#love me some villain/hero contrast

[chillfaerietrinkets]

At first I thought Starboy's black outfit was a bit odd, not glowy enough yknow? But then I realized it does two things:

Looks like the night sky, especially with the gold designs on it, and

Contrasts Magnifico's all-white outfit!

[thegirlsarethriving]

just finished undertale. ok i see the vision. i now understand yall's Sans-to-Benrey obsession pipeline. and the Papyrus-to-Tommy Coolatta pipeline

[doumadono]

Synopsis: in a serene moment of post-war healing, Bakugo and you cherish a peaceful afternoon in the park

MY HERO ACADEMIA MASTERLIST - PART II

"You're late," Bakugo's voice cut through the quiet of the afternoon, his impatience evident in his tone.

You quickened your pace, seeing him standing by the park entrance with his arms crossed. "Sorry, I had to finish up some things with Aizawa-sensei. You know how he gets," you explained, trying to catch your breath. "Besides, I knew you'd wait for me."

Bakugo rolled his eyes, but a small smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. "Yeah, well, next time, try to be on time," he grumbled, though his irritation seemed to be melting away.

The sun was setting, painting the sky with hues of pink and orange, casting a warm glow over the park. 

You had always loved this time of day, when everything seemed to slow down, and the world felt a little more magical.

The war against the villains had ended months ago, leaving scars but also new beginnings. The world was slowly healing, and so were you and Bakugo. Today was meant to be a break from everything - a day to just be together and enjoy the peace you had fought so hard for.

The park was alive with the sounds of children playing, couples laughing, and birds singing. It was a stark contrast to the chaos you'd both endured, and you found solace in the normalcy of it all.

"Hey, can we sit here for a bit?"

You glanced up at Bakugo Katsuki, who was already eyeing a quiet spot under a large oak tree in the park. 

"Sure, Katsuki," you replied with a smile. You settled down on the blanket he'd brought.

Bakugo sat beside you, close enough that his shoulder brushed against yours. He stretched out his legs and leaned back on his hands, tilting his head to the sky. 

"Mind if I sit here?" you asked, pointing to his lap and feeling a blush creep up your cheeks.

Bakugo cracked one eye open, smirking. "Tch, do what you want," he replied, though you could see the faintest hint of pink on his ears.

You giggled, taking that as a yes. Carefully, you shifted, settling yourself on his lap. 

His arms instinctively wrapped around your waist, pulling you closer. Despite his rough exterior, Bakugo had a way of making you feel safe and cherished. "Comfortable?" he asked, his voice a low rumble in your ear.

"Very," you replied, leaning back against his chest. "It's a perfect afternoon, isn't it?"

Bakugo hummed in agreement, resting his chin on your shoulder. "Yeah, guess it is," he admitted. "But it's not just the day."

You turned your head slightly, meeting his gaze. "Oh? And what else makes it perfect?"

He rolled his eyes. "You, idiot," he said, his tone softer than usual. "You make it perfect."

Your heart skipped a beat at his words. Despite his gruff manner, Bakugo had a way of expressing himself that always caught you off guard. You reached up, cupping his cheek with your hand. "You know, you're pretty amazing yourself, Katsuki."

He huffed, pretending to be annoyed, but you could see the slight curve of his lips. "Yeah, yeah. Don't get all mushy on me."

You laughed, feeling light and happy. "Too late for that," you teased, pressing a kiss to his cheek. "We deserve a break after everything we've been through."

He tightened his arm around your waist, his calloused fingers running up and down the curve of your waistline. "Damn right we do," he muttered. "Not that I need to be reminded of all the idiots we had to deal with."

You turned your head slightly, meeting his gaze. "Katsuki, we won. We made it through. And now, we get to enjoy moments like this."

He huffed, but his grip on you tightened. "Yeah, yeah. I know." He paused, his expression softening. "I just... sometimes it feels like it’s too good to be true, y'know?"

You smiled, rubbing your nose with his. "It’s real, Katsuki. We made it real."

He sighed, leaning his forehead against yours. "You’re always so damn positive," he said, but there was no bite to his words.

"I have to be," you replied, your voice soft. "For both of us."

Bakugo's arms tightened around you, and he nuzzled your neck, making you giggle. 

There was an intimate intensity in being so close, feeling the surge of his heartbeat, now mighty in the wake of his encounter with Shigaraki, pressing against your side. His breath, warm and steady, brushed the skin of your neck.

As the sun dipped below the horizon, the first stars began to appear, twinkling in the twilight sky. 

You sighed contentedly, resting your head against Bakugo's.

"Hey," he said after a while, his voice breaking the comfortable silence.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for sticking with me," he said, his tone unusually sincere. "I know I can be a real pain sometimes."

You turned in his arms, facing him. "Katsuki, I wouldn't have it any other way," you claimed firmly. "You're worth it. Every stubborn, explosive part of you."

He stared at you for a moment, then pulled you into a kiss. It was soft and lingering, filled with all the emotions he often struggled to express. 

The park was gradually emptying as families and joggers made their way home. 

"You know," you began, breaking the silence, "I always wondered what you saw in me."

Bakugo's grip on your waist tightened slightly. "What kind of stupid question is that?" he grumbled, but there was no real anger in his voice.

"I'm serious, Katsuki," you said softly. "You're this amazing, strong hero with a bright future. Sometimes I wonder if I'm enough for you."

He sighed, resting his forehead against yours. "Listen to me, idiot," he said, his voice surprisingly gentle. "You're more than enough. You make me better. You challenge me, keep me grounded. Hell, you make me want to be a better person. And if you can't see that, then maybe I'm not doing a good enough job showing it."

Your eyes filled with tears at his heartfelt words. "Katsuki, I..."

"Shut up," he interrupted, pressing a finger to your lips. "Just... stay here with me. That's all I need."

You nodded, blinking back the tears. "Always," you whispered.

For a while, you both sat in comfortable silence, simply enjoying each other's presence. The gentle hum of crickets filled the air, adding to the serene ambiance.

Bakugo shifted slightly, adjusting his hold on you. "Remember that time we got caught in the rain during patrol?" he asked suddenly.

You chuckled, nodding. "How could I forget? We were soaked through and had to take shelter in that tiny café."

"Yeah," he said, a rare fondness in his voice. "You looked like a drowned rat."

"Gee, thanks," you replied dryly, but you couldn't help but laugh. "And you were grumbling the whole time about how much you hate the rain."

Bakugo smirked. "Still do. But that day... it wasn't so bad."

You smiled, leaning your head back against his shoulder. "It was kind of nice, wasn't it? Just us, sipping hot chocolate and watching the rain."

He nodded, his expression softening. "Yeah. It was nice."

You turned slightly, looking up at him. "I love you, Katsuki," you whispered, the words coming out easily, naturally.

Bakugo's eyes widened slightly, and for a moment, you thought you might have surprised him. But then he smiled, a genuine, warm smile that made your heart skip a beat. "I love you too," he said, his voice steady and sincere.

You kissed him then, a soft, lingering kiss that spoke of all the love and affection you felt for him. When you finally pulled away, he rested his forehead against yours, his eyes closed.

"We should probably head back to the dorm," you murmured, though you didn't really want to move.

Bakugo sighed, but he nodded. "Yeah, probably," he agreed. 

The future was uncertain, but you were ready to face it together, hand in hand. Because with Bakugo by your side, you knew you could conquer anything.

[helenisaweirdo]

some really silly (AND CANON!!!) things about chrollo that i enjoy a lot

lmao im giving you all more since i think u all seem to rlly like the fun facts on the last post🥺💕❤️

———

- chrollo has a phone, and the only times that he actually uses it is to call someone—plus, he only uses it a few in the series. an example is after his fight against hisoka (ch. 357) and another time is on the black whale trying to find his “ideal partner” (ch. 406, will elaborate more on in the next fact)

- chrollo basically uses the nen equivalent of tinder, as he steals an ability (notably from a woman) called “love dial”, in which he can put in a condition to find someone on his phone with the nen ability and the ability will give him the number of the person who is his “ideal match” (it’s not necessarily romantic). for example, if chrollo puts in “someone with a strong rage towards me”, then kurapika’s number would show up. (note: just because you call doesn’t mean that the call will necessarily go through).

- chrollo can basically use any resource to his advantage, no matter how seemingly useless. for example, in the yorknew city arc, chrollo kills all of the assassins going after him with the pen that neon used to write his fortune. another example is when shizuku and pakunoda talk about how kurapika probably came to yorknew for the auction and chrollo suddenly pieces together where exactly kurapika could be, who he is, etc,.

- according to the yoshihiro togashi exhibit in japan (which holds completely canon information), chrollo is considered a genius at nen, meaning that he is only one level away from the ultimate tier of nen use. according to togashi, anyone can reach the ultimate nen user tier as long as they train hard enough.

- chrollo has an ongoing pattern of taking someone’s nen ability and using it far better than the original owner ever could. for example, neon only used her ability with little to no knowledge about how it actually worked; meanwhile chrollo managed to take full advantage of her ability by predicting exactly what will happen in the future and managed to save numerous troupe members due to it. another example is kortopi’s ability, which was believed to be useless in combat. however, chrollo proved that to be wrong, as kortopi’s ability was crucial to chrollo’s win against hisoka.

- chrollo can TECHNICALLY win any battle as long as you give him prep time. (i know, it’s the ultimate chrollo fangirl powerscaler card, but im not wrong😔)

- chrollo actually seems to prefer letting his hair down. the only times that chrollo actually has his hair slicked back is when he is around the troupe, possibly due to not wanting to seem vulnerable around the troupe. his unmoving hair when slicked back represents that. however, when chrollo’s hair is let down, it moves and represents the more human, more fragile side of him.

- chrollo’s eyes directly contrast hisoka’s. while chrollo’s eyes are gray—a plain and dull color, they are nearly always lighted because chrollo cares despite trying to pretend that he doesn’t. meanwhile, hisoka has bright and fun colored yellow amber eyes, because hisoka doesn’t care about or feel anything despite wanting to.

- it’s canon that chrollo knows so much about Christianity and the Bible because he often visited the church in meteor city as a child (ch. 395-397). he seemed to be very close with the pastor, Father Lisores, as the pastor often complimented chrollo and talked about chrollo to the meteor city elders, talking about how chrollo might be the one to help the city.

- chrollo and the troupe actually seem to be viewed as heroes in meteor city rather than a villain. when the troupe visited meteor city to battle the chimera ants, the elders had no protests whatsoever despite knowing of their crimes. not only that, but judging from the way that chrollo spoke during his fight against hisoka, the meteor city elders also had very little, if any, issues against chrollo stealing their nen ability.

- chrollo has canonically met characters such as razor, eta, illumi, abengane, and dog man; no, that wasn’t a typo😭 his name is actually dog man (ik this isn’t really a fun fact but can u imagine how each of their conversations would go🤭 it’d lowkey be so silly)

- chrollo name in katakana (クロロ ku ro ro) has the word “kuro” in it, meaning black. the word “ro” is often added to names in japanese to make a name more masculine. thus, chrollo’s name can mean “black” or “darkness”

- chrollo’s tattoo is a type of cross called a “double vajra”

- a small plot hole in HxH about chrollo is how relaxed chrollo is with showing his face when going in public. during the yorknew city, people put chrollo’s face up on the internet. although they eventually take it down, there is still digital footprints.

- chrollo has a habit of self blame even when he is fully aware that something is not his fault (read his backstory for specific examples because there are WAY TOO MANY examples of it, especially in his backstory😞)

- chrollo seems to view himself as some sort of “higher being”. superior to humans, and yet the “being” that he sees himself as has little value. during the hisoka vs chrollo fight, chrollo says “humans are so very interesting” while looking down—and for the first time in the series, his eyes aren’t lighted. they are just dark and empty with very little emotion. chrollo doesn’t even view himself as a human anymore, and chrollo seems to view humans as some sort of strange entity.

- chrollo is an actor who acted a role for so long that he eventually forgot what his actual personality was like, and thus began to act out different roles and personalities hoping to find the one that he once was before he began acting.

———

oh chrollo, how i love you. the way that you genuinely changed my life. how dare you be such a realistic and relatable character? how dare you be such a fun and addicting character to analyze and dissect? how dare you be such an incredible character to daydream about to my ocs? how dare you be the character that made me cry the most in all of fiction? how dare you occupy such a special place in my heart?

[physalian]

“Likable” vs “Compelling” Protagonists

Protagonist does not mean “good guy” it means “the person the story is about”.

Antagonist does not mean “bad guy” it means “person in opposition to the protagonist”.

We know this, yes?

So when I’m talking about “likable” protagonists I do not mean that your MC has to be witty, funny, charming, etc—they have to be compelling.

I didn’t much care for Death Note, I thought Light got away with way too much without consequences for his actions, but he was very much the villain and the protagonist. He was an arrogant narcissist with a god complex and you watched the show not to see him win, but to see how badly he would eventually lose.

This was because, despite my dislike of his story, Light was a compelling character. You don’t necessarily agree with his motivations, but you do understand why he does what he does and why he believes what he does about himself and his world.

In contrast, one of my favorite anime is Code Geass. Lelouch (who is often compared to Light) is *constantly* getting kicked in the ass by his own hubris. He's arrogant as well, but he makes mistakes everywhere and suffers if not immediate comeuppance, then drastic consequences later down the line. Which, to me, made a far more compelling character than someone like Light playing with cheat codes.

Most of the time, “likable” and “compelling” go hand in hand, because your protagonist is the “good guy” that we’re supposed to root for.

So one of the worst mistakes I think you can make is writing a hero who just doesn’t want to be here.

—

I recently read a story where MC needed to win a competition, baseline unsponsored underdog story, and everyone loves an underdog. The problem was the MC’s attitude. Nothing pleased them and in their internal monologue, nothing was good enough and everyone else was the problem. They actually hate competitions and can’t wait for this to be over…even though no one forced them into it with a gun to their head. They hate all their competitors for behavior they themself exhibit. They hate their lone sponsor for being a sleezeball, and yet, chose to enter a voluntary competition, knowing this sponsor’s behavior, and still blaming the sponsor for their problems.

The entire time I was reading all I kept thinking was, “Then go home, bitch!”

This was not a high-stakes competition, and the MC didn’t have dire enough circumstances for the reader to believe this was a "life-or-death, even if it sucks, MC has to win," type situation. Not like Hunger Games. This was all completely voluntary.

So I started wondering if the author meant the MC to be the villain with all these personality flaws, but they’re still the underdog with no wins under their belt to support their level of entitled arrogance and no notable skills that make them inherently better than the competition.

So I was rooting for the MC to lose, and I don’t think I was supposed to. Even if I was, the mixup between “underdog hero” and “catty bitchy villain” was too confusing for too much of the story. MC didn't have to be here, didn't want to be here, so... why was MC here?

—

Some suggestions for compelling motivations for your protagonist boils down to this:

Define as quickly as you can these three things for your protagonist of any walk:

What the protagonist wants

How the protagonist plans to get it

And what’s in their way

Specify the stakes, if not physical, then personal. It doesn’t have to be life-or-death, but if they’re entering a risky situation, whatever it is has to be extremely important to them. Luca doesn’t have as high stakes as, say, Toy Story 3 but the moped race is important to the heroes, thus a compelling motivation.

Make this a journey they actually want to be on. Even if it’s grimdark or horror, if your hero is complaining the entire time and wanting to go home, yet plowing forward anyway because the plot’s dragging them on a leash, your audience will be as invested in the story as that character. If they don’t actually have the commitment to see their quest through, why should the audience care?

Alternatively, make this a journey they cannot afford to walk away from. Whether that be pressure from without or within. Frodo didn’t have to take the One Ring to Mordor. He chose to, because it was, in his mind, the right thing to do. He suffered his entire journey with the Ring and got homesick and depressed and discouraged, but he never called his own journey stupid and dumb. He could have put the Ring down and walked away or given it to somebody else, but he chose to carry on, because that’s who he is.

Even reluctant chosen ones have an ulterior reason for remaining in the story. Your long-lost princess might not want the throne being thrust upon her, but she’s chasing something else that accepting the throne and going along with the plot will give her. Maybe it’s power, respect, vengeance, money, protection, connections. So she’ll tolerate the nonsense so long as it still gets her what she wants and her struggle might be trying to not let herself get corrupted by the allure of politics and “the game”. Or, she's playing along merely to stay alive and actively trying to escape and return to her simpler life.

Popular example: Percy Jackson is a reluctant chosen one throughout his entire story in every book, even Last Olympian where he insists that he's the unknown prophecy child. In The Lightning Thief he doesn’t give a damn about the quest for the Master Bolt, he’s there to get his mom back, and cooperating with the quest will give him the means to achieve his goal, and along the way, finds that he doesn’t quite hate it as much as he thought he would.

—

So. Yeah. In no way, shape, or form does your protagonist have to be “likable”. If someone tells you they aren’t, they probably mean that your protagonist is contradictory, or lacks compelling motivation and drive, and lacks a clear goal or aspiration that will define their story. Or, they lack drive to even participate in the story at all.

Or they simply mean that your charcater, who you intend to be likeable, has a nasty flaw that would turn readers off, but a beta should be able to tell you that one easily. If they can't come up with a solid reason why your charcater is unlikable, it's probably a motivation issue.

The earliest draft of a WIP that shall never see the light of day had my protagonist sent on a glorified space field trip by her parents, and wasn’t happy to be there. This not only made her unlikable, but also uncompelling. She didn’t want to participate in the plot and only did it to hold up her end of the deal, she wasn’t excited about the actual trip nor making friends, and eventually grew into it far too late in the story.

I then changed it to have the trip be her idea, and she ran away from home to chase this dream she had. Doing so gave her much more agency as an MC and gave her an immediate motive and goal so you wanted to see her succeed right from the get go.

Even villain protagonists have a goal, and generally they very much enthusiastically want to be in this story. You don’t have to like them, but you do have to want to root for them, if not for their success, then their eventual downfall in a blaze of glory.

—

Interested in a fantasy novel without a "chosen one" protagonist? Eternal Night of the Northern Sky is up for preorder in ebook, paperback on sale 8/25/24. Subscribe for updates if you'd like~

[raisedbythetv89]

The writers I think mostly completely by accident with the assistance of James charming his way into becoming a main character created the perfect storm to ensure people who love spike would reach absolute peak levels of being completely obsessively deranged about him forever

Season 2:

He’s a punk rock villain with killer cheekbones, enchanting eyes, and an absolutely DEVILISH smile - who’s an incredibly dedicated and dangerous fighter who specifically seeks out challenging fights he’s not guaranteed to win (brave and reckless - normally traits seen in heroes) hates everyone except his mentally ill physically sick wife (the statistics of men who leave their wives when they get sick in the US is horrifying like nurses literally have to warn married women who get sick it happens so often) who he’s hopelessly devoted to and unbelievably soft with and always listens to her while also exuding a psychotic amount of sex appeal and is just F U N he loves being a vampire and he loves fighting and it makes it so much fun for the audience. While still showing how much he respects and admires his enemy for her skill, strength, resourcefulness, and intelligence - NEVER underestimating her just because she’s a tiny blonde girl - and instead of destroying the world for love he SAVES the world for love - a villain doing good to get the love of his life back who essentially dumped him for her ex????????? D E V O T E D and shockingly extremely trustworthy??? And has amazing chemistry with our heroine and is there for a pivotal moment in her life and is the only one there for her when she has no one else????? *enemies to lovers girlies ENTER THE CHAT*

Season 3:

He shows he fucking MEANS IT when he says Dru is the love of his life when he shows up in Sunnydale because he blames Angel not Buffy or Drusilla but the man actually responsible for all their problems and he is the most pathetic mess we’ve ever SEEN!!!! He’s crying and drunk all the time and he’s so sad he goes to Buffy’s mom TO TALK 💀😭 our pathetic sensitive little self admitted lover boy who KNOWS he’s love’s bitch and he won’t be pretending he’s anything otherwise who shows how clearly he sees and understands other people and the depths of his emotional intelligence so much so Buffy herself admits she can’t fool Spike she can fool her friends BUT NOT SPIKE OR HERSELF EXCUSE ME MA’AM WHAT???????

AND Spike doesn’t just uselessly MOPE forever he gets some perspective and is like I know what I’m gonna do to her back and I’m gonna go do that now! 😁👍🏻 showing he never stays down for long and is always gonna get back up to keep fighting for his love while BOTH he and Buffy still honor the truce even though he’s broken it by coming back??? While Buffy’s all “I violently dislike you” YEAH OK GIRL WHATEVER YOU SAY *enemies to lovers girlies chomping at the bit intensifies*

Season 4:

CLEARLY heartbroken about Drusilla (DEVOTED!!!) but it’s turned into anger and resentment directed at Harmony who how bizarre looks nothing like Drusilla but A LOT like Buffy…… hmmmmmmmmmmmmm HOW INTERESTING *enemies to lovers girlies are vibrating with anticipation that turns into a full blown combustion when something blue happens*

Spike doesn’t pretend to love Harmony in order to get what he wants from her (shown in direct contrast to Parker) he’s ironically very honest despite being a villain - he’s showing he’s STILL loyal to Drusilla in ONLY loving her even after she’s dumped him... again!

We see Spike treat Buffy the EXACT same way he treated Drusilla during something blue reaffirming THIS IS HOW THIS MAN LOVES WHEN HE LOVES YOU. He’s extremely affectionate, helpful, protective, caring - D E V O T E D - and is truly just the most certified lover boy we’ve ever fucking seen

Season 5:

SURPRISE HE’S SECRETLY A LOVESICK MAMA’S BOY POET AT HEART UNDERNEATH THE BAD BOY PERSONA AND A PROTECTIVE BIG BROTHER AND NOW BUFFY AND HER FAMILY’S MOST LOYAL DEFENDER AND IS WILLING TO DIE NOT JUST FOR BUFFY BUT FOR ALL THE SUMMERS WOMEN AND HE KNOWS AND SEES BUFFY SO DEEPLY AND INTIMATELY AND CAN HOLD SPACE FOR HER PAIN LIKE NO ON ELSE CAN AND SHOWS THE DEVOTION THAT ONCE BELONGED TO DRUSILLA NOW BELONGS TO BUFFY AND IT IS GOING NOWHERE EVEN WHEN SHE DIES AND WE'VE SEEN IN HIM CRY BEFORE BUT NEVER HAVE WE SEEN HIM BREAK DOWN LIKE HE DOES AT THE SIGHT OF BUFFY'S BODY!!!!!!!!!!!

*all of us screaming, crying, throwing up, climbing the walls and generally just losing our minds*

Season 6:

No soul, his love is so great for Buffy as is his loyalty and devotion to her, he now helps all of his dead love’s friends fight evil and is raising her sister and dreams of saving her every night for 148 nights 🤚🏻😭 don’t even fucking talk to me I can’t take it

Forgive the absolute 180 in tone change here:

Dick game is FIRE - his touch is the only thing that makes Buffy feel alive AND SHE WAS IN HEAVEN BRO SHE KNOWS WHAT IT FEELS LIKE TO BE IN HEAVEN AND SPIKE IS THE ONLY THING KEEPING HER GOING like damn girl yes YOU FUCK THAT HOUSE DOWN!!! Also he is now just naked 50% of the time just to drive us all even FURTHER out of our minds and somehow has just gotten even hotter as the seasons have gone on like this is what’s been hiding under the leather jacket all this time! Enjoy!

And THE MOST unintended consequence of jw’s vindictive writing:

SPITE

He clearly didn’t want us to love Spike and tried to manipulate us into hating him in such a blatant and clumsy ooc attempt all that did was weed out the weakest amongst the Spuffy/Spike fans until all that remained were us:

The most devoted and stubborn fans who REFUSED to have the thing they loved ruined or taken away from us and were smart enough to see through his bullshit manipulation attempt in the first place.

Genuinely they created the equivalent of supersoilder strength level fans with this absolutely lethal combination of events 💀

AND THEN as if all that wasn't enough he goes and gets his soul on purpose for Buffy so he can be the man she deserves and she can love him without hating herself for loving him despite the immense pain it will cause him which is the most selfless thing we have ever seen anyone do for Buffy only to be topped when he sacrifices himself to destroy the hellmouth, save the world and free her from Sunnydale!!! Plus ya know once he gets the soul even though he did it for her he never tries to use that as leverage to get anything from her like he truly expects nothing from her at all but still wants to help her and James delivers the most devastating performances we've ever fucking seen, finally tells her friends off which has needed to happen for 5 seasons, the "you're the one speech" him being a dad to all the potentials with Buffy giving us supernatural parent core who made it through their rough patch with their first kid in season 6 with Dawn and now are just the beautiful team with their found family and Buffy finally has someone who can truly carry her burdens with her and just all the tenderness and devotion they both deserve after so many years of pain and fighting. Basically giving the audience the message that even if you have a metric ton of pain and trauma there are people out there who see you and understand you and there is a chance for you to heal both together and separately to build your own version of a more normal and stable life. It's a message of such hope and I personally know several people, including myself who watched what Spike and Buffy have and it inspired us to look at the relationships we were in and realize we deserved SO MUCH MORE than what we were getting and in my case it turned out I was being emotionally abused and manipulated that entire time!! Much like Buffy was by both Riley and Angel. So it isn't an exaggeration to say Spuffy saved my life in a lot of ways both in being there for me at such a dark time and helping me draw a map of how to get out. Not to mention loving them in fandom spaces has helped me connect with so many people just like me who share very similar experiences and have helped me feel so much less alone and has helped me heal in so many ways 🖤

Spuffies get "hOw cAn yOu liKe sPiKe aFtEr wHaT hE dId" all the fucking time and truly the better question is how can you NOT like Spike???? HAVE YOU BEEN PAYING ATTENTION AT ALL??? DO YOU EVEN KNOW WHAT GOOD RELATIONSHIPS NEED TO WORK?? BECAUSE AT THEIR CORE SPUFFY HAS THEM ALL!

It's jw writing so NOTHING will escape his toxic bullshit but Spike - because he was hated by jw for so long - so much of the time when he tried to make Spike less popular he just kept making him better and more complex and more and more targeted to the female gaze which is exactly why he snapped and made the choices he literally forced everyone else to go along with despite their protests with that scene to make it the most traumatizing scene in all of Buffy history not just for the audience but for the actors as well because yes it is incredibly horrific and upsetting to watch (which is why I skip it on rewatches) but I still am able to see if for what it is which is a narcissist lashing out at people he hates because he hasn't been able to control them and too bad for him I refuse to be manipulated by his bullshit so it failed completely and made so many of us that much more stubbornly protective of Spike and his and Buffy's relationship not just from other fans but from the creator himself 🙃🖕🏻like he basically just trauma bonded us to Spike and Buffy which has led to the creation of one of the most devoted, loyal, intelligent fanbases who is absolutely unhinged (affectionate) with their love of this character and his relationship which is why we are all still creating and writing about this character 25 year later and show absolutely zero signs of slowing down or stopping 💀

[jazzthatonewriterchick]

Are you taking request? I saw someone on here ask for a JJK man request. Just would like to know so I know when and where to send my submission bestie. 🩷🥹

What Spoiled Girls Get (Pro!Bakugou x Dabi x Plus-Size!Black!Fem!Reader) [REQUEST FILL]

Pairing: Katsuki Bakugou x Touya "Dabi" Todoroki x Black!Plus-Size!Fem!Reader

Synopsis: You get whatever you want as Bakugou and Dabi’s shared GF. You’re their pretty princess. Their baby. Their spoiled little girl. You wouldn’t have it any other way and don’t know any different, so when they take you shopping to get some clothes for your birthday and you see a dress in the window that costs a bit out of their bracket, they get it for you…but not without you showing how thankful you are.

Warnings: Smutty Smut; 18+; Polyamorous; Aged-Up!Bakugou; Musician!Dabi; Ex-Villian!Dabi; Reader is Described as Having Rolls & a Tummy; Sugar Baby/Sugar Daddy Undertones; MMDoms/fsub Relationship; Spanking; Double Deepthroat; Spit Play; Hair-Pulling; Multiple Creampies; Doggystyle; Spitroast; Orgasm Denial/Control; Facials; Dabi Has a Tongue Piercing; Aftercare 

Disclaimer: I own none of the characters mentioned in this fic. However, as this is my writing, I do not give permission for my work to be reposted on any other sites that are not from my own accounts. Thank you!

Writer’s Note: Thank you for choosing me to do your request fill & especially for giving me the okay to just do your request for Dabi & Bakugou (just to make it clear for the readers too). I hope you enjoy this! -Jazz 

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“So what does my baby wanna do next?” Katsuki whispers to you, his hand on your thigh like you aren’t sitting in a public space. 

Or right next to your second boyfriend who isn’t too keen on Katsuki keeping you to himself when this is a “shared effort”. “Our baby,” Dabi corrects him, scooting his chair closer to you and putting a tatted hand on your other thigh. His fingers, adorned in rings, gently squeeze the soft flesh there. 

Katsuki’s vermillion eyes flick to Dabi’s ice-blue ones, a secret rivalry between them despite having been with you for over a year now. “Our baby,” he growls out. “It’s your day after all.” The scents of his and Dabi’s cologne begin to cloud your senses, the two bottomless mimosas you consumed at your birthday brunch. 

“Um…” Your mind wanders, short-circuiting as your boyfriends squeeze between you between their big, muscular bodies at the table. 

The two smirk at each other, for once not bickering or shooting each other dirty looks when one of them gains your attention over the other. “What’s up, doll?” Dabi purrs into your ear in his raspy, graveled voice. “Too shy to tell us?” 

Katsuki, too, leans in closer, pressing his big, tatted arms against yours, his pecs pressing against his white tee. He looks so good in white, especially with the chains hanging from his neck and the rayban sunglasses clipped to his collar. His platinum blonde hair is cut into an undercut, making him look sexier and more mature. Very appropriate for one of the most prominent and wellknown pro heroes in the world. 

Dabi looks just as fine for your birthday, his black tee and leather jacket standing out against his snow-white hair. You’ve always loved how the bright, white locks contrast with the black ink coating his arms and body. Though older than Katsuki by a couple of years, he is just as handsome and is always turning heads, mostly because of his prior status as a villain who turned into a famous rock musician. 

And despite these men both being wealthy and hot, they are completely infatuated with you. You, who works a regular degular 9-5 job and isn’t a celebrity or a model. And you couldn’t be happier with them. They were floored by your beauty and your body the moment they met you. After you got closer to both of them, they agreed to both date you at the same time, spoiling you with their riches. 

You could barely believe your luck and almost thought it was a dream. It took some time to get used to things and the way your boyfriends spent their money on you. Katsuki loves you being is passenger princess, dropping a bag on your nails and any clothes you want. He is a “I’ve got it, baby” kind of partner, always paying the check at dinner and taking you on expensive nights. Nothing is too good for his baby. 

Dabi is the same way, always surprising you with a trip here or a random weekend at a five-star hotel there (Katsuki is usually there too so both of them can spend the weekend fucking you stupid into the hotel mattress again and again). You once spent a month traveling with Dabi on a tour around Japan, sight-seeing and watching him perform on stage.

Over time, you started feeling more comfortable asking for things. You want money to get your hair done? “Sure, baby.” You want some new kicks? “Okay, but not those ugly ass Yeezys. I see in those and you’re gonna get it bad.” You want to get a pretty skirt to make your plump ass look plumper? “Of course, doll; just as long as I can take it off later.” 

You love them. And they love you, especially how easy it is you tease you. “You know I can’t think straight with all this attention,” you whisper, squeezing your thighs together under your pink dress. They love it when you wear your tight, short dresses and skirts. Anything to show off your rolls, ass, hips, and soft, pudgy belly that they just love to kiss, squeeze, and bite on. 

“You sure it ain’t them mimosas? You downed those like they were water, baby.” Katsuki snickers at you, Dabi joining in. As if telling on you, the waitress comes over to clean your dishes of your two mimosa glasses and plates from a delicious brunch. “Hey, it’s my birthday!” you scoff. “I can drink all I want to.” 

Katsuki’s eyebrows raise, a playful and mischevious look appearing in his eyes that makes you feel hot. “Oooh, there’s that mouth we both love so much. Maybe you need a third drink, huh?” He goes to wave down the waitress, but to stop him. “Stop,” you giggle. “Besides, I don’t know what else I want. Y’all have already done so much for me today.” 

And they have. Between surprising you with a flower delivery this morning, picking you up for a brunch date at an expensive bistro, and driving you around in Dabi’s range rover (which he insisted to drive), you don’t know how much better your birthday can get with your two rich boyfriends. 

“And it’s just the beginning, babe,” Katsuki says, taking the bill from the table while Dabi reaches into his jeans for his wallet. “Just think. What’s something we can absolutely do for you?” You think about it for a moment, wondering what haven’t you done lately that would make this birthday extra special. “Um….maybe take me shopping?” 

Your boyfriends stare you down, creating a tingle in your core. “Please?” you add, staring up at them both through your lashes. Dabi practically groans at your sweetness. “I do love a polite girl. It’s fine by me, doll, but let’s just hope this chihuahua has enough in his pocket to one up me.” He smirks at Katsuki over your shoulder. 

The blonde glares daggers at him as he smacks down his black card. “Bitch, you’re actin’ like I didn’t pay for the rounds,” he scoffs. “Why don’t you try matching up to my birthday gift? Did you get her another stupid trinket you thought she’d like from your tour?” He grins maliciously at Dabi who you can tell is simmering. 

“Guys, no fighting,” you sternly say, placing a hand on their hard chests. “Not today. It’s my day.” The two look at you as if realizing you’re still here. “Yeah, your day,” Katsuki sighs, pecking you on the cheek. “We can’t help fighting over our baby though.” 

Dabi presses a kiss to your face too, both of their lips making your heart leap and your pussy throb excitedly. You just love their kisses! “We’ll make it up to you later, babe. Right now, let’s get you in some stores.” You smile and take each of their bigger, calloused hands in your smaller, softer ones. 

“Thank you, Daddies,” you whisper, low enough for only them to hear. You see their gazes sotften before molen lust takes over. “Such a good girl,” Dabi says, giving your ass a smack when you stand. It catches the eye of an old couple who glare at such an inappropriate display, making you jab Dabi in the stomach while he laughs. 

For the next hour, Katsuki and Dabi take you shopping after leaving the bistro. They take you to a small strip on the richer side of the city where designer stores line the block. You pick out bags and clothes, shoes and jewlery. While you don’t keep too many items in fear of overflowing your closet, you do pick out some nice keepers: Jimmy Choo and Saint Laurent heels; Prada sunglasses; a couple of designer dresses that fill out your curves; a Fendi purse; a set of earrings and a diamond anklet to make your French tips looks even sexier. 

Through it all, Katsuki and Dabi patiently follow you around and carry your shopping bags for you in one hand. In the other, they hold you by both of yours, making you feel small between the two of them despite your size and weight. As a plus-sized girl, you always feared that they would someday reject you, but they remind you every day how sexy and cute they think you are. 

Finally, after stepping out of a Versace store and putting your bags in Dabi’s car, Katsuki grabs you by the waist, his hands grabbing a handful of your ass. “So where to next, baby girl?” he asks, staring down at you from behind his designer shades. 

You would say his or Dabi’s place judging by the way he’s palming your behind, but something catches your eye. “Um….oh!” You break away from him much to his dismay and walk over to the boutique window where a beautiful, sexy red dress stares back at you. You marvel at it, pressing your hand adorned in pink nails on the glass. 

“I knew you’d have your eye on that,” Dabi chuckles, puffing on a cigarette next to you. He laces an arm around your plump waist, gently rubbing your side. “What? You wanna try it on?” Your eyes trail down to the price tag on the dress, gaping at it. “W-Well, it’s kinda…” 

“Pricey?” he finishes, smirking at you. You flush, biting your lip. “I was gonna say small. You usually don’t find bigger sizes in dresses like these.” Katsuki narrows his eyes at you from behind his shades. “Dummy,” he scoffs. “Don’t do that. We always find the cutest shit for you in your size. This dress is no different. Now, come on.” 

His tone makes it clear he ain’t up for debate, so you walk inside with boutique with Dabi (after he puts out his cigarette). The place is small but high class-looking with marbled floors and walls, champagne flutes set out on lounge seats, and racks and racks of designer clothes, bags, hats, and accessories. A woman greets you three at the front desk, immediately going wide-eyed at the sight of Katsuki and Dabi.

“She wants to try that dress on in the window,” Katsuki gruffly says, nodding at the red dress. “Please,” you add sweetly, knowing that your men can seem rude sometimes. 

“And any bathing suits you have,” Dabi adds. “Add a round of champagne on that too.” You furrow your brows in confusion at this. “Why do you want me to try on bathing suits too?” The two men give each other a secretive look, making you feel like they know something that you don’t. “Just to see this sexy body in somethin’ small,” Katsuki chuckles, once again grabbing a palmful of your ass. “Now be a good girl and go model for us, babe.” 

How could you deny them? The employees gather together all the bathing suits they have that will fit you and guide you to the try-on section where Katsuki and Dabi sip on champagne and wait while you try on the clothes. You try on a pink bathing suit first that is low cut in the front so your juicy breasts look enticing and has a thong bottom that makes you want to squeeze your own ass. 

With a deep breath, you step out of the small try-on room and model for your men. “Um…how do I look?” you carefully ask, popping a knee up and putting a hand on your hip. They stare at you, not saying anything for a moment. “Like you need to get fucked,” Dabi finally answers, nearly making you choke. “I had alcohol, so I don’t wanna say….I’d much rather show you.” 

Katsuki jumps up and has his hands on you before Dabi can do so himself. “You look absolutely stunning, baby,” he sighs. “Just look at you.” He turns you around to face a mirror, wrapping his arms around your waist. And he’s right: you do look stunning. “I still don’t get why y’all want me to try on bathing suits in spring,” you laugh. “The summertime isn’t for another two months!” 

“Well, you’ll need new bathing suits for our trip,” Dabi says, downing the rest of his champagne. “Especially since it’s Mexico.” You look at him, confused. “Mexico?” you parrot. “When are you going to Mexico?” 

The two share a look, just as confused as you. “You deaf?” Katsuki asks, pinching one of your cheeks. Not us, baby. We are going on Mexico.” He then reaches into his pocket and hands you an envelope. You open it and find a plane ticket to a resort in Cabo, Mexico in it. “Happy birthday, Y/N,” Katsuki says with a smile. 

“Oh, my God!” you gasp, immediately throwing yourself at your men. “When did you–“ 

“We planned it for June so you’ll have time to put in your PTO,” Dabi explains. “And if your boss has a problem with it, he can talk to us. Either way, you’re going. You deserve a little break.” He smiles adoringly at your joy, both of them always wanting to see you happy. “Daddies,” you gasp. “I don’t know what else to say.”  

Katsuki’s gaze turns firm, making your stomach flip in excitement. “Try on the dress then,” he orders. “And don’t say shit about the price to your Daddies, got it?” You button your lip and nod, too aroused to speak. 

You then hurry back into the room to try on the dress that you carefully take off the hanger. After taking off the bathing suit, you put on the dress and immediately fall in love with how soft, flexible, and sexy it feels on you. Your thighs look juicy and despite your stomach not going anywhere, you don’t care and you know your boyfriends won’t either. 

So you walk out to them and drap yourself across the wall, posing for them. “I love it!” you squeal before they can tell you what they think. “I look so, so cute in this!” Both of them walk up to you and squeeze you between their bodies, theirs hard while yours is soft. “Then it’s yours,” Katsuki whispers against your cheek. 

“And you don’t have to tell us thank you, doll,” Dabi says, “but you’ll have to show it later.” Pressed against your back, you feel his hard-on pressing against your backside. Katsuki ruts his hips into your front, giving you a taste of his hard cock too. All for you. 

You shiver in delight, relishing the fact that they want you just as much as you want them. “Why later?” you purr. “Why not right now? After all, I need to make sure you know how much I appreciate you both.” You run your hands over Katsuki’s biceps while you press your ass in Dabi’s bulge. “Whose place?” he growls, his sel-control quickly leaving him. 

You decide to go to Katsuki’s place since its closer and twenty minutes after leaving the boutique with some new shit, you find yourself on your knees still in your new dress on Katsuki’s king-sized bed with your boyfriends’ big, hard, throbbing cocks in your hands and in your mouth. 

As soon as you got into Katsuki’s penthouse after a long day of shopping and being pampered, your men had their lips and hands all over you. Squeezing your tits and ass. Leaving hickeys on your neck. Kissing your lips so much that you got drunk. They couldn’t wait to finally have you all alone, feening for it. 

Which is why they can’t tear their eyes off of you now as you slobber, spit, and slurp all over their cocks, loving how much their bodies contrast you. Katsuki is beefier due to many years of training as a pro hero with smooth, tanned skin, hard, pierced nipples, and a smooth V-line traveling down to his thick, throbbing cock where a happy trail of blonde hair lies. 

Dabi is leaner with his entire body inked in tatts and covered in staples, but they don’t scare you away. His cock is longer and cures slightly, protruding from a cut nest of white curls. “What a thank you so far,” he hums, his black painted nails curling in your hair. “Such a big girl takin’ two big dicks at the same damn time.” 

You pop him out of your mouth and instantly take Katsuki’s cock into it again. He takes a handful of your titty hanging out of your dress like fruit dripping from a tree, slowly grinding his hips into your hot, wet mouth. “Fuckin’ greedy thing,” he grunts. “We spoil your ass too much.” 

And spoil you they do. To have two hot, loaded men with big dicks and skillful hands all to yourself? What more could you ask for? Katsuki slips his cock out of your mouth, leaving a trail of saliva connected from the tip to your bottom lip. “Open that mouth up,” he demands. You do so, sticking out your tongue like they like and allowing them to tap their cock heads against your tongue. 

“Spoiled litle girl,” Katsuki taunts you while Dabi relishes how slutty you look right now. “You gonna suck these dicks like a good little slut for us, hm?” You swallow the pre cum you collected on your tongue and obediently nod, leaking all over your panties and the bedsheets. “Yes, Daddy,” you whimper. “I promise.” 

That’s all they need to hear. Despite always bickering, Katsuki and Dabi know how to share you in the bedroom. They take turns fucking your mouth off its hinges, fistfuls of your hair in their hands and filling your tongue with the salty taste of their pre-cum. You love this. You love being used by them. You love being the only one to make them feel good. 

Katsuki makes sure you know this as he fucks your throat, making your mouth sloppier and wetter the more he pumps into it. “Fuck, baby,” he moans, his handsome face flushed. “You’re so good at this shit. You make me feel so good!” Dabi slides his dick out of your hand and shoves the blonde out of the way. 

“You’re takin’ too long,” he growls. “C’mon, doll, don’t forget about me. Lemme fuck that pretty face.” He slides his dick in this time and nearly touches your vuvula with how long he is. Though you gag and your eyes sting with tears, you take his cock like a champ down your throat, relishing his breathy swears and groans. 

“Time’s up, dickhead,” Katsuki growls, pushing Dabi away. “My turn. You ain’t the only one who wants to see that mascara run.” He tilts your face up to meet his eyes, making you show him your glassy eyes and ruined makeup.

“Open that mouth,” he demands. You do so and he leans in as if kissing you. A glob of saliva drips from his mouth onto your tongue, much to Dabi’s delight and arousal. “Now spit it back on my cock, nasty girl.” 

You do just that, spitting Katsuki’s saliva onto his dick before he shoves himself deep into your mouth, his balls hitting your chin. For a while, they take turns fucking your face and watching your cheeks fill with their cocks until they’ve had their fill and finally want a taste of you. Dabi shoves you onto your back, exposing your sodden, wet panties to them.

“Fuck, look how wet she is!” he cackles. “Just from gettin’ that pretty face fucked! What a little slut we got on our hands.” He gently brushes his finger down your slit, making you shudder. “Does that pussy need somethin’, doll?” he whispers, pressing his knuckles into your clit. 

You pathetically moan, shivering in pleasure. “I…I need you,” you beg, staring into your boyfriends’ eyes. “Please, Daddies, touch me.” Your soft voice forming those dirty pleas do it for them. Katsuki dives in immediately, hiking up your dress and ripping off your panties. “W-Wait, the dress!” you protest. 

He gives you the evil eye as yanks your panties down your luscious thighs and legs. “Fuck the goddamn dress,” he snarls. “If we ruin it, we’ll just wash it or buy you a new one. Now shut the fuck up and get your legs up.” Helpless to argue, you put your legs over his shoulders and all thoughts cease to exist the minute he gets his tongue inside of you. 

Katsuki and Dabi take turns slurping on your cunt, each one having their own fun with you while the other sits between your thighs. Katsuki drowns in that pussy, putting his whole face in it while his hands pin your thighs apart, forcing more out of you. His tongue is magic, doing all kinds of tricks as it swirls around your clit and pussy lips, making you drip increasingly more than before. 

While he does this, Dabi holds you down, watching your cute face contort in pleasure and your plump lips form Os as you moan and whine against Katsuki’s tongue. “So loud for him, little doll,” he chuckles. “You’d better be this loud for me.” 

And you are. You can’t not be when Dabi gets between your legs and gets his tongue on you. Your favorite part about his pussy eating skills is his tongue piercing that feels cool and hard against your clit while he sucks on it, drinking in the way you move under Katsuki’s veiny hands as he holds you down. “Take it,” he growls. “Take his fuckin’ tongue, slut. You wanted this so bad, right?” 

You whine, unable to form words, grinding your cunt shamelessly into Dabi’s skillfull mouth. When you cum, you cum hard and fast. “F-Fuck, Dabi!” you whine, your voice bouncing off of the bedroom walls. “M’cumming!” You make an absolute mess on Dabi’s tongue much to his delight who moans appreciatively into your cunt. 

“No fair,” Katsuki grunts, irked at Dabi’s cocky smile his way as he continues to slurp at your creamy pussy. “You make a mess for him, but not for me?” He wraps a hand around your throat, somehow making your orgasm more intense as it rocks through your body. “That ain’t gonna fly with me, baby girl. We’ll have to fix that.” 

That isn’t the only mess you make. Your boyfriends also take turns filling you up and letting you cream on their cocks. Again and again and again. And like Katsuki wants, you make a huge, sloppy, creamy mess for him. You can’t even count how many times you cum or how many positions they put you in. 

They fuck you in missionary, your legs on their broad shoulders and eyes staring into theirs as they put you into the mattress again and again. Their cocks fill you up to the brim, making you see stars. They fuck you with your head hanging off the bed, their balls making your clit tingle. They fuck you on your stomach, their hands massaging your ass and causing delicious sparks of pleasure to explode in your core. 

They fuck you doggystyle, hands smacking your ass, loving the recoil and the way it jiggles as they slam their cocks into your sobbing, wet pussy like they’re trying to hit a home run. Katsuki is particularly fond of this position. He grips your hips for dear life as he nails your shit with every pump of his cock, loving how pathetic and needy you sound. He especially loves fucking you in your new dress. 

Dabi stands on his knees in front of you, fucking your mouth and watching you take the blonde’s cock, hypnotized by your jiggling tits and ass. It should be illegal to be this hot. 

“You gonna cum for me, mama?” Katsuki grunts into your ear. “You gonna cum on this cock while I fill you up? You gonna take it like a good girl for me?”

You can’t speak through your moans, so you nod. It’s enough though and Katsuki rams into you until he lets out a loud moan worthy of audio porn and explodes inside of you. It triggers your own orgasm and you cream all over his cock, your pussy walls squeezing him tight. 

“Shit, boy,” Dabi chuckles, watching you both cum at the same time. “I can’t wait to feel her pussy do that to me too.” And you do. Without a moment’s hesitation, he turns you around and fucks your wet, dripping, sore pussy into the mattress, relishing your mews and whines of protest. “D-Dabi, wait!” you sob. “Too much, Daddy! Too much!” 

“Almost there, doll,” he pants, his hand on your throat. “Don’t disappoint me. C’mon, be a big girl for me and take that dick.” You have no choice in the matter anymore. You’re forced to take his cock while Katsuki spanks you, mixing pleasure with pain and making you howl. For two men who argue, they sure know how to work together in the bedroom. 

But when it comes to making you beg, scream, and cry? Of course, they do. 

“Oooh, I can feel that pussy gettin’ tight,” Dabi groans, putting his foot on the bed to get a better angle so he can fuck you even dumber on his cock. “You gonna cum again, slut? You wanna give me that nut?” Katsuki bends down to whisper to you, his lips at your ear. “Talk to him,” he demands. “Say something now or you ain’t cumming.” 

Tears spring into your eyes and a wail of pure desperation leaves your mouth. “Yes, Daddy!” you moan. “Yes, I’m gonna cum! Please let your baby cum!” But Dabi slows down, making you cry in pure agony. “Say thank you then,” Dabi demands. “Tell us thank you for all that we did for you today. Say it, you spoiled little brat.” 

You then feel Katsuki’s fingers on your clit and damn near lose it. “Thank you!” you scream. “Thank you for the dress! Thank you for the shopping! Thank you for everything! You’re both so, so good to me, Daddies! I love you both so much!” 

Both men audibly groan at your hot and sweet confession and profession of love. “And we love you too, baby,” Katsuki says. “Now fucking cum. Give it to us like a good girl.” Unable to hold back anymore, your walls clench around Dabi’s cock and you cum again, your orgasm making you and writhe against him. 

“Ah, shit, I’m gonna cum!” Dabi warns and grips your ass as he explodes deep inside of you, filling you up with his cum. There is so much that it drips out of you, mixing with Katsuki’s and creating a creamy ring around Dabi’s shaft when he pulls out of you. “Shit,” he laughingly pants. “Such a good girl.” He gives your ass a feeble squeeze. 

But they’re not done quite yet. They turn you over and like desperate men who haven’t had sex in decades, once again lap at your cunt. They take turns doing so, busying themselves fucking your mouth. While one is between your thighs, overstimulating you, the other straddles your chest and pumps their cock in your throat like it’s a flesh light. “You don’t gotta do a thing, baby,” Katsuki says. “Just let us do everything.” 

You gladly do so, too exhausted to move or complain that they’ll ruin the dress. You let them do as they please until they’ve finally had their fun and both kneel in front of you. They begin stroking and pumping their cocks in your face, your body and face the best porn they could ask for. “Look at us,” Dabi demands. “Take our cum again like the cumslut you are.” 

Without a warning, both he and Katsuki cum together, their moans, grunts, and whines of pleasure echoing throughout the bedroom. Their cum, warm and sticky, spurts out of them and onto your face, tits, and unfortunately, your pretty dress. You are coated from head to toe in them and their scent. “So pretty!” Katsuki grunts. “So fuckin’ adorable! How the fuck are you this cute?” 

You don’t answer, too exhausted to do so. You can only weakly mew and pant in response. Finally finished, the two quickly begin aftercare. They strip the dress off of your tired muscles, wipe the cum off of you with lavender-scented baby wipes, and rub you down with oil that smells like mangoes and pineapples. 

Finally, the two get into bed and snuggle you on either side. Dabi tosses one arm around you while Katsuki snuggles your head into his chest. “Sorry about the dress,” he chuckles. “But I’m sure we can wash it out. We’ve done it to all your other pretty shit.” 

“And then we’ll ruin it again,” Dabi adds, making both men cackle evilly. You softly moan into Katsuki’s chest, half in protest and half deep in sleep. Exhausted from getting your shit beat, it doesn’t take long for you to drift off… 

But not until after you feel your boyfriends press two soft kisses to your lips. “Happy birthday,” they whisper to you and you sleep with a smile on your face. 

THE END.

[raavenb2619]

Can you talk more about aromanticism in Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep :o But yeah as someone who read the book before watching the movie, I thought it was weird they didn't include how animals were super important in the world as a sign of empathy and showing empathy was a status symbol.

Yes, I would love to talk more about this! I have a bunch of incomplete thoughts rattling around in my brain about Blade Runner and Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, including about the interesting parts of the book that were cut, like Mercerism, the importance of animals, the empathy boxes, the emotion dialing machines, the spider scene, the other police department, the use and non-use of the empathy test, the fact that multiple androids can share the same face, and the narrative/story treatment of Rachel. I'd like to organize and share my thoughts with other people, but first: I need to watch Blade Runner 2049 because I've heard it's got things for me to analyze, compare, and contrast with the original film and the novel; then I need to decide how many versions of the original film I need to watch and analyze (so far I've only seen The Final Cut, which seems to be the version most people like and recommend, but I think that having Deckard narrate sections could change the worldbuilding and potentially add roboticism that I felt was lacking in The Final Cut); then I probably need to spend some time piecing my ideas together into something coherent that other people can read and understand, but then I'd love to publish my thoughts (probably as an essay on Wordpress, though maybe something a bit more informal) and let people read it and have a conversation about it.

How long will that take? I don't really know. My Frozen essay took four months; DADoES + BR + BR 2049 might take longer because there's more material to analyze. But by asking for my thoughts, you've somehow given me the motivation and inspiration to actually write something about this. (So, thank you for that :).) I'd also like to try to share some of my progress, thoughts, realizations, and questions as they happen on Tumblr, because I'm interested in doing media analysis with other people (and because that might reduce the risk of me losing motivation while working on this), so I may end up rebranding my blog a bit at some point.

Here are some other media analysis/writing things that I'd like to do some day. It turns out that other people asking what my thoughts are on a thing is a really good motivator for me to write down what my thoughts are on a thing, so if anyone wants to encourage me to write an essay or blog post about any parts of any of the following topics, feel free to send me an ask:

Wicked (the musical). One angle I'd like to explore is looking at the musical through an aromantic lens, and reading Elphaba as alloaro/alloaro-aligned. I might broaden the scope to look at other Wizard-of-Oz media, and maybe also aro-aligned villains and aro-aligned anti-heros in media, but maybe that would be better served as a series of essays/blog posts and not an essay so long it should be a book. There's also so much musical/motivic analysis I need to do of Wicked, it has so much depth and I still find more things when I relisten to the music.

The portrayal of robots in fiction. One angle I'd like to explore is, "why are robots and aromanticism linked?" And I'm not happy with the shallow answer of "robots don't have emotions and people think aromantic means you don't have emotions"; I want to actually know "why are robots and aromanticism linked? How did the portrayal of robots evolve for there to be a link? Was that inevitable, or could robots have turned out differently so that they weren't liked to aromanticism? What does the linking of robots and aromanticism say about society and fictional depictions of humanity and lack thereof?" I also need to rewatch and actually finish Battlestar Galactica, though I think that might be more interesting through an ace lens than an aro lens.

Isaac Asimov's fiction and related works. I've been reading a lot of his fiction in publishing order in part because of my interest in the origin of robots and aromanticism, but there's definitely interesting things to be said about his novels and short stories, and also the Foundation TV series, such as how they treat love. (I also want an excuse to rewatch all the episodes just to answer nerdy music theory questions about Demerzel and does she have two musical motifs and why is one very legato and lilting and the other is staccato and halting and is that representing an inner struggle between her humanity and her roboticism?)

An analysis of @kernsing's aromantic sonnet #1 (this is still on my todo list, I got busy but didn't forget, but I have Things to say and I want to Find even More Things to say about this poem)

"Why Beauty and the Beast (1991) is fundamentally arophobic and can't be fixed." Okay, I haven't thought about this in a while so it's possible my perspective has changed and I'll find a way that the story could be changed to not be arophobic, but I know that the conclusion I came to a while ago was that the story structure itself was fundamentally problematic and that changing it enough to make it no longer be arophobic would require changing the story structure so much that it would be a fundamentally different story. This would not exactly be a fun essay to read or write, because I can't imagine many people enjoy someone digging into why a movie so many people love is arophobic to its core, but I'd still like to do it, some day.

Is "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas" a distant relative of "Beauty and the Beast"? (I mean the story structure, not genetics/family trees.)

An analysis of Walt Disney Animation Studios films over the years. After my Frozen essay I spent like a month watching almost every Walt Disney Animation Studios film and tracking how the films treated a bunch of different aspects (e.g. sex, romance, marriage, third wheel, kissing, jealousy, love, true love, meet-cutes, queerness, gender, sexism, transmisogyny, homophobia, multiple concrete aspects of amatonormativity, queercoding). But I never really tabulated or aggregated my notes.

The discarded best friend trope (this is an arophobic trope I noticed and came up with a name for), and some examples and subversions of it.

Why does High School Musical (and HSM 2 and HSM 3) lack romantic love songs despite being a loose retelling of Romeo and Juliet that allegedly preserves the central romance? What are the queer things that can be found in the movies? What would I do if I could remake it as a multi-season TV show that was overflowing with explicit queerness that touched on things that weren't shown in the movies? Can I be normal about Kelsi? (I absolutely can't)

Why does Heartstopper (the TV show) make me read Tao as aro all the time?

Fairy tales! What is a fairy tale? Fairy tales through an aro lens! Do fairy tales have a distinct musical sound/style/identity? Has the musical sound of fairy tales changed over time?

Why do stories typically have room for a heroic love interest, but not a villainous love interest? (I'm not happy with the shallow answer of "because of amatonormativity/arophobia". I want to know, why are stories like this? Does it have to do with the structure and pacing of stories? How do pure narrative reasons interact with societal forces and expectations?)

"Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games has always felt aspec to me, and here's why." The last time I read through the trilogy, I felt she came across as demi I think? It might be interesting to compare the books to the movies and look at what and how the adaptation changes, especially with regards to romance, relationships, and aspec coding.

Something about how you can have in depth discussions about aspec politics without using aspec terminology, and maybe using too much aspec terminology makes conversations in the aspec community less accessible to new aspecs as well as well-meaning and open-minded allos who would be better allies to us if they could more easily understand what we talk about. When it comes to things like amatonormativity and allonormativity and the societal norms and issues we face, the more people who understand us and agree with us, the easier it'll be to shift society to be better for aspecs. So, sometimes it makes sense to try to talk about complicated, in-depth aspec issues using as little specialized terminology as possible.

Something something aro Celeste. A while ago a friend joked that I should do an aro analysis of Celeste, and then I started actually thinking about it and saying words and they realized they'd made a mistake, but I never wrote down any of the thoughts I had. Just brainstorming here, but there's probably something I could say about Crystal Hearts as collectibles that gate access to more difficult content and have three different art styles depending on where they appear and how they push you away unless you dash into them and break them and how you can die after collecting a Crystal Heart, Madeline's ex, Madeline and Theo's friendship and Grannie and Theo's grandfather's friendship, Madeline and Badeline's story arc through a "Show Yourself"-like aro lens, and Theo's instagram photos of Madeline doing archery. (This essay would be more on the silly side of things, basically proving that given enough disparate pieces in media I can cobble them together with thumbtacks and red string to make shapes that don't exist. And yes, I came up with the brainstorming list in about 5 minutes off the cuff while writing this bullet point)

An aro reading of Homestuck. I would need to finish Homestuck first, and I'm going to start from the beginning at...some point. I remember really liking and getting excited by the "troll QPRs", and I'm probably going to get nerd-sniped by trying to build my own understanding of how leprechaun romance can make sense. (Yes, I know this might be another thumbtacks and red string essay. No spoilers please)

Something about Gravity Falls, The Owl House, She-Ra, Steven Universe, or other similar TV shows?

Tron and Tron: Legacy? Idk I rewatched them semi recently, and expected to dislike the sequel because I had been listening to the album totally wrong. But then I disliked the original and liked the sequel a lot. There's potentially a music theory lens here, but I'm not sure if there's a queer lens here. But that's okay, maybe someone will suggest one, or maybe I'll just write up my thoughts even though there isn't any queerness to speak of, because my media analysis doesn't always have to be through a queer lens.

Something else that I haven't listed here because I don't have an actual list of things anywhere and I've probably forgotten multiple things?

Something I haven't thought of? If you want to know my thoughts on something or want me to analyze something, feel free to send an ask or a reblog or something. No promises I'll answer in a timely fashion (or ever), but I might

[kb-jank]

so I've been rewatching Static Shock because of @bearsspace 's Duke and Virgil art, and I'm not even a season in and its already so clear how good they'd get along.

Like Virgil's story focuses on not only actual racism and systemic issues, but the allegory of race within the bang babies/metahumans. Duke's story also does this with We Are Robin and Robin War; the robins are a group of mostly disenfranchised kids who rise up to protect themselves and their communities while being targeted by cops. WAR also makes direct comparisons to racism/systemic issues.

Besides their stories having some similar themes, they're also similar in the way they interact with their communities directly. (Let me mention here that Duke's mom and Virgil's dad are both social workers). Both Duke and Virgil are able to talk and connect with the people they're saving, and this includes the "villains" they encounter who really just need help (ohoho! another part of their stories connected to systemic issues).

Of course a lot of heroes do this but it's special for Virgil and Duke. Virgil's able to connect and help his foes not only because he's a bang baby, but because the standing he already has in his community. Like he spends a lot of time at the community centre and it means a lot to him. One of the things I really love about Virgil is that if he wants to get info on someone he starts knocking on doors and talking to people. It's special for Duke because not only does a big part of his story centre around bringing a community together to protect itself, but in contrast to the rest of the bats, his whole thing is LITERALLY being in the daylight. Like the whole premise of his character is being a beacon, Duke will always have a connection with the public the rest of the bats can't.

I also think it's really funny how both of them almost immediately become superheroes the first chance they got. Like Virgil's bestfriend is like, "You could be a superhero!" and he agrees instantaneously and does it. Duke's kinda just like, "Ugh, I GUESS I'll join this group of vigilantes if you REALLY want me to!" and "What? You want ME to lead this vigilante group? Aw shucks well SOMEONES gotta do it!" and "Not like being a vigilante is important to me or anything but I will literally let nothing including Batman's trained sidekicks stop me." then he jumps out of a moving cop car off a bridge.

[luvyurself]

Protective

a/n : he was my first love I was so mad when they gave him a love interest 😩 (also I totally didn’t forget one day nuh uh)

flufftober masterlist

artist for the pics ngh

c/n : she/her pronouns, shy reader, inspired by scarlet witch, your nervous about going to a party, kai loves her, he’s very in love with you, he wuvs you and it’s sick, he’ll protect u from partygoers

______

the mayor of ninjago wanted to personally thank the ninja for their service in protecting city whenever it seemed to attract the most world dominating villains.

so what better way to thank the cities only heroes than a huge fancy party?

each of the ninja were eager to go, the day of the party being filled of excitement and preparing for the night.

all except for one.

it’s not that she was ungrateful, she was very appreciative of the cities gratitude for them. it was just, well, she’s not very fond of massive parties like these.

she tried to get her mind off of it while her and the girls got ready. it helped ease her a bit as nya helped with her hair, skylor and her trying to find the perfect outfit, and even pixel helped pick out some jewelry for her.

though as she stood in the shared bathroom staring at herself in the mirror, she could still feel her hands shaking in nerves as she did her makeup.

she grumbled in frustration as she messed up her eyeliner for what seemed like the millionth time, grabbing the makeup wipe to carefully clean it off.

she flinched as she saw someone standing behind her in the reflection of the mirror, the person giving a small laugh, “calm down, babe, just me.”

she sighed softly, looking at him through the reflection, “kai…you look really nice.” her usually quiet tone filled his ears, making him smile as he pulled on the fabric on his neck.

“didn’t mean to scare you, just needed the mirror to tie this stupid tie.” he mumbled, “I never knew how to do this thing.”

a ghost of a smile graced her lips, placing down her eyeliner pen as she turned to face him, “here.” she spoke, her hands shaking as she grabbed the tie to begin.

she felt kai’s eyes stare at her as he quietly observed her, studying how she bit the inside of her cheek, huffed a bit when she would mess up a little thing.

he let a dreamy sigh escape his lips, “you look gorgeous, you know?” he said, his voice dripping with sweetness.

her ears grew warm at his comment, humming in reply as she pulled the tie up and smooth out his blazer.

an eyebrow quirked at her, “you okay, sweetheart?” he started, looking at her with a concern expression, “you’re, like, more quiet then normally.”

she paused what she was doing, her hands gripping his blazer as she dragged them down and back to her side.

“I guess….I’m a bit….nervous.” she mumbled, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear. “I don’t know…”

kai’s eyes softened, since the day he met her she was always quiet and shy, her personality always a sharp contrast to what her element was.

he placed his hand on her shoulder, rubbing it with a steady pace, “hey, it’s okay to be nervous.” he spoke, “I know it’s not really your scenery, but we are all gonna be with you there.”

she sighed, her hand moving to grab his hand off of her shoulder to hold it, “I don’t want you guys to worry about me…you guys should just be there to have fun.”

kai tutted, a teasing smile on his face, “well, it’s a fancy dinner date, so I don’t know how much fun I’ll have there.”

he then spun her around to face the mirror, looking at her through it, “but, what I do know, is that I’ll never leave your side. I will be with you the whole night, and you could just say the word and me and you can leave.”

she gave a little pout at that, “I can’t ask you to do that. I can try and manage myself.”

“you’re not asking,” he insisted, resting his chin on her shoulder, “I’m offering.” he planted a kiss to her neck, her body shivering a bit as his breath fanned against her skin.

“and I know you can manage yourself, you’ve proven that to me multiple times.” he whispered, his arms wrapping around her waist as he took a glance at her, “but, in a very non-toxic-boyfriend-way, I’ll always want to protect you in anyway. even if it’s at fancy pantsy parties.”

she lets out a quiet laugh, her hands resting on top of his as she leaned against his head, “thank you, kai.” she turned to kiss his head, looking back at him.

“besides,” kai started again, grabbing her hand and messing with her fingers, “I can always ask you to spice up the party and make everyone think they are naked.”

“you-“ she pulled her hand away, pressing her hand against his face and carefully pushed it away, “are horrible.”

he let out a groan, “come onnn…master of chaos magic and you can’t have a bit of fun.”

she picked up her eyeliner pen, her hand no longer shaking as she glanced back at him. “your meaning of fun is me mind manipulating the party?” she questioned, beginning her wing.

“oh come on,” she could hear the smile in his voice, “you think it’s hilarious.”

“a little bit.”

[randomuser678]

I love how most Batman villains have a genderbend version of them, specially bc as a trans woman I want to read into them being trans

Like, the Ventriloquist's design is of a mild mannered boring looking man who contrasts with his puppet Scarface who's much more rude and greedy, it feels like Scarface is a way for his ventriloquist to express his more rude side while distancing himself from them.

Now on my read where she's a trans woman there would be two layers of repression here, Ventriloquist personified her "masculine" side into the puppet who acts like a stereotypical tough guy, a rude bossy mafia leader, and she became a sexy trophy wife for him, this way she separates herself from the undesirable masculine traits, as well as becoming a love interest to a man who makes all the decisions for her, she only exists to support him, she finally made it to cisnormative and heteronormative ideals of femininity! It comes off as a tragic clinging to idealized femininity and male approval on a way I really relate to.

Clayface also has a really good portrayal of Dysphoria since in the versions I've seen they're an actor who hates their own face and got into a drug that would make their face easy to remold, then it went horribly wrong and now their entire body is moldable, Lady Clayface didn't have to change that general backstory for it to work at all, and the theme of beauty is common on female villains, but tbh I love this one specifically because of the trans read being more obvious, and this is the one case where a character didn't have to change backstories at all for the female version, she can still be a former actor with dysphoria that later gains shapeshifting powers, it's almost a happy ending for her now that she can change her shapes even if it's still tragic.

Calendar girl has a similar theme (Although she's both a version of Calendar man but also The Manikin) where she's a former celebrity who's horrified by her appearance under the mask and is "aging out" of her career, her attacking themed on holidays is both a mockery of her job as a model and needing to keep up with trends and also to show her resentment towards the passage of time, it's a really fun mix of characters and my trans read of her would be similar to Clayface. Also how youth and beauty is valued in society as a whole and older trans people in general are ignored on the mainstream.

And because the comic book world is really hostile towards genderbends (see Oswald from the newest Batman cartoon) a lot of them have instead characters who co-exist with their male counterparts, that was the case for the Ventriolquist since she just took the role from the previous one, but sometimes they do what they did here:

Madame Crow is part of the Victim Syndicate, a group of people who were victims of different villains and now resent Batman for not saving them, their powers are now ironic mirrors to the characters they were victimized by, and on Madame Crow's case, where she was a victim of the fear toxins from the Scarecrow, she made toxins that completely rid a person of any fear or self-preservation. And idk the fact that she wants to create something that gets rid of fears and repression just comes off as queer to me even though it was obviously not intentional, it's just that on a version where she IS the Scarecrow I would love how thematically fitting it all is.

I've seen pieces about how Batman is inherently queer bc super heroes and villains as a whole empower themselves through creating an alternative persona on an over the top camp way that's basically drag.

Some male villains have female sidekicks, Sugar and Spice, Query and Echo, and I guess those are harder to read as female personas of the same character like how I've been doing, but idk, you can rewrite the stories however you like to make these work, maybe twoface is bigender and flips a coin to decide which gender they're going with, that would be on theme. You can do anything ever with these characters.

Also I never understood why ppl were mad about Oswalda, every version of Batman changes backstories around, why is changing a character's gender or whatever completely out of line with that they've already been doing for decades? Anyways I'm trans and this is all.

[mirageofadesert]

Female Power Done Right: A closer look at Pian Ran from TTEOTM

The seductress: regulating sexual morality

Female characters have always been stereotyped in popular media. While this isn't limited to the portrayal of women, it has affected them disproportionately and usually in a negative way. There are a number of common stereotypes of how women are portrayed, such as the virtuous woman, the seductress/femme fatale, the Mary Sue and more. While I don't want to say that TTOETM doesn't rely on these kinds of stereotypes to tell its story, the show does get some things right when it comes to its female characters. Pian Ran is the best example of this.

Most temptress are villains, because female sexuality is often framed as something negative, something dangerous. Sexual morality serves to regulate gender relations, for example through various sexual taboos and prohibitions on premarital and extramarital sexuality or homosexuality. In the major religions and many cultures, sexuality is traditionally placed in the service of procreation. In the ascetic-monastic traditions of Hinduism, Buddhism and Christianity, which are characterized by sexual renunciation, sexuality is equated with ignorance, desire, attachment or sin and is considered an obstacle to salvation. As women are identified more strongly with physicality than men, sexuality and instinctually in all the religions mentioned, the widely received stereotype of the sexual seductress emerges, which has been used to justify a wide range of discrimination.

Therefore, seductresses are not about female sexuality, they are (through the male gaze) objects of sexual desire for men, while also being a negation point of sexual morality. Virtuous women, especially protagonists, are often sexualised, but not portrayed as sexual beings. In contrast, sexual women are often the competition of the main character. They tend to use their physical attractiveness to attack or steal the main character's love interest, or to overpower the hero with their evil tricks. For this reason, they are often associated with animals that are seen as deceitful, cunning, poisonous or dangerous (e.g. snakes, scorpions, foxes).

At the first glance, Pian Ran fits this archetype well. She is a fox demon, who feeds on the life energy of men. She seduces them, using their sexuality for her own gain and entertainment. Pian Ran also dresses "provocatively" and doesn't conform to social conventions. When we first meet her, she is playing the historical version of strip poker, not just for the money, but because the desperate men amuse her. In the same episode, she forces Ye Qingyu to accompany her to the market and uses her sensuality to throw him off balance.

However, Pianran also subverts this trope. Her sexuality isn't portrayed as something negative, it's accepted by the people around her. Ye Qingyu never judges her for it, even though he is the polar opposite. Ye Xiwu never looks down on her either, instead she comes to him for advice and even flirts with her.

Sun Zhenni's performance deserves a lot of praise. Her sexiness doesn't feel "sticky" or "creepy" to me, like many other characters of similar type do. She has a natural sensuality that isn't over the top, more sassy than naughty. You can tell that she studied her character a lot and tried to portray her as nuanced as possible.

Pian Ran is also much more than just another fox demon and seductress. She is a complex character. But her main theme isn't really seduction - it's working life.

Pian Ran vs. work life

This theme runs throughout the drama, from Li Susu offering her a letter of recommendation for a particular sect when they first meet, to Pianran's work for Tantai Jin - and her resentment of it.

She has to work to survive - literally, as Tantai Jin tricks her into believing she has swallowed a pill that will give him control over her life. "Take the pill", which will change your life and take away your freedom, is also a reminder of how certain drugs and their side effects work. While she's not without a certain amount of freedom and has her own command within the Jing Kingdom, she's tied to Tantai Jin's command and rigorous work schedule.

Our girl is a for sure a regular on r/antiwork...

This theme makes her a relatable and likeable character. It also shows how her character is a comment on current social issues, beyond gender roles. This is one of the strengths of TTOETM, it’s strong social and moral message that goes beyond the plot of the drama.

Pian Ran vs. love life

As a character, Ye Qingyu is the opposite of Pian Ran: Virtuous, very righteous and rigid. But he never judges her for her behaviour, he always understands her and gives her space. And most importantly, neither of them changes who they are as their relationship progresses. She doesn't suddenly become a modest woman, he doesn't turn away from his ideals - except maybe in that cut arc in Jing Kingdom in the 3rd arc.

In many ways, Ye Qingyu and Pian Ran embody the classic trope of the seductive and virtuous hero: she affects men in a certain way that causes them to stray from the straight and narrow or interferes with their domestic arrangements. For example, when he spends the first night with her and thus neglects his duties as head of the family, or when she contributes to his changing sides and joining Tantai Jin. In short, she is disruptive.

When she advises Ye Xiwu/Li Susu on how to seduce Tantai Jin, she suggests various manipulation tactics to gain his attention and favour, but Pian Ran also gives genuine advice - to both of them, actually (although sometimes it's my accident).

One could make the argument, that they were aiming to frame her initial strong sexuality as a coping mechanism due to the loss of her husband and love threads. The absence of her love threads manifests quite different to Tantai Jin, mainly in form of attachment issues.

However, the show doesn't try to make a point about female sexuality by emphasizing a change in Pianran's behavior based on finding the right man. If anything, it's Ye Qingyue who meets her halfway by having a premarital affair. What I like most about their relationship is that they are each other's equals. They both have high ranks in Tantai Jin's kingdom and army, and he listens to their advice and treats them equally. Moreover, Pian Ran is never a damsel in distress. Even when Ye Qingyue dies for her, it is because she was blindsided by the attack while she was winning her own duel. In the end, she shares the fate of most seductresses who disrupt the social order - she dies (if they don't join a convent). The difference is that her death is a tragedy and not framed as a regulation of sexual morality and gender relations.

Female Friendship

Before I dive into the relationship of Li Susu and Pianran, I want to comment on the common dualism of the sensuous vs. the virtuous woman. Li Susu (or Ye Xiwu) is not the virtuous heroine, it’s (again) Ye Bingchang mirroring Pian Ran. This is something that subverts the whole trope! It's the virtuous woman who become disruptive and falls from grace, while Pianran becomes a righteous heroine. However, while Pianran doesn't become virtuous, Ye Bingchang tries and fails to use seduction to manipulate Tantai Jin. She also has an additional set of love threads that make her seductive to men without using her sensuality or sexuality. It's a fascinating dynamic. As I said, TTEOTM is not a perfect show with a feminist message, but it certainly tries to subvert gender stereotypes - and not just with its women, but that's another issue.

Pian Ran's third important role in TTOETM is that of Li Susu's friend, who supports and guides her. What makes their dynamic so interesting is that while Pian Ran looks younger than Li Susu, she is considerably older (well, if you count age by years lived, not by date of birth). They are flirtatious, they share a horse and a bed, and they pass the Bechtel test! Li Susu even risks her health to cure Pian Ran of Tantai Jin's blood curse.

Both subvert gender expectations in their own way. They are strong characters without abandoning their femininity. The empowerment and the feminist ideas, they are embodying, also come natural to the storyline and are not just tropes. Therefore, they are relatable characters for a modern audience (except when they are not).

Edit: Got rid of some spelling mistakes!

[lyxthen]

I want to write an essay on how the Book of Bill expertly subverts the "villain with a tragic backstory/antisocial protagonist" narrative by portraying its main character as evil, trying really hard to look cool, and failing pathetically. The book is making fun of him, and that is actually kind of revolutionary, because most stories with evil, pathetic main characters tend to take themselves, and by extension, their protagonist, way too seriously, with way too much dignity, which leads to people misinterpreting them as heroes or idealize them in some way, and then replicating these harmful attitudes. They follow life coaches that will teach them how to be "alpha males."

Bill presents himself as one of these "life coaches," he will teach you the secrets of the universe, he will help you to game the system in your favor, to manipulate people to get what you want, he will free you from the shackles of society and reality itself-- but he is lying. The success rate of Bill's evil schemes is laughably small. He's a manipulator, to be sure, an incompetent one. His dimension rejected him, his friends don't actually like him, throughout the ages humans have found him insufferable, and to top it all off he ruins the relationship with the only being in the history of the universe he has ever truly felt understood by.

And instead of going "gee, maybe there *is* something wrong with me, after all" he doubles down on his harmful ideas. He doesn't have a problem, everyone else is the problem. Nobody gets his vision. They are all small-minded creatures of no value. His failures are always somebody else's fault. He didn't want to hurt anyone, he was forced to. It's not that bad, he's just being silly, he's having a laugh.

And we, as readers, we are horrified at all the bad things he does, but we also laugh. Not with him, but *at him.* He is being constantly ridiculed by himself, and the funniest part is that he doesn't even realize. He thinks he is absolutely acing this.

He isn't.

Eventually, it is revealed that Bill has no idea what he is talking about. That he has been defeated, rendered powerless, stuck forever in interdimensional therapy. The book tells us, "This is what happens to people like Bill if they don't change. They end up with nothing. No riches, no fame, no loved ones. They will be unhappy forever unless they realize there is something about them worth changing and decide to act on it."

This is in contrast to Stanford, someone who, just like Bill, was deeply hurt and rejected by society, struggled to feel understood, and took refuge in a narcissistic (bear with me-) view of the world. Diagnostic labels aside, Ford genuinely thinks he is better than everyone else for being smarter. He is a textbook Aspie Supremacist that swears by IQ tests because it's the only thing that has ever validated him. That's why he gets along with Bill, I think, they really *have* compatible mindsets. Ford really thought Rudolph should've killed the other reindeer. He constantly dismisses Fiddleford in what feels a very classist way (even if he grew up working class himself). Ford isn't manipulative and malicious in the same way Bill is, and I don't want anyone coming at me for saying Ford is evil. He isn't. He might be a bit of an ass, but he has a moral code, he knows that what Bill wants to do is A BAD THING and dedicates his life to trying to stop him. Stanford's biggest flaw is not appreciating the people around him more for their inherent value (not that he doesn't love them! he does!), but he learns, and he changes. He is more considerate of other people's needs and their perspectives.

And by the end, he is happy. He is free from Bill, he has his family, people who will support him unconditionally and will put up with his nonsense because they love him.

Stanford will never find someone who is as smart as him, who has been ostracized the same way he has. But that's okay. He has an inherent value as a person that has nothing to do with how smart he is in comparison to other people. He doesn't need other people's approval to be happy.

That is, I think, what the book wants you to take away. Don't be like Bill. Don't fall for the Alpha Male scam, or eugenics, some new age cult or multilevel marketing scheme, reject the ideas at the base. Talk to your family and friends, touch grass, find a group that shares your interests, but don't dwell endlessly on resentment, and don't follow people that tell you that the only way to be valuable is to be "superior" in some abstract metric, and that they can teach you how.

(As a kid, I almost fell down the alt-right pipeline-- and I am Mexican, transgender, and autistic. I fantasized about blowing up the school every day. I know what the fuck I am talking about when I tell you this.)

They are lying. You don't want to be like them.

You don't want to be like Bill.

[blood-starved-beast]

how would you interpret Maria hugging hunter in her visceral? i always thought of it as some sort of mockery from her

Sort of, but in the way that her whole fight is sort of a "mockery" of the concept of a dashing Heroic romance (In the Shakespearean sense of the term). Let me explain.

First, we have to understand Maria's character design in that she is of the bifauxnen archetype. The bifauxnen is a handsome, gentleman-ly type woman portraying all the traits we associate with a dashing hero: courageous, refined and sometimes aristocratic, and androgynous. She is the counterpart to the bishonen, the contrast to the more coarse Lad-ette. The most famous of this archetype of course is Lady Oscar from Rose of Versailles. She is essentially a Female Prince.

The Lady Maria reflects this design. Out of all the Hunters and Byrgenwerth crew, she is the one dressed to the Nines, wearing dashing Cainhurst fashion to something that is essentially nasty and wet and all the other things (the Hunt). She's wearing jewelry (the Lumenflower brooch) the cravat, the fact she curls her hair, the aristocratic looks and backstory (the fact that she's the Lady Maria, a Knight of Cainhurst Vileblood royalty), the fact that she was the one taking care of the Research patients and they worship her, etc. Her outfit fits along the lines of the Lady Oscars, Alucards, and so forth. The fact that she is the only one to realize the atrocity of her actions, to regret her actions and reject her calling as a Hunter, is so fucking introspective at the cost of noticing Gehrman's mania for example reads very much in line of a Romantic hero. She is presenting a Look and this Look says she is meant to come off as rich, handsome, and heroic as she's slaying monsters. At least, those are the visual cues the player is meant to read in that sense. And that is carried over into her actions.

Lady Maria fights the Hunter to "liberate [them] from [their] wild curiosity" - she is taking the role again, of the hero. The villain here, being that need for Insight and she is saving the Hunter from the call of blood. She then engages you a fight, a dance really, set to waltz - again, playing with those romantic hero tropes (assuming you don't parry her to death). The visceral attack therefore, plays into that fantasy. She treats you so gently cause of course you are the Victim enslaved by your thirst for knowledge, she is the romantic hero, mercy killing you with the sweet kiss of death. She steadies you as your now heartless body bleeds out onto the floorboards of the clocktower.

But like everything in Bloodborne, there is a catch you see. Cause the Lady Maria is not a hero in fact; she is a bloody coward.

Yes, Maria is the only member of the Byrgenwerth crew (and amongst the few Hunter in general) to make a dry stop + u-turn from the Hunt and the atrocities associated with that. But unlike someone like Djura, who at least is trying to be productive in his redemption, Maria runs from her mistakes. She casts Rakuyo into the Well and leaves. She joins the Research Hall and contributes to more atrocities there, but hey at least all the patients there love her right?? (😬) And when her brooding (or maybe insanity? who says she was immune to the Beast plague? Or Kos infecting her brain??) was too much for her, she takes her own life instead of you know, working to dismantle the systems - both the Research Hall and the Hunt itself. Her issues and her guilt - that is more important to her than actually helping or saving people. She the Lady Maria of the Astral Clocktower, Lord over nothing else but the reminder of her greatest failure. Both in life and in death.

Cause you see, her stopping the Hunter isn't really about saving them from their wild curiosity. The Fishing Hamlet is dead and gone. The effects are echoing throughout all of Yharnam in this day and age. Heck, the Hunter just came in from the Research Hall itself. It is well and truly Known, to prevent future atrocities of that scale, one has to know the events that led to those atrocities in the First Place. Lady Maria isn't helping you, isn't saving you from anything you already knew to begin with. She is, once again, trying to alleviate her own guilt and shame and trying to prevent others of knowing of that shame. So she tries to kill you. But you know, in a Heroic way. Hence why the whole fight is a sham and mockery.

She also hates your guts. I consider this to be tertiary canon at best, but the deleted lines has it so that she calls you insufferable, and baits you to kill her. She Does Not Actually Give a Shit About You. It cannot be more blatant than that. And how couldn't she? You make her recall her greatest shame, force her to break the last of her principles (no Vilebloodbending) so that your ass does not learn of what she's done. You also keep coming back, so you're a constant reminder that no matter what she does, her actions really do mean nothing, not before, and definitely not now.

Also she stares at you like this the whole fight if looks could kill well, you would be dead and not coming back (The way you ought to. Bastard. Stay dead already!! - Lady Maria, probably):

So yeah, she is mocking you with a oh so sweet kiss from the Handsome Hero type as she rips your heart out (breaking it) and kills you very dead. Cause fuck the Hunter specifically.

[maybeitsalivescribbles]

TTD - Of hair and shadows

“Ding!”

“Mmmmphfthphf?”

That brilliant one-liner uttered, Hero threw a tired glance at the text that has startled them awake, groaned, then buried their face into the pillow. They stayed a moment like that, letting their tired brain register what they had seen, then gasped and took a second look at the phone. It was really that late. To be fair, it had been a very long time since their last day off. Yawning, they slowly went to the door and stopped on the threshold.

The living room was an absolute mess. Everything was covered with sawdust. On a carpet, in the middle of a wood shaving nest, a dark silhouette was carving what had been a broken table leg, so focused on their task they hadn't noticed them. Hero crossed their arms, staring silently. For a moment, they wondered how Villain could have done that without any noisy tool, then shrugged this off. They were getting used to this. They were more concerned about the implication that their roommate had been awake all night.

Their stomach churned a little with guilt. In a wild turning of events, it had turned out that insisting on learning about Villain and Superhero's traumatic backstory had not, in fact, made things easier at all. Who could have predicted that, except anybody with a brain?

For a moment, they considered leaving them alone, but decided against it. The text had been from the agency, and Hero knew how careful they had to be with the deadlines.

They cleared their throat:

“Hey.”

“Greetings, nemesis.”

Villain glanced at them and added:

“Disheveled nemesis.”

Hero frowned in return, but it wasn't the time to bicker.

“Look, I’m sorry to ask you that,” they said, “but the agency is updating your file. I need to take your picture.”

Villain shrugged, leaning again on their work:

“Do what you must.”

Hero bit their tongue and added as gently as they could:

“I need you out of your shadow. And you need to stop doing... whatever you’re doing for a couple of minutes.”

They waited for the answer, looking anywhere but at their interlocutor. They hated they had to ask them such a thing.

Their roommate groaned.

“May I remind you that I’m the one supposed to torture you? My nemesis you might be, but you should be the glowing light contrasting my sinful shadow, not a thorn in my side. Your excessive love for paperwork will be the end of us all.”

Hero nervously crossed their arms, looking for a comforting answer, but there was nothing good to say back. They pulled out their phone with an apologizing glance:

“Come on, it will take a minute. Put yourself against the wall. I take the picture, then I won’t bother you anymore.”

After some more protesting, Villain stood and went to the other side of the room. The shadow over their face melted, leaving their sulking in plain sight. They stared back at Hero, who had their phone raised, but didn't move. They were pondering. In fact, they pondered for so long Villain shifted uncomfortably.

“Are my smoldering orbs startling you?” they inquired.

“Your?”

“My smoldering emerald orbs that seem to gaze deep into your very soul ? Or my perfectly sculptured cheekbones that give me a melancholic, though refined appearance?”

“Oh, no. I’ve seen your file, I know you look like a starving cat who’s been mildly inconvenienced. But I didn’t realize you had-”

“What?”

“How long your hair was.”

Villain looked at them with sudden, horrified comprehension. All embarrassment had disappeared from Hero’s face. In fact, it was replaced by a near maniacal glee.

“Oh no. You cannot mean-”

But their roommate was so excited they were rocking on their heels, their eyes glowing:

“Look, all I’m saying is that I’ve got a free afternoon for once-”

“You dare-”

“That I’ve got all the hair products in the world-”

“That I’ll give you, it’s an invasion-”

“They need to be taken care of.”

“You mean you need to play with them.”

“Same thing. Please?”

“But I’m brooding!”

“And I’m braiding.”

Villain looked at Hero with their jointed hands and their awkward grin, and groaned:

“You really are my nemesis. Fine.”

Hero beamed at them and took the photo. By the time Villain followed them in front of the dressing table, the shadow was back on their face. After a while, they sighed and accepted to show the back of their head. Grinning all they could, Hero gently let their fingers glide on the offered strands. Their roommate had beautiful hair, straight, shiny, and of course, raven-black. It also had all the knots in the world.

“The situation is dire. Pass me the spray.”

“You have more of them than a witch has bottles. I’m afraid you need to be more specific.”

“The green one.”

Villain handed it to them by the tip of their fingers. Hero took it, used it generously, then grabbed a brush. This was wonderful, but not as enjoyable as they thought it would be. Under the hair, the skinny shoulders were as tense as ever. No matter how soft they tried to be, Villain never relaxed a bit. Hero bit their lip, wondering how guilty they had to feel for that.

“Can I ask a question?” they said after a while. “Why do you cover yourself with your shadow all the time?”

“Because I’m dark and brooding and tormented.”

“Doesn’t that get exhausting, using your power constantly?”

Villain shrugged.

“At first it was. As the darkness grew in my heart, so did my shadow. Also I had a growing spur when I was fifteen. That helped.”

“I see.”

“Covering myself might seem impressive to you, it is but a little feat to me. I could plunge whole streets in the dark, should I wish so. No light could pierce through.”

“I know. You are incredibly powerful,” Hero smiled. “For a Twinkies thief.”

“You are never going to live that down, are you?”

“Nope.”

Hero took several strands and began to braid them.

“What I meant was why?”

“I don’t see how that might preoccupy you.”

Hero keep their eyes on what they were doing, but their voice shivered slightly when they said:

“Maybe it’s none of my business, but sometimes I worry it’s because you never feel safe, even here. It must be exhausting, never lowering your guard.”

“How can I, when I live with my dreaded foe?”

The hands in Villain’s hair froze.

“Do you really dread me?”

Villain had their usual booming, contemptuous laugh, the one that the neighbors hated.

“I’m your nemesis. It will be a sad day when I fear you.”

“Good,” whispered Hero.

Leaving the braid, their right hand rubbed their neck:

“I’m working for Superhero, it’s true, and uh...all of this...the situation is...complex? I had no idea what happened between you two-”

“I'm aware-”

“But now I know and things are going to get more complicated, but I’m- All I want to say is- ugh, I’m so not good at this-”

“On that, we agree.”

Hero took a deep breath:

“Look, I’m nothing compared to Superhero. I don’t think I can do much. But I will do it. To keep you safe. I know that’s just words-”

“I believe you.”

“You do?”

Green eyes emerged from Villain’s shadow to meet Hero’s gaze on the mirror:

“You’re a dreadful liar. I know when you lie.”

“Well…”

“For example, when you said that today was a holiday you’ve taken long ago, you couldn’t look at me.”

“Ah. Yes. I’m sorry. I just- I wanted to spend the day with you to make sure that-”

“-that I was unharmed so we could keep our endless dueling, for such is the destiny of nemeses.”

“Err, sure. Something like that. We...we’re good then?”

“No, I’m very evil. But I think we’ve understood each other.”

*

Check the These Two Dorks Masterlist or Tag for more snippets with this Hero and Villain. This is how they met and now they’re roommates.

Or back to Hero x Villain Masterlist.

[blues824]

i loove the way you write mitsuri <3 ! could you do some hcs of bakugo, hitoshi, and todoroki with a reader who is like her? i loove the contrast in personalities, and i imagine them to be the ones who gift her the green socks to pull her hero costume together after her feeling as if something was missing

Aww, thank you! Female Reader. 

Katsuki Bakugo

He is so down bad for you, but he doesn’t want to admit it. Not even to himself. Every single night, he stays up just thinking about you. When he does fall asleep, he finds himself dreaming of a future with you by his side as his partner. It made him so angry and frustrated that you wouldn’t leave his mind.

You were just so beautiful and kind that his heart squeezed whenever you gave him affection and attention. It could be as simple as patching him up after training, and he has a serious blush on his face from your soft touch on his skin. Don’t get me started on how it worsens when you check his forehead for a fever.

He wanted to scare you away just so he wouldn’t hurt you. However, you always stuck around even after he insulted you. After a while, he realizes that he has grown soft for you. He wants to follow you around like a lost puppy.

Katsuki doesn’t like it whenever he’s paired up against you, and it’s not because he doesn’t want to fight you. It’s because you pack him up like a lawn chair every single time. That shit hurts, you know? It does critical damage to his ego and pride.

However, he has to admit that he is proud of you. It means that you can defend yourself from sickos in the street. It means that you can defend yourself from villains. It means that you can defend yourself from him if needed.

The Bakusquad is totally excited about you and Bakugo being together. They thought that he was going to remain a bachelor for the entirety of his life. Then you just waltzed into his life. Mina absolutely loves you and thinks you are adorable; Kirishima, Kaminari, and Sero all had to listen to the explosive pomeranian go on (lovesick) rants about you.

Bakugo definitely gets jealous whenever you hang out with someone else. You find the scowl he has so freaking attractive, and you find it adorable how he is so protective over you… just like a husband would be. The thought makes you blush, but you can’t help but think about it all the time.

When he first saw how short the skirt was in your hero outfit, he immediately was like ‘absolutely not’. He went out to buy a pair of socks to at least cover some of your legs since he didn’t want anyone else eyeing you up and down. 

Hitoshi Shinso

And here we have the simpus magnificus, also known as the great simp. Sure, things were rough at the beginning, but that didn’t stop you from pursuing him as a lover. Eventually, he fell for you somewhere along the way.

He didn’t want to admit how much you made him flustered. Whenever you hugged him or tended to his wounds, his face would get red since you were so close to him. However, he did like the closeness.

Internally, he was grateful that you didn’t shun him for having a ‘villain quirk’. You were actually willing to hang out with just him since he always seemed lonely. Plus, you weren’t annoying like his classmates were. You were very soft-spoken, which he found relaxing.

He loved going up against you since that meant that no one else would be able to be so close to you, even if it was just practice. He also low-key found it attractive whenever you beat him, which was every single time. There was just something about being with a woman who could fold him like someone would fold a burrito that was just so freaking hot.

He is so proud of how you grew over your time at UA. You could easily surpass some of the teachers in power and strength. You’ve even picked him up when you hugged him because you forgot about your own strength. He didn’t mind though, since you were excited to see him.

He never thought that he would end up with someone as kind and beautiful as you, since everyone shunned him for years. He always lives with the constant fear that one day you will see what everyone else sees and leave him because of it.

That being said, he does get jealous whenever he sees you hanging out with someone else. It could even be just for a class project, he always tells you that if they try doing something then just get away from them and call him to come help you. (He wants to be your hero so bad).

When he first saw your hero costume, he was worried that 1) you would get cold and 2) people would stare at how short your skirt was. So he bought you some green socks that he thought complimented your outfit. He couldn’t do anything about the skirt length, but he could do something to minimize the skin that was showing.

Shoto Todoroki

At first, he didn’t know what the pounding in his chest came from, but he realized that it came when you were around. His first instinct was to talk to Fuyumi, but she said something that sounded utterly ridiculous: he liked you. Of course he liked you! You were his friend!

He could go on about you for hours, and Midoriya can vouch for that. The former just talks about you for long periods of time, and the latter is there to counsel him through it. Of course, neither knew why he went to him since Deku almost doesn’t have any rizz, but oh well.

Uraraka and Tsu had to tell him that he was in love with you before it finally clicked. Then he was scared: he didn’t know anything about love, and your quirk has to do everything about love. The smart decision is just telling you, but what if you were only being affectionate because he was your friend?

When he is paired up with you in training, he gets scared that he will hurt you. However, you show your strength by packing him up like a suitcase when you go on vacation. You were actually straddling his torso when you won, and the contact made him blush unknowingly.

Since you were able to defeat him so easily, you became his training partner. He desires to be stronger than his father, but also he wants to be closer to you. Establishing a close connection with you was the next step in leading up to the moment of the confession.

When you do get together, you reassure him that you don’t mind his inexperience with love and affection. You will lead him through it and see what he is comfortable with. He does appreciate hugs and hand-holding, but anything other than that is for behind closed doors.

I don’t think he gets jealous when you hang out with someone else. The temperature of wherever you are just changes drastically and he stares angrily at the person who is stealing your attention. You find it adorable and charming that he cares about you so much, so you make sure that he gets cuddles and kisses when you both go on your inevitable date later.

When he first saw your hero costume, he was concerned about whether you would feel cold. He would probably use his quirk to make you lean into him for warmth. He couldn’t exactly do anything about the length of your skirt, so he decided to purchase some socks that could keep you at least a bit warmer.