). Who were outcasts and wanted to be able to do what they wanted with no persecution from others. She wanted to be free, even if she had a warped perception about what that meant. But over time, Horikoshi made her a creepy, predatory yandere type (seriously, what the fuck was the point of having her grope Uraraka??) with no depth to her actions.

Both Dabi and Toga never mention Stain or his ideals again. They're just psychopaths who need to be stopped. It dehumanizes them and uses mental illness for further antagonize them.

Spinner is the only one who still attempts to embody Stain's ideals. But of course, he never gets any focus. He's a "coward" who never stands up the the LOV (except when he stopped Magne from killing Izuku) even though he feels guilty about what they do. So most of the time, he isn't portrayed in a way that makes us stop and think. It's all too easy for the audience to dismiss or forget about him.

Anyone who (rightfully) questions or criticizes or openly despises the corrupt society in this universe is portrayed in a negative light. Even if what they're saying is technically right, we throw it away because they're doing something bad.

Really, there's only one character who's the exception. I'm, of course, talking about Lady Nagant.

Listen, me and Hori got beef all day everyday. BUT Nagant is one of the most exceptional characters I've ever seen in anime.

What I love about her is that she's someone who genuinely started out with good intentions and wanted to do the right thing but was torn down by society. It destroyed her from the inside out. The actions she took aren't even that extreme, they make sense considering everything she went through. Her problems with society aren't inane or hypocritical ramblings, she's 100% correct in her assessments because she was an unwilling participant in the corruption.

The problem with Nagant, however, is that she's with us for such a short amount of time that we don't get to take a deep dive here. We don't get to dissect why, exactly, society is so corrupt or find a solution to it.

It sucks because Hori was SO CLOSE to hitting the mark with Nagant. I think introducing her- or someone similar to her (missed opportunity with Hawks)- a lot sooner would have really improved the story

[musicfeedsmysoul12]

Racoon and Swan: Author's note

This is basically just explaining R&S

 Alright, so the basics: Izumi is the niece of Aizawa on her mother’s side. Hisashi has been hiding her connection to heroes for years, and Inko is actually estranged from her brother due to her QAB, which has her latching onto ideals and beliefs. As her Quirk is Attraction, she latches onto things and does not let go.

 One such belief was that Shouta had a bad Quirk. Now, logically, Inko knew this wasn’t right, but her condition made her unable to really understand it. She was fully aware that this was a toxic idea and chose to estrange herself.

 When she got diagnosed, she wrote a letter but chickened out of sending it. Then she died because she was too hopeful her abusive ex had changed. And Izumi was beaten so badly that her jaw broke in 2 places. Around this time, Hisashi began trying to sell Izumi off to the highest bidder, which included the Commission, the MLA, the Bakugous and more. As a quirkless woman, she can give birth to strong children, and they want it.

 Dabi is a bastard, but he sees Endeavour in Hisashi when he stumbles upon the man threatening her with his Quirk, so he deals with it. This drew Hawks's attention, and Izumi was taken to the hospital. Aizawa was contacted then.

 The letter was found, which was a huge apology and explanation. Inko actually had been updating her will when she died, and Hisashi used his illegal connections to hide it because Shouta would get custody.

 Inko was updating her will because she’d been informed she had like an 80% chance of Huntingtons or early onset dementia due to the damage the use of her Quirk caused. She wanted Shouta to have custody.

 When he took Izumi in, he uncovered the Commission's corruption and handed it over to Nezu. Izumi recovered with his help, along with Hizashi, who is non-binary and Shouta’s spouse.

 Izumi’s jaw had to be rebroken to be correctly set, but while it made her voice clearer, it does cause more pain on bad days. She tends to go nonverbal then.

 Now, while Shouta was taking in Izumi, Tensei had also discovered through the whole Commission being investigated by Nezu stuff that his parents were abusing Tenya. The reason was that Tenya was an unplanned child they didn’t want but had to keep since the pregnancy got leaked to the media, and it would look bad if they had an abortion. Tensei really struggled during this period because he couldn’t reconcile the image of his doting parents to the callous ones Tenya had. So Tenya was around a lot for Izumi.

 That’s when they got so close and why they’re so touchy with each other. Two abused kids find solace in each other.

 Also, around this time, Nemuri and Hizashi were having some addiction issues. They got involved in the party lifestyle of heroics. Hizashi quit cold turkey due to having more responsibilities (a terrible idea, they would admit. They nearly died), but Nemuri struggled. She had a lot of past issues that were heavily triggered by how Izumi was raised. While they all tried to help, they cut contact for about a year because Nemuri was throwing any excuse that she could not get help from them.

 She realized what she was doing and got help, though! So, it's all good.

 Hawks was given more freedom around this time and began hanging out with Izumi because he felt she freed him. Dabi was shoved into the rehabilitation program to keep him from jail after nearly murdering Hisashi. Here, he was diagnosed with antisocial personality and borderline personality disorder. He takes meds for the stuff and is much more level.

 It would take him years to let go of his petty desires to fuck over the Todoroki family. And he doesn’t like them at all. (Okay, maybe Natsuo)

 Z came along later. The threesome they’re in is weird and is really just:  four parts dangerous horny, two parts forbidden love, and six parts wtf because Z is mean as fuck.

 (A side note: Z is only loyal to those who pay her. She is happily a sugar baby for Hawks, who likes it too. Dabi is also a sugar baby. Izumi did not need to know that)

 Anyway, all that happened was that Izumi began being trained to be a hero.

 This is where the deal with the Commission comes in. A good chunk was removed, but they’re still an organization oozing corruption, and they decided to make a deal. If Izumi agreed to be a broodmare for at least one child, they would hinder people who tried to stop her and provide extra training. Izumi had been scared of what her father planned, but this was… a good deal. She isn’t dumb and knows many people would try to fight her to be a hero. Politicians could be swayed to make laws and prevent her rise, while others could be assholes. So she took the deal. Hawks is the prime candidate, and frankly, the Commission approves of the friendship in hopes of more babies. (It will not happen. Hawks only agrees so no creep can mess with Izumi, and he has Z, who wants kids anyway)

  But while the Commission (what’s left of it) agreed, the UA board refused to change the rules and is really angry that the Commission allowed it. This Izumi graduated early to become an apprentice to Aizawa. 

 The Board hated this, so they overruled Nezu and put Bakugou with Aizawa cause they’re dicks. And wanted to prove that might make right. This is primarily due to them losing a lot of power with a lot of the Commission gone and realizing they are at an extreme disadvantage compared to Nezu now, where before they did have more control. Of course, with Bakugou proving to be… not great, they eat a lot of crow. And many are fired.

 So we have this and then: All Might.

 Izumi met All Might like canon, but as an apprentice, she could take down the sludge villain herself. All Might was impressed and then stunned she was Quirkless. He had a crisis over it (a bit of jealousy she managed to), and then they slowly began talking. He eventually told her about OFA, but she wouldn’t take it. But she agreed to help him find a suitable successor, who turned out to be Tenya. Who then had a crisis over needing to be perfect, and it was a mess. He got over it, though, as he is already in therapy for the issues his parents caused him.

 While this went on, Dabi found Toga. Izumi had called her cute when they briefly met (they had just run into each other on the train; Toga overheard her tell Shouta that and got attached), and Dabi caught the blond stalking Izumi. He’d been finishing the rehab program (even if he ended up being an info broker) and decided to try to help her upon seeing this kid. He’s an asshole, but like he is inspired by the kindness Izumi and Hawks show him.

 Toga, though, is complicated. She has a psychosis but is completely aware what she does is wrong. She believes it doesn’t matter because she wants to do it, so she will. She ignores anyone saying otherwise, But she plays along to get to Izumi. I did this because I wanted to explore the idea that you can try your best, but some people don’t want to be helped.

 But that’s the background for the story. Other than Momo’s own story, it’s explained in it: her mother was heavily abusive to her by restricting her food intake, undermining her self-confidence, tormenting Momo mentally and more.

We then have the other bits:

The IED stuff: this is based on my knowledge of the disorder and the annoyance I feel when people give it to Bakugou. This kind of disorder is NOT something easily medicated and dealt with. It’s something you constantly fight with, and many severe cases have the patients in the hospital for the rest of their lives because they can’t control themselves. So, in a high-stress environment like heroics, I 100% think it disqualifies you. That was the whole point of this, me going: hey, there are probably a LOT of things other than just an exam to qualify you for heroics.

  So, this AU has medical tests, mental health tests and a physical. Bakugou did pass, but he also got a Quirkist to sign off on his mental health report, who did believe his Quirk caused his attitude.

 The Vlad King stuff: this was me poking at the fact he does not reign in any of his students. I love Monoma, but god, he should have his ass in so much trouble for his antics. And Kendo! I’ve ranted before, but her entire thing is so abusive and just… she would not be liked in heroics if she kept smacking people like that. So I thought, what if Vlad King has a long history of issues, but Aizawa’s Aizawaness UNTIL overshadowed it? He got his ass in gear to be a better teacher. Cause the guy sucks at it in canon.

 So, with him going to therapy and getting help, his classes are better, which draws attention to Vlad King being a lousy teacher. Encouraging competition to an unhealthy degree and letting his students run wild has him in a lot of shit. The issue is he does not accept he’s wrong, more so when he did feel some annoyance that 1A got more limelight.

 Of course, he fucked up badly and now lost his job as a teacher, letting my OC ID in. They’re engaged to Tensei but worked in Canada for a long time until their contract ended, so they are happy where they are now.

 Class 1C: This is for the students who just failed by a point or failed the physical portion of the entrance exam checklist. Hitoshi is both. They get waitlisted to be able to enter the hero course IF someone is dropped out like Mineta is. Gas Attack is a hero with a highly dangerous Quirk who works for the military. Her Quirk is deadly, and she’s a last resort, but due to this, she has a long history of training and psychological assessment, so she is in charge of ensuring these students are ready. I explored this more in another fic for those who want to look.

The Bakugous: Okay, so this was fun. I usually had them not participate in Bakugou’s nonsense, but here they did. They put a lot of effort into their relationship to cement Bakugou’s stance as a hero. They work full-on with his hero story and want him to be one. Hence, they are trying to cheat for him since they know the kid wouldn’t be good at teamwork. There is also the fact Mitsuki, in this story, is much like her son and drives away most of her friends except Inko, who was too scared to tell her off. Masaru is a Quirkist and thinks Inko is a failure for having a Quirkless daughter, even if he considers Izumi a suitable wife for his son.

 And yes- the parents knew Hisashi was abusive. They did think Bakugou saving Izumi was a nice touch. They did not know how bad or that he killed Inko. They thought it was a car accident (the lie he told anyway) that had taken Inko and broken Izumi’s jaw.

 Their attempts at a complaint will end with them losing custody though no charges except the damage to their image.

Todoroki: I didn’t expect his plotline. But as I wrote him, I realized that without Izuku in canon, he would have never used his fireside. So I explored that more and had this. His refusal to change leads to his losing the exam and then indirectly causing the kidnapping of Izumi. It’s not great.

Toga: Toga became a mole when Aoyama found out about the rehab program and reported it. AFO made him ask her, and she jumped at the chance to get what she wanted. Aoyama is still a spy, though.

Z as a Spy: Z would have sold out the heroes to the LOV if they hadn’t pissed her off, and if she didn’t get a lot of cash from Hawks (and maybe she’s in love with the two men, she isn’t saying shit). She didn’t know about Toga, but she’d have alerted someone if she had. Z’s shitty morals aside, she does not like how people assume she’s broken for her lack of Quirk and that they thought she or Izumi would jump at the chance to get one.

Shinsou: Shinsou, as said, liked to blame the exam for his loss and not admit he also failed the physical exam. He’s in therapy for his own QAB (yeah, he has it, too), which causes a low level of empathy and a struggle to sympathize or understand the concept of others having feelings. His therapist sucked, though, and pandered too much to the idea that ‘yes, you are a special snowflake’ sort of thing.

 This got a bit worse when his dream of being a personal student to Aizawa didn’t happen. If Izumi wasn’t already an apprentice, he would have handled not getting the special training better, but sadly we know what happened. He would have a hard time with ANYONE being the apprentice, though.

I think that’s the bare bones.

Future stuff:

Katsuki- he gets help, and while he never renters the U.A. heroics course, he does end up going into a UA university and becoming a hero. He gets diagnosed with narcissistic behaviours and some low-level anti-social stuff. Being away from his parents helps him, though, really get where he fucked up.

Shouto- Endeavour is exposed, and Shouto is placed into the UA wardship. Gas Attack takes him in, and he goes to therapy. He’s been removed from the hero course for one month due to the training camp, but his willingness to do better helps get him back in.

The LOV—With Shigaraki in jail and the others also arrested, AFO doesn’t get out at all. The doctor eventually gets caught because he gets sloppy without a plan.

MLA—I don’t know if anyone caught it, but they were in cahoots with AFO because instead of getting Dabi, they needed other firepower. Losing Geten put them off-kilter, and later, the heroes took them down.

And… I think that’s it. Hoped you enjoyed it!

[skloomdumpster]

Hello,

darling lilshitdumpster

Tell me who told you that your gift is going to be about Skloom?! I meant I love that ship as well as you so that's why I'd be happy to make something for you. I was actually heading towards making an angstish AU about Sebastian and Aisha. I thought you said you'd love any toxic dynamic to be in the center of the gift? Plans change then.

So, you did mention, in fact, several characters in the form, do you want any of them to be included in your gift as well apart from Skloom? As side or main characters, if any? And would you even love to get a multi-shipping content or do you want it to be solely focused on one couple?

Best wishes,

Sank Clothes 🎅

Hiiiiii 😀! Would you do me the honour of answering these? Your top 3 Fate characters are? And your favorite sentences of said characters? If you could put them together in a movie, which one would that be? And why? Which meme's would you associate with your top 3?

Hi Santa!! I'm sorry for the late reply once again 😭

I don't think I can accurately name my top 3 characters. Obviously Sky and Bloom, but they flip flop in order of whom I love more, and then the third spot is such a hard one! I really love everyoe except Farah lol. If I can name a couple: Riven, Stella, Terra, Saul, Grey, Sebastian, Andreas, Rosalind.... 🙈

My favorite sentences: Sky has multiple ones in my book, but these two take the cake FOREVER:

"I am a fixer. What'd you expect? I'm the son of a war hero, raised in Alfea. I've heard more stories about the great Andreas than I can count. It's almost like he's still alive. But he's not. He's an ideal. Do you have any idea how hard it is to live up to? Even Silva, it's like he's… It's like he's playing some role out of a sense of duty, when all I really want… I'm a fixer 'cause… I have to be. 'Cause I'm supposed to be. Because... When I fix others, I don't have to think about how fucking broken I am."

AND

"So, you wrote me a letter? You were gonna walk out of my life forever, so you wrote me a fucking letter." "I thought if I told you in person-" "That I'd try to stop you? You were right. Don't you dare walk through that thing, Bloom. There has to be another way to close it. - I don't think you wanna try. I think you've been looking for a way out."

I'll simply never EVER be over this interaction. Bloom's lines in the last one are also all bangers, but they break my heart too much to say they're my favorites. Sky's are righteous and angry, Bloom's are just SOOOO depressing, I can't think about it too much.

About the movies... I think I'd love to see estranged Skloom, would be a fun twist. I knooow they're lovey dovery af, but I love when they get nasty and they DO in canon, Bloom is constantly lying to this man and Sky is constantly angry lol. So I think any sort of romance where the two leads are ANNOYED at each other, like been there done that.

About the second ask! If you're to include any other side characters, I'd looove for some Andreas, Saul, Rosalind, Beatrix, Mike/Vanessa, Stella, Riven. Skloom + the people who are in their corner is my weakness. Does Rosalind like them? We know she sees Sky as a fuck up, but she does fish his ass for the banquet! What about Andreas? Does he agree that Sky landed on his feet with Bloom? Is he embarrassed of it, does he think his son is a wimp? Was he secretly impressed when Sky mouthed out Prince Arthur? Saul + Any Bloom interaction, she's the cause of so many of his white hairs, but she comes through!! for him!!! Skella as a platonic dynamic has my whole heart, same as brotp Skyriv and omg Beatrix thrown into this chaos...

What I don't want though, is for characters to be shoehorned in. If you wanna focus in only 1 of the couples I listed, that's perfectly fine for me, or just 1 brotp... I don't want it to become that meme like "why is Terra suddenly the bus driver" 😂

[pelicantoes]

I just have to rant about Bakudeku. And since I have nobody who could possible, hypothetically, magnanimously understand (if you're pissed off about my misuse of those words, good) in my own admittedly very small inner circle I am forced to resort to this hellhole tumblr, so thank you for bearing with me. Because this is gonna be a wild fucking ride about my stupid obsession and deep feelings about Bakudeku, because it's fucking 12pm and I'm sleep-deprived, and almost on my period, and entirely too emotional and I have just read the most heartwrenching fanfics about those two, and I WILL make it everyone's problems because I'm OBSESSED.

Okay so, it's just the fucking rivalry, those two idiots have been through so much. And Bakugou is an absolute toxic bitch to Deku at first, but it's about the reasons behind it that make it work. The fucking inferiority complex towards someone who is quirkless, towards someone who should be lesser than him, who he knows is lesser than him, and somehow for some fucking reason he feels threatened. This kid wirh his helpful nature and his caring and compassion and always being so bright and optimistic. Bakugou loathes it because he can handle himself, but he can't handle the idea of someone being so kind in a world that is out to get him and that disadvantages and is even hostile to him at every single turn. Somebody whose literal dreams got crushed at the age of 4. He doesn't get it, Deku should be a depressed, cowering loser, but he isn't. He's bright and good. And Bakugou can't fathom it, he wants to crush him.

And then they get to ua and Deku has this crazy quirk and he feels lied to. And he must wonder why Deku would keep such a thing hidden for so long, why would he subject himself to the horror of growing quirkless when he might very well be more powerful. How could he let somebody like Bakugou hurt and belittle him when he had the power to dominate him all along. And I think it's jarring for him, because he probably sees the world as a place where the strongest survive, the strongest rule. And Midoriya hiding such a thing from him wouldn't make any sense at all eith that worldview, because naturally Deku would have wielded this power to gain more control over others, just like he did. And I think it added another dimension, because Deku isn't only kind because he's quirkless and therefore would need something going for him, he actively chose to remain kind that entire time. Despite the amount of control he could have had.

It's like Midoriya is a living embodiment of everything Bakugou does not understand due to how he's raised and that scares him, so he obsesses over him. In the same way Midoriya sees Bakugou as the ideal to beat. He has always looked up to Bakugou and his quirk and his power. It's a result of seeing him praised ever since he was a young kid. And Midoriya's obsession stems from the fact that he wants to be better than Bakugou. It's telling to me that it's Bakugou he wants to beat, not Allmight. Bakugou wants to beat Allmight, he wants to be the best, but Midoriya wants to beat the person he's always idealized and seen as the best, up close and personal. The best in his generation, not the current number 1 hero who will have retired by the time they're proheroes.

Ans there's just always this push and pull between them, they are always áware of the other's movements. They unlock in eachother a type of vulnerability that neither of them have with any of the characters, a kind of bond I have not often seen in any media. It's so raw and unfltered, it's wanting to beat the other, proving to the world they're the best, but it's also deeply intimate. Even though they would fight and taunt and jab at eachother, they trust eachother, they rely on eachother to keep them going. They would feel lost without the other, it's like they're eachother's motivation to improve, but most importantly to live. I think their bond runs so deep that their life might loose all meaning if the other dies. It's how Bakugou grows from hate to begrudging respect, and Midoriya from being a push-over to valuing himself and getting better self-esteem, and finally getting to equal footing where they hurt and fight eachother, but it underlies the knowledge that they're equal, nothing they can do will truly take the other down. The push and pull. There's mutual respect, and trust and intimacy, they know eachother more than anyone. They're both so intense, and somehow they managed to find their match in terms of intensity from such a young age that this strange bond could blossom. It just took time to put them on equal footing so they could actually provide eachother with the intensity they crave so badly. Midoriya had the resolve and the stubbornness, but none of the brawn needed to provide an actual challenge to Bakugou, to be someone he could let loose with. Bakugou had too much pride and too much ego, to ever willingly give himself up for someone else, especially not for Midorya. Until the tables flipped, until Midoriya got his quirk, and he understands Bakugou more than anyone. And Bakugou realizes Midoriya is no longer that crybaby kid he could beat up whenever he wanted and their relationship just changed so much, to the point that Bakugou willingly put himself in harm's way for Midoriya.

It's just such a compelling and complex dynamic and I get teary-eyed whenever I find fanfic that perfectly captures their bond, because it's such a powerful and profound thing and I'm absolutely astounded that I would grow to like this ship so much. It's not even like I necessarily ship it romantically, it's like they can't live without the other, and it feels undefinable by romantic or platonic labels. It's like in an entirely different category. And fuck I am so invested in those two, but ugh just Them.

[cannoli-reader]

Also, like Cersei Lannister, she wanted to marry an emo Dragon guy, except he hooked up first with a woman from the desert culture, and hates one of her brothers, while the brother closer to her age is kind of a twit.

On the other hand, Elayne is like the avatar of responsible government in WoT, which makes her the complete opposite of a Lannister. If WoT has a Lannister equivalent family, it would be the Damodreds, whose selfish hunger for power and inability to handle rejection results in their country being devastated by a really brutal war with the apocalypse looming. The best member of their family is a diminutive schemer and probable member of a trio of heroes who will save the world by wielding dragon-power at the heart of the evil threat in the far north. However, this hero has a long way to go in overcoming the toxic attitudes instilled by an upbringing in one of the worst families on the continent. (I am referring to Moiraine & Tyrion, for the unread or wool-headed out there) The irony of course, is that Elayne is nothing like any Damodred, despite being the daughter of one, and, in fact, her not being a Damodred, despite her paternity, is likely to be a considerable source of support for her claim to the throne they once held.

The quote about paying debts is also more of a contrast than a comparison. While the Lannisters frequently boast of paying debts, more often than not, it is self-congratulatory hype of a simple maintenance of a patronage arrangement. Mostly it refers to their bitter, spiteful and vindictive nature, when nobles are supposed to be above all that sort of thing (and all the main Lannister characters certainly affect that position, while being blatantly false for each of Tywin, Jaime & Cersei). Beyond exacting excessive revenge for minor setbacks or defeats that should be accepted impersonally, we see, in fact, that the Lannisters do not pay their debts, and are constantly refusing or rationalizing away their debts.

Meanwhile, Elayne's quote about paying her debts is spoken in response to her rather obtuse companion, Sareitha, who perceives an obligation of patronage that Elayne knows is completely false. "Doilan Mellar" saving Elayne's life was so obviously a setup and a ruse to gain her trust that neither Elayne, nor her three closest friends felt the need to comment on it when she heard the report of the incident. When Sareitha, not for the first time, fails to discern what is obvious to Elayne's eyes, and remonstrates with Elayne for pointing out "Mellar's" failures of duty and political misjudgment, Elayne says she pays her debts, meaning, in the case of Mellar, there is no debt as Sareitha thinks, and, in fact, her treatment of him is the least of what he deserves. Further, she fully intends to repay the debt of justice that Hanlon has incurred. Justice, of course, is a concept with which the Lannisters have only the most vague acquaintance.

It's also interesting how, while Elayne was born to as much privilege as the Lannisters, allowing for the different settings, she responded by accepting the burden of responsibility, and even when stripped of many of the advantages she had been raised to expect, made the most of what resources she did have, while upholding her ideals and morals, rather than using the desperation of her circumstances as an excuse to commit war crimes or acts of tyranny. And a not-insubstantial portion of the fandom scorns the story of her rise to power as the boring tale of an entitled princess who does nothing but take baths.

Meanwhile, Tywin Lannister was born the heir to the wealthiest family and greatest income in the realm, ruling over lands that had one of the largest population bases, giving him access to one of the strongest military forces in the nation. As was said about George Steinbrenner, he was born on third base, but [much of the fandom] acts like he hit a triple. Tywin retains his considerable birth advantages throughout his life. Though his parental influences were not up to the standards Elayne had, he was, as a small child, taken to be raised in the court of arguably the most benevolent monarch in the setting, much like Elayne herself. But where Elayne collects friends everywhere she goes, and is often the glue holding fractious groups together with her diplomacy, Tywin seems to excel at alienating anyone who might be an advantageous ally. He grew up best friends with the crown prince of the realm, only to destroy that relationship with his pride and self-aggrandizing nature. When the princess of Dorne shows up at his door in a visit pre-arranged by Tywin's recently deceased wife, instead of taking the opportunity to make an alliance with another powerful family, he does everything to insult them indirectly and squelch the relationship his wife had sought to cultivate between their families. The referenced efforts to make a marriage alliance with House Tully seem to have been more focused on finding a womb to give him grandchildren, as once King Aerys takes Tywin's son off the marriage market, there is no mention of any follow-up efforts to use one of Tywin's numerous nieces, nephews or cousins to make the alliance happen.

At the beginning of the series Tywin starts a war alone, without allies, and wins a few early victories through a great deal of luck and extenuating circumstances keeping most of his enemies distracted. He then proceeds to get his ass kicked around the region by a teenager fighting his first war, manages to lose a battle to Edmure "Fredo" Tully, and authorial interference turns that into good luck for Tywin. Elayne says at the outbreak of her own war of succession that the best she can hope for is that the enemies in the field against her (whom her strongest and most plugged-in ally, Dyelin, assured her would not take the field) fight each other first. This does not happen, because she is a protagonist, not written by Amazon or Disney staff hacks. Instead, all her rivals unite against her. Meanwhile, Tywin, in a situation where anyone with brains would be telling him he is an idiot who is marching into a situation that is begging for every hand to join against his House, instead lucks into all his rivals for power attacking each other, despite their sole common shared interest being the elimination of Tywin and the Lannisters. Elayne, in a situation where her enemies should have been fighting each other, has to overcome them cooperating, while Tywin, in a situation where he should have been public enemy number one, gets to escape the consequences of his blunders and brutality because the Greyjoys attack the Starks, the Valemen abandon the Riverlands, and the Baratheons fight each other, when Tywin's grandson was a more important, and closer, target. Not one of those outcomes should have been expected, and Tywin did not lift a finger to make any of them come to pass.

And yet, he has a reputation as a brilliant Machiavellian politician and strategist, whose family only fails because he is unexpectedly killed and they are deprived of his leadership. In truth, they failed, because Tywin deprived their family of allies with his arrogance and greed, before being forced to depend on equally greedy and treacherous allies, who are only interested in what they can squeeze out of the Lannister regime, and his brutality has given half the continent a direct motivation for revenge.

Tywin gets a lot of credit for the peace and prosperity of the realm when he was Hand, but a lot of that had to do with the lack of natural disasters or bad weather that undercuts a medieval economy, and the defeat in the previous reign of the last significant external foe. The major domestic crisis during the Handship of Tywin was one of either his own instigation or his mishandling of a dispute and he was saved from a disaster by the heroism of one man, whom he did nothing to help. Neither Tywin, nor his children, see any sort of responsibility to their subjects, while that is a constant with Elayne, from her empathy for the sufferings of the people of a country she passes in her travels, to the advice she offers Rand in Tear, her remonstrance against the ignorant Panarch of Tarabon, her (excessive, according to her common-born, healing-vocation, partner) charity to those she encounters along the way, up to her canvassing the commoners on her journey to Caemlyn. When her main military adviser wants to arrest a man they all but know is a traitor, she refuses on the grounds of his civil rights. The best you can say about the Lannisters on this score is that Jaime, in certain conditions, opposes the mass murder of the innocent population of a city, and Tyrion would prefer not to do such things if it's not convenient and the people in question have not pissed him off recently, or had the audacity to live under lords who have pissed him off. Elayne wants to establish a mail service, patronizes a school and makes a deal to obtain magic healing and transportation for her country. The closest thing to a public works project any Lannister contemplates are military defenses to retain their usurped power and various spite-inspired ideas of Cersei, largely for Lannister aggrandizement. Like cutting down a unique tree that is a symbol of an important international relationship to build a self-promoting throne...

Even simpler, where Robert Jordan chooses fertility as a theme of Elayne's political storyline, George RR Martin's favorite image to associate with Tywin, is shit.

That being said, the OP's art is very nice.

Elayne Lannister by merriya

“Elayne used to come across to me as a bit of a Lannister, the red and gold, the hair, ambitions for the throne, the lion sigil and all. Then I read her line “I always pay my debts” in Crossroads of Twilight… yeah, so I’m quite convinced she’s an alternate reality Lannister”

[starshipsofstarlord]

Could I request a Bucky Barnes x reader smut? Basically she and Bucky have been together for some time and maybe it’d be a little angst where the two are talking about the future and Bucky not thinking he can ever have a normal future? Which would result in soft smut and later reader being revealed as pregnant so Bucky finally gets his family

I’m Home

Pairing | Bucky Barnes x reader

Summary | based on the request ^^

Warnings | angst, smut, oral sex (m receiving), fluff, pregnancy, mentions of death

Quick link to my masterlist, if you’re interested in reading more of my crap 😬

The Wilson’s boat rocked sturdily upon the water, swaying as the boats worked aboard. Your hand held the weight of a silver spanner, twirling it in your fist as though it were a knife, thinking of the long road ahead of you. Sam had the shield now, that was a good start, but still, there was a ways to go until the world recognised him as the captain that he was meant to be.

There was so much destruction ongoing in the world, what with the flag smashers, and whomever the power broker was, and surely, you knew on the shallow surface, that there would be masses more problems to arise. It was exhausting, to know that there was no end to the war on earth, and that you were surely going to be fighting the threats until you could no more.

Bucky felt the same; he had just gone from one war to another, losing everyone that he cared about along the way. Steve had given everything up to finally find peace, and yet, the two did not share the same opportunity. An escape was never laid at your feet, instead, the pair of you were trapped in the cycle of cruelty, being blended around in a shredder by reality.

“Hey.” A voice confiscated you from the lonesome containment of your thoughts; it was Sam’s hosting sister, Sarah. I’m her own way, though you doubted that she would never admit such a thing, she was a hero. She had become a widow, and not to mention she remained a stable mother to keep her boys afloat, as well as nurturing half the kids that lived within close proximity.

“Hi Sarah.” You put the tool down, giving her your ample attention as you stood, tugging your fingers into the loops of your jeans as you stepped out of the boat, and onto the dock. “Anything I can help with?” It hadn’t passed your attention that Sam and Bucky had disappeared, but not into ash like last time. Instead, they had walked off in the direction of the house, most likely meddling about with a ball, in the back yard with Jim and Jody.

“I just came to let you know I’ve made the sofa up for you and Bucky. Are you sure you’ll be all good, I could always kick Sam outta his bed and make him sleep on the living room floor?” The two of you had nightmares, if you were to be separated from him for even a night, it was certain that the pair of you would greatly suffer. That was something you didn’t want to burden any of the Wilson’s with, screaming in the middle of the night because flashes from your past struck an unconscious nerve.

“All good, and thank you Sarah. You didn’t have to let us stay here, we both appreciate it, a hell of a lot.” One thing that you had learnt throughout your years was to show gratitude. The smallest amount shared had the ability to spring up moods, and had even set you on a much more heroic path than the one that you had been originally been placed upon.

“You’ve earned your stay.” Sam’s sister shrugged with modesty, acknowledging the help that you and Bucky had not only given to Sam, but to her family’s legacy. The two of you had aided with fixing the old wreckage that had now returned to the form of a boat, keeping it afloat rather than permitting it to sink from the quarrels that Sam had with himself regarding fixing the damned yet meaningful port of transport.

“This life you have, it’s great. I get it’s not easy, but it’s beautiful. You have two wonderful kids, that you’ve done such a great job raising, and not to mention, these community that you have is so loving and kind, even to us outsiders.” The pair of you had paused outside of her front door, speaking. “Sam is lucky to have you, he truly is.”

“Well, maybe one day this life could be something similar to what you’ll have.” The sister of your friend smiled, though your mirroring expression retracted. In a stumble of thought, you shook your head, not believing that possibility. This all was... perfect. That was something that you had never had, nor would you think that you’d ever be permitted such a peaceful lifestyle.

“I don’t think that would work out.” You sincerely mumbled, feeling the sad swelling in your chest at the prospect of all the luxuries that life had denied both you and Bucky of. It wasn’t fair all the same, but the two of you were used to being denied human rights, let alone the simplicity of nothing more than a life together. “As nice as it sounds, me and Buck aren’t really cut out for all this I suppose.”

“The world does not choose who can and cannot have a family, there’s always a way. Just because you haven’t had the most ideal line of story does not at all mean that you can’t make it work, from as much as i know, you two deserve a life together, that doesn’t include being shot at, or shooting at other people. Sometimes, you’ve just gotta go for it, and hope for the best.” She gave you a final nod, before heading inside, and you trailed after her into her her residency.

The two of you went your separate ways, and there, you saw Bucky, sat up on the sofa, his hands clasped together as his eyes stared towards the tan bag, that concealed not the shape, but the Stars and Stripes of the infamous shield. It was much a relief that it was no longer in Walker’s toxic clutch, however its presence, among other things, were taking a clear toll on your boyfriend.

“You ever feel like we’re stuck?” The air was tense around you both as he spoke solemnly, it diverting to match the mood of his question. “Like we’re us, and I love us, but it makes me think that it’s it. Just me and you, on this path for the rest of our lives, never getting a compensated break, nor an average person’s future. I want this, what these people here have, not the combat that is aided by this metal arm, or the associations that stick to us like life lines.”

“All the time, it’s on my mind James.” With a sigh, you came to sit beside him on the couch, resting your head against his bionic shoulder. “I ever wonder if there’s a timeline of you and me where there’s none of this ruckus, we just have a nice little house in a quiet and accepting place, and maybe a kid or two in the future.”

“I’d give anything up for that.” He looked at you, almost wide eyed, as his hand slithered down onto your knee cap, rubbing small circles as he wore a blunt and endearing smile upon his infatuating lips. “I mean that Buck, that sounds...”

“Perfect?” He asked, leaning closer as he grabs your chin with his wondrous fingers, his nose brushing alongside your own as his puckered lips fell upon yours, earning a small hun of content from within you. “Because you’re perfect to me, and no matter what life we are encased in, I want to share it with you. I want stare at the night sky and watch the moonlight illuminate the side of your face, and the stars reflect in your entrapping eyes, that I want to look into like a medium’s orbs forever, because that is how I will see the future that I ever so hope for.”

“How long have you been working on that one Barnes, because you are usually not that smooth?” A small laugh erupted from your mouth, but you were quickly silenced as you felt a cold metal hand slither up and beneath the back of your tank top, rubbing along the seam of your spine, as his lips ran down the column of your throat, evoking small and delicate whimpers out of you.

“Shut up doll, because I really want to fuck you now, and those words leaving your mouth are making it kinda hard to concentrate.” A furrow imbedded between his brows, as you tilted your head at him, a smirk proclaiming your expression as you pulled the material over your head, and reached behind yourself to unclip the back of your bra.

“Kinda hard to concentrate, hun?” You asked nonchalantly as his gaze zeroed in on your bare breasts, his hands smoothing along your ribcage as he adjusted his grip of you so that he was palming at your breasts, and squeezing the nipples. “I want you in me baby, I’ve practically gone days without you inside of me.” Licking your lips, you reached down to palm your beloved through his layers, earning a positive groan from the former assassin.

“Hours, you mean. I fingered you on the road trip here.” Yes, that was true, however, it was only his fingers, not even the metal ones, and whilst you loved what they alone could do, he had to be discreet as you were sat on the back of the truck, which had carried the primary parts for the Wilson’s family boat. If you were to scream out, they’d have surely thought that you’d fallen off the back of the truck and pull over, or if they had much sense, they’d have noticed that there was more going on than two passengers sat side by side on the journey to their small neighbourhood by the docks,

“You heard me Barnes, otherwise I’m sure Sam wouldn’t have any problem if I came to his room in this state of undress that I am currently portraying.” Growling was never Bucky’s fortes, however the sound aggressively ripped through the tunnel of his throat, as he threw off his grey top, quickly unfastening his belt, as he awaited for you to strip the rest of your clothing before him.

But rather than doing so, as he stood before you, your hand had trouble resisting the sight of his cock that had bobbed to attention, and thus, you wrapped it around his toned flesh, giving it a couple jerks that had his head reeling back, before you tongued his tip, moaning to yourself at the taste of him invading your sensitive taste buds. “Love your cock.”

As soon as you said that, Bucky gently gathered your head in a ponytail so that it was free from bombarding your face, and groaned as quiet as he could as you sucked him in your mouth, running your tongue up the side of his shaft. “Is that a part of your dream world baby doll, the sight of my cock throbbing to be inching down that perfect little throat of yours?”

To answer him, you pressed your head down deeper, humming around him as your eyes ogled up at the sight of your super soldier, who was trying his hardest to keep his eyes open, and attuned to the sight of you. He held his bottom lip between his teeth, as you lightly gagged around him, pulling off him, and squeezing his balls, before running your hungry tongue along the middle of his sack.

“Always. It would be a dream if you made love to me right here and now though, I’m not sure I can wait any longer James.” Bucky took a long inhale, before ravishingly pulling down your jeans and panties in one go, and tossing you so that he was below your form, and you hovered over him, toying with his erect cock. “I love you so much Bucky, and I’m scared of what’s to come. I have a feeling that there’s gonna be a fight.”

“There’s always a fight doll face.” He rubbed his thumb soothingly across your jaw, pulling your hips down closer so that you were rubbing your slick folds against his standing cock. “But this is what we’re fighting for, the rest of our lives together. I’d be damned, one day after this, and if I were to die, I’d be a happy man. There’d be the memory of you to keep me forever happy in the afterlife, and not to mention, there’d be no more wars for me to participate in.”

“I’m not going to let you die Buck, even hypothetically. We saw how your little hypothetical synopsis went last time.” Tapping his cock against your clit, a breathy sound evicted from your lips, as you stared down at the two of you intimately touching, the sight alone making you more turned on and impatient. “No one is allowed to kill you, otherwise I’ll unleash hell on all their flag smashing asses.”

Giving him one last stroke, you guided his tip towards your entrance, removing your hand once you had him situated, so that you could rest it upon his sturdy shoulder, and sink down on him, the feeling of him stretching you being the most euphoric sensation that you had ever endured. Hushed moans ceased from the both of you, as Bucky’s hands gripped your ass cheeks, only adding to all of the pleasure that was erupting within you.

“Think your pussy is gonna kill me before anyone else does; your so tight.” His pitch had rose, as your fingertips danced along the left side of his handsome face, invisibly connecting the dots of his beauty marks. You allowed the pair of you to adjust for a simple moment, before you began to raise your hips, sliding up his super soldier rod, only to slide down it again.

The actions were repeated, as your own hands trailed down his warm skin, to drag down the golden lines of his vibranium arm, only to bring the weapon to your mouth, and kiss every black finger up, as you tried your best to muffle the moans that were hoping to reap free. “So fucking big, I love you and your cock.” You muttered, your sight turning blurry as Bucky realised that it was his turn to do the work, and thus, he thrusted up into you, making echoing sounds of your skin slapping together reverberate around the room.

“Love you more.” He gritted his teeth, pulling his metallic hand away from your numb lips, so that he could swirl the elegant digits around your clit, the action provoking whimpers to rapidly surpass your exterior, as you bit harshly onto your own lip, and screwed your eyes shut. “Cum for me doll, want you to cover my hard cock in everything you have. Come on baby, you can do it.”

Without much thought, as your mind was too scrambled to do so, you reached for Bucky’s spare hand, pulling it to your mouth as you sucked on his fingers as though you were blowing him. A low moan that was dialled down from the presence of his flesh digits, ran from your mouth, as you began to bounce your hips, chasing and eventually reaching your high. You came around him, pushing him too over the edge, his seed filling your walls, as you collapsed atop of him, huffing from exhaustion as you removed his salivated hand from the realms of your mouth, resting your head against his panting chest.

Stringed sighs fell from Bucky’s breath as he tried to catch his own breath. His hands rubbed your back, not only to comfort you, but also to subconsciously pull you closer against him, and his softening cock that was still inside you, and was keeping his cum plugged within your tender and pulsating walls. If life was easier, there’d be more time for this, and that, but for now, it was just every now and then. Maybe you’d win this fight and survive until the next one, but maybe, you’d lose and never battle again.

Life was precious, that was something that you had not only learned as an avenger, but also something that had been told to you by Isiah. That man thought that you deserved a normal life, no fighting, no super soldiers. He himself was the biggest yet silent critic of those with additional strength, but his opinion was never going to sway you, not as you stared out into Sarah’s backyard, and watched the man that you loved play with the boys.

They had the shield, and were whisking it through the air like a frisbee; dangerous, yes, but again, life could only amount to so much without an ounce of pain. A content and satisfied smile absorbed any pain on your face, you were enraptured with the sight of Bucky like this, he was like an uncle to these two kids. He was no captain America, that was for sure, but you didn’t want a man in Stars and Stripes, all you wanted was him to be at peace, and it was a fact unbeknownst to him, that you had made such an alternative to that.

“Still want all this?” Sarah emerged, a cheap yet formidable bottle of wine pursed in her hand, as she held two clear and tall glasses in her hand. You hummed, watching as she poured the thin red consistency into one glass, but as she went to fill the other, you held out your hand, shaking your head. The woman was confused, last time you had visited, and were entangled on her sofa with the limbs of your boyfriend and a shaggy old blanket, you had kindly accepted her offer.

“Sure do.” You sighed, staring out into the green abyss where Jim was hanging from Bucky’s arm like it were a branch. “How do you do this, this whole mother thing? I’ve never been able to wrap my head around how you make it look so easy, it’s just, you do such a good job.” Your palms rested flat on your thighs as you laughed at Sam ordering Jody to jump on Bucky’s back, as he fell down in faux defeat.

“It never is easy y/n.” She placed the open bottle down, along with the mismatched glasses, that were asymmetrical considering one was half filled and the other wallowed in emptiness. “But every step of difficulty is worth it. There’s not a day that goes by that I don’t miss their father, but they’re my priority. For Jim and Jody, there’s nothing I wouldn’t do, and you’d understand that if you ever opened yourself up to giving your life of heroism up to have all this.”

“I might have to.” Twiddling with your fingers, glancing up at your boyfriend, realising that he was in fact not looking over, you clasped your intwined hands over your stomach, smiling softly to yourself. “And maybe not having another option is the best option for me and Buck, because we don’t have to fight with ourselves over being included in our duties, we have new ones.”

“You’re pregnant, aren’t you?” Sarah asked, resting her nurturing hand upon the tile of your shoulder, prompting you to turn your face towards her. There was a conflict in your eyes, it was something that she recognised her younger self having once worn. It was the idea of putting everything aside, all for a child, everything that she had ever known, so that she could put her baby boy first. “Does Bucky know?”

“He will.” You shifted your head down, unsure of yourself. This had been what you had wanted, and whilst you still envied Sarah for the role she had, you were hurt. A part of you wanted to be an avenger until you were nothing but a soul drifting in the abyss of non existence, another didn’t want to let the knowledge of being a carrier for a new future crumble you. “I just need a moment to tell him.”

“I’ve got it.” She sent you a wink, picking up the items she had brought out, before she called on Sam and the kids to come inside. Sarah had gifted you the opportunity of revealing the truth to your partner with no one else around; you appreciated that. As he stalked closer, you met him halfway, sinking into his arms as he hugged you.

“Looked like you were having fun with the boys.” You verbally noted, loving the feeling of him running his fingers through your hair. “You’re amazing Bucky Barnes, to me and to everyone. I just, don’t want you to freak out on me, I have something big, really big, to tell you, and-“

“Baby, I know.” He smiled, pulling back so that he could look you in the face. “I have super human senses, I heard their little heart beat for the first time yesterday. We’re having a baby, and I couldn’t be happier about it. In fact, I want to ask you if you’ll accept my question of making Sam the godfather.” You nodded, tears standing in your eyes, as you brought the man down for a kiss.

“Yes. But I’m not sure that he’ll be praising us for making a baby when we technically created him or her on the couch inside.” Bucky shook his head at you, kissing your forehead before walking inside with you, preparing to tell the Wilson family, that had along the way became your own, the good news- well, not the sofa bit.

[wisteria-lodge]

Not the finale, but can you talk about what you mean with Supernatural being basically three seperate shows?

Phase 1 (Seasons 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 )

Eric Kripke Does Star Wars. It's a Joseph Campbell-style Hero's Journey. And it's effective. I mean, the Hero's Journey formula *works.* It's nice to see the world open up, see the hero increase his powers and knowledge. Tonally, it's going for sort of exaggerated Stephen King-esque horror, or modern Western.

Thematically, this is a story about Personal Choice vs Dictated Roles. (I mean. "Team Free Will," the heavy motif of possession, the anti-possession symbol that doubles as the logo of the show...) The characters are trying to throw off the identities given to them by their various parental figures - God the father, John the father - and by end of this part of the show, they do.

Phase 2 (Seasons 6, 8, 9, 10, 11)

(not 7, I'll get to it)

The Gang Goes to Therapy. The characters go from dealing with external problems to problems inside their own heads. Almost every *issue* during this period is just... one of the main characters. Soulless!Sam, Wall!Sam, Hallucifer!Sam, Trials!Sam, Gadreel!Sam. Purgatory!Dean, Mark of Cain!Dean, Demon!Dean, God!Castiel, Insane!Castiel, Human!Castiel, Grace Vampire!Castiel, Brainwashed!Castiel, Lucifer!Castiel... Villains who aren't *literally* our main characters are metaphysically tied to them in that gothic, Doctor Jekyll/Mr. Hyde sort of way. Structurally, the show isn't about the plot anymore. (Like... the plot of these seasons is just that Heaven and Hell have civil wars, but no one is able to grab enough power to meaningfully change anything.)

The show digs into what *exactly* is wrong with each of these characters, and the toxic relationships they have with each other. Then they start the long, messy work of healing. I cannot think of another show that focuses on that, not to this degree. Season 11 ends with Dean symbolically confronting his Id/Anima for the first time - and the Creator and Destroyer gods of the universe set the world back into balance.

Because it goes in a more gothic/noir direction, and because it is SO focused on character, this part of the show gets a lot more morally grey. And weirder. People who don't like this period use words like "messy" and "repetitive" and "unstructured," and that isn't quite fair. Sam and Dean aren't cowboys anymore. They're noir detectives - so you have to watch these seasons like a more slowly paced psychological neo-noir. You do that, and it's honestly my favorite show.

Phase 3 (Seasons 12, 13, 14, 15)

The Jack Show. Sam, Dean and Cas deal with a pregnancy - then a kid - and learn how to be good parents and authority figures. (Like, Jensen Ackles is in his 40s now, you can't write the same kinds of stories for him that you could when he was in his twenties.) Coming from a show that has always been interested in exploring the psychological complexities of bad parents - this is a really responsible direction, honestly.

Dean is worried about becoming his father (which is why he gets possessed by Michael, who has always been symbolically linked with John.) Sam is more interested in becoming a responsible *leader* who does not self-destruct, and Cas gets this coming-out-later-in-life / queer kid storyline. And Mary is here of course, because in order to be a responsible authority, you can't idealize authority. The show becomes a lot less angsty, as Sam and Dean are written more and more as mentors for the younger characters. Any backsliding they do is treated as a problem, not business-as-usual. Tonally, Phase 3 gets *bigger* than Phase 2. More operatic.

Phase 3 also gets more of a plot. We get a lot of status-quo changing worldbuilding with factions like the witch covens, the British Men of Letters, the American Hunters, and the alternate universes. The *president* is a character now. Heavy-hitters like Michael, Lucifer, and Chuck are back. Sam and Dean go up against 'nothing you do matters' toxic authority one last time - and they win because they did a damn good job raising Jack.

Season 7... feels wrong because it's a Phase 3 storyline stuck in the middle of Phase 2. It's campier and sillier than the seasons surrounding it, and it's about a large-scale societal villain, not a personal, internal one. Season 12 hit a lot of the same beats much better using the British Men of Letters (who are also way more fun as villains.) The Phase 2 style aspects of Season 7 - Bobby's insecurity and struggle with becoming obsolete, Sam's mental battle with his own inner darkness - feel really out of place next to a main villain literally named Dick who wants to poison MacDonalds happy meals.

[soldierofidiots]

I honestly don't think Jaune can be described as an image of toxic masculinity. He starts having ideals like that, for example with his speech to phyrra that he doesn't need help cause ge wants to be the hero not the damsel. But as the story goes on he loses that more and more.

For me Jaune is a great representation of healthy male behaviour, because he admits his faults and works to better himself. He admits to beibg wrong or stupid and changes his views.

Milles once hot asked what jaunes dad was like and he said that his dad would have been very traditional with these things (this was in a video from miles Twitter I think. I only saw it here a whole ago but imma try finding it and add it in a reblog) So Jaune has been raised to believe in the stereotypical roles of a man as a protector and hero but changes as he is confronted with the reality that he doesn't have to be this.

SO!

Been a while since I did any post but something has been happening here recently that has managed to stir me enough to put this wuestion out there:

What the actual fuck did Jaune do to earn whoever is in charge of the writing team's ire?

Did he shit in their cereal? Did he kill their loved one (Penny is FULLY on them)? Is he the incarnation of the literal Devil and no fanfiction DOES NOT COUNT (and probably still wouldn't warrant this level of disrespect)?

Seriously, i gotta know. Someone tell me cuz i think I'm going crazy. Every time I open this accursed app, it's always some new thing that that Jaune did or is BEING done to him that will inevitably cause emotional suffering for both him AND me. Seriously, WHAT HAS HE DONE?! Breathe?! Did he breathe wrong is that it?!

Why must we see a beloved character like Pyrrha or Penny just to cause us more pain? Why is there a new ship for him only for it to involve seeing FIRSTHAND how Pyrrha bit the dust (Pun intended but it still hurts)?

[lananiscorner]

3H route lords and/or Tim Drake? 👀

Thanks for your ask, writtendown-woundup!

Edelgard critical beneath the cut. Don't like, don't read.

Claude:

If you look up "wasted potential" in the dictionary, you will not find Claude's picture there, because the creators seem to be allergic to putting him where he belongs. Claude has such an interesting premise! He's a biracial person who has experienced discrimination from both sides of his heritage. He's got trust issues, but he wants to build a world based on trust. He is always seeking knowledge about the world, but refuses to let the world gain knowledge about him. He's a schemer and honestly a bit of an ass sometimes, but at the end of the day, he can be the most dependable and caring person. There are so many fascinating avenues you could explore with this guy! You could wave the most intricate, 5 dimensional Xanathos gambit chess plot with this dude... and yet somehow the writing staff at KT/IS looked at this man and decided what he really needs is a copy-pasted Black Eagles route. Twice. What a tragic waste.

Dimitri:

Dimitri is my favorite character in FE3H, no contest. I love how his greatest strengths are also his greatest weaknesses. I love how they did not shy away from depicting him at his darkest, while not denying him a hopeful ending. I love how you can see his gradual descent into psychotic breakdown happen just as clearly as his gradual recovery. I love how much he loves his country and its people while acknowledging their flaws. Also, he's the best enemy phase unit in the game. I just love Dimitri. It doesn't matter which route I play--if I play 3 Houses, I think of Dimitri, and if it's not his route, I think of what's happening to him in Faerghus while I'm busy elsewhere. As for "they got done dirty by the fans"--Dimitri fans are a mostly chill and wholesome bunch, as far as I have seen, but my GODDESS have I seen some rancid takes about him from Edelstans (calling him a conservative status quo centrist, an epitome of toxic masculinity, someone who had to be put down for his own good... ughhhh).

Edelgard

Okay, so this may come as a shock to some, but I don't actually hate Edelgard. I think she is a perfectly fine example of a nuanced and flawed character. As a villain. I don't know what kind of mental gymnastics must be involved in considering her a hero, because imo she lost any hope of being that (and instead went into "what's wrong with them" territory) the moment she gave her absolutely bonkers war speech and declared war on two sovereign nations. She definitely got done dirty by the writing, what with both CF and her supports refusing to let her suffer any meaningful consequences for her actions, and her attraction to Byleth being uncomfortably shoved into routes where it makes no sense (particularly Verdant Wind). If I were to meet her, I would probably try to deck her in the face, only to get Mired into oblivion by Hubert.

Tim Drake:

This was a tough one, because... who even is Tim? Which of his many volumes of depictions are we talking about? This is why I don't have much to say about him, except Tim is a character who works best when he has someone else to play off of, ideally Bruce, Dick, Jason, or Damian. He has certainly had a number of hair-raising wtf moments in his appearances (e.g. treatment of Stephanie in certain issues, his treatment of Jason in Teen Titans Vol. 3 #47, and that one mini series in New 52/Rebirth, the name of which I can't recall, where he went full megalomaniac psychopath and turned out to be the villain orchestrating some multi-dimensional shenanigans). That said, he can also be a massive, extremely likeable nerd sometimes.

[ellestra]

We can be heroes

This episode has proven that Loki has always been his own worst enemy. We see that even at the end of the universe Lokis can escape Alioth but they still keep betraying each other. Eventually they just destroy all they built just to feel like they are the superior one. It's always "why are you the king" and "I should be a one". We can see how much show Loki changed in how little time he has for it. He’s no longer interested in being the Supreme Loki. He has to go find Sylvie and help her realise her plan.

She is the one who made him realise this is not all Lokis are destined to be. Thor said to the main MCU Loki they can change and be something more. And Mobius said they can be even someone good. But she is a walking proof of it.

A lot was said about dealing with the post-colonialism in Thor 3 and Asgardians facing their past but I haven't seen much about how Loki is the product of it's propaganda. He was told his whole life the Jotuns are evil monsters and then he learns not only that he is one but that even they didn't want him. The internalised hate and their rejection just makes him hate them more.

And it makes him want the approval of the Asgardians - the dominant civilisation - even more (he's kind of a reverse of Moses). He wants to be the best of them. And he despises all the ones they consider lesser even more than they do (including humans). So conquering humans is in a way an ultimate Asgardian move on his part. It's easier for Thor to let go of this because Thor is Asgardian no matter what but who is Loki if he doesn't observe the traditions?

Combined with feeling inferior because Thor was walking ideal of Asgardian and Odin's disappointment it all make him act out and finally boil over into full evil. Hurting people and destroying all the relationships until he was left with nothing and he told himself he liked it.

Helping Thor destroy Asgard and still being accepted as one of it's people is part of letting go of the most toxic part of that culture. Something Hela wasn't able to do but Loki could because he realised what really mattered was the people. Or at least his brother. That at least his family always thought he was one of them. They were just as bad at showing it as he was at accepting it.

He was raised primed for self-hatred but his refusal to accept any help made him narcissist who took all his frustrations on others. Show Loki already understood that all it got him was loosing his family and his people. He can't take that back but he can do better from now on and do it right for Sylvie.

Sylvie was raised different. She was told she was adopted. She didn't have the self hatred they grew up with and wanted to be a Valkyrie. I've seen people saying that her Nexus event was that she was set to become a hero and this episode made me almost certain that it was.

I was to say it last week but the post was already too long (as this is getting) and I forgot but like Old Loki says - the Loki's can turn good but TVA enforces their death then. The main MCU Loki never had a chance to fully realise this freedom once he bettered himself Thanos took him out. Sylvie was the one who got away and she became different.

I said I was pretty sure that the Nexus event Sylvie and Loki created wasn't about falling in love and this episode has pretty much confirmed that. It was show Loki believing a Loki can be a hero. And making Sylvie believe herself to be one. They basically supported each other into becoming more and better and all that Loki are not supposed to be and what TVA has been always stopping them from becoming.

I've seen people complaining that Loki is a sidekick in his own show but that is the point. He is the viewpoint character but Sylvie is the hero - she has the drive, the purpose and the ideas how to achieve it. Loki is there to help her achieve it so she doesn't do it alone. This is the whole point and the lesson he had to learn. Supporting someone in saving the world is also a glorious purpose.

This is how main MCU Loki has found his redemption - helping his brother save the day and then saving him from Thanos. I said last week I think Sylvie is an expy of Thor and this support in saving the universe and we see this mirroring in this choice again. (I also said Mobius is the - much better - expy of Odin and nothing shows how much this Loki has grown than Mobius joking that Sylvie is his favourite one and Loki not caring - he still supports them both). And the version of Loki who hid behind another illusion to survive Thanos has done it again in another big sacrifice.

I like how in the final scene when they go to face Alioth Loki stand behind Sylvie. And then makes a decision to use himself as a bait so she can achieve her goal. And then run to stand in front of her when Alioth attacks. All this is pure hero stuff. It's leaving behind the selfish glory for the real glorious purpose. So it matters when Sylvie grabs his hand so they stand together equal and share the magic to win this battle. Because heroes work together. The dictators always have to look for a knife in the back. But heroes don't stand alone. And there can be more than one.

I said it last week and I say it again. The Lokis are not destined to be evil. Their powers are coded that way but we see both Old Loki and Sylvie use their magic to save the day. Even the laugh and the glorious purpose take another meaning when it's about saving others not own glory. The heroism is in choice not in destiny. And taking away choice is what makes TVA evil.

[guardianspirits13]

I wanna talk about Natsuo Todoroki for a second here.

tw// mentions of abuse, self harm, and suicide

Natsuo visibly has the most emotional trauma out of anyone else in his family (Touya not included), and I really wanna talk about why that is.

For starters, we haven't seen him really smile since he was introduced in chapter 187. He's introduced as having a friendly, easygoing persona and it's easy to imagine this is how most people outside of his family know him. However, every time we see him appear since then, another layer of his trauma is revealed and expanded upon, and it cuts DEEP.

I think the main reason that Natsuo still seems so vulnerable compared to the rest of his family is different than what you'd assume. Fuyumi and Shouto both spend a lot of time around Endeavor, and have been in close proximity to his (relatively recent) decision to atone. They have seen his growth firsthand and come to terms with it. Rei has obviously taken a very different path to healing- not entirely voluntarily- but she has been working with doctors and therapists for years to change and recover and reconnect with herself and her children. Natsuo is off at college, and takes every opportunity he can to avoid Endeavor. He (understandably) wants nothing to do with him, and shows stagnant resistance to his attempts to atone.

The reason why Natsuo can't move on from the past is because his trauma didn't come from Endeavor. It came from Touya.

Now initially we were led to believe that it was simply Touya's untimely death that still bothers Natsuo, and it makes sense seeing how Endeavor drove him to the edge. Losing his best friend and brother as a young kid without parents to support him or any therapist to speak of can absolutely been the source of persistent emotional damage, but the more and more we learn about Touya's situation, the more evident it becomes that Natsuo's trauma is much much deeper than even grief.

Touya, as we know, was driven by an ambition instilled in him by his father and experienced extreme rejection sensitivity when those ambitions were no longer realistic. Touya's relationship with his parents could be described as insecure attachment, a psychological term primarily regarding how kids react and respond to their parents and other close relationships. As he was raised, Touya learned to equate his potential to be a hero with his personal worth and similarly confounded attention with love. The difference being, of course, that love is unconditional, but even attention was being continually directed away from him as a punishment for continuing to train and burn himself so he could once again become worthy in his fathers' eyes.

This is where Natsuo comes in. At first it was assumed that all of the Todoroki children were born out of Endeavor's strong-willed desire to have a child that could surpass All Might, but we learned that this isn't exactly the case. I'd argue that it was narratively poetic on Horikoshi's part once this was expanded upon. Fuyumi was born to support and encourage her brother, and that is the exact role she plays 23 years later, keeping her family together.

Natsuo's case is even more intersting.

It was bad enough if Natsuo was only born for the potential of his quirk, but it's even more sinister that the sole intent behind his birth was to discourage Touya from his ambitions. I'd say it was to replace him, but it was more to promote the idea that Touya was expendable than to raise aonther kid with the same ideals but the potential to actually achieve it, although that was definitely a secondary motivation.

The parallelism in this is how much Natsuo's life revolves around Touya. He was born because of Touya, he looked up to and took care of Touya as a kid, and the absence of Touya in the present continues to drive him and his decisions in life (but more on that later).

I continue to pray that we will eventually get more solid backstory on Natsuo and Touya's relationship as kids and where it cut off, wether on a bad note or not, but there are a few things we know for certain. One, Touya was mentally ill. Yes, he was rejected by his parents but he seems to have been particularly vulnerable to this compared to any of his siblings since he was the first of them and thus relied only on his parents for validation in his early years. He shows early signs of a variety of different mental disorders, particularly BPD, which I have previously written a whole analysis for on its own. Touya is shown self-harming both by the very nature of his quirk and even by very directly ripping his hair out. He was incredibly self-destructive.

This is why it is so much more concerning to me that Natsuo, who was AT LEAST four years younger than him, was his primary source of comfort. Natsuo was too young to have known anything more than 'my big brother is sad that daddy won't train him anymore' and he obviously wasn't equipped in any way to handle Touya's severe mental illness. Touya most definitely needed professional treaatment as his forms of coping were abnormal even for the neglect and rejection that he experienced. Natsuo comforted Touya through breakdown after breakdown, and more than that Touya relied on him and came to him voluntarily for support. Natsuo was the best option he had, and he took full advantage of that. The main source of Natsuo's trauma was Touya's reliance on him.

Not to say at all that this was in any way Touya's fault- he was mentally ill and desperately in need of some form of comfort to keep him sane; it was almost a survival method at this point since neither of his parents really acknowleged him at all anymore. Touya's instability hurt Natsuo more than parental neglect ever did, but it was the neglect that enabled it and striped Touya of the supportive atmosphere he would have needed at this point not only to prevent but to heal from the mental damage he had already suffered.

Natsuo dealt with this for years and you can see how much it hurt him to see Touya in so much pain, not only from Endeavor's rejection but from his own self harm as well. For Natuso to know that his brotherly love would never be the same as having loving parents; would neve be enough- but at least it was something so he continued to love and care about his brother for little in return- is indicative of the kind of character he is.

(Edit: After the events of chapter 302 we know that Natsuo's relationship with Touya wasn't perfect. I will elaborate more on this in a different post, but I just wanted to clarify that although we were shown a very high-tension scene between them, it is implied that this was a regular occurrence that Natsuo was usually more receptive too but tired out of, in addition to Touya's spiraling mental health. It fit with the natrative to show the tension Touya was feeling with his family from all directions, but Natsu and Touya clearly had a stronger relationship up to and before this point, evidenced by their sharing a room and playing together regularly.)

He is incredibly selfless, and it's interesting to note how many of his positive qualities as an adult stem from negative experiences as a kid. He never really felt love from his parents, so he relied on Touya (and likely also Fuyumi) for that as well. If he grew up learning he had to give love in order to recieve it back, it absolutely influenced who he became in the future, a solid example of this being the responsibility he feels to reach out and have a relationship with Shouto and further regrets that he wasn't able to help his abuse in the past either. Another aspect of his character that intruigues me is how gentle he is. Personality-wise he seems about as opposite as he could be from the awkward, stoic, emotionally-stunted person that is Endeavor.

There are a couple of reasons for this, beyond what I've already discussed.

One, he had little to no contact with elements of toxic masculinity growing up, especially not from Endeavor.

Two, most of the influence he did have growing up was from Fuyumi, who is established to have endlessly cared for him since he was a literal baby.

Three, he grew up in a household where almost everyone around him was in much more literal, immediate pain than he was so he developed a very strong sense of empathy that might also have been tied to early survivor's guilt.

Now I have one important distinction to make, and that's the temptation to label him as a 'softboy' or something of the like after seeing him caring for his family and more pointedly, watching him break down in tears during chapter 252. While there is absolutely nothing wrong with men being soft or vulnerable (on the contrary it's actually so so important and relevant that Hori is writing characters like this in a mainstream shounen manga but that's an essay for another time), it is unfair to label him as such based on a moment when his trauma is being exposed.

Because his truama stems from such a young age, there is a blurry line between just being born with more emotional intelligence and the situation he was in fostering those traits. You know, the classic nature/nurture thing. My point being, it's important to tread carefully when discussing the nature of his personality to avoid invalidating his trauma; I have no doubt that he is very strong for having survived these things, and the moments we see of him onscreen are definitely among his most vulnerable.

Another thing that people less familiar with Natsuo's character might assume is that he is hot-headed and argumentative. I thought that at first too- after all, he doesn't seem to shy away from yelling at Endeavor when given the opportunity. However, this doesn't seem to be the case at all.

The first real scene we see him in with Endeavor, the man walks into the room and Natsuo decides he can't handle it and goes to leave. However, Endeavor happens to be blocking the doorway. Endeavor physically stops him and provokes him to his face, asking him to say whatever is on him mind. While Natsuo is notably not confrontational, Endeavor is. I think it's fair to say that he felt at least uneasy at this gesture. Natsuo is very honest with his feelings, and it's obvious that he's pissed at the audacity of Endeavor to be so oblivious to his own son. This is presumably one of the first real interactions they've ever really had, and at this point Natsuo has been dealing with trauma (caused by Endeavor!) on his own for years, and Endeavor seems completely oblivious to his pain and dismmisive to the rest of the family's as well.

Again during the internship arc Natsuo tries to get along with Endeavor and this time he actually gives it a fleeting chance. Tensions are high, however, and the conversation very quickly becomes uncomfortable, at which point he leaves. It is continually implied that Natsuo is uncomfortable being around Endeavor because his very presence brings up painful thoughts and memories of a time when sharing the same space as him was a warning to run and hide. This is later directly confirmed by Natsuo as he says that every time he looks at Endeavor's face he remembers Touya and the pain he was in.

I feel like an important side note is that we have never seen Natsuo outside the context of his family, which is understandable, as the role he plays in the story directly relates to them. However, if you take a look at Shouto, even though his experiences have shaped him to become who he is, he definitely acts differently when Endeavor's not in the vicinity.

Back to Touya's death, it would be very rare that someone would mourn a death for an entire decade without finding closure unless there are other factors preventing it, and uncomfortably this seems to be the same thing for both Natsuo and Endeavor: guilt.

This is getting incredibly long already, but it's important to note that Natsuo probably felt an incredible responsibility to take care of Touya and protect him because of his empathetic nature. His love was never going to be the same as having loving parents. His encouragement was never going to be the same as having support from Endeavor. Even further than then neglect and abandonement, it was not being able to save Touya that really made Natsuo feel worthless.

He seems to try and remedy this inability to save Touya and diminish his guilt by doing everything he can to be better. He reaches out to Shouto to be a better brother, he consistently pushes his limits to entertain Fuyumi's notion of a happy family, and he's working hard towards a degree rhat will allow him to help people like Touya (and Rei) because he failed to do so in the past.

His bio mildly implies that he didn't have much of a direction he was heading in after high school, but Fuyumi's encouragement led him to seek out his current college career. This goes back to Natsuo's 'purpose' in a sense revolving arount Touya, from his birth to his relationship with him to his death, after which he lost his direction. They were always rather inseperable, so naturally their seperation hit Natsuo hard. He lost his direction in life so when Fuyumi encouraged him to rediscover it, he thought of helping people, because that's ultimately what he was born to do.

Thank you so, so much for reading this if you made it to the end! I clearly have a lot of thoughts on this. Let me know what you think about it as well, and hopefully we'll get more info on this soon in the manga :)

[oracleflown]

okay fuck it going all in

from dick's POV:

jason is always partly gonna be dick's kid brother. i think there would be a part of dick that would be a little envious of jason and bruce bc he feels the need to "earn" bruces love and trust while it seemed like he gave it freely to jason at one point. yes this is insane and toxic but that is what's ideal.

tim is like. y'know when one parent strongly objects to getting a dog but then they end up loving the dog so the person who wanted the dog originally just sits there smugly

i don't think he understands cass one single bit. he probably thinks she is so incredibly damaged and that wasn't his problem at the time

damian is like. that kid is the most annoying creature to ever walk the planet. also I love him beyond measure I would lay down my life for him. no one understands him like I do. also he's ridiculous and crazy

I'm not gonna do any more duke bc I almost never read stuff post flashpoint

tim

dick is like...his first crush his idol his goofy older brother who gives him noogies. overall just incredible fondness. they grow more distant over time but also ...they Get each other i fear. they both have a Thing about "fixing" bruce

jason leaves him on read even though it was a really really funny post he swears (it was a ten year old reddit thread)

cass and tim are just. pals. they solve cases together. tim is the brains cass is the brawn

Tim doesn't like to think too much about damian. mostly just awkward at this point

cass

dick is so studyable to her. they share this unwavering faith in the symbolism of batman. i think they would send each other their favorite emojis instead of having interesting conversations

again i think she would want nothing to do with jason

tim is, again, her partner in crime. at first she did not care about him as a person (lmao) but i think they could bond over stuff like music.

damian is annoying to her at first. but you get raised by the same assassin cult and you find some stuff in common.

damian

dick. they made a good team. but also he doesn't know how to ask for attention in a way that's not super,, mean? he's not sure but dick is probably the one member of the family damian actually...likes. bc most of his relationship with bruce is seeking attention and approval with a hearty helping of hero worship

he constantly reminds jason of stupid shit he's done. he also loves to aggravate jason on purpose bc it's really easy.

there's this gap between older and younger zoomers. damian thinks tim is incredibly cringe . like he's doing better than dick but that is a low bar...he now regrets trying to kill tim but he does not want to address it in case tim wants to hurt him back. so it's easier for him to pretend to hate even though he's just sort of . lost on where he wants this be in the family. that was his major insecurity and he took it out on tim

oh he thinks cass is the coolest person to ever grace the earth. they get over their respective fears of being irredeemably evil and do parallel play together

okay personal hcs for jason's relationships woth his siblings:

have cass and jason ever actually interacted in canon I think it would be really interesting. like cass would be jasons favorite sibling and jason would be cass's least favorite. which makes him like her more

jason and dick are on strained terms but like they probably have the best relationship on this list.

tim keeps trying to make sarcastic inside jokes between them but jason is like "do I even know you??" which then tim is like "okay well you tried to kill me I didn't wanna be friends anyway"

damian bites I fear

jason and duke are just that one tom king issue where jason keeps mentioning insane things in the house and duke is just. not even surprised at this point. duke saw him lose tug of war with a dog I feel like he must not be impressed

[drarrily-we-row-along]

Day 5: Possessiveness

Draco had a lot of toxic traits, or so he'd been told. He'd dated enough men in the past five years to know that not much of his personality was what people were looking for in an ideal partner.

Two months ago, he had started dating Harry Potter. Yes. The Harry Potter. And he was quite determined to put all of the information about the unappealing parts of himself that he'd garnered from previous partners to good use. Harry was the best thing that had ever happened to him and he wasn't going to mess it up, thank you very much.

This was how he found himself, on his twenty-fourth birthday, telling his boyfriend that it was fine for him to miss his dinner party.

"Babe, I'm really sorry," Harry murmured, running his hand through his hair. "I know tonight is important-"

"Stop," Draco said, turning from the mirror he was using to watch himself finish his skin care routine, and leaning in to press a kiss to Harry's nose. "I can only be so gracious about it," he added.

Harry huffed a laugh.

"Just go," Draco said. "I know it's important."

"I could quit," Harry offered for the third time and something about that thought made the corner of Draco's lips turn up. "Sometimes I think this whole working for the Ministry thing isn't working out anyway."

"Go," Draco said, swatting him lightly with his towel. "It's okay."

"It's not," Harry replied.

It wasn't. His boyfriend missing his birthday dinner really sucked and Draco honestly felt quite bitter about it but Harry would never need to know that. "Go," he said again. "Then you can come back."

He felt quite proud that at this moment, he was keeping several of his toxic traits to himself. He'd kept the neediness at bay, kept the whinging at bay, kept the bitchiness at bay, and kept the possessiveness at bay.

Harry leaned in and gave him a kiss, wrapping his arms around Draco's waist, "What have I possibly done to deserve you?" he asked, and he said it so sincerely that Draco couldn't help but believe that he meant it even though there was no logical reason for him to. "I'll try to get back soon."

"What more could I ask for?" Draco asked, even as every part of him want to demand, and argue, and beg that Harry stay with him.

(More below the cut)

"A good deal, I'd imagine," Harry said wryly. "I know my work is a lot-"

"Yes," Draco agreed, "But you were very upfront about it when we started dating. It's not as though I didn't know something like this could happen."

Harry pressed a kiss to his forehead, "You're an angel. I will see you as soon as I possibly can slip away from this stupid function."

He gave him a little smile, "Best be on your way savior," he murmured.

With one last kiss Harry stepped into the fireplace and flooed to the ministry.

Draco counted to five before he let the displeasure he was feeling show on his face. He slumped back over to the mirror to look at himself. He was only able to wallow in self pity for a few minutes before there was a knock at the door.

He smoothed his features, you never could be sure who would come knocking at Harry's bedroom door in grimmauld place, it seemed like there was no end to the number of friends who simply made themselves at home here. "Come in," he called, keeping his voice chipper.

"Everyone decent?" Pansy said as she opened the door, carrying two flutes of champagne with her.

"It's just me," Draco replied, trying not to sound forlorn.

"Oh good," Pansy replied, nudging the door closed behind her and plopping down on the sofa. "And here I thought I was going to have to fight Potter to give me a few minutes alone with you. Where is he? Fetching you some cake?"

"Hardly."

"New shoes?"

He sighed, "He had to go to work."

"What?" she all but shrieked. "You tell me where he is right now and I will go and tell him-"

"I told him to go," he interrupted.

"But-"

"No," he said with a shake of the head. "No buts, Pans. I really like him and I'm not going to mess it up. Just," he sighed, "leave it, alright?"

Pansy gave him a pitying look, but thankfully let it drop.

---------

It was nearly midnight by the time the floo flared and Harry stepped back through. Part of Draco had wished that he'd just gone to bed before the other man got home so he didn't have to pretend that everything was fine.

"Hey," Harry said, making his way over to where Draco was on the couch. He sounded exhausted.

"Hi," Draco replied.

Harry leaned down and pressed a kiss to Draco's temple before sitting down next to him, "How was the party?"

"Fine," Draco replied. "Good."

Frowning, Harry groaned. "You're upset," he said. "I knew it. I'm so sorry, Draco-"

"No," he said, shaking his head. "It's fine. It's really-"

"It's not." Harry turned so he was facing Draco but Draco couldn't bring himself to look back. "I'm sorry, babe. This is all my fault, I should have told them no about that bloody fundraiser."

"Yes," Draco said sarcastically. "That would have gone over well, 'Sorry, I can't come to do a fundraiser for children orphaned during the war. It's my death eater boyfriend's birthday and he's a whiny, possessive bitch."

"I would never say that about you. I would never even think that about you!" Harry protested.

"I'm just saying, Harry, that you are their savior. And I am just your boyfriend."

He ran his fingers through his hair, tugging on the ends, "I don't want to be," he finally burst.

Draco paused, unsure what to say to that. Eventually, he settled on a careful, "Sorry?" Hoping against all odds that Harry wasn't about to break up with him.

"I don't want to be anybody's savior," Harry whispered. "I don't want to be the bloke who saved the world. I don't want to be a war hero. Most of the time I think I don't even want to be an auror; it's just what was expected."

"What do you want to be?" he asked carefully.

"Your's," Harry said, shrugging helplessly.

And the little monster that lived inside of Draco that told him to take, and claim, and hold, and all but smother his partners, raised its ugly little head.

"Sorry," Harry apologized, rubbing his hands over his face and not looking at Draco. "I know it's only been two months and it's a ridiculous thing to say but the only time I feel like me is when I'm with you."

Draco just stared at him, unable to speak, hardly able to even process what he was saying.

"I feel like I'm just Harry when I'm with you and I wish that instead of people thinking 'oh, that's Harry Potter, savior of the world,' that they'd think, 'oh, that's Harry Potter, he was clever enough to trick Draco Malfoy into wanting to be with him.'"

"What?" he whispered.

"Sorry," Harry apologized again, trying to backpedal. "I know, I'm making a mess of everything like always. I've jumped in too fast, and I'm too emotional, and I'm not what anyone thinks I should-"

"Harry," Draco said, finally looking at him, really looking at him. He looked as shattered as Draco felt. "Harry," he whispered again. "You are perfect."

"That's what I'm trying to tell you," Harry said, "I'm not-"

"I hear you," Draco said, hoping that he could convey his meaning and sincerity. "I mean that you are perfect, in all of your faults and flaws. In your sarcasm and the petty things you say about your coworkers, in your ranting and raving about our justice system, in the moments that you choose something you deem selfish like sleeping for an extra hour when you think you should be out doing more, in jumping in too fast and being too emotional, in all that you are, you are perfect."

"Draco," Harry breathed as though he couldn't believe what Draco was saying to him.

"You're not the one tricking me, Harry," he whispered, the confession making his heart ache. "I'm the one tricking you. I'm selfish and whiny. I'm petty and vindictive, and I want you all to myself all of the time. I-"

"Draco, I like those things about you," Harry said. "That little pout you get when I'm about to leave, the way you hold me just a little bit tighter when I tell you that I'm going to have to go soon. The petty little plans you have to inconvenience people at my job when they've annoyed me. And the way you're always putting your arm around me or holding my hand when we're in public, like you're so proud to be with me, like you're ready to fight off a slew of attackers at any moment."

"Admirers, more likely," Draco grumbled.

"I like that," Harry said. "I like your possessiveness."

"Really?"

He nodded and reached over to tuck a strand of hair behind Draco's ear. "Draco, can I be honest?" he asked.

"Always."

"I think I'm in love with you," he said. "And I know it's fast; you don't have to say it back or anything. I know that I-"

"I love you, too." Draco replied before another word could spill from the other man's mouth. "I love you, Harry."

Harry blinked at him, "Really?" he whispered.

Draco nodded and leaned in to give him a soft, short kiss. When he pulled back Harry stared at him with something akin to wonder on his face.

"Please never miss one of my birthdays again," Draco murmured.

Harry pulled him over until Draco was cradled in his arms, "Never," he promised. "Please stop hiding yourself from me," he asked in return.

"Same goes for you."

"Okay," Harry breathed.

And Draco thought this was the first step for both of them in becoming who they were meant to be.

Day 4: Jealousy | Day 6: Proposal

[hellsbellschime]

Why Jaime Lannister's GoT Ending Was Actually Bad

Nearly every aspect of the end of Game of Thrones earned ire from the majority of the show and book fandom, but one aspect of the show's conclusion that seems to have frustrated fans across the board was the ending for Jaime Lannister. More specifically, that after a seemingly solid and nearly complete redemption arc, he returned to Cersei and King's Landing to die in a manner that somewhat works as a metaphor but didn't resonate well with the audience at all. And, while Jaime's ending was a flop, it didn't fail for the reasons that many viewers seem to think that it did.

The Lannisters are obviously some of the most complex and important characters in A Song of Ice and Fire, but one of the most interesting aspects of their family dynamic is that it was established far before the contemporary storyline actually began. And, while Game of Thrones seemed to paint it as if Cersei was a source of toxicity that Tyrion and Jaime couldn't get out from under the thumb of, the truth is that the bad apple that spoiled the bunch was never Cersei, it was always Tywin.

One of the most meaningful and important themes of George RR Martin's work is the long-term effects that abuse has on children, and there isn't really any example that is more present and potent than the horrific effects that Tywin's abuse had on all of his children, and how it affected them in different ways.

Jaime, Cersei, and Tyrion all have some of the most intriguing points of view in the entire story. And one aspect that all of their POVs seem to share in common is that while nearly everyone in their world perceives them as a villain, they all see themselves as victims. And the truth is, both sides of this coin are correct.

Yes, the Lannister children have done many horrific, irredeemable things in their lives, but they have also been the victims of extremely traumatic abuse that understandably altered their outlook on the world and on themselves in general. There is a balance between victim and perpetrator that needs to be struck with their characters, but one of Game of Thrones' bigger flaws was its inability to do that.

Unsurprisingly, nearly every character's book point of view grants themselves more sympathy than they should. Almost everyone sees themselves as a better person than they are or is capable of rationalizing away their bad deeds and focusing on their more positive decisions and personality traits. But this is of course one of the many ways in which George RR Martin utilizes his POV traps.

Translating a story that is told through the eyes of the characters themselves and filming it from a more objective third-person perspective means that plenty of important information is going to be lost in that translation. But one of the fatal flaws when it comes to the Lannisters is that, while Game of Thrones does still present Cersei as pretty forthrightly villainous, the narrative pretty drastically whitewashes Tyrion and Jaime. Essentially, it seems to take Tyrion and Jaime at their point-of-view word and treats them like they're much better people than they truly are. Thus, Jaime's ignominious end with the supposed biggest baddie of them all feels like a betrayal of his character development when it really shouldn't be.

Every character needs to be held responsible for their own choices, but the downfall of House Lannister really does rest in the hands of Tywin, and Game of Thrones ignoring that fact did a disservice to every one of the Lannister children in one way or another.

Yes, out of all of the Lannisters, Jaime was as close as Tywin could get to the golden child of his dreams, but it's easy to overlook that while Jaime may have been the favorite on the surface, every single one of Tywin's children was disgustingly mistreated, and the effects of his abuse all showed themselves in different malignant ways.

While Jaime may have gotten preferential treatment over his siblings, Tywin was never anything other than a terrible parent, and more importantly, Jaime's superior treatment only told him exactly how he could expect to be treated if he ever failed to live up to his father's high ideals. And of course, in many big and small ways, he did ultimately fail to live up to Tywin Lannister's exacting standards.

Tywin was a terrible parent because he was an abuser, but he also raised his children with his own values of pride, entitlement, and superiority. Obviously, the notion that they were simultaneously failures who had earned their own mistreatment but were also Lannisters who deserved to be above everyone else is opposing perspectives that are in constant conflict with one another, but it also seems to be how Cersei, Jaime, and Tyrion see themselves as constant victims while still perennially victimizing others.

George RR Martin has repeatedly discussed that one of the strongest themes of his work is the idea of the human heart in conflict with itself. Game of Thrones lost the plot with this in nearly every character adaptation, but Jaime's was one of the worst, largely because he is a character who has done some of the most monstrous and most heroic things in the story. He is both the man who doesn't hesitate to murder a child and the man who stopped a king from slaughtering thousands, and therefore his inner conflict is extremely vital.

Jaime's character arc in Game of Thrones follows a classic redemption arc almost perfectly, but that clearly doesn't seem to be the intent behind the character in the books. Yes, there is a part of Jaime that wants to be redeemed, but he does often revert back to his more brutal and nihilistic side, and his desire for so-called redemption seems to be driven more by how he wants the world to see him rather than how he wants to be.

And in that sense, the show did him a great disservice. Because there are many ways in which Jaime hasn't healed from Tywin's abuse, but the fact that he still seeks the approval of others in a rather superficial manner rather than developing a deeper understanding of true honor and justice is one of the clearest indications that, while Jaime does want to get out of the path that his father laid out for him, he is still crippled by what Tywin told him being a Lannister meant. And ironically, Tywin's belief about what being a Lannister means has essentially trapped all of his children into trying and failing to live up to that example simply because they can't survive unless they do.

Because ultimately, it's not necessarily just about what Jaime, or Cersei, or Tyrion wants. At some point, every single one of them has made obvious indications that they don't want to be a part of the legacy that Tywin Lannister laid out for them. But, when Game of Thrones presented Tywin as a super-intelligent master strategist instead of a completely unnecessarily violent and aggressive asshole, it made all of the Lannister children's choices harder to understand.

Both in the A Song of Ice and Fire and Game of Thrones fandoms, Tywin is typically put up on a pedestal, and that's completely baffling. Many viewers and readers perceive him to be brilliant and badass, but everything that Tywin is famous for actually makes him seem like a complete moron upon further contemplation. Winning battles by absolutely obliterating your enemies is a terrible precedent to set for many reasons, but one of the biggest is that it essentially requires all of the Lannister children to maintain this scorched earth policy because Tywin's hyper-aggressive superiority complex has put them in a position where they almost always have to choose to kill or be killed.

And, his cruel and dishonorable behavior as well as Jaime's reputation as the Kingslayer essentially guarantees that even if Jaime completely changes as a person and becomes the hero he wants to be, he really can't ever become that in the society that he lives in simply because the stigma around the Lannisters is something he can't escape.

That is one of the great tragedies that Game of Thrones failed to articulate, and that is one of the biggest reasons why Jaime's character conclusion was so off-putting to the audience. Because the audience saw the result of where this character arc would naturally go, but the story never actually took the steps to get there. In fact, the show went out of its way to erase a lot of the obvious building blocks that are leading up to both Cersei and Jaime's demise that makes it clear that, while they're obviously responsible for their own choices and actions, the groundwork that Tywin's abuse and cruelty laid and set in stone was something that they couldn't control, prevent, or undo.

Game of Thrones largely presented Jaime's characterization with the implication that if he could only escape Cersei, he would be a good man. But the reality was, if only Tywin hadn't been his father, then all of his siblings would have been better people. They may not have been good, but they almost certainly wouldn't be the kingdom-destroying villains that they became.

I also think the TV series likely bungled his character in that his story is meant to be a subversion of the classic redemption arc rather than the straightforward bad guy to good guy story that Game of Thrones told. George RR Martin obviously doesn't like flawless characters, and nearly every person in A Song of Ice and Fire does good things and bad things all the time, they never go in a straight line from point A to point B. So, of course it was going to be incredibly jarring when the show did move Jaime in a straight line from point A to point B and then abruptly gave him an ending that is probably somewhat similar to his end in the books.

But with that in mind, for all of the faults in Game of Thrones and the way they handled Jaime's character arc, I don't really understand the idea that his character was ruined by his ending either. These characters are clearly designed to never be just one thing, and if Jaime killing King Aerys or trying to kill Bran doesn't singularly define his character, then going back to Cersei in the very end shouldn't either.

[grimalkinsquill]

hewwo!

💥 What is one canon thing that you wish you could change?

🤔 Would you ever want to write something canon if you got the opportunity?

💌 Is there a favorite trope you like to write?

What is the one canon thing that you wish you could change?

For Miraculous? Leaving aside obvious stuff like inconsistent personality writing and the racism, I would change how the kwamis work entirely. While I understand the age demographic, I think there are ways to have the kwami that aren’t as dumbed down and simplified to hell and back. While oSaW has my most indulgent form of that, I think at base I would sneak in three major changes.

The kwami choose their animal association (this actively being a choice rather than an arbitrary feature about them gives an implied sense of personality)

The word kwami becomes a regional word for Japanese-based kwami, with other cultural words brought in for other instances (this would be reflected in Tikki and Plagg being international rather than locked to a specific box)

No more miracle boxes. Kwami roam with their miraculous and choose holders. They are allowed maturity and agency as ancient gods/godlike entities. Guardians are less about choosing holders than they are about monitoring toxic relationships between kwami and their chosen

Would you ever want to write something canon if you got the opportunity?

My answer for that extremely relies on the fandom and what stories I want to tell.

For Miraculous, I will usually craft AUs upon AUs, simply because I think canon actively stifles storytelling on several different fronts with its writing and world-building issues. Canon is a loose suggestion at best for me in that arena. I think this is partially what attracts me to digging through different eras of precanon and running back out of it with neat shinies to play with.

And that’s the sort of like extreme end of the scale for me, because I’ve gotten into fandoms where writing closer to canon is fun: Do Something Crazy is my Pokémon Sun and Moon novelization where I have a transcript of the game I work from and adjust from there to fit the protagonist changing from an 11 year old kid just moving in to a woman in her late 20’s in a rehabilitation program. With that, it’s less about building an AU so much as like…figuring out all the ways that canon story would change with the protagonist change. How Lily’s story of overcoming the abuse of her mom would be affected by having an adult who’s gone through the same shit nearby in the blank-slate protagonist’s place. How Hau really comes out and shines as a character when he’s given someone who actually interacts with him rather than a blank-slate. How Kukui is still gonna be a chaotic academic but now he has another adult to call him out on it and make him snicker. How Guzma has his entire worldview and motivations challenged when his main opponent is a woman who’s been there, done that, only got a prison sentence and rehab for it.

Is there a favourite trope you like to write?

I have a couple. I love writing batshit magic, I love going absolutely off the wall with the most odd magic shit you can think of (oSaW’s insane semantics-is-personal narrative magic, my Young Justice fic features an OC whose magic powers are derived from a literal key to technology that is embedded in her spine, I’ve been spinning around “autumn” magic in my head as a thought experiment, etc).

I mentioned this in another ask answer, but I am also. Insanely soft for thieves mentoring or raising heroes. The interplay between thievery and vigilantism is fascinating to me and I love putting an old grizzled thief next to a baby hero who is a fountain of hope and idealism and letting them play off of each other. My Young Justice fic was the most blatant of that with Captain Cold and Theo, but there are two examples of this in oSaW that are subtle that I’m also in love with.

I’m also a big fan of inversion. Inverting what is and isn’t scary, what is good what is evil who decided these, is fun as shit. I love humanising Plagg into a papa cat and making Tikki absolutely terrifying in an insane, but subtle way. Exploring what makes what by throwing it into its mirror is just fun. Why are things like this??? Let’s find out.