#my only excuse/reason for it existing is that it was a really weird time in my life man

[indooroutdoorboyfriend]

it's Harassing You o'clock so i am gonna discuss my oc some more in the tags

[windydrawallday]

I'd absolutely love to see your take on ES Optimus in any sort of capacity! He's my special guy :] But if you want something more familiar, maybe TFA Prowl chillin in some nature? If I could throw something more specific at you, interacting with some wolves? (Not sure how comfortable you are with animals but figured it's worth a shot 🐺)

AT LAST!!! I managed to draw your request after busy days and playing around with your last idea because GOSH: Prowl + Animals always win me over x'D

Tho... I took a... not very "chill" route that ended... in me drawing another thing that I know many despite about the canon of the character--

Yeah IM SO SORRY but I couldn't find a way to make it work without it orz (and I dont have currently the brain to design an alternative human design hxgcxhgvcgv) and welp :')

Hope is nice enough to the eyes anyways haha I wanted to try something different and challenge myself because-- Because AAA

[kannady]

do you remember me too?

pairing: sylus x mc reader

synopsis: love and deepspace was a newfound obsession of yours. you installed the game shortly after sylus was released as a love interest. it'd be safe to say he was the reason you installed the app. however, finals week was approaching and you had to say goodbye to your favourite game. not for long, ofcourse. but you decide to login for the last time to check the new event.

word count: 2k

a/n: hey everyone! hope ur enjoying the story so far! my mans sylus FINALLY HERE! teheheh ull see. and i hope this chapter gives some closure abt what is going on. thats my own imagination btw, its not from the game. would love to know ur thoughts. enjoy!

check out all chapters here

Chapter Four

“Excuse me?” Your heart raced. How could she possibly know? Or did she even?

However, instead of answering you, your sister scrutinized you, her gaze sweeping up and down, as if she were trying to confirm something. When the silence grew too awkward, you repeated your question. At this, your sister hastily entered the room and closed the door behind her.

“If what I’m thinking is happening—holy shit!” she squeaked, plopping onto the bed. “Does anything seem weird to you? Or different?” How were you supposed to reply to that? Tell the truth or lie? Why was she asking that specific question?

“Umm… Is it supposed to?” Great. Stay vague.

She narrowed her eyes at you. “You know, just this morning I read an article by Professor Winster—a brilliant man, really. His research is groundbreaking…”

You rolled your eyes as she rambled, scanning the room for distraction—until a single phrase snapped your attention back.

“Soul switching.”

Your sister seemed to know exactly what nerve she’d struck, because once again, that smug expression crossed her face. The words weren’t familiar at all. You had no idea what “soul switching” meant, but for some reason, it intrigued you. You struggled to accept reality, yet you didn’t want to question anything either. Was that what had happened?

“Aha! I knew it! You—” She stood and slowly approached you. “—are someone else.” After her declaration, she folded her arms as if expecting applause from an imaginary audience. It was too late to hide your shock and confusion. Having lost control of your senses, you heard yourself ask, “How do you know that?”

“Well, I wouldn’t have. Your timing was just convenient. That article I mentioned? It talks about soul switching. It’s never been practiced before because it’s extremely dangerous—not to mention completely illegal. Still, it was a very informative read.”

“Oh. Well. Here I am.” Since your sister clearly had an idea of what was going on, you decided to come clean. You told her everything—from what happened after you left to returning home from the park. She was your sister, after all.

She looked deep in thought, as if analyzing and processing everything. “Okay, your turn. What’s soul switching? Why is it dangerous and illegal? And how did you figure it out?”

She took a deep breath. “Do you believe in parallel universes? There’s a theory that another world exists—just like ours, with the same people, but different fates.” She paused, giving you a grave look before continuing. “Soul switching replaces a body’s original soul with one from an alternate universe. Same person, different you. It’s dangerous because—because…” She hesitated, but you needed to know.

“Come on, it’s okay.” You gently placed a hand on her back, encouraging her.

“It’s dangerous because the displaced soul gets lost… and the body left behind dies.”

The last word sent shivers down your spine. I am dead. Your heart sank. Your legs gave way, and you dropped to the floor. You were dead. You were ready to believe this was real—that you weren’t dreaming—but you desperately wished someone would wake you up. You looked at your sister, hoping she’d say it was another prank, but her reaction only confirmed the crushing truth.

Warm tears trickled down your cheeks until your vision blurred, until you were sobbing openly. You had died, and you hadn’t even known. The more reality sank in, the harder you cried. “What about my parents? And everyone else?” you managed between sobs.

Your sister sat beside you. For a moment, she seemed unsure how to respond, how to console you. Finally, she pulled you into her arms. “I don’t know. I’m sorry.”

Your parents had lost their daughter. And yet, here you were—trapped who-knew-how far away. You wanted to tell them you were okay, but it seemed impossible. Was this really how your story ended?

You buried your face in her shoulder, crying until exhaustion took over. You had seen the pity in her eyes, but you were grateful—grateful for the truth, and grateful she was with you. Someone knew what you were going through. Someone was willing to stand by you. And for now, that was enough.

You didn’t know how long you’d cried or when you’d fallen asleep, but you woke to your sister still holding you, softly patting your back. You smiled to yourself. There was no one you could love more than that little devil beside you. You sat up and rubbed your eyes. “Hi.”

“Hey.” She smiled softly. “Morning, sunshine.”

“How long was I out?”

“A little over an hour. How do you feel?”

How did you feel? Better, definitely. Now that the initial shock had faded, you realized you still had unanswered questions.

“I’m okay.” She didn’t look convinced, but you pressed on. “You never told me—how did you figure out I was someone else?”

“I said your timing was convenient. Right after I finished that article, you barged in, acting strange. The rest just clicked.” She chuckled. “Anyway, while you were asleep, I tried researching soul switching, but I hit a dead end. Professor Winster’s entire blog is gone. Every article—deleted.”

“So, that’s it.” The weight of hopelessness threatened to drag you under again.

“Not necessarily. Someone went through a lot of trouble to bring you here and erase any and every proof of existence of soul switching. They must have a reason.”

You looked up. “What do you mean?”

“Soul switching isn’t just dangerous—it’s nearly impossible. It technically kills two people and requires an insane amount of energy. Bridging universes isn’t something done lightly.”

The implications chilled you. Whoever did this had power—and a motive. If they could do this, what else were they capable of? But you weren’t ready to face that yet. Maybe you already knew. Ever?

Your sister noticed your expression darken. “What is it? Do you know something?”

“No. Of course not.” If it was Ever, you couldn’t risk involving anyone else. You changed the subject. “Tell me about me. What do I do?”

She thought for a moment. “You’re training for the Hunter’s Association licensure exam.”

So, I wanted to be a Hunter.

“What’s my Evol?” You assumed every Hunter had one.

Your sister frowned. “How do you know about Evol? And how did you know Dr. Zayne?”

Would she believe you? At this point, anything was possible. You pulled out your phone. The app kept crashing, but the icon would have to do.

“Look. I used to play this game called Love & Deepspace—”

“Love and Deepspace?” She raised an eyebrow.

You handed her the phone. She tried opening the app, but it crashed again. “Oh my god. Wait here!” She dashed out and returned with a book—a catalog of paintings.

“See the icon? That’s Rafayel.” She flipped through the pages. His artwork was mesmerizing, each piece radiating emotion.

“So, you’re a fan of his?” you murmured, captivated.

“But why is his picture on the app?”

“He’s one of the love interests.”

Her jaw dropped. “What?! What kind of game is this?”

You laughed. “A dating sim, but with a serious main plot.”

“And Dr. Zayne?”

“Also a love interest.”

She stared, stunned. “This is our world? The characters, the places—in this game. They're all real...”

You nodded. “Took me all morning to process it too.”

As you flipped through the book, she added, “By the way, your Evol is Anhausen Class. Resonance.”

Your heart skipped. No. That can’t be. You needed proof before jumping to conclusions.

“How do I use it?”

“I don’t know. You just… focus on enhancing something. You can enhance mine. My Evol is water.” She summoned a water droplet.

You clasped her hand, squeezing your eyes shut. Enhance. Grow. Increase. Nothing happened. Maybe you needed more force? You gripped tighter, willing the droplet to change.

After fifteen minutes, you gave up.

“It’s okay,” she said. “You’ve never done it before.”

“Yeah.” She was right. You couldn’t expect to master something you’d just learned was real.

“So, I was thinking—wanna eat out? Just us.”

You loved the idea. A chance to bond, to learn more about this life.

“Sure. I’d love that!”

After freshening up, you followed her to an upscale restaurant—your parents’ canceled reservation worked in your favor.

“Don’t we need a reservation?” you asked, eyeing the elegant facade.

“Mom and Dad had one, but after today, they decided to stay home. So, lucky us!”

Guilt prickled at ruining their plans, but the moment passed as you were seated on the second floor near the balcony. The view was breathtaking.

You thanked the waiter as he took your jacket and pulled out your chair. Then you saw it—a single black feather resting on your plate.

As usual, everyone's been added to the taglist. Lemme know if you wanna be too. Dont forget to share ur thoughts!

tags: @zenbutnotreally, @godoffuckedupcats, @noxus123, @madam8, @agustdxjiminx, @liz9898, @lemonn015, @tearydamsel, @diegojeanne, @alyssac9, @dummiebunny, @acesgarden, @bigclownshoes, @sylusgirlie7, @roseyjean, @poptrim

[cancel-me-daddy]

The older sibling trope is shitty and lazy, and there is no excuse for it to be this prevalent in 2025, point blank period.

(SPOILERS AHEAD for One Piece. Don't read unless you're fully caught up or don't mind. One of them is a thing that hasn't happened yet, at least not where I'm at, it's just really obvious that it will. Also spoilers for OG Fullmetal Alchemist maybe.)

This has been coming for some time, it was really just a matter of when the next time this stereotype shows up and ruins/turns me off from something before I put up this rant.

The Elbaph arc of One Piece has just become my least favorite arc in the series, and has ruined Shanks for me.

As if it wasn't bad enough how obvious it is that Loki is gonna turn out to be the good guy (writing this on May 5th 2025, I am on chapter 1140. Loki being the youngest gave it away.) and it's gonna be like Bruno from Encanto or something, but now Shanks has an evil older twin out of nowhere and this cool character is ruined.

Constantly making the older sibling in media evil and making the younger sibling the underdog/odd one out is such a dull overdone trope.

I have had a huge problem with it for years because it completely alienates me and invalidates me and the fact that I'm the only one who even notices or cares about this just adds to it. Like, I am actually mad when I see this.

In media, the older sibling can either be evil or a prissy overachiever who follows the rules (or both) and that is it. This is not fair and when it's the only thing you're shown throughout art and media it has an effect on real life.

And yeah, there are definitely more important/pressing issues than this but I can still be mad about this while also caring about more important stuff.

This is very personal to me because growing up, I was a complete inverse of this stereotype. I am the oldest of my siblings, and when we were kids I was the one getting mistreated. I was an undiagnosed neurodivergent child and grew up with a neurotypical and perfect younger sister.

My issues with this trope falls on deaf ears CONSTANTLY and I'm sick of it so l'm sorry but I have to bring up old family stuff. We’re good now and as long as that’s over I have nothing against them. But okay; I'm the oldest. I'M the one who was bullied. I'M the one who was "weird." I was the black sheep. I'M the one who did poorly in school. I'M the one who got the "why can't you be more like your sister?" talk. IT IS NOT FAIR.

It's like writers don't think older siblings are going to be watching or reading anything. We were all kids at one point. We were the same age our younger siblings are now and it's not okay to teach us that we're some horrible monster or a lame NPC for being conceived first.

Of course there are going to be situations where this stereotype really does happen. People exist. There are mean older sisters and brothers. But the fact that I can conjure up this giant ass list (80 examples as now) while I can count the number of good older sibling characters on one hand is fucking appalling. At this point they are really just demonizing older siblings and ass kissing younger siblings because we fetishize the shit out of youth.

Movies and books are supposed to be my escape from real life. It's really harmful that even my escapes tell me l'm not valid and there's no room for me in stories because I'm supposed to be the big bad evil one or the "obey your parents" prissy wet blanket while the younger sibling is always the good, rebellious cool one.

And I get why; younger = less life experience = underdog = root for the underdog. That mixed in with everyone’s subconscious younger = better. I know the reason but like?? It’s not a good reason? It should be defied and challenged once in a while.

This trope is lazy. Like flat out. There are better ways to write an underdog than this. We all know deep down that younger means better. It doesn't work. 

Being younger means you have less experience so of course an older sibling will be better than you at some stuff. It doesn't make for a good "oooo poor lil underdog" story. Imagine being the oldest AND having your younger siblings be better than you at everything and finding success faster than you. It would get the underdog message across even moreso, and that would be a way worse position to be in. Almost no piece of media has ever explored this.

Also if an older sibling is jealous of a younger sibling, they must be wicked and cruel. But if a younger sibling is jealous of an older sibling, we're supposed to feel sorry for them.

I have actually refused to watch shows or movies because of this. It makes me genuinely mad. Especially when I’m so far along in a series or if I have a strong love for a franchise just for it to pull this.

And it wouldn’t be making me this mad if people at least knew it as a trope. Like if it became as much of a thing as the middle child being invisible and people just recognized it as a trope it wouldn't piss me off this much. If it became an eye roll ‘oop here we go again’ that the audience groans about it wouldn't have driven me to this.

But the fact that I have EIGHTY AND COUNTING examples so clearly authors are doing it with intent and are consciously aware and it still falls on deaf ears where everyone I mention it to is all ‘huh what are you talking about?’ or change the subject or try their absolute hardest NOT to understand is what makes me want to scream. Like, FUCKING 80+!!! There has got to be some real intent behind this and when I call it out no one understands or wants to.

Fiction does have an impact on reality. Constantly putting firtborns under this light affects the way firsborns are treated in real life.

Their struggles aren't taken as seriously, people are quick to side with the younger sibling when there is conflict no matter what, and they'll be considered a failure or a loser if they can't live up to the 'perfection responsible leader' role they never signed up for.

Of all the media I've consumed, I could only find 5 positive examples of good older sibling characters that defy the stereotype in some way (13 if I'm being extremely generous)

To have just 5 - 13 well written good older siblings and over 80 bad ones, that's not okay.

If everything in my life was exactly the same but I was the youngest instead, if I was still the lonely fuckup black sheep who was bullied but I was younger, I would have been able to feel heard and have dozens of characters to relate to. But instead I'm isolated and invalidated even more and can neither have the cake or eat it.

No one ever talks about this, and when I try to everyone will cover their ears and change the subject or misunderstand it.

I’m probably going to blaze this because I will be heard. This current One Piece arc has deeply upset me and I already dedicated so much time and money to the series. Even if I have to keep shouting and posting about this over and over, I will be heard. 

I will delete comments that trivialize, invalidate, miss the point, say something like “technically (insert character) isn’t evil,” or otherwise miss the forest for the trees. I will be heard no matter how many times it takes.

EDIT: Tumblr seems to be deleting all the rude comments before I can get to them or read the whole thing, but I caught two comments (rudely) telling me I should have tagged for spoilers.

I would never intentionally try to spoil people, but you are on the internet and this is such a small part of the story, a single panel that tells us the obligatory evil older twin is here. And the other thing I said was a prediction. A really obvious prediction that I know is going to happen but it still hasn’t happened yet? (At least not where I’m at)

One of them also said that because they’re the youngest and was abused, that this trope is good and accurate. And then invalidated my own trauma and experiences, gaslit me that the trope isn’t happening (so the trope is good AND it’s not real) and attempted a smear campaign on me.

I match energies on here. Give me respect and I will give you respect. I am under no obligation to be life’s bottom bitch all the time. This essay subject is THE most triggering and touchy personal thing of mine and I will not be discredited here. You attack me on this subject and I will slap the same right back in your face.

Anyone who was actually concerned about the spoiler could have messaged me with, “Hello, I noticed you blazed a One Piece spoiler about one of the characters and it is potentially going to reach a lot of fans that haven’t read this far yet. Could you cover up the spoiler and tag it as such?” And I would have said “Omg, I wasn’t even thinking about that. Yes, I will put a spoiler warning in. Thank you for telling me.”

That being said, if anyone genuinely has an issue with the top panel being shown and isn’t a dick, let me know and I can figure something out in a way that still gets the point across.

Tumblr seems to be deleting all my replies to people so I’m gonna address comments on here (the ones that Tumblr is showing)

@ the Edward Elric comment: Yes I love Ed so much, he is one of my favorite fictional characters if not my favorite. I only count Brotherhood Ed though, because in the original anime they shoehorn in a secret third older brother to Ed and Al who is evil.

@ Lin from Korra wasn’t the parent’s favorite: No, but she was the hardass ‘follow the rules’ one who tried to follow Toph’s footsteps, while Suyin got to be the rebel going against the grain. It doesn't mean Lin is a bad character, she just meets some of the annoying stereotypes. You can like any of these characters. I even like some of the characters on this list too, but I'm still gonna call it out.

@ not the sofia the first mention: …kay. There’s also one from the Kung Fu Panda TV series on Nickelodeon. This new Shanks/Shamrock brother dynamic is so old and it has on par writing with the Kung Fu Panda TV show.

@ blazing this post is some real older sibling behavior: If you actually read the whole thing and said this, I am jealous of your lack of empathy. I think I would be happier if I was more like you.

@ what about all these good older siblings in One Piece: Ace and Sabo are good but still have some issues. You also have to understand like, Luffy’s not an actual fascist nazi foiled up against poor Ace. I love Ace, but their dynamic is not exactly reverse to Shanks and Shamrock. Nojiko wasn't bad list worthy but she did still have some 'good girl' vibes and she hated Nami when it was frustratingly obvious she wasn't working for Arlong because she wanted to. And she's still the NPC status quo and main character role always goes to the younger one. This isn’t really a problem, like Nojiko’s fine and there’s nothing wrong with having characters like her, but I would say she’s not really a good subversion either. And for Katakuri I'm really talking about oldest, not second oldest or middle. And I only count same-sex/same-gender siblings. That's why I didn't have Zuko as a hard <3 example and have him under more of an honorable mention because he's just such a perfect subversion otherwise. If we're going by boy and girl siblings then there's plenty of good older ones and plenty more bad ones I could have used. Hancock is pretty good.

@ why do you think Tina is a bad one: I know a lot of people do like her, and I knew someone would question her on here. I put her in because I feel like they let the younger sister be the “cool” kind of weird and gave Tina the unflattering kind of weird. But I get that a lot of people actually like her. I might remove her.

For some of the rude comments that got deleted before I could read, I might blaze this again out of spite

EDIT 2:

Blazing again. Good job. You are proving my point that it's not always this way in real life. A good person wouldn't invalidate someone's trauma and make them feel like their experiences didn't matter.

Younger siblings absolutely do get mistreated by older siblings and it's BS that they have to go through that. But you're the delusional one if you think it can never be the other way around.

A normal good person could have just gone, "I am the youngest and I did get bullied by an older sibling, but I can empathize with this. I didn't realize this was such a huge trope, and I'm thankful I can feel heard but I'm sorry it's not like that for everyone. My experiences are valid and so are yours."

It's also just ageist?? You literally can't control when you were born? What happened to Franky's "EXISTING IS NOT A CRIME" speech.

For a pirate show about love and friendship and empathy, it has some of the nastiest unkind people as fans.

[crowsofdarkness]

A Fight For Darkness: Chapter Two

-gif not mine. credit to owners-

Pairings: Eric Draven(Bill Skarsgard) x Female!Reader.

Content Warnings: language, violence, mentions of murder, mentions of taking own life, black mail, blood, smoking, drinking, mentions of drug use, arranged marriage, 18+ smut that I will mention at the beginning of the chapter.

Summary: An unknown text and a list full of questions for what happened to your sister leads you down to the underground fight ring that belongs to none other than Eric Draven, The Crow. Once he captures your eyes with his, the web you were desperate to untangle suddenly tightens.

Authors Note: This is not cannon to The Crow(2024). Shelly nor her and Eric's love story exist in this series. Eric does have his fast ability to heal thought. Tags are open for this series as well!

A Fight For Darkness Masterlist

“I’m only going to ask one more time, Y/N. How the hell did you get into the club tonight?” 

Eric’s voice fell on my deaf ears as I continued to stare straight ahead at the peeling paint on the wall, almost in a near catatonic state. My body couldn’t move no matter how hard I tried; not even my toes that were still covered in blood since I kicked them off before my run from those two men. 

I blinked before gazing up towards Eric, who was leaning against the door of the room with his arms crossed over his bare chest. Even in my current state, I looked over the variety of weird tattoos that covered his skin and could feel something inside of me twinge with disgust. 

No, not disgust. Something new for me. 

Arousal?

Typically I wasn't attracted to those kinds of men, my type more on the preppier side. The ones that wore polos and spent their Sunday afternoons at the golf course. 

So why was I currently staring at the hard v-line of his hips, practically drooling over this man? This stranger?  

It’s the shock, I told myself. It had to be the shock of the last ten minutes. I’m not thinking clearly. 

I racked my brain trying to think of an excuse, not wanting to give him the real reason why I was here tonight all the while trying to prove my innocence that I had nothing to do with the two dead bodies in that room. 

One with a slit throat and the other with a bullet hole in their head. 

Blinking away those images, I ran a dry tongue over my lips and let out a staggering breath. 

“I was looking for someone,” I did my best to ignore how shaky my voice sounded. 

Eric raised a brow. “Who?” 

“No one of importance,” my eyes flicked down at my hands, stained with blood. 

I began scratching away at it, opening to rid myself of what I saw.

“How’d you get in tonight?” Eric continued to lean against the door. “I haven’t set out any new invitations in months and this is the first time I’ve seen you here.” 

“Wait,” I looked up at him. “This is your place?” 

“Don’t change the subject. How did you get an invite?” Eric asked again through thin slits of his eyes. 

“Uh,” I began rubbing my palms on my bare thighs, hoping maybe that action would wipe away the dry blood. “Someone sent it to me.” 

It wasn’t a complete lie. 

I was still telling the truth while not divulging too much into my true motives for showing up tonight. That should keep Eric happy enough to let me go. 

“Who?” His deep voice questioned. 

Shit. 

“I don’t know,” I sighed, still rubbing my palms on my thighs. 

Up and down. 

Up. 

Down. 

Just as Eric was about to ask yet another question, there was a rapid knocking on the door. 

“Not now!” He called back. 

“Boss! You need to come see this!” A worried voice said. 

Eric grumbled a spew of curses under his breath before taking three wide strides over towards me, yanking my body off of the couch. His grip on my elbow was fierce, his fingers digging into my skin. 

“What are you doing?” I demanded, my heart nearly bursting out of my chest in fear so I dug my feet into the ground. “Let me go!” 

“I don’t know who you are or why you were here in the first place. Do you really think I’d let you walk around my club unsupervised?” Eric whirled his head towards me with dark eyes. “For all I know, you could have killed those two people.” 

“I didn’t!” I said, shaking my head violently with wide eyes. “I promise! I just walked into the room by accident. I was trying to find the way out!” 

Eric cocked his head to the side with an assessing gaze. It lingered over my face for longer than I deemed necessary yet when his eyes watched the way my throat bobbed, something fluttered deep within my gut. 

“Was that before or after you killed someone?” 

Before I could protest again, someone pounded on the door causing Eric to continue dragging me out of the room. It was so fast, I hadn't had time to see if the man that was leading us through the now empty fight club was the same man I’d run into before; the one that was chasing me. 

People were working on cleaning up the fight cage, scrubbing out the blood from the mat, while others were sweeping up the trash that littered the floor. It felt sticky under my bare feet and internally I cringed at how gross this entire place was. 

Surely there was no way my sister would be involved in some place like this. 

The second we stepped, well more like Eric dragged me through the threshold of the room, I took in sight of the two dead bodies now in better light. My stomach dropped out of my ass and bile rising in my throat. 

It was so much worse than I thought. 

The woman who had her throat slit also had bruises covering her body while the man on the floor not only had the bullet hole in his head but all of his fingertips were cut off. 

“Oh god,” I ripped myself from Eric's grasp to hunch over on my knees, emptying my stomach all over the floor. 

Eric made a noise that sounded a mix between disgust and annoyance as he watched me continue to lose my stomach contents. Eventually when all I could throw up was air, he let out a sigh. 

“I’m going to guess that you didn’t kill these two.” 

I wipe my mouth with the back of my hand before slowly rising back to full height. “What gave it away?” 

Something like a smile pulled at his lips but he refused to let it show and instead, motioned towards the two bodies behind me. 

“Do you know them?” 

Refusing to look, I shook my head. “No. I’ve never seen them before. I stumbled in here when I was looking for the way out.”

“Did anyone see you in here?” Eric asked. 

My lips parted but I hesitated, not knowing if it was a good idea to let him know. 

“Don’t bother lying. When you barged into my office it looked like you were running from something,” he noted. 

Letting out a shaky breath, I nodded. “Two guys but I didn’t get a good look at their faces because of how dark it was in here. The only light that was one was the one above the bed.” 

Now, there was a brighter light on, illuminating the entire space. 

Eric scratched at his bare chest, staring at me for a long moment, and I felt myself becoming small underneath his intense gaze. But it wasn’t only that. I found myself feeling that unknown feeling again, like earlier. Something fluttered low in my gut, a warmth spreading through my veins, and I shifted on my bare feet when they stuck to the nasty floor. 

He must have noticed how not only gross I looked but the mess surrounding us as well because he turned to one of the guys in the room with us; one of his guards. 

“Did we get an I.D on these two?” 

The shorter one nodded towards the girl. “Some hooker.” 

I sliced my eyes into him. “That’s not nice.” 

“If you expect me to care about some drugged up hooker, you’re fucking crazy,” the guard took a step towards me. 

Eric was quick to step in his path, blocking him from me. “Watch it, Greg.” 

The guard, Greg, clenched his jaw. “You don’t know who this broad is, Eric. She shows up in your office covered in blood. For all we know, she could have killed these two.”

“Did you not see me throw up all over the place?” I pointed to the ground. 

“That doesn’t mean-.” 

Greg began but Eric held up a hand to silence him, the muscles in his back tensing. 

“Who is the guy?” He asked, changing the subject. 

“That’s where shit gets interesting,” Greg ran a hand over his jaw. “Alexi Sokolov.” 

Eric somehow even went more tense in the shoulders as his head snapped over towards me. “You’ve never seen these two before?” 

“I already told you, no,” I shook my head with narrowed eyes. “Should I?” 

“Alexi is, well was the leader of the Russian mob here in the city. He frequented my fight club a few times,” Eric ran a hand through his short hair. “And that doesnt help narrow down the list on who killed these two.” 

My blood ran cold and skin clammy as I thought back to the two men I ran from. Could I have stumbled into something more than just a simple murder while looking for my sister? Could the Russians be involved in my sister's disappearance?

The task of finding my sister was becoming more daunting and I suddenly questioned if I could do it on my own. 

“I need to get out of here,” I muttered more so to myself. 

I made it all of two steps before Eric’s large frame blocked the doorway. 

“You’re not leaving until I know for a fact you’re not linked to these two,” he crossed his arms over his chest. 

Scolding myself for letting my gaze linger on his thick arms, I narrowed my eyes up at him. 

“I already told you. I don’t know them,” I said through gritted teeth. 

“Until my guys finish running a background check on you, you’re not going anywhere. Especially like that,” Eric nodded towards the dried blood covering me. 

“Did you say you’re running a background check on me?” I nearly yelled. 

He shrugged. “I don’t know you and you still won’t tell me how you got in tonight. So you could save us all the trouble and just tell the truth.”

“Are you going to let me go if I do?” 

Even though my head was held high and eyes were narrowed at him, my voice shook with undeniable fear. 

Eric’s eyes raked over my body, a smug smile on his face. “Depends on what you tell me.”

Gnawing on my bottom lip, I glanced around the room at Eric’s guards who were busy cleaning up; dragging the bodies away and scrubbing the floor with bleach. The severity of what exactly happened tonight was beginning to bury itself deep inside of my bones, the fear making me sick to my stomach again. I could feel the bile rising in my throat again so I swallowed a few times in an effort to keep it down. 

“I don’t know you,” I finally spoke while looking back at Eric. “How do I know you won’t kill me?”

“If I wanted to, you would have been dropped dead on the floor the second you stepped foot into my office,” Eric answered without an ounce of remorse. 

I blinked, mouth agape. “You-you kill people?” 

Eric stood unmoving in front of me, a thick wall of muscles, and his silence was the answer to my question. My palms began to sweat and I took a step away from him, all the blood draining from my veins. 

“I’m leaving,” my voice was meek. 

“No you’re not. Not until you tell me what you were doing in my club,” Eric grunted. 

Not even giving me more than a few seconds, his grip was tight around my elbow as he all but dragged me out of the room and towards his office. 

“Let me go!” I yelled while digging my heels into the ground. 

“And have you run off? I don’t think so,” Eric snorted. 

As we neared his office, he was about to toss me inside when someone else appeared in the doorway making Eric curse and putting me behind him. Due to his height, I couldn’t see over his shoulder so I peered around his shoulder to see a leggy blonde leaning against the doorframe, dark red lips pulled up in a smile. 

“There you are! I’ve been looking everywhere for you for our celebratory fuck because of your win tonight!” 

I internally frowned at the feeling that festered low in my gut. It was unfamiliar but began to burn when she took a step towards Eric, which in turn made him take one away, bringing me along with him. 

“How’d you get in, Lindsey? I have you blacklisted ” He said, voice clipped. 

The blonde rolled her eyes. “I can’t believe you blacklisted me over a misunderstanding.”

“A misunderstanding?” Eric’s shoulders tensed. “I caught you snooping through my computer and you proceeded to lie to me when I confronted you about it.”

“You think you saw me,” Lindsey held up a finger. 

“I have you on video surveillance,” he replied bluntly.

That seemed to shut her up as Lindsey crossed her arms over her chest. “Well, I wanted to see you. So what do you say when we head back to my place?” 

Eric’s grip had loosened around my elbow while he was talking so I took it as my opportunity to quietly slip away, doing my best to ignore the stupid and annoying feeling stabbing my gut. 

Why the hell was I jealous? I had no right to be. I didn’t know her or Eric. 

I only made it a few steps before Eric’s hand shot out to grab at the nape of my neck, yanking me back to him. 

“Nice try,” he breathed against the shell of my ear. 

“You seem busy,” I said, ignoring the way my body ignited with a blaze from his grip on the back of my neck. “I don’t want to get in the way of your booty call.”

Something flickered in his dark eyes. “Are you jealous? Want me to bend you over and fuck your tight cunt instead?” 

I swallowed thickly when my core ached at his vulgar words. Never in my life had a man talked to me this way before. So why was I so turned on by it? 

“You’re disgusting,” I tried to fight against him which only made him tighten his grip on the back of my neck, yanking me towards his chest. 

I glanced up at him with my best pissed off expression as nipples brushed over his bare chest through the thin material of my dress. I bit the inside of my cheek at how good it felt, not wanting to let the moan slip from my clenched lips. 

“You didn’t say no,” he said with a smirk. 

“Did you want to?” I blurted. 

What the fuck? Why did I ask him that? I didn’t care to know if he wanted to fuck me or not.

Eric’s eyes flicked up and down over my body again. “Tempting. I must say, the dried blood on your skin is making my cock hard.”

“Can I please go home? I just want to leave,” I begged quietly, changing the subject away from the images of him bending over. 

Truth be told, I was exhausted. I had no idea what time it was and wanted nothing more than to crawl into my bed in hopes of forgetting everything that happened. Also, the earlier revelation that Eric may have killed people made me want to run far away, never looking back.

“Stop fucking asking that,” he muttered under his breath while dragging me back towards his office where Lindsey continued to lean against the doorway; her eyes flaring when she noticed me. 

“Who’s this?” 

“Get the fuck out of here, Lindsey,” Eric demanded and wrenched her out of the way. 

Her protests were hushed by him slamming the door in her face before he swung on his heels, pointing a finger at his couch. 

“Sit.” 

“Fuck you,” I snarled. 

Something flickered in Eric’s eyes as his upper lip twitched but instead of saying anything, he forced me to sit on the couch ignoring my protests. 

Like previously, I sat on the couch while he sat on the edge of the coffee table in front of me. His thighs were spread wide on either side of my closed legs, almost as if he was blocking me in. Eric was still shirtless and I forced myself to keep my eyes on his, not wanting to get caught taking in the sight of his abs. 

He doesn't have a six pack. That man has an eight pack. 

Scolding my inner thoughts, I played with the ends of my dirty dress. 

“So,” Eric’s deep voice broke through the quiet. “How did you get an invite to my fight club?” 

I chewed on the inside of my cheek, contemplating whether or not to lie to him but knew that in the end, the only way I was getting out of here was giving Eric what he wanted. 

Not everything. 

“Uh,” I cleared my throat while sitting up straighter. “Some unknown number texted me with the address and a picture of a bloody crow.” 

Eric hummed. “The Bloody Crow invite. Only specific people on the list get that invite.”

“Do you think you could figure out who sent it?” I asked. 

“The list is over two hundred people long.” 

Not knowing what to say, I nodded. I’d been curious as to who sent me the text earlier today. There were only two people who knew about my search for my sister and that was my dad who was dead; he killed himself shortly after my sister went missing so unless he was contacting me from beyond the grave, it wasn't him. The other was the detective assigned to my sister's case and something told me he wouldn’t be sending me somewhere where I could find out more info about the case than him. 

“Why did you come here tonight?” Eric asked. 

I hesitated for a beat, not knowing if I could trust him with my search. But maybe if I gave him a little bit of information, he could point me in the right direction. 

“My sister,” I said. 

“I don’t have any female fighters.” 

I shook my head with a sigh. “No, she’s missing. Has been for the last six months and I’ve been looking for answers.” 

Eric’s left brow rose. “Isn’t that a job for the police?” 

I snorted. “The police haven’t done shit. They gave up after a month. Everytime I try to get updates, I’m directed to voicemail after voicemail of cops who could care less. So it’s up to me to find out where she is.”

“What makes you think she’s still alive?” 

My heart sank at Eric’s words. I knew there was always the possibility that my sister would be dead, especially with how long she’s been missing, but I refused to think that. I would find her and when I did, she would be alive. 

“I don’t,” I answered honestly. “But I’m not going to stop looking for her.”

“You think she came here?” Eric asked. 

I let out a long sigh before easing back into the couch. “I doubt it. Illegal underground fighting rings wasn’t something she was into.” 

“Who said I run an illegal establishment?” He asked with a mock hurt tone but then his face turned serious. “Do you have a picture of her? Maybe I can recognize her.” 

My knee brushed up against his, a surge of static flowing through me, but I ignored it. 

“How can I trust you? You could lie to me just to throw me off course,” I said with furrowed brows. “I don’t even know you.”

Eric scratched at the tattoos on his chest and shrugged. “That’s right, you don’t. And I don’t know you. But you stumbled into my fightclub. Someone sent you an invite for a reason. Which means one of two things. Either it wasn’t meant for you or I have a mole inside my club.”

“The text said I could find answers for my missing sister here so I think it was meant for me.” 

“Well, then it looks like I have a mole,” Eric’s jaw clenched, a vein on the side of his forehead prominent with a deep shade of purple. 

I motioned to my purse that was still on the table next to Eric. “I have a picture of her in my wallet.” 

Once he rifled through my purse to find the picture, he stared at it for a long moment before shaking his head. 

“I’ve never seen her before.” 

“I’m starting to think this was a dead end. Whoever sent me that text did it to throw me off,” I said. 

Silence fell between us, our deep breathing echoing in the room, and I took in the sight of Eric’s office. It wasn’t big by any means, just a desk with a chair, a couch, and a punching bag in the corner. There was a closed door behind the desk to which I assumed was a closet. 

A rough knock sounded on the main door to his office and Eric called over his shoulder. “Come in!”

One of his guards peered his head inside, hesitating when he saw me sitting on the couch. Eric noticed but instead of kicking me out, he nodded towards the guard urging him on. 

“Uh, boss. We reviewed the tapes and we got something.” 

“What did you find?” Eric asked while rising to his feet. 

I didn’t bother to move, only slink further deep into the couch. 

“Ms. Y/L/N was telling the truth. She came alone and as soon as she saw you fighting in the cage, she tried to leave but ended up in the room with the two bodies. She was in there less than two minutes, not enough time to kill them.”

“Told you,” I grumbled under my breath while crossing my arms over my chest. 

Eric glanced down at me. “Did I disgust you that much during my fight?” 

No, not you. 

“I don’t like violence,” I stated with a shrug.

He hummed before looking back at his guard. “What else did you find out?”

“Whoever the two guys that caught here weren’t that slick. While they were chasing her, they ran into direct sight of the cameras. We got a good look at their faces.”

“And?” 

The guard shifted on his feet before running a hand over his face. “It’s bad.” 

“Worse than the head of the Russian mob being murdered in my club?” Eric retorted back. 

“Worse like they are Roeg’s men.”

A slew of curses fell from Eric’s mouth as he rested his hands low on his hips, the black gym shorts he still wore from his fight hanging even lower. He began pacing the length of his office and I watched with slight fear in my eyes, heart beating rapidly. 

“Who’s Roeg?” I dared ask. 

Eric ignored me, turning back to his guard. “How sure are we that they got a good look at, Y/N?”

“They didn’t get a good look at me,” I said. “The room was dark.” 

“Are you positive?” He directed towards me. 

My lips parted to speak but quickly I snapped them shut when I realized I wasn’t entirely sure if those two men actually saw me or not. 

Running a hand through his hair, Eric went over towards the other door in his office and opened it, pulling out a hoodie and a pair of sweats; him obviously keeping extra clothes in there. He tossed them to me with a pointed finger. 

“Get dressed. Leave your bloody clothes here so we can burn them.” 

“Why?” My voice shook as I held the clothes to my chest. “What are you going to do?” 

“Are we clear?” Eric asked his guard. 

“Yeah,” he nodded. “We did a full sweep of the building and the grounds outside. Roeg’s men are nowhere in sight. Jackson is reviewing the tapes from the backdoor to see how they got in.”

“Send me the footage as soon as you get it,” Eric said and then grabbed a shirt from the closet, throwing it on. “Didn’t I tell you to get dressed?” 

I slowly stood from the couch, still holding the hoodie and sweats close to my chest. “Why? What’s going on?” 

“You’re leaving. Go home and never come back here.” 

Eric’s words should have elated me, finally being able to go home, yet I continued to stand in front of him unmoving. Something in those bright eyes gave way that he was keeping secrets. 

Instead of arguing, I let out a long sigh and nodded. “Trust me, you’ll never see me here again.”

“Good. You can get dressed in here and one of my guards will walk you to your car.” 

He walked towards the open door of his office, muttering something to the guard, but my voice called after him. 

“What am I supposed to do if one of those guys shows up again?”

Eric paused for a moment, contemplating something in his mind, before stalking back over to his desk and ripped open a drawer. 

“If something happens, call me,” he handed me a card with his number on it but held it back before I could grab it. “This doesn’t mean you can text me asking me what I’m doing or what my favorite color is.” 

Narrowing my eyes, I snatched the card from his hand. “Trust me, Eric. You’re not even my type.” 

Liar. 

Ignoring the voice in my head yet again, I held his gaze for a solid three breaths before he let out an amused noise and turned swiftly on his heels, hating right in the doorway. 

“A piece of advice?” Eric called over his shoulder. “Stop looking into your sister's disappearance. You’re going to get yourself killed.”

[fun-k-board]

MARVEL RIVALS - Christmas time!!

Characters included: MAGNETO, SCARLET WITCH, LOKI, STORM, MOON KNIGHT.

Note(s): This includes a lot of headcanons because I'm not sure the full lore and characterisation of things like the X-Men, what version of Moon Knight they're going for, what have you. So, I'm doing it on what I prefer from various comic runs, movies, shows, etc over the years. Some are a little lackluster because of this.

MAX EISENHARDT / ERIK LEHNSHERR / MAGNETO

Erik personally doesn't celebrate Christmas, and that's due to the religious connotations of the holiday even if it's become less Christianity based over the years. But, he doesn't mind the excuse to give you a gift and spend time with his family if you do celebrate. Even if, at this point, the 'family' is just you and him.

He won't put up decorations if you're spending Christmas at his house or if you share a house, he won't wrap the gift, he won't have Christmas themed dinners or anything, but he'll always accept your gifts and give you one back if, as mentioned before, you happen to celebrate. If you don't, he most likely won't give you a gift or mention it as the holiday's existence will simply slip his mind. More of an afterthought than anything else.

Of course plenty of mutants on Krakoa celebrate, and plenty don't, and plenty have a weird in-between where they participate but don't really celebrate. So, it's not entirely out of sight out of mind. In all honesty, Erik is just happy mutants get a chance to have any holidays alive and happy with one another at all.

If you prefer to go all out for Christmas, as in all the things he wouldn't do that I mentioned before, Erik wouldn't mind. All he asks is that you leave both his room and the public parts of your home alone. Assuming you share a room, then he plainly asks that you don't decorate it, but if you must, to keep it at a minimum.

If you don't share a house and he's simply spending holiday time at your house then he politely comments on the decorations, maybe giving a bit of backhanded and passive aggressive sass if he thinks they're ugly. But, it's your home. It's not his place to say what goes and what doesn't.

Speaking of that situation, if you have family staying at your house for Christmas / you live with family, he's very awkward, and I don't believe he'd go at all if nobody in the house is a mutant. Erik doesn't doubt they know of him, it'd be strange if they didn't, so I think you two would give him a secret identity for your families safety. He'd be very silent and still during opening presents, with a dash of silent judgment.

I don't think he'd outright refuse to help you with decorations, he'd do that old man thing where he stares at you with a huffed look on his face until you ask him for help, in which case he mainly uses his powers if there's metal involved. Sometimes he'll say something like 'really my dear, did you truly need help or is this an excuse to spend time with me?' But hey, he's pretty tall so if you happen to not be tall, he's a great help!

I think he'd gift you something like jewellery, metal, but also with other things like, well, jewels. He wants something simple, but that shows heartfelt meaning. It's covered in intricate patterns, perhaps ones that reflect your place of origin to show that he loves you, even where you were born.

Erik's eyes tilt up, following your lingering gaze. He nearly lets out a laugh at the mistletoe hanging above you, but it comes out as a small huff. 'what a silly tradition.' he'd hum, before leaning close and giving your lips the most unsatisfactory peck he's ever given them. At your look, whether outwardly dissatisfied or with only a hint of disappointment in your eyes, he'll act like it wasn't purposeful, sighing as if this is some chore as he leans in for another. But you know him well, you know that hidden loving look in his eyes.

WANDA DJANGO MAXIMOFF / SCARLET WITCH

Wanda, for the reasons in Magneto's section, also doesn't celebrate Christmas. Although, I don't see her continuing on any holidays in general or family traditions, her broken connection to her father most likely created a fractured connection to anything associated with him. She just doesn't seem like a 'holiday' person to me.

However, if you two either happen to share a house or she's at yours in time for the holidays, she doesn't mind helping you put up decorations or helping you cook for Christmas. If you have family, she's doing a mix of doing what she can to impress them whilst refusing to do anything that makes her go past her comfort zone.

I absolutely think she's a good cook, and if she doesn't unintentionally hijack the kitchen, she will help whoever's in there. Whether that be you or your family. Any attempts to tell her that 'you're a guest' and 'you should be relaxing' are met with a wave of the hand and a small, awkward smile. As much as she does just love to help your family assuming they're sweet and accepting of her, she also is very peculiar with food. I think Wanda would make her own side dish just in case.

Honestly, I think she would invite Pietro and Lorna if you and them are close enough? She knows Christmas is a family event, and since that's her family, why not invite them, right? She hopes you see them as your family too, because they've spent too long without something stable. Even though deep down she does have some love for her father, although maybe not as deep down as she thinks, she doesn't want to and would never contact him for Christmas with you and especially not with your family.

Wanda loves to do that thing where she hugs you from behind, absolutely astounded that she has you. She's astounded that you love her, and that you appreciate her so much. Not many do, and she can't help but find so much comfort in that. I think she'd do it whenever she gets emotional but doesn't want to show it, a hug from behind to tell you that she's hurting, but you're helping her heal.

Wanda doesn't like the feeling she gets when opening presents in front of your family, especially if they've given her something. It's usually something they've got an idea from after asking you, so maybe a candle or something handmade, and as much as she appreciates and even loves the gifts she's given it's still a weird almost performance she needs to put on. The feeling isn't as uncomfortable as it is just a bit awkward.

I think she'd only give you a gift if she knows you're getting her one, through communication. She won't ask what it is or peek through your mind to find out, she doesn't really care what the gift is exactly, and she trusts you enough to gift her something she likes and would find useful. I think Wanda does love little mutual acts of affection, so she wouldn't miss out on an opportunity to give you something.

Her eyes flick up before yours do, and Wanda can't help but give you a small chuckle, the most amused look in her eyes that you've ever seen. 'oh? Isn't this convenient.' she purrs, her hand outstretches, capturing your own in a comforting embrace. She whispers, 'I can't believe I got so lucky, my love. You're wonderful.' before giving you a short but comfortable and loving kiss.

LOKI LAUFEYSON

Loki thinks your celebration is more than a little silly. I mean, who cares about this guy who gives presents to kids? Why not the adults? He does far more in a day than some snotty brat has done in their entire lifetime!

Oh- he's not real? Well, then where are his presents, mortal?!

He will say that even if you're not a mortal by the way. It's his personal way of saying 'you're under me and I'm perfect compared to you' without actually saying it.

He absolutely refuses to stay at your house for Christmas if you have family over, because he knows that he will cause mischief and you will get angry at him for it and he would rather you gift him your devotion than be under your wrath. Don't tell him he could kill you easily, he knows that, and he will if you keep pittering on. (He won't). Unless, perhaps, you don't have the best relationship with your family. Then he can probably convince you that it's fair game.

Loki will not invite Thor or Hela, don't even entertain the idea. He will leave.

I think he'd give you a dagger of some kind for a present, even if you're a regular Joe and don't have a use for weapons, you can always display it. And have an engraved stand that tells you your mighty lover, Loki, God of Mischief and notoriously handsome trickster, had gifted you it for your silly holiday.

He will not help you cook or put up decorations unless you literally beg him to, even then he can mainly do some pieces of meat at least decently well. It'd be best to have him do some parts of the cooking while you're preoccupied with the other. He tends to only help with the decorations he knows you'll struggle with, although he won't tell you that outright it's pretty obvious. Especially if you're shorter, less strong than he is, or have any kind of physical disability that could cause trouble with putting up decorations.

Will puff up his chest and grin when you compliment his efforts to help and or compliment his gift. He loudly proclaims that of course he'll give you something so beautiful, because he's beautiful and he very clearly has taste. But, you simply couldn't ignore the way his gaze softened a little when you were speaking. The way you could feel his eyes looking you up and down with adoration.

Loki raises a brow at your expectant look, slowly following your gaze until it reaches the mistletoe. Oh, you've explained this to him, the strange little kissing ritual you midgardians have. His expression twists into something different, his eyes sparkling with mirth, but he doesn't go right in for the kiss. Instead, he holds your chin in his hand, pulling you close until you can breathe in each other's air. 'what a silly mortal.' he mutters, making you tilt your head so he can kiss you. He doesn't intend it to be a small peck either, his kiss is as deep and passionate as you allow it to be.

ORORO MUNROE / STORM

Ororo finds amusement in your tradition, the decorations, the gifts, it makes her heart warm. It's a time for family, and she reminisces over the X-Men's past Christmas times. It's never dull, lots of mutations being used when they're not supposed to, frequent arguments and drama, it was perfect. Not to mention, always the best meals from Gambit and Rogue. She adores the look on the younger mutants faces when they receive something special.

And, in her personal opinion, she's the best gift giver in the X-Mansion.

Ororo would absolutely help make meals, and she jokes that she's not as good at it as Gambit or Rogue are, but she'll try her best. She then proceeds to make one of the best meals you've ever had. It's perfectly flavoured, the texture is just to your liking, it's absolutely delightful. And if you're spending time with family? Expect her to go all out.

Your family will adore her, no doubt about that. No matter what the situation is, whether you and Ororo share a house, you live on your own, you live with family, or you and your family visit the X-Mansion for the holidays. She charms them with her sternness and discipline, her strength unimaginable, but her warmth and friendliness is what truly seals the deal in their adoration for her.

Unwrapping presents tends to be a long process for the X-Mansion. There's a lot of people there, so it's normal to open them all at once and try to get it through as quickly as possible, cleaning as you go with trash bags at the ready to throw in any waste. With a whole family, or perhaps just you in the mix, it can be a bit awkward and even a little overstimulating if you're not acquainted with the X-Men. She's never felt the need to pretend, so she assures you that you don't need to be happy the entire evening because Logan isn't and everybody still loves him, you'll be fine.

The one thing Ororo loves to do most is listen to you. Whether it be generally your life, what you had for breakfast, a story from your childhood, it creates something easy where she can bounce off the conversation with something of her own. It continues the conversation until either of you end it, and causes the conversation to flourish where it would've died otherwise. She uses this to find out what present you'll want for Christmas, so it'll heavily depend on what you actually want.

It honestly doesn't matter what you get her, she'll be appreciative all the same. She knows just how hard it can be to afford things, to create from seemingly nothing, no matter how much effort you put in. To her, the fact you gave her a gift at all is something meaningful within itself. So, even if it's some poorly made easily breakable bracelet, she will wear it with pride.

When she finds herself under the mistletoe with you, her lips curl into the most amused smile and she'll use her powers to twirl the leaves, a teasing hint to her true might. 'was this your plan all along, my dear?' she'll ask, leaning closer, waiting for you to capture her lips. If you take too long, however, she'll raise a brow and mutter a teasing 'don't test my patience' before kissing you herself.

MARC SPECTOR / MOON KNIGHT

Marc is, well, he's not the most jolly guy, and it's been years since he's even bothered to tune into Christmas time when it happens. It's not like he has anybody to spend it with. He would much rather you spend Christmas with Steven or Jake, they're better at that kind of thing, and they're a lot more friendly, buddy buddy with you.

Of course Marc loves you, and if you really want to spend time with him for Christmas he will do it, but he isn't going to act differently for you. He will be the same edgy, broody man. He will absolutely say something like 'the Christmas lights are too bright, it ruins my outfit.' in the gruffest voice you've heard.

I think he'd be a good cook. Nothing that blows you away, but you can definitely eat enough to get full and be satisfied with it. Jake probably leaves some recipes around, and if it does end up becoming a disaster he can always take over and salvage the situation before the house burns down.

He doesn't mind the house being decorated, assuming it's either his or your shared one, as long as it's not like so many Christmas lights it's hard to see or so many decorations you get whacked on the face with them whenever you want to walk somewhere. He'd also help if you asked him to, but I don't think Marc would just hop on and help. He'd assume you have it all covered.

I don't think there are many universes where Marc would consider meeting and visiting your family for Christmas, especially not the Marvel Rivals one. If you're really insistent and passionate about it, he supposes he can. But don't expect him to stay for long if they're not accepting of you or him, he doesn't have any tolerance for that. Plus, he doesn't want to hear Khonshu complaining in his ear that he isn't committing murder while he's around your family, they don't get him or his Identity as Moon Knight like you do.

'Mistletoe, huh?' he muses, his voice would sound almost annoyed to anybody else, but you know him better than anybody else. Or, at least most other people. He crosses his arms as you look up and realise, clearly having forgotten at some point. With his expression a strange mix between a firm sternness and amusement, he pats his lips with his pointer finger twice. 'you put it up, you initiate.'

[loredrinker]

Is it weird that I take a kind of perverse delight in discourse that can’t stop criticizing Solas and, in particular, the Solas/Lavellan romance world state?

There are plenty of players who reject 'Solavellan' for their own reasons, many of which I understand completely - and most just go on their merry way, playing the game their way and not giving a second thought to it. But others... can’t seem to let it go. Despite claiming to have no interest in the story or proclaim a deep dislike for it, they remain preoccupied by it. And honestly? I love that.

Solas and Lavellan living rent-free in people’s minds is proof to me the writers have hit some kind of nerve. And isn’t that what we want from stories? To feel? Whether it’s good or bad or disgusted or elated?

One of my absolute favorite fandom phenomena is the emphatic declaration: “Not my world state.” A sacred incantation. A verbal sage-smudge meant to ward off emotional investment in a narrative one claims to disdain.  In the case of Dragon Age - it’s often a Solas and a romanced Lavellan.

And yet…still the critical posts come. Still reblogging. Still writing 3,000-word critiques about a character some allegedly don’t think about or a pairing that people find...problematic. Fascinating. Because if it truly wasn’t their world state, why not just ignore it?  I can so easily ignore any world state that I don’t resonate with.  I also can easily read great meta, enthusiasm and critiques on various world states that I don’t subscribe to but can appreciate and learn something new all the time.  

I genuinely believe in everyone finding joy in the game they play. Sincerely. There’s more than enough pain in the real world - we all deserve our escapes. So play your way. Love what you love. Let the rest fall into the Fade. (I appreciate those who do post very respectful discourse and criticisms without resorting to insults.)

But yet

…yet

... some linger. Some rage. Some cry “cringey romance trope” and some cry “horrible misrepresentation” with the same intensity Solas cries “vhenan” during post-Veilguard sex with Lavellan. And that’s okay. Because, to me, it means they felt something.

If people are still talking about it - still critical of it, still dissecting - the story got under the skin. It touched something raw. It stirred something.  Maybe it unsettled a sense of what a “good” fictional romance looks like or what forgiveness looks like. Maybe it made someone feel uncomfortable. Maybe some resent how powerfully others have connected to it. Who knows!?

But stories - especially emotionally and controversially charged ones like Solas and Lavellan - rarely seem to leave people untouched. They provoke. They unsettle. They inspire.

The writers should feel flattered. It means the story had teeth. It left a mark. Some connect with it and lean in. Others don’t and abhor it. But either way, they still let themselves be tethered to it. The effort poured into disliking Solas and Lavellan I see at times only confirms how potent the story really is. Why spend so much time dissecting something that didn’t affect you?

One of the biggest misconceptions about the Solas and Lavellan story is that it excuses Solas (ok, maybe some fans do). But what makes the story so compelling to me is what’s found in the contradictions. It doesn’t ignore Solas’s flaws - it stares them down. Because stories of love can exist in tension with truth. And they can be messy as hell. 

I like the tension. I like that Solas is morally grey, sometimes cruel, sometimes tender. I like reconciling that contradiction - not to absolve him, but to explore what love looks like when it exists alongside pain, grief and betrayal. I don’t need him to be perfect to find his story compelling. And I don’t need Lavellan’s love to be easy or pure to see its value or symbolism. 

And it doesn’t threaten me that he’s flawed or that their love story is flawed. I’m comfortable holding both truths at once: that he’s done harm, and that he’s capable of love. That’s where the story lives for me. Lavellan’s response to him is also complicated and her own imperfection doesn’t diminish the story (and it is just a story after all).

This is not fandom criticism believe it or not (well, maybe? But like, with affection). Like I said, I delight in it. If anything, it just deepens my love for Solas’s story and for Inquisitor Lavellan’s - and their journey together.  It challenges me to dig deeper into understanding what resonates with me.

There is a little secret voice in my head that thinks, if people who dislike it so much are still talking about it, still trying to tear it down - then maybe they are living in the same world state as me after all. 

And I do so enjoy the company. 

[ancientnapdragon]

While I'm finalizing my rough draft for the food peak au, I might start doing a significantly shorter little fic based on an idle thought.

So, like, SY is the biggest LBH apologist to ever exist. But what would it take to make SY hate him? I mulled it over for a while and allowed evil seeds to take root in my brain.

It's gunna be omegaverse cause I feel like that can add some Flavor but I don't think it'll be super like sexualized. It's more an excuse for me to get parent SJ cause I'm still obsessed with him.

Some very rough ramblings about the vague plot and some of the characters below this read more!

How to Break Shen Yuan's Heart: kill his dad.

EZ. Fic over. Read More done!

Okay okay there is more than that.

SY is still a transmigrator but it's like repressed. He just does and says weird things sometimes. People just think he gets that from his mom. He's an Omega and grows up (mostly) on QJP.

His dad is SJ, who is an Alpha. Shocking, I know, since SJ is a very good MILF. But I think he deserves it for being my precious boy. SJ still has this like shit reputation before he gets Omegaverse Married. Which has this whole backstory to it. People 100% believed he forced himself on...

LQG, who is an Omega. Mr Bai Zhan is out here kicking all sorts of ass. The reason they "got together" was sort of a fuck or die thing on a mission, but it worked out. Somehow. Anyway, he is SY's mom. Usually, in cross-Peak births, the mother's Peak would take in the baby, but BZP is too dangerous and LQH away on hunts too often. So SY is mostly raised on QJP.

SJ is a Good Dad. SY knows both his parents love him and would do anything for him, but SJ is like Prime Dad Material. Everyone is kinda weirded out when they realize that Mr Catty Trauma Bitch and Mr Grunts for Communication made such a sweet kid. SY has no idea why people dislike his dad and is like his number 1 defender.

SY is a little overprotected because he's kinda sickly but he's clever and been working on training and stuff since he was a kid thanks to having two Peak Lord Dads. He can be a bit of a badass in this AU since he deserves it and we're putting him through a villain arc. What good is a weak ass villain??

So, SY lives on QJP and is like 11 when LBH is taken in as a disciple. They bond really quick and become friends! SY is still super oblivious tho that lil Alpha Binghe has a crush on him. I don't think any of the greater abuse happened because of SY, but there is still tension and some built up resentment for SJ from LBH by the time the alliance conference happens. SY finally gets a clue and gives LBH like the smallest good luck kiss and makes him promise to be safe and come back. But of course SY still pushes him into the Abyss and there is that whole thing.

SY is heartbroken 💔 but not in the way I WANT just yet. The stuff like LBH is in the abyss happens where he and SQH meet ZL and the seed stuff happens. (SY still doesn't know he's a transmigrator tho, SQH is just his weird uncle). The QJCity stuff happens with SJ getting accused and thrown in the water prison by LBH with his Trauma Encouraging Sword. SY is furious and, when he finds out it was LBH who did it, goes to HHP to confront LBH about it.

They get into like an argument over it and SY flatly rejects LBH's offer of a proper courtship since they're both of age now. LBH has been saving himself because he wanted SY to be his first and only. SY slaps him, says he hates him, and then runs off like crying.

THIS IS WHERE MAJOR CANON DIVERGENCE STUFF STARTS TO HAPPEN?? MORE SO THAN ALREADY??

SY runs off and ends up in the forest again where he first met ZL. And ends up in the cave like crying and hiding and upset. He doesn't wanna go back home because no one is doing anything to help his dad (they are, but SY doesn't see any of that). He ends up meeting ZL again and SY basically cries on his ugly snake form and like spills his guts about everything. He doesn't think that ZL can respond or anything!

Except when it's clear that SY is just gunna huddle up here and suffer, ZL starts to like feed him and brings him notes and stuff sometimes. The notes explain they're being transcribed by someone else but they're (mostly) ZL's words. SY gets curious and asks to meet the mysterious person. ZL is unsure but eventually shows him this tunnel system he's made for himself to slither through. SY has to like crawl through it and suffer claustrophobia before he ends up in this weird dark chamber. A man, who looks real fucked up, is like being crushed by all this stone. SY can only see his hands, feet, and head. The guy introduces himself as TL-J and even if he looks really bad he's at least still alive!

Some bonding stuff happens. SY like half lives down in that weird hole with TLJ and ZL and keeps tp himself. ZL will go and get them food and sometimes venture into town and hear rumors that TLJ will repeat back to SY (since he can't speak snake). One day TLJ repeats back something thay chills SY's blood: his dad is dead and it's LBH's fault. He has a breakdown. He has a qi deviation. He goes sicko mode. With the power of anime and bloodlust, SY takes some (demonic) Cultivation guidance from TLJ and breaks the array keeping him down there. They all run off together to go reclaim the Southern Throne in the demon realm. (And ZL finally has his cute body! Yay!)

Meanwhile, LBH DID kill SJ but it like wasn't 100% his fault. His mental illness eating sword has been ravaging his mind since SY rejected him. Demons started assaulting the area in full force around HHP (thanks ZL!) And it's all chaos. He's gotten MBJ under his thumb with his blood parasites but he's not gotten control of the rest of the demon realm yet. The demons seemed to be targeting SJ specifically, which makes it harder because LQG has ALSO been trying to bust in at all hours and save his husband. LBH went to SJ to try and force information out of him and had a Qi Deviation when SJ refused him. Then SJ exploded his Core to try and kill them both, but it didn't work exactly as planned. So LBH ended up having to leave since now he's accused of murdering a man waiting for trial (which kept being out off because of the attacks) and colluding with the demons who had been trying to break into the prison.

QCS does get SJ's body back this time, and SY is missing, and LQG is like constantly aggressive and causing problems. SQH is burying his head in his hands because how did his story end up this way?? MBJ visits him and and reports that there are problems with the Southern conquest. Two very powerful demons and their Cultivator pet are chewing through every feeble alliance they've managed to make and reclaimed territory like it's nothing. And those two demons? Also Heavenly Demons...

Okay so this is ABOUT as far as I've gotten in mulling stuff over? I have some loose threads on how I want it to end. SY is gunna go full like evil mode for a while tho. I think it would be really fun if maybe HE was the one who tried to combine the realms instead of LBH or TJL cause of how insane he gets for a while. I also like the idea that maybe ZL and TLJ aren't AS interested in being leaders so even if TLJ is TECHNICALLY the Southern Emperor, everyone refers to SY as the Empress (even if he's not claimed or married to either of them) because he's usually the one to handle stuff for those two. Putting all that cunning his dad taught him to work.

Plus, imagine being Binghe and finally beating your way into the throne room and you're crazy with heartbreak and grief. And the person sitting on the Throne is the guy who shattered you heart. Fucked up.

I think it will, ultimately, have a happy ending... but not without a super ton of angst first. Because I DO love me some angst.

Oh, and MOST IMPORTANT FACT, is that YQY is also an Omega cause he gets to be cucked from getting SJ in every way cause I'm evil.

OKAY TY FOR READING MY SLOP HAVE FUN EXPECT THE FIC EVENTUALLY LMAOOOO

[corkinavoid]

Obsessed With You by Cosmicandy

Theater gothic/Phantom of the opera

(For some horrific reason I couldn't think of a trope)

DPxDC Phantom in the Opera

9/2 sat

Went to Gotham City Opera to see Eugene Onegin with B & Dames. The performance sucked ass (as modern takes on classics usually do), but during Tatyana's aria, some tech guy dropped a rubber chicken from catwalks right on stage. I bet it was on purpose since the lead's voice sounded much similar to the sound that chicken made. Wish I could shake the dude's hand, that was truly the crescendo of the whole scene.

15/2 sun

Came by GCO on the way to WE. Had some time to spare, so decided to go in and find the rubber chicken guy to thank him for the laugh last week. Thought he might appreciate the positive feedback since he was defo yelled at for the stunt. Turns out everyone blames it on a 'ghost'. Using 'Phantom of the Opera' as a cover story is poor taste, in my opinion, but on the other hand, it worked, and who am I to judge.

17/2 mon

Got curious and pulled up the records of GCO employees. No one matches the guy I've seen on the catwalks.

18/2 tue

Blackmailed Damian into drawing the guy. No match through the face recognition program. Should have expected that, really; the one cute guy with a sense of humor I meet (or see, actually), and he doesn't exist.

20/2 thur

Can't stop thinking about the rubber chicken guy. Might have to go back to GCO and ask about the whole ghostly rumor. Last time, no one bat an eye at the 'ghost' excuse, now that I think about it. Has it happened before? Is it a go-to explanation for any prank no one wants to take credit for?

26/2 wed

Visited GCO at night. Seen the guy, but the cam footage came back corrupted when checked downstairs. So maybe the fact that his hair was floating and glowing in the dark was not a hallucination.

27/2 thur

Definitely not a hallucination! Good news: got a sample. Bad news: after analysis, the data also came back corrupted. Weird news: the hair keeps glowing even after it's been cut off.

2/3 sun

The guy's name is Danny. Ghost story confirmed. I'm having a crisis.

4/3 tue

I'm not sure if I want to know absolutely everything there is to know about him or I want to forget everything I've already learned. But then, I've already got so far. Might as well commit to the bit?

8/3 sat

Was invited to see La Traviata tomorrow. Can I still call that reconnaissance, or am I in date territory?

10/3 mon

...it was a date. On an entirely unrelated note, Teddy Hyde ruined all my attempts at coming prepared.

18/3 tue

Heard a new rumor among GCO staff members. They suspect the ghost in their opera is having a crush on Red Robin. Not sure where they've got that idea, but it sure took them some time to notice.

19/3 wed

Damian keeps staring at me at dinners. Maybe I should take that portrait of Danny that he did down from the wall over my bed.

22/3 sat

Going on a date today, and this time, it's definitely a date! Feels like I should be having a crisis over dating a ghost, but somehow, I'm only having a crisis over outfit choices.

61/0° gBs

hEy, yoU're keEEpinG a DIary¡ aboUt Me!¡ ThAt"s cuTe FUCK OFF DANNY THIS IS PRIVATE INFORMATION GET OUT heHeheEhe no~

~•~•~•~

The thing is, I loved the song. And I loved the aesthetic. And I had such a goddamn hard time figuring out how to fit them together; I went through at least three different setups before deciding fuck it imma write silly boys being silly and wish for the best.

Dare I say it turned out cute as fuck, even though I still missed the mark on theater gothic aesthetic for the most part. Anyway, have a few pictures for general vibes!

[Just so you know, if you enter 'sex with a ghost' into google, the first few results will be the lyrics to 'Sex with a Ghost' by Terry Hyde, which is why Tim's research has been rather fruitless]

[microknifeyuri]

i find it genuinely sad that people only talk about misogyny on the ii fandom when it comes to defending taco but no one goes over the way people treats most of the female characters which is like ACTUALLY misogynistic and the actual issue. i went over taco's thing a lot of times already but i'll also cover it here. like lets see how people treat women on ii briefly.

like have you seen how people treat suitcase. how she's often treated as a kid/constantly forgotten as a person outside of using her as a weapon to villainize a guy that does want to fix things with her. have you seen how little care people put on her. have you seen how they only remember that she exists for suitloon or barely even have anything to comment on her

have you seen people talking about candle outside of her being hot or outside of silvercandle? have you seen how people LITERALLY villainized her because she wanted to take care of herself? have you seen anyone say anything about her on a deep way? have you ever seen people focus on the way working with silver affected her outside of "silver doesn't deserve her"?

have you seen how GENUINELY HORRID people were about cabby winning s3? how they still SOMEHOW made it about silver? how people were incredibly ableist towards her? how they still kept going on how cabby wasn't an actual good person? on how she didn't deserve the win?

have you seen how mic, the character that genuinely has the best writting in the whole show, only gets talked about to completely miss the point of her arc AND ONLY for shipping, completely disregarding her growth as a person? completely forgetting that her story is one of growth and healing?

have you seen how people sexualized test tube to the point where she's only seen as a hot scientist or as a weird gal who's a freak instead of focusing on the fact that she's someone who heavily struggles with mental health and making connections? like people simped a lotttttt for her when she was having a whole breakdown because she was going to lose her friend, and no one really focused fully on those aspects of test tube's character.

have you seen the overall way people treat lightbulb? she's just a shell of her character for the fandom. she's genuinely so so deep and interesting but she got fully downgraded to just nonsense on fanon takes.

have you seen how people treat taco? have you seen someone even focus on her as a character outside of her being a "hot villain"? have you seen anyone actually get what she's going through? have you seen anyone wanting her to get better but also not forgetting what she has done? have you seen anyone actually understand why she can't get a redemption arc on the traditional sense? have you seen anyone not immediately go to defend her when taco herself does not want to be excused, nor does she think she should be? have you seen anyone getting that she's a complex character and that they can still enjoy her without having to excuse her actions? have you seen anyone ACTUALLY getting why taco needs to let go of ii and not make up with the people she hurted? have you seen anyone treating taco on a reasonable way? have you seen anyone treating her as fully capable of doing bad things but also capable of getting better if she really does try? have you seen SOMEONE that actually CARES about taco outside of her being attractive?

my point is. the ii fandom is rooted in misogyny, yes. but it is not because of people preferring other characters or what not. sure there MIGHT be some cases in which that's the thing, but most of times it isn't. the fandom is genuinely overall horrid about women and don't actually focus on them outside of being hot either. like i have once seen someone who genuinely hated candle but simped for her because her violence was hot in ep 17 and like. that's Not Really Good.

and most of the fem characters that aren't deemed hot or don't have anything to hate them for get often ignored (ex. pepper, soap, clover, etc). also don't get me started on how MOST OF THE TIMES THEY JUST HAVE TO give women a familiar relationship with a male character to which they happen to have a positive relationship with on hcs (ex. Candle and Yinyang being hced as mother/sons, Cabby and Yinyang is the same case) which uh. you know. it doesn't really sit right with me

you can think a woman character is hot/attractive and also care about her. you can like a fucked up woman as well while also not justifying her actions, it won't make you a bad person. like personally i really really love microphone and find her attractive but at the same time i genuinely care about her story and how much she's a story about growth and finding yourself, alongside with other people. a lot of the stories of the women charas are ultimately about growth and finding themselves on ii. and i think all of you should be focusing on the depth of a character instead on whether a character is hot or not therefore we can define if they deserve to be treated with decency, like that's ever done anything positive anyway

!! THIS POST IS NOT LOOKING TO CAUSE TACO RELATED DISCOURSE. KEEP THAT SHIT TO YOURSELF. THIS POST WAS MADE AS A FORM OF CRITICISM ON HOW LITTLE PEOPLE ACTUALLY CARE ABOUT FEM CHARACTERS ON II WHILE ACCUSING OTHERS OF MISOGYNY SO DELIBERATELY. IF YOU GET OUT OF TOPIC I'LL BITE YOUR HEAD OFF (NOT A SERIOUS THREAT BUT BY GOD BE DECENT) !!

[gaylordscooter]

[A pile of carefully torn-out pages sit stacked neatly inside a drawer]

entry number 1

I've lost everything. my brother, my friends, my house, my universe. all of it is just gone now

to top things off, the last thing i was doing was running away from temmie. i thought they were my friend, but after they got the six human souls somehow, they went on a rampage and started killing the remaining monsters left and right.

the only reason i escaped was because this otherworldly being dragged me through a body of water and brought me somewhere else.

this being's name is ink, they're a skeleton like me—they even look like me.

It was explained to me that my universe shattered from "too many plot holes" and i didn't know what that meant! what do you mean my world has too many "plot holes" it's not like it's a STORY.

WELL APPARENTLY IT IS A STORY. AND I DONT LIKE THINKING ABOUT THAT FOR TOO LONG.

So anyway, alternate realities are in fact real and there's a whole multiverse. Cool. Awesome. I just want to go home and for everything to go back to normal

But apparently my universe is completely gone, it doesn't exist i'm the only thing that remains from it. while there are some universes that have parallel realities mine was the only one if it's kind.

COOL. AWESOME. I'M BEING NORMAL ABOUT THIS.

IM THE ONLY THING THAT REMAINS OF MY UNIVERSE. MY UNIVERSE DOESNT EVEN EXIST ANYMORE. WHERE AM I SUPPOSED TO GO. WHAT DO I EVEN DO? THIS "INK" PERSON IS WEIRD

When I was freaking out about my universe being GONE, he gave me this notebook and pencil to "calm down"

HOW IS THIS SUPPOSED TO CALM ME DOWN?! NOW I'M VENTING TO A NOTEBOOK WHILE HE STANDS THERE WATCHING ME FURIOUSLY WRITE!

entry number 2

It's been a day since my world was destroyed, I already miss my home. I've been missing my friends and brother.

At least Ink let me stick around. I've been staying at his place along with someone else named Dream, but I have yet to meet him since he's never here. It's comfy here, at least. I even have my own room (which looks suspiciously close to my old room actually. i think ink did that on purpose, maybe to cheer me up? i don't understand him).

Right now's around the time I'd study with Undyne, actually...well. at least i don't have to worry about getting into the royal science division.

Papyrus isn't around to read this. I feel bad that I've never told him this, but

I never really wanted to join the Royal Science Division. Even though I acted like it was my dream, it wasn't. I wanted to learn more about space.

but of course that's not possible when you live in the underground. (i guess that's not really a problem anymore? this doesn't make me happy)

and we've always been low on funds. the pay for it was too good to pass up. I've stolen so much just to keep us afloat. I was good at hiding that, though.

Too good. Maybe I should've told Papyrus once he was old enough. He never knew why I was kicked out...

How would I even tell him? There's so much I haven't, because I don't know how to word it.

"By the way, brother! Mom and dad didn't exactly like me 'trying to be someone who i'm not' and disowned me like i disowned my name! That's why we grew up in a scrapyard."

[there are various scribbles and dots here]

"You didn't have to follow me, y'know. you could've lived with them instead of stubbornly staying by my side it would've been easier"

no i wouldve missed him. even if it's selfish i'm glad he tagged along. he was always there for me

i wish i could say the same. I SHOULD be able to say the same but i CANT what poor excuse of a brother am i?

maybe. no. they'll never be right.

entry number 3

I met Dream for the first time. He's really. unique. I know he's dressed like someone straight out of an anime but I didn't expect him to ACT like someone straight out of an anime!

The way he talks, the way he moves. There's something uncanny about it, honestly. He also looks on the brightside like that's the only direction he can look. When he heard my universe was destroyed? Told me at least he's glad it's led to me meeting him and Ink??

Like No Offense To You Two But I Don't Think Losing My Entire Universe Was Worth Meeting You Two.

That's not to say I'm not glad to meet them! I am glad! Just not at the expense of my home and everyone I love!

wait when have i ever watched anime? where did i even learn what that means? it was one of my friends—or acquaintances that introduced me to it, surely. Why can't I remember?

I need to ask Ink something, maybe. hopefully he'll know.

entry number 4

so a consequence of my world shattering is that it's really easy to forget about it. because it doesn't exist.

after ink told me that, i can hardly remember anything about it.

it's like there's a big gap in my memory and all i remember is that i'm forgetting something.

like my scarf. i know there's a sentimental reason i wear it. there was something about it. something about the material it's made out of i think?

Entry number five

i had a brother his name is papyrus

i had a brother his name is papyrus

his name is papyrus. he's my younger brother

don't forget him. don't mistake him for the other papyruses in the multiverse.

he woreWhat did he wear? what was he Like? oh my god what was he like

papyrus. don't forget him. he isn't like the other papyruses in the multiverse don't use them as a point of reference don't let them replace whatever memories you have left of him.

"he isn't like the other papyrus's" HOW CAN I KNOW THAT FOR SURE? I DON'T REMEMBER WHAT HE WAS LIKE

entry number 6

The more I learn about the multiverse the more my memories of my universe are skewed. Also I learned (or, heh, remembered) I have memory issues in general on Top of the whole "universe not existing means it's hard to remember" thing.

So that's great

I was being a bit of a downer because of the revelation and Ink caught on so he asked me what was up. I decided to tell him, even though I thought he wouldn't really get it since he doesn't seem to be bothered by anything ever.

Oh man was I wrong. He completely understands

He also has memory issues. He told me he was soulless—which wow, I'm surprised he felt comfortable telling me—which really messes with your capacity for remembering things.

Even though he uses paint as a substitute for a soul, it doesn't fix his memory issues. So instead he writes stuff down on his scarf. He suggested I should do something similar, write down important things.

He told me that even if I can't necessarily hold information in my head for a long time, if I can hold it in my head long enough to write it down, that's enough.

It was reassuring.

entry number 7

Dear Papyrus,

I've seen a lot of different places in the past few days, places I wouldn't ever imagine seeing. Some of them are pretty, some of them are a mess. It's a bit hard to wrap my head around it, how small we are in comparison.

I already thought space was big, learning there were multiple universes made me feel even smaller. But even so, out of everything I've seen. I have yet to find a world like ours.

But if the universe is infinite, the amount of multiverses should be too, right? Another version of our universe, one that hasn't disappeared, has to be somewhere.

I'll look for it.

I'll find it.

I don't want to pretend to be talking to you through letters. I want to see you again. There's so much I have to tell you.

All the lies I've told you. I thought I was protecting you. I was really just saving myself the trouble of explaining everything.

i miss you, bro. i'm sorry i'm the one that made it and not you

entry number 8

i lived in a house with papyrus in snowland sity. i remember it was spelled like that specifically for the sake of alliteration, even though it'd still count as alliteration if it was spelled properly anyway.

i was an intern for the royal science division, papyrus was too but he wasn't all that serious about it. i was friends with the head of it, undyne.

she was real big into gundam anime and tried making those mechs a reality. i helped her with that so i have some experience in robotics and mechanical engineering.

she was able to build at least one functional robot, their name was blookbot. they were the underground's biggest music artist. i was a pretty big fan of their music

i went to college and got a degree in psychology. i was supposed to go to medical school, but, i either failed my classes or didn't make it in i think. or maybe i couldn't afford it.

there were a few humans that lived underground, under queen toriel's care. she had a polices about not killing humans which some monsters didn't agree with, including her own (now ex) husband who thought she was prioritizing humans above her own people. technically she was prioritizing humans, in a way, since we kinda need their souls to break the barrier—but hey all those humans fell down as kids im not gonna blame her for deciding against killing. and those humans specifically weren't to blame for us being trapped underground, it was unfair to fault them for it.

there was a group of monsters that did take action against these policies. the rebels, they called themselves. it was a straightforward name. they managed to kill some of the humans that's fallen down, specifically the ones that decided to leave the safety of queen toriel in favor of finding a way out.

while the amount of monsters that were apart of the rebels was pretty low, there's always been a threat of a civil war over the queen's policies. the main thing preventing it was that everyone was very much aware that a civil war could spell the end of monsterkind. so the monsters that disagreed with her policies kinda just, went deeper into the underground and were left to their own devices.

temmie was my friend. i thought. they were...a peculiar being. not quite human or monster, they were a sentient plush toy. they were very vocal about thinking queen toriel was dumb for not just killing every human that fell underground and that if she did, we'd have enough souls to break the barrier by now. but to my knowledge the rebels only have two souls in their possession and there's five that live with queen toriel. we'd be missing one

hah! i remembered all that! fuck you, multiverse!

hopefully this information is accurate. god

entry number 9

MY NAME IS NOT BLUE. ITS SANS HOW THE HELL DID I FORGET THAT???

Ever since my universe was destroyed Ink's been calling me "blue" like that's been my name my whole life and i ended up forgetting that it's NOT!

GASLIGHTING! ME!

Only reason i remembered was because someone called me sans while we went out to a different universe to eat.OH YEAH SPEAKING OF THIS UNIVERSE

It's SIMILAR to mine, not quite the same but it feels much more familiar than the other ones have so far

they're called "Underswap" universes, because some people "swap" roles and personalities with someone else.

Ink calls my universe "Botchedswap". not that flattering of a name but i suppose it makes sense now that ive seen underswap

so like. is my universe just a "botched" version of that universe?? or variant, that's what ink calls them

variants are universes that derive similar traits to the "main" universe they're based off of. so like, botchedswap is an underswap variant since it's based on it. BUT WHO IS BASING IT ON UNDERSWAP? WHAT EXACTLY DOES THAT MEAN? IS SOMEONE WRITING THIS? IT'S A STORY. THATS WHAT INK TOLD ME

i haven't really thought about how this is all a story after ink told me. i've kinda been avoiding it. it's like my mind automatically yanking my hand away from the stove, it's hard to think about it

i guess im sorta not supposed to know about that?? i mean. this is like some horrors beyond my comprehension probably. definitely, what the fuck do i mean probably?

so if this IS a story. i'm a character in it then? I'm probably a background character aren't i? i probably hardly even show up. who's the main character? would it be ink? oh then i probably wouldn't be a background character at that point.

That's so weeeird. If i was a main character that'd mean a lot of people saw my every move! Horrible! Or i guess not, why should i care what the hypothetical audience thinks about me?

Geez, there is an audience, isn't there? Unless this story's private or something.

I'm writing something down right now and im in a story. That's pretty weird. What if I wrote a story then? That's a story in a story, would that make that story more fictional than me?

wow im a fictional character.

The dread's not really hitting. Is that because i'm unable to or because i actually don't care that much? Is the writer of the story controlling my every move. What does this say about my capacity for free will. What does this say about everyone who isn't "on-screen"?

WELL. GOING OFF THE IDEA THAT I AM NOT A MAIN CHARACTER. THAT MEANS IM NOT BEING WRITTEN ABOUT THEN. WHICH MEANS THE WORLD DOES CONTINUE ON EVEN WHEN THEY AREN'T IN THE STORY.

OK MAYBE THE DREAD IS HITTING. IS THE AUDIENCE LOOKING AT ME RIGHT NOW? CUT THAT OUT!

WOWZERS, I AM A FICTIONAL CHARACTER. ok what do i do with this information. this is weird. im not supposed to know this right? well, ink told me so i guess it's allowed???

quick write something to show i have free will. uhhh what was that saying. from uhhh that one human. rene descartes?? is that how you spell his name. there's an accent on there somewhere

cogito, ergo sum

yeaaahhh yeah. i leaned that phrase from my philosophy class. i dont fucking remember what that means, go me

entry number 10

Wowzers, it's been a second since i opened this thing up! Welp, I'm in a much better spot now. Kinda embarrassing reading back on these entries now.

These are pretty personal too. I don't really wanna continue writing entries like this, I was never big on diaries cus I hate reading back on them.

So I ripped these pages out! I can't just waste the rest of this journal, the paper's pretty good quality. plus it's a gift from ink technically

But I can't just toss these pages out so I'm putting them in my bedside drawer. I'll probably forget I did that so this is sorta like a time capsule, I suppose.

So if i have rediscovered these pages, Hi! Hello! Future, hopefully-even-more-well-adjusted-me! Probably shouldn't destroy these pages because they have important memories written down in them! Push past the cringe of seeing me in agony! Or rewrite some of the key stuff, i dunno.

If you are not Blue, Sans-from-Botchedswap The Skeleton,

FUCK OFFF!!!! BARK BARK BARK BARK!! STOP READING THISSSS IT'S EMBARRASSING COME OOON. or hi ink, i told you NOT TO SNOOP IN MY ROOM!!!

On the off-chance you are not from my plane of existence, uhhh I guess i can't stop you? And i guess i shouldn't care since i won't see your reaction nor can you tell anyone about this so. whatever. go at it, voyeur.

not the right word to use sorry. yeah no. wrong word. not what it means.

See this is why it sucks knowing there's an audience what if i say weird shit!?!? Ughhhh. probably shouldn't care about it, but alas, my feeble soul, i am sensitive that even the possibility of the hypothetical audience thinking im weird hurts me so

[valkyrieslut]

My harsh SJM opinions

-- I disappeared for a minute, but I'm back and ready to shit talk sjm books again. --

Rowan vs. Chaol: 

If you can forgive Rowan for punching Aelin and being vile towards her, you can forgive Chaol too.

Nesta's New Family: 

Hating Nesta for finding a family that understands her more than her biological family is weird. She hasn’t disowned her existing family; she’s added to it.

Valkyries and the Rite: 

Claiming the Valkyries shouldn't have won the Rite because it's unrealistic makes me laugh. THAT is where you draw the line? Really?

Character Behavior vs. Plot: 

SJM writes weird, shitty plots, but that doesn’t excuse the characters’ behavior. Rhys fingering Feyre in a place for SA victims was, yes, a weird plot written by SJM, and it still makes him WEIRD.

Rhys and Hypocrisy: 

If you claim Rhys couldn’t have sa’d Feyre because he was sa’d himself but then say Nesta’s abuse doesn’t excuse her ‘abuse’ towards Feyre, go sit in the corner and think about your hypocrisy.

Rhys in ACOSF: 

“Rhys only looked bad in ACOSF because it was in Nesta’s POV." Rhys looked better in Nesta’s POV than in Cassian’s. He is the problem.

Nesta and responsibility

Nesta did not neglect Feyre. You cannot neglect something that is not your responsibility.

Nesta antis

Nesta antis who bash her and bring her up in any circumstance are weird as hell (especially in vids talking about how ACOSF helped someone’s mental health).

Valkyrie Hate: 

Hating on the Valkyries is weird. Emerie and Gwyn are LITERALLY the least problematic characters in the entire SJM universe. 

If you don’t like Gwyn because you ship Elriel, try respecting women for more than their potential partners. And then going and fucking urself :)

Amren Sucks: 

Amren sucks as a character.

That’s it. That’s the opinion.

If I hear ‘girl’ one more time, I’m burning the book.

Feyre and SA: 

Saying Feyre wasn’t sa’d because it saved her life is WEIRD.

sa is sa regardless of the circumstance. Are we forgetting that Rhys admitted in ACOMAF that he kissed her because he was jealous, and in ACOTAR when he said the only reason he didn’t take advantage of her was so Tamlin wouldn’t kill him?

Minimizing SA so you can love on an attractive man is problematic and gross. Please don’t talk to me if you do that because, EW BRO UR GROSS.

[angelfoxx]

┊ ➶ ｡˚ ° “…US?”

…in which their feelings for you become apparent.

FEATURING: simon “ghost” riley, john “soap” mactavish, & keegan p russ I AM SALIVATING

WARNINGS: suggestive, but nothing nsfw. yet 😇 also so sorry i write k**gan’s name and i just get fucked up. i just can’t behave myself. so i lose my mind a little in his section eek

NOTES: excuse my rather small starting lineup; i’m still new to the game and all of its lore and i’d rather get to know the characters first rather than make horrible headcanons based off of their fanon interpretations. you know, like making a six foot ten war criminal dresses in a fucking executioner’s hood a little uwu baby

— SIMON “GHOST” RILEY.

✧ Everything I see on TikTok regarding this guy makes him seem like a fucking demon in the sheets. I really don’t get that vibe. Especially not at the start of a relationship.

✧ The first time you meet, he thinks you’re attractive. And then he pushes that thought aside, because he’s a soldier. He’s actively at work doing a high-risk, high-stress job. You’re attractive, yes, but he’s not going to pursue you. This is not the right time for that.

✧ Things develop after…like, a long ass time. And it’s not sexual in the start. It’s, like…you’re cleaning your gun down after a mission, and you get a clean rag thrown into your lap. You look up into those hollow soulless fucking eyes and Ghost just shrugs, not meeting your gaze but instead just vaguely gesturing at your gun. “Your rag’s dirty. You’re rubbin’ dirt int’a the thing.”

✧ It’s small things like that. Things that are helpful but always laced with a comment that could be considered sort of rude or abrasive. He doesn’t notice; he only realizes that he’s coming off as rude and probably pushing you away after he makes a comment on your form being lazy and Price, sort of quietly laughing, asks why he’s so insistent on snarking on you. He replies that mistakes like yours could get you hurt. Which, they could. But so could everyone else’s, and he doesn’t make comments about them. So…?

✧ Phase two of him trying to…hit on you? Exist with you? Who fucking knows. Anyways, he just stops talking. He’ll still throw you clean rags, but he won’t make a comment about how using a dirty rag is ruining your gun. He’ll still make a point out of sweeping fallen food and shit off of your spot at the table after you eat, but he doesn’t grumble and scoff at you not to waste anymore. He resorts to silent acts of service to the point where it gets annoying. He’s always quiet, but now he’s unnervingly quiet and honestly, is it still him if he doesn’t catch you for random things every now and then?

✧ The silent stage can go on forever, so a catalyst really saves you. The catalyst comes when a new recruit gets a little too aggressive; a small argument about your ability on the field turns into a minor brawl. Aforementioned brawl immediately ends when the recruit dares to put their hands on you and shove you and Ghost, like some six-foot-one demon cast from the pits of hell, appears behind you and gets very up close and personal with them. Asking what the hell they think they’re doing, asking if they think that’s a good way to have a team on the field, et cetera, et cetera. Basically, he makes the recruit feel like absolute shit. Oh, and he doesn’t look at you the entire time.

✧ So, obviously, now you have a weird situation at hand. You’re getting ready to go to sleep and everyone’s sort of looking at you funny, because there’s no reason for a fucking lieutenant to jump in and break up an argument like that—pulling people apart, sure, but not so suddenly and not so aggressively. The recruit hasn’t spoken to you. Ghost hasn’t spoken to you. So, anyways, you pay him a visit.

✧ You go down to say thanks, and for some fucking reason, the guy can’t take a compliment. Or gratitude. He says you were slower than the other recruit, that it’ll get you killed on the field, et cetera. He can’t just shut up and take the thanks.

“I’m telling you, I…I came down here to thank you, of all things. Can you cut the criticism one time and accept it?”

Ghost stiffens. It’s not a thousand-yard stare anymore. It’s just a wide, pissed-off glare. For a long minute, he’s silent. And then…

“Welcome.” His voice is grumpish. “Happy?”

“Sure.” You manage a little smile. It’s sort of funny; he can’t just take your thank you and drop it. “It’s improvement.”

Ghost nods once, albeit stiffly. “Okay.”

“…so, you gonna tell me why you did it?” You ask it as a joke. You aren’t dumb. You know he wants you gone. You’re expecting a harsh “get out” or something of the like. You aren’t expecting an answer.

“Disrespect makes ignorance. Ignorance makes casualties.” Oh. An actual real, reasonable answer. Surprising. Ghost himself seems a little surprised; he blinks owlishly again, and he doesn’t say anything else. He’s just a big guy standing in a little room with a skull mask on.

“Oh.” You swallow. “That’s…rational.”

“Were you expecting irrational?”

“No. I wasn’t expecting anything.” You scoff. “You’re not exactly chatty.”

“I don’t waste words.” Ghost’s eyes narrow. “I’m not dumb.”

“I didn’t call you dumb.” You shrug. “I’m just surprised you gave me an answer that wasn’t bitching at me.”

“I don’t bitch.”

“You do.”

“I’m not a sixteen-year-old schoolgirl, recruit. I don’t bitch.”

“Even Price thinks you bitch. At me, at least. All the time.”

✧ Price thinks he bitches at you? And he’d told you? Oh, no, no. Externally, Ghost is stiff and stoic. Internally, Ghost is shitting bricks. Price had told you that? Straight-up told you that? Oh, no. You and Price talk and he comes up in conversation? Oh, no, no, no.

✧ He addresses this with Price, obviously. Storms in all puffed-out and pissy and asks what the hell he’s doing gossiping about his soldiers and Price just sort of laughs him off, asking what he’s talking about and then why he’s so upset that he’s bringing up one of his best men to one of the recruits.

✧ Oh.

✧ Ghost swears up and down it’s not like that. He swears and he bangs the side of his hand on the table and he curses on his own heart that it’s not like that but the whole time Price is laughing because in all of the years that he’s known Simon, not once has Simon broken through Ghost. But now, he has. The stumbling over words, the defensive aggression, the way he’s pacing so furiously—oh, Simon Riley is melting down inside that big mask and it’s equal parts heartbreaking and hilarious.

✧ Cue Price becoming a wingman. Ghost swears he’ll kill him every time he puts you two together to spar or puts you two on cleanup duty or god fucking forbid you’re in the doghouse doing some foul task and Ghost has to watch you. God fucking damn the captain, because he knows Ghost will grumble and complain but with you, he’ll eventually stop that in favor of helping you. And it’s sort of heartwarming for him to do his nightly rounds and it’s all quiet but there’s voices coming out of the kitchen and he can hear Ghost in that gruff, grumbly tone telling you how to mop and you snidely telling him that if you can’t do it right, then maybe he should do it instead. And he objects, of course, and then within ten minutes Price watches Ghost’s shadow come up to yours and he hears the mop change hands.

✧ It takes you a long time to realize that you’re really being assigned to Ghost’s side for every fucking thing you do. It takes you an even longer time to realize that Price tends to pass by you two on occasion, and every time he does, he’s smiling. And it takes you a ridiculously long time to realize that Ghost isn’t always radiating heat; whenever he takes the mop from you or takes the gun you’re cleaning from you, whenever he finishes off a task that you’ve started, it’s not that he’s always that hot. It’s that, under that mask, he’s flushed.

✧ It takes you a very, very long time to realize that the legendary Ghost has taken an actual liking to you.

— JOHN “SOAP” MACTAVISH.

✧ Thank fucking god this guy is next. Slow burn ass Ghost makes me want to rip my eyes out. Just have passionate angry sex and talk about your feelings after. Christ.

✧ It’s not exactly a secret that the minute you arrived on base, you gained an admirer.

✧ Soap isn’t someone who rarely gets hooked on someone else. The guy’s a walking heart eyes emoji. The difference with you was that it wasn’t the kind of attraction that had him sweet-talking you over drinks that night.

✧ This was different. Rather than chase, Soap wanted to impress — and, well, he tried. He tried his fucking hardest. He tried so hard the other higher-ups noticed. How embarrassing.

✧ Every time you’re in the room, he somehow gets even chattier. His voice drops. If he’s working out, he starts loading weights onto the bar he’s using to an almost comical degree. He loses his fucking mind. It’s like he short circuits. Which is ridiculous, because he’s a fucking soldier. What the fuck is he doing trying to lift five hundred pounds on a Tuesday morning? Why is he freaking the fuck out?

✧ The thing is, right, is you’re not exactly hovering over the guy. You have your own agenda to adhere to and also, it would be really weird if you just started laying praises on him, so you go about your day as regular and poor Soap is left heartbroken and also achy-armed because you literally could not care less that he’s lifting double, triple his body weight.

✧ Literally every higher-up notices. They make jokes about it and he borders on threatening friendly fire. It’s just a little crush. That’s all it is. Yeah. And so when you’re all doing team sparring and you keep winning, he’s just watching you like a lovesick puppy because it’s just a little crush. That’s all.

✧ Price can’t have his soldiers slacking off. Of course not. He can’t have them getting lazy — so he orders Soap to go up against you. Because, you know, he seems out of it and you’re the best of the recruits, so you’ll go against someone better. Yeah. That’s why he calls him out.

✧ God bless the poor guy. He panics for like three seconds and then makes a very thickly-accented taunt about how it’s unfair to you to go up against him. You, of course, in the spirit of good fun, reply to his taunt and tell him to prove it.

✧ He goes into the circle with you. He goes into the circle with you and he fucking falls apart.

You’ve quickly learned that talking is Soap’s weakness. If his mouth is moving, his feet fall behind.

“Get enough sleep last night, MacTavish?” You dodge a flying fist. “You look a little sleepy.”

“Got plenty.” A wry grin crosses his face. “Don’t worry about my beauty sleep.”

“I have reason to. You need it.” You wrinkle your nose. “Bad.”

Soap’s jaw drops slightly, and — there! — he hesitates. Probably out of surprise, but it’s enough. Deftly, you lunge in at his knees, swipe them out, and…hm. Simple. Almost too easy, actually, to pin him.

Soap’s heart is pounding under your hand. His chest is flat against the ground, but you can feel it through his back, which is wild in and of itself. He grunts when his cheek hits the ground; he mumbles something akin to “bloody hell”, but you can’t quite make out the words.

Grinning, you sit back and kick your heel up against his neck, keeping his head pinned down. The cheering you receive mostly comes from recruits who are impressed with your skill.

The minority is higher-ups, exchanging amused glances. They seem awfully humored with the sight of one of their own being pinned so easily by a new recruit. Hmm…

✧ From that point on, Soap somehow manages to watch more of your sparring sessions. He usually just watches, rather than critique; if you ask, he’ll just say you certainly seem to be doing fine. If you ask for help, though, he’ll help you. Christ, he’ll help you. He’ll genuinely spend time assisting you on whatever is troubling you.

✧ Eventually, after a long training day, you decide to ask Soap to join you in the ring. You genuinely just want to see how you stack up to a “better” opponent; you’ve apparently pushed beating him to the side. Or you just want to do it again. He doesn’t think of that, though.

✧ He’ll come in (after teasing you just a bit) and he will spar with you, just giving you advice and pointers mid-action. He’s whipped, but he’s also still a trained soldier. He knows what he’s doing, and once he gets through the brain fog you seem to weigh down onto him, he is genuinely helpful.

✧ Still, after you’re both hot and panting and finished and resting on the sidelines, you have to ask him why he helps you so much. You have to ask if it’s because he thinks you’re lacking, or bad, or if it’s some sort of personal vendetta for that one time in front of the recruits and the higher-ups.

✧ Soap just laughs and, rather awkwardly, rubs at his neck. He avoids eye contact, and he bites his lip, and he tilts his head around before he dares answer you, tone sheepish. “Consider it a, ah, personal interest.”

— KEEGAN P RUSS.

✧ SHITS MYSELF VIOLENTLY. SO SORRY

✧ i love this fucking man so very much and i don’t know jack shit abt him because i need to play ghosts and get the first hand experience like I don’t want to spoil his character but I URRRGHHGGGGG

✧ imma try to do him justice but sorry if im missing on important lore

✧ He’s not as uptight as Ghost, but he’s not as whipped as Soap. He’s somewhere in the middle; he’s aware that you’re attractive but he does push it aside. He’s working. You’re working. He doesn’t have time for that, and it’s also a safety concern. He remembers what they did to Ajax, and god fucking forbid they try to pull that shit with anyone else to use as bait.

✧ When he’s at base, he’s busy. He’s devoted to his work and he doesn’t cut corners to chit-chat. The most social he’ll really get is at dinner; he’s the kind of person who will eat with the group, but rather than talk, he’ll really just listen. he’s me fr fr

✧ Getting to know Keegan is sort of awkward because he’s just not super outgoing. He’s attractive (if your radio is on and you don’t buckle at the knees the first time you hear his sexy deep pantywetting voice over the thing, are you even real?) and he’s got the whole mysterious quiet guy thing down, and yet when you approach him to try and strike up a conversation with a simple question (“So how was your day?”) he’s prone to just looking at you and raising a brow and answering sort of flatly. (“Same as every other one. What, did something happen?”)

✧ Most of your bonding actually occurs when it’s just the two of you. You’ve bumped into him late at night before — sometimes he’s at the range shooting targets and fiddling with a variety of weapons, or sometimes he’s in the kitchen scouring the shelves, or sometimes he’s in the gym working out when nobody is there to bother him and ogle his fine ass fucking body holy shit his thighs. He’s a little easier to talk to at night, actually. Maybe it’s the lack of a crowd, but the first time you stumble into him making himself a pot of fucking tea at damn near midnight, he actually seems friendly.

“What are you making?” For a moment, you panic, thinking that you might’ve just scared the shit out of poor Keegan by speaking so suddenly and from behind where he’s standing beside the sink, a little humming kettle in front of him. His shoulders god his fuckinf shoulders i want to lick them don’t so much as twitch, though — and then you remember the guy’s entire job is stealth and observation. Hell, he probably heard you across camp.

“Tea.” Yeah, he couldn’t sound less concerned. His voice is as low and gravelly as usual; he sounds a little more relaxed, actually, not so brash and shout-y. “Chamomile.”

“Sergeant Russ drinks chamomile tea?” You laugh a little, sort of tentatively. You two aren’t strangers, but you’ve only had a few conversations…if you can call brief exchanges conversations, of course.

“…yeah?” Keegan actually sounds confused; it’s dark in the kitchen, but you can make out the outline of his head turning over his shoulder. “What, you got a problem with that?”

“No. No, sir. No problem.” You shrug. “I just didn’t peg you to be the chamomile tea type.”

“Didn’t you?” The short scoffish bark Keegan lets out is a brief laugh. “What did you peg me for?”

“Dunno. Black, I guess.”

“Are you calling me boring?”

“No.”

Keegan hums in response to that. He busies himself with pouring his tea and thank fucking god your eyes have adjusted to the dim light in here because god, his fucking hip to waist ratio under that gear is something wicked and you let your conversation slip. You’re in here for a snack, but you don’t want to bother—

“You come in here for somethin’ other than staring?” Oh. Good. This is the Keegan you’d expected after hearing him sass half of his team on comms. You can hear the edge of a grin in his voice; there’s a shuffle as he turns around and then a wooden groan as he leans against the counter. A short second later, you hear the almost exaggerated slurp of tea.

“Crackers. I’m hungry.”

A wooden scrubbing sound. He’s moved over, presumably to let you open the cabinet housing boxes of sort of dry, not particularly good crackers. He doesn’t say a word; he just keeps drinking his tea and pretends to ignore you as you make your way over, crouching down to fumble for a bag of crackers. Pretend, because you can feel that he’s watching you. His presence on the field is invisible; his gaze in the kitchen is not. Still, he doesn’t bother you; he lets you get your crackers and retire to the edge of the counter across from him to snack, and he doesn’t say a word.

“Are you always so quiet?” You gesture vaguely at the slight shape of him. “Is it just part of the job?”

Keegan laughs, more to himself than in response to you. “Sure.”

✧ He is, generally, pretty quiet. His usual demeanor is laid-back and observant; if he’s not under stress, though, and you start talking to him, he’ll respond almost always with something mildly sarcastic. You come to learn that he isn’t actually boring. He’s got a quick sense of occasionally-dark humor. Sometimes he laughs at his own jokes—usually after he’s started to walk away from you. He’s fiercely protective of the Ghosts and any recruits training near or with them. He also doesn’t seem to mind you.

✧ You’d hesitate to say you two were friends — it always seemed like there was something in between you, though you couldn’t name what — but you were friendly, and it was nice.

✧ During group dinners, he’d stand against the wall behind you. Or across from you, though usually doing that meant that he’d make a game out of trying to get you to squirm under his constant staring. He’d run into you late-night in the kitchen and make casual, not uncomfortable, small talk. Hell, at one point he offered you a drink post-training and made a sort of point to always offer you one whenever you had returned to base and were lingering around in the later hours.

✧ After a particularly long day, you find him in the kitchen, just drinking straight from the bottle. He offers you the thing — he seems more than a little tipsy, but when you decline (he’s been drinking directly from it, and…the fuck does army hygiene look like?) he sort of half-laughs and says, sarcastically, “What d’you look so horrified for? Too good to share a bottle, princess?” and then he immediately excused himself afterward.

✧ You know that saying, “drunk words are sober thoughts”? Yeah. Yeah.

✧ i need the fatty part of keegans thigh in my mouth right now i need to bite it i need to bite it and go rrrrrahrhrahrah like a fucking rabid dog

[nightsunecilpse]

I was writing quotes from Luna and like 90% of what he talks about has something to do with Earth. The boy needs more hobbies.

Anyway, here are my favorite quotes and conversations from him.

“Here we go. Arrogant as always. You're becoming just as unlikeable as Venus.”

“ Hey, if I was trying to escape I’d do it right away instead of- How fast am I drifting away?”

…

“ONE CENTIMETER A YEAR.”

“ No, I just think it’s the way things are. But hey, I don’t mind. We should focus less on the fact I’m slowly leaving and instead enjoy the time we still have together.”

“ Hold on, is that an atmosphere? Oh, I’d kill for one of those.”

I think about this conversation between Titan and Luna a lot.

“ Hey, I know you’re angry and anxious after what happened but this is wrong."

Titan-“ What’s wrong with you?”

“ what? Huh?”

Titan-“ Why do you come all this way just to apologize for something the Earth said?”

“ Wha-wh- I don’t know? Wait, we're not talking about me.”

Titan-“ Is the Earth your friend? Does he treat you like an equal?”

“ I mean we’re friends so-”

Titan-“ I never seen the Earth ask you to join his card games. The only time he was nice to you was when he was showing you off. Does that sound like a friend to you?”

“ … Let Astrodude go or I'll come back with someone else.”

“ I can’t believe we beat Ceres. I mean, Mars is so afraid of him, and he’s a planet.”

“ I don’t care about sides. I care about solving this in a way that makes sense. You've changed Titan. I’m sorry you got hurt but you’re going too far. I can’t follow you if this is the path you’re taking”

“Exactly. I’ve seen you through all your phases. You weren’t always like this, you know, you’ve tried more than anyone to develop life, and you succeeded and achieved your dreams. But then you changed. The earthlings took advantage of you. Populated your oceans destroyed your forest, all while trying to search for another place to escape to when they're done with you. None of us been through that.”

“ I don’t know, space can look kinda samey.”

“ You don’t have a moon. It’s not like we’re your property.”

“ Earth.”

Earth-“ Oh hey, look. It’s my moon.”

“ Listen you need to fix your mess Titan was really offended and now he’s-”

Earth-“ Listen, I don't need you anymore. Venus is helping me stay on my axis.”

Venus-“ Yeah! We’re also best friends now.”

Earth-“ Okay, let’s not overdo the best friend thing.”

Venus-“ Right right.”

“ Earth, I know for a fact you care about your earthlings, and right now, Astrodude is in danger.”

Earth-“ I-I”

Venus-“ You heard him Earth’s moon. Sram.”

“ Huh, first time nuclear bombs were used for something good. “

“ I told you he was unstable!”

“ Don't make this about you or your insecurities or your fears. Even after everything that happened, we all want to believe in you.”

“ Pretty good. The Earth and I became closer. He's changed for the better.”

“ Well, things are much better now. The Earth is a lot more conscious about a lot of things.”

…

“ I guess, well I don't know. They never invite me to their card games. The rocky planets are always playing cards and they sort of forget I even exist. I see no reason why I can’t join.”

“ You almost destroyed my planet, Titan! And I forgive you.”

…

“ Look ,I hear you ,Titan, but don't be a hypocrite.”

“ Well, it all began when Titan wanted to meet the Earth. He was a big admirer and dreamed of being like him, but the Earth but the Earth was a bit rude.”

“ Yeah me too. I-I know you all looked up to him so this must be so weird.”

…

“ Earth, if my experience with you has taught me anything, it is that coming up with conclusions based on half-truths is wrong. Do we know enough to say Jupiter is evil? ”

" Since when do you two hang out?"

“ Jupiter, if this is true then you've been protecting the inner solar system for billions of years. You should have said something. I mean the Earth has life because of you.”

Jupiter-“ Does that excuse what I did?”

“ No, but-”

Jupiter-“ Then shut up! Unless the Sun wants me back this is where I'll stay. So leave you- imaginary figment of my core imagination.”

There's no reason to deny it; looking at it all, Luna kinda acts parental. He's also supernaturally forgiving. Luna is very close to Earth to the point he's overly defensive of him. I think it's kinda funny Luna has beef with Venus. The recent clarification of Venus's feelings for Theia gives me an idea of a possible relationship between Proto and Venus.

I have more quotes and notes but these stand out the most to me personally.

[eijakushingomel]

Early Encounter || CRK

••••

Guys I got another idea—

OK. OK. So remember, there are many fics and ideas that the Beasts could see what their Ancient Hero counterparts are doing through their Soul Jams? And then of Shadow Milk gotten into Pure Vanilla's head and slowly corrupted him?

OK. OK. But what if instead of SM corrupting PV, it is PV who does that?

No. Not the Swap AU (they're cool in their own way, btw) but like PV tries to influence SM to be good?

It's just another excuse for me (actually) to do another parent!Beast, because the basic concept is like this;

•For some reason, the Ancients got their Soul Jams at a very young age. PV got the Light of Truth when he was seven, after he managed to influence a group of rebellious children to be honest to their parents.

•After several days of PV trying to get used to this weird-blue-gemstone-that-appeared-out-of-nowhere, he met this weird-blue-jester who acted and is a menace.

•SM on the other hand, after a long thousand years trapped inside a tree with only the void and his cardboard puppets as his companies, felt a connection from the outside world. He learnt quickly it was from his other half, his Soul Jam that was ripped away from him.

• It had been deactivated for so long. To feel such familiar energy activate and pulsing in life means one thing — the Witches had chosen someone to wield half of his Light of Knowledge.

• Obviously pissed off, SM was so ready to meet this guy who got his power. It took him a while to properly connect to his Soul Jam and this... successor of his through mental link.

• He was so ready to mentally beat up the guy who got his Jam. But instead of seeing any old lad or gal (since he thought the Witches would choose someone with a keen understanding of knowledge and magic — an experience mage or scholar), he saw

Aaaand things went on afterwards.

•Of course, manipulating a child wasn't beneath him, so he tried to control PV. Maybe the kid could cause chaos on his behalf. So he tried to lie to the kid that he was a great scholar from a far away kingdom—

...buuuuut got brutally denied by the Light of Truth itself.

"Nah, don't trust this guy, kiddo. He's the reason why I got called as the Beast of Deceit."

"..."

Shadow Milk pointed at the floating gemstone. "You can speak???"

♧♧♧♧

So yeah. It's just the first part. But I really want to make this parent-child relationship between the Beasts and the Ancients.

SM tries to manipulate PV to commit crimes, but somehow, every time he tries, PV turns it into a therapy session. It's kinda funny when you see an old creature that already existed since the beginning of Earthbread receive emotional advice by a seven years old.

SM tries to scare PV away when he gets too annoying by shifting to something scary. But PV is like — aww, it's okay, Mr. Shadow Milk. My teachers told me that the ones who try to hurt people are the ones who are hurting themselves.

Then SM and the Light of Truth are concerned for PV's survival instinct.

So am I, now that I wrote this.

SM tries to tell lies to PV like the Deceit he is. The Light of Truth tries to refute him several times but stops when PV is able to discrediting the false by studying. PV doesn't take offence when SM tells lies about something. Instead, he takes it as an opportunity to study and earn more knowledge on the way. By using the deceit, he tries to gain knowledge to see the truth.

SM is peeved for the first time. But as time goes on and SM has nothing to do but literally stalking the kid, he finds some sort of entertainment in them.

It becomes a game. SM tells lies to test the kid, PV tries to encounter using facts and truth, and the Light of Truth as their referee.

SM is slowly getting attached to the kid without knowing. And seeing the young PV animatedly go on another rant about this new thing he learns, it bitterly reminds him of what he used to be. Back when the Fount of Knowledge was a title of divinity level and everything good. But young PV is also not like him. He's eager and honest. And unlike SM, who told lies because that was what the cookies wanted to hear, PV tells the truth no matter how harsh it is.

Of course, with PV's characteristics, he tries to be gentle with it. But the best medicine is always the bitter one, and for someone so young, PV seems to understand this concept.

Maybe that is why he is chosen by the Witches to be the new pillar of wisdom. To be the one who seeks knowledge (just like SM) and decipher lies (unlike SM).

PV is the same yet different. Maybe that is why the Witches see him as fit to be his successor.

And yadi yadi yada redemption cause I'm a sucker for this parent-child relationship.

There have to be loads of going on, and I can't say for sure if any Beasts fully redeem themselves at least until all Ancients reach adulthood. Maybe they just got softer for them?

Mystic Flour, after getting to know Dark Cacao, still sees apathy as the only salvation for the world. But for him, she tries to hold back from Thanos snap everyone just so he could prove her with his so-called resolution.

Eternal Sugar sees no worth in happiness. But Hollyberry shows her that perhaps there is something that is worth being passionate about.

Burning Spice is still thirsting for destruction and havoc, yet sees amusement in Golden Cheese's greed.

As for Silent Salt, well, silence was his main choice. But perhaps, a little freedom isn't as troublesome as he thinks.

I know I'm making this for fun, but to change some dudes and dudettes who literally ruined cookiekind doesn't seem like something that could be done in a couple of years. So, at the very least (and probably the most), the Beasts still think their choices (apathy, deceit, etc) are the better choices. But they will acknowledge that perhaps there are other choices as well.

A story of where the Beasts learn to see other paths (and be reminded of who they used to be) while also raising future heroes.

I can just imagine Burning Spice tries to give Golden Cheese fighting advice while she is battling some Monster Cakes.

"No, Cheese! You gotta pull your arm back— lower! LOWER!"

"OH MY WITCHES, SHUT UP!"

"Watch out for the sneak attack on the back— URGH! Why did you born with two arms only?!"

"AHH—"

And Mystic Flour occasionally tells Dark Cacao to give up.

"Just give up."

"..."

"That cat won't let you pet it just give up."

So yeah. Then PV and White Lily meet at the Blueberry Yoghurt Academy, and they both find out their Soul Jams kinda related to one another.

"So you got also got a random cookie inhibited your mind?" With only PV who could see SM, he could feel the blue Beast lightly hit him on the head.

Through WL's wine eyes, she sees SS standing behind PV with dark aura looms all over the black Beast. A normal side to see. It means SS is genuinely curious about PV.

"Yeah, pretty much."

[reijisteacup]

imagine a blonde sacrificial bride and reiji is talking about how dumb shu is and she says “duhh its bc hes blonde!” and then she remembers and is like, “oh!!” how would the boys react LOL

LOL

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Sakamaki's

Shu Sakamaki:

He hears it from the other room. Yells, “I HEARD THAT, YOU DUMB BARBIE.” Then shuffles in, lazy grin, flops down on your lap. “You and me both, huh? Guess we match~” He 100% starts calling you his “Blonde Clone.” You’re never living it down.

Reiji Sakamaki:

He’s mid-lecture, glasses glinting with righteous rage, until you drop that bomb. He stops. Stares at you. “…Are you implying you’re also intellectually inferior, then?” He says it dryly. Like he’s begging you to take it back. You don't. You just blink. He sighs, pinches the bridge of his nose, and mutters, “Unbelievable. Two blondes. Double the suffering.” Still makes you tea five minutes later like nothing happened, but he’s pouring it aggressively.

Laito Sakamaki:

GASPS. Overly dramatic. “Ara~ Bitch-chan!! Are you saying we’re both… dumb and sexy~?” Pulls you into his arms. “We should form a blonde alliance and destroy the smarties.” Absolutely turns it into a roleplay scenario later. “Oops~ I forgot my homework, Sensei~” You unlocked a new kink and a new inside joke.

Kanato Sakamaki:

Slow head turn. “…You’re blonde. And you just said that.” He’s silent for ten seconds. Then starts giggling. A weird, unsettling giggle. “Maybe Shu should take you to his dumb corner.” Threatens to dye your hair brown while you sleep. Do not test him.

Ayato Sakamaki:

Bursts out laughing. HARD. “PFFFT! Chichinashi, did you just roast yourself?! HA!” He points. Teases you for days. “You’re lucky you’re cute, dumbass.” But the minute someone else calls you dumb? Ayato’s suddenly grabbing collars and growling, “Only I get to call her that, got it?!”

Subaru Sakamaki:

He stares at you like you just admitted you eat glue. “Did… did you seriously say that?” You nod sheepishly. He puts his face in his hands. “I can’t believe I fell for a blonde bimbo…” …But he’s blushing the whole time. Still squeezes your hand and mumbles, “Don’t say that around the others. You’re smarter than Shu. Barely.”

Mukami's

Ruki Mukami:

His soul leaves his body for a full five seconds. “You…” he mutters slowly, looking like he’s re-evaluating your entire existence. You wait nervously. He finally sighs. “…I suppose beauty has its price.” He immediately starts assigning reading material to help you “balance your radiance with intellect.”

Kou Mukami:

Laughs so hard he drops his phone. “Oh my god, Babe, you really are my sunshine idiot~ I LOVE IT.” He makes you a TikTok with a soundbite of the line. It goes viral. He buys you a shirt that says: “I’m Blonde, What’s Your Excuse?”

Yuma Mukami:

Stares blankly. “…Yer lucky I like dumbasses.” Pats your head like a confused farmer petting a duck. Later tries to explain what “self-drag” means while planting carrots. He still doesn’t get it, but he’s proud of you anyway.

Azusa Mukami:

“…That was… deep…” “Wait, really?” “Yes… it’s like… you understand yourself… and accept it…” (the subtle insult lol) He thinks you’re a philosopher now. Calls you “wise and soft.” Probably starts journaling your quotes.

Tsukinami's

Carla Tsukinami:

The air stills. He looks at you with the slow, precise grace of a man trying to determine if you are joking, cursed, or simply… doomed. “…You realize what you just said, correct?” You nervous giggle “Oops?” He closes his eyes. Inhales deeply like a king meditating through the pain of a thousand plagues. “Even a gem can have flaws. Perhaps yours… is simply terminal airheadedness.” He immediately adds “Blonde Logic Management” to your curriculum. You now have logic puzzles and deductive reasoning games every morning before breakfast. Still calls you “my little sunbeam of chaos” when no one’s around.

Shin Tsukinami:

He chokes on his drink. Falls over. Wheezing. “BAHAHAHAHA! You just absolutely destroyed yourself, what the hell!” He’s crying. Rolling on the floor. “Best. Self-own. Ever.” Points at you for the rest of the day and says things like: “Don’t listen to her, she’s on blonde time.” “The blonde hive mind strikes again.” “She’s cute, but you need subtitles to follow her logic.” But, if anyone else dares insult your intelligence? He bares his fangs instantly. “You wanna die, punk? That’s my dumbass. Back off.”